Celebrating Navidad with the Neighbors

The neighbors that live here at Camp Tikva with us are traveling tonight to Trujillo (another city in Peru) to spend Christmas with Rosas's family, so last night Alida & I invited them (along with Walter, who also lives here) over to the house to celebrate Christmas. We bought Papa John's Pizza, pop & Paneton (which is kinda like a fruitcake..) and we had a great time together not only as a team, but as a family. We were able to bless the kids with a present each & also bless their parents with money to help them with the cost of their bus tickets. We all watched a movie together (Elf) & then we put batteries in the remote control car we bought Robert & the hair braider Barbie thing-a-majig we bought Marileny and we started to play. We had a great time with them.

I don't think everyone can say they love their work or they love who they work with, but we can & we feel blessed to be able to say that. Thank God for those that He has placed around us & thank God that He blesses us... so we can be a blessing to others!

The Good Things Just Keep on Coming

What a remarkable few days! Not only did we find out that Alida is pregnant with our first child, but we finally bought a car!! After finding several ones & having the mechanic tell us not to buy them, this one he gave the green light! So we purchased a 2002 Nissan Sunny. We don't have an actual picture of the car (we forgot to take one), so I've posted this picture of A 2002 Nissan Sunny, just not ours! After we bought the car, we took it to a friend who put on security for the lights, mirrors, hubcaps, rims, the computer, and an alarm! Welcome to Peru! Now we have it parked in a garage, waiting for the title & our plates... which we can't drive without those. So THANK GOD we were able tofind one we like & that was in our price range.. and now we'll need it even more with a baby on the way. THANK YOU so much for all your help with the car. It's a blessing to us. You all are a blessing to us.

And So It Begins

See that little black dot? That's our first SON or DAUGHTER! :) We went to the doctor yesterday and they said she is 5 weeks along. We go back in 2 weeks for another ultrasound. WOO HOO!!

Where have you been?!?

That's the question I'm asking myself and now that I think about it, howmany times does our Father God ask this question to us? Not condemning, not beating us over the head, not standing overtop of us, looking down His nose... but He asks with concern, with love, with grace, with mercy. Sure, He's a just God, He's a Righteous Judge, but the Bible says HE IS LOVE. It doesn't say He has a lot of it or a little bit or anything like that. HE IS LOVE. Wow. Just take a few minutes to think about that & let it soak in.

Well, where have we been? We've been here all the time, just busy with trainings, church groups, parasite pills, etc. We've been working here at the camp this last week to have it ready for a church group of about 22 who stayed Friday night thru Sunday afternoon. Then today we started the PARE training, so we had to do a cleanup yesterday. Ministry is W-O-R-K.

Also, the Founder & President of Hearts in Action, Mario Babarczy, is here in Peru for a conference. So Sunday we had a meeting with all the people of HIA. Wow, what an awesome time. He re-cast the vision before us yet again - what are we doing with the kids? Are we just playing church, jumping up and down, singing a few songs, giving the kids some candy & sending them home? These kids are ready to change the world & we have the God that they need. ARe we giving Him to them??

Happy Anniversary

November 12th was our 2 year anniversary, so I suprised Alida. On Friday, I had flowers delivered to the house with a card saying ¨Happy Anniversary a few days early... but sorry you won't be here to enjoy the flowers because we travel Sunday morning!¨ So this past Sunday we traveled to Cuzco, Peru, to visit Alida's parents (whom we haven't seen since the beginning of August) & to just get away for a few days. Cuzco is the home of Machu Pichu (one of the new 7 wonders of the world). It's pictured to the left, although we won't be going to visit it.

While we're here, we're staying with her mom & dad in a small city outside of Cuzco named Limatambo. Here, in the midst of the mountains, Camino de Vida has an incredible orphanage & Alida's parents are involved in some of the oversight. It has a school, church, a clinic, a farm, workshops for woodworking & mechanics, 54 kids with substitute parents, workers, teachers, & the list goes on. What an incredible work they are doing here! We'll be posting photos later. Please pray for the work here. That God would continue to use this place to bless the people, the children of the area.

Tomorrow we'll head back to Cuzco for the day & night & then we fly home & get back to work on Thursday.

Stand!!

No matter how much I plan on keepin this updated at least once to twice a week, it always seems to be forgotten! Things are staying busy as usual. We're still in the hunt for a car. We were close to buying a 2002 Mazda & we took it to the mechanic & he said "Don't buy this." That's good enough for me. Then we've been looking at a 2001 Honda Civic, but there have been holdups in paperwork things so we'll see if we end up getting it or not. God give us direction!

As I'm typing this, I'm listening to a Chris Tomlin song - If God is on our side, who can be against us?? What a powerful truth! I think so many times we forget this. We can do things with a confidence that no matter what might come against up, whatever might stick it's ugly head up in our face... it doesn't matter! We have the maker of heaven & earth on our side, WHO can be against us? What situation or circumstance can stand against that? Not a one!! Thank God for the blood of Jesus that MAKES us righteous to be on the side of God. A scripture that comes to my mind - Ephesians 6:13-14 - and having done all to stand, STAND!

Car Fever

God is so good. Alida & I am on the verge of purchasing our first car here in Peru. We've been in the process of withdrawing money from the ATM & today we'll withdrawl the last part & have all the money here in Peru. So next week (hopefully), we'll head out, find our car & make the deal. And we're excited!! Public transportation can be tiring!! So pray for favor for us.. favor we buy a good car, we talk with an honest salesman, and all that good stuff. Thank you all for your faithfulness to give towards the car. We couldn't be doing what we're doing without you all... and soon we'll be able to get around a little easier to do what we need to do!!

Pluggin Right Along

How many of you know ministry is spelled W-O-R-K. That's not our mentality when it comes to the ministry, but things have to get done! This weekend we had two John Maxwell Million Leader Mandate classes going on at the same time. Alida & Ps. Kim were teaching a group in Ps. Tom's house while Ps. Tom & I had a group in the office. We've made a commitment to teach each of these books to 50 people. So we're working to reach the goal. There are 6 books in all over a 3 year period & we're on books 3 & 4.

Sunday was a nationwide census here in Peru. When there is a census, you're not allowed to leave your house from 8am until 6pm. The stores are closed & supposedly there isn't public transportation. Churches cancel their services & everyone stays home. So we stayed home & a girl came to ask us questions around 9am. We've been counted!!

Starting the 23rd (today), we have the next PARE training here at the house. 22 people will be staying with us & will be trained to duplicate the program. For those who don't know what PARE is, it's Hearts in Action's program for the Prevention of Sexual Abuse against kids. You know, this is one of those things that no one really stands & shouts & gets all excited about. It's not a fun topic. But when you watch the news, whether it's here in Peru or in the States, you see kids are being abused. So if not us, then who? If not now, then when??

Back To Pisco

In the past 2 weeks, Alida & I have made 2 trips to Pisco. Pisco is probably the city that was hit the hardest by the August 15th earthquake. We attended a training about running "ludotecas", which are "toy libraries" where kids can come and play, talk, and get back into a routine since many of the schools still have not opened. Hearts in Action is helping to implement 3 of these toy libraries which are in the refuge camps Camino de Vida set up. These camps are for people who have lost their homes. And let me tell you, the city looks horrible. It looks like a war zone. Half of a building will be standing & the lot beside it completely empty. It's just crazy there. Please continue for pray for the people of Pisco & the work there. In a city that so desperately needs hope, we have exactly WHO they are looking for.

Sorry It's Been So Long..

If I'm not mistaken, it's been 2 weeks since we last posted something! Sorry about that. Let me give you a quick update:

1. We had a good time down in Pisco (close to the epicenter). Alida, Rut, and Laura did about 4 children's programs (songs, games, puppets, Bible teaching) along with just playing with the kids & spending time with them, asking them how they were feeling, if they needed prayer for anything. We believe God used us to bring a smile & hope to those kids, many of whom have lost everything. While the girls were doing that, Pastor Tom & I were back and forth helping them & helping with some of the construction things going on. We know this won't be just a one time thing. In fact, Ps. Tom & some other were travelling down there today to help. Pray that God can use us to be a blessing to these people. (I've posted more photos at www.flickr.com/losbowers)

2. If you didn't know, we're here in Ohio! Sorry we didn't tell everyone, but it was a surprise for my mom & dad. My brothers were home for Labor Day, so we walked in on them & mom was pretty shocked! So we've been here a week now & we'll be here 2 more weeks visiting freinds & family & some churches. Thank God for some much needed rest. We believe God is using this time to "recharge the batteries" and we'll hit the ground running back in Peru. We hope to see you while we're here! Email us!

A Smile

I'm asking that you all pray for us. Why? Monday & Tuesday, we'll be in a town called Pisco (PEE-SKO). This town was very close to the epicenter of the earthquake & is devastated. Camino de Vida has asked us to go to minister to the kids who are in the streets. Some of these kids are now orphans who have lost their parents in the quake. We'll be doing kids shows with them... games, songs, dances, etc.. just to bring them some smiles & of course, to bring them the life changing word of God. We know God can take what Satan meant for evil, for pain, for destruction.. and He can use it to bring life, to bring healing, to bring restoration. This is what we want.. just to be vessels for Him. That He can use us in this dark time for so many that have lost so much. Lord help us.

The Victorios in Cieneguilla

Somehow, we've managed to fit more things in our already jammed schedule. In our newsletters, we've mentioned an outreach to kids we have on Saturdays to kids in a pretty bad area. The club is called - Los Victoriosos (The Victorious). Well, this Saturday, we started the same outreach here in Cieneguilla (the district where we live) in a squatters village where we started a pre-school.

The Friday before the club, in the morning, Alida & 3 other girls went from door to door, inviting the kids & talking to the parents about the program. We'll do this every other Friday & Saturday. The idea is to build relationships with the parents as well.

So Saturday at 10:00am, we had the first meeting ....40 kids! We had a great time with games, bible lessons, object lessons & as far as we know, the kids had a great time as well! What an honor it is to be able to touch the lives of these young ones. God only knows who they'll grow up to be, but while we have em, we're gonna do all we can to instill the Word of God & His principles in them. We know it never comes back void!!

Shaken...but not Knocked Down

This has been a crazy few days! As many of you have probably heard, Peru got hit with a 7.9 earthquake on Wednesday evening at 6:41pm. The death toll is now over 550 I believe & the cities hit the hardest are suffering. Thank God for His protection! Alida & I had just left the house to walk up to where we catch a taxi & it just started to shake.

Keep in mind, we have tremors here. The first tremor I experienced was during a training here at the camp. There were 30 trainees - 26 ladies & 4 guys (myself and my then roommate Rich, from Florida, being 2 of them). Here comes a tremor & Rich & I are running out of the house like the whole thing is coming down & all the girls are just kinda looking at us like - huh?? Since then, we've probably had about 15 tremors that usually rattle the windows so we're used to it.

So back to Wednesday... you hear sound first.. like a train is coming... then the rattle of the windows.. then the sound of glass breaking & light poles swaying... and the ground just shifting back & forth beneath your feet. It's a pretty indescribable feeling. And this went on for nearly 2 minutes. Crazy! But thank God everyone we know is safe and accounted for.

But please, keep the families in your prayers. Churches like Camino da Vida are taking donations to the people.. and they need it desperately. Our prayer is that God can take what the devil has intended for bad, has intended to be painful, and God can use it to draw all men unto Him. Thank you all so very much for your prayers & your emails. It's good to know you have a loving family that cares about you & is praying for you!

RFKC - The First 2 Days

Here we are, 2 days into our first Royal Family Kids Camp and let me just say GOD IS GOOD! The kids are having a great time just being kids! We've had them running all over the place, playing games, making things, swimming, and most importantly, hearing the Word of God. We believe God is touching the lives of the kids.... and the counselors & staff as well! Today was the "Talent Show" night as some of the groups of kids did choreographies. Tomorrow is "Everyone's Birthday Party." We've rented inflatable games for the kids & they don;t know it so it should be a blast... just what we want. The goal of Royal Family is this: to give these kids that have come thru some ugly pasts and some that are still living in ugly present situations a week of great memories. And that's what we want! Thanks again to all who have supported RFKC with either finances or with prayer. You're a part of the work that God is doing in the lives of these kids!!

Opening Kickoff

We're excited to announce the GRAND OPENING of our Blog. We want to try to keep this page updated with all the events that we're doing with links to pictures that you can check out. So for those of you who would rather check out something online than read a newsletter, this is for you! Plus, it gives us a way to keep things updated more frequently. We run out of space on our newsletter, but here we can add more things.

One of the most important things to us is to hear from you! We love to hear what's happening in the lives of our spirtual family, with those who have "hooked up" with us to do this task that God's put in our hearts to do. So this will give us an opportunity to stay in better contact with you.

So check in on us regularly. We love you all & thank God for you!

Just Around the Corner: RFKC

In just a few short days, we will launch our first Royal Family Kids Camp & the first one in South America & we are excited! God only knows all the details that go along with the camp, but we know if one life is touched - just one life - it'll all be worth it! We're expecting God to do mighty things in this week of camp.. mighty things in the lives of these kids! So what I ask is that you would pray - pray that the love of God, which is incredible, can just be poured out on these kids. That no matter what their past says, God say their future is bright & shining. That no matter what people may say to them, our Father God says their worth far more than gold or silver - He says their priceless. AND WE BELIEVE IT! Thank you for your prayers, your support, and your love for these kids!

Welcome to the Jungle!

We had the opportunity yet again this year to hosts Refuge Global's youth mission trip, but this year they said TURN UP THE HEAT! So off to the jungle we went & boy was it hot & muggy! But the team was up to the task. From plazas to schools to more plazas to churches to trips down the Amazon river to tribes to YOU NAME IT and they preached the Gospel to it! But not only were they preachin, but with the help of local churches in Iquitos, we were able to get the people plugged into good churches! No telling how many heard the good news of the Gospel. Thank you Refuge Global & BCF, Pastor Joe & Pastor Mike. You're always a tremendous blessing to work with. Thanks for having the hearts to come and touch the people of Peru!


(Check our more pictures at Our Photos link)

Grace Comes Down to Cieneguilla

We were blessed again this year to have Grace Community Bible Church send their finest down to Peru for a week of work, ministry, and fun. Last year was the year of the family. This year they left the wives at home! Led by Pastor Tony Plummer, the GCBC team worked with area churches & leaders to bless them in the work God has called them to do. They also came to work! The team helped out at the camp as well as the new pre-school that Hearts in Action opened. Their hard work & dedication touched the lives of many children & adults. Thank you Pastor Tony & the GCBC team for laying down your lives for the lives of the people.



(Check our more pictures at Our Photos link)