Ministry Update: God Is Moving Amidst Political Turmoil in Peru

I’m excited to share this report from Joe Owen with you.

Although the country of Peru has struggled with political instability and corruption for many years, the last few years have been remarkable. The latest of uneasy events came to an apex on December 7, 2022, when the leftist president, Pedro Castillo, tried to dissolve the congress after they blocked his policies. The congress immediately responded by arresting and deposing him as president, and he continues to be incarcerated today. The ex-president’s family was given asylum in Mexico where today they wait to take him in upon his release.

Since his arrest, protesters have taken to the streets throughout the country, resulting in costly damage to infrastructure and the temporary closing of various airports and tourist attractions like Machu Picchu. A few weeks ago in Lima, Peru’s capital city of over 11 million people, protestors made their way to Jorge Chavez International Airport twice but have thus far been successfully stopped by Peruvian police.

In tandem with these unfortunate events, Answers in Genesis’ Latin American ministry has been coordinating a 15-day series of conferences at three churches in Lima to speak on biblical apologetics. I, with my daughter Abby Owen, were to arrive to serve alongside our Peru ministry. We have been praying for Creous and Elizabeth Ramdath, who head up Answers in Genesis–Peru, and we kept our eyes on the headlines to assess the viability and possible safety issues for arriving to the country during their political crisis and finally decided it best to arrive.

Christ’s church is struggling with the bombardment of secular philosophies that attack her faith at its foundations throughout countries in relative political stability as well as those without it.

Christ’s church is struggling with the bombardment of secular philosophies that attack her faith at its foundations throughout countries in relative political stability as well as those without it. That is why we were so pleased that the international airport in Lima was still open and only prayed that the interior issues that Peru is facing would not hamper the proclamation of God’s truth. We were thankful to the Lord to have been granted the opportunity to come alongside our brothers and sisters in Peru and stand with them for defending our faith.

Upon arrival, the pastors warned us that the turmoil may dissuade, or at least distract, some from coming out for a conference. We decided to not have any expectations outside of being grateful for however many would come. And that is exactly what happened. We were, and are, grateful for the overflow of people who came—to the point that the church leadership scrambled to get chairs from other facilities as the auditorium reached capacity with many more outside wanting to attend!

We shared topics such as “Six Days or Millions of Years,” “The Bible and Sexuality,” “A Biblical Response to Critical Race Theory and Liberation Theology,” and many more. Last night, upon completing the four days of teaching at the second venue, over 20 people came forward, surrendering their lives to the lordship of Christ. Among them were youth in their late teens and a man clearly close to 80 years old.

The team of AiG–Peru, AiG–Latin America, and the leadership at AiG–USA are grateful for the opportunities we have been granted recently.

We are reminded again that Jesus promised that his church will prevail. No instability within the world’s kingdom should be the litmus test as to whether the bride of Christ can or should continue defending God’s truth and proclaiming the virtues of Christ and his message of redemption. The church needs to continue being edified, encouraged, and fortified. The gospel message needs to continuously be proclaimed but in accordance to how God revealed it to us, beginning in Genesis 1:1.

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

God is building his church and nothing—not even the gates of hell—can stand against it.

Praise the Lord for what he is doing around the world! I know it can be discouraging to read the headlines and see the sin, corruption, and anti-God philosophies pervading our world, but be encouraged: God is building his church and nothing—not even the gates of hell—can stand against it.

2023 Día Latino

We have another outreach to the Latin American community coming up later this year, but this one is here at the Ark Encounter and Creation Museum! October 20–21, 2023, is our annual and very popular Día Latino event where we have Spanish programs and speaking (I will be speaking—translated, of course—as will Joe Owen and astronaut Barry Wilmore), concerts, Spanish translators on the grounds to assist you during your visit, and so much more. Please help us spread the word about this exciting outreach to the Spanish-speaking community.

Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying,
Ken

This item was written with the assistance of AiG’s research team.