Latest Event Updates
His Word Will Not Return Void!
His Word Will Not Return Void!
March 1, 2022
Hello from the beautiful and wet Andes Mountains of Peru! Our rainy season arrived a little later than usual but is making up for lost time. This last week has been w-e-t with temps in the 60’s here in Cajamarca. We have heard of several mountain roads that are closed due to mud and rockslides. The coast of Peru is enjoying a hot summer. And the jungle? Well, the jungle is the jungle. It is always hot and can rain at any time. But so much for the weather update. Let’s share what God is doing in Peru!
In January we took seventeen youth including several visitors over two hours back into the mountains for a day trip. It was a great day of fellowship, games, and of course, eating. God blessed the day and we had three saved!
Carla has begun a ladies healthy eating class in our Cajamarca church. They are having fun learning better ways to eat and trying new recipes. Peruvians eat rice and potatoes at many meals and there is a high rate of diabetes because of it. Carla hopes to help at least some turn that poor pattern around and have a healthier lifestyle for their families.
I was invited to teach a class in February to at least 54 pastors in a town about an 18-hour drive from where we live. The class was on the purity of God’s Word and the early manuscripts. This is a great way to share our Bible ministry with more pastors. We also provided Romans booklets for each pastor in attendance. After the class, we immediately began receiving requests for Bibles and Romans booklets in that area. We have now sent over 300 cases of Bibles to many pastors there to be used in their churches and other works where the Word of God is so desperately needed.
Carla and I were blessed to have two visitors recently. Ken and Worth have visited our ministry in Peru many times and love to be involved in the distribution of Bibles. They both accompanied me on the week-long trip to teach the pastors. Upon our return they also helped us deliver and ship out many cases of Bibles and Romans booklets to various pastors and missionaries.
Speaking of Bible & Romans booklet distribution, you’ll remember we announced the arrival of the container of Bibles in our last prayer letter. On Jan. 3, I sent an email to pastors and missionaries here in Peru of the availability of the Bibles. In just under 2 months, we have delivered or promised over 20,000 Bibles. That is over 85% of what we received! They have already been delivered to many churches in the mountains, coastal desert, and jungle areas of Perú. Carla and I recently traveled to the coast to coordinate a shipment of 2800 Bibles into the jungle capital. We have also sent a large shipment into Chile to three missionaries who will be distributing them there. As soon as we can get clearance, we will be delivering many Bibles to pastors in Bolivia who will receive them at the border of Peru and take them into the country. Covid and customs restrictions are causing some delays, but God is in control. Carla and I are leaving today on a trip into Ecuador to deliver Bibles and Romans booklets to three missionaries there. More on that in our next letter. Please pray for safety and no problems in the border crossing process.
National pastor Juan Carlos continues to work hard to build our coastal church back up. Church attendance began to return to normal as Covid restrictions lessened, then dropped again as we began to see a lack of commitment in the members and attendees. Pastor Juan Carlos is doing a good job of visiting and encouraging, but they are just not responding as they should. We know this is happening in many places, but it is sad to experience. That said, praise the Lord a baptism is planned for the coming weekend for two of the members. Please be in prayer for this work as we trust God for guidance and continue to reach that area. We continue to see a good number of visitors at our Cajamarca church and attendance has been good.
Praise be to God, including the youth outing we have seen a total of 9 receive Christ since our last letter!
We have posted new photo albums on our website (www.rich2peru.com) Please take a look! May God bless each of you for your heart for missions!
Don & Carla Rich
This entry was posted in Newsletters.
20-20 too!
NEW YEAR! 20-20 too!
January 1, 2022
As we enter this new year may it be another one of vision, “refocusing” ourselves on Christ and our part in His Kingdom work. Instead of 2022, may we look at it as 20-20 too! In 2020 and 2021 many became so focused on avoiding the virus that God’s Church began to suffer great losses. Although the majority seem to have returned to in-person services, there are so many churches who continue to see drastic declines in attendance and faithfulness. Hebrews 10:25 instructs us that in these last days we need to exhort one another to ‘not forsake the assembling of ourselves together’. Let’s refocus on winning the lost and finding the wandering sheep! There are so many teaching false doctrine. We need the fellowship of believers and the preaching of the pure doctrine of God’s Word.
Let me share something that for lack of room was left out of our last letter. Around October we realized that the “Mother God” cult, aka “the World Mission Society Church of God” had moved into our area and started a church at the end of the street our church is on. When the ladies of our church had a bake sale on our little city square, I helped them set up then passed out Romans booklets to passers-by. I noticed a young lady talking with a man nearby and she had a Bible in her hand. I got closer and could tell she was from the cult “Mother God”. I started a conversation with her and listened to her twist scripture to fit their beliefs. By the time I finished “discussing” Bible truth and their false religion, 5-6 guys and an older woman from their church surrounded us. I quickly figured out which was their pastor and told him some of the Biblical reasons that their beliefs were false doctrine and asked how long he had been studying and following this religion. He responded, “4 yrs”. It is so sad. The battle is so real between good and evil in these last days. I’m so glad I had just studied this cult and had already planned to teach on it the very next day in our church. BTW, three police officers heard our “discussion” and saw our small “gathering”. They came in close listening and watching. As you read in our last letter, we saw 2 saved that day. God is good.
Carla and I want to say a BIG THANK YOU to those who sent special support that allowed us to purchase many KIDS’ GIFTS! Because of you and the ladies bake sales in our church here in Peru we were able to provide Christmas gifts to children in three local pueblos – Shaullo, Puylucana, and Jesús, along with kids in our churches in Baños del Inca and Guadalupe, and another small local church with low finances. We were also able to share with some Venezuelan kids brought by parents to Peru to escape poor conditions in their country. In all, we were blessed to distribute around 550 gifts. Each child also received a coloring book with a Gospel presentation and many adults received a New Testament. Pastor José presented the Gospel at the chocolatada (Christmas party with hot chocolate and fruit bread) in Shaullo. Many hands of children and adults were raised at the invitation. Only God knows the decisions made that day.
Our Cajamarca church held a special Ladies’ Christmas Dinner. They had around 50 ladies present and had a great time of fellowship, food, and the Word of God. It was a beautiful evening for them to enjoy.
We had some special holiday restrictions in Peru on Dec 25th and Jan 1st: “All gatherings and social events, including those at home and visits with family, were prohibited in all four levels of alert in Peru.” Also, churches are now required to “card” everyone coming to regular services to prove vaccination. If not vaccinated, they are to be turned away. Just so you know, we will not be turning anyone away when the deadliest sickness that anyone can have is unrepented SIN and they need the healing salve of the Gospel, of which the church has a big supply.
The container of Bibles arrived this week here in Cajamarca! On Wednesday we had a great group of around thirty-five volunteers from our church help us unload the nearly 24,000 Bibles and over 8400 John/Romans booklets for a total of 1742 cases. Distribution will begin on Jan. 3. What a way to end 2021 and begin the new year, 2022!
PTL, we’ve seen at least 3 more saved since our last prayer letter!
We have posted four new photo albums here on our website. Please take a look and see how God has been working here in Peru! May God bless each of you and may you all have a wonderful New Year!
Don & Carla Rich
This entry was posted in Newsletters.
Groups, Souls, Blessings, & Bibles!
Groups, Souls, Blessings, & Bibles!
November 1, 2021
Hello from summertime in Peru! Yes, as you are all heading into winter, most of Peru is entering their summer. It affects temperatures on the coast quite a bit, but the major difference for us in the mountains is it is our rainy season. The rain varies but was so heavy recently that we had mud flow from above our town and fill the streets. Several homes, including those of some of our church members, and the police station were flooded. Praise the Lord, our church building was not directly affected. The rain comes, but the work doesn’t slow down.
In September, Carla and I hosted a group from Columbia, S. America. Missionary Peter Putney brought seven of his Bible Institute students for a missions trip. I was very humbled and surprised to find out that while they were planning the trip to visit us, one person in the group realized that we were the missionaries that sent Bibles to him while he was in Lima eight years ago. He took them back to his church in Columbia. He and the others in the group were so appreciative of our ministry helping to get God’s pure Word to the people in their area. What a humbling blessing.
While out witnessing with the group, our Peruvian pastor began to speak to two ladies. One was a younger lady with a child. As the pastor spoke, the younger said that she knew me. She remembered Carla and I bringing a group of Americans to her school and speaking about Jesus. That was five years ago when our son-in-law and daughter brought a group from their church in Alabama to visit. Another one of the team from Colombia was told by someone they gave a Romans booklet that they knew our church, my name, and the name of two other missionaries that we had worked with throughout the years but have since left Peru. Praise the Lord for the gospel testimony in this area.
In all, the group helped us hand out around 2500 Roman’s booklets. Bro. Putney and two of his students preached for us that week. The highlight of the trip was when 3 people were saved! Bro. Putney was able to tell them about our Jesus while we were out evangelizing. What a great week!
In mid-October, we celebrated the 5th Anniversary of our coastal church in Guadalupe. We had a great attendance as I had the privilege to preach for the service. We also baptized three on Saturday! This included a woman, her daughter, and another young lady.
Just before the anniversary service we shipped 80 cases of Romans booklets by truck and river barge to the jungle capital of Iquitos, Peru. There they were received by a national pastor who helps us distribute them in that area.
We’ve just heard from Victory Baptist Press that the next shipment of around 24,000 Bibles is now printed and ready to be shipped to Peru tentatively on November 5th. It will be a blessing to once again be able to supply Bibles to pastors and missionaries for their works all over S. America. We are planning a couple of trips to deliver them to countries outside of Peru. We will also be receiving around 8500 John/Romans booklets personalized with our church information for evangelization. Please pray for the shipment. We are aware of the trucking and shipping problems in the US and are praying that we will receive these with minimum delays.
Carla and the ladies in our Cajamarca church are gearing up for Christmas. They are planning on providing gifts for the kids here, in another small town nearby, and for our Guadalupe church. They had a very successful bake sale last Saturday on the town square. Several of us passed out Romans booklets while they sold their goods and PTL we saw 2 more souls saved! God continues to bless! * Many of you ask if you can help with anything from time to time. If you would like to help with a donation for the kids’ gifts, it will be much appreciated and put to good use. It can be sent to CMC with a note that it is for “kids’ gifts”.
We enjoyed being a part of one of our supporting church’s missions conference recently. We connected online by the Zoom app. What a blessing to see and speak to those who pray for and support us.
There are new photos on our website, www.rich2peru.com. Please take a look! May God bless each of you.
Don & Carla Rich
This entry was posted in Newsletters.
Hitting the Ground Running
Hitting the Ground Running
September 1, 2021
Hello from Cajamarca! We arrived back in Peru on August 5th after our short but blessed furlough. It is always a joy to visit our supporting churches, enjoy time with family, and catch up with friends. We were also blessed to be able to be a part of the home school graduation service of our dear friends’ daughter Charity while we were in the US.
Another great blessing that we enjoyed was seeing two souls saved. While we were at one of our supporting churches they had two Mexican nationals, a father and daughter, who visited but did not speak English. It was not a coincidence that they came on the very day we were there. After preaching the service I was blessed to talk to them. They both bowed their heads and accepted Christ as their Savior that day! Praise the Lord for His timing and for the obedience of Guadalupe and his daughter Citlaly! The new pastor at the church said that according to church records they were the 2nd and 3rd souls to be saved there in many years. May God bless and allow this to be just a start to a fruitful ministry.
Also, while in the US we saw the Bibles that Victory Baptist Press are printing to be sent to us here in Peru in a couple of months. What a blessing to see their facility filled with the different portions of the Word that will soon be whole Bibles that will be placed in the hands of so many in S. America!
Upon arriving in Peru, we began delivering cases of the Romans booklets as pastors and missionaries placed their orders. We still have several cases left and will be doing our best to get them out quickly. No seed does any good if it is left in the barn. We also need the room for the coming Bibles in a couple of months.
Pastor José of our Cajamarca church told us that three teens were saved just one day before our return! What a blessing to return home to.
On August 14th our Cajamarca church celebrated its 16-year anniversary! Because of the Covid restrictions we were not able to invite other churches to celebrate with us, but we had a good group of members and their friends and family. We rejoiced with two baptisms that day. I was privileged to preach the service. We had several sing special music and children reciting scripture from memory. The ladies of the church prepared some delicious plates of grilled chicken, potatoes, and salad. But the best part was that one young man accepted Christ!
Our Cajamarca church has re-opened all regular services and children’s church with Sunday School coming soon. We are pleased that the majority of our church members have returned to the services.
Our Guadalupe church has struggled because of the pandemic. Our national pastor is working hard to get the services back up and running but the people are resistant and sadly unfaithful. He has so far opened one Sunday service. The other two services are still online with varied attendance. Please pray for this work.
We have had some visitors since we returned. To start, we had a couple from a church we know in a coastal city who came to Cajamarca to celebrate their 30 yr wedding anniversary. Upon arrival they found there were no vacancies at the local hotels (no room at the inn). Our national pastor called and asked if we could help. We were able to give them a place to stay while they toured the area for three days and attended church with us on Sunday. Then a missionary friend from Trujillo (on the coast) brought his family of eight to visit. He preached a good message for our church on Sunday. It was good to have the fellowship as we talked, played games, and showed them around our area.
Other updates: We have recently been advised that the 3rd wave of Covid has entered our area. Also, the socialist candidate won the presidential election, and his cabinet choices were approved. The financial and political uncertainty has caused their money to depreciate, and prices have gone up on many items. We appreciate your prayers as the people and economy struggle through these situations.
There are new photos on our website, www.rich2peru.com. Please take a look! May God bless each of you for your faithful support and prayers for our ministry.
Don & Carla Rich
This entry was posted in Newsletters.
Celebrating our 18th Year!
Celebrating our 18th Year!
July 1, 2021
It is hard to believe that as of the 15th of this month Carla and I will be celebrating 18 years on the mission field! Time seems to go so quickly (kinda like my hair). We began our deputation in 2001 and just 21 months later God had us on the field. We have seen several missionaries come and go and have made some lifelong friends along the way. We have seen God bless our ministry over and over in ways we would have never imagined. We are looking forward to seeing how God will continue to work in the strange times that we are living in.
As I write this, we are about two-thirds of the way through our short furlough. We have been in 18 churches so far. We have a full calendar with 10 more meetings scheduled. Our plan is to be back in Peru on August 5. We have been enjoying seeing our friends in our supporting churches, visiting with friends and family, spoiling the grand kids, and getting in some fishing time. Carla’s birthday is on the 4th of July, so we will be enjoying family time as we celebrate her “nunya” birthday (nunya business how old she is ?).
There was not enough space in the May prayer letter so let me say here… PTL and thank you for the prayers. We were able to begin shipping the Romans booklets once again at the end of March. We still had many cases left when we came in on our furlough and look forward to getting those sent out upon our return.
We are also looking forward to receiving more Bibles and materials when we return from our furlough. After a few setbacks Victory Baptist Press is in the process of completing Spanish Bibles and John/Romans booklets that will be shipped to us in the coming months. I continue to receive requests for Bibles and materials weekly.
UPDATES: Your prayers for Peru are welcomed and appreciated.
* The third wave of Covid has begun in Peru. The India strain has entered and has shut down the 2nd largest city in the country. Restrictions are still in place for the entire country with masks still being mandatory along with other strict measures. At least most are able to get back to work for the time being.
* The presidential election continues to be in limbo with a difference of only one quarter of one percent difference between the two. There are many claims of fraud which are being investigated. No one is sure when the outcome will be announced or how the country will respond. At least 75% of the country do not believe the election was clean and a lot of people are upset. One candidate has requested international intervention. Two of the members of the organization that handles the elections have resigned because they said they didn’t want to be a part of the corruption. We’ve heard rumors that some of the remnants of the Shining Path terrorist group have been stealing dynamite from the gold mines. This has happened before, and it is unsure if it is has to do with the election results.
But there is good news! Praise the Lord, we have had at least three more saved in our churches! God continues to work even though church attendance is down, as we have seen in many churches also here in the states.
Let us close by saying that we are still praying for God to send a couple or family to work with us. We do have one intern who is now on deputation to come to Peru. We are praying for the Lord to quickly provide his support and also a wife to work alongside of him. But there is still room for more workers. Could God be calling you?
May God continue to bless each of you who faithfully pray for and support the ministry that God has called us to.
Don & Carla Rich
This entry was posted in Newsletters.
Quarantine Yo-Yo and Furlough
Quarantine Yo-Yo and Furlough
May 1, 2021
As of our last letter, Cajamarca was placed on level 2 (high) of the four tier Covid chart. It was short lived. After two weeks it was re-evaluated and placed at level 4 (extreme). Numbers of infected had begun to climb. Our church had to shut its doors once again and return to online services. After two more weeks our area was downgraded to level 3 (very high) which would allow us to have services at 20% capacity. BUT these two weeks coincided with Easter and the vote for a new president. The government declared that the entire country would be on the strictest quarantine for “Holy Week” to keep large groups from gathering and spreading the virus. Voting in Peru is always on Sunday and no public gatherings are allowed. So those two weeks were also without church services. We could meet, but we couldn’t. A conundrum to say the least. The following two weeks we were able to return to services at 20% capacity. Then new rules went into effect requiring masks AND facial shields to enter stores, markets, and public buildings. Despite all precautions, we have had several families infected with Covid in both our Cajamarca and Guadalupe churches. PTL that none of them became very sick and have since recovered.
Hospitals in our area are considered “collapsed” because of all being full and no ICU beds available. Oxygen is only being supplied in hospitals. Those who are suffering with Covid in their homes are being overcharged for oxygen when they can find it. Just this week, we were able to purchase a portable oxygen machine. It cost several times more than what it would be in the states, but we felt it would be worth having it available. The cost was right at $2200. If anyone would like to help with this please send any support to our mission agency, Central Missionary Clearinghouse. Please include a note that it is for the oxygen machine for our ministry.
In March, the country suffered a transportation strike. Travel was blocked on main highways and streets in towns, shutting down movement and commerce. After five days, the national police were instructed by the federal government to clear the roads of protesters. Warnings were given and the trucks unblocked the roads, allowing traffic to return to normal.
Please be in prayer for the country of Peru. The recent presidential elections brought the field of candidates down from eighteen to two. The run-off will be in June. The choices are sad. One candidate is along the socialist line of governing, the same as the failed government of Venezuela and Cuba. The other candidate has been jailed in the past and is still under investigations for corruption. Either one will be a poor choice, but one will be President.
On April 23, Carla and I celebrated our 39th wedding anniversary. Like many of you have experienced, celebrating was different this year. We managed to get away into the mountains for a picnic. We are looking forward to next year and hoping that we will be back to a type of “normal” so we can plan something special to celebrate our 40th. Then again, each year is special living and serving with the love of my life.
After our mailing address failed several times, we have now gone back to using a post office box. We received Christmas cards in March (mailed in Nov) after the post office saying that we had no mail for three months. They just “found” them. We still do not recommend mailing anything to us because of an unreliable system. But for those who do want to send cards, our address in Peru will once again be: Donald Rich Casilla 90 Cajamarca, Peru
PRAISE: I recently received a short video from a Christian radio station in the jungle city of Iquitos. It was of a 24-year-old lady giving her testimony on the air. She cried as they presented her with one of the Bibles we provided for that ministry. What a blessing to know how God is working through the Bible distribution.
Lord willing, by the time you are reading this, we will have just arrived in the US for our short furlough. Carla will be visiting a specialist to finally determine if she has Lupus or not. Our calendar is full, and we look forward to visiting several of our supporting churches. We will be giving ministry updates in five states. We appreciate your faithful prayers for Carla’s appointments and for our travel.
May God bless and keep each of you.
Don & Carla Rich
This entry was posted in Newsletters.
The Ins and Outs of Quarantine!
The INs and OUTs of Quarantine!
March 1, 2021
In our last prayer letter, we were glad to announce that as of November our churches were able to have in-person services. This was after eight months of just virtual services because of the strict quarantine measures here in Peru. We enjoyed a great time of careful fellowship as we followed the protocols that had been put in place. This included limited capacity, spaced seating, masks, hand sanitizer, temperatures taken at the door, and a pan of bleach water to step in, then wipe our feet before entering the sanctuary.
Sadly, on Sunday January 31, the country went back into quarantine. This time each area of Peru was individually evaluated and placed in different levels of concern. Our area here in Cajamarca was placed in the “Very High” category which is the third highest of four levels. Churches and all public gatherings were shut down once again. We were not allowed to drive our personal vehicle on Saturday or Sunday. A mandatory curfew of 8pm was in place.
But praise the Lord, after one month the government once again reviewed the situation and our area has been downgraded one level to “High”. We will once again be allowed to have church services March 1-14th with 30% capacity. Time will tell what will happen after that. They are now re-evaluating every two weeks.
Our Guadalupe church was in the “High” category and still able to have services during the first two-week period. Then the government extended the quarantine for two more weeks and our Guadalupe church area was moved to “Very High”, causing the church doors to close once again and services to go back to virtual. We remain in constant contact with our national pastor there and they are doing well. PTL, they have also been downgraded for the coming two-week period and can start in-person services again.
We know that the entire world is experiencing similar problems and don’t want this to read like complaining. As frustrating as it is, we know that God is in control. We just want to keep everyone up to date with what is going on here so you will know how to pray. That is why we call it a “prayer letter”. 🙂
After waiting and watching, we are planning a short furlough beginning in May. To limit exposure to the virus we are only contacting those supporting churches we were unable to visit on our last furlough in 2018. The three-month window we were able to carve out will be our shortest furlough to date, but we need this time for Carla to visit a specialist. As we explained in our last letter, we have had conflicting diagnosis’s as to whether she has lupus. We want to get a definitive answer while we are in and start treatment if necessary. Your prayers are appreciated. We are required to have a negative Covid test before flying and will be self-quarantining when we arrive.
Our Food Distribution Ministry continues but on a much smaller scale. Praise the Lord, many people are now back at work in our area since the quarantine has been adjusted to allow businesses to open with restrictions.
The Bible & Tract Distribution ministry has once again been stalled. With the new restrictions bus stations closed again, and distribution has stopped except for the local pastors who can come to our location and pick up what they need. However, we have received the blessing of pictures from pastors who received Bibles and materials before the recent quarantine measures. They have been busy distributing them. The Word is still going out.
We are so blessed to be able to end this letter on a high note. Since our last prayer letter SIX MORE SOULS have been SAVED in our churches! Some are studying discipleship classes with our pastors. Two young ladies in our Cajamarca church are anxiously waiting for the church to re-open so they can be baptized! Through it all, God is good, faithful, and merciful!
Thank you for your faithful prayers and support of what God is doing here in Peru and around S. America.
Don & Carla Rich
This entry was posted in Newsletters.
Rich Family Prayer Letter Jan 2021
“I was GLAD when they said unto me, let us go into the house of the Lord”
January 1, 2021
Praise the Lord! Psalm 122 has never been more true! On Nov. 15, after 8 months of online services, our churches were allowed to open up with certain protocols to follow. Both of our churches are now having Sunday morning services and our Cajamarca church has also added Wednesday prayer meeting. We are seeing good attendance at both churches.
With the opening up of bus lines and other businesses we were able to begin deliveries of the Bibles and Romans booklets that we received at our facility back in July. In just 3 weeks, we delivered all 8000 Bibles and once again ran out. We continue to deliver the orders for Romans booklets to pastors and missionaries throughout the country.
This past year was a sad one politically, not only in the US but also in Peru. Peru’s sitting President was impeached in November. The president of Congress was then named interim president. There was such an uproar over the choice that protests broke out for five days throughout the country resulting in two young men being killed. The interim president subsequently resigned. Congress took two days to find another that they could place in the office of President until the April 2021 elections. The president that was impeached was actually the former vice president who took the office when the former President of Peru resigned under allegations of corruption. To say that the politics in this country is challenging is putting it lightly.
Last month I had the privilege of conducting the wedding ceremony of a young man I won to the Lord fifteen years ago when he was only 12. It was a beautiful outdoor ceremony as Gerson married a precious young lady, Yesebell. They both love the Lord, and we pray God’s best for them.
Both of our churches were able to enjoy Christmas services with a time afterwards of giving gifts to the kids. Our church in Cajamarca enjoyed the traditional “chocolatada” in an untraditional way. Because of social distancing, everyone received their fruit bread (panetón) and hot chocolate as they left the service instead of sitting and eating together in the church.
Our 15-passenger van became the ‘big green sleigh’ as we were blessed to deliver food, the Word of God, and gifts to several families and around 160 poorer kids in our area. At one point we went to a small city square and gave a child a gift. That one kid told another, they passed the word, and soon we were looking at a line of children and mothers with babies. The gifts and Romans booklets were gone in about 20 minutes. All of this was made possible by some special donations from some of our supporters. What a blessing to see the kids’ faces as they received a small token of God’s love through His people.
We want to give God praise and ask for prayer for two situations: My (Don’s) mother was diagnosed with Covid around the middle of December. She was retested this week and it was negative! She is still weak but gaining strength. Also, Carla was diagnosed last month with lupus by a doctor here in Peru. We sent the test results to two doctors in the US and were told that she does NOT have lupus. We will be following up when we visit the US later this year, Lord willing. Thank you all for your prayers.
PTL! We have recently seen ELEVEN SOULS SAVED between our two churches. One family of five Venezuelans in Guadalupe came to escape political problems in their country. They told Pastor Juan Carlos that they felt that demons were in their home. He went to counsel them and won them to the Lord! Now the only “spirit” in their hearts and home is the Holy Spirit!
We have recently added more photo albums to our website, www.rich2peru.com. Take a look!
May God bless each of you in this new year for your faithful prayers and support.
Don & Carla Rich
This entry was posted in Newsletters.
Rich Family Prayer Ltr Nov 2020
Socks and Monkey Business?
November 1, 2020
Hello from the Andes Mountains of Peru!
Good news! The strict quarantine here in Peru was lifted on Oct. 1. We are still under some restrictions such as masks, social distancing, and public building occupancy limits. Our valley of around 300,000 people went from having well over 2-300 people reported infected per day and many deaths to now averaging daily around 45 reported infected and only one death or less. Although any death is sad, we are praising the Lord that the numbers are finally going down. Also, direct international flights are scheduled to open today to several countries including the US. They will be limited and with restrictions, but it is light at the end of the tunnel.
As for our churches, we are still preaching online. The Peruvian government recently announced that only special church services such as baptisms, funerals, and weddings are allowed and with a maximum of only 30% of the building occupancy. But we have heard that the president is talking with evangelical leaders and will possibly allow regular church services by mid-November! We are sure it will be with restrictions, but it is a start. Our church buildings have been shut for eight months. Please pray that we will be able to open the doors of our church soon.
Cajamarca church – Carla and the ladies of our church came together to start a Saturday on-line kids’ class. Some of the kids came by to pick up books and crafts to take home and use during the classes. We hand-delivered several also. We have seen a great response. The kids record their memory verses and answers to questions asked during the live FB broadcast. They then send them in to the leaders. Next week, we will be delivering prizes to those who have been faithful to attend virtually and complete their “homework tasks”.
Guadalupe church – Pastor Juan Carlos has continued to improve and is around 100% now! We were able to briefly visit with them last week in their home on the coast. It was the first time we had seen them in a year because of my knee surgery, then the pandemic.
On October 18th we celebrated the fourth anniversary services of the Guadalupe church! The services were held online with Pastor Juan Carlos preaching the morning services and me (Don) preaching the evening services. Our Cajamarca church cancelled their online services that day to be able to participate in their sister church’s celebration. We had a great online attendance.
Food Distribution Ministry – We continue to make food deliveries to those we know who are struggling without jobs because of the pandemic. This includes several families from Venezuela who originally moved to Peru to escape the poverty and terrible government that they were under. Sadly, many arrived here not long before the quarantine and job shutdowns. This has caused serious hardships. We recently received more great donations to help with this ministry. It is a continual blessing to those we help, and we love seeing their faces as God blesses them through our ministry.
More good news! Our Bible Distribution ministry will be back in full distribution mode beginning this week! Enough of the bus lines are open for shipping that we will now be able to receive and fill requests. We have almost 1700 cases of Bibles and Roman’s booklets in our distribution building. Please pray that they will go out quickly. The Word of God does no one any good in storage.
Christmas is coming quickly. Carla had a great idea to make sock monkeys for the kids in our church this year. Do you remember sock monkeys? She and the ladies will be working hard to complete at least 50 before the holiday arrives. It only took several hours, around seven stores, and one open market to find all the socks, buttons, cloth, etc. needed to make them all. It will be a lot of work. It is estimated to take around five hours for each monkey. So, I guess you could say that there will be a lot of monkey business around here for a while.
We saved the best for last. We have seen two salvations in our Guadalupe ministry this month! God continues to work and bless our ministry. We want to thank all of you who have a part in praying and/or financially supporting the work that God has placed in our hearts to accomplish.
May God bless each of you for your continual faithful prayers and support of us here in Peru.
Don & Carla Rich
This entry was posted in Newsletters.
God is still in the “Good News” business!
God is still in the “Good News” business!
September 1, 2020
It is hard to have a conversation, listen to the news, or even hear a message preached without hearing something about the international pandemic of the Corona Virus. I will touch on that since people ask us how it is in our area, then I want to focus on the good news… Yes, good news in the midst of all that is going on!
As expected, we went back into quarantine about two weeks after it was partially lifted. The numbers in our valley continue to rise between 150-200 per day in a population of around 250,000. Peru’s President Martín Vizcarra recently announced that the National State of Emergency has been extended for another month, thru Sept. 30. Children under the age of 14 will no longer be allowed outside for any duration of time, and adults aged 65 and older are to remain inside except when absolutely necessary. No social gatherings of any kind, including in the home with family, are permitted. Our area of Cajamarca is still under an 8:00 pm to 4:00 am curfew from Monday to Saturday and all-day quarantine on Sunday. Social distancing and the use of facemasks will be required for the foreseeable future. A missionary friend of ours posted a chart showing Peru with the highest death rate per capita and the highest total cases per capita in the world at this time. But God is good, and we remain healthy and safe.
I would like to share a sad news report that we saw recently. In the capital city of Lima over 100 people were found breaking the law by gathering and drinking in a nightclub. When the police arrived, many panicked and tried to get away, causing chaos. The exit was accidentally closed in the confusion, and people were trampled trying to get out. Thirteen were dead when it was all over. We watched part of one of the funerals on the news. The pall bearers danced to rock music while carrying the casket of the deceased. They also poured beer on the casket in “honor” of the departed. What a sad testimony. Like the rich man in hell, I’m sure the deceased would love to reach out to those left behind, those who continue to disregard their eternal life so they can enjoy their sin for a season.
Now for some GOOD NEWS! The first that we’d like to share is that the “Good News”, the gospel, reached another soul in our Guadalupe ministry! After one of our church members passed away in July, Pastor Juan Carlos was able to lead his 32-year-old son to the Lord!
Also in July, Carla and I celebrated 17 years on the mission field here in Peru! It has been great serving with my wonderful wife for all these years and we are excited to see what the future holds in our ministry here. Then in August, our Cajamarca church celebrated its 15-year anniversary with two special services online. I preached the morning service and then Carla and I blew out the candle and cut the ceremonial cake. Pastor José Zamora preached the evening service.
More good news! Many of you know that our Guadalupe pastor Juan Carlos was infected with the Covid virus. He was literally at the point of death at one time, but God intervened. He is now well on his way to recovery and gaining strength every day! His wife Karen is doing well also after a mild case of the virus. It was hard to be three hours away and unable to help them, but thanks to your prayers and the people of the Guadalupe church pitching in, they were taken care of. And of course, God gets all the glory.
On a lighter note, we were asked to help an elderly lady who was out of work. She wanted to sell a hog to make some money. We and another missionary family pitched in and bought the hog. We had an old-fashioned hog-killin’ and helped butcher it also. We kept some of it and were able to share some while it was fresh with some of our church families.
Our Bible and tract ministry is mostly at a standstill since the bus lines have been shut down. I was able to share two cases with a national pastor in our valley who walked to pick them up. We are looking forward to the opportunity to send them all out as soon as we are allowed. Requests come in weekly from all over S. America.
We continue to make food deliveries to those we know who are without jobs. We thank the Lord for those of you who have sent in donations to help with this ministry. It is a continual blessing to those we help.
May God bless each of you for your continual faithful prayers and support of us here in Peru.
Don & Carla Rich
This entry was posted in Newsletters.
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