Palabras de solidaridad
Monday, September 17, 2007
Readers of this blog will note that I have posted several times about the devastating earthquake suffered by Peru back in August. I've done that because of a personal connection I have with the Iglesia Metodista del Peru - the Methodist Church of Peru. In five mission trips to Chincha, Peru, since 2001, I have gained many Peruvian friends as well as a broader perspective on what it means to be a global church.
In my most recent column in the United Methodist Reporter, I share some news about the recovery efforts ongoing in Peru. I've also included some statements that call for us to reach out to our brothers and sisters there who are hurting. I have included information in the article about how it is possible to help out.
One of those friends I've made while in Peru is a fellow brother in ministry, Pastor Pedro Uchuya. In addition to working full-time as an educator, Pedro is also a district superintendent as well as a local church pastor. He is amazing. Soon after power was restored in his hometown of Chincha, Pedro sent an e-mail to many of his friends up here in the U.S. In it, he wrote, "Muchas gracias hermanas y hermanos por sus palabras de solidaridad ... El Espiritu se mueve llevando bienestar y alegria. Grande es Dios!"
Roughly translated, that means, "Thank you very much, sisters and brothers, for your words of solidarity ... The Spirit is moving, bringing us well-being and happiness. God is good!"
I have always looked at Pastor Pedro and his congregation as a real model of faithfulness for my own life. Pedro's response to the devastation in Peru is a further testament to that deep and abiding faith that he possesses. He and his people care for one another, they love Jesus Christ, and they reach out to the poor with hands of compassion and generosity. And what more does the Lord require than this?
In my most recent column in the United Methodist Reporter, I share some news about the recovery efforts ongoing in Peru. I've also included some statements that call for us to reach out to our brothers and sisters there who are hurting. I have included information in the article about how it is possible to help out.
One of those friends I've made while in Peru is a fellow brother in ministry, Pastor Pedro Uchuya. In addition to working full-time as an educator, Pedro is also a district superintendent as well as a local church pastor. He is amazing. Soon after power was restored in his hometown of Chincha, Pedro sent an e-mail to many of his friends up here in the U.S. In it, he wrote, "Muchas gracias hermanas y hermanos por sus palabras de solidaridad ... El Espiritu se mueve llevando bienestar y alegria. Grande es Dios!"
Roughly translated, that means, "Thank you very much, sisters and brothers, for your words of solidarity ... The Spirit is moving, bringing us well-being and happiness. God is good!"
I have always looked at Pastor Pedro and his congregation as a real model of faithfulness for my own life. Pedro's response to the devastation in Peru is a further testament to that deep and abiding faith that he possesses. He and his people care for one another, they love Jesus Christ, and they reach out to the poor with hands of compassion and generosity. And what more does the Lord require than this?
posted by Andrew C. Thompson at 7:01 PM
1 Comments:
Interesting to read this. This past year the little rural church I supply voted to support (considerably) a missionary to Peru, and just last Friday one of our laywomen, a nurse, returned from a medical mission that involved a long hike through the jungles to carry on her back the medicines needed in a remote village. Is it not strange how when one finds ministry directed in one direction there is immediate evidence of God's work there through others.
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