Latest Event Updates
A Busy Year Ahead!
A Busy Year Ahead!
January 1, 2020
As you read in our last letter, we are stateside for my knee-replacement surgery. The surgery went as planned on Dec. 2 and I am now in physical therapy working on regaining mobility. We appreciate everyone’s prayers. They were definitely heard as there was a serious complication caused by the spinal block they administered to me. After waking in the recovery room, they gave me some crackers and something to drink. As I ate, I told the doctors that I began to feel some abdominal pain. That pain quickly moved up into my chest. Carla said that at that point I turned very pale and passed out. She looked at the monitor which showed a flat line for my heart rate and a dangerously low blood pressure reading. Family was ushered out of the area as they worked with me to bring my stats back up to normal. Once I was stabilized and began to feel better, I was discharged to go home. We were all amazed that it was an out-patient procedure, but I was in and out in the same day. Thanks again for your prayers as I heal and work through physical therapy.
While here in the US, Carla and I have been working on plans for the International Bible Conference we will be hosting in May of this year at our Cajamarca church in Peru. There is a lot of planning and coordinating that will have to be completed. Please pray that everything will fall into place and that the Lord will bless the conference.
We are still planning, Lord willing, to be back in Peru by mid-February. The first week in March, Darren, the intern that spent several months with us last year, is planning on returning to spend three months with us this year. It will be a blessing to us and to our ministry to have him there.
Once we are back in Peru, we should be receiving a container of a partial shipment of Bibles and many Roman’s booklets for evangelism. We plan to use these primarily to distribute to those national pastors and missionaries who attend the Bible conference in May. Whatever is left over will be shipped to others who are asking for Bibles for their ministries.
Our Cajamarca church will be celebrating its fifteen-year anniversary in August so we will be busy planning for that event also. We are looking forward to this milestone.
We have had some individuals say that they are planning on visiting us in Peru this year. Two of which are our home church’s pastor and a long-time member. We look forward to receiving these visitors and allowing them to see first-hand what God is doing.
We mentioned in our last letter about some other possible doors opening up in training national pastors. Only time will tell. What we do know is that we should be very busy again this year.
We are hearing from the national pastors in our churches in Cajamarca and Guadalupe that the work is still going well. It is a blessing to be able to leave for a while and know the work continues.
We have received many emails from pastors and missionaries thanking us for the Bibles they have received for their ministries. I’d like to conclude this letter with a recap of one such letter. A national pastor wrote that he and his church were praying one night that God would help them find a good price on some much-needed Bibles for their church. Many of the members did not have a Bible. The next morning, he started to leave his house to go look for prices in bookstores. Before leaving, he received a call from a pastor telling him about our ministry. He quickly contacted us, and we sent him the Bibles they needed. The pastor wrote, thanking us for our ministry and praised the Lord for the timely provision of His Word. It is letters like this that make it all worthwhile.
Thank you for your faithfulness in supporting the ministry here in Peru,
Don & Carla Rich
This entry was posted in Newsletters.
100,000 !!!
November 1, 2019
This letter finds Carla and I stateside for a couple of months. Back in 1987, while working as a deputy sheriff in Georgia, my knee was shattered while apprehending an armed robbery suspect. It was repaired with screws and bone grafts, but I was told that I would eventually need a replacement knee. It appears that time has come and since it was covered under workers’ comp it will have to be done in the US. We are enjoying family, getting a little hunting in, taking care of dental and doctor appointments and preparing for the surgery which is scheduled for Dec. 2 in Atlanta. We would appreciate all of your prayers that all goes well. Our plans are to be back in Peru by February after completing physical therapy. We have a busy year coming up in our ministry.
Our church plant in Guadalupe recently celebrated its third anniversary. We had an overflow crowd of over 90 in that small space. We were privileged to baptize two during the celebration. National Pastor Juan Carlos and his wife are doing a great job in this church. Immediately after the service, Carla and I traveled another two hours to our friends’ church in Trujillo where I performed the baby dedication service for their son who also turned one on that day.
Just before our trip to the US, the ladies in our Cajamarca church had a ladies’ meeting and special dinner. They all love Carla’s cooking (who doesn’t?). Since she enjoys cooking and hosting, she prepared ribs, sweet potato soufflé, and salad for the group. Needless to say, there was none left.
As we mentioned in our last letter, in the first part of September I traveled with two friends of our ministry, Ken and Worth, who have helped raise quite a bit of funds for the Bible ministry. We drove to the river port city of Yurimaguas and dropped off 151 cases containing 2114 Bibles. From the port, they were shipped up-river to Iquitos, the jungle capital of Peru. From there, these Bibles will be dispersed to many works back in the deep jungle where many have never had a Bible. After placing them on a barge, we flew to Iquitos where we were able to meet with several pastors who were very glad to meet those who were providing the Bibles for their ministries. We were careful that God received the praise. We are just His footmen.
While we were walking in town next to the Amazon River, a young man approached me and said “Hola pastor” (hello pastor). He told me how as a street kid he remembered me stopping to talk with him and some other kids about Jesus. That was 15 years ago! He is now married with children of his own and they love the Lord! Only God! It seems that some doors may be opening in that part of Peru to return and teach some of the pastors. We will be looking into that when we return next year.
On the drive back to Cajamarca, I had received an invitation to teach a group of 25 pastors who gathered to meet us in the coastal city of Sullana. I spoke to them for about two and a half hours on the purity of God’s Word. Many of them have received Bibles from our ministry. I have since been able to teach the same class to six other pastors in our home. It is great to see them open to the truth about the different Bible versions, where they come from, and how to choose the purest Bible available for their ministries.
Once we arrived back in Cajamarca, we were very busy filling many requests for Bibles. On October 19th we completed the distribution of this shipment of 25,000 Bibles. Not only did we get them all distributed in just two and a half months, but this also marked a milestone in the Bible ministry. As of now God has blessed us to be able to distribute 100,000 Bibles throughout all nine Spanish speaking countries in South America! And the requests continue to come in! God gets the glory!
And that’s not all! Since our last letter, we have seen at least 8 more souls saved in our churches! Ain’t God good?!
* We have placed seven new photo albums on our website (rich2peru.com). Take a look and enjoy God’s handiwork!
Thank you for your faithfulness in praying for us,
Don & Carla Rich
This entry was posted in Newsletters.
From Months to Just Weeks!
From Months to Just Weeks!
September 1, 2019
For those of you who may be having a hard time reading this letter, it is probably because I have to use a smaller font to fit all that God has been doing into such a small space. For example:
In mid-July, Carla helped our Cajamarca church host a two-day women’s conference with good attendance from four local churches. Also, on July 15th Carla and I celebrated sixteen years in Peru. God has been so good to us, allowing us to serve Him here and in other parts of S. America. To Him be “all” the glory for what has been accomplished in those years.
Another blessing in July was when brother Mike Johnson from N. Carolina came to visit. In the short time he was here, we were able to follow up with some people that we had given solar Bibles and other materials to on his last visit. We also met and provided more materials to other mountain pastors and witnessed to several individuals in our journeys. We were so pleased to see 2 saved as a result of our efforts!
More changes in the annual resident visa renewal process in Peru caused us to have to make an unexpected trip to Lima to sign some legal paperwork. It is frustrating when this happens but through the years, we have learned to just accept the changes and move on.
We started off the month of August with the 14th anniversary services of our Cajamarca church. Missionary Stacy Dassow came from Lima and preached three great messages that weekend. Not long afterwards, Carla and I traveled to our Guadalupe church to lead the services while our pastor and his family took a needed vacation.
On August 4th, the container from Victory Baptist Press arrived from the US with over 25,000 Bibles and 2000 John & Romans booklets. Many from our church and another local church helped unload over 1800 cases into the newly constructed distribution center. What a blessing it is to have this new facility right here in our own back yard! We have been busy personally delivering many, shipping a large quantity out on bus lines, and coordinating shipments to other S. American countries. Just recently we sent Bibles into Bolivia. Fourteen hundred Bibles were sent to Chile to be distributed there and into Argentina. Within days of sending this letter, I will be heading out with visitors Ken Benge and Worth Johnson to deliver 151 cases of Bibles to Iquitos, the jungle capital of Peru. After placing them on a river barge, we will be flying to Iquitos to meet with several pastors who are awaiting the arrival of the Bibles for their ministries. More on that in our next letter.
Last week we loaded a total of 401 cases (5614 Bibles) in one day! These were going to locations all across Peru to many different churches. Within the next week we will have distributed over half of the 25,000 Bibles in record time. The fastest that all the Bibles have gone out in the past was four and a half ‘months’. This time they are moving so quickly that we will reach and pass the halfway point in just four and a half WEEKS! Knowing that we are planning the Bible conference for next May, Victory Baptist Press is already planning on sending us more Bibles, along with 2 other ministries who plan to send us other evangelistic materials next year. Have I ever mentioned that we are praying for help?
In mid-August, I taught a 2-hour class on the purity of the Word of God, the reasons for the differences in the Bible versions, and why we use the revision of the Bible that we have chosen. I also met with a missionary and a pastor personally and went over the material with them. The pastor called me a couple of days later and asked for Bibles for his entire congregation to replace the version they had been using. God is moving in the Bible ministry!
* We have placed four new photos albums on our website (rich2peru.com). These provide a peek at just some of what God is doing here in Peru. Take a look!
May God bless each of you who pray for us,
Don & Carla Rich
This entry was posted in Newsletters.
Still Busy and Growing!
Still Busy and Growing!
July 1, 2019
In May we had a youth day trip to a mountain zoo with hiking to a nearby waterfall and a picnic afterwards. Except for them making a wrong turn on one of the trails and becoming lost for a few minutes, everything went well. It was a great time of fellowship for them all and the Word of God was preached to them during their hike.
For two weeks in May we remodeled Carla’s kitchen. It had been needing a facelift and some repair for quite a while (sanding, painting, varnishing, adjusting doors and drawers, replacing a counter top and sink, etc) Our intern Darren had a background in carpentry and construction and he was a big help in getting this job done. Oh, and Carla is very happy with the results. Mama is happy! That’s always a good thing.
As many of you have probably heard, we awoke to an 8.0 earthquake around 2:40 a.m. on May 26. The epicenter was in the northeastern jungle of Peru, but it was the strongest earthquake and longest lasting in many years. It woke us up with the bed shaking and we felt it for at least a minute and a half. Dishes were rattling, alarms were going off, dogs were barking, and we could hear our neighbors in the streets. We had no damage, and no one hurt in our area, but we saw on local news that there was at least one death, several injured, and homes and businesses destroyed near the center.
It just so happened that the quake occurred one day before we had planned a trip to the jungle. This was our intern Darren’s first trip to that area. We traveled to distribute John & Romans booklets to a ministry there. We also gave them a box of girls’ dresses that a dear friend in the states made by hand. The dresses are to go to the poor young ladies in that area. We were also able to hand out hundreds of tracts to people as we traveled through the jungle. Praise God for His promise that His Word will not return void!
Also, at the end of May our Cajamarca church had a testimony service. Ten members gave testimonies, along with a visiting Peruvian missionary pastor. We had a long service and still had others who wanted to testify of God’s goodness in their lives. Pastor José will be giving more opportunities for testimonies in the coming services.
On June 11 our intern, Darren Townsend, left Peru. We were all sad to see him go. The Saturday before, we had a youth gathering at our home to say goodbye. He is returning to the US to finish his studies then begin his deputation to come to Peru as a missionary. Please pray for him as he begins this process. Also, please pray that God would supply him with the perfect help-meet to serve by his side.
Our Bible distribution center building is now complete and the shipment of the container of Bibles left Victory Baptist Press on Wednesday, June 26. They are scheduled to be at the port in Lima on July 25. From there, it will take about a week to get them released from customs and truck them up to us in Cajamarca.
We have seen one more saved in our works since our last prayer letter. God is still in the soul saving business!
God continues to enlarge our coast. The Conversion Center, a tract printing ministry out of Maryland, contacted us at the end of June and wants to send us tracts to distribute. This makes three different ministries that will be supplying us with tracts, Bibles, and other evangelistic materials. I hate to sound redundant but… HELP WANTED! Surely God is calling a missionary to come alongside of us and help with this growing ministry.
The Bible Conference we mentioned in our last letter is now set for May 20-22, 2020 at our church here in Cajamarca. We are excited as we are already hearing from several who plan to attend. It will take lots of work and planning, but it will be worth it when all of the pastors are here in a great time of fellowship around the Word.
May God richly bless you all,
Don & Carla Rich
This entry was posted in Newsletters.
And the Blessings Just Keep on Coming!
And the Blessings Just Keep on Coming!
May 1, 2019
Well here we go again, trying to fit so much in so little space. As you will see, God continues to bless.
On April 6 we took our youth to a park in the mountains for a day of fellowship and the Word. Then we brought them back to our house where Carla had lunch grilled and prepared. Boy can those guys eat! It was a great day for all.
On Good Friday, our Cajamarca church projected a documentary about the history of Satan. We had a good attendance and there were 2 saved! Between our Cajamarca church and the Guadalupe church we have seen at least eight more saved since our last letter.
On April 23, Carla and I celebrated 37 years of marriage! We praise God for the privilege of serving Him together.
Then, on April 27 we completed a six-week Bible Institute class on the Doctrine of the Church. Twenty-three students received certificates of completion last Sunday morning. They are already asking for another class! These guys enjoy learning more of God’s Word and plan for their lives. My exhortation to them is to not just ‘learn’ but DO!
Our intern Darren has been a big help with several projects that have needed to be completed. He has also helped with the church music, playing the banjo. He and another young man in our church take turns teaching at our youth meetings. Darren has also taught in the kids’ SS class. He feels that God is calling him to this area and will return after his deputation time, which he plans to begin around July of this year.
The last week of March, Carla and I were able to attend a three-day Bible conference in central Florida. While there, we were able to speak with Bro. Dan Hummel of Beacon of Truth printing ministry. They are interested in sending us ministry materials for distribution (more below). With the pastor and missionary contacts that we have now, we will be able to get these distributed and it will be a great blessing for all those who receive them.
We are in the process of constructing a brick storage building in our tiny back yard that will be used as our Bible and tract distribution center. In the past we used a shipping container for storage but the owner of the property where it was located is selling the property and renting would be costly. This building will be a little larger than a shipping container, allowing plenty of room. Why build now? We will be receiving 25,000 Bibles soon. Another 25,000 is planned to be here by next May. Also Beacon of Truth has told us that when we do not have Bibles, they want to keep us supplied with Romans booklets, tracts, and other materials! They also said they wanted to provide the funds for the Bible and tract ministry building! God continues to enlarge our ministry. We will be even busier, if that is possible. As we’ve said many times before… “HELP WANTED”. Could God be calling you to Peru?!
And… a church in the US is sending us around 3200 John/Roman booklets for distribution. Victory Baptist Press said they wanted to cover the cost of having them shipped to their location so they can place them on the container with the shipment of Bibles that we pray will be here by June. As we said, “the blessings just keep on coming”.
Bibles are being completed and boxed at VBP as you read this. There are already enough printed to start some distribution. We have coordinated for 18 cases of Bibles to be sent soon directly to a ministry in Venezuela!
We are in the planning stages for an international Bible conference here in Peru around May of next year. It will be a big undertaking. Please pray as we continue to work towards that goal.
There are more new photo albums on our website www.rich2peru.com. Take a look!
May God richly bless each of you,
Don & Carla Rich
This entry was posted in Newsletters.
No Slowing Down Here!
No Slowing Down Here!
March 1, 2019
The new year is starting off at a fast pace. As you can read below, we have been very busy. But first, Carla and I want to let everyone know that we have a new mailing address. No, we haven’t moved. This is to replace our old P.O. Box (Casilla Postal) address. We have been paying for a P.O. Box for years but have used it very little. We recently cancelled the box and our mail will now just be held at the Post Office (Serpost) until we pick it up. We will check it about every two weeks. We recommend email over regular mail, since it gets expensive and sometimes gets lost (or stolen) before it gets to us. But, if you’d like to send a card, etc, please use the new address.
Our new field mailing address: (make sure to use Donald, not Don as the name)
Donald Rich
Serpost
Jr. Apurimac 626
Cajamarca
Peru, So. America
We made a quick visit to the US in January for some doctor visits. While there, we were able to celebrate my (Don) mother’s 80th birthday. It was a great time spent with family and our church celebrating a great lady. As for the doctor visits, Lord willing I will be having knee replacement surgery at the end of this year (more on that in a future letter).
When we returned from our short trip, we picked up Darren Townsend at the airport. He is visiting as our first intern and will be with us until mid-June. He visited us last year for a short time. He feels called to serve as a missionary in Peru. He is visiting different ministries to let God speak about where He would have him serve. We are glad to have him with us for this time and pray that we can be a blessing to him. He will be involved in all aspects of our ministry, including working with the youth, Bible distribution, teaching, preaching, and the Bible Institute. He plays banjo and is fitting right in with us and our church people.
We have had VBS in both of our churches in the past two months. The Guadalupe church VBS was in January. We had a good group of kids and confirmed at least 8 professions of faith. The VBS for our Cajamarca church was held in the first week of February. We had over one hundred kids and at least 12 professions of faith, including 2 adults. The van stayed busy bussing the kids back and forth. At one time we had 43 kids and adults, and 2 babies in the 15-passenger van. It was just a “little” crowded. PTL, we have also had 3 others saved in our services recently!
On the weekend after Valentine’s Day we had a special service entitled the “Sacrifice of Praise”. This had been on my heart for a while. I was able to locate a Baptist singing group in Peru and invited them to be our guests during this special weekend. The group is from Lima and is called Los Heraldos del Rey de Reyes (The Heralds of the King of Kings). We had a Saturday night singing with food and fellowship afterwards. We also had two other local churches who brought their choirs. Carla and I sang a duet, and a couple of our youth also sang a special. I brought a short message at the end of the night. The group stayed and worshipped with us on Sunday also. They were such a blessing to all of us and ministered with a great spirit. Wow, what a weekend!
We were able to get the Mobile Unit Ministry out in February. We took it to the coastal city of Trujillo in an area called Milagros. We showed a Christian movie in a park near a local Baptist church. We had over 110 in attendance!
I also preached for a week at our Guadalupe church to allow pastor Juan Carlos and his family to have a vacation. As I said, we have been busy!
In my “spare time” I placed four new photo albums on our website www.rich2peru.com. Take a look!
May God richly bless each of you,
Don & Carla Rich
This entry was posted in Newsletters.
And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord…
“And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord…”
How many times do we hear or say, “time flies”? It doesn’t matter how hard we try to harness, save, or manipulate it, time is one thing we can’t control. It is already 2019! Happy New Year! Last year went by very quickly for us as we stayed busy, and we don’t expect this year to go any slower. So… let’s get as much done for our Savior as humanly possible (with His help) with the time that we have!
Carla and I observed Thanksgiving with some missionary friends who invited us to Lima for this special holiday. We enjoyed great fellowship with them and another two families. We played games, attended their church services on Wednesday, and of course enjoyed some great food prepared by the ladies. It was a great time to remember all that we are thankful for, including our ministries. 1 Tim 1:12 says “And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who hath enabled me, for that he counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry;”
Carla and I had the privilege of having another missionary couple stay with us for several weeks while they were working on the paperwork to adopt a baby from our area. The baby boy was delivered on October 13thby a midwife and was brought to our home that same day. He and the adoptive parents stayed with us while the tedious governmental paperwork progressed. Their ministry is on the coast, and in this country, you cannot travel with an infant who does not have his paperwork. It is a sad but necessary law that helps prevent the black market of babies. Please keep this family in your prayers as they continue the process of adoption.
We had a great time at Christmas celebrating with our Guadalupe church. We had a sweet service and ended it with the traditional fruit bread and chocolate, along with some other sweets that members brought.
We praise the Lord that we have seen three more saved in our ministries since our last prayer letter. God continues to work in the hearts of souls.
Life as a missionary isn’t always the excitement of winning souls, baptisms, handing out God’s Word, teaching classes, traveling across a third-world country to deliver Bibles. Life is just that, life. We pay our bills, clean the auto, have to change the oil, and cut the grass (however little that might be). There is also the maintenance involved, such as changing water pipes on toilets and sinks, etc. One of the items that we have been putting off for a while was painting and refinishing the woodwork on the building where we live. Peeling, cracks, finish is gone, leaving exposed wood. One reason it was put off is because of how busy we have been. Included in that is that when any work is done, we have to be here to oversee it. I could tell stories of crooked walls, angled footings, bricks improperly lain, etc. Let’s just say, it can be a challenge. Much time in the past couple of months has been focused on the building maintenance. We have come a long way, but still have some more projects to complete.
With the new year already here, we are looking forward to what God has for us. We have several plans, including another Bible Institute class, a special men’s study, and we should be receiving another shipment of Bibles around March. We are planning a night of fellowship and music, inviting other churches to participate. We also hope to get the Mobile Ministry active again. All of this will keep us very busy. We have an intern coming in February to learn more about the mission field. He will be with us until June. We are looking forward to working with this young man and seeing how and where God leads him. We will be mentioning him more later this year.
We’d like to take a moment and ask a special prayer request for our ministry. It is not a new request, but one that we are still waiting to see fulfilled. For a while Carla and I have been praying for God to call a like-minded couple or family to work with us here in Peru. God knows the need. Thank you in advance for your prayers.
May God bless each of you for your heart for missions,
Don & Carla Rich
This entry was posted in Newsletters.
Life… Continued
Life… Continued
November 1, 2018
God keeps us busy here and sometimes there is not enough space to share all that is going on. Our last letter was one example. I wanted to share about our men’s ministry but ran out of space before I ran out of words. Our men’s Bible study is where we discuss topics that are important to the men, young or old, of our church. It is a good time to mentor the young future leaders who will one day be the pastors and leaders of the congregation. We have one or two young men who are praying about being in the ministry in some way. The last Friday in August, we held the men’s meeting in our home. We had a good group of 13 men to hear the Word and enjoy some great fellowship and good food prepared by Carla. They always like her cooking. The next month, we had the meeting in another member’s home. It is always a joy to share time encouraging the men of our church and visit in each other’s homes. We are looking forward to the next meeting this Friday night.
At the end of September, Carla hosted a monthly Women’s meeting in our home. There were at least fifteen in attendance. The ladies always enjoy their fellowship. Truth be known, they enjoy it so much that it has become a running joke among the men in our church. The ladies have meetings to plan meetings. Then they have a meeting to confirm the plans. Then they finally have the planned meeting. Once it is over, they meet to start the process all over again. It seems that there is always food involved. The leftovers are nice, if there are any. Those ladies can eat!
Speaking of ladies’ meetings, our ladies have started a special ten-week study called “Wisdom for Mothers” which is being well attended. Karin, one of the ladies in our church is doing a great job teaching it. They are already discussing future studies.
The first week of September there was a combined day of celebration for the anniversary of our city Los Baños del Inca and the Fiesta de Huanchaco, a religious festival. They also celebrate the sugar cane harvest during this time and the town is full of sugar cane vendors. Our church went to the streets and handed out a few thousand tracts to the many vendors, tourists, visitors, and locals.
On October 14th, we celebrated the two-year anniversary of our Guadalupe church on the coast. We had several visitors including several from a church in a city about a half hour away. On the Saturday before the services, we baptized a teenage young man who was recently saved in our church. He is getting involved in the church and has been bringing visitors. One of the visitors that he brought also accepted Christ. It is great to watch a young Christian grow.
This past week, Carla and I took our Cajamarca pastor and his wife to a seminary on the coast where we had been invited to their anniversary services. It was a night of music presented by different Baptist churches in their area. We have been looking for some good Christian talent to invite to our church for a special night of praise and worship.
The rainy season has started in our area, so everything is beginning to “green-up” around us. The rains will usually last until next April. We are going into what we call winter, although the temps don’t change much throughout the year.
We have seen at least four souls saved in our ministry since our last letter. God continues to bless, and we thank you for your part in His work in Peru. We have posted three more photo albums on our website, www.rich2peru.com. Take a look when you have a moment and see a little of what God has been up to.
Thank you for your heart for missions,
Don & Carla Rich
This entry was posted in Newsletters.
Anniversaries Abound!
Anniversaries Abound!
September 1, 2018
We’d like to begin with an update to our last prayer letter. Carla was able to receive her test results right before we left the US. We praise the Lord for a great report, with no problems found! Thank you for your continued prayers.
We returned from furlough with a great reception from our church folk. We hit the ground running, planning the anniversary services for our Cajamarca church, visiting our Guadalupe church on the coast, getting ready to receive a group and another individual visiting at separate times, and just settling back into life on the mission field.
On July 15, Carla and I celebrated our 15-year anniversary as missionaries in Peru. We traveled to our Guadalupe church that weekend, which was such a good reminder of just how God has blessed our ministry throughout the years. There was such a sweet spirit with a good group in the services. Afterwards, we had cake and tamales. The menu may sound strange, but it was delicious!
On July 20th, Pastor José Zamora, celebrated his 10th year as pastor of our Cajamarca church. The church purchased him a new pair of dress shoes and we enjoyed cake in his honor to celebrate this milestone and his faithfulness to God’s Word and God’s work.
August 10-12th, we celebrated the 13th anniversary of our Cajamarca church! Pastor Kenny Griffin, from one of our supporting churches in S.C. preached on Friday night. We had a visiting Peruvian pastor, Ruben Sangama, preach on Saturday evening and the first message on Sunday. Then I (Don) preached the second of two messages on Sunday morning. We had special music from church members, visiting choirs, our American visitors, and our own church choir. We also baptized one young lady on Sunday morning. After the service, there was plenty of food and fellowship.
We had a great time hosting a group from one of our supporting churches. We were able to minister in two locations in the mountains around us. We supplied much needed medical equipment to a clinic, and warm clothes to a school in a very poor area. As mentioned above, the group was a great help in our anniversary services, singing, playing instruments, giving testimonies, and preaching.
As I write, we are enjoying a visit from a man from N. Carolina who heard about our ministry from another missionary friend of ours. He brought with him some solar-powered Bible study units, which were a great blessing as we distributed them to mountain pastors and others for personal study. We were able to show Bro. Mike some of the need and opportunities for ministry in our area. Bro. Mike is searching for God’s will as to how he can better be involved in missions.
Since our last prayer letter, we have seen 5 more souls saved at our churches. Four of those were led to the Lord by new church members in our Guadalupe church! It is great to watch these souls grow and multiply.
Bible Ministry – Because of some repairs needed on the printing press and other financial delays such as rising costs, it appears that we may not receive more Bibles from Victory Baptist Press until sometime in the first quarter of next year. I continue to receive requests weekly for Bibles. Please pray that God will provide the funds that VBP needs to get these Bibles printed and on their way.
Carla and I want to thank each of you who faithfully pray for us and support us financially. You will never know how humbling it is to know that you are behind us. May God continue to bless each of you in a way that only He can.
Thank you for your heart for missions,
Don & Carla Rich
This entry was posted in Newsletters.
15 Years of Ministry!
15 Years of Ministry!
July 2, 2018
Well, the time has come to say goodbye to friends and family once again. It is something that is repeated many times for missionaries. The process starts many months before we land in the USA for a furlough. We make hundreds (literally) of phone calls and send many emails, set up meetings which take us from one state to many others to visit our supporting churches, mark our calendar, set up someone to watch after our dogs and take care of the house and autos while we are gone, purchase our plane tickets, set up a rental vehicle, pack and weigh our bags, etc, etc. Then, after five (this time) rapidly passing months, we find ourselves trying to pack everything back into four suitcases and two carry-ons for the flight back to Peru. In this short time, we have driven across fifteen states, adding up over 18,000 miles, from northeast Virginia to New Mexico, from Florida to Missouri. We have enjoyed the blessings of being with family and friends. But it all comes to an end as we prepare to return to Peru this Friday, July 6.
On July 15th, Carla and I will be celebrating FIFTEEN YEARS on the mission field! Where did the time go?! We left the US, not knowing the blessings and trials that would be in our future, but God has been faithful through it all and opened many doors for ministry. As we continue, we thank you for standing with us in prayer and support. It can’t be said enough… “It wouldn’t be possible without all of you”.
Looking forward… We will be celebrating the 13th anniversary of our Cajamarca church on August 14. We also have a church group coming in August and an individual visiting us later in the same month. We will be busy making ministry plans for the next year as God opens doors. There is always plenty to do on the mission field.
Carla and I would like to thank those who have been praying for her. Many have asked about her, written, or called, and we know that many others were praying that we didn’t hear from personally. After scheduling and re-sheduling, she was finally able to have the surgical procedure on Friday, June 29. All went well, and she is doing fine. Now we wait on the diagnostic results, which could take a week or so. Your continued prayers are appreciated.
When the family hurts, we all hurt. Manuel, a music teacher and member of our Guadalupe church, has suffered for a while with bad headaches. The doctors recently diagnosed him with a brain tumor. Unfortunately, it was too late to do anything. He quickly got worse. I just received word while typing this that he is now in the presence of the Lord. Please pray for his young wife, Juliana, his family, and our church family during this time. We praise the Lord that we have the promise of seeing this dear brother again one day.
Pastor José of our Cajamarca church recently reported that they saw another soul saved and baptized two. Pastor Juan Carlos of our Guadalupe church also told us of two saved last week during visitation.
Our 2018 Furlough Presentation can now be viewed by clicking on a tab at the top of our website, rich2peru.com. If you were unable to see it while we were in the US, please take a moment and see how God is moving in Peru. There are a couple of updates to the video: We have now completed all ten of the Awajún doctrinal training books and they have been delivered to many pastors in the jungles of Peru. Also, as many of you already know, our pastor, Bro. Snyder Turner retired from the pastorate in April of this year.
Please continue to pray with us that God would send us a like-minded family or couple to work with in Peru. Could it be you?!
Thank you for your faithful prayers and support,
Don & Carla Rich
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