Peru Cell Phones

In the years passed, the Dales have taken a Mobal World phone on our mission trips. A Mobal cell phone is not at satellite phone, but a phone that is capable of utilizing any cell tower that is available. In essence, if you can get a signal, you can use this phone. internationa cell is differentThey will be taking their phone again this year (for emergencies).
 
With the progression of cell phone use worldwide, you might be able to use your own phone in Peru. Last year, a few of our group that use Verizon, were able to get service in Huanta. I would recommend that you check with your provider about accessibility of international calling.
 
No cell phone service:

• No alarm clock. Many cell phones use the service to maintain the internal clock.
• no calender
• no calls
• no texting

International cell phone service:

• Calls $2.95 per minute
• If texting is available (.25 each)
• Very limited service
• Service is good in Ayacucho and Lima
• Service is limited in and around Huanta.

Counter News

We are tying a new counter and as you can see, we have been honored by visits from people all over the world.

Each time you click the "i" symbol on the counter, it will scroll through;

• Visitors from cities (a country shown while viewing this page means the visitors are accessing the blog using a wireless connection)
• Visitors from countries in the last 24 hours.
• Visitors from cities in the last 24 hours
• Cities of recent visitors (with the time they visited)
• Cities of visitors that are viewing the blog at the moment
• Countries of all of our visitors.

Thanks to all!

Sharon Presbyterian Youth Mission Trip

We celebrate with the youth and adults participating in the youth mission trip to Ontario, Canada. They will participate with group work camps July 9-17 on weeklong home repair projects for elderly, low-income and disabled residents. Please keep these youth and adults in your prayers as they travel, spread God's love and receive blessings from their work.

1. Claudia Ash
2. Josh Auten
3. Tim Brown
4. Blair Burke
5. Ally Butler
6. Casey Butler
7. Randy Butler
8. Elizabeth Chappelear
9. Claire Droppelman
10. Lauren Ellis
11. Josh Greer
12. Mikayla Hailey
13. Hayley Hinson
14. Andrew Hirschy
15. Katie Lee
16. Katherine Lopez
17. Max Mason
18. Hatley McArthur
19. Grant Parker
20. Evan Scott
21. Anna Shealy
22. Brittany Stanford
23. Brooke Stanford
24. Megan Talley

Too Late?!

Today, I though I would order something for our upcoming trip... uh... I soon realized that we are too late to order anything that will be "delivered in 4 to 6 weeks"!

Our wonderful leaders have done the planning, they have purchased the tickets and they have secured our accommodations. Our checked luggage is slowly being filled with everything from prayer shawls, toys, crafts, vitamins, seat cushions, candy, computers, computer monitors, crosses, hats, caps, Traveler Paul(s), gliders, shoes, clothes, and necessary items. Anything that we could personally do without, has provided more room and weight for a gift or a donation.

Time is growing short and the excitement is building with the anticipation of experiencing and sharing the wonders of Jesus Christ in another country and in another culture. We are blessed with the chance to take another step in our spiritual journey.

For the group, click the link 2010 Mission Trip Travel Information for any baggage questions. Check page 2 for weights and sizes. Any questions, please email Randy @ mrandallross@aol.com. Please, take the time now to set the correct time and date on your cameras. START YOUR JOURNALS!

wvd

New Peru Group Members

Each year we all are blessed by the addition of new people (and returning members from other churches) to join our trip to Peru. This year we are excited to be joined by:

Bryson City Presbyterian Church, Bryson City, NC:

• DeAnna Booth (DeAnna joined us on the 2008 trip)
• Laura Booth

Port Orange Presbyterian Church, Port Orange, FL:

• Sarah Dolatowski
• Kaitlin Lyons
• Kerry Lyons
• Kendall Ward
• Theresa Wolf

Below is proof that the members of Port Orange Presbyterian Church in Port Orange, Florida are as excited to go Peru as we are. Please pray for our new guests that they will experience the joy, giving and blessings that all others have received on previous visits to Huanta.

The excerpt below is copied from the newsletter of

Port Orange Presbyterian Church (USA)

4662 S. Clyde Morris Boulevard

Port Orange, Florida 32129

Port Orange Presbyterian Church Mission Team asks God: Where are you calling us in 2010? Our long term goal is to discern just where God might want us to try to initiate a long-term mission partnership with Christians somewhere out there in His world. We want to learn from, with, about and because of each other. We want to challenge each other to grow in our relationships with Jesus Christ. We want to be the best versions of ourselves as disciples of our Lord. We want to BE the church worldwide in a long-term relationship that will undoubtedly change the people we work with and ourselves. So, we are sending out 3 scouting teams from Port Orange Presbyterian Church to learn from other churches who have been in long-term partnership with Christians worldwide. We will team up with First Presbyterian DeLand, FL and their partners at Shalom Presbyterian and La Vida Joven in Esteli, Nicaragua, two distinctly different ministries 3 that they have had 15-year relationships with. We will partner with Sharon Presbyterian Church in Charlotte, NC and their partners in Huanta and Lima, Peru, ministries that they have had a 5-year partnership with.
Our church will send 13 people on international scouting missions this year. These folks will come home with information that they learn from these sister churches in DeLand, Charlotte, Esteli, Huanta and Lima.

POPCians will come home with what they learn about:

• How the relationships got started
• How the churches have maintained the partnership
• How the relationships have grown and changed over the years
• How the people of their churches have been changed by the partnerships

…and these POPC folks will hopefully come home with some idea of just where and how POPC might initiate a partnership of our own in last half of 2010. This is perhaps one of the most exciting opportunities.

Peru Mission Trip 2010

Dear Mission Trip Participants:

It is hard to believe, but there are now less than five (5) weeks to go before Peru Mission Trip 2010!

I had hoped to get the group together for a conference call to discuss and adopt a team covenant. Given summertime schedules, however, that is looking increasingly doubtful. Let's try to adopt a team covenant by e-mail. Include all participants with the things that you would like to see us accomplish during our trip and how you would like for us to accomplish these things.

I submit the following suggestions:

• That our team travel to Peru with open minds, arms and hearts, always striving to let the grace, love and mercy of God shine through each of us through our words and deeds.
• That we look after and support each other.
• That we listen to and respect each other as we try to discern God's plan for us in Peru.
• That we take time during our trip to build bridges between our diverse cultures.
• That we be especially mindful of the youth participants and ensure that they are respected and heard.

Thanks to those of you that have already returned your trip forms. I will be arranging for trip insurance the week of July 5th, so please get the trip forms back to me by the July 1, 2010 deadline.

We are blessed that we have received many donations of clothing and shoes for the children of the Presbytery of Huanta. If your packing permits you to take additional donations in your checked or carryon bags, please let me know.

Blessings to each of you!

Randy

Click on the picture for a better view. The white lines in the picture are our flight paths from Orlando & Charlotte to Atlanta. From Atlanta to Lima and then on to Ayacucho.

Western North Carolina Mission Trips

As witnessed by our visitor counter, we have been very blessed by the overwhelming support of our missions blog.
We feel that we should share information about our mission trips to the North Carolina mountains too. Every group member has enjoyed the feeling of fellowship and cherished the memories of helping someone in need.

Sharon Presbyterian have joined the Step By Step Ministries in Clyde, NC. Step By Step is a United Methodist Disaster Response program providing home repairs for people that are economically and/or physically disadvantaged with services such as hanging sheetrock, painting, building ramps and patching roofs. .

A link to an album of pictures from previous North Carolina trips has been added below. For any information or questions, contact Phyllis Acton at pacton@sharontowers.org or J.D. Pearce at mailto:jpearce@carolina.rr.com

Peru Trip Meeting

Dear Mission Trip Participants:

Please mark your calendars for the late afternoon/early evening of Sunday, June 6, 2010. Let’s plan to get together in the Sharon Church Annex Basement at 4:00 p.m. We will go over the trip schedule and other trip logistics and pack some of the donations we will be taking to Peru.After our meeting and packing donations, let’s have dinner at Genaro’s Peruvian Rotisserie Grill. Genaro’s is located at 10405 Park Road , just past the Kangaroo convenience store heading south on Park Road towards Pineville.

I have received a couple of e-mails from Samuel Montes which I wanted to share with you. Samuel is the past President and the current mission trip liaison for the Presbytery of Huanta.

The leaders of the Presbytery of Huanta have asked that we assemble, sand and paint one hundred fifty (150) benches (to be used as pews) during our week in Huanta. The recipients of these benches will be four (4) presbyteries neighboring the Presbytery of Huanta in the District of Tambo.

I am excited that we will again be able to be with members of the Presbytery of Huanta and students attending the August session of Huanta’s Biblical Institute yet join with the Presbytery of Huanta in their outreach to neighboring presbyteries. There are thirty-one churches and groups with over one thousand members in these four presbyteries.

The detailed 2010 Project Proposal. I thank Sara Armstrong and Rusty Edmondson for their translation of the proposal.
In an e-mail I received last week, Samuel made the following comment:

“It is hard for me to explain what it means for my brothers and sisters in the United States to travel so far to love us and be with us. It is a lesson of what true love is all about.”

I think Samuel’s words speak volumes to what personal relationships and what “just being there” means to our brothers and sisters in Peru.

Project funds were sent to the Presbytery of Huanta on Monday, May 24, 2010. This will enable Samuel to purchase the wood, have it cut and mortised and along with the other materials necessary to assemble, sand and paint the benches, delivered to the Christo Rey Church prior to our arrival in Huanta.

Sarah and I had the opportunity and pleasure to visit and worship with the congregation of Port Orange Presbyterian Church (“POPC”) on Sunday, May 2, 2010. After worship, we met with Sarah Dolatowski, Kaitlin Lyons, Kerry Lyons, Kendall Ward and Theresa Wolf, POPC members who will be participating in the trip to Peru . POPC has committed to expanding its outreach beyond its local community and is sending mission teams to Cuba, Nicaragua and Peru this year. Sarah and I are looking forward to our journey of faith and service with Sarah, Kaitlin, Kerry, Kendall and Theresa in Peru!
Thank you for participating in this year’s trip. If you have questions, concerns or comments, please let me know.

Peace,
Randy

Has Sharon Been Blessed?

Do you think Sharon Presbyterian has been blessed by adult mission trips?
A short list of support from our church members:

• making prayer shawls
• making pew seat cushions
• making infant caps and toboggans
• shopping for deals at Goodwill, Salvation Army, Michael's and yard sales
• buying and donating old suitcases
• donating clothes and shoes
• buying and donating crafts and games
• making and tie dying tee shirts
• donating children's books
• buying and donating candy and treats
• making crosses
• buying and reprogramming used computers
• acquiring Presbyterian literature
• purchasing Spanish Bibles

As you can see, there is more to a mission trip than "just going". The once a year trip has become a year 'round plan. Everyone has been blessed by the sharing of time and talents of the wonderful people that have provided something from the above list.
Check this blog for "Mission Participants Past And Present" to view everyone that has been on any of Sharon's adult mission trips and ask any of them if they were moved, informed, changed or blessed.

Thank you and bless you all!

Help Needed

Participants in the 2010 Mission Trip to Peru are seeking donations of children’s clothing and shoes to present to the leaders of the Presbytery of Huanta. The donations will be distributed to children in the Presbytery.

Sixteen (16) people, nine (9) from Sharon Presbyterian Church, five (5) from Port Orange Presbyterian Church and two (2) from Bryson City Presbyterian Church have committed to participate in this year’s trip.

In 2009, clothing and shoes to fill twenty-four (24) suitcases, each weighing fifty (50) pounds, was donated by members of Sharon Church.

Due to the variations in climate in the Andes Mountains, clothing for all seasons can be used. Shoes are especially needed. Luggage to transport the donations to Peru is also needed. Due to weight restrictions on the Peruvian airline that participants will fly from Lima to Huanta, the donations will be shipped from Lima to Huanta via overnight bus.

A collection bin has been placed in the Narthex closet. Tax receipts for donations are located in an envelope attached to the front of the collection bin. Or if you prefer, a participant on the trip would be happy to schedule a pick up.

If you have any questions, need additional information or would like to schedule a pick up of donated items, please contact Randy Ross via telephone at 704-552-5573 or via e-mail at mrandallross@aol.com.

Thank you for your participation in Sharon Church’s outreach to our brothers and sisters in the Presbytery of Huanta, Peru!

May Update

Just a few pieces of information to keep everyone updated on the mission trip progression:

• Donations of clothing are coming in. We are in serious need of large suitcases! The checked bags will be packed with clothes and donations. The total weight for each bag can not exceed 50 lb. So, hard sided cases are good, but not preferred.
• Randy Ross has purchased a few refurbished laptops for the Presbytery in Huanta and the keyboards have been replaced to accommodate the Spanish language.
• Randy has also secured our reservations for airlines, buses and hotels.
• Our mission shirts have been designed by Phyllis Acton and Brenda Paredes of the Sharon mission group. The order for our shirts was placed on May 2. If time permits, Kathryn and Sarah Ross have offered to tie dye the shirts for a special touch.
• Connie Dale is in the process of making more glass crosses for the Presbytery of Huanta churches that we will be visiting.
• Gifts of prayer shawls and pew cushions are being made by ladies of Sharon Presbyterian.

Thank you.

The Packing Has Begun!

The planning, schedules, airline tickets and accommodations are being finalized for our 2010 mission trip to Peru. We have 10 bags filled with donations so far. The bags are filled with your donations of clothes and weighed for our maximum allowable weight of 50 lbs each!

Each of our 16 participants are allowed to check 2 bags for international travel. Those 2 bags can weigh up to 50 lbs each. If each participant can pack all of their own belongings into 1 bag... that means we can take 16 bags of donations! That's 800 lbs!

Sharon Presbyterian Youth (SPY) Sunday

We were fortunate to hear several short sermons on Youth Sunday at Sharon Presbyterian. A copy of Ally Butler's sermon is in a previous post below. We were also lead by Brittany Stanford. A copy of her sermon is included in this post.

We thank all of our youth for their time, talents and dedication.

~Breaking Down Love~

Good morning.

Love is scary. I didn’t think love was scary before I took the time to sit down and write this sermon. But it is. Being that I’m only 17, I though that I would look pretty dumb trying to stand up here and preach to you all about love. So instead I decided to take a part first Corinthians and tell you little stories about how I’ve seen love expressed according to Paul’s writings.

First, love is patient. Patience is a characteristic that is so well known yet probably the least expressed. Growing up in such a fast passed society has really made me respect those who are patient because it happens so scarcely. When I really think about it, the only time throughout my life (granted that it’s only 17 years) that I really witness patience being acted out of love is when I watch my grandparents interact. For those of you all that are unfamiliar with my grandparents, my grandma or “Now Now”, as I call her, is 85 years old and suffers from macular degeneration. How I describe it, she can’t hear unless you talk very loudly into her ear and she can’t see unless you’re directly in her face. As sad as this is, it’s twice as frustrating, when all you really want to do is have a conversation with her. Although I love her with all my heart, and I always will, I can’t deny the fact that I grow impatient sometimes having to walk at an almost not moving pace just to stay by her side as we progress to one point to the other. However, my grandpa does this everyday, all day, without raising his voice, encouraging her to walk faster or growing the least bit impatient. When I recently interviewed him for a school project, I asked him what the happiest moment of his life was. And he told me, that it was every single morning that he woke up to the one person he loves unconditionally and will continue to love unconditionally until he dies. Even if it means slowing his life down just to stay by her side. Love is patient.

Love is kind. This passed Christmas season, my mom and I were going through the Chick fil-A drive through to save time on our usual hectic holiday season. We ordered like we were supposed to and drove around. However, when we pulled up to the window, the girl handed us our sandwiches and said the gentleman in front of you paid for your lunch. He wanted me to tell you all to have a merry Christmas. I was in complete shock. Being the person I am, I freaked out. Oh my gosh mom! He’s going to try to trick us! He’s going to take us! Drive away! As soon as that came out of my mouth, the look on my mom’s face confirmed the second guessing and my assumption that didn’t cross my mind until after I made that comment. Brittany, she said smiling, he’s just trying to spread Jesus’ love. Don’t you remember the reason for all this chaos? That moment, sitting in the car eating my chicken sandwich, was the first time I witnessed God’s love at work through the kindness of others. Love is kind.

Love is not envious. My best friend Liska and I have known each other for a while now. However, it all started with the one thing we’ve spent our whole lives doing… playing soccer. Liska and I first met on our middle school soccer team, where we played the same position. As you may guess, it started out with a lot of competition because we were both underclassmen on the team fighting for that same spot. After the season ended, our friendship carried off the field and everyday after that. Including today where she sits right over there to watch me. Every season after that, it was the same scenario, my best friend and I in that one forward position. What I left out of this story so far is the fact that she’s twice as fast as me, twice as athletic as me and twice as driven as I am when it comes to soccer. These past few years she’s continued to excel as always. And I continue to be the best friend and the girl who goes in for a minute when Liska needs some water. The funny thing is, looking back as I tell this I can’t remember one practice, scrimmage or game when I was envious of my best friend. Games after games of cheering, screaming and running to hug her after she scored that winning goal. Recently, Liska signed with Clemson to continue her soccer career in college. I know we’re going to have to forgive her. When I first heard the news, I was almost ……?………envy that I would have had. Love is not envious.

Love does not insist on its own ways. The past few summers I’ve had the opportunity to go t Peru with the adult mission team at our church. While we were there this past year, putting together benches to serve as pews for churches all over Peru. As easy as putting a bench together may sound, trust me it’s not. As this process is occurring, there are legs going into the wrong spot, nails bending and breaking, and hammers hitting more fingers than nails. And the best yet, my dad is watching all this, cringing. For those of you all that don’t know my dad, he’s in construction and he has to have complete control over everything. Everything has to be done a specific way. Obviously, this wasn’t happening. And I was waiting; making bets with others, on how much longer he would be able to bite his tongue before having a panic attack and start correcting everyone on what they are doing wrong. As funny as this is, at the time, my dad was honestly in complete misery. As we got towards the end of the week and my dad hadn’t completely freaked out, at least not in front of everyone, I started to become confused. Is this really happening? There is no way we’re going to leave this place before he yells at everyone. I know this is hard to believe, but it never happened. When I asked him about it after we got home, he explained to me that we were there to spread God’s love half way across the world. And God’s love does not insist on its own ways.

Love is not irritable or resentful. Also in Peru this past year, we had a well… bad experience getting to Huanta, the city we were staying in. When we arrived in Lima, we loaded on to a bus that was supposed to be an 8 hour drive to Huanta. A man named Samuel who was the head of the presbytery in Huanta, had taken the earlier bus to Lima and had met us at the airport just to make sure that we were as happy and as excited as he was about seeing us and working with us in God’s name this week. Well, that was all well and good, until about 10 hours later, when we were informed that we were still 6 hours from our destination. Apparently, this 10 hour bus ride was actually a 16 hour bus ride. Yea… seriously. To describe it nicely, I was not happy. You mean I just got off the plane for 8 hours to get on a bus for 16? No thank you. Please take me home. After we finally got there, and also well about an hour or so to complain about it, it hit me that Samuel went there to get us and then rode back. Why wasn’t he complaining? After getting to know him a little better throughout the week, I came to understand the amount of gratitude he had for the work we were doing for our Lord and for the people of Peru. The 32 hours he spent on the bus that day was nothing compared to the love he had for God for bringing us to him to help the churches of Peru. Thanks Samuel, for proving to me that true love is not irritable or resentful.

Love is not arrogant, boastful or rude. As much as I despise his team, I can’t help but give credit where credit is due and none of us can deny the fact that Tim Tebow has every reason in the world, well… except a second national championship, to be arrogant and boastful about his talent and accomplishments. Being the first sophomore to win the Heisman is not something most all American players can say they’ve done. No matter how good they think they are. However, game after game, win after win and title after title, Tebow continued to run out on the field with the scripture written on the black marks under his eyes. No matter how important the game may be, his number one priority was to share with the world God’s word. Tebow, like many of us youth, attends yearly mission trips and church every Sunday. As a younger athlete I truly admire Tebow and how he presents himself to the world. Out of all the arrogant collegiate and professional athletes calling themselves role models well… it’s nice to have someone to look up to someone to prove that no matter how great you think you are you don’t even compare to Jesus Christ. Tebow’s love for his savior helped him and me realize that real love is not arrogant or boastful no matter how great our accomplishments may be.

Finally, love bears all things, believes all things and endures all things. This one was hard. I stared blankly at my paper when I got to this point in the scripture. Because no matter how hard I thought about my encounters with my friends or at school I couldn’t think of one example where I saw God’s love through someone expressing all of these attributes. That’s when I finally got it. The only person that I know that’s truly bared many things, believed with all his heart and endured unimaginable amount pain, all out of love was Jesus Christ. Jesus bared every single sin committed by us when he was hung on the cross. He truly believed with all his heart in what he was doing. He believed that his father would forgive us and accept us into heaven to live with him eternally. And he endured every last bit of pain and anguish out of this belief and love for us. It doesn’t matter whether you’re 16 or 60; you’re not going to be able to find a greater example of love than that.

Audio link to this sermon

Sharon Presbyterian Youth Programs

Why International Missions?

We at Sharon Presbyterian Church are honored to have a group from Port Orange Presbyterian Church in Port Orange, Florida joining us on our upcoming mission trip to Peru. The statements below were taken from the March 2010 edition of The Grapevine (POPC’s monthly newsletter) available on their website. We thank Kaitlin and Donna for sharing their views of the importance of long-term international missions.

What’s the point of a long term international mission partnership, anyway?
“Long-term international mission partnerships are important because Port Orange Presbyterian, and all of its members (including myself), cannot be the church in the world if it only connects with churches in the Volusia County Area, Florida, and the rest of the USA. Building relationships with churches all over the world is crucial to really doing God’s work.”

Kaitlin Lyons, age 16
“Mission trips can change the way you think. You come back with a renewed sense of purpose, excited about what God is doing in your life, your church, and in the world….. It’s one thing to travel to another country and repair a damaged church, or do a VBS program for example, and another to really build a long term partnership… We don’t want to go into another country with an arrogant attitude that we are there to fix all of the problems. There are many different ways to live life honorably, as children of God. My eyes have been opened from my past experiences with international mission travel. We have a lot to learn from spending time with people with very different backgrounds from our own. Loving and serving God should be our priority in life.”

Donna Ketchledge, adult