At the end of March, our team of 13 from Billings Christian School and Elevation Church had the honor of handing out thousands of Bibles and tracts to eagerly awaiting Peruvians and ministering to 14 amazing children at New Life Children’s Home in Lima, Peru! We also had opportunities to be more personal in a local church and two schools. At the local church, my husband, Brian, preached the Gospel, and two of our team members shared their testimonies. Our team of young ladies sang a song of worship with the congregation. Our team was able to visit and share the Gospel and give out Bibles and tracts in each classroom at two different schools, and I had the honor to pray for and with a principal at one of the schools. Two hundred eighty-seven individuals gave their lives to Christ!
Peruvian culture is exquisite! People are very relational and relaxed; spending time with people is more important than being so time-oriented, as our USA culture demands from us. Spending time with others and eating go hand-in-hand. The food is delicious! Our group was adventurous and tried the Peruvian delicacy, “cuy,” or guinea pig; the majority thought it tasted like chewy chicken. Other Peruvian meals and drinks we tested and engulfed were lomo saltado (steak stir fry with rice, French fries, tomatoes, and onion), aji de gallina (spicy creamy chicken), anticucho de corazon (beef heart), pollo a la brasa (rotisserie chicken), arroz chaufa (fried rice), chicha morada (corn drink), and a favorite was Inka Cola (a fruity flavored pop). It impressed us that the team would rather eat Peruvian food than American food! In addition to experiencing Peruvian food and drink, our team admired the beautiful Spanish architecture in downtown Lima; we toured the beautiful Catholic cathedral and the Catacombs, and handed out Bibles outside the Presidential Palace and Governor’s Office.
Although we carved out a “fun day” in the tight schedule, our team’s delight was in spending time with the children at the children’s home. However, we did have many good laughs and thrills while in Ica. Our fun day was a trip 5 hours south of Lima to Ica, where we rode fast dune buggies on huge mountainous sand dunes and courageously sand-boarded down the dunes on sand boards on our bellies. Afterward, we passed out more Bibles and tracts in Ica, but did feel there was more of a resistance to receiving God’s Word in that city, with more people rejecting the free gift than in the other places we had been.
Saying “See You Later” brought on many tears and much sadness. The children at the home gave us a farewell party, or a “despadida”, where they sang songs, shared testimonies, gave us each a card they had made, and lovingly shared hugs and said “see you later”. God used the team to do a mighty work of sowing seeds wherever we went during the week we were there, but He also did a great work in each of us! He showed how little many Peruvians have but are nonetheless grateful, and opened our eyes to see how much we have but yet can be so ungrateful; He opened hearts to the fact that we should be sharing our faith wherever we are, whether we are in Peru or in the USA; He put a desire to possibly adopt children in one team member’s heart; and the list goes on of how God was at work during this trip. Quite a few have immediately begun studying Spanish, so they will be prepared for future trips. Forever we will be impacted! Peru is our second home, and although we have left, we hope to journey back again soon! For future opportunities to carry out the Great Commission in Peru or in other international venues, visit www.gomtsbc.com or contact Brian, the Go MT International Contact at [email protected].
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