Latest Event Updates
Conferences, Souls, Baptisms, and the Search is Over
November 1, 2024
Time is flying! It is a joy to once again to share what God is doing in Peru. Carla and I believe you will see that we have been very busy.
In the first week of September, our newest work, Iglesia Bautista Ancla (Anchor Baptist), celebrated its 1st Anniversary! We had a special speaker and dinner on the grounds as we enjoyed some great fellowship around the Word of God. Since our last letter, there have been six souls saved in that work!
In mid-September we hosted a five-day International Bible Conference with seven countries represented: Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, USA, Mexico, Chile, and Bolivia. There were around 40 pastors and missionaries in attendance. It was also the 20-year celebration of the Reina Valera Gómez Bible revision that we use and distribute in our ministry. God truly blessed the meetings with great teaching each morning and preaching in the evenings. We made a total of 15 trips to the airport to pick up and drop off those who arrived by airline, and we had others who came by bus. Two attendees missed their flight from Lima but were able to lead a soul to the Lord while waiting for their next flight. Three souls accepted Christ during the conference, including one while playing soccer during a break. A moto-taxi driver received Christ as his Savior after transporting some of our guests. And two more souls were saved as two of our guests visited a local village. A total of seven souls were saved as a result of the conference! God is at work. I’d like to also write that we are so proud of our church here who came together and helped this large undertaking run seamlessly. The setup, decorations, food prep, cooking and cleaning were all accomplished by Carla, our church members, and two of our guests (Kathy & Christina) who worked tirelessly to make this conference a success.
In a past prayer letter, I shared that I preached at a memorial service for one of our members. While there I was able to answer several questions for his grandson about salvation. The young man lives 14 hours away and I hadn’t heard from him since that service. Update: After three months I received a text from him stating that he had accepted Christ as his Savior!
In October we had a group from Harvest International Missions (H.I.M.) visit us for two weeks. Director Steve Harper brought his wife and two ladies from Panama and Venezuela. The first week, the ladies did a three-day children’s teachers training conference. The second weekend they did a one-day multi-church ladies meeting. During their stay we were also busy with other ministry activities. Bro. Steve preached a good message one Sunday with me translating.
We are getting good use of our baptistry. In the past two months we have baptized four more and we should be baptizing again soon. God is certainly moving in the hearts of souls.
ASSISTANT PASTOR SEARCH: After both of our candidates came and preached and answered questions, we took a few weeks to pray about each of them. I answered questions and listened intently to the opinions of our church members to see how the Lord was leading. Then, on Oct. 6th the church voted to call Fredy Nuñez as the assistant pastor. I called him and his wife Merry that afternoon. They were pleased to hear the news. We are now in the process of helping them plan their move from Arequipa, in southern Peru, to Cajamarca. Lord willing, they will be moving here the first week of January. Your prayers are appreciated during this transition.
BIBLE SHIPMENT UPDATE: We were hoping to have received a container of Bibles by this time. We were told that the order for the paper was misplaced and had to be re-submitted. This pushed the schedule back. We know that this was no surprise to our omniscient God. It will arrive in His timing. We are now expecting the container to be shipped in mid-December. We hope to have it here in January.
While the missions group was with us, we took a trip back into the mountains to visit a small village where I visited a few years ago and won some souls to Christ. I spoke with the school directors and discussed the possibility of delivering Christmas gifts to the school kids (300+/-) and presenting a program to teach about Christ this year. They were excited to hear that we would be willing to come. You, our supporters have been so generous in the past years’ Christmas programs. If you would like to help with the program this year, please send the support to our support agency, Central Missionary Clearinghouse.
* Please take a look at several NEW PHOTO ALBUMS on our WEBSITE, www.rich2peru.com.
Thank you for your prayers and support,
Don & Carla Rich
This entry was posted in Newsletters.
Bus Station Used to Transport a Soul! So Many Reasons to Celebrate!
September 1, 2024
When I had to return to our Calvario church to pastor, I told Carla that we wouldn’t have as much to write about in our prayer letters. Wrong! We didn’t have enough space last time to share all that God is doing!
In June we had a great youth Sunday. We invited Fredy Nuñez to preach for us. He had worked as a pastor with former missionary Shane Rice in our area years ago. God blessed the services with good messages and fellowship.
We started off great in July as 57-year-old Charo received Christ in her little store. This is the same small building where we started our church 19 yrs ago. I had the privilege of leading the landlord’s family to our Savior back then. Nora called me to say that she had been witnessing to her renter and wanted to know if I would come talk to her. Would I ?!?! We saw so many lives eternally changed in that little room when we started our church, and it continues to be a place where souls are saved! And what a blessing to know that our members are sharing Christ with others!
On July 15th, Carla and I celebrated 21 years as missionaries on the field in Peru. God has truly blessed our ministry, and we give him all the glory. As we get older, we are focused on Ps. 71:18, wanting to show God’s strength to this generation, and his power to everyone that is to come.
Pastor Juan Carlos of our Ancla church has been teaching a discipleship class at a bus station. The manager and a worker there attend our church. In July, 34-year-old Luis sat in on one of the classes and received Christ as his Savior! This is the bus station we use for shipping out many Bibles. God can use any place to get His Word out!
In August I received a call from a former member of our church whose family had moved away years ago. She said that her father now lived in our area and was going to visit our church. I greeted Carlos at the door when he arrived on Sunday morning. After the invitation, he told me how he wanted to get things right in his life. In the church office, 75-year-old Carlos received Christ in tears as he understood his need for a Savior.
The ladies of our Calvario church have been having prayer meetings and study groups over the past months. I joke with them that it seems they always have something going on. But I am so proud of this group who are growing in the knowledge of God’s Word and constantly praying for each other and our church family.
We had our Calvario church building re-painted recently. It was a big job but praise the Lord we have two painters in our church who were able to get it done, and it looks great. Afterwards, we had a church clean-up day to get ready for our church’s anniversary services.
In mid-August our first church, Calvario, celebrated its 19th anniversary with great attendance in the services. We presented a plaque on the entrance foyer wall in memory of Pastor José Zamora who passed away in May.
We have begun our pastor search for our Calvario church. We have two candidates so far. One of them is local. The other is from Arequipa, the first city I visited on a mission trip back in 2000. God used that trip to call Carla and I as missionaries to Peru. In mid-August Carla and I flew down to interview the candidate and speak to his pastor. It was great to stand again on the city square where I preached and won my first Peruvian soul to the Lord.
After the trip we set up the candidates to come two weeks apart to preach and allow the church to know them better. We planned two men’s meetings to give them both the opportunity to teach. They also taught Saturday youth meetings and preached both services on their respective Sunday. Please pray as we earnestly seek God’s will.
We are very busy preparing for our International Bible Conference in mid-September. We have missionaries and pastors coming from several countries. Please pray for this big event, that God will be glorified.
On August 18th, 15-year-old Jerico received Christ as his Savior and another man, Oscar, asked to join our church. God continues to work in these last days to draw souls to Himself.
* We have placed more photo albums on our website: rich2peru.com
Thank you for your prayers and support,
Don & Carla Rich
This entry was posted in Newsletters.
Great Loss, A Loving Church, and Has Anyone Seen Noah?
A Great Loss, a Loving Church, and Has Anyone Seen Noah?
July 1, 2024
I hate to start with sad news, but both life and death happen on the mission field. Pastor José Zamora of our Calvario church passed away suddenly on Friday, May 3. He had just celebrated his 67th birthday a week earlier. He faithfully served our Lord as pastor here for sixteen years. He was a soul-winner, a good preacher, and had a great heart for the church. In our last letter I mentioned how he and I went together to distribute almost 1000 John/Roman booklets at a public school nearby. It was the last time we were together. I am so blessed to have this final memory of ministering with a great friend and brother-in-Christ. Please pray for his wife, his three grown children, and for the church.
The church has stepped up and continued faithful. Two weeks after his passing, twenty-three from our church formed a choir and ministered in song at the anniversary services of a church across the valley.
I am now pastoring the church as we pray about the next steps the Lord would have us take. My 65th birthday weekend was spent leading the choir at the anniversary services I mentioned and preaching three times. The Lord blessed, and I was able to win 2 souls to the Lord that Sunday night in our church! Since then, we have baptized 5 and had one more soul saved!
Sunday, May 26th was a blessed day. Four adults were saved in our newest church, Iglesia Bautista Ancla. At our Calvario church, two couples who had been living together for years felt Holy Spirit conviction and are now planning their weddings as soon as possible. That same day, between services, I spoke at a memorial service at the home of one of our former members. It was a blessing to have a large group from our church attend to encourage the family. The grandson of the deceased asked many questions about salvation. Please pray that the Holy Spirit touches Nicholas’ heart and that he will be saved soon. He lives 14 hours away. God is at work in Peru!
On the last Friday in May we had a game night at our Ancla church. We had around 35 in attendance and a great time of fellowship. On June 1st we had a ladies’ bake sale to help with funds for projects they want to accomplish.
Update on the Ecuador case – On Friday, April 26th, I received notice that we won the case, and it has now been annulled! I can now return to preach and teach in Ecuador and deliver Bibles to those who need them. Thank you for your prayers. God listened and He is much more powerful than any corrupt government.
In June we had a visitor from the US. Bro. Mike, our national pastor Juan Carlos, and I traveled several hours through the mountains to the towns of Cajabamba and Huamachuco. I had been invited to preach for a church in Cajabamba that has no pastor. It was a great time of encouraging them in the Word and worshipping together. We also visited a national missionary who had received Bibles from our ministry in the city of Huamachuco.
Bro. Mike was also able to be a part of our men’s meeting. We had eighteen in attendance. I taught on God’s prerequisites for a pastor, as we begin the search for a new pastor for Calvario. The men had some great questions about several topics. Carla and two of our ladies cooked a nice meal and all left full, both physically and spiritually.
The morning of the men’s meeting, around 9:30am I heard the water pump continually running in the church. I walked in to find about 3/4 of an inch of water covering the church floor. A water line had broken in one of the bathrooms and it was filling the church. I didn’t know whether to call Moses to part the water or for Noah to bring the ark. It took four of us about three hours to remove the water and to repair the broken line. Then we found that the church’s water pump needed a new pressure switch. A man in our church was able to do the work of replacing it for us. We were just blessed that this didn’t happen overnight or on a Sunday morning.
The youth meetings on Saturday have been going well. On June 22nd, we took a group of 14 to our newest church plant to help pass out tracts and invitations. We then had a time in the Word. Afterwards, Carla and I took them all out to eat pizza and chicken. It was a blessing to see these young people sharing God’s Word.
There are several more photo albums on our website: rich2peru.com Take a look! Thank you for your prayers and support of our ministry. May God bless each of you! * We have more to share, but no space!
Serving Him for you in Peru,
Don & Carla Rich
This entry was posted in Newsletters.
Occupy ’til He Comes
Occupy ’til He Comes
May 1, 2024
Hello from Peru!
It has been said, “Time stops for no man” and “All we can do is make the most of the time we have”. These statements ring true as we stay busy and try to use our time wisely until HE comes. We hope you enjoy our update.
One of our former supporting pastors has been a missionary himself for the past few years and has started his own mission agency. Missionary Steve Harper, his wife, and two ladies from Venezuela and Costa Rica visited in March for a few days to present a ladies’ conference. We had a great time and look forward to partnering with them again in October for a three-day teachers’ training session for the ladies and another one-day conference.
Darren and Rachel Townsend, the new missionary couple who will be working with us, also came in March for a three week visit and survey trip. Please pray for them as they await the birth of their first child in June and plan to move to Peru by the end of the year. While here, they both participated in our outreach program, Rachel helped with the children’s SS class, and Darren preached at our newest church, Ancla. Darren plays the banjo which was a treat in the church for those listening and great for me (Don) to have someone to “pick and grin”/minister with. He also brought a devotional for a youth outing for our first church, Calvario.
The youth outing took place at a lake in the mountains about an hour away. Our group of twenty-five, including adults, had a great time playing volleyball, soccer, tug-of-war, sharing a picnic lunch, and fellowship around the Word of God.
The second week of April, Pastor José and I were invited to visit and speak to a large group of public-school kids and their teachers and give each of them a John/Romans booklet to take home. After the morning session, we were to return that afternoon and speak to the other half of their students. Sadly, it was cancelled by rain. But each of those students were given a John/Romans booklet also. In all, we gave out around 940 booklets. We are confident that HIS Word will not return void.
We are very busy planning an international Bible conference for September of this year. We already have commitments from missionaries and pastors from Peru, the US, Mexico, Chile, and Colombia. We are still waiting for confirmation from others who have been invited from Ecuador, Bolivia, and Argentina.
Bro. Jim Fellure of Victory Baptist Press contacted me to say that it would “take a miracle” but they are going to try to have another shipment of Bibles delivered to us in time for our conference. What a blessing that would be! Please pray that, with God’s help, they will be able to accomplish this.
Pastor Juan Carlos’ twelve-year old son, Juan Daniel, had to have emergency appendix surgery recently. He was at first incorrectly diagnosed with typhoid and sent home with meds. When he worsened overnight, they did a new set of tests and discovered the diseased appendix. God has blessed and he is recuperating very well.
Great news concerning the legal case in Ecuador! On April 25th, the Ecuadorian attorney informed me that the case has now been annulled! Thank you for your prayers. It is a blessing to know this door is once again open.
We praise the Lord for 2 more saved at our Calvario church, a young lady and a young man, ages 21 and 26.
We have placed four new photo albums on our website. See what God is doing here in Peru! And as always, we want to say thank you for your prayers and support of our ministry. May God bless each of you!
Serving Him for you in Peru,
Don & Carla Rich
This entry was posted in Newsletters.
Baffled Doctors, Saved Souls, & Lawyers
Baffled Doctors, Saved Souls, & Lawyers
March 1, 2024
Hello from Peru!
Yes, I said Peru. It seemed like the medical tests would never end, but we are finally back in Cajamarca. To bring everyone up to date, after the battery of medical tests that I mentioned in our last prayer letter, I had appointments and tests with an ENT doctor, then was sent to a neurologist. The neurologist sent me for a spinal tap and more blood work. In the end, all results were in normal ranges. That is a blessing to know, and we are praising God. That said, the symptoms continue. With all the doctors baffled and nothing pinpointed, it was time to return and get back to work. We are glad to be back and have hit the ground running.
There is always ministry to be done wherever we find ourselves. While in the US, between doctor visits and tests we were busy in our home church. We enjoyed being involved in visitation, singing in the choir, teaching Sunday School, and preaching. Carla and I were also asked to sing at an elderly care facility where one of our church members lives. We put together a small group from our church and presented a program of music and gifts on Valentine’s Day. What a great time we had sharing scripture and singing hymns with the majority of the residents and workers there. The residents blessed us by their smiles and participation in singing and praising the Lord.
Upon returning to Peru, we settled in and began preparations for some visitors coming soon. We will share more about them in our next letter. We also will be hosting new missionaries Darren and Rachel Townsend for a few weeks. They plan to move to Peru later this year after the birth of their baby girl. Please be in prayer for them as they prepare for this blessing and for the transition to Peru.
In February our church, ‘Calvario’, had a five-day VBS with great attendance and 28 decisions for Christ that are being followed up on. Those making decisions ranged from 10-16 years of age. During a youth service recently, another young lady also accepted Christ as her Savior.
Our newest church, ‘Ancla’, is doing well. We have had one more saved in this church since our last letter. Now that we are back in Peru, we look forward to knocking on doors and doing all we can to help build up this new church. Please pray that we will see much fruit for our labor.
Back in November we wrote of a problem we experienced in entering Ecuador to deliver Bibles in October. Since then, we have been working to resolve it. As mentioned before, it stemmed from a simple piece of paper that was not entered into their system back in 2015, although I had completed all paperwork. The saga continues. In December of ’23, we received an official letter from customs officials stating that the fine, including eight years of penalties would be over $22,000. Yep, you read that right. Ridiculous, huh? In those eight years I was never notified that there was a supposed “infraction”. We contacted a group of lawyers in Ecuador who stated that this was just a “corrupt and abusive” government that is trying to get money from foreigners. They stated that the way it was handled was a violation of my rights as a foreigner in the country. The lawyers and I have been submitting documentation and should hear back in the first part of March with a decision. Please continue to pray that this will be resolved to our favor. We do not want the actions of a corrupt government to keep us from personally ministering in the future where several doors are open.
There is a photo album of the VBS on our website, rich2peru.com. Take a look and see how God is blessing!
As always, we would like to thank you for your faithful prayers and support of our ministry here in Peru. May God bless each of you!
Serving Him for you in Peru,
Don & Carla Rich
This entry was posted in Newsletters.
“Rich” Blessings
“Rich” Blessings
January 1, 2024
Hello from the “Rich” missionaries!
Many churches introduce us as the “Rich” missionaries when we report on furloughs. And we are truly rich in God’s blessings. Our heavenly Father owns the cattle upon a thousand hills, and the hills under their hooves. Everything belongs to Him, and we are only stewards of his ‘richness’.
Carla and I pray that you all had a wonderful Christmas and that you will all have a blessed 2024. Time is passing quickly. Christ’s return is closer than ever and there is plenty of work to do before that glorious day.
One of the rich blessings that we are so undeserving of is how our faithful supporters responded to the Christmas Kids program this year. Because of your generosity we were able to bless around 1200 children, divided between two local schools and our churches. Each of our churches did a great job of planning and executing a program at the school near them with music, drama teams, tracts, snacks, gifts, and the Gospel preached. What a blessing it was to see them successfully handle such a big project. We were like proud parents as we received updates and photos of their work. It broke our hearts that we could not be there. But God blessed us with some faithful hardworking pastors and members in each of our churches who stepped up to the challenge. Calvario has already had six visitors to the church since visiting the school. Our other church, Ancla, has had three families visit after the program. The rewards of their labors are a great testament to their faithfulness.
In reading this you may be wondering why we weren’t there with them, so let us bring you up to speed. At the end of October, Carla and I had routine physicals done while we were in the US briefly for two conferences in TX. I (Don) mentioned to my doctor that I had been feeling fatigued and light-headed for several months. He sent me to get a CT heart scan. We had the scan done, then returned to Peru. A week and a half later the results came in and my doctor called and wanted me to return to the US to “run more tests”. So, we had a meeting with our Peruvian pastors and gave them instructions as to how we wanted them to handle the Christmas programs. The next morning we left and, as we said above, they did a great job. Since returning to the US, I have had six more medical tests, including a stress test and a heart catheterization. They have also changed my BP meds at least five times. So far, no significant problem has been found but the symptoms continue. We are still awaiting the results of one test. We’ve had to change our return tickets once already. Our plans now are to return to Peru on January 17, barring no further testing. We are still praying for answers and your prayers are appreciated.
In between doctor visits and the battery of medical tests, we have been enjoying time with family and our home church. Our SS teacher came down with Covid, so I’ve had the privilege of teaching the class for a few weeks in his absence. I also preached one Sunday night recently.
Calvario (our first church) had a youth outreach dinner in November with a great attendance. They had nine young people make professions of faith that day! Three other individuals have also been saved recently, bringing the total to twelve since our last letter. And, just last week four adults were baptized in our church!
Our newest church, Ancla, has continued to see new visitors and good services. For Christmas the building was full, with around 30 in attendance!
We have placed more photo albums on our website, rich2peru.com. Take a look at how God is blessing!
Carla and I would like to thank you for your faithful prayers and support of what God is doing in Peru. May God “richly” bless you all!
Serving Him for you in Peru,
Don & Carla Rich
This entry was posted in Newsletters.
New Work is Open!
New Work is Open!
November 1, 2023
Greetings to you all,
On September 3rd we had our first Sunday morning service at our new church, Iglesia Bautista Ancla (Anchor Baptist). The Saturday before, a group from our first church (Calvario) and others came to evangelize and invite those in the neighborhood. We had a great first day and have seen visitors in almost every service! On October 1st we added Sunday evening services and Wednesdays and they have been well attended. Please help us pray that this work will continue to grow and reach many with the Gospel.
In mid-September Carla and I had some special guests. Moriah is the daughter of a former missionary whose family is very dear to us. They left Peru to serve in another ministry in 2014. We have known Moriah since she was two years old. Fast forward many years, I was privileged to be a part of her wedding ceremony a little over a year ago. To celebrate their first anniversary, Moriah wanted to come to Peru to show her husband Abe where she grew up. We had a great time that brought back many precious memories.
In October we sent a note to those on our email list about our special Christmas Kids ministry. Once again, we plan to show the love of Christ by sharing Christmas gifts and snacks with the poorer children in our area. Last year we were able to distribute around five hundred fifty gifts to three different areas plus immigrant street children because of the help of our supporters. I grew my white beard out to a jolly length and used the opportunity to share a tract I created that says, “I am NOT Santa”. The inside of the tract continues… “But I know Someone who gave the best Gift!” The beard may not be as long now, but I still get stared at by children. It is just a perk to being a white-haired bearded gringo in a black hair and dark-skinned society. Mrs. “Not Santa” (my sweet wife Carla) and I get a lot of attention from children, especially around Christmas. This year we will be adding the kids around our new church to the groups we will reach. It is a big area with many poor families. If you would like to be a blessing to the children this year, please send the support to Central Missionary Clearinghouse with a note that it is for “Kids’ Gifts”.
In our last letter we shared about delivering Bibles into Ecuador. We were able to get the Bibles to the missionaries at the border, but we were not able to travel further into the country ourselves. The system at customs showed that a required vehicle document was not received back in 2015 when we were there, and we would have to rectify that before entering. The error was found as they were “reviewing” their system. I wrote a letter that day explaining that the document had been presented and was apparently not entered into the system or the system was down that day. Interesting enough, the system was down for over an hour and a half when we were there in August. One month later I received an email that they needed more information and that it would have to be presented “in person” at the border. So, Carla and I made a four-day round trip drive to drop off the paperwork (total of 1 minute). Now we wait for a response again. How do you “prove” that a document was presented eight years ago if the document is missing and not in their system? Please pray that we will receive a positive response to rectify the situation. I have several opportunities to preach and teach in Ecuador and would also like to introduce our new missionary family to our Bible ministry outreach there.
PTL, we’ve had four more saved recently in our Cajamarca “Calvario” church! God continues to bless!
Bible Distribution Ministry Update – In less than three months the 23,338 Bibles and 120,000 tracts have all been distributed or promised. We were able to get them into at least four countries this year. And we continue to receive more requests. We give thanks first to God, then Victory Baptist Press and the Conversion Center for these blessings. We pray and trust that many souls will be reached and taught through the distribution of His Word. Isaiah 55:11
Take a look at the new photos on our website (rich2peru.com)! May God continue to bless each of you for your faithfulness in prayers and support to our ministry.
Don & Carla Rich
This entry was posted in Newsletters.
Never A Dull Moment!
NEVER A DULL MOMENT!
September 1, 2023
Hello from Cajamarca,
In July, Carla and I celebrated 20 years as missionaries in Peru! We couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate this milestone than to have a mission conference in the first church we established. Just like life as a missionary the conference planning was not without its challenges. We invited two missionaries that our church supports to give updates and preach. We also planned on Darren Townsend, the new missionary coming to help us, to preach one service. Well, one missionary got dengue fever. The other’s wife had medical problems so he couldn’t leave her. And Darren’s wife still didn’t have her passport so they couldn’t make it. We quickly realized that God had a different plan. I preached on Friday and Sunday. Missionary friends Stacy Dassow and his wife Jennifer were coming to celebrate with us, and I had asked him to be prepared just in case. It was a blessing to have him preach on Saturday and again on Sunday. We also had our dear friends Jesús and Tracy and their son George come to celebrate with us. You may remember them as the family we asked prayer for when they were going through a long and tedious adoption process here in Peru. Another special person in attendance was a man I led to the Lord when he was 74 years old. Salvador is now 92! What a great week of celebration and remembering what God has done in these past 20 years!
Speaking of celebrations, our first church (Calvario) celebrated its eighteenth anniversary on August 14. We had a great attendance in each service, including Sunday when there were around 240 in attendance! A man I have been inviting to our church for almost the entire 18 years finally visited with his family. God has truly blessed this work. It is very humbling to think back on how He guided us to this area of Peru and then helped us plant this church right after we finished language studies. It is all to His glory.
Back in May we wrote about joining with a small group to help them establish a church. On July 9 we formalized the work as Iglesia Bautista Verbo de Dios (Word of God Baptist) and celebrated its first anniversary since they started meeting together. A few weeks later a group from our first church came to help evangelize and invite those in the area to visit the church. We have already begun seeing some growth and have seen six professions of faith in that work. Please pray that we will continue to see fruit for our labor.
In our July letter we wrote that we were praying and looking for a location to begin our fourth church plant. On July 18 we signed a rental contract on a building in the area we had chosen for the new work. The first services for Iglesia Bautista Ancla (Anchor Baptist) are scheduled for this Sunday, September 3. This building was formerly used as a bakery. It will now be used to serve the Bread of Life! Please continue to pray for this newest work to be established and that we will reach many with the Gospel through it.
Bible Distribution Ministry Update – The container of Bibles and tracts arrived in Cajamarca the exact day that we were celebrating 20 yrs in Peru and many of our church family helped unload them into our facility. Distribution began immediately and in just six weeks all the tracts and most of the Bibles have been distributed or promised and set aside for delivery.
We were blessed to have Worth and Ken, dear friends of our ministry, come to travel with me (Don) to make Bible deliveries into Ecuador and to the jungle river port of Yurimaguas. New missionary Darren Townsend was able to fly in also to help with these trips. At the river port we placed many cases of Bibles on a barge to send to pastors in the Amazon region of Peru. We traveled for a total of eleven days and delivered over 3800 Bibles.
Update: New missionaries Darren and Rachel Townsend finally received Rachel’s passport. She recently had some medical issues arise and are waiting for a doctor’s clearance to be able to move to Peru. Please keep them in your prayers. They want to be here a.s.a.p., and we are looking forward to having them here.
Take a look at the seven new photo albums on our website (rich2peru.com)! May God continue to bless each of you for your faithfulness in prayers and support.
Don & Carla Rich
This entry was posted in Newsletters.
Sad Ending Leads to a New Beginning!
Sad Ending Leads to a New Beginning!
July 1, 2023
Greetings to everyone from Cajamarca, Peru,
Many of you have been praying with us about our church on the coast of Peru in the city of Guadalupe. It has been suffering for over two years. The Covid pandemic sadly revealed the true faithfulness of the people there just as it did in many other churches both here and in the US. The Guadalupe work continued to decline after much effort to help it revive. After ministering there for six and a half years, with much prayer and searching for God’s will, we felt it was time to close the work. But this sad ending has opened the opportunity for a new beginning. The first week of June we moved Pastor Juan Carlos and his family back to our area in the mountains and will be starting another work a couple of miles from our first church. Its name will be Iglesia Bautista Ancla (Anchor Baptist Church). If you remember from our last letter, we have also recently begun working with another national pastor to build up a church on the other side of our city. Having all three of our works spread strategically across our valley will allow us to work together for the common goal of reaching Cajamarca for Christ. We have a rented building for the second work and are seeking the third location now. Please pray that God would grant us wisdom, provide the funds needed, and open the necessary doors.
We have some other news to share. Our permanent/immigration visas were finally approved, and we picked them up from the immigration office in Lima on May 22! Thank you for your prayers as we were going through that process. This now frees us up to be able to cross borders more frequently to deliver Bibles, preach and teach, and to have the needed time for furloughs instead of the limitations we had before.
In May, the youth of our church, Calvario (Calvary) did a great job setting up a day of celebration for Mother’s Day. It included special music by the different age groups, scripture reading, a drama, preaching, and gifts for the mothers. We posted a photo album on our website of the event. We are proud that the youth of this church have begun to grow and become more involved. In one of the recent youth meetings a young man 18 years old was saved.
Another milestone… Recently the new pastor we are working with asked the small group how many years each one of them had been saved. It dawned on me that I was completing 50 years as a born-again believer! On June 3, 1973, at the age of 14, at Rocky Branch Baptist Church in Woodland, AL I accepted Christ as my Savior. I was baptized two weeks later. I still remember the spider that was floating in the baptistry! Although I haven’t always been faithful, I praise the Lord that He has. As the years have passed, Psalm 71:18 has become one of my favorite life verses. There is still much work to do, and I want to be found faithful.
Please be in prayer for the new missionary couple who are coming to work with us as they begin their missionary journey. Darren and Rachel Townsend are planning on being here by July 10th, Lord willing. This will depend on Rachel receiving her passport updated with her married name. We are praying that they will make it in time for a special event. Carla and I will be celebrating 20 years on the mission field on July 15th! We’ll share the details of the celebration in our next prayer letter. Stay tuned!
Bible Distribution Ministry Update – As I am writing, the container of 23,338 Bibles and 100,000 gospel tracts has made its way through the Panama Canal and is on its way to Lima, Peru! It is scheduled to arrive on July 4. There it will pass through customs. Then it will be trucked to us here in the mountains. Please pray that all goes smoothly.
Thank you so much for reading our updates and praying for us. May God continue to bless each of you for your faithfulness in prayers and support.
Don & Carla Rich
This entry was posted in Newsletters.
The Calm After the Storm and a New Work!
The Calm After the Storm and a New Work!
May 1, 2023
Hola desde el Perú (hello from Peru),
In the past two months we have experienced flooding in the northern areas of Peru caused by a cyclone in the ocean off the coast. The desert coast of Peru normally receives an inch or less of rain per year, so it was not prepared for the heavy rains that it received. This caused many homes to be destroyed, bridges collapsed, roads washed away, and many mud/rockslides in the mountains. There were reported to have been at least 59 killed and several missing because of the flooding. If that wasn’t bad enough, the El Niño phenomenon came in behind the hurricane because of warm waters off the coast, causing more heavy rains and flooding and increasing the damage. We had to postpone trips to our coastal work several times because of road closures and dangerous conditions. PTL we were able to visit once the weather calmed down.
The political rioting has all but ceased in the country with no real change having occurred after much destruction and many dying in the violent uprisings. Back in March, a small troop of Peruvian military was attacked by a group of between 800-900 protesters in the southern part of the country. They forced the soldiers to retreat while throwing rocks and physically attacking them. At least five soldiers drowned as they tried to cross a river to avoid the mob. The soldiers were there to try to maintain peace and order in this hot spot of the protests. Please pray that the calm that we are experiencing now will continue.
On a different political front: Peru’s former president Alejandro Toledo was recently extradited from the US where he had fled and had been avoiding prosecution for corruption since 2019. This brings to a total of three the former presidents in one Peruvian prison and another former president under house arrest because of his health and age. I recently read that one woman who has run for the office of president a couple of times has decided not to run again. Who can blame her with the odds of ending up in prison? BTW, her father is one of the incarcerated former presidents.
Now for some exciting news! We have been approached by a small group who have tried for a while to start a church but have been unsuccessful. After much prayer and discussion, we have partnered with Pastor Erik Alvarado to raise up another work in our area. Our valley has grown to a population of around 250,000 allowing the opportunity to reach more souls through solid Bible preaching churches. The name of this new work will be Iglesia Bautista El Verbo de Dios (The Word of God Baptist Church). Your prayers are much appreciated as we begin this new endeavor.
Our Cajamarca church, Iglesia Bautista Calvario, continues to see new visitors, souls saved, and a growing youth program. Since our last letter we have seen 2 more souls saved and 3 baptized! It is great to be able to focus our efforts on our other works knowing that this church is doing well. Pastor José Zamora has developed into one of the best Peruvian preachers we know and does a great job as pastor.
Bible Distribution Ministry Update – Victory Baptist Press had another delay caused by printing plates being on backorder for months. PTL they were finally received, and the printing process is almost complete! We hope to have the next shipment within 2 months.
We have heard from the young couple who are moving here as new missionaries. Darren and Rachel Townsend are expecting to be here within a couple of months. We are looking forward to receiving them and enjoying working and fellowshipping with them in the years to come.
Until our next letter, may God continue to bless each of you as you faithfully pray and support the ministry here in Peru.
Don & Carla Rich
This entry was posted in Newsletters.