of
50 Years
Reaching
the
Unreached
in Ecuador
By Tom Stiles,
Missionary in Ecuador,
One Mission Society
One Mission Society began work among
the Saraguro Quichuas in the early 1960s.
At that time, there was not a single evangelical Saraguro believer. The Saraguro
Quichuas, descendants of the Incas, are
an unreached people group of 30,000
who see themselves as ethnically distinct
from the other Quichua groups in Ecuador.
They speak a distinct language, have a
unique culture, and are geographically isolated from other Quichua groups.
The ministry to the Saraguros began
through a medical outreach with OMS missionaries Dr. Bill and Ilene Douce. They built
the first medical clinic to serve the county
and surrounding highland areas where there
was no medical care. The work grew slowly
at first as the people felt threatened and
fearful of foreigners, but in recent years, we
have seen churches being multiplied and local people in leadership.
The Gospel message began to spread
through the lowland area by family groups.
Freedom from traditional and family bonds opened the way to hear God’s
message of grace and love. Nurturing
small house churches seemed to be a
natural way to enter new communities,
and we began to encourage multiplication
of house churches. Using Train & Multiply,
an informal instruction method introduced
by OMS’ Every Community for Christ,
we guide bivocational Saraguros to lead
these churches. The believers named this
ministry the Chaski ministry in recognition of the Inca Chaski runners whose job
it was to communicate news across the
Inca Empire. Today, the Chaski ministry in
Saraguro spreads the Good News of the
Gospel to families across the jungle lowlands. Believers in the highland churches
have started using this same method with
good results. Now, a community of more
than 600 Saraguros meets in 30 house
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