Pam Drout

Hello!!! This month I wanted to share with you a part of a letter I was writing to a friend about some of the things which have happened here in the last month.  It is a little different than normal, but I didn’t know another way to easily express my heart with you this month.   Thank you for putting up with the strange format.

Early in April, Pastor David (from the church here in Cieneguilla) and I were talking about the families from our Bible Studies in Manchay, knowing they were seriously struggling to feed themselves, let alone pay any other bills they had.  Some of the families are made up of widows or single mothers and their children, others of women and children with husbands (fathers), who were working in other cities but now can neither work nor travel to be with their families.   Other homes have 2-3 families living together with no one or maybe 1 person working, all working together to survive.   The restrictions for the quarantine here in Peru are quite strict so getting to Manchay to truly see all the needs, to take food to people, or even connect with some of my kids who don’t have phones or parents who participate in the studies wasn’t (and still isn’t) possible.  I was concerned for these families, so Pastor David and I were able to get money to a trusted friend up in Manchay who then met several of the women at the market to, “shop at the same time but not together,” and they were able to get food to several of these families in need.   I will readily admit it wasn’t much, but it was what I had on hand at the time. At the same time, Chelene Kennedy was fervently laboring to raise money to help buy food and feed families in our church and community here in Cieneguilla.   A few days later we had the first batch of “food baskets” (bags really but every here calls them baskets), ready to go out.   Each one values between $25 and $30 and can feed a family of 4-5 for a week.  We had 34 baskets to give to families within our church, one of the bus routes (in Cieneguilla) and a few from the community we knew needed help.   Special permission was obtained from the police here in Cieneguilla to allow us to be out in a private vehicle (which currently is against the restrictions) to deliver food. The first few houses were not super close to one another so we arrived, delivered the food, and then we left without much commotion.   But then things changed.  We came to an area with 4 houses very close to each other.  People in the neighborhood began peeking out their windows because they heard a vehicle, then coming to their doors, then sitting outside all with looks of hope, hope that we would stop at their house next.   Then people began leaving their houses and approaching the van or each of us, pleading for food, telling us in tears how little they had.   The baskets of food had already been designated for specific families, each of which was struggling to survive.   Each of us had to look into the faces of people hurting to tell them that week we couldn’t help them.   As the van drove away, shoulders sagged, hope left faces, and people went back inside.  Each of us in the van fought tears.    It is so hard to describe because it was an immense blessing.  Through the support of people in the States, churches that support the Kennedys, churches that support me, the Kennedy’s friends and family, as well as my friends and family,  we were able to feed 34 families who were starving.   Seriously, I am so thankful for that.   And I knew more money was still coming in, it provided such joy; BUT, it also opened the door for great heartache.   Within the walls of the children’s home the need still existed, but I only heard about it, and I only truly heard about the need from people I knew.   Now I was seeing it, seeing the need, the hope, the relief from people who received a basket, and then the hurt, and disappointment, and hopelessness from those who didn’t receive anything.   My heart broke.   That night I cried for hours.   There were other stories.   We were in one area full of shanty homes that extended hundreds of feet up into the mountains.   We were at the home of a lady from the church and a woman high up on a mountain about 450 feet away (seriously!) saw us at the house and immediately knew what was happening.   She came running all the way down the mountain.   I had seen her as we were still at the house, but it was so far away, she looked like a child running outside to play or go to a little corner store for a parent, but as we were getting in the van to drive away we all realized, it was short, older woman coming to plead for food.   She had run so far, in hope.   Thankfully, we had an extra basket we could give her, but we then had to turn away the crowd that was gathering behind her.    We stopped at one house and as we delivered the basket the lady couldn’t even look at us, she just wept and didn’t stop.  My eyes are tearing up just thinking of her now.   It isn’t another world, she lives across the street from the children’s home.   Before the quarantine I saw her daughter every day.   

That’s my story.   I am so thankful for the work the Kennedy’s have done to raise money to help these families.   The next week we were able to take out more than 120 baskets of food, and we expect to do the same this week.  Many of my friends and family know I get horrible headaches and migraines from too much motion, especially being in a vehicle when someone else is driving.  Through different tasks related to this project, I have had several in the last few weeks.   I’ll tell you what though, I would live everyday with a migraine to be able to help others in this way and to be continually reminded of the need by seeing it.   Receiving messages from Manchay was one thing but seeing the need, the hope, the hopelessness, the relief and the tears, all of that has changed me more than I can express, and then to compound that understanding that this is just a small, physical representation of a world starving for the gospel – I wouldn’t trade it for anything.  Once again, thank you for your prayers.   Thank you for your help.   Thank you for your support.   Thank you for your friendship.  Thank you for the chance to be here and to serve. Just – Thank you.

Hello Friends!
I know this update comes a month sooner than my regularly scheduled letter, but with so much going on I decided to go ahead and let everyone know about some of the different things going on in this corner of my universe.

March began with the outlook of an extremely busy schedule. Classes began at New Life Christian School on March 5th, and for the first several days of the new school year I was helping out in the 4 & 5’s class, and then as the young kids got used to being in school and away from home I spent some time during recesses with the older kids. But, 5 class days into the new school year, on March 11th, the government suspended classes and on March 15th called for a strict nationwide quarantine; closing the borders not only to the country but between provinces and departments (like states), instituting a national curfew (currently 6pm-5am), prohibiting the use of personal vehicles, limiting the number of people who can be out and why (only groceries, banking or medical emergencies), limiting the ages of people who can be out (no one under 18 or over 60), and then recently limiting the days each gender can be out. This week for instance, the only days I can be off the children’s home property are Tuesday and Saturday. Currently these restrictions are valid through Easter, however our government will decide on the 9th whether they will be extended once again.

I certainly have been blessed in the midst of everything to be at New Life Children’s Home. Unlike many people I am close to here, I have a comfortable home, a bed, a refrigerator, and I am not worried about whether I will have water tomorrow. (On top of everything else Cieneguilla, Manchay, and La Molina have been dealing with water shortages.) Unlike many people I am close to here I have the ability to step outside the walls of my apartment to walk, exercise, enjoy the fresh air, and spend time with the 30 other people who live here. Unlike many people I am close to here, I have enough food and am not worried about what I will eat tomorrow.

In the midst of the restrictions which limit where I can go and what I can do, God has not left me bored or without work. Being at New Life Children’s Home, I have had the opportunity to do a Sunday Morning lesson for the kids and tutoras (guardians) who live here as well as devotions as different times throughout the week. The kids continue with school virtually, online or through messaging apps, so I help with homework as well, and then we spend time playing together in the afternoons. This slower pace has also allowed me to help several churches in the United States with their children’s ministries by talking with different pastors or leaders regarding curriculums or specific lessons, staffing for different kinds of programs, helping them connect with the children in their churches virtually, and planning for the future as churches are able to meet again. I have also been able to focus on writing devotions and “have at home” material for the future for my kids in Manchay and other areas where church attendance is difficult and owning a Bible is a rare privilege (especially for a child or teenager).

As April continues, most likely with an extension to our national quarantine, I have several prayer requests to mention to you all. The first is I would beg of you to be praying for those I minister to in Manchay. I know they are struggling to feed themselves. Even before the stay at home orders began, there were several families I was working to help as I could see the kids getting skinnier and skinnier each week. With the restrictions on travel and where we can go, I haven’t been able to get up there and check on them, and kids don’t have cell phones to be able to communicate with me. Pastor David and I are working on different ways we can get food to the families there through people we trust who live in the area. But please be praying as I know several families that made it through each day based on the money earned the day before in jobs that are no longer available. Please also be praying for the families in our church and school. People are doing what they can, but it isn’t much.

Finally I would ask you to be praying regarding my “future plans.” Next week will be my three year anniversary upon arriving in Peru. It is hard to believe it has been three years but I am so excited to continue. Before the quarantines hit around the world, I was making plans to be in the United States for four months between December and March for a furlough, in order to present updates to the churches that have been supporting me through the years and to raise a bit more support; however with the return to whatever the new normal will be still a few months away, I am needing to decide whether I will postpone that furlough a little bit longer. It is still somewhat early to make that decision, but many churches plan out the missionary presentations a year in advance, and no one is making any plans right now. So please be praying as I am regarding when I can visit and update my supporting churches.

Thank you all so much for you care, prayers and support. You all mean so very much to me and please know I am praying for you all in the midst of these events as well. Thank you.

Hello!
I must tell you I love the summer, I always have. Not for the heat, I admit, as I find myself looking at friends’ posts on Facebook and longing for the snow, but I love summer because of the various opportunities for service it brings. This summer here in Peru has been no exception. Various vacation Bible schools, camp, Bible memory clubs, and other events have provided no shortage of opportunities to share the gospel, teach the Bible, and love on my God’s many creations.

Treasure Hunters Bible Memory Club: The past three summers the children here at New Life Children’s Home have participated in a Bible memory club called Treasure Hunters. It is specifically written for shorter periods of time such as summer vacation when the kids don’t have as much school work, as opposed to most programs which are written for the school year. This year, due to the dates of camps, VBS and even Christmas, the program ran for 6 weeks. Each week the kids said their verses, we had a devotion, game time, and award/achievement time; and then at the end of the program we had our annual ice cream party. At the party we acknowledged each team, the Lions and Spirit, how many verses were said by each team, and then the kids who completed the most sections in their books. Sections contain 1 or 2 verses and some deep thought questions depending on the age of the child. The first place winner this year said 68 verses (52 sections) and the two children that tied for second place said 60 verses (48 sections). Overall, 20 kids said 452 verses this summer. I am so very proud of all of them!

Vacation Bible School: This summer I got the opportunity to assist with two different Vacation Bible Schools. At New Life Baptist Church we ran VBS on a Wednesday – Friday with the closing ceremony then on Sunday during junior church. The theme was Galactic travel, and throughout the program more than 75 kids learned about calling on God, responding to God, and obeying God through the story of Moses. On Sunday during junior church we reviewed what we had learned from the story from Moses through the week, what we had learned from our skits with the astronaut and robot, and then awarded prizes to all the kids as we announced the winners of the week. Because VBS closes out on a Sunday here, we had many different visitors, kids with their parents, to learn the results of the week and who heard the gospel, some for the first time. Praise God!

The last few years I have also helped out some good friends of mine with their VBS in a very small church up in the mountains of Manchay. This year their church was under construction so they have been meeting in the home of one of their church members a little over a kilometer and a half away from their church. Most of the church members were able to bring their children the distance to VBS throughout the week, and many new children from the neighborhood of their temporary location came. In a room smaller than my apartment here in Peru we were able to cram 35 different kids along with about 6 mothers and 10 workers. It was tight, but so much fun. The theme was “Conquering with God’s plan” and throughout the program I taught on Gideon, Deborah & Barak, and Saul (good examples, and not so good examples). Many kids who had never heard the gospel before, and some who had heard it once again and several accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. Such a joy!

Youth Camp: This year we weren’t sure if we were going to be able to find a place to do youth camp (teens and singles), as our normal campground is under construction and other places in our area have sky-high rates. Right as we were going to have to announce that we couldn’t do camp at all this year a couple in the church mentioned friends of theirs who had a location we would be able to use close to the river. It was basic, some sleeping on mattresses on the floor in the 2 cabins, others in tents, but it had an outdoor, covered dining area where we could eat, cook, and have services, room for games and to play, and was right next to the river. It truly was a God-send. Approximately 50 teens and singles from New Life Baptist and Calvary Baptist in Pachacutec got together for camp over a Thursday – Saturday right at the end of February. We had games, contests, food, fellowship and preaching. I got the opportunity to help in the kitchen, with the games and then to teach a girls’ session. It was such a wonderful end to the week and to the summer, allowing our youth to kick of the next year with a fresh mindset and closer relationships one with another.

School has started up again at New Life and I enjoy being involved in the lives of the kids and the teachers wherever I can. Throughout the summer my regular ministries and classes continued along with these extra opportunities. Please continue praying as I seek to share the gospel, minister, serve, teach, and love on people wherever I can. I am not sure of much in this world, but I am very sure of my God, and sure that your prayers to Him on my behalf make a difference. Thank you. Thank you so very, very much.

~ Pam Drout ~

Happy New Year!

As I reflect on all that God has done in this last year, and more specifically for the purposes of this letter, all He has done in the last few months, I am overwhelmed.   I am overwhelmed with joy in the prayers that God has answered and the needs He has provided for; I am overwhelmed with excitement in the ways He continues to teach me and gives me understanding in His Word; and I am overwhelmed with grief and burden as He answers my prayers to make me more aware of the needs around me, the ones I can help alleviate, and the ones I personally can do nothing about but seek God’s grace, mercy, and intervention through prayer.  

In December I was speaking with an 8 year old boy who attends our Thursday evening Bible club faithfully and occasionally (when his father permits) rides one of our bus routes to church on Sunday mornings.  I do not remember the instigating incident for this particular conversation, but this young boy had done something that wasn’t acceptable and needed to understand that.    At one point in the conversation the following took place:

Me: Daniel, Are you a Christian?  

(Yes, I purposely asked that question in a vague way.)

Daniel:  Yes.

Me:  How do you know?

Daniel: Because I’m Peruvian.

Daniel and I continued to talk for another 5 minutes or so, but despite the fact that even in that moment he was in trouble for his actions he still did not (and to this day does not) believe he is a sinner.   His answer broke my heart, but it didn’t surprise me.  So many here in Peru equate Catholicism and Christianity not with what they believe, but with nationality, culture and identity.  As I teach in different classes and Bible studies I find most of the children I work with assume they are Christians, until they understand enough Bible to know they are not.  Please be praying for Daniel, that he will settle down long enough to hear the Bible (yes, he is an extremely active kid), and that he will understand his need for a Savior.

Another young man (11 years old) has brought me great joy in the last several months.   He came to live in the orphanage a few months ago and so he started attending several of the different kids classes that I teach.   On Wednesday nights my kids have been studying through the characteristics of God, how those characteristics can be seen in our lives, and how we ought to imitate those characteristics in our own lives.   Each week the kids are given a sheet with several memory verses for the following week.  This 11 year old boy had never memorized a Bible verse before coming to the home, yet he has shown a great hunger for God’s Word and what the Bible teaches.  Each week he diligently studies all the verses and each week he says every single verse, word perfect, without hesitation. 

I love to know that God is still working on me.  Sometimes He wallops me upside the head with something and other times He gives me gentle reminders to never take His goodness or provision for granted.  That’s one reminder I receive at this time each year in various ways.  In the last several months a few unexpected needs have arisen for different individual and within the different I am involved in.  Because of your generosity in giving over and above the norm at a time of year where giving tends to slow down, myself as well as people around me were able to see how God provides once again.  Thank you so much.

Please continue to be in prayer for Daniel, as well as all of the children touched by the ministries here.  Summer has begun which brings new children into the ministries I participate in as they stay with different family members over the summer for vacation, and starts other ministries back up again, such as Bible memory clubs and English classes.  Please be in prayer that I will have the energy to keep up with a busy (but wonderful) schedule and the words I need in each place.   Thank you so much for your support – financially, prayerfully, and relationally.   Have a wonderful new year!

~Pam Drout~

Hello!!!

Ministry is in full swing here in Peru at New Life Children’s Home and New Life Baptist Church as missions-group season has come upon us.  During missions-group season I not only keep up with my regular ministries in the church, school, neighborhoods and at the Home, but also jump in spending time with the groups and ministering with them as my schedule allows.  I am so very thankful to Mike and Chelene Kennedy for allowing me to work with them in the ministry here.

May started off slowly as I was just getting back on my feet after a three-week long battle with mononucleosis.  I praise God it didn’t last much longer than that, as it can affect a person for months.  The moment my energy returned, I dove head first into as much as possible (with a little bit of wisdom of course,) making up for “lost time.”  Through April I managed to be up long enough to teach my kids’ classes at the church and in Manchay, but I did not have the energy for much else.  In may I poured myself back into the people around me in ways I couldn’t while I was sick.  Oh I had missed it!

In April both my Wednesday night kids’ class and my kids’ Bible study in Manchay began a new curriculum studying through different doctrines in the Bible.  So many of my kids either go to private schools where other doctrine is taught, or attend the Bible studies held by many different churches (each group offering activities, games and cookies,) and I wanted to be sure my kids knew what they believed and had Bible verses to back it up.  In April we started with the theme of the Bible, taking ten weeks to cover ten different statements of doctrinal truth and ten of the Bible verses where we get these statements regarding God’s Words.  I had several kids who worked very diligently memorizing all ten statements of doctrine and all ten verses, so in the middle of June we had an awards night to celebrate all their hard work.

I have to praise God, I now have help with my kids’ Bible study in Manchay.  In May one of the teen girls at New Life Children’s Home asked me if she could come with me that week, and has been faithful in coming every week since.  Then at the beginning of June a young woman in the church no longer worked on Thursdays and she asked as well if she could come with us to help.  The teenager helps with crowd control (35-40 kids can get crazy!), my candy bag, and questions and then the young woman helps with songs, and then after the lesson works a little more in depth with the older kids, helping them memorize the verses and doctrinal statements as well as exploring the theme a little more.   They have both been such a blessing!

Please be praying as we are looking at starting Bible club’s in 2-3 other areas as well.   Pastor David Taza (the pastor at New Life Baptist Church) and I have been praying and talking about some of the different opportunities we have, deciding how many people we would need to help, when and where we could meet, etc.  Please, please, please pray that we could start up these other Bible clubs soon!

Thank you again so much for your prayers and support.  Without them, I KNOW I would be totally ineffective in ministry here.  Thank you so very much.

~Pam Drout~

Hello!!!
In the Treasure Hunters Bible memory program that we just completed once again at New Life Children’s Home this summer, I try to communicate how valuable, how much of a treasure God’s Words are. I know I can never do the subject justice but that won’t stop me from talking about it.

Personally, a few months ago I spent some time considering a treasure found in the book of Jeremiah, and how it relates to what is going on in my own life and ministries. Jeremiah spent many, many years prophesying about the coming judgment, the harsh earthly realities, that God would have on Judah through Babylon. But then in chapter 30 God tells Jeremiah to write down the words of God into a book, and begin to talk about the hope that Israel and Judah have for the future, that in 70 years they would come out of captivity and once again serve the LORD their God.

I consider who those words were written for, and I think of the children; the children who were taken into captivity, or suffering, all because of the sins of their parents and forefathers. These children were daily living with and suffering from the consequences of their parents’ sins, so God’s words of hope were written in a book for them. Their parents wouldn’t make it out of captivity, but they had something to hope for.

I live and serve, daily surrounded by children living with the consequences of the sins of others; their parents, grandparents, their government, the neighbor down the street, anyone. I am not here to give them hope that one day life here on earth will be easier. I know the reality, that isn’t always the case, but there is hope for them. I get to tell them they have the hope that their Savior brings, the hope of righteousness (Gal. 5:5) and the hope of glory (Col. 1:27).

Over this last summer (January – February), God has given me so many opportunities to interact with children and teens in many different ways, sharing with them the hope that they have because of Christ. I continue to teach the Wednesday night children’s class at our church, and due to the fact that it is summer vacation, we have had several visitors. Throughout the school year the pastor likes all of the children’s teachers to sit in the service one Sunday a month, so I take all the classes and we do a big junior church, but I also get the chance to lead junior church all summer. The church’s theme for the year is Reaching New Heights, so we have spent 9 weeks talking about how to have a relationship with God and then how to strengthen that relationship with Him.

I continue to teach my “treasures” (kids) in the town of Manchay each Thursday afternoon. The other week we were talking about how the Word of God can totally change a person’s life (like Josiah), and spend the rest of the time focused on the gospel. Several kids accepted Christ as their Savior and few others acknowledged that they have not done so but want someone to spend more time explaining it to them. Please pray as I focus on following-up with each of the kids from my group. I found out a few weeks ago that they have Bible club with me on Thursdays and the with the Catholic church on Saturday, and that fact is weighing heavily on my heart, so in the next few weeks we will be starting a series geared towards children but that focuses on doctrine. Prayerfully I will also be starting that series in a new kids Bible club that I will be teaching coming up next month. We are just praying right now for someone who is willing and has the time to accompany me to this neighborhood due to safety reasons.


A few other opportunities given to me this summer were the chance to teach English again in the summer school, where we spent time working with English Bible verses and applications, run the Treasure Hunters Bible memory club at New Life Children’s Home, and to be the speaker for the Vacation Bible School at a friend’s church in Manchay. It was such a privilege to be asked to help, and to get to share the stories of David, Esther and Josiah with the children, each lesson leading into the gospel. Several kids acknowledged that they accepted Christ as Savior during the VBS, so please pray as the church seeks to follow up with the children, many of whom were first time visitors.


Great news! I want to make sure you know that funds came in from churches and individuals which have allowed me to purchase the tables and chairs I need for our Bible club in Manchay, as well as to purchase a car. Thank you all so much for your help in that. Already the car has been a HUGE help in ministry, opening up doors for me to be involved in and begin other ministries. Thank you so much. And thank you so much for your faithful prayers and support. Please keep praying for the kids I minister to, and the new opportunities I have in school chapels and the neighborhood Bible club that will hopefully start up soon. It grieves my heart to see the suffering in the children around me, and yet to know they have hope, and to share that hope with them is the greatest privilege.

Hello,

Let me start off my letter by updating you regarding my long-term visa.  Upon returning from my brief trip to the States, I was given 30 days to submit my visa application.  That included several steps which took me in a number of different directions including to the Interpol and Immigrations offices.  Thankfully, we (my lawyer and I) got all the paperwork and interviews completed and submitted two days before the deadline.  Immigrations said it would take 30-60 days to process the application, and praise God we heard back just last week that my visa was approved.  Now I only need to make an appointment to go pick up the ID.  Thank you all for your your prayers regarding my visa.

Since my last letter I have been given several new opportunities to regularly teach the Bible, and I am loving it.  Currently I am still teaching my Wednesday night kids’ class and monthly Sunday junior church, but now I am also teaching a kids’ Bible club Thursday afternoons in the neighboring city of Manchay as well as teaching two chapel sessions each Friday one for the 3rd – 4th grades and the other for the 5th – 6th grades at New Life Christian School.

In our chapel sessions we have been focusing on the big theme of, “one another,” talking first about how to be a member of the body of Christ, what that means, and then how we should treat others within that body,  (authorities, friendships, forgiveness, our words, kindness, etc.).

At the beginning of September I began helping with the kids’ Bible club in Manchay.  The week after I began helping, we (New Life Baptist Church) also began a women’s Bible study that meets at the same time, so the structure, dynamic and even age group of the children’s program has shifted.  Currently on one side of a community hall each week I teach a group of 20-25 kids ranging from 2-12 years old for about an hour.

While it is a big group to handle on my own, I love each and every one of them.  We have spent time talking about prayer, our words, and obedience, but my favorite topic has been talking about the treasures of God.  I have a small wooden treasure chest that I brought to class one day.  I taught a lesson about why God created humans as well as our purpose and value to God.  At the end of the lesson I let the kids open the treasure chest to see some of God’s treasures.  They opened the chest and you could see the wonder on their faces as they discovered pictures of each one of them.  (While I love it when new kids come, God blessed that day in that I had a picture of every single child who attended.)    Three children got saved that day, but I also began to see a shift in several of the kids in how they listened and responded in future classes.  I have a group that has gotten so excited about memorizing the treasures in God’s Word, they have started the Bible memory program I wrote last year for the kids at the children’s home.  They are quickly memorizing verses and each week I am scrambling to adapt the program to work in that context.  Each and every one of the kids in Manchay are God’s treasures, but they are mine too.  

While I have seen God do some wonderful things in Manchay, the Bible club has had its share of difficulties in the last 2 months as well.  I beg of you for your prayers and help in a few areas:

1) I need help.  A few young women have expressed a desire to help with this group, but haven’t been able to come yet.  Please pray God provides me with some help, especially as the number of 2-4 years olds continually increases.  (It’s a wonderful blessing, because those are the young ones whose mothers are attending the women’s study, but it brings another dynamic with which I need help.)

2) We no longer have enough tables and chairs for everyone.  Kids are sitting on each others laps and taking turns at the tables when it is time to use them.  I am looking to raise about $500-$600 for 2 collapsable tables and 16 sturdy chairs.

3) Transportation back and forth from the Bible studies has become a bit difficult, especially as we have supplies to carry back and forth each week.  I am now ready to purchase a vehicle here in Peru to help with this ministry and a few others.  I am keeping and eye out for a gently used vehicle I can buy from missionaries going on furlough or another similar situation, but those aren’t always frequently available.  Currently I am looking to raise about $8,000 towards this vehicle, and praying God would bring a good vehicle to my attention.  Please, however you can pray or help would be greatly, greatly appreciated.

Once again, thank you so much for your continued prayers and support.  God shows me every day just how small and weak I am without them, but also shows me how powerful He is through them.  Thank you.

~Pam Drout~

September October 2018

Hi Everyone!

As most of you already know, this last summer I had to make a brief trip to the States in order to gain a new visa since my current on head expired.  While I was in the States God certainly blessed me in that there was absolutely no shortage of opportunities to serve and minister.   Before I share with you some of those opportunities, permit me to tell you a small story that lets you know me a little better.  Before I left to go to the States a friend asked me, “aren’t you excited for a chance to rest, for a little bit of down-time.”  The truth is a trip to the States is anything but down-time.  Praise God there is always something to do (just as here in Peru,) and any opportunity God will give me to do something that will impact eternity is exciting and refreshing for me.  People ask me what my hobbies are, what I do for ME and I struggle to answer.  My hobby is planning events.  (I’m insane, I know.)  My ME time is finding some way I can serve my God better.  So, yes, it is SUCH A BLESSING when God gives me opportunities to minister and impact eternity.

July began with my home church’s annual fundraiser for their teen mission trip here to Peru.  While sitting in a parking lot for hours on end in 90°-100° weather is draining, I love it.  We get to see and speak to people from all over town which provides numerous opportunities to get to know people, invite them to church, share the gospel, pray for them or talk with them about missions.  I got to see several adults who were my bus kids from 10-12 years ago.  One young man had stopped riding our church buses as a teenager, many years ago, but I found out that now he is on the pastoral staff at a church several hours away.  Such an encouragement!

During July I also helped with my home church’s Vacation Bible School and Youth Conference.  The theme for Midland Baptist’s VBS was Journey to the Jungle (missions) and we had approximately 140 kids each night.  I had the chance to teach the class time lessons about different missionaries for one of our teams as well as lead the opening and closing ceremonies.  During the Youth Conference I continued to train some of the newer workers in the areas I used to work in, games, skits, sound and videos, and was given the opportunity to speak with the teen girls, showing them that they don’t have to wait until they grow up to serve God.

Please pray for a young woman I met at Dunkin’ Donuts during that conference, Cherise.  She had just started her job at DD not 2 days before.  She couldn’t afford to take time off, and of course the job was new, but that morning both her stepfather and husband (from whom she had been separated for 1 month) died a few hours apart.  The deaths had shaken her terribly.  God was good in that I went to DD at a time where there were literally no other customers.  Cherise and I talked for several minutes about death, why God might allow these deaths to happen so suddenly and so close together, and then I got to share the gospel with her.  She told me I gave her a lot to think about, but as I was finishing a few customers walked in so the conversation got cut off.  Please pray for her salvation.

Upon returning to Peru I began the process of applying for a more long-term type of visa.  This is still in the works so please pray that we (my lawyer and I) get all of my paperwork completed and submitted before September 13th.  Otherwise I will need to wait until sometime next year to begin the process again.

I have started teaching my Wednesday Night kids’ class and junior church again.  Beginning this week I will start working with a group of about 35 kids during a Women’s Bible Study in a nearby town called Manchay.  The Bible study is a ministry of New Life Baptist where I am currently attending and serving.  I’ll find out in a few days exactly how this ministry works and meet the kids for the first time, so please pray it goes well!

It’s a joy to be back, but also such a joy to know that God has something for me to do wherever I go.  Thank you all so much for your continued prayers and support, because I know without them, I would not be able to do what I do today.  Thank you.

~Pam Drout~

July August 2018

Hello Everyone!
In 1903, Amy Carmichael wrote a book called Things as They Are, and in her book, she says that missionaries “now” are only able report generalized statements of their lives in ministry. “How can [they] do otherwise. And what can the modern missionary do in the short reports he is able to write? Fifty years ago missionary journals of immense length came home, and were duly published,” she points out. That book made me want to approach a newsletter a little differently. To somehow go beyond only a generalized statement about ministry. To let people see my heart, not just my actions. Yes, there will still be generalized statements in this letter, but I hope maybe I can give you a little bit more.

The people who know me well know that I am an avid reader. I’m always searching for new books to read, fiction and non-fiction alike. Within the first couple months of arriving here in Peru I came across a book written by a psychologist about struggles missionaries face and how to deal with them. At the time, one of the most reassuring sections was regarding expectations.

I had been warned as a rookie missionary that too many missionaries go to the field with their expectations too high, and then face extreme discouragement because those expectations were unmet. Unmet or unrealistic expectations is still one of the top 3 reasons missionaries leave the field within the first 2 terms of service.

Because of that warning, I came here to Peru with very few expectations, only hopes and goals to work towards. That doesn’t mean I came to Peru with no vision, no purpose. I had things I wanted to work towards and things to accomplish, BUT, I knew enough to know they couldn’t just be flexible, they had to be fluid.

I arrived here in Peru a year ago on April 16th. Last week I sat down and made a list of several of the things that have happened or have been accomplished in this last year, and I could do stare at it in wonder at how much God had done, what He has allowed me to do, and what He has been able to accomplish through me. I didn’t create that list to boast or say, “look at what I did.” I created that list to glorify God. I created that list to be able to say, “look at what God did and what He was willing to let me do.” 2 Corinthians 4:17 tells us that everything Paul did in ministry was so that God would gain more and more glory through the thanksgiving of many. So, please, help me in giving God glory by thanking Him for what has happened in this last year.

• –  I set up a fully functioning house. I learned to cook many new items, mostly from scratch with limited supplies. I learned to get around safely using public transportation.

• –  I have gone from knowing a small amount of Spanish vocabulary to being able to carry on conversations in Spanish without too many errors and being able to teach in Spanish. In my classes I have learned 10 of the 14 Spanish tenses.

• –  I have shared the gospel numerous times in Spanish, without notes, only a Bible or tract for help.

• –  I wrote, translated and then ran a Summer Bible Memory Program in Spanish. This included books for 3 different age groups, 16 devotions and 16 different game times.

• –  I have had so many different opportunities to teach in English and Spanish. I have taught women’s sessions at our leadership conference, several object lessons in youth group, devotions for the kids at New Life Children’s Home, junior church during the summer and then monthly during the school year, the Wednesday night children’s classes at church, English classes in during summer school, and sessions on how to share the gospel to different visiting groups and interns.

• –  I have been able to translate lessons, messages and presentations from Spanish to English for visiting groups.

• –  For 15 years the same town, the same church, and the same people have been “my life.” About 5 months in, I was able to look around and say, Midland isn’t my home, this is. My heart was finally planted in Peru.

  *Please note, I use the word, “I” in these statements, but each accomplishment is because of God’s help and the help of friends, other missionaries (especially Mike and Chelene Kennedy), my Spanish teacher (Debora), and many other people.

  There is so much more. A page like this cannot contain all God has done in anyone’s life in a single day, let alone a year. But I wanted you to see some of these, to glorify God for what He is doing and how He is working, and to say thank-you to you. Without your continual prayers and financial support none of this would have been possible either.

  Please, continue to pray. In the next several months I will be applying for a more permanent visa here in Peru, as well as working to purchase a vehicle and a guitar. I know this much, I cannot do it without you. Thank you.

  ~Pam Drout~ 

  January February 2018