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Testimonies of God's faithfulness in Peru in July 2012
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Therefore Go…
Testimonies from July 2012
Those who go out weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with them. Psalm 126:6
Hi there!
I pray that you are well and that this last month has been full of testimonies of God’s
faithfulness.
This last month for me has been a challenging one and consequently has seen its fair
share of tears (although, those who know me well know that this is not all together
unusual).
Since February I have been trying to get my Peruvian drivers licence, and when I finally
was able to do the practical test, I failed. I can’t remember the last time I failed a test
and was quite upset, especially since I have been driving in SA for over ten years. For
some silly reason it really knocked me and has been a quite a learning curve over the
last few weeks. Humility and patience are not so easily obtained.
This month I have also had to say goodbye to two of my closest English-speaking friends
here in Peru. These are probably the two people I am most able to confide in, so again, it
was another knock. All this coupled with new ministry responsibilities and a good bout of
homesickness made it an emotionally stretching month.
But then I remember all the amazing promises that God has made and I am filled with
hope. He is in control. He is faithful. He knows what He is doing in our lives.
Thank you for standing with Jaime and me as we seek to see God glorified in this part of
the world. It is not always easy, but it is worth it.
Richest blessings, Kim
Fe en Acción…. July has been full of activities with the students involved
in “Fe en Accion”. We have had two excellent Friday training meetings with new students attending every
week.
Our first meeting was spent analysing the individual
strengths that the students had learnt about through
the Strengths Finder test. Everyone was so encouraged
and eager to share about what they had learnt about
themselves. In the second meeting we focussed on our
understanding of the Kingdom of God and how it
influences our approach to community development.
Because the students are from a number of different
churches, we feel it is important to keep their pastors
informed of what their young people are learning.
Consequently last Thursday we hosted a special breakfast for the pastors so that they could be
informed of what is happening in “Fe en Accion.”
On the 3rd of August we will be launching the first session of the curriculum we have
developed on “Service as an expression
of Worship.” The following weekend we
will be taking the students away on a
retreat. This will be a special time to get to
know each other better and cover some
of the more important concepts in
greater depth.
Saints in Cells….
Over the last month I have been absolutely amazed at God’s faithfulness in prison
ministry.
Last month, my main prayer request was that God would bring another lady alongside
me to share the ministry load in Santa Monica. With Mary leaving it left me carrying
almost all the ministry load in this prison and as hard as I tried to think of who could take
her place, no one came to mind.
And then… God showed up! As a ministry we have been so blessed to find covering and
support from two English Speaking churches in Lima—the Union Church and Fire Church.
When the ladies leave prison we believe it is very important that they find a church family
so that they can continue growing in their faith.
Just before Mary left, we had a prayer meeting with the pastors from these churches. I
felt God had laid it on my heart to approach Anita, the pastor’s wife from Union church,
to see if she would be interested in coming in with us. Considering she has all the
responsibilities of being a pastor’s wife and a mom, I thought that there was no chance
that she would say yes.
Before I could even mention it to her, she
came up to me and said, “Kim, I believe God has called me to come into Santa
Monica with you.” I couldn’t believe it.
She is an amazingly godly woman and I
know is going to be such a blessing to the
girls. What an answer to prayer!
The photo to the left is of me and Mary
with the pastors from the Union church
and Fire church. Anita is the second from
the right.
Saints in Cells...
In another answer to prayer, Anita has also said that she is willing to host a bible study in the Union Church for the
ladies who have left prison. At the moment, I do not
have the capacity to run this bible study. It is so good to
know that they have a place where they can continue
to grow in their faith. The photo to the right is of Mary
and me with some of the ladies who are already on the
outside.
Two of the ladies who were released from Santa Monica,
asked to be baptised. Pastor Angus, from the Union
Church, lead a short ceremony and then baptised the
girls. It was such a special moment as the two young
women publically testified to their faith. It is awesome to
see lives that have been transformed as they have
encountered Jesus.
Yesterday Pam (with me in the photo bottom right) was
given her pass to be able to come into Fatima prison with
me. It took only two weeks for her to receive her pass,
which is record time! After going into Fatima prison on my
own for a few weeks, it makes a difference to have the
support of someone else. God is so faithful in providing
just the right people for this ministry.
Next month Pam and I will be starting to do the Purple
Book with the ladies in Fatima prison. The girls are very
hungry to learn more about God, so it is a great
opportunity to lay some solid foundations of faith with
them.
In the Community...
As I write this newsletter I am becoming more and more aware of how God has brought some amazing people
alongside me as armour-bearers in the various ministries He
has called me to here in Peru.
For the last two months, Christina Tetreault, a volunteer from
Arizona State University, has been accompanying me to the
Simon Bolivar children’s library. The kids in this community
are quite a handful, so it has been very helpful to have her
there.
With some of the funds that were donated from the Peru
mission fund I was able to buy a beautiful Spanish Children’s bible. Each week we read a story of one of the bible characters to the kids and try to get them reflect on what they
can learn from it. I am really trusting that seeds of truth will be sown into their hearts.
We have seen amazing growth in the number of children attending the library in 19A. A
few weeks ago, one of the children who
attend invited their classmates. Now two whole grades are now attending the library each
week. It is so
exciting to see
the library so
full.
Apart from my work in “Fe en Accion”, in the prison and the
libraries, I have also had the opportunity to be involved in a
few other interesting activities this last month.
In June I attended a course on Peruvian reality. There I had the privilege of meeting a couple from the US, Rett a n d
Sherrill Bragg, who have served as missionaries in the
jungles of Peru for over 30 years (top photo).
Rett and Sherrill are in a season of transition back to
the US for a time and I was able to help them put
together a newsletter to inform their partners of the
changes in their ministry. It was such a privilege for
me to spend time with this couple and hear
testimonies of many years of God’s faithfulness.
Here is the link to their newsletter if you would like
to find out more about the amazing work they
do… http:// issuu.com/RandSBragg/docs/
rett_and_sherrill/1
Jaime and I were also blessed with the
opportunity to be a part of a training day for
youth from various churches in Villa Maria.
In August the churches in the district are
working together to run a campaign for the
protection of children in their communities.
Jaime was asked to help run the workshop
that prepared the youth to participate in this
event.
In the Community...
Thank you…. Jaime and I are so aware of the sacrifices that many of you make in order to partner with
us in ministry. Our prayer is that God will honour your giving and your prayers and that He
will abundantly supply your every need. May you be blessed knowing that your life is
helping to impact the lives of others all the way on the other side of the world!
Thank you for sharing this dream of seeing God’s Kingdom come to Peru with us.
Much love, Jaime and Kim
Prayer Requests….
On Friday, Jaime and I are going to be leaving
for a much needed week’s holiday to the South
of Peru.
Please pray that God will keep us safe as
we travel and it will be a time of refreshing
and enrichment for us as a couple.
A young Australian lady in Santa Monica is HIV positive and is becoming
increasingly ill. She has already served four years of a 14 year sentence and has
applied for a humanitarian pardon. Please trust with us that firstly, she would
experience God’s divine healing and secondly that she will be shown mercy and
will be able to return to Australia.
Please trust with us that Anita will be given a pass to be able to come into Santa
Monica with us.
Please continue to trust with me that the lives of the children who attend the
libraries will be impacted as we share God’s love with them.
Jaime and I would love to hear from you: please write to us at [email protected] or you could
call on +51 990 50 1552. My skype name is kimmysol.