Hilda and Gordan

Jill and I had the opportunity to visit one of the hospitals in Arequipa last week.  Here is our experience in Jill’s words.  …”One of our 40/40’s (college age missionaries), Nohemy went in for surgery on her foot.  I went to visit her and toured the hospital and the pediatric department.  As we visited one of the children and his mother, I saw a deep look of despair on her face.   The next day, I woke up for my early morning prayer and felt the Lord speaking me to go back and talk again with the mother and ask her how I could pray with her. 

When Robin and I visited with her and asked how we could pray-her eyes began to tear up as she shared how she had recently lost two brothers, and now her sister was in the hospital across town and her son, Gordan was there on the pediatric floor recovering from cleft palate surgery.”

Gordan is pictured in the photos and has several other medical problems, including still being unable to walk at the age of 18 months old.  Jill shared the plan of salvation using the EvangeCube, Hilda listened intently.  We prayed with her and Jill asked if she would be open to a home visit from some of the 40/40 missionaries.  She responded positively and stated that she doesn’t have many family members nearby.

Jill, Mapi and Henerietta have since visited Hilda in her very modest home.  She is very open to learning more about God and the Bible.  She is eager for her husband to attend church with her.  She is now meeting weekly with the 40/40’s and finishing her lessons out before the next week.  PLEASE say a pray for Hilda, Gordan and her family as you read this.  She is one of many whose lives are being touched by God via your support and PRAYERS.

Serving Him with you,

The Watters

Now for the rest of the story...

If you were able to make it to the end of my loud, bumpy, amateur video I'm sure you noticed what looked like Tom digging a grave!

After our church service in Morro Negro we were walking down a dirt road, lit only by the moon...which we decided was God's flashlight.  We heard some commotion at the side of the road and when we got to the edge of the road and looked down, we saw about 4 or 5 Peruvians attempting to get a VERY large cow out of a ditch.  The legs of the cow were buckled under her and she could not move.  Tom and Kurt got down in the ditch to help push, not a car, but a cow to a place of mobility.  It took at least 30 minutes of heavy pushing with a few other Peruvians stopping to help.  They dug and pushed this cow with much effort out of the mud and ditch.  A small side note that the pictures do not show, is that we think the cow was also constipated...at least,  mucho gas.  As you could see in the previous video post, these cows are this community's livelihood and they were very grateful to finally have their cow unstuck.  While riding back to the main road on the back of a flat bed truck of total Peruvian strangers, and God's flashlight still shining, Tom thought of Matthew 12:11&12 "He said to them, if any of you has a sheep (or cow?) and it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will you not take hold of it and lift it out?  How much more valuable is a man than a sheep!  Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath." 
Encouraging you to find 'your cow' that God places in front of you and "do good", this next Sabbath...and know that it can be smelly and messy at times!

The Watters

Our First Church Service in Peru