Dear Praying Friends,
“It is May 10, and I haven’t written the prayer letter yet!!!” This outburst just occurred a second ago here in our living room. Okay, maybe I was a bit over-dramatic. Maybe I have said something similar to this to my wife over the last ten days. It’s been a little hectic, but busy is good. God has given us a lot of blessings to share. “. . . wist ye not that I must be about my Father's business?” (Luke 2:49)
April was an incredibly busy month, especially leading into the first of May. I know I should technically wait till next month, but of course the biggest news is the planting of our third church. For many months, many of you have seen my heart for the area of San Genaro and have joined me in prayer for the opportunity to start a church in this area. On April 11 this dream became a reality, as God led us to an ideal building, and we signed the contract on April 15. This is a huge answer to prayer. Since securing the building, God has given me a great team of eleven of our church people to help me in this new work. It has been a great encouragement to me to work side by side with these men, women, and teenagers and watch them grow and serve.
May 4 was the date we set for the launching of our church. For several reasons we chose to make our church plant a different type of pattern. Our main service is on Saturday night, and our midweek service is on Tuesday night. This gives the people we reach the opportunity to attend services in our main church, as well as allows Jessica and me to maintain our involvement in Villa Marina.
May 4 came, and what a day it was. That morning we went up the hill with our team and all of the teenagers of our church and blanketed the marketplace with tracts, inviting people to our service. Church time came, and God blessed in an amazing way. We had 38 in our first service, with 4 people saved! To God be the glory! There are too many blessings to count from that first service. We had several visitors attend, as well as some families I have been working on for a while. Please continue to pray for the future growth of our young church. We have a bright future and whole lot of work to do.
God opened another door for us in April that we have been praying about for a long time. Our fourth church plant will be in the neighboring district of Surco where we already have a base of people coming to our church. This church will be under the direction of Ezequiel Martinez. Zeke currently has a Bible study here averaging over 20 each week. The exact same week I signed on our San Genaro property, God gave Zeke a great local for his church. Please pray for this work and for the Martinez family, as they will have their first church service on May 19.
In addition to all the newness, God has continued to bless our main church in Villa Marina. Our attendance has steadily increased over the last month as we have averaged 132 in our Sunday services, with our highest Sunday night attendance of 150. With all of our Bible studies and our San Gabriel church plant, we are averaging over 240 different people attending at least one of our services each week! God is amazing! Thank you for making all this possible. In the month of April, God allowed us to see a total of 182 souls saved through our ministry here. Thank you for the privilege of adding fruit to your account.
There is one story that I must tell. Since December, I have done a great deal of print and design work with a lady named Flor, who owns a print business here in Chorrillos. I have developed a great relationship with her and her employees, and she has done a great job for us. One day I walked in to get some work done, and, like always, she asked me how I was doing. Jokingly I said, “Busy, tired, but always good.” She laughed and said, “You know, you always say that. No matter what, you are always good and always happy.” I quickly realized God was giving me an opportunity that I had prayed for. I began to explain to Flor what makes the difference in my life. After several minutes in her shop, Flor bowed her head and asked Jesus into her heart. Afterwards she took one of our tracts out of her desk and said, “I have printed thousands of these tracts and read them more than ten times and never understood what the verses meant. Thank you for explaining it to me.” Since that day, every time I walk into her shop and ask her how she is doing, she answers, “Always and forever good!”
Thank you for the difference you are making here in Lima. Thank you for allowing us to represent you here in Peru.
Your ambassadors to Perú,
Junior and Jessica Martin
Romans 9:3
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