Watching Matthew 24:14 come true in Santa Clara, Peru

         Matthew 24:14 says " And this good news of the kingdom will be preached in all the inhabited earth for a witness to all the nations; and then the end will come." Jesus saw that the same preaching work he himself did for 3 and 1/2 years about god's kingdom would make its to every part of the world. I was so happy to share in the regular preaching work that is done in Santa Clara. As one of Jehovah's Witnesses, I regularly go out into the preaching work in my home territory, but this was amazing. The normal schedule of working in Santa Clara starts with an hour long bus ride to the end of the line. Then you have a half mile walk upto the local Kingdom Hall that has been established for the community. The surrounding people don't have many things that we use everyday. They are mostly mountain people who moved closer to Lima for a better life. They have no cars, only supplies to build a rough structure to serve as a house. Power and water if they can find it and normally enough money to get by. Two ministers travel each week to the Kingdom Hall and provide a bible lecture to listen to and also an open discussion of the watchtower. We hiked up the side of desert mountains for 5 hours going from hut to hut. The land is barren and nothings grows, but as far as you can see there are small homes covering the mountains. The houses are on average 20ft by 12ft, but they are everywhere. As you approach someone's home you announce "Hello". The warm inviting emotion of these people is unbelievable. Many know that god exist, but don't know who he is and how to learn about him so when you come to show them what the bible teaches, they lovingly invite you to sit and talk with them. Walking down the beaten dirt paths of Santa Clara, I saw other witnesses that came to join in the preaching work. Some were sitting with the homeowner on 5 gallon buckets while going through a brief bible study. Others were way up on a mountain talking to someone that was in one little home at the very top. Matthew 28:19, 20 says "Go therefore and make disciples of people of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the holy spirit, teaching them to observe all the things I have commanded YOU. And, look! I am with YOU all the days until the conclusion of the system of things.” Especially here, people were getting the opportunity to really learn about god from the bible and find of a hope for their future. (The picture shown is taken from my point of view looking at Adrian walking downhill after leaving a door. The small buildings are homes and as you can see on the one, the owner is using rocks to hold the roof down. These people were still some of the most inviting people I have ever met while preaching.)

The start of a new...

My traveling abroad actually started back in 2011 with a trip to the Caribbean, but in 2013 I went to the country of Peru with a friend that I call brother named Adrian. The trip was amazing!   No phone, very very limited Internet connection spots, and no idea what the next day was going to be like. Take yourself away from all the things that you take for granted in North America like power, hot water (water at all actually), the ease of travel and also the ability to communicate with others.  This trip really showed me what way of life I would be happiest living. People there are more content and happy with far less than I myself have back home. They also open themselves up with hospitality to us. Happiness is the feeling of knowing what you have worked so hard to accomplish and how you have helped others along the way to succeeding at your goals. Yes, I did find people, especially young ones who wanted the life of a North American, the life I lived, but as I told them... I'd gladly trade my spot in life for a chance to live in theirs. Our trip was planned to experience the average life in Peru, serve in christian missionary work and lastly, see the amazing landscapes. So, one day we are climbing the desert hills of Santa Clara following Jesus commandment at Matthew 28:19,20 and the next we find ourselves backpacking for 2 days into the Andes Mountains. Somehow.... we accomplished everything and was blown away because no amount of planning or study could prepare us for what we had seen and experienced. So I won't post the whole trip, but I will show a few highlights of my travel.