Extreme Makeover Begins!

Wow! Thursday was a very long day as our two service projects began. A group of people from FRC Lima and from FRC in Florida took the girls to a park, and to go bowling, and they all had a great time together. Another group from FRC Lima and FRC in Florida spent the day getting really dusty and really dirty as they began to work on the extreme makeover. Garland and I spent pretty much the whole day at Sodimac! But things are underway here, and today is the day that the big changes will start to take place, after yesterday's tear-down.

Troy Is Here!

Pastor Troy has arrived in Lima!

On Tuesday night we went to the airport to receive him. He had a bit of a bumpy flight from Fort Lauderdale, but was very happy to be back here in Lima. He's doing some studying and preparation today, getting ready for Sunday's live teaching at the cinema. Tonight we will also go back to the airport to pick up Pastor Garland and the rest of the FRC group from Florida. Tomorrow, bright and early, the service projects begin! If you've signed up to help with one of the service projects, then you already know where to go and at what time tomorrow morning. It's going to be an awesome week, as we bless some very important friends of ours here in Lima!

Get Ready!

This is going to be a big week!

Pastor Troy arrives in Lima on Tuesday night, and then Pastor Garland and 30 of our friends from FRC in Florida arrive on Wednesday night! First thing on Thursday morning we will start on the two service projects that we will be performing here in Lima. Many of you already know the "extreme" details of the service projects, but I'm not going to share any more information here, so as not to ruin any secrets. But those of you who know the plans also know that it's going to be big! Next Sunday should be a blast - first we get to worship at FRC Lima with Troy and Garland and all of our friends from Florida, and then on Sunday night ... on Sunday night ... let's just say that on Sunday night we're going to be decking the halls! We'll keep you posted!

Women's Literacy In Iquitos

The FRC Lima Tribal Church is off to a great start in Iquitos!

Pastor Samuel Silva and his wife, Selmia, are doing a great job. Each week they visit the Boras, the Yaguas, and other native communities, and minister to over 100 native tribespeople. One of the lessons we learned on our last trip to Iquitos was that none of the native tribeswomen of the Boras or Yaguas can read or write. We must change this, and change this we will! We have given Samuel and Selmia educational materials so that they can teach the Bora and Yagua women to read and write, and they will be starting this very important program very soon. This is exciting, because we are bringing help and hope and a future to these tribal women, and they are our beloved sisters in Christ. Soon they will be able to read the Bible on their own, and lead other tribal women to Christ. We here at FRC Lima are nourishing our sisters both spiritually and intellectually, and I know that they will take what they learn to glorify God and to help other women reach their God potential.

BTW, keep reading this blog all this week for updates on Pastor Troy's return to Lima - along with 32 of our friends from FRC in Florida! It's going to an extremely busy and extremely exciting week, especially with the two service projects we have planned. Stay tuned for further details all through the week!

Urbania

We have begun to advertise in Urbania, a free, monthly, secular, arts and entertainment newspaper here in Lima. It is published in both English and Spanish, and is available at hundreds of restaurants, cafes (including some Starbucks!), bookstores, newsstands, souvenir markets, tourist locales, and other shops and stores in and around Lima. We will have copies of Urbania available at the Information Table at the cinema on Sunday mornings. Please feel free to pick up a few copies and distribute them to your unchurched friends, and be sure to show them the ad for FRC Lima on page 10! It's a great way to introduce your unchurched friends to FRC Lima, and a great way to invite them to come to FRC Lima on Sundays!

Preparation

This Sunday at FRC Lima we are going to return to the Antology series. This week's teaching deals with the topic of preparation, and how preparation today will mean success tomorrow. We'll also have more information about Pastor Troy's visit to Lima next week and the two service projects we'll be doing together. He's bringing 32 people from FRC in Florida with him! We'll also have more information and a video about our earthquake relief effort in Chincha, and as well we'll be giving you more information about the new Spanish service that we'll be kicking off on September 23, along with the new service times for the English and Spanish services. It's going to be an exciting and busy Sunday morning at the cinema, so be sure to be there, and invite your family and friends!

A Day At Ground Zero

On Tuesday we visited the city of Chincha, Peru, about 3 hours south of Lima. Chincha is part of the Ground Zero area where last week's 8.0 earthquake did the most damage.

There is devastation everywhere in and around Chincha. The Panamericana Sur highway into Chincha is fractured with thousands of cracks and crevices, making driving slow and dangerous. On the way into Chincha, hundreds of people line the streets, begging for food and holding up signs saying (in Spanish), "Help me!" or "We need help urgently!"

Most of the homes and buildings in the city are made of adobe (mud) brick, and they now are all in ruins. The local hospital looks like someone took a wrecking ball to it. Stop lights and utility poles lie on the ground, snapped in two. There is very little electricity or water in the city or the surrounding area. There were 12 more aftershocks while we were in Chincha, about one every hour. Every time there was a new tremor, the people started screaming and running. There is a sense of desperation everywhere.

But in the midst of this tragedy, FRC Lima brought help and hope. Because of the incredible generosity of all of you at FRC Lima, we were able to donate 1 ton of food, water, clothing, medicine, and other supplies to the earthquake survivors in Chincha. And also because of your generosity, we were able to feed 1,000 survivors in Chincha on Tuesday.

I want to say it again: I am so proud of all of you at FRC Lima. You showed your faith by your works. You served others and loved on others who you may never meet in this life. You didn't just talk the talk. You walked the walk. You served your brothers and sisters in Chincha, and in doing so you served Jesus as well. I know that God is looking down from heaven and saying, "Well done, good and faithful servants!"

Way To Go, FRC Lima!

I am so proud of all of you at FRC Lima today!

This morning, even as another earthquake aftershock hit us right in the middle of my teaching, you all stepped up to the plate and donated hundreds of bags of food and bottles of water and articles of clothing which will be distributed to the earthquake survivors in Chincha on Tuesday. That is fantastic! It was so awesome to see the huge piles of bags, boxes, and bottles, all ready to be sent to Chincha. Today you showed the love of Jesus in a very tangible way, and the suffering people of Chincha will never forget you or what you donated to them. Today you showed your faith by your works. Today you walked the walk, and didn't just talk the talk.

It's ironic, isn't it? You may never meet any of the people that you helped today with your donation, but indeed you have helped them, and God has seen your acts of generosity, and He will bless you for it. Today was a great day in the brief history of FRC Lima, because today you served others and loved on others, even though you may never see them or meet them in person. Today you blessed many other people, and God will bless you for it.

Way to go, FRC Lima!

Earthquake Relief

Here at FRC Lima, our earthquake relief plan is kicking into high gear.

This week we will visit Chincha, a city of 120,000 people, mainly African-Peruvians, and one of the areas most heavily devastated by Wednesday's killer earthquake. We will be joined on our trip by Luisa Cuculiza, a member of the Congress of the Republic of Peru. We will be delivering food, clothing, medicine, and other supplies to the earthquake survivors in Chincha, almost all of whom now are homeless and with nothing more than the clothes on their back. We also will be helping to set up a type of soup kitchen which will be able to feed 1,000 people a day until they are able to get back on their feet. As well, we will be surveying the damage and preparing a more long-term plan of assistance for our suffering brothers and sisters in Chincha. About 80% of the homes in Chincha were reduced to rubble by the earthquake, so a reconstruction plan also is necessary. We are thinking of FRC Lima mission trips in the near future to help rebuild homes for those who are now homeless in Chincha after the 8.0 earthquake.

All of this requires your help, whether you are in Lima, or in Florida, or wherever you are in this world. We need your prayers and your financial support right now in order to reach out to our suffering brothers and sisters in Chincha. This is an enormous opportunity to show 120,000 Chinchanos the love of Jesus Christ in a very tangible way. We must do it. We need your help.

Remember the words of Jesus in Matthew 25:35-40 (TNIV), "For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me ... whatever you did for one of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me."

We are doing all of this for our brothers and sisters in Chincha, and therefore we're doing it all for Jesus Christ, too. Please join us and support us in this life-saving work.

When Disaster Strikes

The news is bleak in the south of Lima. 510 dead. 2,000 injured. 85,000 homeless. 16,000 different families without a place to live. Continued aftershocks and tremors. 600 escaped prisoners. Looting and robbing - both out of greed and desperation. Public squares being used as open-air morgues. Churches, hospitals, offices, restaurants, and homes, now lying in rubble. 70% of the city of Pisco has been destroyed. Newly parent-less children wander the streets in rags and tears.

This Sunday morning at Flamingo Road Church in Lima, we will be taking a break from the "Antology" series in order to focus on Wednesday's earthquake and its devastating aftermath. I will be speaking about "When Disaster Strikes." There are many people in Lima and throughout Peru who right now are afraid, anxious, depressed, paralyzed with fear, and doubtful about God's love, grace and mercy. They are the people we need to reach this weekend, and we will do so.

Even more important than the words I can speak with my mouth, though, are the actions that we at FRC Lima have already taken, and will take, with our hands and feet, in order to bring hope and salvation to the earthquake victims in the south of Peru. This morning we helped fill up a van with rice, sugar, cooking oil, coffee, tea, water, canned milk, canned foods, cookies, and crackers, all bound for Pisco. The shipment will arrive tonight to bring some immediate relief. This Sunday, we want everyone attending FRC Lima to bring as much food, clothing, and medicine as possible for us to deliver to Chincha. On Monday, a group will go to Chincha to deliver all of the aid in person and see the damage up close, and also to help set up a "soup kitchen" that will be able to feed 1,000 people a day. We need your prayers and your financial support - right away - in order to make this happen.

James 2:15-16 (NIV) says, "Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, 'Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,' but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it?" Now is the time for FRC Lima to meet the physical needs of those who have been victimized by Wednesday's earthquake. We will do it.

On Sunday morning, one of the songs that the FRC Lima band will perform is "Psalm 91" by Lincoln Brewster. It is perfect for the occasion. Psalm 91:1-2 (NIV) tells us, "He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, 'He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust." That is what we cling to, knowing that no matter how hard the earth quakes at our feet, no matter how high the ocean waves crash around us, we will always be able to find shelter in the restful shadow and protective arms of our God.

Peru Earthquake

Last night at 6:41 PM a massive earthquake struck Peru. I was on the 5th floor of the residential building where we live in Lima when the earthquake struck. The whole building was shaking, and I could see other nearby residential towers and office buildings also shaking. There were huge white lights flashing in the sky. People screaming and crying everywhere. Very apocalyptic. I ran down 5 flights of stairs to escape from the building, with debris, glass, rocks, building scaffolding, and platforms falling all around me.

The damage is heaviest about 4-5 hours south of Lima, in Ica, Chinca, and Pisco. Already 350 dead and 1,000 injured. 60% of houses in Ica collapsed, as did churches, hospitals, and prisons. Many prisoners escaped. Sounds a little bit like Paul and Silas in prison (Acts 16)! Many Lima citizens are trying to take buses to the south today to help out family there, but parts of highway are destroyed, plus the local bus companies are now gouging customers to travel there!

Local news says to prepare for more, stronger tremors today and tomorrow. There were also tsunami alarms all last night in Lima.

The girls at the orphanage in La Victoria are doing well, but very scared. Many of the older girls were returning from school when the earthquake hit, but thankfully they all made it back home safely. We are going to try to visit them as soon as possible. We are also already trying to form an FRC Lima earthquake relief plan here.

Psalm 23:4 (NIV) - "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me."

Reaching Your God Potential Now

This Sunday's teaching at FRC Lima is really interesting. In it, Pastor Troy teaches about how we need to reach our God potential now, in order to be of service to future generations. Bread (the food staple, not the 70s soft-rock band) is featured in the teaching as an example. It's very true: future generations are relying on us - right now - to reach our God potential so that they, too, can do the same later on. We, in this generation, must serve coming generations. It's a fantastic teaching, and one you do not want to miss. Be sure to invite a friend to come!

This Sunday we also will be serving Communion, and as well we will have new information about Pastor Troy's visit here in 2 weeks, and the 2 service projects that we'll be doing together. Yes, it's all just 2 weeks away!

Finally, also on Sunday we'll be announcing the starting date of the new Spanish service! Yes, it's true! Soon on Sunday mornings at the cinema we'll be having 2 different services, one in English and one in Spanish! Start thinking now about your friends who don't speak any English ("ni papas!") who you can invite to the new Spanish service. On Sunday we'll tell you the starting date! Come and hear the big announcement!

Patch Adams!

Last week when we were in Iquitos, setting up the FRC Lima Tribal Campus there, we ran into Patch Adams. Twice! And I mean the REAL Patch Adams, not Robin Williams, who played Patch in the movie.

Patch was in the jungle to bring a little bit of joy to impoverished children living in the shantytown of Belen, the poorest section of the jungle city of Iquitos. We have been there several times with FRC groups, ministering in a local church, playing soccer and volleyball, and performing theater for the children who live there. Patch and his group of doctor-clowns were there to paint houses and make merry with the children.

We ate lunch together on our final day in Iquitos. Patch and his group do a lot of work in Iquitos and Lima. I told him of our involvement with the girls' orphanage in La Victoria and also in the shantytown of Pachacutec. He is not a believer (at least not yet), but he seemed to appreciate the fact that we don't limit our service to other Christians, but that we open our hearts to whoever crosses our path. It was a great conversation. Very interesting and stimulating. Pray for Patch Adams. God has given him a heart filled with compassion. I do not believe that our time together was a mere coincidence, but that it was God-ordained.

100 Blog Posts!

This is our 100th blog post at FRCLima!

It's quite a milestone, and it's a good time to remember all that God has done here in Peru so far with FRC Lima. 1 Chronicles 16:12 says, "Remember the wonders He has done...." Job 36:24 says, "Remember to extol His work...." Psalm 77:11-12 says, "I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago. I will consider all your works and meditate on all your mighty deeds."

Dorcas and I started this church 2 years ago in the living room of our apartment with 3 people. Then God blessed us with a time at Hotel Las Palmeras. Then He blessed us with Cineplanet Alcazar. God has blessed us with an awesome tream of ushers, greeters, pre-school and children volunteers, musicians, singers, and tech staff. God blessed us with an awesome beach baptism last March. He blessed us with an awesome Fiestas Patrias celebration. He has blessed us by allowing us to bless our friends in Pachacutec and La Victoria. He has blessed us with wonderful visits from Pastor Troy, Pastor Garland, and hundreds of mission group participants from FRC in Florida. And just this weekend God blessed us with the opening of our new FRC Lima Tribal Campus on the Amazon River in Iquitos!

And we believe that God will keep blessing us as we stick close to Him. We're excited about seeing God's blessings in the form of a new Spanish service, a new youth service, more small groups, more outreach in the form of concerts and films and service projects, a second campus in Lima, a second campus in Iquitos on the Plaza de Armas, a possible campus in Arequipa, and, most importantly, seeing thousands of Peruvians, all across the nation, both in Lima and in the provinces, come to know Christ as their Savior and come to reach their God potential.

It's amazing to see all that God has done in the last 9 months since I posted the 1st of 100 blogs here. It's even more amazing to think what He will have done by the time I reach blog post number 200!

Iquitos Tribal Campus!

We are so excited to announce that FRC Lima now has a daughter church - the FRC Lima Tribal Campus in Iquitos, Peru!

This is off-the charts exciting! We now are reaching native tribespeople who live along the Amazon River with the good news of the gospel message, teaching them, discipling them, making leaders out of them, and partnering with them to reach their God potential! We have the possibility of reaching thousands of tribespeople all along the Amazon River and its tributaries, all the way from Peru to Brazil and Colombia. We want to have an Amazon River baptism with the tribespeople sometime soon, hopefully before the end of the year, so start praying right now about how you can become involved in this great work!

Our God is a great God, and we believe that He has great plans for FRC Lima, and not just in the capital city, but all throughout this great country. We always want to be ready to burst through the doors that God opens for us here - and that's what we're doing in Iquitos!

Antology

This Sunday at FRC Lima we start a new series called "Antology." In it, Pastor Troy teaches about the spiritual lessons that we can learn from ants. This Sunday, Troy's teaching will focus on how we need to take off our slippers and put on our shoes, and how we need to get up, look up, and slow down. Does all that sound a little confusing to you? Don't worry! Just come on Sunday morning to the cinema, and you'll find out what it's all about!

Big News!

Be sure to join us this Sunday at Flamingo Road Church in Lima! We have some big news to share with you about an upcoming event and project involving FRC Lima - and you! We were really excited to receive the news this week, and we can't wait to share it with you on Sunday! Hold on to your hats for this one - it's big!

Relationships

This Sunday at FRC Lima we will finish the series about the Book of James called The Secret. This Sunday we will learn more about the secret of relationships. We will learn about how our mistakes affect our relationships, and what tears relationships apart. We'll also learn about the importance of relying on God's wisdom in order to have effective relationships in our lives. It's a very important teaching, and one which will help you to have more successful relationships. This Sunday we're also going to share some very exciting news about upcoming events at FRC Lima! You won't believe what's going to be happening soon at FRC Lima! Be sure to be there on Sunday, and invite your friends and family, too! We'll see you at the cinema!