Kidz Klub

On Saturday we had our first Kidz Klub in Pacifico de Villa, the place where we did the kids event for over 600 children at Christmas. To not be too overwhelmed with kids we only invited 50, but 83 arrived! Fortunately we had a great team and we were well organised so it went really well and the kids responded really well! We are planning to carry on the club once a month and visit the children and their families once a month too.

Kids waiting outside when we arrived

Daniel helps to sweep the room before we let the kids in

Our team

Getting the children involved with an activity

Mark as Hombre Pegapega (Velcro man!)
Ivania gets shaving foamed and cheesy puffs thrown at her face for the girls team The children listen to an object lesson

Cute

Well, it is nearly June so we are meant to be in the middle of the Peruvian winter, but still Lima has sun nearly every day! (normally it leaves some time in April and doesn't return until at least September!) But being Peruvian, Joel has to keep in line with the Peruvian tradition of wearing hats when you go out after 3pm as otherwise you might get a cold. It is a chilly 17'C you know.

Teaching Art

This year due to now having a car and Anna no longer being pregnant, we can travel to the school in Ventanilla more regularly. We have committed to going every other Tuesday during term time and Anna is their art and music teacher! So she gets just under an hour to do some art or music with them. So far she has been concentrating on art, the first week looking at portraits and getting the children to draw round some of their class mates and do a group collage. The second week Anna taught them to draw a face in proportions.Lili helping some of the younger children with their faces

Both times we have been since the beginning of the school year we have had a few car problems. First time we got stuck in the sand. (Note: when you get stuck in sand, don't try and drive out, the wheel just works like a digger and digs you in further!). The second time the car overheated on the way back going up a hill and we ended up in the middle lane of a highway, just after a bend. Rather hair-raising. We managed to back the car up slightly and in to the fast lane. (couldn't get to slow lane!). Fortunately, Peruvian drivers are used to being cut up and breaking suddenly and doing quick manoeuvres. I think we may have been dead otherwise!! The best bit had to be the helpful policeman who stopped by us and said "you know you can't park here? Someone might hit you".

Of course, silly us!

.

Servolution- the results

A month ago we did an event as a church called ‘7 days of Servolution’ (see previous posts). This was a week organised by Healing Place church in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA. We were one of over 250 churches (mainly in the US) spread out all over the world that ‘served’ people outside the church.
When I heard about this initiative I felt this would be a great thing to start the church as a whole to think about mission. For me mission is a way of life and not just an event, but as I have been taught and learned, event leads to process, or should do!
Therefore I encouraged every small group in the church to do at least one hour of service in this week.

The teenagers cleaning some of the local parks.
Overall the week was a real success even though some groups didn’t capture the idea. The great thing is that many people in the church and some cell groups are now continuing to serve in different ways outside the church.
During the week one group visted the ‘hospital of the child’ and gave out free nappies and other things for babies at 7.00 in the morning!

The teenagers giving out water to people passing by. (Their t-shirts say i'm here at your service)

Other groups were cleaning parks, and the beach, while the ‘Servinators’, also known as the teenagers in the church went out all guns blazing and gave out free water to people in their cars passing by, cleaning the parks around the church and also helping in Pacifico de Villa doing surveys. Another highlight was 2 small groups clubbed together and bought over 70 packets of school equipment and stationary, something which costs a lot of money here in Peru, every year. 70 packets of school stationary
These packets were then given to Alfredo and the school at Ventanilla, which was an incredible blessing as many of these parents cannot afford to pay the monthly fee, never mind buy books and pens.

Alfredo and Violeta (leader of the 2 small groups) talking about the work in the school.