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South America: Reports -
Peru - Reports
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Wednesday, 29 June 2011 19:06 |
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Hello My Dear Brothers,
I want to tell about Walter. He is a Peruvian man in his 40's who is living in United States, but he was spending two months in Perú due to a serious time in his marriage. He and his wife were going through a difficult time and after many arguments as couple he decided to abandon his home because the situation was unbearable. Suffering from a severe depression, he came to Peru to visit his parents and go to a psychologist. He was having treatment for his depression, but he got worse.
His mother was very concerned about her son and she told our sister in Christ Rocío V. about her son, because she thought the psychological treatment was not helping. Our sister told me about Walter and asked me to go to visit him. I went to his Walter’s house and he told me all the details about his situation and we were speaking about the Gospel for a long time. We were speaking about the purpose of marriage too and he realized he was not living for the glory of the Lord and he decided to leave his psychological therapy and began to read the Scriptures instead of his book of metaphysics which was recommended by the psychologist. I was speaking about sin and the necessity of God’s righteousness instead of self-righteousness in order to be saved.
After a long time, I went to my home and a few days later our sister Rocío V. came to our service along with Walter. I saw his face when he entered the chapel and it was totally different, he was not upset, but smiling. I talked to him and he told me about the work of Christ in him. He was confessing his sins to the Lord, asking for forgiveness in realizing how prideful and selfish he was. He recognized he was acting that way because he was living apart from God and his commands, but now he found peace in the Lord and is praying for the Lord to give him the strength to carry on. He is repentant for each of his acts, because he realized he was not thankful to God.
I praise the Lord for Walter’s life and I pray the Lord continue doing in his life marvelous things, persevering and preserving His work until the day of Jesus Christ, our Lord. Walter’s mother was astonished in seeing the change effected in Walter and she told Rocío her desire to attend the Church of the Savior at Barranco. Walter’s mother talked to him and told him that if he began to walk on this path he has to persevere without leaving this way. She thinks that something worked for good in her son and even though she is not a Christian and maybe she cannot see the spiritual reality of this change in Walter, she realized that it was something good for Walter’s mental health, because it caused him to come out of depression, that is why she urged her son not to abandon this way.
I am really joyful for this great salvation the Lord has performed in Walter’s life and I pray for him to cling to Christ every day of his life, knowing the Lord is “powerful and able to keep him from stumbling and to present him blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy”. To the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen. Walter went back to United States and is living in New York. I would like to put him in contact with a solid and biblical Church there and please pray for him because he will going to talk to his wife when he returns to the States. Pray for forgiveness and for him as he is going to talk to her about the Gospel. He wants her to know about the Gospel of Jesus Christ too.
Gina is a girl who came to Church invited by one of the youth who is studying here. She was a former Jehovah ’s Witness but she is not currently gathering together with them. The Lord brought her and when we began to talk about the deity of Christ she was presenting a lot of arguments trying to make invalid what the Bible says about it. I went through different verses, especially in the Old Testament which present Jehovah as the only Savior, as the One who effects salvation among the people and then we moved to the New Testament where Jesus Christ is showed as being the One who saves, the only Name given to men in whom we can find salvation. The Bible spoke and she had no arguments against the Bible.
After talking about the deity of Christ we began to speak about the justification, if it is by work or by faith ALONE. I went through different verses and I was showing with the Bible that man is in need of the righteousness that comes from God because of his state of sin, injustice and ruin, because he is dead in trespasses and sins, and he cannot be justified by his works, because by the works of the Law is the knowledge of sin. Our God will not justify any man by his works, because our best works are filthy rags before him. We are in need of an internal change, a work of regeneration, a new birth. The righteousness we need is not external but internal, and it is to be received by faith not by works.
I told her she was trying to understand in order to believe when the Bible says the opposite: we have to believe in order to understand. The way of the Lord is not the human way. Man cannot comprehend the ways of the Lord unless He reveals Himself and He does so in Scriptures, His special revelation and He sent His Only Begotten Son to reveal the Father to us. She began to cry and said it was the way she was trying to please God. She was trying to understand in order to believe and she was trying to please God by means of her works. She understood that her works are not the righteousness she needs, but this righteousness is only found in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who is God incarnate.
I praise the Lord for His Gospel, because it is power from God to salvation. The righteousness of God is revealed in the Gospel. Please pray for Gina. She is going to live for a year in a city named Juliaca, which is in the southern part of Peru, 20 hours away from Lima. Pray for the Lord to guide her to a biblical local Church. I rejoice in the Lord for his mercy and grace.
In Jesus' Name,
Walter I. |
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South America: Reports -
Peru - Reports
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Friday, 10 June 2011 13:24 |
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Brothers,
I greet you affectionately in the name of our common savior, Jesus Christ.
In the ministry God has allowed us to see some positive developments. I know that you all have been helping me with your prayers. I am very grateful for the time that you have given to pray for me and for this humble ministry that has not seen excessive numerical growth. But, God has conceded to us the grace of knowing HIm and believing in Him and I rejoice in the group that God has given me to shepherd. I have come to understand that they are not perfect and that they do not always do what I want them to do, but by the mercy of God they are obeying the Lord who saved them.
Last month I took advantage of some of the holidays to lead a workshop on evangelism. God put it on the hearts of several members of the church to attend and He gave us wisdom to understand several truths. The Lord also gave us the courage to share the Gospel on the streets. Since then the brothers have suggested that we try to engage people more directly and we have begun to share the Gospel from house to house. I ask you to pray for us in this endeavor.
During this time we saw the Lord do something marvelous in the family of a brother from the church. They had previously been very resistant to the Gospel and very cold toward us, but God has done a work in them. Glory to God!
I also want to share with you that a new brother has recently been added to our congregation. His name is Victor and his wife's name is Graciela. Victor was with us last year but then he returned to his home town of Iquitos (in the jungle). One month after returning to his family in the jungle, his son died. Because of this he decided to return to Lima with his whole family and they are now attending our church. Please pray for them.
May God help us, keeping us from every evil.
Gustavo R. |
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South America: Reports -
Peru - Reports
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Monday, 06 June 2011 15:17 |
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Greetings Dear Brothers:
This month has a been a blessing in all the things that God has allowed us to be involved in.
In regards to the evangelism ministry, thanks to God, we have been exhorted by Him, to preach more and more of Christ, and Him crucified. Among all the many circumstances that we are dealing with, we have the great desire to know more of the Scriptures and especially about Theology, but we have to very careful to understand that the power of God is not in all of that, but in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It is a challenge for us to remain focused in Christ, in prayer and in the power of the Holy Spirit in all of our evangelism efforts. When we do things in this way we see the salvation of The Lord in might and glory.
The preaching in the park continues steady, on Wednesdays and Fridays, where some brothers and sisters go in the afternoon, and some in the evening. Many of them have already been called as open air preachers, and this is a great joy in our hearts, because we know it is the work of God in them.
The ministry on the internet is bearing much fruit (www.enlospasosdelmaestro.com). We receive more and more e-mails every week from brothers and sisters who are already preaching the gospel, or getting trained for evangelism through our School of Evangelism. We are totally amazed at how many people are getting motivated for the proclamation of Christ´s glorious gospel. To Him be the glory!
Also, this month, and after two months of praying and seeking God´s will, the Church of The Savior has elected me as one of her pastors. This is a great blessing for me and a great responsibility too. I had already become involved in counseling brothers who are in need and also in visiting some of them and praying for all of them. Among the new things that God is placing in my heart to do is the teaching and preaching in our brothers and sisters´ homes. The purpose of this is that our church may get involved in inviting their relatives, neighbors, etc, to Bible studies where they can listen to the gospel and know The Lord. We have already begun with two groups, one in the north of Lima (San Martin de Porres), and the other in the south of Lima (San Juan de Miraflores). Please pray for all of this, and for us to be able to feed the flock, being examples to them (1 Peter 5:2-3).
Our family is very well, needing more than ever of the power and grace of God in our lives. Please pray for the salvation of our kids and pray for us, that we may be an example of a godly family by the grace of God, and for His honor and glory.
Thanks for everything that The Lord has called you to do, and for the provision that God gives us through you, for the extension of God´s kingdom in the earth.
In Christ,
Alfonso N. |
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South America: Reports -
Peru - Reports
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Sunday, 05 June 2011 03:47 |
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Greetings,
We give thanks to the Lord because He has sustained us so far and He has been faithful to His covenant, fulfilling all that he had promised to those whom he has saved by grace.
As you already know, the development of the online discipleship program continues to go well. More and more believers sign up for these lessons, expressing their gratitude for having access to the material and giving thanks to the Lord for giving them an opportunity to know Him more. It is a blessing to see how many of these believers who are already working on the lessons have great joy and contentment in the Scriptures and they recognize that the Word is what is instructing them.
Likewise, I continue teaching the discipleship classes on Sundays with Brother Eder. He has finished with lesson 12 and we are now lesson 13 where we are seeing the purposes that we have as Christians.
On Thursdays I have been teaching from the book of Psalms. This time I had an opportunity to teach on Psalm 2, where we saw the manifestation of the exaltation of Christ in His resurrection in order to demonstrate that He is truly God and the Son of God.
Thanks be to the Lord that the teaching also continues strong for the young people’s meetings. We are now studying the letter of Philippians together with Brothers Walter and Eder. We have been looking at the section where the Apostle speaks to and greets the overseers and deacons. My teaching was based on the stipulations that the Scripture gives for everyone who desires the office of overseer (or “bishop”) or that of deacon. This will help a lot since we know that there are surely many young men here at the academy who have the calling of the Lord to serve Him in ministry and this way they can be endeavoring to make manifest those requirements in their lives.
About two months ago a couple came to the congregation along with another young man from a different congregation. The Lord opened their eyes and now they are wanting to know more of the Scriptures. I am teaching the discipleship class on Saturdays with them. Their names are Alejandra and Jorge and the young man’s name is Julio. I ask for your prayers for them, that the Lord would guide them to more knowledge, but also please pray for Alejandra, since she has a muscular disease. Pray that if it’s the Lord’s will that He would heal her or that He might give her the strength to be patient even with her infirmity.
I went along with Pastor Martin to Iquitos in the Loreto Department of Peru to teach on the gospel. The Iglesia Evangélica Bautista Maranatha (Maranatha Evangelical Baptist Church) had invited us for their anniversary. We went to preach and to teach about the gospel.
Likewise we have been at the congregation that Rogelio G. pastors with Brother Mario. We also went there to teach on the scriptures. We would also like to ask for your prayer for them, that they would continue in the faith in the midst of a people burdened with iniquity and in the midst of all of those who oppose Scriptural truth.
We would also like to ask for your prayers to the saints here in Lima, Peru. We are coming along well with the Ministerial Academy but please pray for it. Also pray that the Lord would sustain us and keep us and give us light about scriptural truths, that he might help the students to be attentive and that He might give wisdom to those who will be teaching the classes.
May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with each one of you all.
Junior C.
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South America: Reports -
Peru - Reports
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Sunday, 05 June 2011 02:50 |
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Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
I send you greetings and many blessings to your homes and families.
On the 25th of March I traveled to San Ramon in the Biavo sector where Brother Serafin pastors his church. The brothers there had a late-night prayer meeting scheduled. The first service there was evangelistic and the other services were for the edification of the congregation. I arrived there with considerable difficulty because of the rains. Pastor Serafin and a lot of other brothers couldn’t cross the Ponacillo River and they had to spend the night on the other bank. The Ponacillo River flooded and destroyed a lot of believer’s crops and the river swept away a lot of cattle. It was a huge loss for several brothers in Christ but even so we were praising the Lord even early in the morning, praying and meditating on the Word. The believers there ended up very encouraged despite the adversities. We spent the whole month of April quite frightened about the rains and the threats of flooding.
On the 8th of April Brother Juan T. died after having had diabetes for several years. We had a wake for him and his burial was very well attended since a lot of believers from different towns came and a lot of unbelievers were present as well. Years ago God used this man to bring the gospel to the town of San Rafael. When we arrived there he was mayor and he was an unbeliever but even so he asked us to have a church service in front of his house and gave us everything we needed to have the service. That night we had used a superficial evangelism method and 13 people thirteen people raised their hands. This is how we first came to San Rafael. (I should mention that now not one of those thirteen is in church.) His now widowed wife is also a believer and we are praying for their children who are unbelievers.
As far as my personal life, I read 4 or 5 chapters of the Bible every day and I’m also reading Death of Death in the Death of Christ by John Owen.
May God bless you richly!
Your brother in Christ,
Arturo M.
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