Therefore Go…
January 2015
HI there
I pray that you are well and that 2015 has been a good year
for you thus far. I cannot believe that we are almost at the
end of January already, the weeks are just flying by. This
Thursday I will be 31 weeks pregnant, which means there are
just 9 more to go until our little girl makes her appearance.
We are so excited to meet her, although at the same time I
must admit that I am a little apprehensive of how I am going
to manage being a mom of two (I find that being a mom of
one is exhausting enough—wonderful, but exhausting).
I must apologise for not having sent out my newsletter last month, we had a number of family and
friends staying with us and with all the festiveness that accompanies the festive season, I found that
my days literally ran away with me. And so this month’s newsletter is a bit of a combination of a
look back at 2014 and a looking ahead to what awaits us in the rest of this year. Jaime and I really
pray that, as you read it, you will be a blessed and encouraged to know that you played an
integral part in it all. For without your generosity, prayers and encouragement none of what you
see would have been possible. We thank God to have you as part of our team!
In some ways it feels there that there are so many unknowns that we are facing as we look into this
coming year. However, we really believe that this is where God would have us be in this season
and we trust with all our hearts that He can work through us to make a difference in these
communities. To Him be the glory!
Much love
Kim
Ministry in Lima—January to July.
Prior to our move to Andahuaylillas in August, Jaime and I were involved in a number of ministry
activities in Lima. Jaime gave a lot of his time to serving in Christian Surfers, an international
organisation that seeks to reach out to the surfing community. Some of the highlights included
serving in worship in the weekly meetings (photo above left), serving at some major surfing events
in and around Lima (I was invited to share at an ASP women’s surf tournament—photo top middle)
and spending time with Brett Davis, the international director for Christian surfers, who really
had a huge impact on our understanding of servant leadership. Although with Kai always in tow it
was difficult for me to get involved in many activities, I did have the opportunity to attend a baby
shower that was held for one of the ex-inmates from prison ministry as well as visit the children’s
libraries in Villa Maria on a number of occasions.
Our big move...
In August Jaime and took a big step of faith and obedience and relocated our family to the small
town of Andahuaylillas, located about an hour outside the city of Cusco in the Andes mountains.
The main objective of our move was to establish an agricultural development project based on
blueberry farming in the district of Marcaconga, an hour further south.
We were blessed to find a beautiful home to rent and Andahuaylillas itself is a very pretty town
situated in a lovely valley. It is very quiet here and nothing much ever happens, but it is a wonderful
place to raise Kai and we get to go on walks to look for cows and sheep almost every day.
I have also been able to build some friendships with a few ladies from the town. I am really trusting
that as I do so I will have the opportunity to share the love of God with them,
The development of the Renova Blueberry Project.
This is the site we identified on which to build our greenhouse.
It is close to a large lake at around 4000m above sea level
A photo of Jaime signing the contract with the local
judge that allows us to use the land for the next 10 years
One of our first blueberries Jaime with Ronal and Primitivo, the owner
of the greenhouse where our blueberries
are currently being kept
Jaime with Ronal and Eloy, the local
community president, as the mark
out the land for the greenhouse And the building begins….
The Renova Blueberry Project.
Over the last few months Jaime was been working together with a small team of men from the local
community in Marcaconga to build our greenhouse. The structure is now complete and the holes
have been dug to receive the blueberries. All that remains now is to bring in the new soil and to
transfer the blueberries from Primitivo’s house to the greenhouse. We have has a few set backs in
terms of the team who were initially supporting us in this venture and so it has taken a little longer
than we anticipated. However, we understand that this is a long term project that requires a long
term commitment and so we are in it for the long haul—and happily so.
Thank you so much for praying for rain for Andahuaylillas. Since mid-December it has been raining
consistently here and the crops are looking much healthier and happier. This is a real answer to
prayer as many of the locals were anticipating that there would be a drought this year.
I also want to praise God for His faithfulness in providing for the work that we are doing here. Due to
the set-backs with the team supporting us from Lima that I mentioned previously, this last month we
reach a point where all our funding for the project had literally run dry. However God laid it on
friends of ours hearts to sow directly into the project and this has enabled us finish building the
greenhouse and continue with the project. We are so grateful for their generosity and obedience
and most of all to God for His provision. Please continue to trust with us for God’s continued provision
for the project and that our communication with the team in Lima will be re-established.
Please trust with us that the transportation of the blueberries will go well and that they will adapt
quickly to their new environment,
On the 13th of February Jaime, Kai and I will be travelling to Lima for two weeks. This is going to be a
time of rest and of seeing friends and family. I will also
be heavily pregnant during this time. Please pray that
we will all travel safely and that everything will be ok
with my pregnancy. Kai was born at 36 weeks and I
am really trusting that I will go to full-term with our little
girl.
I pray that you have been encouraged reading our
newsletter this month. Please know that none of what
you have seen and read would have been possible
without your faithfulness and support. Jaime, Kai and I
are so thankful for you and we pray that God will
honour your kindness and generosity.
If you have any comments or questions, please feel free to write
to me any time. It would be really lovely to hear from you. My
email address is [email protected].
Please keep us in your prayers….