On to Lima!

For most of us, Saturday started at midnight. We had only a few short hours to pack, hang out, and say goodbye to our beloved Pucallpa before leaving for Lima around five in the morning. We had a relatively uneventful day, during which time we pranced through the airport in funny hats, marched through Lima in funny hats, performed a silly skit in funny hats, slept (!), and vowed to forever stay away from suspicious-looking yellow sauces that cause allergic reactions.This afternoon, we had the opportunity to work with Nelson Juarez, a wonderful (and hilarious) local pastor, in the park nearby his church to reach out to local children. After traipsing through that small slice of Lima trying, in broken Spanish, to invite children to come to the park for the skit and message, some of the team members put on a short skit about truthfulness. After that, we interacted with the children who came. The children of Lima are so wonderful -- very open and friendly, and still receptive to the message of truthfulness we gave.Near the end of the evening, we found ourselves a good two hours' drive from our hotel (yet still in Lima) at a local church. This church was hosting a conference encouraging sexual purity among the youth and children of Peru. In a country where sexual sin is rampant and yet not culturally unacceptable, the message brought to these youth by Elizabeth and Steven was especially necessary. I had the privilege to sit in and listen to the message Steven gave on the Christian individuals' responsibility to never allow their light to dim in the face of systemic sin. The most powerful part of the evening came when the pastor of the church asked those who wanted sexual purity to come to the front of the makeshift auditorium and pray. Our team fanned out across the crowd and prayed, in English, alongside our Peruvian brothers and sisters. It was moving to see 13 and 14-year-old youth cry out for purity and freedom from sin. I pray that the fervor and sincerity felt there on Saturday night would not die with the passing of time.God is doing a great work here, both in Lima and in our own hearts. Please pray that God continues to work through us to accomplish His work.John, for the teamWhat it feels like to be at the airport at 4:30 AM.Sorting out luggage after arriving in Lima. We were all so glad to get the clean clothes we had left in our Lima suitcases!Recruiting kids to come to the evangelistic outreach in the park. Who could resist an invitation like this? Hmmm... or maybe, who in their right mind would accept an invitation like this?The crazy hat skit crew