October 2021 Issue Header

October 2021 Issue Header

It’s springtime here, but Peruvians call it “Arequipa summer” because our true summertime (i.e. January) is the coldest it gets because...rain. This month we celebrated 7 years in Peru! There is so much to be thankful for. We love the house churches. We love our neighborhood and friends throughout the city with whom we get to share life and faith. We love partnering in sustainable community development with CUDA in schools and with microloans. We love guiding Harding students through a process of intercultural learning through the history and culture of Peru.

Paty and CUDA’s Microfinance Program

Paty and CUDA’s Microfinance Program

Getting to be in relationship with Paty as a Christian follower, leader, and servant has been one of the great joys of our 7 years in Arequipa. The last year and a half, in particular, has been a formative time of shared faith, discipleship, and formation for Jesus’s mission and partnership in the gospel. It’s as if God’s work in Paty’s life—which has included so many spiritual mentors, and in which Katie and I personally got to share for years of reading the Bible and breaking bread with Paty and Lola in their home—had all been leading up to the moment where God would call Paty to minister to a very marginalized part of Peru’s population, a group beautifully made in the image of God yet abused by society, including women involved in sex work, and men and women abandoned by their families early in life either because of their sexual orientation or gender identity.

Living Libraries - October 2021

Living Libraries - October 2021

As a reminder, we are Living Libraries, a branch of the Christian Urban Development Association’s work in Arequipa, Peru aiming to break cycles of urban poverty and make way for justice, wellbeing, and joy because of Jesus. We put a library in a public school where there were previously no children’s books, and train the teachers with reading comprehension strategies over the course of two years to get that school ready to function on its own with a reading program. We do this because we believe that when the kingdom of Jesus comes into a community, things get better.

Living in Arequipa - April 2021

Living in Arequipa - April 2021

Life in Arequipa is much more pleasant than it was in last year’s lockdown. Sadly, it has opened up more because of economic necessity and less because of improvement in health. Hospitals across the country are full, deaths because of COVID-19 are higher than any other point in the pandemic, and vaccines are only trickling in, so we’re not seeing much of the “light at the end of the tunnel.” Thankfully a big part of Peru’s health and policing personnel have been able to get vaccinated, and they’re currently working on the 80+ years population, but it is slow going. Slow. At one point they were just focusing on those 100 years old or older, so there’s progress I guess. But we constantly have friends and neighbors who know of family members and friends who are suffering. Peru has one of the highest excess death rates in the world and we feel it.

The House Churches - April 2021

The House Churches - April 2021

We never thought our house churches would meet virtually for a year! We’re deeply grateful for the opportunity to pray, sing, read, and interact meaningfully as a church every Sunday, though we long to share a table, breakfast, and bread and wine together again someday in the not-too-distant future. We’ve been using the Discover Bible Study process some in our church gatherings and are now sharing the responsibility of choosing a passage and asking the questions for the group’s discussion. Our prayer is that the Spirit would guide the church in its reading of scripture, asking questions about God and humanity, and bringing faith to life in the practice of loving our neighbors.

CUDA Update - April 2021

CUDA Update - April 2021

God has provided tremendously for CUDA, and I’m so, so thankful. The Bobbie Solley Foundation, the Tulsa Christian Foundation, the Bell Trust are all contributing financially in an incredible way. Add that to the contributions that individual families make, some stretching to give $25/month, some stretching to give $500/month—and we’ve been able to continue on, and even grow! I, as CUDA Board treasurer, can breathe, at peace with God’s providence, and continue to work toward the future of our work in sustainable development toward justice, wellbeing, and joy in the city. If you have $25 or $50/month to spare and want to be a part of this sort of work in the name of Jesus, would you commit to supporting CUDA for a year? If you can’t do that, but you shop at Kroger or Amazon, would you consider linking your account to our non-profit? All the details for supporting us in any way are right here.

That's it, That's all - Issue closer and pictures

That's it, That's all - Issue closer and pictures

Well, that’s all I’ve got. Thank you for joining us in prayer. For those at Cedar Lane and Central who support us directly through giving to those churches—thank you. We’re more convinced than ever before that we are where we need to be, thankful for the chance to be a part of God’s mission here in Arequipa. Let’s just all do our best to show the love of Christ whenever we get the chance. That infinite, unknowable, boundless, Ephesians 3:14-21 love of Christ that changes everything. If you’re looking for something to read…