Jonathan and Lorena Templeton Visit Peru

My son, Jonathan, and our daughter by marriage, Lorena, came to Peru to visit us for Christmas. We have had a wonderful time visiting and sightseeing.

Family time together is precious to us.

Jonathan preached at prayer meeting the first service he was here.

It was an honor to introduce him and Lorena to our church family.

But it was a special blessing to introduce Jonathan as our special speaker to teach the Word of God for the evening!

Jonathan and Lorena are raising their support to be missionaries in Spain. Lorena is the daughter of Kent and Belén Albright, who are presently serving our Lord there now. Pray for their support to come in so they can take the gospel to this needy country.

Second Radio Anniversary

Each year in December we celebrate the radio ministry's anniversary with a special event we call a "Marathon". We broadcast live for two days from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.(hince the name "Marathon"). We encourage our listeners to consider supporting the radio ministry through a number of ways: offerings, faith promise, prayer, donations of items that can be sold to other listeners, and giving out fliers to invite others to listen. Our listeners are our best advertising because they share our purpose to learn the Word of God and to reach the lost with the gospel.

We set up a temporary makeshift "studio" at a church that loaned us their building for the event and broadcast right from the very room where all our listens enter.

It was very "live". We have spontaneous interviews with some of our listens.

With tears streaming down their cheeks, many of our listens share how the Word of God is such a blessing to them through the radio ministry.

We do not know the exact number of visitors, but our best guess would be around 300 over the course of the two days.

All day long people kept coming for both days.

Many radio listeners gave donations to sell at the marathon.

These items were sold and the money was given to the radio ministry.

We received a lot of generous donations in clothes, shoes, kitchen and office items, decorations, one laptop, furniture and much more.

We had about 30 volunteers to help us. They helped in transportation, registering visitors, selling donated items, giving away calendars and keepsakes, packing, and many other tasks. Without our volunteer help, we would not be able to wait on the public who come.

Here they are folding radio brochures.

Some volunteers brought breakfast, lunch, and refreshments for our volunteers.

Here three of our volunteers took a break to get a bite to eat. One lady brought a pot of soup to offer to those who came.

Edward is my assistant and he does a marvelous job with the radio ministry.

Three pastors helped with the live broadcasting. It is exhausting work and the men did great.

Pastor Latimer Rengifo (left) and Pastor Edward (right) were two of the men.

Pastor Javier Huamán also helped. He is one of my former students from Seminary days in Trujillo.

Amazingly, we had a deaf person come to visit us. Her family listens to the Word of God and then shares with her what they learn! She wanted to come and meet us.

Here in this picture a lady signs to a deaf family member telling her what we are saying on the broadcast.

The lady on the left was our primary photographer of the event. She is also my Sweetheart and wonderful wife.

Maybe this little guy will be our future preacher of the gospel over the radio airwaves. We are thankful for all God is doing through this ministry.

New Converts Declare Faith in Christ

Five new converts were recently presented to the church congregation declaring their faith in Christ. Two were Pastor Edward Zacarías' children (our associate pastor). He and his wife, Margarita have 3 children. The two youngest are Joel and Joana, who gave testimoney to their faith in our wonderful Lord.

Pastor Edward presenting his two children, Joel and Joana.

The other three are Fernando Holder, Alejandro Cristóbal and his step son, Ayrton.

Pray for our new converts. They are growing in the Lord. After we presented the new believers to the congregation, people came forward to congratulate them and encourage them in the Lord.

We finished the evening with a social with food and group games

It was a great time together.

Announcement: Radio Marathon

Friday and Saturday, December 16 and 17, will be our radio marathon. This is a yearly event called a marathon because we broadcast live all day long. The purpose is to encourage our listeners to pray for and give to the radio ministry. We give out calendars and stickers. We also supply our listeners with fliers to give out. They give out thousands and are our best advertising.

If you read this message in time, pray for this event. You can also pray for new radio equipment that we have ordered. This equipment is quite expensive and will allow us to cover all of Lima with a strong signal. It is scheduled to arrive on January 2. Our goal is to have it in operation by April.

New Divider Wall at Radio Station Plant

A simple wall was recently put up at the radio station plant to divide our property from the neighbors and mark the boundaries. This structure is made of plastic covered with tar draped over a wooden fence. Very simple and humble, but it works.

We were having some serious problems with the neighbor's dangerous dog. Praise the Lord we have not had problems since the fence was put up.

New Believer in Christ

Fernando Holder had been coming to one of our home Bible studies for several weeks. We had also talked extensively about the Word of God and many other matters on his heart.

I invited him to come to my home to talk about eternal life and salvation. It was Thanksgiving Day and our colleagues from our Mission were coming over to celebrate the special day. When he arrived, Ruth whispered to me: "Why don't you invite him to stay for dinner." So I did. He accepted the invitation and we began talking about the gospel.

At the end of the conversation, Fernando got saved!

It was a great day to remember. After our Thanksgiving meal, we sang hymns and each took a turn to publicly gave thanks to the Lord for different things. When it was Fernando's turn, I had him tell everyone what had just happened to him. He does not speak English so he gave his testimony in Spanish. One more reason to be thankful to the Lord!

This is Fernando Holder, a new creature in Christ.

Please continue to pray for him. He has a thirst to know more about God's Word.

Team of Two from Valley Forge On a Mission

Kevin Nikerle is a very active members in a very active church, Valley Forge Baptist Temple. He recently came to Peru with his church's mission team. Kevin has such a servant heart that immediately after the trip, he wanted to come back to get more done on the caretaker house at the radio plant. So he took his Thanksgiving holidays to come to work free in Peru! He also brought Luis, another man from his church, to be his interpreter.

Here Kevin (left) and Luis (right) enjoyed a couple of hours at a beautiful spot in Lima that overlooks the Pacific Ocean.

While they were here they worked fast and really made progress on the closets. This is what they look like now!

This picture does not do them justice. Jorge, our caretaker, is overjoyed.

They also made some desperately needed shelves for storage. This is what Kevin is working on in this picture.

Luis was a great help. I was amazed at how much they got done.

The men are filling the shelves with our tools and supplies. I can't tell you how happy I was to have these shelves.

Wildredo is a friend of many who have come to Peru over the years. Kevin was glad to see him again.

Long time friends get together again. Years ago, Kevin gave Wilfredo the shirt he is wearing. On the day this picture was taken, they both showed up for work with shirts from Boyertown, PA.

One of the best things about missions trips is the friendships you make. The two men in the picture above have a special place in my heart.

Two People Come to Christ

Two families heard our radio broadcast and began attending our services. Ruth and I began holding a Bible study with them.

The topic was how to get eternal life and be saved. Each study lasts about 2 hours.

The Bible study in this picture is at our apartment.

After the third study, one father was saved. It was a Sunday and Alejandro left the house, got into his car and prayed for the Lord to save him. He could not wait until the next Bible study meeting! The next time we met, his step son was saved.

Alejandro is on the far right with the big smile. Sitting next to him is his step son, Ayrton. I have my arm on his shoulder. Both are so thrilled to have new life in Christ.

As we slowly and carefully explained the gospel, we determined that the two wives, Fanny and Elizabeth, were saved before we began the Bible studies. They are as excited to learn more of God's Word as if they had been saved yesterday.

Fanny is the wife and mother of the family sitting on the couch on the your left. She is sitting on the far end of the couch; fourth from the left. Elizabeth is the lady in the middle and in the far background sitting with her Bible open just like she is in the studies. She is Alejandro's wife.

This picture was taken in Alejandro and Elizabeth's home. All the other family members are either not saved or it is unclear if they have eternal life. You can pray for the salvation of: Freddy (the father), Freddy (son), Felipe, Catalina, María Paz, Juana, Bertha, and Marcela.

Radio Listener Helps on Website

Zósimo is one of our listeners and offered to help us in any way he could. Recently we met at a coffee shop in the morning for a couple of hours to work on the logo for the radio ministry.

I took this picture at the coffee shop. Zósimo is on the left and our radio manager and my assistant, Edward Zacarías is on the right.

It turned out that Zósimo is very talented and creative with the computer. If you put that together with his dedication to Christ, you have an excellent testimony and resource for God's work. Zósimo is working with a graphic designer on our website to make it more efficient and attractive . They have already produced the logo for the radio ministry. Here is the first look at it.

The logo for Red Radio Integridad.

Zósimo has spent countless hours and used his own resources to help us even though he and his wife are trying to build a house. This young man loves the Lord and wants to use his abilities and preparation for the furtherance of the gospel. He donates his time and uses his own financial resources for all the work he is doing. The Lord allows us to work with some of His finest servants here in Peru.

New Church in Lima

The new church we started in July is located in the area of Surco in Lima. We have services only on Sunday evening because we are using a church and they meet in their own building in the morning.

We start with a class (Sunday School). The worhship service and message follow. We start with about 20 and finally end up with around 70 as people trickle in at all different times. Every Sunday service we have several first time visitors.

We also meet for prayer meeting on Tuesday nights. We have a very good number that come to that service averaging between 20 -30.

We are in the beginning process of knowing our people and seeing if they have been truly regenerated. In order to do this, you have to thoroughly cover the plan of salvation to be able to discern if they believe that good works are necessary for salvation.

Carlota is one of the ladies who attends our church in Surco. She always comes early so Ruth took advantage of the opportunity and snapped this picture.

In the background are Erwin and Clara. They attend our English Bible study that begins at 4:00 p.m.

Carlota prays faithfully for Ruth and me. She loves her pastor. It is an honor to be a pastor and Carlota makes it a joy too! Oh, if you could only know her in person. She is one of the sweetest persons you will ever meet. One day you will get to meet her!

Church at Radio Station Plant

Jesus the Good Shepherd Baptist Church is a new church we began that meets on the radio plant property. Most of those who attend are children and our heart goes out to them as they need the Savior.

We meet each Sunday morning for two hours. This is all the time we have to be able to meet with the people. We are praying for a pastor for this new work.

Daniel is one of the children that attends.

He is one of our best learners. Who knows? Maybe some day he will be the pastor.

Craft time is a favorite for all the children.

Ruth prepares the crafts that go along with the lesson and then guides the children in making their craft while I reach the adults. She puts a lot of effort and time into preparing for this hour.

Ruth also leads the singing for the children's hour. She has an excellent voice and does a great job leading this hour. She feels comfortable leading the children in Spanish.

The children love the actions and movement to the songs. It is our prayer that the message in the songs find their way into the hearts of these children.

The children are now beginning to learn the songs. We are thinking of what Christmas songs we could teach them. Most do not know one single Christmas song or carol.

We only have a few adults who attend our new work.

Do you remember us telling you about Luz, our neighbor who got saved. She is the one in the background with the dark jacket. From the day she received Christ, she has been faithful and has never looked back. Luz is the only one who is saved in her family.

Jorge Huanca Joins Ministry Staff

We are pleased to announce another addition to our ministry team. Jorge Huanca and his wife Dalila will be coming to Lima to serve our Lord with us!

After much prayer and consultation, we extended an invitation to Jorge Huanca to join our ministry here in Lima. After seeking counsel and praying with his wife, they have accepted our invitation.

Jorge Huanca and his wife, Dalila

(Their Addition Is a Great Answer to Prayer)

Jorge's job description is a long one. He knows what he is walking into and it is going to be a challenge. But he will also face many challenges before he even gets here. Jorge and Dalila have been serving the Lord for over 16 years in Trujillo. They will say good-bye to a lot of friends knowing that distance will keep them from enjoying the precious fellowship and closeness they have experienced with the best of God's servants. The move to a big city like Lima presents its challenges.

Dalila, Damaris, Jonathan and Josué

As they uproot they will change friends, churches, pastors, houses, ministries, streets, school and teachers. The move also calls for a sacrifice on Dalila and their 3 children. Change is never easy. Moving turns your world upside down, so please pray for them as they prepare for the move.

We are absolutely thrilled to have them join us. They bring not only a heart dedicated totally to our Savior, but special gifts that our radio and church ministry need. God willing, they will be with in the first months of the next year; sometime between January and March.