What a blessing it was to be a member of the Kerrville FBC mission  team in Peru.  I was most impressed by the way our 16-member team worked as a true TEAM. Everyone worked so hard  together to accomplish a number of different goals.

One of my favorite parts of the trip was visiting with Peruvians. They were very friendly and approachable.

I had the privilege of praying with a young lady to accept Christ at one of the church services. I also prayed with a precious young lady at church who was getting baptized in the ocean on the next day. She will never forget her baptism. 

Another event that I loved was seeing 61 churches pick up 4878 Operation Christmas Child boxes that our team worked the entire day to prepare for them. And lastly, the joy I saw  130 children's faces as they opened their OCC   boxes was one of those moments I'll never forget. Every child was saying, "Mira, mira, mira" as they looked through their treasures. I will forever be grateful for the opportunity to work with Savage Ministries and the FBC Kerrville mission team.

Sandy Meeks

FBC San Angelo.

During the youth service, as Michael was sharing his testimony, I noticed a young man sitting a few rows ahead of me, fidgeting a bit, as kids often do. For some reason, he caught my attention.

When Michael asked, "Everyone would die for a friend, but who would die for someone bad?" the young man shook his head firmly, as if to say "no." In that moment, I felt compelled to pray for him. As I did, I noticed his posture shift. He seemed to be completely captivated by every word Michael was speaking after that.

Later, during the invitation, he walked down to accept Christ. It was a powerful reminder to me of the impact of prayer and the importance of being present in the moment God has us in.

Misti Wilke 

I’m still processing all we’ve seen and done this week, but there are some things that come to mind. 

Going to Peru opened up a new perspective on the world for me. Although I had been on a mission trip to Venezuela, it was more of a vision trip with not as much interaction with the people as we had in Peru. To be in the minority in a place where we were basically totally dependent on others required a great deal of humility, as well as patience and flexibility. Being this far out of my comfort zone was a stretching exercise and a reminder to trust in God in ALL things. 

But at the core of it all, despite the cultural differences, I was reminded that we are all the same, created in His image with the same basic needs: to be known, noticed and loved and to have a sense of meaning and purpose. 

It was a learning experience as I watched team members share the gospel with others, something I’ve never had the nerve to do in such a direct way. Seeing their boldness for Christ encourages me to be more direct in my conversations and to seek out opportunities for such conversations.

Becky Powers

As I was riding back from the hospital, encouraged by the report that Chad had taken a shower and was able to keep down some food and water, I reflected on the week. I also considered Joey’s question to the team: How has God moved in your life this week during the trip?

Wednesday was our day for street evangelism. We divided into two groups—one walked around the neighborhood, and the other went to the market. I was with the group at the market. Now, this wasn’t a grocery store like H-E-B, but an open-air market. As you enter through one of the gates, you’re immediately met with rows of vendors selling fresh produce, different types of meat, household goods, clothing, and even feed for animals.

When my group arrived, we split again, each smaller group accompanied by a member of the local church so we could cover more ground—because the market was fairly large. I don’t remember the name of the woman who joined us from the church, but I will never forget the joy on her face that day. She was eager to share the gospel, unashamed to interrupt someone’s daily routine of buying and selling in order to share the love of Christ.

That’s what impacted me the most. It made me look at my own life and ask myself: Am I that joyful in sharing the gospel? Does the good news of Jesus fill me with so much excitement that I can’t help but smile? Am I willing to inconvenience someone for a moment to ask them a life-changing question?

Walking into that market, I gained a deeper understanding of Acts 17:17:

"So he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and the devout persons, and in the marketplace every day with those who happened to be there."

I imagine Paul entering the marketplace with the same excitement, a smile on his face, ready to disrupt the daily rhythms of people’s lives with the truth and hope of the gospel. And as for me, I am challenged to do the same—to disturb others with the gospel, to smile with joy, and to ask everyone I meet: Who is Jesus to you?

Andrew Williams 

I’ve been a Christian for over 50 years but I never felt like the term “overcomer” applied to me very much. I thought it should be used for people who overcame GREAT challenges.  This mission trip has caused us all to be overcomers. Satan threw a lot of challenges at us but we consistently overcame them like Christians have for ages. Our willingness to die to self, that is to sacrifice our comfort and to give testimony of Jesus is the Christian’s winning strategy. In Revelation 12:11 it explained this way:

And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death. (ESV)

Robert Tombrella