We Found a Soccer Court Near Our Homes for a Good Price – One of our constant prayer requests have been to find a soccer court where we can play. This has been trickier than anticipated, because all the soccer courts near where we live are above our price range. The soccer courts that we can afford are farther away and sometimes take up to an hour to get to. Last Monday I called a soccer court near our house and just by chance asked for a discount. He thought for a bit, and granted us a discount that falls within our price range. We are hoping that he can give us this rate for the weeks to come.

We Prayed Together For the First Time – Before the game, we gathered together and prayed! It was awesome. Mark said a great prayer and it was great to see our Peruvian friends bow their heads

We Forgot the Score – There came a point in the game where we were having so much fun, that every single person forgot what the score was. Someone had just scored a goal, and another person asked, “Hey, does anyone know the score.” Out of the 9 of us playing, not a single person could recall the score. We are men and competition and pride runs within our blood, and no one was concerned with who was winning or losing. This told us all that things last Monday had transcended competition, and we were enjoying each other’s company. This is a considerable milestone considering where we began.

Another Soccer Player Wants to Study the Bible – God surprised us yet again after the game. We were sitting in the bleachers drinking some water and gatorade, when, one of our regulars named Carlos (nicknamed “Pituko”), expressed interested in studying the Bible with us. We are now looking into some times where we can get together.

To God be the Glory. It has been great to see God at work in the lives of our Peruvian friends, and last Monday was just a taste of what he can do.

“Now to him who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, for ever and ever. Amen.”

We met together as a team later in the day for a meal. Everyone prepared and brought their favorite Thanksgiving food and dessert. This year we met at the Thompson’s house and we are grateful for their hospitality. After the meal we projected some American football on the wall through Slingbox and Lee’s projector. It was also a treat to have my dad (Kelly Davidson) join us for the occasion. It was easy to be thankful. Here are some pictures of the day…

Participants of the 1st Annual Peruvian Turkey Trot

The Race Begins!!

For Our Gathering, Wes Found Some Dr. Pepper at the Black Market

Toasting Our Dr. Peppers

The Thanksgiving Spread

Why We LOVE Thanksgiving

The Kid's Table

Watching Football on through Lee's Projector blasted on the Wall

The Kids Played Some Games

After the Meal, the Kids Watched a Movie (Priceless Picture)

Heli and JM drinking some hot chocolate after reading the Bible together

Team Lima Transitioning to Worshiping in Spanish – Little by little we are moving from worshiping together in English to Spanish. We meet each week for about 2 hours just to practice singing and praying in Spanish. Our goal is to memorize the songs in Spanish, so that when we begin to worship with Peruvians we will not need to look at the paper. Right now, we have about 3 or 4 songs down, but we are going to need much more. Please pray for that process.

Practicing Singing Together

Team Lima In Process of Determining Start Date For Inviting Peruvian Friends to Services – We are in the process of developing some short and long term goals for the work here in Lima. We have been here long enough to gauge the culture, the needs, and the religious atmosphere and we are at an exciting place of setting a start-date for worshiping with Peruvians, developing a structure for weekly gatherings, and determining when and where would be the best place to meet. We are soaking all of these decisions in prayer, and would be honored if you would join with us in that effort.

Fletcher Family Purchased Their Tickets! - The Fletcher family has purchased their tickets to Lima!! We are so excited as a team, because they are the final family unit and their arrival will complete our team’s presence in Lima. They plan on flying into Lima on November 10th. Their baby boy, Liam, is doing well, and Stephanie is recovering from her C-Section last Monday. Please pray for their time of preparation as their departure date approaches.

Beginning to Plan and Prepare for Short-Term Groups This Summer – The team is already excited and our anticipating short-term mission groups coming to Lima this summer. Mark and Justin and right now scouting a place in Lima where good work can be done, and Wes and I are gathering information (like hotel costs, van rentals, food, etc) to get an estimate on a cost for the trip. Lee will be a tremendous assest when he arrives, as he has lots of experience planning and participating in short-term campaigns. Right now, we are thinking that a medical/dental campaign will combine with a service oriented campaign to serve as outreach in a poor area of Lima.

Contacts are continuing to be made – God continues to bring people our way, and each day our team walks away with new friends. Please pray for the contacts that have been made, for the conversations that have begun, and for the ones that have yet to happen.

The Group for Monday Night Fútbol

(Back Row): Mark, Justin, Carlos, Angel, David; (Front Row): John Mark and Helee

In an effort to build relationships with the Peruvian people, we have started playing fútbol (a.k.a. soccer) with a group on Monday nights. It has been really fun and it has allowed us to catch a glimpse of the importance of fútbol in Peruvian culture. Every night of the week, one can find groups of fútbol fanatics (just like us) gathering together to play. In fact, last week we had a tough time finding a cancha (soccer court/field) to play on because they were all in use. Fútbol is a staple here, everyone plays, and (according to our experiences) almost everyone is good.

We really want to use this time as a chance to build relationships, so Mark had the great idea of bringing some soft drinks and cups that we enjoyed after the game over conversation. We pray that God will allow this relationships to grow despite the gap in language and soccer ability.

So on Monday nights, when you enjoying some Monday Night Football, take time during a commercial break to think of the other Monday Night Fútbol, occurring miles away. Thanks for your prayers!!

Good question. Our first instincts were to say, “Of Course!!” We had heard it from experts of South American Missions before we arrived, and we felt the need after numerous conversations with the Limeños. We did not have anything tangible, however, until a couple weeks ago. A local newspaper just published an article discussing the religious atmosphere in Lima entitled, “Los misioneros del siglo XXI (Missionaries of the 21st Century)”. Here is what their research indicated…

Lima is the second largest city by population in the continent of South America (Click here for a list of the world’s largest cities). The books indicate that Lima has 7,605,742 inhabitants, but in reality it is closer to 9 Million as many are not included in the census due to non-registered communities. If we take the conservative number of 7,605,742 inhabitants of Lima, than the survey indicates that 836,631 (11%) people do not claim any religion at all. Of the 6,769,110 people who claim a religion a whopping 4,196,848 (62%) are hardly religious, 338,455 (5%) are not religious at all, and only 676,911 (10%) people consider themselves very religious.**

If we add up all those who claim no religion, and those who do but are hardly and not religious, the number surpasses 5 Million people. That is a lot of people. More than the countries of Singapore and Norway, and more than the States of Minnesota, Louisiana, and Alabama. We know, because they themselves stated it, that these 5 Million people go to bed each night without a relationship with Jesus Christ. Over 5 Million people wake up each morning and do not know God’s grace and mercy. When times are tough, these 5 Million people do not have a community of faith that can help them though the storm. Over 5 Million people…!

To add to our case, we recently had a conversation with a Peruvian familiar with church planting efforts in Peru. She indicated that Lima, in many ways, has become a “forgotten city.” Most mission teams coming to Peru, according to our Peruvian friend, are headed to the jungles, the mountains, and the remote villages and there is not a lot of new work in the nation’s capital.

We pray that God will use us here in Lima. We pray that we can join in on what he is already doing in the hearts of Peruvians, and be a part of their spiritual transformation by pointing them to Jesus. We pray that these 5 Million people who claim little or no faith will come to know the grace, mercy, and peace that only God can provide.

“Now to him who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, for ever and ever. Amen.”
Eph 3:20-21

** – I understand that some may point out that there is a difference in many ways between religion and faith. That difference has been noted. I understand that Christianity in many ways is less about religion and more about relationship, and that one can have great faith without necessarily being “religious.” This being said, however, I feel that when this survey uses the word “religious” it encompasses the ideas faith and relationship with God as well.

Justin, Alison, Cailyn, and JM at the airport in Lima, Peru

Trying to fit all the luggage into the van

The other day, when my Mom was in town visiting, we were able to explore the Cathedral de San Francisco located in the heart of Lima. This cathedral dates back to the 17th century, and is most famous for the catacombs beneath the building. As we explored the beautiful structure which once served as home to Franciscan monks, we came across the dining room which particularly caught my attention. At the very end of the hall was a huge painting of the Last Supper.

The painting at the end of the hallway is entitled “The Last Supper” and was drawn by a Peruvian artist over a hundred years ago. Although this picture depicts the Biblical story of the Last Supper in Luke 22, there are some distinct characteristics of this painting that really caught my eye. It might be hard to tell, but look at the painting (located below) and see if anything in the painting stands out to you.

Last Supper Painting

I would love to hear your comments, but for me two things stood out. The first was what was on the menu for the Last Supper. If one looks closely, one can tell that on the plate is a Peruvian delicacy known as “Cuy”, which translated into English is “Guinea Pig.” I found it amusing that the artist when visualizing the supper that night, envisioned Jesus and his disciples chomping on the meat of grilled guinea pig.

(THEOLOGICAL REFLECTION ALERT – MOVE TO NEXT PARAGRAPH IF BORED)
Here we have an instance of a person looking at the Biblical story through the lens of his own experience, own surroundings, and own culture. As a person interested in missions it makes me think about the relationship between the church and its surrounding environment. Is it more effective to transplant a model of church into a given milieu, or to allow each body to grow, develop, and mature in light of the particularity of its own environment? Does there have to be a dichotomy between faith and culture or can they work together to better reach those in a particular setting? Was the life and ministry of Jesus contextual? Was it was geared for a particular time in a particular culture. Jesus was born a Jew, not some kind of universal man. He lived his life as a Jew studying Torah, participating in yearly festivals, and attending the synagogue. Furthermore, instead of meeting general needs of humanity as a whole, Jesus’ ministry aimed to meet the needs of people in their own particular circumstances. He gave sight to the blind, gave hearing to the deaf, gave healing to the sick, freedom to the captives, and forgave the sinners. It seems to me that his ministry was highly influenced by context. Using Christ’s ministry as an example, just like the artist in the painting did, we should consider ways to communicate God’s narrative in terms of Peruvian circumstances and context. THEOLOGICAL RAMBLING ENDS HERE

The next characteristic of interest is located between the second and third guy to the right of Jesus. Can you see it? That’s right it is the devil. What is the devil doing at the Lord’s supper? I didn’t know he was invited. The artist gives us an excellent illustration of the elusiveness, influence, and reality of the Devil. How many of you saw him before it was pointed out to you? Not very many, as one really has to look hard to find him. He was there the whole time, yet hard to find. He is hidden in the background, gently whispering suggestions in the ear of Judas. Once he is recognized however, one can spot him, point him out, and realize what he is up to.

Multiples times each day, the Franciscan monks of Cathedral de San Francisco would stare at this paining. It would remind them of the contextual and relevant aspects of the Gospel and that the devil, although hard to detect at times, is always there, lurking in the background, and seeking to influence those around him.

Lima is a wonderful city, full of excitement, culture, and history. When you come to Lima we can take you to some of these magnificent places, and even hit a local Peruvian restaurant where you can eat your very own Guinea Pig. We look forward to your visit :).

Lima Video from JM Davidson on Vimeo.

Ursus suda much (Ursus perspires greatly)
Averigüe si la cigüeña tiene vergüenza (Find out if the stork is bashful)
El austero bautista bautiza al gaucho (The austere Baptist baptizes the Argentine horseman)
La reina se peina (The queen combs herself)
Hay cuarenta guantes iguales del Ecuador (There are forty identical gloves from Ecuador)
Había un bledo cerca del roble (There was a wild amaranth near the oak)
Ponen clórox en la cloaca (They put Clorox in the sewer)
Los acróbatas comen croquetas (The acrobats eat croquettes)
El drenaje de la casa de mi padre es muy bueno (The drainage in my father’s house is very good)
Puede pasarse sin flores de glicina, pero no sin glicerina (One can live without Glicina flowers, but not without glicerine)
El intruso pidió una trusta y triunfó en la natación (The intruder asked for bathing trunks and won the swimming event)

We look forward to the day when we can use these sentences in real life. I can just picture one of our team members sharing the Gospel with a Peruvian one day and suddenly having to say “Look, there is a wild amaranth near the oak!” In seriousness, we are thankful for Phonetics class (even if we never see forty identical gloves from Ecuador) because it helps us sound less like Gringos, and more like Peruvians. We just have to remember that in Phonetics class it is not about the meaning, it is about the sound.

We hope you all have a great week. Thank you for your continued prayers.