The Cost of being a Quechua Pastor
There is no such thing as a full time pastor in Quechua communities because no church can support a man and his family. All Quechua pastors work; most in their fields, one or two may have a job.
But what may be a surprise to learn is that most Quechua pastors actually end up paying from their own pocket for the privilege of being a pastor! That’s because the church usually can’t reimburse them for expenses incurred to attend required area meetings.
It’s an eye opener! What do you think? Would your pastor pay to pastor your congregation?
Meet four faithful pastors
There are 23 churches in the Margos area. There are still quite a number of villages without any church at all. We’d like you to meet a few pastors (from top to bottom):
- Pedro – an old timer, has pastored churches all over.
- Leonardo – another old-timer, walks with a pronounced limp; he hobbles all over the mountains to minister to others.
- Melchiades – lives and pastors in the town of “Llama’s Hoof,” hours from any road.
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Albino –recently started a new outreach in a tiny hamlet a five-hour walk from his home.
There’s no word for it?
In the middle of our current Old Testament workshop, some visitors asked Mark what he is doing. The problem in focus at that moment was how to say “in the day of trouble.” There is no word for “trouble,” Mark explained.
“What?!! No word for trouble?”
There’s no word for lots of common English words. Translation is not just finding the right word and plugging it in. It is trying to communicate ideas with a different set of vocabulary and way of thinking.
Are you taking note, Grandma?
Jeremiah’s first birthday is just four days away. Hurray for digital photos! Ever on the go, he sounds like Mr. Keep-My-Mom-Busy!
Pray for Andy & Rachel, Jeremiah’s parents. This year our son Andy is training to become an Air Force pilot. It is proving to be a stressful year with competitive academics and flying. It’s tough watching his classmates “wash out” and be dropped from the program.
Praises:
- While the book of Esther is now green on the chart, there’s been steady progress in Proverbs.
- Our middle two, Emily and Eric, have an opportunity to finally meet Jeremiah and spend a bit
of time with Andy and Rachel (Del Rio, TX) in August. -
Our youngest son, Ernie, survived seven weeks of being homeless and is now safely back in
school in Honolulu taking summer courses.
Things to pray about:
- July 30 – August 2: Annual Quechua Church convention in the Margos area in the village of Colpashpampa. Mark will be one of the speakers.
- August 6 – 9: Annual Quechua Church convention in the Yarowilca area (16 churches)—in the town of Chavinillo. Mark will be one of the speakers here, too.
- August 28: Patti will be down in Lima for a one day meeting. Thank you for your prayers! We really appreciate each one of you!
Mark and Patti Bean
