What a privilege it is to be involved in the Lord’s work! So much has been happening here with Team Peru. We want to give you all an update and let you know about some upcoming events for which to pray.
We just completed our 3rd Annual Pastors’ School here in Lima. This year, we were privileged to have Bro. Andres Gomez, Bro. Jonathan Ashcraft, Bro. Luis Martinez, and Bro. Noe Montelongo preach for us, as well as teach classes during the day sessions. At least 134 pastors came from all parts of Peru! We never could have imagined that the Lord would allow such a great number of men of God to make their way to Lima to attend the conference. We saw 29 people surrender to serve the Lord full-time with their lives, and more than 90 people trusted Christ as their Saviour during the soul-winning times. We are still overwhelmed and humbled that we were able to have a small part in this blessing.
I spend much time each week communicating with pastors from all over Peru via cell phone, and I am excited to hear from the pastors how old-fashioned preaching and Bible teaching are helping them and their people! Soul winning is being taught in many more churches, and pastors are excited and encouraged. Many of you gave towards the expenses of the Pastors’ School, and many of you prayed and fasted. Thank you!
We continue our work in the jungle with the Hayes water-purification systems. These systems help the people in remote villages have access to clean water in a way not realized before. We not only provide them with the system and training, but we also teach the pastors how to help the people maintain clean water and use the water to get people to come to the church. There the pastors can give the people the Gospel and help them with the many other problems they are facing. Only the Gospel can truly change their lives and give them hope for the future!
We are busier than ever in our attempts to reach the area of San Gabriel at Iglesia Bautista Internacional. We are excited about the group of soul winners who show up each Saturday and Thursday to visit their routes, invite their neighbors to church, and share the Gospel. Please pray that God would bless these efforts and that those whom we are discipling would grow and become strong Christians.
More than 40 students are currently studying at Instituto Bautista Internacional! It is honestly one of our favorite ministries here, as we are privileged to teach and train those Christians from our IBI churches and other churches who wish to serve the Lord in a greater capacity. I am teaching a class on homiletics this year, as well as church education. My wife is teaching on the philosophy and history of Christian education. What a blessing it is to work with like-minded pastors and our team members in this endeavor. Please pray that our students would continue their studies and that they would remain dedicated to the Lord and His work.
Since our last prayer letter, we have had exciting news in our own family! Our oldest son Zach has proposed to Cassandra Rivera, and they will be getting married on December 21st of this year! Zach and Cassandra will be graduating in May, and they have just announced that God has called them to serve as missionaries in Peru! Of course, this is an incredible blessing
for us as parents. There truly is no greater joy than seeing your children give their lives in service to the Lord. We are thrilled that they will be joining us. Please pray for them as they finish this school year, their upcoming marriage, and their approval and deputation process. Caleb is in his second year of Bible college and just became a bus captain! Logan is doing a great job as a sophomore in high school, enjoying youth activities here, and has become a big help in the Children’s Ministry and with the music.
Around 120 people have trusted Christ in the ministries of San Gabriel and personal soul winning since our last letter. We give God the glory for all that He is doing here in Lima.
Please pray for an October trip to the jungle for a pastors’ training. Please pray for us in October as we work doubly hard to prepare our church for our absence in the months of November and December. We will be in the States from the middle of November till the end of December. I will be going to Ghana, West Africa, for a Missions Mastermind with the other team leaders from FBMI in November, and we will stay in the States until the wedding of our son. If you would like for us to come give your church an update, please let us know! We would be happy to see as many of you as possible while we are in the States.
His for souls,
Zach and Karin Foust
Zach, C.J., and Logan
