Just a really quick addition to say please send post to the second address from now on.... were leaving in 2 weeks and because of the delay its probably safer that way. Also just want to say I am really sorry for being so rubbish at keeping in contact...!

Team Report 4

Hi again from team Peru!! Glancing back over our last report I have decided to update all of you dedicated readers as to how amazingly God has answered our prayers over the last few weeks. And we really do appreciate the ways in which you are all so evidently supporting us ...

- Lisa and Millie are back on form and in extremely good shape, eating lots again!-not only have we had opportunities to share bits of the Bible with Fermin , our maestro, in the mornings , but he joined us in church on Sunday and brought his little son Juan along to Sunday school too. We were so pleased to have them there. Juan smilied from ear to ear for the duration!Hopefully they will come next week.

- our Easter experience in Camana was a great success. Playing with the local children in a kids club we put on, reminding them of the importance of Easter for Christians and them too. We sang songs and played lots of boistrous games, which they loved. We were really lucky as language was not a problem at all.-we asked for your prayers in finding new ways to evangelise and involve ourselves into the community. Since then we have planned a party for the church members and locals, as a way to say goodbye but at the same time encourage newcommers into the church. One way we are going to do this is by handing out flyers and doing some street drama.

We would really appreciate your ongoing prayers with this.Just some bullet points of things we have been up to:
- recently we went into a school and ran two assembleys and a couple of classes. We were a little nervous however the kids loved our silly entrance and ropy spanish, which just made the whole thing really enjoyable.
- we went into two new churches this weekend, in the outskirts of Arequipa. We were amazed and blown away by the passion in which these incredibly poor people praised God and were happy with what they had. It was truly inspiring to feel the warmth inside a dusty, dark, unpainted shed when we started singing and praising God along side these people.
- on a rather amusing note, rushing back for the boys weekly football match, with all of us squeezed into a couple of cars and Stephanie and Jamie shouting 'faster Herman faster', the 2 cars collided and a front bumper was torn off as the loser pulled to a halt. With the once encouraging passengers feelling a little guilty, Herman's loving character luckily shined through!!
- this monday we went to a ranch with a swimming pool and horses; we were slightly dissapointed when half way through trying out the horse one by one to supposedly see if we were capable of riding we found out that was the horse ride and that our imagined all day ride over hills and beautiful countryside was not so. However, it was just as nice chilling by the pool.
- and a note on the building work...we have now finished all of the brick work and are making reinforced concrete columns to make the building strong enough to withstand earthquakes. We still need to plaster the walls, put the roof on and put the windows in place.

prayer points
- that Fermin and his son would continue coming to church, especially once we have left.-that we would all keep growing in the knowledge of God
- that the ubanas volcano near Arequipa which is currently spitting ash and killing livestock would not have a devastating effect on the local people.

(from the steps team website www.stepsteam.org)

Muchas Photos

Hopefully this will give you a bit of feel for things here... so that you can imagine our lifestyle etc, a couple of photos of us all on the building site... us arriving in Lima... Joel´s birthday meal... us playing with the kids at the camp by the beach over easter weekend. All lots of fun and hope this gives you a feel of things here! lots of love to all xxx

Photos

Team Report 3

GO team.
Last weekend we found ourselves tearing up trees and ripping out weeds in a missionary house by the beach. We did two hard core mornings of work and then took the afternoons to chill out on the sand, with the boys playing beach cricket and the girls topping up their tans. We were all reminded of God's power by the force and sheer size of the waves, they knocked us for six every time.

13th of april, Joelito turns 19. As it was the Thursday before Easter it was a bank holiday, this meant the building sight was bustling with enthusiastic church members eager to help out. We joined together to sing a fantastic rendtion of happy birthday. We were overwhelmed that with such short notice, having found out the day before, they managed to produce a massive cake and opened one of their houses to us and lots of church people for a party. We than hit the town to celebrate in style overlooking the Easter parades from the comfort of a high restaraunt balcony. The birthday boy and a few others ventured out and tried alpaca steak, which was much enjoyed, especially with a floresent glass of inca cola.

on the building sight - we are now awaiting our final batch of bricks to finish off all of the walls. Our superb maestro, Fermin, who is a machine, may be moving on soon to another job. Amongst other things this is due to a tough family situation. It has been great to open up the bible with him and pray each morning on the building sight, and to try and help him out at this difficult time.

This weekend we are heading off with the pastor to a poor area near the coast, where our church has links, and puts on a weekend of services over Easter. We will be travelling down in a combi with all our stuff, and will be involved in all 6 services ranging from kids to adults.

Dios te bendiga, love team peru x


Prayer points

-that Fermin would continue to grow in his faith and would have the chance to look at his new bible.

-that all stomach bugs would clear up, Millie and Lisa especially at this time.

- for the church that have welcomed us so lovingly and given us so much.

- new possibilities to share with the local people in the community about the church, and put on some events.

-this weekend , as we work with the pastor at camina, that even with a language barrier we can share the word of God and make an impact on the people there.

(from the steps team website www.stepsteam.org)

Team Report 2

GO TEAM PERU are really getting stuck into the work in Arequipa, not only have we become pro brickies but we have erected 3 concrete pillars which are supported by cleverly twisted wire frames done by 'the chicas'(girls) to perfection! Our maestro Fermin, who has now gained entrance into gag city because of his building site banter, is possibly the strongest, smiliest, Peruvian we know. He gave us a master class in brick laying, done at super speed and puts us to shame with his lack of fear when balancing on our very wobbly walls and hanging off the side of the already 2 story church.

Twice a week the boys get a great work out by carrying 45kg bags of cement up three flights of stairs, which are then expertly mixed with a careful proportion of water and sand mix by the whole team. This is where the girls come into their own and absolutely thrash out the mixing on the concrete floor. Having seen Steph's enthusiasm Fermin described her efforts as that of a man.
So far we have had two truck loads of 'King Kong' Peruvian bricks which we carried from bottom to top, this was superb for team building (done in conveyor belt stylie) and gave 'the chicas' a chance to practice their singing. They have now been asked to sing in church this Sunday.

The weekends are turning out to be jam-packed. On Saturdays the church have two youth groups, which we are getting really stuck into. Not only is it a great chance to get to know the youngsters but a chance to learn crazy, fun Peruvian games; involving dizziness, water, and running. On top of this they love to open up the bible and discuss different themes each week, also finishing with an extremely hard quiz.

Sundays start with church at 10 till whenever, with a youth meeting first and then a sermon and songs after. Last week Steve bravely gave his testimony in fluent Spanish, and Elaine took the stage to dazzle us with her recorder playing skills during worship!! Members of the church have also auctioned us off for lunch each Sunday.

In the afternoon the church tradition is to meet at the nearest football pitch and have a competitive 5 a side tournament. The whole team jumped in with both feet at the opportunity and gave a good demo of English football, until we started dying on the pitch from lack of oxygen! Most escaped without battle wounds, but the newly named Rambo (Jamie) has a slight graze the size of a tennis ball on his hip from a heroic slide tackle.

The other night we decided to swallow our pride and descend upon the houses in the surrounding area so that we could tell them who we are, what we are doing here and invite them to church. We could tell straight away from people's responses that God was totally helping us out especially with our Spanish - which was amazing.

The pastor Pablo yesterday celebrated his birthday and opened his house for Peruvian snacks and more Peruvian games this helped with even more team building! It was a heart-warming experience to see the true family atmosphere between the church members and to see a culturally different birthday bash.

Other highlights include a 3-course meal for 95p, two hours looking around a nunnery/convent, the bustling/vibrant market that has aisles and aisles of food, animals, cloths, and 20ft snakes. We have also sampled the local cuisine of Ceviche (raw fish) and Salchipapas which is delicious chips with frankfurter sausage, chicken, fried egg, bacon and every sauce under the sun (working wonders for the girls diets)!

Go Team Peru are now geared up for a heavy weekend and hoping to serve God even more and discover his will.

Adios amigos, el Senor es Todopoderoso.

Prayer points
Give thanks:
- That Steve now has two working ears
- Lisa's glandular fever isn't holding her back and she is talking as much as ever
- None of the rest of the team have been ill up to now and we pray this continues.

Please pray for:
- Continued improvement with our Spanish and regularly finding the time to do it
- Our personal prayer times. We are really enjoying our group devotions but because of our hectic routine it is hard to have our own personal time with God.
- The contact we have had with people in the area and that they would continue to show interest in the church.

(from the steps team website www.stepsteam.org)