Saturday, July 20, 2013

Las Cataratas

Yesterday was a great day. The team had a great trip to the waterfalls (Las Cataratas) it was incredible. The water was refreshing, it seemed to be warmer than the showers at the hotel. The views were magnificent.

Today we are being guided by Hugo to the ruins of Lamas. It is a town that is approximately 25 km west of town. Hugo is a Church leader. Please pray for him, as a leader, that he will remain strong in his faith and be an example to those around him.

This afternoon we will help at the youth conference. Pray that God will speak through us and he will give us the words to say. Please pray for the meeting between Mike/Delwin and the leader of the evangelical institute here in Peru. Pray for guidance, the meeting starts at 4:00 local time (3:00 pm MST)

Friday, July 19, 2013

A Day of Rest

The conference ended yesterday. It went very well and was received very well. At the end of the conference, one of the leaders of the bible association spoke highly of the conference and was very grateful for the work God has done this week.

The meeting with the leader of the association has been postponed until tomorrow. We ask for prayer for onsite and guidance during the meeting. They are possibly asking us to coordinate the the main annual conference for the entire association, which would include a significant increase in attendance. Pray that the motives are pure. We hope they have become confident/ comfortable with our focus and are now wanting to partner with us to further Gods work here in Peru. Pray the meeting goes well. The meeting is at 3:00pm MST.

This morning we were able to complete several projects around Delwin's house. We completed the some concrete work and moved some dirt. During the week Rob completed some electrical work, replaced the screen, and repaired the tire screen, etc. It has been great to serve such a wonderful family.

Today we have a relaxing day. We are going to rent motorcycles to ride up to the waterfalls for lunch and to swim. Tomorrow Hugo wants to take us on a tour of Lamas, a small tourist town.

Wednesday, July 17, 2013

Conference Day 3

The third day of the conference is about to begin, yesterday went very well. It is incredible how far people have come to attend the conference. Some have come from 10 hours away and other came from a coastal community because they were told to be here. Continued prayer for the men and women for their passion to learn about Christ and share His truths.

The men have shown a great interest in the counceling sessions. There is a perception here in Peru that pastors need formal training to counceling the people. They are genuinely interested in learning more about the role of
Pastors and biblical counceling. There are more sessions of biblical counceling today. Pray that the teachers have clarity in what they preach and the translators are clear in the translation. Thank you for your continued prayer.

Today we have the hog feed, all preparations have been made and the fire has been lite. There is an excitement within our group to share this meal with the men. Prayer that the soccer game and fellowship brings glory to God.

Monday, July 15, 2013

"La Iglesia Comunidad Biblia"

Last night Travis spoke in the church service.  He had a great message. The Gospel was clearly presented and it will not be returned in Void, (Isaiah 55:10-11) whether we see the fruits or not.  Several attendees had never been to a service at "La Iglesia Comunidad Biblia" and many had not been in a while.

After the service there was good fellowship that lasted into the late evening.  During the service part of the group was also able to reach out and invite others to attend the Conference

Today the focus of the trip will transition from the ministry with the local church to the first day of the Pastors Conference. A lot of preparation has been done, but there is a lot of preparation that needs to be done to setup and clean the conference center. Please pray for the hearts of those that will attend and for the team. As Isaiah 10:15, 16:9, and 29:15-16 we are just tools that want to be used for His glory.  We pray that we will rid ourselves of our human pride, get out of the way and let God receive the glory throughout the Conference.

Sunday, July 14, 2013

Sunday Morning

Preparing ourselves for church. There was a family two years ago that accepted Christ, but has had little
Involvement since then. I spoke with them yesterday and they committed to be here today. Please pray that we see them at church today


As we pray for our home churches back in Utah, please keep Mike in your prayers as he preaches to the local church this morning. There are good things happening here, over the past few years there have been 5 youth that have left Tarapoto to attend Bible School to become Pastors and Missionaries.

Saturday, July 13, 2013

Day 1

The first day was rather busy. Travis, Chris, Rob and I started the morning with a soccer game with with Delwin's kids and the local teens. We proved to ourself that we need a lot of practice prior to the American vs Peruvian soccer game scheduled for Wednesday at 5:00 pm. In addition, we completed several home improvement projects at Delwin's house, we went to the market to exchange our money and were able to find a location to purchase the pig for the pig feast on Wednesday after the pastors conference. Tomorrow we will be digging the hole at the institute in preparation for the pig feast. Please pray for God'a provision. 

We also had a successful youth talk by Travis Thomsen he gave his testimony and spoke on the power of God reviving the dry bones into life (Ezekiel 37:1-14). He related the dry bones of Israel with the his testimony and encouraged the youth to draw near to God and seek his strength.

Tomorrow we will be attending church at 10:00!in the morning. Mike will be preaching the morning service. Mike has not decided his topic yet but has four topics and will choose based on the leading of the Holy Spirit. 

Travis will be preaching on adoption into the family of Christ. Please keep mike and Travis in your prayers that God will speak through them (and the translators). 

Between the services we will be spending time with the saints to encourage the church. 

Jeremy's daily Ice cream count: 8 (as of 7:30pm)

Touchdown!

The team has made it safely to Tarapoto as of Friday night. Check out the post from Jeremy below.

Friday, July 12, 2013

Team Send Off

Thursday night at 6pm we had our official send off of the team. Please keep them in prayer as they travel to Peru. Attached are some pictures of the send off and our first update from the team via Jeremy's Facebook at about 6am Friday morning.

Tuesday, July 9, 2013

Peru 2013!

Hey Church Family,

We are so excited to be sending a team to Tarapoto, Peru for the 4th consecutive year. As with previous  missions trips the focus will be on the Pastors Conference (PC). The PC is made up of as many local/remote village pastors that can make it. The tean will take several days and teach these pastors some fundamental doctrines essential to their roles as shepherds of the flock. The team will also be ministering to the local church and surveying some land for a future camp and church building.

Stay tuned here by becoming a follower. We will update this blog as the team sends updates. Most importantly, keep praying for the team. They head out on Thursday night for approx. 10 days. Pray for safety in their travels and for God to continue to prepare them. Pray that God would continue to prepare the Peruvian pastors and teachers and for safe travels from their own local churches to the PC.