Update from Antonia

Dear friends in Christ, I want to thank you for your prayers and for your love. During these last few weeks I have had difficult moments due to my health, my back pain was aggravated and the carpal tunnel of the hands was very painful. I thank God because I am already having therapy to the spine and that has lessened the acute pain (my friends from the community sent me words of encouragement and strength). 

Recent Events

Ministry

We continue to teach the Word of God "Jesus is the Way" three times a week with Brother Victor and a group who meets with him. Many times I feel frustrated because I can't see their faces, I only listen to them on the phone. They ask very valuable questions related to the topic. The group continues to grow. We are teaching the Bible from Genesis and have come to the Ten Commandments and for each night we only teach one commandment.

It encourages me when they say: “I am learning sister”. The villagers asked for classes on baptism and two of them were baptized including the former chief. From Lima we send gifts that can be useful to all ages. They strive to learn the bible verses. I thank God for motivating people who, without knowing them, send gifts.  

Seeds of Hope

Deisy Soto has given all her love and passion for the children of her community and now gives classes to children who come to the church. Sometimes we send virtual classes and children come together to receive them from a single phone. God is faithful and provided funds to buy a phone for Deysi and in this way the Gospel reaches the children. 

God is Faithful

From the city, during the time of the pandemic, we have looked for clothes for the families that lost their property due to a flash flood and also for a family from an Asháninka community whose home burned down. Upon receiving the news, it came to my mind to write to some friends to help us but we decided to pray to God to tell Him this need (of course He knew). God has responded through people who we didn't know, using unconverted people who sent new things, and we have been able to buy food and still have enough for the orphaned children. To him be all the glory. We continue to care for orphaned children and the elderly of two Asháninka communities with grocery bags. They are the most affected by the pandemic.

Serving Workers

During this time of the COVID pandemic, the Lord has given us the opportunity to listen on the phone to workers, hearing about the victories and trials they go through. Some of them have to walk a long way until they find the signal to be able to make a phone call and we have to be willing to listen and pray with them. With God's help we prepare packages of clothes. One day I felt very sad because a Yanesha worker said to me: “Sister Antonia do you have children's clothes? Because they don't have clothes."

I started to pack but didn't have enough to send. A friend then rang to tell me that he was coming in his car bringing children and teens clothes - God provided! We now had enough for two families but not the third. Only God knew this need, and responded instantly. A sister called me saying: "I have clothes that my cousin just sent me from the United States and God guided me to give them to you. “Though I am afflicted and needy, Jehovah will think of me. Me help and my liberator is you; My God, do not delay". Psalms 40: 1 In this way we have been able to serve workers of other ethnic groups. 

Prayer Points

1) May God send one or two people to work with me. Apparently I will soon be alone because Cristina Salas will no longer work with me as she is returning to her homeland.

2) For the Christmas campaign for the four communities of different ethnicities.

Thank you very much for contributing with your prayers and offerings so that God can fulfill His plans using His children in the middle of the Peruvian jungle.

Missionary in the Central Jungle