Evangelism

8-4-13
We are back, but I got so far behind, that I will continue posting until I have completed my memories of the trip. Please keep reading.

I corrected some spelling mistakes. Previous posts were written on my phone which doesn't flag errors. I also corrected a couple mistakes about Pastor Pablo's name. I had it 'Pedro,' but we didn't meet a Pedro during this trip.

I want to add a little comment about perspective. I heard an interesting report on why we forget. It said our brains get so much input every second that we can't possibly process it all so our brains filter what is important to remember. This blog comes through my filter; it is not everything that happened it is only what my filter and my position in the crowd allowed me to remember. Other members have their set of experiences that are equally true and accurate. Team members, please chime in with comments to complete and/or correct the picture of our ministry in Peru.

Evangelism is why we came to Peru. In the weeks approaching the trip we worked on different ways to get the gospel across and to set the stage for our Peruvian team members to get the message of Jesus out. The American kids learned songs in English and Spanish and when they met the Peruvian kids they 'rehearsed.' They actually did what kids do when they meet each other, they taught each other Freeze Ninja (the American contribution) and Rock, Paper, Scissors, Splits (the Peruvian contribution); then they sang songs together, sometimes in preparation for a service, sometimes because it was the fun thing to do. By the way the rest of us tried to learn the songs, but we weren't as good at it as the kids, except for David-the kids let him join them on one or two songs.

David also brought a back up CD and sang special music in English and Spanish.

We learned three skits: The Sin Box- Lindsey walks into the stage area and sees a box with a black square on it (we told the audience the black square represents sin). She tries it out, and likes it for a while-dancing, making motions like she is drinking, taking drugs and smoking. When she is tired of sin she tries to get out, but she can't. Then she says the only words in the skit, "Ayudar me!," (Help me!). She cries out to anyone who comes by.
David and I play strong men who try to lift her out of the box, David even picks her up, but she keeps the box on her feet. We wear ourselves out, but we can't get her free from sin.
Meagan and Andrea played the part of party girls out shopping. (Other lady team members practiced for this part, but when we got to the field they were flexible enough to let Andrea take their spot.) They too fail to get Lindsey out of the sin box.
Walker and Adrian play drunks who try to help Lindsey and fail (they made really funny drunks).
Each group that tried to help her ended by seeing she was in sin and made motions showing that she was hopeless.
Finally, Pastor Pablo finds Lindsey and explains her situation to the crowd and leads her through that plan of salvation. Then he takes her hand and helps her out of the sin box. Lindsey was very convincing with her motions and facial expressions. This was a great way to share the gospel without knowing the language that lead into Pastor Pablo's explanation.

The Chicken Skit- Pastor Pablo begins speaking to the crowd. Suddenly, all 13 American team members enter that stage pretending we are cars-beeping, vah-rooming, screeching brakes. Pastor stops us and asks what we are doing. In Spanish we say, "We're cars!" He asks why we think we are cars, three members have Spanish phrases to explain. He responds that none of those things make us cars. We walk off stage disappointed.
Pastor goes on speaking to the crowd, but we interrupt acting like chickens. We have a similar conversation as before.
Next we interrupt Pastor acting like Christians-preaching, singing, praying. Pastor says that just acting like a Christian doesn't make you a Christian. As we leave disappointed, one team member asks in Spanish, "Pastor, what makes a Christian." Pastor explains the gospel to the crowd.

I don't know that name of this skit, I'll call it the Substitutionary Salvation Skit (SSS for short). Lindsey, Meagan, Angie and April each come into the stage area acting out their particular type of sinful obsession and freeze into a statue: partying, money and jewelry, drinking, and drug taking respectively. Walker comes on and steals guitar and music, money and jewelry, alcoholic beverages, and drugs from the statues, he moves to the back wall and starts to party. The statues wake up and see they have been robbed and then notice the robber. They viciously attack him. Jesus (I got to play Jesus since I was taller than everyone) moves between Walker and his attackers taking the beating as Walker crawls out between their legs. Then the attackers turn Jesus against the wall, spread His arms, nail Him to the cross and leave making disdainful looks. Walker returns to kneel at the feet of Jesus. Jesus comes off the cross and greets Walker and leads him off stage to heaven.

More Evangelism to Come...