Summer Interns

A great group of summer interns began arriving on Thursday, including the Jeff Barry family from Memphis, TN, and our long-time friend Sarah Story! They all bring lots of energy and enthusiasm - we look forward to seeing how God uses them over the summer!

Welcome to Our New Digs

We have officially moved into the 3rd floor apartment of the Arevalo Presbyterian Church building for the next month. It is not quite finished - there are still workers coming and going... But, we are having fun here and are working as a family to get the apartment ready for the church to use for guests in the future.

Belhaven Music Workshop

The Belhaven team treated the missionary kids to a music workshop all morning. Our kids had a blast learning new songs, receiving tons of encouragement and advice and just enjoying the many talents of the team members.

Paty's Baby Shower

We had a lot of fun today celebrating our friend Paty's upcoming birth - she's expecting a little girl in June. We ate great food, played silly games and had a special time of prayer for Paty, her husband and their new baby girl.

Belhaven Music Team Here

We have a very talented team here from Belhaven College in Jackson, MS. They are focusing on Music Development - in Cajamarca and in Trujillo. They will be teaching classes in the local conservatory, performing in more than ten concerts and lead workshops among our church members, among other things. We are so blessed to have them encourage our churches and communities in so many ways. You can read all about their trip on their blog here.

Goodbye to Joile and Maria

The hardest thing about packing the house up has been seeing Joile and Maria packing up their things and moving out too. These joy-filled sisters (sisters-in-law of Juan Santa Cruz, pastor of 2nd Presbyterian Church in Cajamarca) have lived in our home for the past several years - which has been a huge blessing to our entire family. Joile has worked with us for over 4 years, while also studying some at SALI, and later entering nursing school full-time. We will miss hearing their constant laughter lilting through our windows, but trust that the Lord will care for them through this next phase in their lives as well.

Boxes Everywhere

The rental contract on our house ends on May 27th - but we still have some work to do in Peru before heading to the States for a year to raise support. So, we are packing up all our worldly belongings - boxes will be stored at the Smiths' house, while our furniture will be in Alleen McLain's apartment during our absence - and then we will be nomadic for about 6 weeks. We hope to settle in the pastoral apartment in Arevalo Presbyterian Church for most of the time, but have trips planned to teach seminary in the jungle and in Cajamarca during June. We are excited about how the Lord will use this homeless time in the life of our family - but we sure are tired of boxes right now!

There goes our furniture!

Visiting with Lauren and Elizabeth

We have had a good time visiting with our good friends, Elizabeth Johnson and Lauren Baker over the past few days. Elizabeth, who is now a nurse in Greenville, SC, has been working on short term teams with Peru Mission since she was 14. Lauren, the oldest of the Baker children, just finished her freshman year at University of Texas. It has been so fun to catch up with them!

The Lima Biblical Counseling Class

Here is the entire class (with teachers and translators) of the Biblical Counseling Conference in Lima last week. The Lord truly blessed the week together.

Parish in New York

Parish Furniture is in New York City this week, showing their fabulous pieces at the International Contemporary Furniture Fair. Jim and Cheryl Keller arranged a quite successful pre-show showing at a great retaurant in NYC before the actual event got underway. And, at the actual show, Tucker Robbins will be introducing Parish to his clients - showcasing the popular Parish chaise lounge. Please be praying for the Parish Furniture team.

Larco Presbyterian Church Anniversary

Larco Presbyterian Church commemorated its 25th Anniversary on Sunday with a big celebration. The church was started by Dutch missionaries 25 years ago and flourished for several years, but was found in a low state when Peru Mission moved to Trujillo in 2001. The church is flourishing once again, thanks be to God!

Going to the Chapel...

Heather and Calin are engaged! Heather Campbell has been working as a Peru Mission intern for almost two years - and has been a huge blessing to the ministry here, as well as to our family. Calin Cunia and his family have been faithful cornerstones of the Wichanzao Presbyterian Church for years. The Lord has great things in store for this future family - we can't wait to see!

Biblical Counseling Classes in Lima

Dr. Craig Rowe, Associate Pastor of Counseling at Trinity Presbyterian Church in Statesboro, GA, and a Fellow with the National Association of Nouthetic Counselors, is teaching intensive classes on Biblical Counseling for SBR Seminary students in Lima this week. He is accompanied by Roland Barnes, CMS Executive Director, who will be preaching evangelistic services during the week. Bill has worked hard for several weeks to translate and organize the course material, and is in Lima this week to help translate the lectures, along with Alonzo Ramirez and Ricardo Hernandez. The schedule is packed and we are eager to see how the Lord blesses this week - in the lives of the students, as well as in the lives of the brethren to whom they minister.

Arevalo Mothers' Day

Happy Mothers' Day from Arevalo Presbyterian Church!

Cooking Israeli Bread in Arevalo

The 31 women who attended Ladies Group in Arevalo Presbyterian on Friday received a special treat during our weekly meeting. One of our friends from Israel (who now lives in Peru), Shtavit, came to teach us how to make Israeli Bread. She and her friend, Shlomit (also from Israel and now living in Peru) take Spanish classes from Noemi Quiroz, the wife of Arevalo pastor, Eduardo. They have become good friends and offered to help with the Arevalo ladies group by teaching a cooking class on a monthly basis. Shlomit is also a talented designer who is a part of the Parish Furniture team.

Welcoming Mei Mei

Marti & Chris and family returned to Trujillo yesterday with their precious new daughter, Mei Mei. The whole team was at the aiprort to greet them - what an exciting homecoming! And we wasted no time in welcoming her with a baby shower today - we just couldn't wait to get to spend more time getting to hug on her!

Anderson RUF Arrived

A great crew from RUF at Anderson University in South Carolina arrived this afternoon - they are ready to work hard for the next 12 days! Welcome to Peru y'all - thanks for coming!

Peru Mission E-bulletin May 2009

Left click on image for larger, readable view.

Bill Teaching SBR Seminary in Lima

Bill is teaching Hermeneutics in a SBR Seminary module in Lima this week. He also preached twice on Sunday in the Presbyterian churches in Lima - the evening service was a joint service with Los Olivos Church and Los Jazmines Church. He is enjoying the fellowship with our friends there and is encouraged by the dedication of the seminary students.

If you've ever been to Trujillo...

...then you know the huge, hideous mermaid statue on Larco Avenue.
Well, you will be glad to know (we are glad anyway!) that she is finally being moved down to the beach where she belongs. Apparently she caused a little too much chaos at that intersection.

Ueltscheys in Peru

We really enjoyed our visit with our friends Marcus and Whitney Ueltschey this past week. They came from Tupelo, MS, to help serve with Peru Mission's medical ministry - Marcus is a general medicine doctor and Whitney is a physical therapist. They attended in the Wichanzao Clinic, in the impoverished communities nearby, and in Hogar de Esperanza, our partnering orphanage. Thanks, Marcus and Whitney, for all the love you shared in the name of Christ.