Ayapata is in the province of Arequipa, and is not so much a village, but just one of many compounds (called "estancias") in the highlands of Peru. It is located at 13,000ft.

    I was invited to speak at what I thought would be a retreat of 40-50 youth, but ended up spending the weekend with about 13 wonderful believers. (Lack of communication being the reason for the mix-up). I was invited by one of my students from the Bible Institute in Arequipa—his name is Calmerino. He is one of the top students there, and preaches weekly at the same church where we met. The trip was worth it simply to spend time with him, talk lots as we traveled, and speak into his life during the talks. Here he is giving an introduction to the weekend...

    On the trip there, we went to some caves that had ancient carvings in the rock. According to Calmerino, these are all over this general area. It was unguarded and out in the open, and pretty impressive.

    We passed a hill (below) that Calmerino claimed was “sacred” to those who still practiced witchcraft and sorcery. As a child in these mountains, he was warned sternly by his grandmother to never approach such hills. Some still leave “offerings” to appease the earth mother/demons, believing that they will become sick if they do not leave such offerings. He said the enemy takes advantage of this, as he has seen that when people don’t leave them, they do indeed become sick—thus perpetuating the myth of the power of the demons. Once as a young adult he went to one of these sacred areas, and saw many valuable things left—even money in plain view. In the town where we picked up supplies for the weekend (called Callalli), he said many “witches”-- male and female-- still practiced. Since alcoholism is such a serious problem in towns like that, it may be possible that the only ones really concerned with witchcraft are those under the influence of alcohol. This "sacred hill" could be easily accessed from the other side...

    I spoke on a number of psalms (thanks to a great series by John Piper-- http://www.desiringgod.org/ResourceLibrary/Sermons/BySeries/84/). Psalms 1, 42, 51, 69, 96 and 103 are rich and varied-- just like life with our Lord. Ups and downs, and everything in between.

     Memorizing Psalm 16 together was an enormous joy. Each received a laminated card with the psalm, and slowly we plodded our way through it. A few of them almost got it all memorized, though all promised to do it in the ensuing days.

    One comical story Calmerino shared from his boyhood: Apparently his grandmother told him that it was offense to fall to the ground—the offense being taken by the earth mother. So as a consequence/appeasement, one needed to eat a little dirt. He told the story in a vague, general way. So I asked him if as a boy he had eaten dirt. With a sheepish grin, and a sparkle in his eye, his reply was, “Many times!”

     During a break from our studies, we broke out the golf clubs. It was quite hilarious to teach them. They of course had never seen such an interesting sport. We had lots of laughs, as they would miss the ball the first few times, then catch on and be able to hit it. The more enthusiastic ones enjoyed teaching others how to grip the club. Sent to Peru to teach others who are then able to teach others! (Though golf was probably not in mind when our supporters did this).  

 

                                       

                                     

    Eating is always an interesting experience, not the least because I prefer my Corn Flakes or Crunch Berries for breakfast, as opposed to the plate above. And for some reason I always seem to sit across from the one preparing the food. Watching the "hermana" picking up the dried animal dung to put into the fire (very little wood there to burn, given the altitude), then using said, unwashed hand to arrange the rice on a plate, always causes a range of reactions (first in the mind, and then later at times in the stomach). And washing dishes with clean water though with no soap usually does the trick. Well, it must seem to them to do the trick.

    For supper, soup is always served followed by a piping hot cup of tea. I always cringe at both-- though they taste excellent-- knowing that such amount of liquid at that time means middle-of-the-night, crawl-out-of-toasty-sleeping-bag forays into the 28 degree air to release said liquid from the body. The second night I had to force myself to do this 3 different times. The full moon at that altitude was incredible-- one could easily read if one chose to-- though my mind was more on finishing my task as soon as possible...

    This precious older man insisted I get on his horse and take a picture. He could hardly see or hear, but was full of joy and energy and always greeted me heartily, as well as sang with all his might during the worship times...

    On the 4 hour trip way back to Arequipa, Calmerino and I talked of the things of God, and some of the deep, penetrating mysteries of Scripture. It was a "minor" event in the big picture, yet at the same time a "moment-made eternity", and another of the reasons we love ministering here in Peru. And later that night, the juicy hamburger at Burger King in Arequipa never tasted so good...