Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

 

     Greetings in the name of our precious Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  We praise the Lord Jesus for having so wonderfully blessed us and for having sent his Holy Spirit to guide and teach us. We hope and pray that He has been blessing you wonderfully and that your life has been filled with His grace.  Thank you for your continued prayers for us and support of the ministry here in Peru.  We definitely see the results of you praying for us.  You are special people called by our Lord Jesus Christ to minister to His children.  Thank you for your faithfulness to His calling.  Thank you for your love for Him, for us, and for His children.

 

     February was a time of travel for the family.  We returned to the United States for most of the month to speak in various churches and the World Mission Conference at Dalton First United Methodist Church.  We were immensely blessed by the love and care given to us by each person and church that we had the opportunity to visit.  The emotions we experienced were interesting.  It was good to see family and friends again, but our hearts were heavy at having to leave our beloved Peru for such a long period of time.  We realized more than ever that God had placed a deep love for Peru and its people in our hearts.  It was interesting to observe our children, also.  They were under considerable stress while in the United States and as we returned to Peru we could see these signs of stress melt away.  

 

     One of the great blessing of this trip was the chance for the young people here who work with us in the Kid's Club to truly take leadership roles in our absence.  Genaro was left in charge and the other young people had their tasks to perform.  When we returned we received excellent reports about the way the work continued and the harmony in which it  was done (harmony is not a common trait in the church here).  In the El Tambo Kid's Club one of the neighbors begin to complain about the work and to make many accusations against it.  Genaro felt led  to go to the president of the community and reaffirm our permission to have the club.  The president not only affirmed the work, but suggested that we also gather signatures of support from parents and others in the community.  In one afternoon the youth gathered  over 80 signatures in support of the work.  We could tell that Genaro had experienced the stresses that often accompany responsibility and through this time of testing had matured considerably.  He was also glad for Mary Alice to be back in charge.  Please continue to pray for Genaro as he continues to grow to be an outstanding leader among the youth and in the church.  Also pray for opportunities to open more Kid's Clubs.  We don't know for sure yet, but the Lord Jesus may be opening doors to start three more Kid's Clubs this year.

 

 

Genaro working in the Kid's Club

 

     March has been a month to catch up on the work that was not done during our absence in February.  We have had to reinitiate the investigations into transportation, lodging and all of the other planning for teams that will be coming this year.  Unfortunately, unlike the youth, the adults that promised to help us with these things in our absence did not complete their promises.  In late May and early June we have two medical teams coming from Kentucky to help us with medical campaigns in the low jungle.  The places they will be working are Puerto Bermudez and San Martin de Pangoa.  Both of these places are remote and transportation is difficult to arrange.  Arthur has traveled to Lima  to meet with the Peruvian Air Force and the National Police about possible assistance as well as commercial aviation companies.  Please pray for Arthur as he tries to complete this task.

 

 

Road to Puerto Bermudez

 

    The ministry of the Mobile Medical Clinic is growing.  The ministry has been making two or three outings a month since the first of the year.  The person in charge is Luis Goytizolo, a volunteer.  He is experiencing the same problem as many ministries, a lack of workers.  Luis has done an excellent job in trying to develop and put into action a workable plan for the Mobile Medical Clinic Ministry and has tried to locate the needed professional help and resources here in Peru.  We are in great need of medications and funds to help entice medical professionals to volunteer their time.  We do not want to pay medical personnel as this will cause a significant increase in the operating cost of the ministry, but we do want to provide a demonstration of our gratitude for their support by providing a nice meal out once a quarter or some other demonstration of gratitude.  Due to the ministry of the mobile medical unit, we have a potential opportunity to open a new church in Sapallanga.  Please pray for Luis and for additional financial support for this ministry.

 

 

Mobile Medical Clinic during outing.

 

     We have spent much time this month getting to know new church leaders.  We now have a few more pastors to work with in the district.  We have spent time trying to get to know them and share the visions we have for the work here and to learn about the visions the Lord is imparting to them.  Please be in prayer for our relationships with them and their ministries here.  

  

     Again we want to thank you for all your support and prayers.  Please continue to pray for the church here in Peru. Please pray for our discipleship groups and the attacks against them.  Please pray for the children and young people that are part of the ministries here, for the tension in the churches, and for the church leaders.  Pray for the Lord to enable us to train more church leaders, cell pastors, and church pastors. Please pray for the leaders of the church here:  Bishop Marco Ochoa, and District Superintendents Jose Bustamante and David Figueroa.  Please pray for our safety as we travel, our continued adjustment and ability to understand the Peruvian culture, and that we will boldly speak God's Word wherever we go.  We pray that God is drawing you closer and closer to Him every day. 

 

    God bless you.  We love you.

 

 

                                                                                                                           Yours in Christ,

                                                                                                                           

                                                                                                                           Arthur, Mary Alice, Benjamin, Joshua, and Mary Beth Ivey

                                                                                                                               & nbsp;    Missionaries to Peru