Given the example of Paul and Barnabas found in Acts 14:27, after their first missionary journey, we submit this report. This year's campaign was different than in years paSt by the fact that there were two groups who worked the same area back-to-back over a two week period. Also, these two groups split their efforts into two different areas in Lima, with one a medical mission and one a total evangelism mission. Of course, both of these areas were worked as evangelism missions by part of each team. The first week group waS blessed by the Lord with good success in both the Puente Piedm (Stone Bridge) area (medical) and the Los Olivos area (evangelism).
Kay Lewis, Terry & Ruth McMasters and Verba Cruise all worked as our cooks during this Campaign and were assisted by two Peruvian sisters and a few others of our team. Breakfast and supper were eaten in the hotel where we stayed and sandwiches, rice or beans were sent to bolla locations for our lunch. They had to fix enough food for between 150 to 180 people each meal. Their. normal morning began around 3:30 a.m., while the rest of the team slept, and ended sometime after the team left for evening services.
Terry Cruise was one of the team evangelism leaders at the Los Olivos site and he worked out of the church building there. Terry had many successful Bible studies and the Lord gave good increase. Lacey Herman and Lacey Cruise worked with the Teen Evangelism teams doing a wide variety of works including sometimes helping in the pharmacy and other times out in area schools or going door to door in evangelism.
Phyllis and I were on an evangelism team working out of Stone Bridge, with Nacho-Brain (Lebanon) as our translator. Each evangelism team was made up of a teacher, a translator (where needed), a woman helper and a local member as guide. At Stone Bridge we had nine such teams and almost daily we had other members of the mission group going out for a time with an evangelism team. At night I taught the new converts class at Stone Bridge which averaged 13 people.
The doctors saw 1549 people and wrote over 1500 prescriptions. The dentist saw 241 people and pulled 376 teeth. Combined, the evangelism teams had over 350 studies during the time we were there with over 500 people. The majority of our studies the last few days there centered on trying to firmly ground the new converts in God's word. Yet, even in these studies there were always family members listening who were not Christians and so learned the truth of God's word. The very last of these studies that our team conducted led to a new convert the next day, and I am sure many more since we have returned home.