It has been almost a year since Campus Outreach sent an expansion team to Peru. Logan Martin shares that he is finally at a place where the mention of “home” brings up thoughts of his apartment in Lima. The team has been investigating their city and figuring out where to buy groceries and how to get around, just like anyone would. “The difference, “ he laughed, “is that when we open our mouths to ask for help, no one understands what we are saying.”
Every day in Peru has its own hard thing. While there is weariness from the effort it takes, Logan commends his team for their perseverance. Their desire to share God’s goodness compels them to love people well. With that motivation, the team works together to think creatively about meeting people and building relationships. All of the universities are gated and guarded. There are no clubs on campus. Universities allow them to audit classes, but with limits. The recent LATAM Network Conference provided opportunities to exchange ideas. “I wasn’t looking for a playbook,” Logan said, “but it was great to get ideas to try in our context!”
The church has been life-giving. Spending time with young adults has provided opportunities for relationships beyond just church membership. When the Lima team meets new people, they build a relationship from scratch, and it takes time to build trust. It is helpful to have a church partnership where others can ask more pointed questions that will not hurt the relationship but allow the team to follow up and have deeper conversations later.
This month, Logan, the Lima team, and some students watched American football together. Logan had to leave for a church event where he was teaching about how to study the Bible. Logan planned to give Matthew, a student, a ride home first, but when they got to the car, he asked to attend the meeting instead! It was because Matthew’s roommate, who goes to church with the team, invited him to attend while watching football. Logan explained that they would read the Bible and asked if he still wanted to come. He did.
It is slow, but there is movement. “I am asked how many people have come to know Jesus since we got here.” Logan says, “During pre-deployment training with SERVE, someone shared that one perspective would be that zero have. We can choose to think of it differently, though. We live in Lima in such a way that everyone we encounter is getting to know Jesus bit by bit.”
Join us in praying Galatians 6:9 for the team in Peru. Pray that they will not grow weary in doing good and ask the Lord of the harvest to draw men and women to Himself in the proper time.
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