After two years of ministry in Sevilla Don Bosco, Macas, Ecuador, a portable chapel was installed 26 August in order to begin hosting church services.

The ministry began when members of a Church of the Nazarene in a nearby community offered programs to pregnant women and children for two years.

“For two years, we had been serving this community by offering social programs,” said Antonio Lucero, superintendent of the Austro District. “We felt it was the right time to go to the next level and open a Nazarene church here. A family let us borrow their land to build the chapel; after three years, we hope to buy a piece of land and build a church building.”

Several donors contributed towards the purchase of the materials to build the chapel. In addition to the monetary donations, various groups gathered in the Work & Witness shop to help put together the parts for the chapel.

Neighbors and church members gathered to clean the property and help assemble the structure in place. After the chapel ensemble process, the district superintendent led a time of prayer and dedication.

Angel Sigui, the Work & Witness coordinator for the North Andean Field, is thankful to those who made this chapel possible.

“I am grateful for the generosity of church members who helped purchase the materials for this chapel,” Sigui said. “I’m also thankful to the many volunteers who spent many hours in the shop welding, grinding, and painting the parts of the chapel. Today, there’s a place where people can gather to hear the good news of the gospel.”

After the church community raises the necessary resources, it can build a more permanent structure. A portable chapel is a metal structure consisting of 12 panels and metal roofing that can be easily assembled in a matter of hours. The versatility of these structures makes them ideal for starting a new congregation without the high costs of a concrete building.

The Austro District has plans to continue expanding the work of the Nazarene church in the Amazon area, especially among the Shuar people. Their expansion plans include building two portable chapels to install them in strategic places.

“Portable chapels are important because they are the first seed for us to start building our churches,” Lucero said.

--Church of the Nazarene South America

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