Preparation: Ourselves, Our Team, and the Details

As we look toward our departure for Peru, and specifically Villa América, this July, the mission is becoming more of a daily reality. Preparation for the trip is a process. It’s not just about hopping on a plane and arriving; it’s about preparing ourselves and inviting our community to become part of the extended team along with ensuring every small detail is handled.

This month, we are focusing on the following areas:

1. Ourselves: Learning to see in “3D”

We aren’t just packing our bags and going; we are trying to make an impact for God’s kingdom. In order to make us more effective, we need to see where our worldview might have blindspots. So, our team is currently reading and will be discussing “The 3D Gospel” by Jayson Georges.

The premise of the book is that we, coming from a Western context, naturally view the Gospel through a lens of Guilt and Innocence. However, much of the world—including many indigenous communities—views the world through the lenses of Honor and Shame or Fear and Power.

In reading through this book, the hope is to learn how to communicate the Good News in a way that the people of other worldviews are able to understand it in their context. The Good News of the Gospel isn’t only good news for Western Cultures but is applicable in other contexts as well. I hope to have a short review of the book in the next post here.

2. Our Team: Building the Foundation

A mission trip is never a solo endeavor. Right now, we are in the vital phase of building our extended support team. I am reaching out to friends and family to join me through prayer and financial partnership.

I’ve been encouraged by the conversations I’ve had so far. While I have done this before while in Ecuador, that’s been a while and my circle is quite different now. While only a few of us are traveling to the Amazon rainforest, it’s good to know that we are sent by a larger community. If you’ve been praying for us or considering a gift, thank you for joining with us in the work this summer.

3. The Details: Safety and Stewardship

Then there are the practical details that make the ministry possible. This month is one where we are going through the tasks needed to get us there. Does everyone have insurance that covers one while outside the country? Are we willing to sign the group covenant to be a part of the team? Who doesn’t already have background checks done since we will be working with children?

While some of this might seem a little overboard for a short term mission trip, it’s necessary in this day and age. This also shows that we can go with the covering of the church and organization that our mission partners are under.

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How You Can Partner With Us This Week

• Pray for our “3D” perspective: That our team would have humble hearts as we learn to see the Gospel through new cultural lenses and understand what blindspots we might have.
• Pray for the logistics: That the background checks and insurance details would be completed smoothly.
• Financial Support: Each person is still working toward the goal of $2,500 to cover travel and ministry projects.

If you feel led to support this mission, you can find all the details and a link to donate on my trip page: steve-in-peru.themccrackens.org.

Thank you for standing with me as we prepare to serve the Yanesha people!