His Word Will Not Return Void!
His Word Will Not Return Void!
May 1, 2017
Greetings from Cajamarca, Guadalupe, and a few other places,
Carla and I are excited to share with you how God has blessed these past two months. The first week of March, our Cajamarca church presented VBS to a large group of kids, along with a class for parents. We were blessed with 23, including both kids and adults, who made public decisions for Christ! There have also been three others saved in our church recently and three baptized! God continues to grow His church!
Much of the country, especially the coastal region suffered great loss in property and lives during unprecedented flooding. The desert coastal area normally receives about one to two inches of rain per year, so they were unprepared for the deluge. There were mud and rock slides, homes, businesses, roads, and bridges destroyed, and several lives lost. Our Guadalupe church, on the coast, had water seep in but was not damaged, and the pastor and his family fared well also. Our Cajamarca church pitched in to help some in the affected areas who had lost so much.
Carla and I were privileged to make a three-country trip to distribute Bibles. Our friend Worth Johnson came to travel with us from North Carolina. We felt God’s protection as we drove approximately 7000 miles and delivered 2800 Bibles. We were able to meet and personally deliver Bibles to five missionaries. One of those, missionary James Pittman’s ministry, will now serve as our new distribution point for Chile. We crossed mountains, drove for days through the Atacama Desert (the most arid desert in the world) and saw the amazing beauty of God’s creation. We encountered llama, alpaca, vicuña, horses, goats, a fox, and some interesting large birds. We also saw ancient hieroglyphics in the deserts of Chile and Peru.
After delivering Bibles to pastors in Bolivia, one of them contacted me. He told me how, on their bus ride back to their church, they won three ladies to the Lord and gave them Bibles to grow in their faith.
We entered Argentina and smuggled several Bibles across to two missionaries there. The border officials give them a hard time when they try to bring Bibles into the country, even though they have applied for paperwork to allow it.
At the Chilean border crossing, I had the opportunity to witness to a truck driver and others who were listening. The driver and the owner of their company volunteered to help us as we encountered problems entering the country with a truck load of Bibles. The owner, a Christian, even drove me to the next town when I realized that our bank cards and credit cards had been blocked for use out of country, although I had notified my credit card company ahead of time. It is too long of a story to tell here, but suffice it to say, God supplied these two men at just the right time to help us get the Bibles in. He is always on time!
We delivered some of the Bibles to missionary Nate Saint in Chile. In a recent prayer letter, he said that during a Bible study with a lady named Cecilia and her family… “She was absolutely thrilled” to receive her first Bible. It is great to hear how God is already using His Word as it is made available to many who have never had a Bible.
While in Chile, a Peruvian national, working as a missionary in southern Chile, left a message on our truck. He had seen the Peru truck tag and our church logo and wanted to contact us. Long story short, he will now be receiving Bibles for his ministry! Coincidence? Nope.
We have so many more stories that we could tell, but no space to tell it. Please take a look at our website photo album of the trip to get a small idea of what we saw and how God blessed.
As of this writing, we have already delivered over one-third of the Bibles that we recently received. It appears that they will be distributed quickly, as we continue to receive requests in Peru and other S. American countries.
MINISTRY OPPORTUNITY! Calvary Children’s Home in Powder Springs, GA is needing a good Christian couple to serve as house parents. The home was started by our pastor’s father 50 years ago. Our pastor, Rev. Snyder Turner, is the current administrator. If you or someone you know are interested, please contact him: s.turner@calvarykids.org
Thank you for your continued prayers and support,
Don & Carla Rich
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