"Chaco" Camp Area

The concept of community development has always embraced the essential idea of church planting and Christian fellowship as core of the missionary work promoted by La Palmera CCC. This is a statement!

Empowering people in the neighborhood to deal with the felt needs of their societies and enjoy a higher quality of life has meant for us to lead them to the Lordship of Jesus Christ in order to discover God’s divine plan for their lives and their community.

This understanding has given us many opportunities to respond to our neighbors inquiries on which are the reason for us to be in their midst doing the good that other developmental and government agents have failed to do.

- Why do you do what politicians have promised and failed to fulfill?
- Why do you give us access to privileges usually available only for the rich?
- Why do you love and serve our children?
- Why have you sacrificed your comfort to share with us in the struggles of our poverty?

These and many more questions have given us the opportunity to answer that it is all because the love of God shown to us first in order to empower us to love our neighbors as the only way to be truthful in our love for Him. Actually, we have tried to explain to many people that it is through love that they will be given the opportunity to know Jesus as the One sent from the Father. But this has been a complex biblical statement that demands more creativity in its presentation. So, we have been creative!

Ministering to the Students
Children Bible Hours, following a very effective pattern developed by Child Evangelism has provided us one of the best tools to communicate to children God’s love and plan of salvation in Jesus Christ, and not only to answer their questions but equip them to share the answers with their immediate relatives. Training people to lead these programs has also been very profitable, as many young people and adults have had the opportunity to mature in their personal faith and commitment to serve the Lord.

Camp
Bible Winter Camps has been everybody’s favorite in our neighborhood. This is a program of 3-4 days sleeping overnight at our "Chaco" property located about 40 km east of Trinidad along the road to Santa Cruz.

We become a family of more than 200 people with adults and young people involved as counselors looking after groups of five children through meals, recreational activities, Bible studies, drama, camp singing, clean-up duties, group contests, excursions, night-special evangelistic open air, baptisms and communion services, etc. And, the truth is that presenting Jesus to our neighbors has been a lot of fun and divine gladness!

Church clubs

AWANA (age 4-12)

AWANA Club

Bible Clubs for 4-12 years old children following the guidelines and requirements of the AWANA Clubs International has been probably the best tool to disciple most of our children and young people enrolled with our Centre activities. This is a rigorous program of Bible memorization and doctrinal teaching accompanied by patriotic and recreational activities that gives to its members the opportunity to persevere for rewards and national events that definitively provides them with goals and responsibilities aimed to mature their personalities, Christian character and commitment to evangelism.


AWANA-JV (age 13-17)

AWANA-JV group at their 2008 camp

The AWANA-JV club is a continuation of the AWANA kids program, but with more creative activities, games and intensive studies designed for adolescents. It generally encompasses the grades of Primary 7 thru Secondary 3. Since 2006, the AWANA-JV club at La Palmera has partnered with other churches in Trinidad and the area to hold an AWANA-JV Camp for four days in early November.

Jovenes (ages 18+)

Jovenes group

The Jovenes group has been through a lot of changes and rescued from near disappearance, but was revived in late 2007. Currently there are between 20-25 youth attending every week. The group is beginning to reach out to the surrounding communities of Villa Alba, San Pedro Nuevo and San Javier, increasing the church's missional presence in the region. These are places with no churches that are frequently hit hard by flooding. In July 2008, a three day camp was held at Villa Alba for the kids of the town for the first time by the Jovenes. This group seeks to disciple youth and encourage them to die to themselves/the pleasures of this world and live for Christ.

King's Kids (YWAM)
The King's Kids ministry is a group of kids/youth that learn and perform choreagraphs depicting messages of the Gospel. It is a ministry sponsored by YWAM and there are groups all over Bolivia and elsewhere in the world where YWAM does ministry. Every year this group visits nearby communities to evangelize using these choreographs. In addition an annual King's Kids camp is held at the beginning of the year during which people from the ministry can join other kids/youth from other parts of Bolivia who are involved in the same ministry at other churches.