Our family is in Peru for two years to serve with Extreme Nazarene. We are living in the jungle city of Puerto Maldonado supporting our team of 8 missionaries as 12 churches are planted here in 18 months! Please keep checking in to keep up on our our ministry and adventures in Peru!

Friday, December 31, 2010

Chachani

Tyson had the opportunity to climb Mt. Chachani on New Years Eve with 6 other Extremies. Mt. Chachani is the highest of 3 volcanos surrounding Arequipa. Again, I wasn't there so I won't write a lot. Just want to say I am super proud of my hubby. Oh, did I mention how high it is? No, oh yeah, only 19,939 feet. That's right. And he made it to the top. And back (that was the most important to me). I asked him if he had anything to say about it and this was it:


"19,939 feet. Hardest and dumbest thing I've ever done."


Tyson at the summit.


Tyson with Chachani in the background.

Puno

While we were in Arequipa, Tyson and his mom were able to take a couple days and go visit Puno. They took a day and visited Lake Titicaca and the floating reed islands (Uros). At 12,500 feet, it is the highest, navigable lake in the world. Since I wasn't there I don't have a ton of stories so I will mostly post pictures.


Tyson and Georganne on an island of Lake Titicaca.



This is one of the Uros (floating reed islands). They are man made and Tyson said they are amazing. Their houses, seats, boats, everything is made out these reeds.


Tyson with a couple of the Uros men.





Tyson rowing the boat seen below.





The Extreme team for Puno arrived there just after the first of the year. The Duerres are the cluster family for Puno and we have loved getting to know them. Please pray for them as they share the gospel with the people of Puno.

Tuesday, December 7, 2010

It's a BOY!

Introducing...
Grady Zane Smith
December 3, 2010, 4:25 pm
7lbs, 19 1/2 inches



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Thursday, December 2, 2010

New Life!!

Greetings from Arequipa. We are currently away from our team in Puerto so that Tracy can have better medical attention for the birth of "baby Peru." We've been checked out by our doctor and she is saying that it could come sometime this next week. We welcome your prayers for safety for Tracy and the new life about to join our family and possibly that this little one would come after December 10 when my mom arrives to help out.

Along the lines of New Life we also wanted to share a quick story from the cell group of Callie and Carmen. The story is all about God's grace and His big picture plan.

At the local jail our team has been hosting regular discipleship meetings which have been growing steadily, and about 6 months ago a woman named Betsy (pronounced Bexy) met Jesus through this discipleship class. Our team tries not to inquire as to the reason the women are in prison so we were unaware as to why she was there.

At the same time, Callie and Carmen had been hosting their cell group in "Castanos" (a part of Puerto) in the house of a local contact named Sixto. Sixto's family including their son Washington who met Jesus through the cell group held in their home. During their meetings a prayer request was brought up by Washington. He asked for God's help in freeing his wife who was wrongfully imprisoned on charges of prostitution. Washington had been raising his daughter alone since the situation with his wife took place. The cell group then began praying diligently for his request.

Meanwhile in the jail the guards decided to do a random search of the jail grounds, where they found guns, knives and drugs. The jail then closed the doors to any visitors including our group and any family member for a month and a half. The cell group of Callie and Carmen continued in prayer for Washington and his wife.

Amazingly, as the jail began opening their doors and our group entered again to hold our discipleship meetings, we found out that through a series of amazing circumstances she was to be released in the coming weeks. It was at this point we put the pieces together that Betsy and Washington were connected and called by God at the same moment yet in separate locations. During their time apart both were unaware of Christ's work in each others lives, and we were all reminded of faithful God is. Betsy and Washington are now both followers of Christ and attending the cell group of Callie and Carmen together. Their relationship is continually growing and their daughter will now grow up in a Christian home. This is what NEW LIFE is all about.
This is a picture I took of Callie, Betsy and Carmen after their cell group on November 20, where Betsy preached for the first time an incredible sermon of how God used Moses even when he believed he was unable and unprepared to be used by God. God can change use any period in our lives to change our hearts, our circumstances, our lives and homes. Amen!

For this story I used wife and husband for easier understanding of the story. Betsy and Washington are what's called "Convivientes" or cohabitants, they are committed but please be in prayer that they would pursue marriage in front of God.