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The Team left for Peru August 4, 2005 and returned safely August 23.
Below is the text of e-mail updates for the trip. |
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Saturday, August 06, 2005 7:15 AM
We have arrived!! The trip went well. We did our first Bible study together at the Houston airport. I forgot to mention in my first email that one of the reasons for the name Regocijo which means rejoice is because we are studying the book of Philippians which has rejoicing as one of its major themes. In airport we were joined by our missionary Pablo Canapé-Torres as a surprise. He had to make a quick trip to Maryland for his permanent residency status and "happened" to get booked on our same flight for the way home. It was a blessing as he helped us work through the process of filing claims for 15 check-in bags that did not make it to Houston with us. On the flight they had announced that 60 bags were left in Houston probably due to weight restrictions as the flight was packed. So 1/4 of those were ours. They were very helpful and the bags are supposed to arrive tomorrow. We only have one or two that are short clothes because of it. The eight hour bus trip up was uneventful though long. It was in a luxurious bus that made it easy to sleep. The terrain was very dry and without any vegetation except for the river valleys which had good produce. They squeeze all the use out of any water they can. We were joyously met at the bus depot by Uncle Bert and Aunt Colleen, Sarah and Pamela. It was wonderful to see them. They all look like they are doing well. We quickly departed as it had been a long two days. Hag and Paula went with Pamela, the ladies went with Pablo and Sarah, and Sue and I and the men went with Uncle Bert and Aunt Colleen. I don't know what happened in the other homes but we enjoyed a light meal of potato soup together. We visited for a little bit and then it was off to sleep. We have a long day ahead of us. Keep praying. Today it is for safety as we take a three hour drive on a lesssss luxurious bus! And then we have street meetings tonight. Must be off to help get breakfast going. Everyone is meeting here at 8:30. Love to you all, Gilbert Wednesday, August 10, 2005 12:50 PM Peru report On Saturday morning we hit the ground running. We had our Bible study in Philippians, a short orientation session with the missionaries and then boarded the bus for Cascas. It is a three hour journey through the sugar cane plantations, rice fields and up into grape country that is famous for its wines. In 1999 I visited Cascas with Uncle Bert and Rueben, one of the national workers who had a dream of a church in this community. Back then we visited the few believers in town and rented a school room to show an evangelistic film. Since then, the church has begun to take shape. There are about 20 believers who meet every Sunday. Steve Twinem and Pablo Cenepo-Torres go up every other week to encourage them. We were impressed with their desire to see their community reached with the gospel. They had a late lunch for us at the home of the main leader who is a farmer whose main crop is grapes. His family lives in a simple home that is a 20 minute walk from town. It has no electricity or running water. They cooked a meal for about 40 people over an open fire. It was delicious. Then they sang for us, we sang together the two Spanish songs we know and their children sang for us. They shared with us their desire to see people come to Christ. One of the men invited us to speak in the schools but we couldn't stay over until Monday. In the evening we went to the Plaza in the main part of town. Gabe did some card tricks to attract a crowd (it worked!), and then we did our three dramas, Jason shared his testimony, Pablo gave a brief gospel message and we sang to them in Spanish. There about 120-150 people in the square. They stayed and visited for about two hours. We finally had to just leave. Some of the attraction was the novelty of the Americans being there, some was boredom with nothing better to do, and some seemed to be a genuine interest in the message. One family that had relatives in the church but never came to any of their activities all came and had a good visit with our group. It may be an open door. One of the concerns these people shared with us is for their young people. The temptation of drugs, alcohol and sex are overwhelming and many fall. There is very little spiritual interest at that age. What a camp experience would do for these teenagers. The next morning we broke bread together, Gabe shared his testimony and Haig preached comparing Samuel, Moses and Aspah in the quest for God. Some of the group helped with Junior church for the children. Clara and Sarah Phillips shared their testimonies with them. We were quite taken with this town and the people in the church. We'd love to come and visit them again when we can stay longer. Then we boarded the bus for our return to Trujillo. Monday morning had us on the work project bright and early. We are helping to add a recreation room to their church/school. It is about 25'X50', has a four foot wall all the way around with the rest of the wall in glass. The roof is tin. It all looks sharp. We are building a couple ping pong tables and ordered a foosball table that will arrive from Lima tomorrow. We are also painting the steps and the room inside and out. There was also some scrape metal and left over parts from other jobs that were a mess. We cleaned up that space to make the whole area more presentable. We have worked on it for two and a half days now. What a change we are seeing. This afternoon we are going to a women's prison for their Bible study. Today they are celebrating the fifth anniversary of this study. We will do a drama, share a testimony and sing one of our songs. We hope to be an encouragement to these ladies who are trying to follow the Lord while in prison. Sue and Gabe were able to go with Uncle Bert this morning to a Bible study in a drug rehabilitation place for women. What an opportunity that is. Later this evening we will join with some of our Peruvian coworkers who are guiding our project and fixing us meals for a meal at a local Chinese restaurant. We appreciate the opportunity to be here and to see the work God is doing in the hearts of these wonderful people. Please continue to pray for us. Saturday, August 13, 2005 5:00 AM Our last report left off as we were preparing to go to the women's prison. It is located on the outskirts of town and is quite a bleak facility. It has stark concrete walls with an attempt at maintaining some vegetation. This was the third anniversary (I earlier said the fifth) of the study so there were more women than usual. These women are in for an assortment of crimes -- some quite violent. You would not know it as we sat around and visited. There were about 5 or 6 infants there as the mothers are allowed to keep their children until they are three. Then they are sent to be with family members or put in an orphanage. These women sang for us and then put on a skit reinacting the parable of the unforgiving servant. They were very expressive and did a great job. All the ladies had a good laugh when the king threatened to send the servant to prision for not paying his debts!! One of the ladies shared her testimony. She had been involved in a major religious sect scandel and has now found the Lord and He has changed her life. Paula also shared her testimony, we sang and then did a drama. Uncle Bert gave a short devotional and challenge. We had cake together and distributed tracts and some treats. Some of these ladies have truly experienced the changing grace of God in their lives and are living for Him even in prison. On Wednesday evening we went out for Chinese food with the ladies and their husbands who have been cooking lunch for us each day. A couple of the workers who have been helping us came too. It was a good time of fellowship together. Thursday was a full day of working at CBT on our project. We repainted the front of the church and all of the rec room both inside and out. The ping pong table was made functional. It is on sawhorses temporarily. One of the young men is going to build a metal frame for it. Hopefully they will be able to build a second one. The foosball table that we ordered has not yet shown up. Some benches were built. We did a lot of clean up and the room looks great. There are still some things to be completed but it is very useable. We had told the kids they could stop work at 5 pm sharp and then go to the plaza to look around. But when the time came, several were not quite done with their projects and they chose to stay and finish them rather than take off and relax. I was impressed with their commitment to getting done. Sue and Gabe are able to go with Uncle Bert in the morning to a women's drug rehabilitation house to teach them. He goes here every Thursday morning. We stopped in on Friday for a short time to give them some gifts. We attended the prayer meeting at CBT on Thursday evening. These people are committed to praying for God to work in their church and in the communities around them. It was encouraging to be able to pray with them. Yesterday (Friday) had us at Las Lomas which is a drug rehabilitation center that one of the men in the church started. There are about 17 men who participate and live there for 6 months, I think. They are seeing God change their lives and help them to conquer drug and alcohol abuse. It is a long haul for these men but they are a delight to be with. They sang for us and one shared his testimony. We sang and did two dramas. Stuart shared his testimony and I gave a short devotional. These men are very warm and loving. We left a few things with them. The thing they seemed to enjoy most was the white socks we gave them. Next we visited the ancient ruins of Chan Chan. It is the largest mud city in the world. At one time this Chimu city held 35,000 people. It was facinating to see how they lived and their ability to build this adobe city. Then we had lunch in Huanchaco, a beach town near Trujillo. A couple of the young people from CBT joined us. We relaxed on the beach and did some shopping in the little booths they have set up. We needed this opportunity to sit back and breathe. The evening saw our young people help to break in the new rec room as they got together with Pam Zarek and many of the young people from CBT for pizza and a game night. Haig, Paula, Sue and I met at Pablo and Sarah's for a young couples Bible study. There were about 8 couples who met and encourage one another in their lives and marriages. We had a great time together. Today we are off to Cuidad de Dios for a young people's conference where Uncle Bert and Pablo will speak and we will do a drama or two. Then we head up to Cajamarca to fellowship with the believers there and see the work God is doing among these mountain people. We have been invited to a conference tomorrow evening in one of the little mountain villages. I hope some of us will be able to go. I'd better end this as we need to get on the road. Continue to pray for safety and good health and good attitudes as the schedule is quite tiring. The team as gotten along remarkable well. We rejoice in that and in being able to work with these wonderful people. Wednesday, August 17, 2005 9:28 AM This will probably be a short report as I am in an internet cafe in Cajamarca and we are getting ready for the trip back to Trujillo today. It has been an eventful time. We are keeping up our health as a team although several have opted for the more full missionary experience by experiencing vomiting, diarrhea, headaches and the like. All have handled it well and others on the team have stepped in and been very helpful. Part of team left on Saturday morning at 6:30 in order to make it to the youth conference at Cuidad de Dios for Uncle Bert's speaking time at 9:00. There were 80-100 young people who had gathered for Friday night, all day Saturday, and Sunday for this Bible conference on the purpose of God for their lives. They were very attentive to the messages. Uncle Bert gave one on our purpose in the church and Pablo gave one on evangelism. We did two dramas which were received well. We had very little time to interact with the kids because of our tight schedule. Some of these kids had come 4-5 hours by bus for the conference. They have a dedication to God and a love to be together. We then headed up the valley towards Cajamarca. We stopped at the church at Pay Pay. We had been able to give some money for them to do work on their chapel. They had used it to complete the walls. They building looks very nice but still needs a floor and furnishings. Some of the believers invited us to their home and served us a meal of duck and rice. It was delicious and the fellowship was sweet. They live so simply but have a heart felt love for God. From their it was on to Cajamarca. The trip is from sea level, over a 12,000 ft pass and down into Cajamarca which is in a valley in the Andes Mountains at about 9,000 ft. The valley and mountains are beautiful. The people are very resourceful in what all they can do with the land. In contrast to the mountains in Oregon, none of these have trees. But the people have learned to plant pine and eucalyptus up their slopes. Its amazing to see the thousands of acres that have been planted. Uncle Bert filled the time with stories of the places and people and especially of the churches that they have seen started up this valley. God is truly at work in these people's lives. We had a little car trouble as one heated up. But we were able to nurse it into town and it just needed a new radiator cap. We unloaded our gear at the bungalow which were located next to the Inca Baths. Then we picked up those who came by bus. The crew that did not come by car left by bus at 1:30 and arrived at about 8:00. It was a fairly comfortable bus but sways quite a bit around the switchbacks. They were happy to be on solid ground again. Sunday morning we spit up with some going to the church that Uncle Bert and Aunt Collen started 50 years ago. The rest went to Centro Biblica Cajamarca which is more contemporary. It was great to see how they worship and to enjoy their singing and their desire to remember the Lord. We had lunch together at Cajamarques which was kind of exotic with jungle birds and a turtle in the courtyard. We experienced an assortment of food -- often sharing so we could all enjoy the different tastes. The afternoon was spent resting. That evening we went back to the church that Uncle Bert and Aunt started and saw the apartment that they have used for so many years. It is a great little place for them and has been a home away from home for so many years. A local Christian folk group sang six songs for us and we did some dramas for them. They are a great group using the traditional mountains instruments. They have a heart for using their music to spread the gospel and to bring glory to God. We loved their singing and promised to purchase their CD when they record it next year. It was a good time of fellowship and we all were encouraged by it. Monday was spent going to Granja Porcon. These believers have developed a top notch cooperative farm. They use it for a testimony for the Lord. They have won national awards for the quality of their milk and timber. It is hard to describe the all they have accomplished. Their church holds about 1,000 people. They have a conference scheduled this weekend where it will be packed out. The farm is donating 4 cows and 15 sheep to help feed the people. They fed us a tasty trout dinner in their restaurant. They refused to let us pay for it. Yesterday we went sight seeing and relaxed for the day. In the evening we went down the valley to one of the mountain churches. It gave us a feel for what these churches are like and a flavor of the mountain people. We did a couple dramas and Sue shared her testimony. Uncle Bert gave a short devotional. They shared with us their desire to see their community reached with the gospel. What a sweet group of believers they are. I have to sign off now as we have to get ready to had to Trujillo. Tomorrow will bring an opportunity to teach English in the school. We heard that they begin school at 7:30 so we have to be ready to go. Thank you for your prayers. Saturday, August 20, 2005 2:20 AM Our return trip from Cajamarca was rather uneventful except for the beautiful scenery in the Hekita Peka (sp) River valley on the way home. We were all happy to arrive back at "home" and into our own beds. On Thursday and Friday, we were at school at 7:30 to help in the English classes. Half of our crew went to the grade school where they helped teach a craft in English that taught the students different words and how to follow instructions in English. They were eager to do the projects. They are delightful children. Those at the high school taught an English song that the students then translated into Spanish. Then they played a game that taught them to ask questions and converse in English. The students had a lot of fun. After school on Thursday, Pam Zarek had all of us over for a spagetti dinner with fresh salad at here home. There must have been 22 of us there. We thought it was ironic that here sister in Portland had the team over for Peruvian food just before we left home and then Pam feed us American food in Peru. It was a real treat and the fellowship was wonderful. Then was a couple hours of free time. Some took advantage of it to catch a short siesta while others went shopping and visiting. That evening we split up into three groups and had dinner in different homes of the Peruvian believers. It gave us the opportunity to get to know several of the families in the church better and to see how people live in Trujillo. We then returned to the Cenepo-Torres' for a meeting to plan out the rest of our ministry opportunities and to put together goody bags to give out. After school on Friday, we did our Bible study and then carpooled to a home in Las Dilecias (sp) for a beautiful dinner served in the home where Bert and Colleen have a weekly Bible study. There is a group of mainly women who get together to study the Word. Several are not yet believers and most of the husbands are not believers. The home was right on the beach and used to be in a wealthy part of town. But hard times have come on these people because of the economy and now they are struggling. They served barbequed pork and chicken with an assortment of salads. The ocean view was incredible, the food was scrumptious and the fellowship was delightful. From there we went to the orphanage. This very nice facility housed about 44 children from infancy to about 12 years of age. They sang for us. We sang for them. Gabe did some of his card tricks and then we did a craft with the kids. They were sure cute but each must have quite a story as to why they are in the orphanage. They soaked up all the attention they could get. We gave them each a bag of goodies. Last evening found us back at CBT for an dedication party for the new recreation room. They have named it the Regocijo Room after our team which was a very nice jesture. They placed a plaque above the entrance with the name of the room. They wanted to know the history behind our trip and the creation of the room. One of them did a devotional based on Philippians 4:4 which is our theme verse. They had a couple solos, we did a song and drama, and Gabe performed a rap song he had composed expressing our gratitude for being able to work together with them to accomplish this goal. Then they had fingerfood while we visited. The two foosball tables we were able to get were a big hit as many gathered around them and challenged each other to games. I think some strong friendship bonds have been formed. They presented the team with a gift of a beautiful leather clock that we can put up at CBT when we return! What special people they are! We do have a special item for prayer. Aunt Colleen has some swelling in her leg. The doctor thinks it is an infection and may be a blood clot. She stayed off her feet all day today and needs to keep her foot raised. They are treating it with medication but please pray for her safety and recovery. Today we will be doing the touristy thing by visiting the temple of the sun and moon which reflects the beliefs of an ancient civilization and then doing a childrens program for about 100 kids this afternoon. The youth meeting we had scheduled has been canceled but we will be attending a 50th anniversary celebration which should be a good cultural experience. Please continue to pray for us. Friday, August 26, 2005 5:46 PM The team did arrive home on the 23rd as scheduled. I have needed a couple recuperation days before writing this final report on our trip. Last Saturday we did the Temple to the Moon and Sun which is misnamed. It should have been named the Temple to the unknown god because no evidence points to them worshipping the sun and moon in particular. The archealogists also made up a name for their god because they had no idea what it's name was. The structure was quite impressive -- all made of mud bricks and it is well preserved. On the one sight they built seven temples one right on top of the other. When they were done with one they built another on top of it. They had animal and human sacrifice as a part of their worship. Our visit in the afternoon to the childrens club was very interesting. A small team from CBT goes out every Saturday to this outlying community and holds this club in a rented building. There were about 75 quite enthusiastic children. You could tell that most of them had very little. They sang for us and then we sang "Ain't No Rock." It is not one of the more theological of our songs but the kids loved hearing it! We did a skit of the good Samaritan, letting Pablo be the good guy since he was the only Peruvian in our group. Gabe did his magic and we passed out little gifts and candy. It was fun to visit with the kids and to appreciate the dedication of those who do this every week as a way to reach these hearts. The pray is that some day there will be a church in this neighborhood. We went to the 50th anniversary of a Peruvian couple at CBT in the evening. It was insightful as we were able to see how they celebrate. One thing that stood out was how dressed up everyone was. This couple used the occassion as a testimony of God's work in their lives. They had both become believers in their middle years. Sunday morning we worshipped together at CBT and then many in our group went and helped do crafts with the children in Sunday School. Actually, the way it was put to them is that they could choose between helping with crafts or hearing me preach! It was a privilege to speak on the topic they gave me of Jonathan and David's friendship. Whereas we seem to value things more than friends, they value friends more. It was fitting as we feel we have established some lasting and special friendships with these warm and loving people. We enjoyed lunch at a Chinese restuarant and then on to packing. Some were able to slip away to see friends for one last time. In the evening we met at Pablo and Sarah's home to share highlights of our trip, reflect on our appreciation for each member of the team and to see some pictures and a video Pablo had made. We then rushed off to the bus station where there was one last round of Peruvian hugs and some sad goodbyes with these people we had grown to live. On the 8 hour all night ride to Lima we learned what it meant to sleep like a baby. There was one in the back that reminded us that it means sleep for a little while and then cry for 1/2 an hour. It did this on and off all night. Most of us sleep very little! In Lima we hit a couple Indian markets that were loaded with wares and most of us picked up some momentoes, We then went to the main plaza where the presidential palace is. Some visited a large cathedral there. Others went to catacombs that were under another cathedral a couple blocks away. Twenty-five thousand bodies were buried under this church about 400 years ago. It reminded me of Ezekiel's dry bones. We finally arrived at the airport and said good bye to Pablo who had escorted us to Lima. The overnight flight from Lima to Houston was uneventful. In Houston we looked like one bushed crowd! It was great to get in the air and come up on Mt Hood and to see the great sights of home. We were again reminded of God's care for us when we heard that a plane had crashed in the jungle of Peru the same day we arrived home with 40 or so dying. God protected us through many adventures. We met on Wednesday to debrief and plan our report for those at GBF on Sunday. It felt like a family reunion because we had grown to love and appreciate each other so much. We have much to be thankful for. We want to thank each one of you receiving this as it means you prayed for us and encouraged us on our way. We were very aware of your prayers each step of the way. Thank you. |
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