The Garcia’s consistently send out a great newsletter. It’s timely. It’s informative. It has a great balance of all the right ingredients. They post it to their blog and it also arrives electronically in my email inbox.

Here is a list of the ingredients that make their newsletter a great communication tool.

1. News about their ministry.
2. Family news.
3. Prayer needs.
4. Financial needs including budget status.
5. Praise reports.
   

These five ingredients are a great template for any newsletter. Sometimes when you sit down to write, your mind goes blank. Every missionary experiences this. In fact, anyone that must use communication as part of the ministry goes through this. There are two things you can do to overcome this.

First, make the time. That’s the biggest part of the battle. Actually sitting down to write you supporters is the lowest priority in our busy ministry lives. This must change in order to keep your pool of supporters from shrinking.

Second, make notes. On a piece of paper that you keep in a journal or somewhere on your desk, create headings from the above list and jot down ideas and events that take place day-to-day under the appropriate heading. Believe it or not, this is over 75% of the task. All you have to do now is string your notes together in a way that will make sense to your readers.

Developments:

* Last month we received one new pledge of monthly financial support that put us at 45.2% of our budget; after adding the one-time donations for this month we received 52.2% of our budget which is 80.3% of our “survival mode” budget—our Lord will be proven faithful..!

* On April 10^th my Senior Pastor, Steve Turner, arrived in Lima with a missionary medical team to serve in Lurin.

* On Sunday April 11^th Pastor Javier surprised us with an unexpected Church Handover ceremony in which he officially gave me, before the whole congregation, the rains of Calvary Chapel Vida-Miraflores. I had the pleasure of having the presence of my Senior Pastor, Steve Turner, to teach that day and to lay hands and pray for me. He taught the Bible study that day and the following Wednesday—I translated for him.

* On April 15^th Karla and I went to a three-day retreat for Senior Pastors and wives of all the Calvary Chapels of Peru. We were deeply refreshed, challenged, and blessed by the fellowship with all the Pastors and the teachings of Pastor Bryan Newberry from Calvary Chapel San Diego.

* Our first trip to ER happened on April 18^th. Little Samuel came down with a bug that with his pre-asthmatic condition gave him a scary enough cough that we decided to bring him down to ER for nebulization. After that Karla came down with a virus, high fever, and pink eye, then Daniel with stomach flu, and then Sebastian with strep-throat and high fever. In all $143 were spent in medical expenses. We’re all now acclimatized and healthy, ready to continue to do God’s work here in Peru—thanks for your prayers..!

* On May 1^st some of our best friends and brothers and sisters in Christ did the impossible: in order to be in compliance with the Peruvian Customs, they went to our rented 20-foot storage in the US to do a detailed inventory of every loose item and the content of every box in the storage. They had to open every box, take inventory, close it, tag it, and put it back in the storage..! All of this in preparation to be loaded on a 20-foot container to be shipped to Peru two days later. ‘Thank You, Lord, for putting this team together and for putting the Spirit of wisdom upon them allowing them to carry out this task selflessly and with incredible proficiency… Thank You, Lord’ and thank you team for your love and support!!

* On May 5^th another team assisted us with the mighty task of loading everything from the storage into a container. This is another praise report since God put the team together in a matter of hours to then go through many gyrations in order to make everything fit into the container—it was filled to the brim with personal and ministry belongings; nothing had to be left behind! Amazing—thank You, Lord, and thank you team!!

* On Sunday, May 2^nd, we spent our first night in our new home in Miraflores. We live now within walking distance to the church—15 minutes. Karla and I have a room to ourselves for the first time since January the 2^nd..!

* On May 9^th we had our first baby dedication and our first church event, Mother’s Day Celebration.

* On May 20^th Karla’s mom, Mayo, will be coming to Lima for a three months summer vacation from the Bible College in Murrieta, CA. She will be staying very close by with Karla’s grandma. It will be a blessing for us to have her with us to help in the church and for fellowship—the kids are very excited about the arrival of ‘abuelita’ Mayo…!

* Pastor Guillermo Novoa from ORC, and old friend and supporter of our ministry, will be arriving in town on May 22^nd on a ministry trip. We will have the opportunity to spend time with him and be refreshed with his teaching of the Word from the pulpit of our church on May 23^rd.

* Sometime toward the end of May we should be receiving the container with all our household and ministry belongings.

* We’re gearing up to start a men’s discipleship group in early June.

Prayer Needs:

* For a consistently fresh and empowering view of God to carry our souls through every moment of our existence.

* For the will of God to be done and His kingdom to be further established in our lives.

* For our marriage, our devotional lives, and for our kids to continue to grow in their desire to know God in all His splendor.

* For Godly friend for our kids.

* For an indoor space for the Children’s Ministry—they’re meeting in the open area of the lobby and it’s getting too cold for it… In the past families have come to the church but had to leave because of this problem.

* For us to stay healthy.

* To find favor with the Peruvian Customs when the container arrives.

* For the forming of the missionary team that is coming to help us in August from our home church, Calvary Chapel Ft. Lauderdale.

* That nothing in us would hinder the work that God is doing in our hearts in this season of abasement.

* For the items mentions above in the Developments area.

* For our monthly financial support to go from 45.2% to 65% of our budget. 65% is what we need to make it in “survival mode…”

Thank you for holding us up through your love and faithful work of intercession..!

In His love,

Andres and Karla, Sebastian, Daniel, and Samuel—the Garcia’s.

Garcia blog

Garcia missionary page

Last night we started our middle school youth group. We have a group of middle schoolers between 11-17 years old. We talked about dinosaurs, the book of Job and creation vs. evolution. We ate some ice cream Sundays and played spoons. We had a great time.

Shelley blog

Shelley missionary page

Developments:

* Last month we received four new pledges of monthly financial support that put us at 43% of our budget, but after adding the one-time donations for this month we received 65% of our budget which is 100% of our “survival mode” budget—our Lord is faithful..!

* On March 13^th we attended Gracia Calvary Chapel’s 15-year anniversary with Pastor Lucho Garcia. Gracia is the first Calvary Chapel of Peru.

* On March 14^th we had our first baptisms in Peru where I led the study and helped Pastor Javier perform the baptisms in a pool in Lurin. I had the pleasure of baptizing my sister-in-law, Maria Monica.

* We started our first Sunday service on March 21^st. As of today I’ve been preaching/teaching at the church for the last three Sundays/Wednesdays.

* I’m not one to go by numbers but I couldn’t help to notice that church attendance on Sundays has been around 35 adults and 5 kids—up from about 18 adults the previous weeks.

* We had our first profession of faith! On March 24^th Karla led a young woman to the Lord after the mid-week prayer meeting at the church.

* We had the privilege of spending Easter weekend with Pastor Lucho and his wife Nori in a house in Asia—a very nice vacation area close to Lima. We got refreshed and connected, as well as, received very helpful and practical ministry tips. Thank you Pastor Lucho and Nori!

* On April 6^th I got my “Peruvian Green Card.” Now I’m officially staying in Peru… I had no need to leave the country.

* My Senior Pastor, Steve Turner, from Calvary Chapel Ft. Lauderdale—Plantation Campus will be visiting us along with a missionary medical team arriving on April 10^th. Pastor Steve will be blessing us with Sunday and Wednesday teachings in Miraflores and the team will be ministering in Lurin until April 18^th.

* We’ve been honored with an invitation to a three-day retreat for Senior Pastors and wives of all the Calvary Chapels of Peru from April 15^th to 17^th. We feel way out of our league but blessed and thankful for the opportunity to refresh our marriage and connect with the rest of the Calvary Chapels in Peru.

* We’re still in nomadic mode but aiming to move into our rented apartment around April 20^th; we’re really looking forward to this!

* We’re making the arrangements to ship a small container with most of our house and ministry belongings sometime in May—all earlier dates were taken.

Prayer Needs:

* For the will of God to be done and His kingdom to be further established in our lives.

* Please keep our marriage in your prayers—it’s been under heavy-duty attack since we arrived in the mission field.

* For our kids to continue to grow in their desire to know God in all His splendor.

* For our devotional lives to grow stronger and that we would plunge deeper into God’s love.

* To continue to find favor with the congregation of Miraflores for a graceful transition as we assume the leadership of the church.

* For wisdom in the many decisions we need to make in the coming month.

* That nothing in us would hinder the work that God is doing in our hearts in this season of abasement.

* For the items mentions above in the Developments area.

* For our monthly financial support to go from 43% to 65% of our budget. 65% is what we need to make it in “survival mode…”

Thank you for holding us up through your love and faithful work of intercession..!

In His love,

Andres and Karla, Sebastian, Daniel, and Samuel—the Garcia’s.

PS: Make sure to check out the new pictures of our recent activities to your left...

Garcia Blog

Garcia Missionary Page

before and after

The entrance and the children's rooms.

Today we had our first Sunday service in our new space. We had several new people today and pray that they will continue to come. God has been so good to us and has transformed a space that seemed useless into something that will be used to glorify His holy name. Just exactly what He did with us, transformed something that seemed impossible and useless into something that is useful for His glory. Ohhh Praise Him!

Shelley blog

Shelley missionary page

Sorry for the lack of posts, but we've been really busy. I (Robin) have been working on the new building for the past month with a good bit of help of course. This weekend is the opening celebration. We are excited, but there is ton of stuff that still needs to be done. Please pray that it all comes together for Sunday. As soon I can get the time I will post some pictures.

Shelley Blog

Shelley Missionary Page

Developments:

* We are in the other side of the river… All glory to God, we made it to Peru!

* The enemy didn’t waste time to attack us. The first day was brutal for me, but thanks to your prayers it’s gotten better every day.

* Last month we received one new pledge of monthly financial support that put us at 40% of our budget; we also have a total of six open pledges. Through one-time donations and monthly supporters that started contributing before departure day we are at 100%! of our projected moving expenses—praise the Lord!

* I was interviewed by Bob and Anitra from the Reach FM Morning Show where I had an opportunity to expose our ministry and to ask for prayer on a state-wide Christian radio broadcast.

* Karla and I finally visited Pastor Chet at his house in the Bahamas for fellowship and training. We receive very pertinent ministry tips from Pastor Chet and his wife Andrea. Thank you Pastor Chet and Andrea for your love and support..!

* After coming back from the Bahamas, Pastor Chet and Pastor Bob presented and prayed us off from the pulpit of CC Ft Lauderdale on the Wednesday night service. ‘Thank You Lord for validating our calling through the laying on of hands of our Senior Pastor!

* We visited Pastor Carlos Aviles’ Horizon Calvary Chapel of Clermont, FL to share the vision for our ministry with the congregation. The Aviles family and the congregation received us with the love of Christ and blessed and encouraged us immensely.

* Our friends from the Plantation Campus blessed us with a surprise farewell party at the Garage with all our friends from all campuses. Thank you to all involved in this event for it hugely blessed our hearts!!

* The Sunday before we left, Pastor Steve and the elders at Plantation, our home church campus, laid hands and prayed us off from the altar.

* Since we arrived in Peru on the morning of March 4^th we have accomplished a lot. Today we have only one week in Peru and we already bought a car from a sister in the Lord (a divine appointment), opened bank accounts, did all the errands pertaining my Peruvian green card (this is a big one), the kids started homeschool, got cell phones, and found a place to live where we’ll move-in in a month.

* Ministry-wise, we met with Pastor Javier Barrionuevo, our Senior Pastor in Peru, and I’m scheduled to start preaching in Miraflores on both Sunday and Wednesday services the 21^st and the 24^th, respectively. I’m also doing baptisms in Lurin this Sunday 14^th and substituting Pastor Javier on a Nehemiah class that he is scheduled to teach at the Bible College on Friday 19^th.

Prayer Needs:

* For the will of God to be done and His kingdom to be further established in our lives.

* For wisdom and clarity in our decision making.

* To find favor with the congregation of Miraflores for a graceful transition as we assume the leadership of the church.

* For our devotional lives to grow stronger and that we would plunge deeper into God’s love.

* That nothing in us would hinder the work that God is doing in our hearts in this season of abasement.

* For protection on our marriage and our children.

* For the Lord to give Karla a heart for the children’s ministry in the church--this is not her strongest gift.

* For Karla to learn to drive in the streets of Lima.

* For the items mentions above in the Developments area.

* For our monthly financial support to go from 40% to 65% of our budget so we could adequately minister the Word of God to the middle-class in Lima—the main reason we came to Peru!

Special Note:

After prayer and fasting we sense it unwise for me to start looking for a secular job at this time. With all the settling activities in the area of family and ministry if I were to add a regular job to the equation it would leave very little time for ministry—the main reason we’re here in Peru..!

For this reason we are slashing the original budget and going into “survival mode”. We figure that if we cram the family into a small two bedroom apartment, live on grains and vegetables, and give up provision for next year’s homeschooling curriculum, extra-curriculum activities, and entertainment we could survive on 65% of the original budget.

This would leave us with only 25% of the budget to make up for with any supernatural provision that God would come up with… This is why we are asking for your fervent prayers in this regard.

Thank you for holding us up through your love and faithful work of intercession..!

In His love,

Andres and Karla, Sebastian, Daniel, and Samuel—the Garcia’s.

PS: Make sure to check out the new pictures of our recent activities to your left...

Garcia Blog

Garcia Missionary Page

Some folks have asked me about the chicken that I mentioned in my March Newsletter. Here it is.

Spearman blog

Spearman missionary page

Men’s Retreat
We did our semester men’s retreat in Canta, Peru. Canta is about three hours northeast of Lima. It was quite a drive straight up to an elevation of 8,600 feet above sea level. Our ears popped the entire way. It was actually a little difficult to breath the first day and it was freezing! Their winter is Lima’s Summer and viceversa. That’s amazing! However, the views were absolutely unbelievable. We had a great time of sharing in the Word together, eating strange food and taking in some awesome sites.

On our way back; we passed through the tiny village of Canta and there were several ladies on horseback who were taking turns at galloping under a chicken that was tied upside down by it’s feet to a wire and trying to pull it’s head off. I’m still trying to figure out what we witnessed!

The Boys
The boys are doing well. They are growing up so fast that I wish that I could just push the “pause” button. They are very involved in the their school and the church youth group. As a matter of fact, they just returned from their High School Retreat where they helped with worship. We are so proud of them. The Lord has blessed them both with the gift of music. I could just sit and listen to them play together all day. Of course, they play the “new” stuff while everything that dear old dad plays is “old school!”

Surf Camp
There is so much going on around campus this month. It started with a mission team from CC San Diego coming down to help the church with their annual Surf Camp. There were over 300 youth involved in two separate camps for junior and senior high. The last day of camp, they had baptisms scheduled but had to evacuate because of the earthquake in Chile. The water had completely receded and it was thought to be the beginnings of a tsunami. The picture shows just how far out the water went. By the Lord’s mercies, the tsunami never came. The crazy thing is that the water is still very low around the beaches. It went somewhere and they say it’s not coming back. Needless to say, the surfers are bummed!

My Favorite Thing
I am certainly getting to teach to my heart’s content. I usually do morning devotions with the students twice a week and then also teach the evening service at CC Lima. I am also currently wrapping up a book study on Revelation and then will begin another study on the book of Genesis. If you’d like to keep up with these studies, I’m in the process of posting them on my website at www.dwaynespearman.org.

Spearman Blog

Spearman Missionary Page

I just got back from another amazing adventure here in Peru up to a small town about 4 hours outside the city of Lima called Canta.The weekend was especially great being that a small group of men serving here within the Calvary Chapel Bible College took a weekend trip up into the Andes Mnts for a men's retreat.

"How" and "who" found this place, is still the greater mystery after coming down off the mountain. Apparently"someone" within the Calvary community back in Lima found this place a few years back, and had recommended it for weekend get-a-ways. It wasn't bad besides the fact it was at 8,800 feet and nothing was there besides a small mountain farming community that owned WAY to many donkeys.

Kid you not, I think I saw more donkeys in this small village than the entire country of Peru combined. Needless to say, the trip went well, and a few brothers in Christ are now stronger than before setting out up the mountain.

Click HERE to see the photos

Kevin's Blog

Kevin's Missionary Page