Calvary Chapel Kendall Missions

Hi Everyone,

I usually write about things that are happening in the church but in this update I would like to ask you to pray for a few situations that are happening in the country that are of grave concern for the population. I hope that you will pray with us.

The Northern Jungle Area of Bagua
This past weekend, a march of indigenous people from the northern jungle of Peru became violent as police moved in attempting to clear the road of protestors and rocks. The local indigenous people are protesting land and water rights as the government is planning to use some lands in the area for tree harvesting and natural gas. At this time, no one knows for sure how many of the indigenous people were killed. Currently, the number of police officer casualties stands at twenty-four with several still missing. The last few days have been days of tension in the country. Yesterday, police in the downtown area of Lima set off tear gas as many people marched in the streets. Also, seven Congressmen from the leftist party have been suspended from Congress.

Vrae Valley in the Ayacucho area of Peru
Over the last few years, the terrorist movement in Peru has been getting aggressive again in certain areas of the country. One of the main areas where there has been violence is the Vrae Valley where much of the illegal drug trafficking in the country takes place. Last month, fourteen police officers were killed. About a year and a half ago, I was driving on a road close to this area in the high Andes Mountains at night after teaching the Bible at a church where the people speak Quechua. The police stopped me and asked where I had come from, where I was going and if I had seen anything suspicious. I told them no and they told me to be careful! Only a few nights later, seven police officers were killed by terrorists in the same area, along the same road. Please pray for the Christians there. Pray that they will be strong witnesses for Christ and also, for their protection as they minister the gospel. Incidentally, Betty and I will be going to an area close by in August for a few days. Pray for our safety too.

Puno-The High Plain
The last couple of weeks have seen the temperatures drop to around 0 degrees Fahrenheit in Puno and Juliaca. Most of the people who live in the area are poor farmers. Their houses are not very well weather proofed and there is no heat. Many young children have been dying due to the cold. The hospitals are packed and in many cases there is no medicine to give the patients.

Peru is a country that has been advancing the last few years but we still have a long way to go spiritually, economically and socially. Please continue to pray for Peru . We know that the real and only answer in the gospel of Jesus Christ.

A Note of Assurance
Please don’t think that the people of Koinonia are in any danger. We are far from the events that I have listed above. I do covet your prayers so that we will hear God’s voice clearly regarding what He would have us to do with our time and resources. Living in a country where there is so much need can some times be a challenge.

May God bless you all.

Making disciples in Peru,

Brian Vander Kodde

“Who can find a virtuous wife? For her worth is far above rubies. The heart of her husband safely trusts her; so he will have no lack of gain. She does him good and not evil all the days of her life.”  Proverbs 31:10-12

Greetings everyone,
This morning, I was speaking to my friend who’s a pastor in South Florida . I asked him how his wife is doing and he said, “Oh, she’s a work horse. I can’t even tell you how many hours she’s spent getting our new church building ready.” That was the exact thing I’ve been thinking about my wife the last few days. Betty  home schools our children, counsels women, teaches occasional Bible studies for the ladies of Koinonia, cleans the church with the help of others and does laundry, etc. I don’t know where she gets her energy from! I thank God for her and don’t know what I or the ministry here would do without her. So for this update, I want to tell you a little bit about the pastor’s wives who serve in the different outreaches. I’ve already mentioned Betty but just let me add that she will need wisdom and strength the next few months to balance home school, cooking for groups, ministry in the church and being a wife.

Cañete
Silvia is Pastor Jaime’s wife. They have two children, Maria Fe and Esteban. Silvia leads the children’s ministry and prays with the women of the church. Whenever we have women’s conferences, we always call on Silvia to teach along with Betty. She also ministers at the Institute where Jaime goes once a week to preach the gospel. This next week, Silvia will be really busy because there is a team of 21 people ministering in Cañete. She will have help but needless to say, it’s a lot of work to take care of children and get breakfast, lunch and dinner ready for a group like that every day.  Pray for Silvia when you can. She’s a real blessing from the Lord.

Ica
Robin is married to Tracy who’s the mother of three. Nala is the latest addition and is still a baby. As most of you know, Robin and Tracy moved to Ica recently to minister there full time. We’re really proud of Tracy and the great attitude that she has maintained in the midst of all the changes. She will be hosting a few groups in the next few months and will have her hands full, too. Pray for Tracy that God will help her to adjust to the culture in Ica (which is very different than the culture in Lima ). Tracy will be teaching Sunday school and leading the music portion of the worship.

God bless…

Making disciples in Peru

Brian Vander Kodde

Hi Everyone,

It’s been a few weeks since I’ve written an update and I thought you might like to know what’s been happening here. Thanks for remembering us and thanks for praying. May God bless you all.

Ica
Robin and Tracy moved to Ica a few weeks ago to oversee the church there full time. They’ve been getting to know the people in the neighborhood, evangelizing and over the weekend, held a mini marriage conference. The people of the church there are very encouraged. They’ve been inviting friends to the meetings and helped Robin and Tracy settle in. Also, this past week, a short term team from Terra Haute, Indiana came to help minister there.

Surco
The church here is going through some changes. Betty and I have sensed increased attacks from the enemy in the last month or so and therefore we would appreciate your prayers. Several people have given their lives to the Lord and that’s the good part. The difficult part is that within a day or two, something happens in their life which discourages them from continuing to grow.  One example, a young girl named Kelly came to church one Sunday and received Christ. On Tuesday, her boss told her that she would have to start working longer hours during the week and work on Sunday’s too. We haven’t seen her since. There have been several people that have had similar circumstances. When these things happen, it can be a discouragement to the people in the church who minister. I’m asking you to join us in praying that the people of Koinonia Surco would be encouraged in their walk with the Lord and their ministry.

Santa Rosa de Villa

A while back, I mentioned that one of the young mothers had become desperate. She knew she had to feed her children and pay the bills. She turned to prostitution. That was a few years ago now. Praise the Lord! She has given up that lifestyle and is back in fellowship. She has a hard road ahead of her though. Please pray for the women in this neighborhood who struggle to raise their children. It’s a neighborhood with a lot of drugs and gangs.

Cañete
Jaime and Silvia have started a new ministry. Each Monday, they go to a local technological institute and share information on topics like creation and evolution. They are currently sharing with 30 students. If God opens the door, they may increase the number in the future. Please pray that this will be a fruitful ministry and that many of these young people will give their lives to the Lord.

Making Disciples in Peru,

Brian Vander Kodde

Good Morning Everyone,

This last week or so has been a time of quite a bit of activity for the people of Koinonia.  Here are a few samples of what has been happening.

• The children of Koinonia Cañete joined up with the children of Koinonia Surco for a mini retreat on Wednesday and Thursday.  The retreat took place after the weekly children’s ministry in Cañete.  The meeting in Cañete was lead by the children of Koinonia Surco.  After the meeting everyone went to a house on the beach for the retreat. For more information and pictures check out the Koinonia Surco blog at www.iglesiacristianakoinonia.blogspot.com
• Teresa traveled 16 hours by bus to the beach town of Negritos in Talara for a couple of weeks of ministry. She will be helping the people in a local church there.  They want to begin to minister to people that have aids.  She’ll be ministering to the women there as well.  Pray for her the next couple of weeks and for Pastor Abraham.  He’s the pastor of a church there in Negritos.  He desires a closer relationship with Koinonia and we’re praying about how God will allow us to work together in the future.  We want to reach more of the people on the northern coast of Peru with the gospel of Jesus Christ.
• Robin and Tracy are in the States and so Eddy, Kati and Americo went to Ica this week to minister to the people there.
• A few new guys have been coming to church.  They’re not Christians but they have shown some interest.  Pray for their salvation.  They are Peter, Gerardo and Lucho. Others that have been coming a little longer but need to be saved are Pepe and Luis. 
• We had several construction workers stay in the building this week.  They built a kitchen in the back part of the building. It’s starting to look nice and is almost finished.  The best part is that some of the guys from the church here where able to share the gospel with them on several occasions.  Now we just have to pray for the Lord to work in their hearts.
• Last week I asked you to pray for several young women that have been coming to church.  God is working in their hearts.  I see that one young woman in particular has a lot of hunger for the word of God even though she hasn’t made a decision to follow Christ yet.  Her name is Maria Claudia.  Pray for her especially this week.

Thanks for much for taking the time to read the updates.  Thanks for praying. May God bless you abundantly as you seek Him. 

Making disciples in Peru,

Brian Vander Kodde

Hi Everyone,

It’s been a few weeks since I’ve written an update and a lot has been happening. I want to start by saying thanks to each one of you that prays for us on a regular basis. God is so good. Here are a few of the things that have happened in Koinonia and in our lives as the Vander Kodde family continues ministering in Peru.

Christmas and New Years were really awesome times here in Koinonia. We had wonderful times of fellowship around God’s word during the Christmas holidays and on New Years Eve we had a talent show in the early part of the evening and finished everything off with a time of worship and praise. The people of the church are really growing in depth and in desire to serve the Lord. We see it in the number of people attending prayer meetings and in the number of people volunteering to serve in the different ministries. Thanks again for your prayers. God is answering.

A few surprises were awaiting us during the holidays as well. My aunt Reka went home to the Lord. She was a great encouragement to us in our ministry and when she was healthy, had been a great prayer partner for the ministry here. She and my uncle Chet had been great examples and encouragers to me through the years. I miss her a lot even though I hadn’t seen her for a number of years.

Christmas day we received news that one of our dear friends and a former student of mine in the Methodist seminary in Ayacucho had been beaten up very badly and was in a coma. He stayed in a coma for several days and then went home to the Lord. He was not robbed of anything and no one knows exactly why he was murdered. He was in his early thirties and was planning to marry in July. I was going to be the pastor to marry him and his fiancé. Betty and I made an unexpected trip to Ayacucho to comfort the family and the Christians there. It was a blessed trip. I’m so glad that as Christians we cry, but not as those that have no hope.

This past weekend Koinonia Surco joined hands with Koinonia Cañete and the new church in Ica. 24 of us went to do an evangelistic outreach in Ica. It was a blessing to be able to preach the gospel and minister to the people of Ica for three days straight. I say three days because Robin, Americo and Aaron actually went on Thursday to get everything ready for the team. They also taught the two Bible studies that we have each Thursday in the afternoon and evening. The rest of the team arrived on Friday afternoon. Hundreds of people were witnessed to over the two day outreach.

If you would like to see pictures of the event in Ica and our ministry to the children in Santa Rosa over Christmas time, you can go to www.iglesiacristianakoinonia.blogspot.com

Thanks for taking the time to read this update. May God bless you all abundantly.

Making disciples in Peru,

Brian Vander Kodde