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Elizabeth and Mark handing out tracts
Friday—Ever passed out tracts before? I bet you haven’t done it Peruvian style! This morning the church invited us to pass out invitations to the church in the marketplaces of Callao. Passing out tracts here means a group of Americans running around Peruvians market places, dodging dead chickens strung up by the feet (and other even more unusual things), to pass out pieces of paper they couldn’t read, to a bunch of the people who didn’t speak a word of English, but were so intrigued that if we didn’t give them a tract they would actually come up and ask for one. The team took on the project with so much enthusiasm. It was a great way to meet lots of people, make friends in spite of the language barrier, and get a taste of the life of Callao, as well as attract people to the church.
Daniel with an armful of sod
This afternoon we had fun seeing our dust plot actually turn into a garden, complete with grass and flowers! As we worked, busloads of incredulous people drove by, watching these crazy young Americans on their knees in the dirt planting geraniums and laying sod. We smiled and waved as they went by. Since the same bus drivers passed us all day long, we had some friends by the end of the day. They would go by and honk, give us a thumbs up, or let us know they appreciated the new look on the street. It was great publicity for the church. I bet they’ll have visitors on Sunday who show up just to find out what was up with the Americans and the geraniums. We also cleaned the roof of the church. It had been absolutely covered with junk and dirt (roofs here are flat and often used for storage). Now it is all cleaned up and ready to be used for children’s classes or something similar. Once again the team went far beyond the call of duty and poured their heart into their work. The church leaders were very pleased with everything the team did.
Molly handing out tracts to a vendor
See—just like I said—dead chickens are definitely part of the experience!
We especially targeted young people because the church was putting on a special youth program—led by your favorite team of American young people in Peru!
Mary Frances and Molly working hard carting dirt off the roof
Darlene, Leah, Aaron, and Tiffany painting the church nursery
Part of the sod laying crew—Nathan, Beth, and Jaimie. We are so glad Nathan had experience laying sod
The finished product
Hooray! A happy team in front of a oasis of green in the midst of a dusty city—it was great to be able to bless a church in such practical ways
(Pictures courtesy of Philip Roth and Elizabeth Fox.)
