Treasures in the Rubble

"Praise be to God!...In His great mercy He has given us new birth into a living hope...and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil, or fade-"
~I Peter 1:3-4

Hello Everyone~
Once again the guys are back in Chincha, and I am gladly sharing with all of you, who are laboring right along with us in prayer and giving, their journey.

Treasures in the rubble...
Tonight, I am rejoicing in a beautiful treasure that Mike, Alex, Lee and Michael found in the midst of the ugliest place they have been to yet! Earlier this afternoon when I talked to Mike, the whole group was feeling exhausted and a bit overwhelmed with the needs of the people in Chincha. They met again with a large group of Pastors from the area to discuss and organize the most efficient way to continue the distribution of supplies. There are still lots and lots of people sleeping in the streets with little to no shelter. It is very cold there at night and there is so much suffering.
Late in the afternoon, they were able to meet with a group from a church there. They met in the middle of a vacant street, as the church building was destroyed. Again, they were met with such despair and need. The people were grateful to receive the supplies and the guys were able to pray for and encourage them a bit, but they left feeling the same burden and tiredness with the gravity of the situation still there.

After this, they picked up a friend, Pastor Luis, who took them about 15 miles outside of Chincha, to the small town of Hoja Redonda. 95% of the town was built of adobe and nearly everything in the entire town was destroyed. There literally is nothing left standing. Because the town is so "far" out, they have received almost NO help at all. These guys have seen a lot of devastation, but this by far was the worst yet. What could they say to these people? Again, they were faced with the knowledge that they could not help everyone... and these people needed everything!

What they did not know however, is that the people of God, in Hoja Redonda, having nothing in this world, had a sweet, sweet gift to give to our group. JOY!
Just as before, they gathered together in the street, but this time there was something different. The people they met here were HAPPY! With absolutely total destruction in every direction, these people were filled with hope! And of course, it was contagious! Tiredness and feelings of helplessness were forgotten and a happy reunion of friends old and new took place in the midst of piles of rubble. They asked Lee to preach and everyone was encouraged by God's tender words for the night. They went tonight to meet the needs of the people in this town, and God chose to meet the needs of their hearts through this precious family of believers. I think this is a night they will remember for a long time to come!

Plans for tomorrow...
Tomorrow, the plan is to finish distributing the supplies they brought and continue to do some long term planning for rebuilding. They will be meeting with others to coordinate the work. They are also hoping to visit Hoja Redonda again tomorrow, too~
~Chenoah
"Be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart, all ye that HOPE in the Lord."
"Therefore, the redeemed of the Lord will return. They will enter Zion with singing; everlasting joy will crown their heads. Gladness and joy will overtake them, and sorrow and sighing will flee away."

Guadalupe

News photo from article below.

The guys are on their way to Chincha this morning~
I am including a news article I read last night... a good example of how much more there is to be done!
12k People in Guadalupe Town in Ica, Peru Forgotten After Earthquake
The coordinator for the international humanitarian aid organization, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), has stated that the 12,000 inhabitants in the town of Guadalupe have been forgotten by those that are providing aid. It was pointed out that two weeks after the violent earthquake, the town is in a "precarious and unacceptable" situation." They are receiving clothes, food and water, but almost two weeks after the earthquake on August 15, tents have not been distributed. People are living in shelters made of cardboard and plastic," stated MSF coordinator, Luis Encinas. MSF reported that on August 25, a team carried out a quick analysis in the town of Guadalupe, southeast of Pisco and 325 km south of Lima. It was reported that up to 95% of the houses had been destroyed in the town center and 60% in the surrounding areas. Thus amounting to a total of 3,500 destroyed houses. The MSF team also reported that most of the 10,200 affected people are living in shelters made up of cardboard and bed sheets, lacking latrines and living in poor hygiene conditions.

"The Hope of all the ends of the earth..."

Houses destroyed in Chincha, Peru (top)
After earthquake & tsunami in Pisco, Peru


Wow!

There is so much to tell and so many thank-yous to give. I do need to say how very grateful I am to each and everyone of you that has taken the time to lift us and this country up in prayer during this difficult time. Also, to all of you that have given, I want to say a very heart-felt thank you. You have blessed so many lives by your generosity. You will never know how much of an impact that you have made in the lives of so many that you do not even know. My prayer for each of you is that you will be blessed as you have blessed others.

What a week! We just returned Thursday night from our trip to Chincha and Pisco helping the victims of the massive 8.0 earthquake that struck the coast of Peru 10 days ago. We arrived in Chincha three days after the initial quake that killed over 500 and destroyed or damaged well over 50% of all homes and businesses in the area. On our first night, we had to evacuate the hotel twice because of the aftershocks....many of which were quite strong (6.0). We returned to our candle-lit accommodations to try to rest, which was quite difficult between the aftershocks and the distant (and somtimes, not so distant) sound of gunfire. A prison had been destroyed during the quake and therefore more than six hundred prisoners were running the streets of Chincha. Needless to say, we all slept very lightly with flashlights in hand those first couple of nights.

The next morning, we met with representatives with Food for the Hungry and a team of missionaries from Lima to try and organize the local churches and begin distributing food to the communities. Chincha is a city of about 250,000 people with more than 100 local congregations. Because we were familiar with the area, our team was able to organize a meeting in the afternoon between 40 local pastors and the representatives of this relief organization. The meeting was a success and should be very helpful in creating some sort of long-term care in the area. However, it did not take us long to realize that immediate help was not anywhere close to coming. As with any large organization, it takes time to mobilize and act. These people need long-term care, and groups like Food for the Hungry, Samaritan's Purse and the Red Cross are going to be there to provide that for them. However, these people also need immediate help. And thanks to you all, we were able to be there to provide that for them. During our time there, we were able to distribute over 1000 kilos of rice, 1000 kilos of pasta, 2000 liters of potable water, 1000 liters of milk, 500 kilos of sugar, cases of tuna fish, cases of crackers and baby food. In addition, we gave out other items such as matches, candles, first aid supplies and bleach. We also distributed over 100 blankets, hundreds of meters of plastic for shelter and foam for bedding. In a city of 250,000, this may not seem like much...but believe me, in a time of crisis such as this, this was a tremendous help.

So, where do we go from here? Well, we are planning on a return trip. We have already purchased tickets for this Wednesday. We will go back to Chincha and do whatever we can to help. We spoke to a friend today who lives there. According to her, some help has started to arrive, however there are still many areas on the outskirts of town that are being neglected. We plan to go back with whatever funds that we still have and continue to try to meet some of the basic needs of these people.

Thanks for your generosity and thanks for your prayers. We will try to keep you informed as this week goes along.

Blessings to you all.

"...so that we may comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God." ~2 Corinthians 1:4