Day 1 & 2
Our trip to Lima started out a little
rough. We got a whopping three hours of sleep the
night before our trip, due to the fact that we needed
to leave the hotel at 4:00 AM. The problems really
started once we got into Dallas. We had a 6 hour layover
which was not bad but Jeff and Andy saw a pretty revolving
door and got trapped out side of the terminal. Which
would not have been a problem but they did not have
their tickets, and thus no way to get back in the
terminal.. we got them back in.. after much stress.
It was during the layover that we also found out that
Dan, Dustin, and Erin were stuck in Omaha, they were
supposed to be on a different flight and that flight
get changed. Thus the three of them are going to get
to Lima 24 hours behind. The first day of camp was
a warm one and with 60 sixty teenagers its been busy.
The sports camps went well and people have been excited
to talk with us. We have been in Peru for one day
and have already seen God work in amazing ways. Even
though there is a language barrier the Lord has broken
down many walls. Already we have been able to build
relationships with the children attending the camp.
We started our sports clinic today, which we were
thrown into with no plans, but were able to successfully
complete them.
In the evening several kids accepted
Christ for the first time. We will give you an update
on how many there are remaining so you can join us
in prayer.
In His grip,
December Peru team
Day 3
Second full day in Lima was another
exciting and learning experience. We woke up to find
that Dan, Dustin, and Erin made it to Lima and were
with us on the compound. The day was a little bit
cooler and less humid then the first day in Lima.
There even was a breeze that helped clear some of
the smog in the area. We had a lot of fun again doing
sports camps, improving our communication skills,
and building relationships with the peruvian kids.
It is amazing to see first hand how God is at work
here at this church. In the evening there was a banquet
with a theater, message, and supper to follow. The
banquet started at 6:30 PM peruvian time so it actually
started at 9:00 PM local time and we started eating
at 11:00. After we finished eating we had dish duty
which lasted well past midnight. A lot of work for
us but God moved in bigger ways as at least 9 people
made first time decisions for Christ. Praise God!
If you would like to see more pictures from Lima
check out our online albums at http://www.iesous.net/peru/photos.html
CBC SPORTREACH Team
Day 4
The current SPORTREACH camp that is from Tuesday
through Saturday morning has about 65 kids attending.
The first morning of camp the local camp leaders sat
down with each kid to find out where the kids are
coming from and whether or not they have come to Faith
in Christ. Many of the kids have come from families
that attend this church and so many already already
had accepted Christ but 17 had not. God's plan to
use this camp became evident to us when the count
of non-believers reached zero. All 17 unsaved souls
accepted Christ because God chose them. God had a
plan for them to attend a SPORTREACH camp and to hear
His Gospel. They probably came to play soccer but
they found so much more. Praise God!
Please keep these kids and their families in your
prayers. Most of the new believers families probably
do not know Christ. Pray that these kids new found
life with Christ could also be a catalyst for their
families to attend the church and more importantly
also come to a Saving Faith in Christ.
God Bless,
CBC SPORTREACH Team
If you would like to see more pictures from Lima
check out our online albums at http://www.iesous.net/peru/photos.html
Day 5
Hola de Lima,
It is Saturday the last day of the SPORTREACH camp
that is held at the church compound. This morning
the kids had an open mike and testimony time. We have
been giving our testimonies all week. But
this morning we got to find out more about the kids
and what a difference this Camp has been to them.
Many had just become Christians this week. Others
had rededicated there live to Christ.
Some who literally have nothing by our standards,
emotionally told us that what they wanted most was
for their brothers, sisters, or parents to become
Christians. The campers have now gone home and many
of them we will not see again. Some that are from
church families are returning tonight for a New Years
Eve Fiesta. At the Fiesta the dinner is supposed to
be severed after midnight, peruvian time... We will
see if we get any sleep tonight.
To this point Lima to us has been what we see within
this couple acre compound. After the campers left
we got to see more of the area. We went to McDonald's
and had American food. When we came into Lima it was
dark and we couldn't see much. But when you step out
of the compound or in our case ride out of the compound
in a toyota van with 18 people in it in the daylight
you realize that it is a completely different world.
There is very little green in Lima. Most of the communities
we went through were very run down, small dirty houses
with no door or windows. These people really posses
no worldly items and most have no idea what a personal
walk with Jesus Christ is. God want's to know them..
but there are very few people telling them about Christ.
Lastly the traffic.. that is an entire update by
itself. I will put it in perspective, 12 million people,
car or no cars, no real traffic laws, plus the dogs...
Está muy loco.
btw.. we had 21 people in the van on the way back
to the compound.
God Bless,
CBC SPORTREACH Team
Day 6
Sunday is the day of rest. Normally at La Roca, the
church we are at, on Sunday there is a morning service
that starts around 10AM that is like a Sunday School
then everyone goes home and comes back in the evening
for the main service that starts around 6PM. Well
since this Sunday was on the New Year everyone from
the church was here last night for the Años
Nuevos Fiesta they went ahead and had the morning
service at 1AM. So we got to sleep in and relax around
the compound all day. In the evening everyone came
back for the evening service and we met more of the
families of campers that came from the church. We
also had an evangelism training to learn to share
the gospel on the street in spanish. It was humbling
when we were practicing and 14 year old kid from the
church would help and it was evident that they knew
how to evangelize and had far more experience than
us. That night we joined the Peruvians for a game
of soccer starting at 9:00, and finished at 12:00.
We gave it our best shot, but their expertise was
humbling as well. We then hit the beds, hoping to
get enough rest in between the barking dogs and alarms
to enjoy the sight-seeing tomorrow.
God Bless,
CBC SPORTREACH Team
--
See more pictures from this mission trip at http://www.iesous.net/
peru/photos.html
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Zack practicing for a play they will do on
the streets.
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Dinner was hot off the grill!
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Day 7
We took Monday to do the touristy thing and went
to see some of the attractions in the area. With the
exception of McDonalds we have not left the area of
the La Roca Church so this was a chance to see more
of Lima. In the morning we went to a beach. For some
of us it was the first time being in the Ocean, salty
as ever and the waves were tremendous. After lunch
we went to see some near buy ruins. There is evidence
of Inca and other civilizations all over Peru. As
you drive around the city there will be sections of
land that are preserved because they have ruins on
them. When the Spaniards literally conquered this
land they brought with them their own version of Christianity
not based on the Bible but based on many man made
rules that where designed to control the people. Everyone
here seems to know who Jesus Christ is, there are
even images of him everywhere but few know that you
can have a personal relationship with Him. It is a
very beautiful land absolutely full of people.
Please pray that we and our Peruvian counterparts
can share with them the Love of Christ.
God Bless,
CBC SPORTREACH Team
Day 8
Today was our first day doing a camp off of the compound,
with a purpose to share Jesus to Peruvians in the
neighborhood that La Roca would like to plant a church!
WOW! I have never been a part of something so amazing!
God has shown us that it is truly Him that will change
the lives of people. We witnessed God make 71 new
christians today!
Most of the team came to Peru knowing no spanish and
only learned a few basics in the last week and the
ones who did know some spanish were not fluent! How
could we, a group of 13 Americanos, unable to communicate
with the Peruvians share the message of Christ with
these children. The answer: WE CAN NOT! The only one
who can reach people is God.
I have been in Peru 7 days...after we had witnessed
to the children, I began to think, how big was my
God 10 days ago? Was He able to change lives? Was
he willing to change lives? Or was he just some untouchable
entity? Ten days ago--ten days ago. Ten days ago my
God was weak, I made Him weak. I told God were he
could be in day to day life. God was not even something
to be excited about. Ten days ago! Today I found that
my God IS able to show himself to his creation! All
we need to do is step out! I am struck by how often,
in christian conversation I hear: "I don't know
why I don't share christ", "sharing christ
should be so easy." Until we give up our own
wants we will never see His true power! Not our will--not
OUR will!
Today as Dustin was sharing Christ to a group of Peruvian
children, smoke from a trash fire was blowing in our
faces! I know that God wanted these children to know
him, I bowed to pray. I asked God to shift the wind
so that the smoke would no longer be blowing in our
faces. The instant that I finished this micro-prayer,
that INSTANT, I felt a cool breeze against my back,
my shorts began to press against my legs, I realized
at that instant how amazing and ever-present my God
is. The wind never faltered but continued to blow
the opposite direction than it had the entire afternoon.
I have yet to see God move a mountain, but I saw God
move the wind, but also, more amazingly, change lives!
God can use me, a man unable to speak spanish, to
allow God to change these kids lives! How great is
your God? How great is my God? My God is not unreachable,
He is ever-present and ready to change peoples hearts.
Some one asked: Are the people in Peru more lost/willing/needy
for God. And some heads began to shake. NO! The only
difference is that we have limited God in America.
My friends are no less lost and open to a God who
will love them! All we have to do is introduce them
to the miracle of Gods love, and let God change their
hearts! PRAISE GOD! HE IS THE ONLY ONE WHO CAN CHANGE
LIVES! hear is the secret--He wants to! Do not keep
this secret, this secret you have to share!
Jeff and the CBC SPORTREACH Team
--
See more pictures from this mission trip at http://www.iesous.net/peru/photos.html
Day 9
On Wednesday we went back to Caraponga, the same
place as Tuesday. A place that the La Roca Church
in José Galvez is planting a church. When we
got there many kids waiting for us and had brought
their friends and families. Again God amazed us beyond
what we could imagine. 36 new believers joined the
family of God from Caraponga.
God has allowed us to see the very beginning of a
church plant. When we were leaving Caraponga the people
were asking for a church in their community. Keep
Caraponga in your prayers. There are more people wanting
to hear the Gospel then we could ever imagine. God
has taught us through the young men and women of La
Roca how little we really have to do to share the
Gospel. It's not us. It's all God. He just wants us
to move.. In the Name of Jesus go!
We leave Lima late Thursday night and we will make
it back to Omaha around noon on Friday. It seems like
it went by way too quick. Most of us are not ready
to leave. There is another SPORTREACH Camp on the
17th but there is no team coming from the States.
They will continue the work with the Peruvian staff
plus Kelly and his family.
God will work through a short-handed team just the
same because they and we are praying with expectation.
God Bless,
CBC SPORTREACH Team
Day 10
It's hard to believe that it is over for us. We had
to come back to the US because this is the time our
plane tickets said that we had to... not because we
were ready to go. In ten days in Peru we saw
127 people come to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ.
We did not see this many people come to know Christ
because we were there, but because God allowed us
to experience His mighty works when his Gospel is
spoken. God change not only the lives of the 127 new
believers but also the lives of the 13 young men and
women that the Berean Church sent to Lima. We learned
about what truly is important in life. When we first
arrived we noticed how little the Peruvian people
had compared to the people living in the United States.
But as we spent more time in the culture our observations
and group discussions changed from how little they
have to how much the Peruvian Christians had compared
to the Christians that are in the United States. It
was a blessing to work with our brothers and sisters
in Christ in Peru. Their riches are not the temporary
riches that we see in the United States but riches
that are so much greater.
(1 Timothy 6:17-19) We arrived in Lima as the "rich
Americans" but left as humbled servants of God.
We have now all returned to our comfortable homes
in the United States. As we sit here in the luxuries
of our culture that we take so much for granted, warm
showers, clean water, abundant Bibles, we
long to be back in Lima because we only saw 127 people
get saved.
There are 9 Million more that are ripe for the harvest.
It was hard to explain to Alexis, the Peruvian SPORTREACH
Coordinator, why we don't see God move in the US the
way that He does in Peru. It isn't because God is
different in Peru then He is in the US. It is because
we are different. It's about us. We put Christianity
in a box and limit it to our finite minds. We find
ourselves on the thorny soil and it chokes out the
power of the Gospel. (Mark 4:19) We often hear that
we don't have to go overseas
to be a missionary and share the Gospel, but do we
really listen.
Yes, we need missionaries overseas and God is doing
awesome things.
But God has left the Church (us) to fulfill the Great
Commission.
(Matthew 28:18-20) Be a missionary where God has you
today whether it be Kearney, Nebraska, Lima or where
ever you are. God's blessings rain down when His message
is spoken.
CBC SPORTREACH Team
--
See more pictures from this mission trip at http://www.iesous.net/
peru/photos.html
