Day One-Success!

We had a great day at the orphanage today! To the left is a picture of us decorating the orphanages' chapel or capilla for the Christmas Party we threw for the children today.They had a great time. First we served them chicken (pollo y papas) box lunches furnished by Southmont Baptist Church (thank you!) which were delivered in three seperate taxi cabs. The first children were served at 12 and the last meals did not arrive until almost 1pm. But, one thing we did not account for is that the children do not begin to eat until all have been served. We were all a little stressed out over this, but the children are quite accustomed to it, and did not complain a bit while quietly sitting and staring at their lunch for almost an hour without being able to eat it!
After lunch, we had a Christmas play in the Capilla, narrated by Dr. Baldour which the children loved! We then sang songs, did crafts, then gave each child a gift consisting of a beanie baby, a hot wheel, and some candy. They were very excited about their gifts and it was so rewarding to be able to offer these gifts to them. Along with meeting dozens of children who wanted nothing more than to hug me, find out my name, and talk for a minute; I was able to spend some time in the baby house, which was a wonderful experience.
We are now preparing for an exciting day we have in store for tomorrow. We will go into the dorm rooms or casas for small group lessons. We will tell them the stories of Jesus´death, burial, and ressurrection during the next few days and will also present salvation to them.
In the afternoons we will have large group time in a VBS style program. During the same time, some of the group will be going into the city of Ventanilla outside of the walls of the orphanage to share the gospel with the neighborhood children.
This is an exciting time, so please pray for us and for the people we will be witnessing to in the next few days.
-Sherry Rettinger

We made it!

We arrived safely at our hotel in Lima just a few minutes ago. We´ll get a few hours of sleep and then be off for the orphanage in about 6 and a half hours!

Thank you for your prayers!

It is Christmas Eve and our lives are filled with last minute shopping, plentiful food, family gatherings, homes decorated with cheer, and presents in all sizes and colors to be opened tomorrow morning. All of these trappings give me pause, I stop and think of the 800 plus precious kids that I will see in the 26th. I think about how today and tomorrow is such a stark contrast to ours. I can hardly wait to get thru my hoilday gatherings so that I can be on a plane to Peru. We are taking gifts but none as great at the gift of salvation. There is no better gift that I can share than the Good News of Jesus Christ. That God has been seeking each of these children and has arms open wide waiting to be their Father-forever!

Bibles! Bibles! Bibles!

The project of getting a Bible to each child in the community was laid upon our hearts in the late fall and the task seemed so impossible. There was the cost, finding 800 + spanish translation from one source, logistics of getting them to Ventanilla and it all seemed to be a dead end at each stop. However once again God proved that when you are walking with Him that nothing is impossible. Our mighty Father led many people to give generously to fund the Bibles and Lauren was led to one source in Peru that saved us an enormous amount in shipping expense and available space. Mission Peru will be taking a Bible for each child to call their own. We are certain that this precious gift will draw many closer to salvation and a personal relationship with Jesus. We give God all the glory and praise!

Crafts!

We've been as busy as elves in December, preparing the crafts to take on our trip. Thank you to everyone who has helped cut, tie, sort, and prepare!

We've also been assembling Christmas gifts for the children. Each child will get a Beanie Babie, a Hot Wheel car, and some candy.

In less than two weeks, we'll be placing these gifts into the hands of those precious children and working with them to complete these crafts, along with telling Bible stories, sharing the plan of salvation, singing songs, playing games, and giving lots of hugs! Please continue to pray for our team as we make final preparations.

Bibles for Peru

The following was shared by Tracy at the Peru benefit concert:


Library day at school was always an exciting day for me. While I think most kids look forward to library day, I don't know that all of those library books are actually read. In fact, sometimes those books are lost and have to be replaced - as my family has experienced!

In the orphanage in Ventanilla there are 20 copies of one book. This book is so popular that it is never on the shelf, never lost and never dusty! The book I refer to is the Bible.

The kids must sign out the Bible. They love to read it and they have never before been able to do that. Because of the generosity of a Sunday school class here at Southmont they can.

The children have also been given Proclaimers. These are audio Bibles that don't require electricity or batteries. Quechu, Spanish & English are the versions they currently have. You just wind them up and play.

Often when casa's misbehave, they are put under restriction. Lauren Robertson tells the story of a group of kids confined to their casa for misbehaving. They had nothing to do! What do you think they did? That's right! They listened to their proclaimer. All of it! They must have gotten into pretty big trouble!

I believe that the children are quickly learning to love the Bible. I can understand why. Can you imagine reading the story of David and Goliath for the first time? They can relate! They are David and the life they face each day is Goliath.

The loneliness they feel from losing parents to death or abandonment is probably similar to the loneliness Jonah felt in the belly of the whale!

How exciting it is for them to read about a Father who loves them and will never leave them!

They love these stories because they know they are true. The Holy Spirit tugs at them and tugs on their hearts with every word.

I wonder how many of the kids pray for their own Bible. I believe God will say yes to this request. If we become a part of this blessing I know in heaven we will meet these kids - orphans no more. And they will say "thank you." I received my first Bible because you said yes and gave me that precious gift.

We are still collecting money for Bibles for the children at the orphanage. If you are interested in making a donation it may be sent to Southmont Baptist Church at 2801 Pennsylvania Drive, Denton, TX 76205. Please designate "Peru Bibles" on your check.

Illuminate!

The Mission Peru benefit concert, Illuminate!, was a wonderful evening of music and worship. Thank you to all who attended and took part in the program. A special thanks to Kevin and Angeline for sharing their musical gifts with us, and to Wendy for coordinating the event.

Kevin and Angeline did an amazing job leading us in worship:

Larry served as MC, Josey shared scripture, Dr. Baldor shared about his call to join our team, and Jessica shared of God's provision.



Tracy shared the call to bring Bibles to the children of Sagrada Familia Orphanage, Wendy shared about the work God has already done since the trip last January, Shawn shared about his experience on our first trip to the orphanage, and Michelle shared a call to prayer.



After the concert Team Peru gathered for a group picture.