August's First Birthday

August's First Birthday

It's hard to believe that August is a year old already! This year has been full of love and learning.First birthdays are a big production here – food, gifts, party favors, clowns, decorations, cake, and games. We had August's party at a big park near our house. Planning and preparation was a cultural adventure in itself! It took several days to get everything ready. Many friends and neighbors came together to help us make it all happen. It was truly a beautiful picture of community.

My Conversion Story by Liliana Oshoa

My Conversion Story by Liliana Oshoa

Isn’t it amazing when you stop to think of all the people around the world that we will get to spend eternity with? I (Jake) asked Liliana, a sister in Christ here, to tell the amazing story of her conversion over the last few years. Here’s what she wants to tell you (translated from Spanish).

Pictures from August

Pictures from August

August is always a big month of celebration here in Arequipa as the 15th is Arequipa's founding day. This past August 15th Arequipa celebrated 477 years! It is always celebrated throughout the month of August with parades, music festivals, beauty pageants, and food and art festivals. We have also had a big celebration this month for August Blair's first birthday! As you can see in the picture above, she loved her cake! 

Recommendation: The Armor of God by Priscilla Shirer

Recommendation: The Armor of God by Priscilla Shirer

If you don't have a Lisa Adkison in your life, get one. Lisa is one of my mentors and supporter from our supporting church in Little Rock, Arkansas and one way that she blesses us is by sending the girls on our team Bible studies to do. The first one she sent us was this one, The Armor of God by Priscilla Shirer

When Reading When Helping Hurts Helps

When Reading When Helping Hurts Helps

One of the funnest things I do each week is sit down with Alfredo, Paty, Lucia, Nancy, and Carmen and read through a few paragraphs of Cuando Ayudar Hace Daño—that is, When Helping Hurts. If you talk to any of us very long, you’ll know that this is one of Team Arequipa’s required books to understand what we’re trying to be and do in this city. The Spanish translation was published at the beginning of the year, and we’ve been making our way through it together once a week. I think of it in terms of staff development. As we work toward justice, wellbeing, and joy in the city, we renew the challenge to ourselves to continue to develop, to be repentant of practices that may have been easy but aren’t right, and to work together toward reconciliation. 

Health Impact Story: Maximiana

Health Impact Story: Maximiana

I would like to share with you the story of one of our diabetes patients named Maximiana. Maximiana was diagnosed with diabetes about two years ago. After the diagnosis, she decided that she wanted to change her life and be healthier. She heard about our work at the local hospital and came to visit us. We enrolled her in our monthly follow-up program and referred her to the exercise group that Katie and I lead three days a week.

Jesus in Baseball Pants by Percy Chavez

Jesus in Baseball Pants by Percy Chavez

We began a baseball league here a couple of years ago as a way to relax, keep in touch with old friends, make new ones and do some exercise (or try to, lol). Most people in Arequipa have no idea what baseball is, but it is slowly growing and we are now a six-team league where you can find a variety of personalities, cultures, backgrounds, and lifestyles. We play about two seasons per year. As the seasons go on, you can see the different personalities of each team emerging. There are the “we are here to win, not have fun” teams, the “we’re hungover from partying last night” teams, and the “win or lose, we just wanna play baseball” teams. Jake and I are on a team called the “Lonccos,” which roughly translates to “the rednecks.”

Recommendation: Greg McKinzie - The Hermeneutics of Incarnational Evangelism: Reading the Gospel with Peruvians

Recommendation: Greg McKinzie - The Hermeneutics of Incarnational Evangelism: Reading the Gospel with Peruvians

Friend of Team Arequipa (as well as co-founder of TA and CUDA, co-founder of Luminous Coffee, but of course, better known as friend of Team Arequipa), Greg McKinzie wrote a great piece for Fuller Studio connecting his 6+ years in Arequipa reading Mark with Peruvians to what he's studying now at Fuller. Here are a couple excerpts to whet your appetite:

Seeker Services — Team Arequipa Style

Seeker Services — Team Arequipa Style

I plugged in our 220V waffle-maker and waited for the green light to turn on to indicate that it was at the right temperature to scoop in a ladle-full of delicious, pre-waffle perfection, batter into the collection of metal squares below me…

I’m getting ahead of myself. The best churches I know in the US are “seeker-friendly...”