What Happened?

Several have asked how our special Father's Day event went. I am pleased to let you know that we had good attendance, with several first time visitors. The best part was that a total of 7 fathers came. This might not sound like a remarkable number but it is a huge number compared to the last couple of years. We are happy to have a good group of new people to contact as a result of the event.

Please be praying. In a couple of weeks our next ministry team arrives. We will be targeting a new area a couple minutes walk from the church. We are hoping for a huge crowd of kids.

Trip Summary

We just enjoyed a wonderful ten days with a group from Union Grove Baptist Church in Lexington, NC. God used them in a variety of ministry opportunities. They were a huge help to both our church and family. The highlight of their trip was seeing two young ladies trust Christ as their Savior. We hope you'll enjoy this brief presentation of photos from their trip.

What could I do?

Have you ever considered taking a short-term missions trip? It could be a life-changing experience for you as you see how God can use ordinary people to do extraordinary things. Often folks hesitate taking a trip because they don't know how they might be used. They also worry about the language barrier. But you can be used on a trip right here in Peru!

As our regular blog readers know, we are currently hosting a ministry team. Not a single member of the team speaks Spanish, yet, they've been able to be a big help to our ministry. What could I do on a missions trip to Peru? Here are just a few ideas:

• Puppet shows- Our group used a pre-recorded story today and the children were able to hear a very clear presentation of the Gospel. The children were attentive as they listened. As an added bonus the kids think the puppets are great!
• Object Lessons- Each member of our current team came prepared with a brief object lesson. These lessons use an ordinary object to teach a spiritual truth or lesson. Of course they speak and we translate for them. It is an easy way that anyone can teach and the kids enjoy seeing new people stand before them in a teaching environment.
  
• Games- Games might not sound real spiritual, but they can be used as a way to draw children into the church. Our groups often come prepared with games. We will use these games at the beginning of a Bible club to draw attention and gather a crowd. The kids also enjoy the added attention they receive. Most of the kids around our church aren't able to spend much time with their parents. They crave attention, and group members can really show the love of Christ by simply playing, interacting, and sharing some time with the youngsters.
  
• Special Projects- There is always work to be done. During down-times we greatly appreciate the assistance of our groups. Our current group has helped us clean the church and scrub all of our chairs. They helped make illustrated choruses that we use with our children. They have also stamped information on a huge number of tracts. Some might consider this "busy work" but it is work that is necessary in our ministry. There is always work to be done!
  
• Tract Distribution- Visiting groups can do a great job of distributing literature. Many seeds have been planted using Gospel Tracts. Our groups can be taught a few simple phrases so that they can go out and hand out tracts to people in the streets. Often we use groups to pass out information about upcoming special events. It is certainly true that "many hands make light work" when handing out tracts.
  
• Testimonies- It is a real blessing to have people come and share their testimony. Our new converts need to hear about how God has worked in the lives of others. Visitors can share their testimony and be an encouragement to many. Of course, this requires a translator, but is simple since the time frame is usually short.
  
• Use of Special Talents or Skills- We've seen visitors that could juggle, paint faces, make balloon animals, dress up like clowns, and do magic tricks. We've had musicans play their instruments to attract attention. Even an artist that draws to teach a Bible message. God can use your unusual talent or skill on the mission field. Often language is not a barrier.
• Sports- We've seen were sports can help bring others to Christ. Often, teens will approach a group of visitors to play soccer that they otherwise wouldn't have spoken with. We've seen young men brought to Christ because of the godly testimony of visitors willing to take time to play a quick game.
  

Nearly every time we have a group we see folks saved. Perhaps you think you can't be used on the mission field. We think you can be used! Pray and ask God what He might have you to do. Perhaps you might consider planning a visit to work with us in Peru. As you can see we've got lots for you to do.

Heard of other mission trip ideas? Leave a comment. We'd love to hear your ideas on how short-termers can be used for the Lord!

Locked Out

Today was yet another good day of ministry with our visitors. We had a bit of a challenge today. When we arrived at the church our key would not work and we were locked out. Thankfully, after working for several minutes we managed to forcefully turn the key to get in. Next, we had to get a locksmith to come and work on the doors. One man said, "It looks like the devil doesn't want us going in the church!" We held much of our kids club outside at the park while the locksmith worked. Our group participated during our kids club by playing with the kids, sharing object lessons, and making a craft. During our adult service they did another chalk drawing, shared their testimonies and one man did a great job preaching with John interpreting. Today's highlight was seeing two adolescents trust Christ! It seemed today that each time we came to an important part of the service there would be lots of noise outside. The room was filled with many distractions. Yet, God stilled worked and we were happy with the results. Maybe the devil didn't want us to go in the church today. I'm sure glad we did.

Good Day of Ministry

Several months ago a neighborhood lady mentioned to us that we could use the small community center in the area for our church ministries. She is not a Christian, but she was interested in what we are doing in the community. Today we conducted a children's club in the center. We arrived and started with no prior promotion of the club. With the help of our visiting team we conducted a program for the 35 children that came. We were especially blessed that a good number of the parents came over to see what we were doing. Before we were finished several people asked us to please come back and begin holding clubs every week. We will definetly be taking advantage of these opportunities in the days ahead. About 25 of the children present were first-timers for our ministry. If we can begin to draw these youngsters to our church we will be at full capacity! Even though this center is located only a five minute walk from the church, most of these children have never visited with us before.

Our afternoon children's outreach was followed by our regular Saturday evening youth meeting. We had a good number of young people. They were happy to play games with the group, listen to translated testimonies, and make a craft. The highlight of the evening was when they watched a chalk-art demonstration by one of the men in the group. He drew a picture of the story of Paul's conversion on the road to Damascus. Of course the teens once again heard a clear presentation of the Gospel.

We are again impressed with the attention that a visiting team can attract. It is amazing that even with the language barrier God allows the visitors to minister and work for Him. Continue to pray for our group this week as they work hard promoting the work!

This community center makes a good second meeting place for our church. As an added bonus its rent-free and much bigger than our actual church location. (Notice the sheep on the steep slope behind the building-Click for a larger view...)

Children making a stained-glass window craft.

Barry Sizemore, our visiting chalk-artist begins his Bible story drawing.

They're Here!

Last night our second ministry team of the year arrived. This group of 12 is from Union Grove Baptist Church in Lexington, NC. They will help us conduct Bible clubs for children, youth meetings, open-air evangelism, and tract distribution. We're looking forward to a fruitful week with this fine group of young people. Pray with us that God will use the team to reach new people, encourage our church people, and to promote missions.

As an added bonus most of the team members are originally from North Carolina. They talk like us! We'll look forward to posting news on how God blesses the ministry this week.