Christmas parades in Ecuador

A man in a monkey costume led the parade that passed in front of the church. He represented the sacharuna, or the legendary bigfoot/mountain spirit of the Andes. He shook my hand right after I took the picture.









Dancing ladies and men followed him. The men wore flesh-colored mesh masks. One man, dressed in a military uniform, carried a doll and a drink.



What was the purpose of this elaborate parade? The people were honoring baby Jesus in an effort to earn grace and mercy from God. After all the dancers, a group of men in business suits marched, with one carrying a doll representing baby Jesus. People in Ecuador will pray to baby Jesus because they think he is more likely to be merciful and kind than an adult Jesus.

These parades will be repeated many time during the month of December. As I write this, I can hear the music of another parade. I want to stop the parades and shout, "Jesus Christ is no longer a baby! He grew into a man, died and rose again. He paid the penalty for your sins, so you don't have to."

When I share the gospel here, people have difficulty understanding God's grace. The fact that He paid it all, and they owe nothing is hard to comprehend. They spend their entire lives paying for a debt that has already been canceled on the cross.

And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. Colossians 2 :13-14 (ESV)

Snow Days, Andean Style

Severe winter weather is passing across the US. Even my mother in south Louisiana and my son in New Orleans have had snow recently. Here, in the Ecuadorian Andes, we don't have a winter season. It will probably never snow at our house.


However, we had a day of snow last month. The day after Thanksgiving, our family went with another missionary family up Mount Chimborazo, the mountain in the banner at the top of this page. Chimborazo is home to vicuñas, a cousin of the camel and the llama. (Some visitors from Oklahoma called them "long-necked deer"!) We saw several groups of this graceful mountain animal. We drove to the first refuge, a building located at about 15,000 feet above sea level. Mountain climbers stay there and at the second refuge to acclimatize to the altitude before ascending to the peak at 20,565 feet. Patches of snow surrounded the first refuge building.

We hiked to the second refuge (16,500 ft) through snow. The altitude and dry air caused us to stop and rest frequently. As we neared the refuge, snow began to fall. We played in the snow and threw snowballs. The teens made snow angels. At the second refuge, we were greeted by a man who offered hot chocolate, coffee, tea, and the traditional remedy for altitude illness, coca leaf tea. After a rest, we hiked back down to the cars. We drove back to Riobamba, leaving the cold and snow behind us.

We don't have winter, but we can experience snow and ice with a 45 minute drive.

Like the cold of snow in the time of harvest is a faithful messenger to those who send him; he refreshes the soul of his masters. Proverbs 25:13 (ESV)