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Wednesday was a day to relax between the two portions of our outreach. We still managed to pack in a busy day. Breakfast was a little later than Monday and Tuesday, which made many of us happy. After breakfast we did some shopping and had a communion service and some singing (complete with hand motions, as you can see!).

We followed this by a lovely buffet in a Peruvian restaurant, complete with a woman singing Peruvian songs, then a bus tour on a double decker bus.

 

After our tour, we headed to the next outreach church to set up and meet the volunteers.

We are looking forward to a wonderful day today, seeing God work. We have some illnesses and injuries in our team, so we know we can’t rely on ourselves. We are grateful for all those out there praying for us!

The team started out the second day of outreach tired and stiff, but ready to go. As usual, there were less chairs from which to choose, so modifications were often necessary. A familiar scene at a Joni and Friends Wheels for the World outreach is seeing a mechanic (or sometimes therapist or support person) lying under a wheelchair making adjustments.

The mechanics were kept busy modifying chairs and walkers.

Everywhere you looked, the team was busy. Seating specialists working with the patients, mechanics adjusting chairs, support people creating cushions and seats (among numerous other tasks), and the tailor busy sewing on his machine.

Many people’s stories touched us as we served on Tuesday. Javier was 23 years old when he was involved in an accident and lost his left leg. Not long afterwards he read the Joni book. He found encouragement reading about another young person who had been involved in a life-changing accident. He found that he could relate to what she had been through.

 

 

 

 

Monday was a very long, but blessed day.

We had many adaptations to make on chairs, so things seemed to move slowly. Of course, sometimes that’s a blessing because it allows more time to love on people!

This morning we went to church at the place we will serve on Thursday and Friday. They had a special baptism service. We were introduced to the congregation and presented a “symbolic” chair.

 

Between the two services, we took a trip to the beach. What a glorious display of God’s creation!

After the beach, we went to another church, this one representing a group of churches that our hosting Monday and Tuesday’s outreach. Another symbolic chair was presented and our group joined a celebration.

 

 

 

 

Not much sleep last night but the team is bright-eyed and bushy-tailed this morning. Lots of happy reunions and meeting new people. The hotel is beautiful and the breakfast was bountiful. Everyone who works here is friendly and helpful. We are getting ready for our team meeting, then we will go and exchange money before flying to Tacna.

We have converged from Maryland and Virginia and are awaiting our flight to Lima. Getting to know each other and reuniting with old friends. We are excited to be on our way!

All across the country, team members are preparing for our Friday departure! The excitement is growing as we pray, pack, shop (there’s always that ONE item that was forgotten . . .), and handle the myriads of little details that come with the anticipation of a week away.

For those who actually read this blog and have followed our team, we will be in Tacna this year, not Lima (although the blog still says Lima – it was easier that way). Tacna is near the border with Chile. It is a much smaller city and we might even be within walking distance of one of the churches! I don’t think any of us will miss the long bus rides on either end of a long day.

We will be working with two churches. We will be at one on Monday and Tuesday, the other on Thursday and Friday. Wednesday we will be doing some sightseeing in Tacna.

We appreciate all of you and your continued support. Pray for our team to work well together, health and safety, but mostly that Christ will be glorified and that many will come to know Him as Savior! The chairs are just a tool to point people to Jesus.

Even though all but one of the Americans from our team have arrived back home, there is one more story begging to be told. This is Cesar’s story (the one team member still in Peru).

In 2012 Cesar, a native of Peru who had immigrated to California, heard that a good friend’s wife had had a stroke. She needed a wheelchair and Cesar was determined to make that happen. His daughter told him about Joni and Friends, having recently heard Joni speak. {They live near Joni and Friends headquarters.}

So, Cesar contacted Joni and Friends to see if they could arrange to bring a wheelchair for his friend on their next outreach in Lima. During that outreach, some of the team, including Reid, took the chair to the friend’s home and made sure that it was a good fit for her.

Two years later, Cesar heard that there was another outreach going to Lima and he decided to go – on his own because the team was already filled. He stayed at his mother’s home and commuted to the hotel where the rest of the team was staying. He was there every day – translating and generally being helpful. On one of the bus rides back to the hotel, Cesar and Reid sat together on the bus. Reid shared the gospel with Cesar and he gave his heart to God.

Another team member lives near Cesar in California and her husband started mentoring Cesar once he was back in the States. Cesar joined the team again in 2015 and 2016 – actually on the team both times! – serving alongside these friends.

This year, Cesar’s friends came to the outreach on the last day so the team could make some adjustments to her chair. Here is a picture of the couple, Cesar, and other team members after her chair was repaired.

Pictured here are the couple, Cesar, Reid, and another member of this year’s team. God is so good!

 

A team member from the team that served in Chimbote the week before our team reports that one of the team member’s daughter and granddaughter met a man with a disabled son while on a missions trip to Peru in July. Since then, they have been working on arranging a wheelchair for the little boy.

This family lives closer to San Juan de Lurigancho so he was seen at our outreach there. Together, we can make a difference…

It was a good day of working with three pastors: Pastor Edgar from San Martin, Pastor Luis from San Juan, Pastor Arsenio from San Juan.  They were all very interested in being trained as mechanics to understand the process about how a therapist and a mechanic work together. They helped me to cut and assemble three wooden trays for three patients.

We had a wonderful time celebrating work the Jesus Christ did through the North American trade team and the Peruvian team to seat about 160 people.
The church at San Juan is led by a leader pastor vision to transform his community and he wants to have a growing ministry among those affected by disability. Many people showed up to the event who had become christians and who are now attending the church. They were brought my church members would befriend them and share Christ with him.
This church is living out the parable in Luke 14 where the master of the house has a banquet and told his servant to go out into the highways and byways and compel people to be at his table. The point of the parable is that the master, God Himself, wants His house to be fulfilled with the poor and disabled as well. This church is doing that. It is an example. that inspires us all.