A Reflection on Harding University Latin America 2024

A Reflection on Harding University Latin America 2024

Since 2019, a significant part of our lives and work in Arequipa has revolved around our role as directors of Harding University Latin America. Once a year, we receive 15-30 students to live and learn with us for three months. As HULA 2024 drew closer to the end, a lot of our “top moments” came to mind—and there’s a lot of those! A first tour where our eyes are open to tragic history at Espacio Memoria in Buenos Aires. Hiking one of the world’s most beautiful trails—Fitz-Roy to Laguna de los Tres in El Chalten. Walking on the Perito Moreno glacier or navigating the Beagle Channel and hiking in Tierra del Fuego National Park at the world’s southernmost tip until you see some penguins. There’s sandboarding on the dunes of Paracas and watching the sun set in the desert. There’s waking up in the Colca Valley and realizing you’re in one of the most beautiful places on earth. There’s fishing for piranhas in the vast Amazon rainforest in all its breathtaking diversity. There’s walking an ancient path all the way to Machu Picchu’s original entrance so that the Inca sanctuary becomes your classroom. And there's HULA's final trip, traveling to the most remote inhabited landmass on earth, Rapa Nui, and learning what it means to be human through the lens of that incredible history and culture. 

The Nicest People I've Met in Peru I met in Prison

The Nicest People I've Met in Peru I met in Prison

This fall I met with a good friend of mine who has connections to everyone in the city (it seems like) and she said, “Katie, I think we should do a Bible study at the women’s prison.” She also has a way of dragging me into all her plans…or God has a way of using her to push me out of my comfort zone.I was nervous and didn’t know what to expect but I agreed to do it. We went together to the prison to meet with the director of the prison and got things set up so that in November we began a six-week study with a group of 48 women. 

Our Last Three Months of Ministry and Upcoming Time in the US

Our Last Three Months of Ministry and Upcoming Time in the US

The last three months have been intense. In particular, Katie has been doing really special work. In October she went to the Connections conference in Brazil, visited our house church’s missionary in a mountain community of Apurimac, and worked in a medical campaign in Cusco. Between those things we hosted an alumni group as part of Harding’s celebration of 100 years. All of that led into an incredible November. She got to go to two of four sessions of a personal finance course that Paty did with a group called Féminas, a group of women with tough lives, most of whom are sex workers. Katie and Paty have been building relationships with them over the last couple years, and at the end of the personal finance class the women suggested a Bible study as a next step. See more below in the article about CUDA and please pray for that opportunity!

Year in Peru by Caily Moore

Year in Peru by Caily Moore

I sit here in my favorite spot on the couch in my apartment overlooking the incredible and vast city lights, writing this and eating my dinner of bread and avocado at 10pm at night. I am alone but on a high from a great evening of climbing with friends and I am hit with waves of emotions as my mind is flooded with so many memories from this past year. There were difficult and challenging times but also new experiences and life giving moments.

A Timely FAQ

A Timely FAQ

We were recently asked a number of questions, to give context for the new Central Church website, so I decided to share it here. Of course some of you have been paying attention to the Team Arequipa story way before we were in the picture. But we’re coming up on having lived here 8 years and it was instructive to me to think about how we ended here, what the mission is, how faith has evolved, and how special it is to see God at work.

“The Mission of God” for the Latin American Theological Workshop

“The Mission of God” for the Latin American Theological Workshop

My dear friend Jonathan Hanegan, missionary in Buenos Aires, Argentina, invited me to teach the first formal course his workshop is putting on. Two weeks ago today we started with the first of eight 2-hour sessions that I get to teach on my favorite topic of all time: The Mission of God. This is a virtual course, and the students are incredible: 40 students from 14 different countries in Latin America. Men and women who are servant-leaders in their churches, some who are preachers and ministers and others who serve as leaders, always wanting to continue learning and deepening their understanding of who God is and how we can be a part of God’s mission.

Unexpected Gifts

Unexpected Gifts

In 5+ years in Peru, we have never lacked anything. You have supported us, prayed for us, sent us birthday cards and Christmas treats. You have visited us or sent a representative group to bless us. CUDA, our non-profit, has grown and some of you support that kingdom work there with monthly or end-of-year donations. When it looked like CUDA might not make budget in 2019 and I asked for help at the end of a long newsletter, we had $8,000 by the end of the week. God has been faithful. Your Epaphroditus-style generosity and sacrifice is beautiful and glorifies God. Every so often we get an email that leads to an unsolicited gift.