Ministry in Chinchil

While in Chinchil, we were able to have kids clubs for three days. Throughout those days, we covered the entire Gospel message starting with the first sin and finishing with the provision of eternal life for those who believe in Christ’s work on the cross. We had a great time with the children, but found some things to be more difficult in Chinchil than in Lima. For example, it was the first time that a pig had interrupted our kids club, and that it rained so hard on the tin roof that we could not be heard, but also a huge difference was that the children speak Quechua in their houses and learn Spanish in school, so the younger ones were at a disadvantage. Often times, the older siblings would be translating as we were teaching and talking with them. There were no decisions of salvation during that week, but we thank God for the opportunity we had to share the gospel with the people there.
Each night we had services in the small little mountain church. The first night, the village people were all standing outside the church with their flashlights waiting for the pastor to unlock the door. Once we were inside, we sat down on little benches about a foot off of the ground. Due to the loss of electricity, we used our flashlights through the whole service. It was a unique experience taking part in the services there, but a sweet time of fellowship with our brothers and sisters in Christ.
Along with planning the lessons for the kids club, we also were in charge of getting the church ready for a wedding. Josue, the missionary in Chinchil was to be married while we were there, so we had the privilege of getting the church ready for the special day. Thankfully, the electricity came back on in time for the wedding after being off for about three days. We had an enjoyable time getting the church decorated and later on participating in the service. It was a unique situation as all five of us ARRIBA students took part in the ceremony without knowing the bride or the groom. It was a blessing to see the hearts of Josue and his wife ready to minister to the people of Chinchil together. It was a great week to see the work of Josue and to see the needs of the people in Chinchil.