A Next Life Awaits in Peru

My campaign is simple. I am seeking funds to allow me get to Peru in early 2017 and enroll in Spanish language school so that I may become conversant with the Peruvian people and culture - all with the goal of living in Peru full-time and sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ to peoples living in remote and unreached areas in the Peruvian Andes.

In 2009 I first visited Peru as a volunteer worker with a Baptist missionary group (International Mission Board - IMB). I had no idea the impact that visit and subsequent visits would have on my life. God changed me. And He brought to my heart a love for the people of Peru that I did not expect. Since 2009 I have made several mission trips to Peru. I told my local church of the burden God placed on my heart for the lost in Peru and they responded by sending me and a team to explore some remote regions in the Andes outside the city of Arequipa. Since 2009 I have longed to move to Peru and dedicate my life to serving God in this region, but various circumstances have kept me stateside. Meanwhile God has been working on my life here in the US to prepare me for a lifetime of work in the Peruvian mountains.

So now it is time. Doors have flung open and circumstances have aligned so that a move to Peru is in my grasp. My latest visit to reach the lost in Peru was last May (2016) where I was part of a small group of missionary volunteers who hiked many days in the Andes around the towns of Viraco and Machahuay. It was during this trip that I felt the strongest pull to fully dedicate my life in service to the wonderful people in those mountains and to an awesome God. Since May I have been pushing to make an early 2017 start date at language school in Arequipa. I am in the process of scheduling classes and booking travel to begin on Monday, February 6.

As is the case with most volunteers, I am liquidating everything I own to make my stay in Peru permanent one day soon. In the meanwhile, the opportunity to begin language study has opened and I am pushing to book flights and pay the first series of course fees by the start date of Feb 6. The following is a list of the major expenses that required funding:
- Flights: US to Peru (Lima) $650 (estimate) then on to Arequipa $150 = $800
- Language School: Courses at the Arequipa school are $150/week and the course segments run for 4 weeks. I will be starting with 8 weeks of coursework. = $1200
- Accommodations: The school has established sponsor families to house students for the benefit of emersion in the language and culture. Room and board with a family is $120/week - I will be staying initially for 8 weeks. = $960

Your consideration through funding is deeply appreciated. Your prayers for the work ahead of me are coveted even more!

Blessings!
Greg