This past week, a little group of about 40 Godly people gathered in house-made-church in Lince, a district of the city of Lima, Peru. It was the annual gathering of the Peruvian MB conference, including delegates from all 14 churches in 3 areas of central/northern Peru - Lima, Trujillo, and Piura. Our churches here represent people from all walks of life: small rural farmers, business people, petroleum company supervisors, teachers, market-place produce sellers, pastors, tourism guides, attorneys, and a printing company family, along with a few missionaries.
It was an important event this year, particularly since Pastor George, president of the conference, was termed out after 4 years of leadership, and an election was scheduled. It has been a rough 4 years, with the loss of 5 church pastors/leaders due to a variety of issues. George, the owner of a large printing business in the city of Trujillo, has given strong leadership to this group of scattered churches during that time.
The event started with some worship, devotional time, and workshops. A particular favorite of mine was a workshop on family violence, and the response of the church. The leaders of this were Saul and Isabel, recent graduates from the MB seminary in Asuncion, Paraguay, now serving as interns/leaders with 4 rural churches outside Piura. Their thesis's were on this subject, and it was clear they were well prepared to provide some training on the subject. Some might remember a prayer request from last July for Saul, as he had fallen during work on a church construction project and injured his lower spine, resulting in surgery and a long recovery. It was a reminder of the miracle of this recovery, to see him and his wife sharing their passion for families and the church.
I had a chance to speak on Restoration, a subject that I felt was strongly needed after the events of these past 4 years. As I prepared for the workshop, I found myself considering whether I too was harboring bitterness or a grudge against any past leaders I had relationship with. It was good preparation for the event, as I believe God usually uses these opportunities to first cleanse my own heart before sharing with others.
Following my workshop on Restoration, Melissa, along with Heidi Schmidt and Claudia Paz, led a session on listening to God and prayer. It was a powerful time, and the first time Heidi has found herself in such a situation! She did great, and Pastor George later commented that it was an impactful session.
Friday evening, we had planned a Celebration Dinner, complete with special numbers, testimonies from our churches, and a special meal. However, we were without power all day, and found during the meeting that the cause was a burned out main fuse due to overloading from the shower heaters (most people were staying at the church). After a few testimonies, we called it a night, and finished off with cake for Heidi's birthday the day prior.
Saturday morning started well. This little group of Godly people were ready to go, and after another good session of listening to God corporately, it was time for the election of a new conference leadership team. After a bit of last-minute planning for how it would work, the elections took off. Each of the 5 positions received at least 2 nominees, which was a good sign of the interest in the event. The new team was established, with Pastor Antonio taking on the new role as conference president. He has been the senior pastor of the Sullana MB church now for about 8 years, and will be a capable president I believe. His new team is limited in experience in these new roles, but not to their own churches, so they should work well together.
I especially appreciated Pastor George's leadership during the conference. He led off on Thursday with a great study on the theme verse, Numbers 13:30, and was gracious in handing off the president's role to Pastor Antonio on Saturday morning. He has had a challenging season of leadership, and while I am sure it was good to let go of that responsibility, he will likely miss it at times.
As in most conferences I have attended, folks were eager to leave as soon as the event was completed. After a quick lunch, most of this little group of Godly people departed, many to climb aboard a bus for a 15-16 hour overnight trip home. Our family was blessed with one more day in Lima, so we took advantage of that with a trip to the cliffs, overlooking the Pacific Ocean. It was a great way to finish off a great week.
Take care.
Lowell
