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 Church Decorations |
 Congregation witnessing first baptism |
 Baptismal Candidates - First Baptism |
 Couples getting married prior to baptism |
 Baptismal Candidates - Second Baptism |
 Third Baptism |
 Fourth Baptism |
Tensions Subside and the Church Unites
July 18 2009 / ShareHim in Peru - The Quiet Hour, May. 22 - Jun. 6 '09 #370by Charles Haller
Campaign Site Narrative from Los Jardines, Cusco in Peru - The Quiet Hour. The speaker assigned to this site was Charles Haller.
From June 22 through July 6, we were in Cuzco, Peru with the Quiet Hour and ShareHim. There were 13 evangelistic sites. Our site was Nueva Esperanza. This was a church of approximately 80 members. There had been a history of internal strife in our church. Before our meetings, the local mission had sent the Sabbath School secretary/children’s ministries coordinator to help mediate the problems. She had some success through much prayer and meeting with the church leaders. When we had our first meeting with the church leaders, it was evident that there were still some unresolved issues. We started our meetings with much apprehension because of this tension that seemed to revolve around the head elder.
Early on, we were told that there would only be two or at most three people baptized. There were small groups that had been meeting for Bible study for several months prior to our meetings and the church leaders felt that only two or three were ready for baptism.
The speaker was Charles Haller and the translator was Celso Esquivel. Ron Barnes helped with health talks and Linda Barnes helped with family life talks. Our average attendance was around 100 adults with 40 plus visitors each night. The children’s meetings which were conducted by Mary Haller had an average of about 50 each night. She was assisted by Patty Esquivel, Vilma Diaz, and Linda Barnes.
God used these meetings to help heal the wounds that had been festering in the church. The congregation seemed to unite beautifully as they helped study and pray with their new members and the visitors. It was wonderful to see the Spirit of God working to unify this church congregation.
We ended up with a very organized and unified effort on the part of the church family. They truly were nurturing the new members and each new convert was treated like they were part of God’s family and were sincerely received into one of the small group Bible studies that meet regularly.
We were truly blessed to work with these loving people at Nueva Esperanza. We left Cuzco with tears in our eyes but with the knowledge that we can meet our new brothers and sisters in heaven soon. What a joy it was when we were surprised by nine of the church members who bid us farewell at the airport. They would have had to leave their homes by 5:00 am to meet us at the airport. We are all looking forward to that day soon when we will never have to say goodbye again.
Early on, we were told that there would only be two or at most three people baptized. There were small groups that had been meeting for Bible study for several months prior to our meetings and the church leaders felt that only two or three were ready for baptism.
The speaker was Charles Haller and the translator was Celso Esquivel. Ron Barnes helped with health talks and Linda Barnes helped with family life talks. Our average attendance was around 100 adults with 40 plus visitors each night. The children’s meetings which were conducted by Mary Haller had an average of about 50 each night. She was assisted by Patty Esquivel, Vilma Diaz, and Linda Barnes.
God used these meetings to help heal the wounds that had been festering in the church. The congregation seemed to unite beautifully as they helped study and pray with their new members and the visitors. It was wonderful to see the Spirit of God working to unify this church congregation.
We ended up with a very organized and unified effort on the part of the church family. They truly were nurturing the new members and each new convert was treated like they were part of God’s family and were sincerely received into one of the small group Bible studies that meet regularly.
We were truly blessed to work with these loving people at Nueva Esperanza. We left Cuzco with tears in our eyes but with the knowledge that we can meet our new brothers and sisters in heaven soon. What a joy it was when we were surprised by nine of the church members who bid us farewell at the airport. They would have had to leave their homes by 5:00 am to meet us at the airport. We are all looking forward to that day soon when we will never have to say goodbye again.