Student weekend

Last year, I started helping the CBU - the Peruvian version of university Christian Unions - with some of their events and generally trying to encourage them, and help new students from Christian families in rural villages to get to know the church in Abancay.

Each year, the groups from the universities in the south of Peru get together for a conference.  Last year, the Abancay CBU got really enthusiastic, and offered to host it in 2016.

So we've been doing lots of planning and preparations and fundraising activities, and the big weekend finally arrived.

Making plans with the Abancay team

We had students from Cusco, Puno, Arequipa and Tacna...

The theme of the weekend was "not because you must but because you are willing" based on 1 Peter 5:2.

I took along my piano and guitar and to start with was leading all the music... but over the next few days the students joined in and took over :)

I led a workshop about Cross-Cultural Mission.  We talked about what culture is and then a bit about which of the ways our church does things come from culture and which come from the Bible.  There were a few surprises, which showed us the importance of listening and learning well before trying to bring new ideas.  We finished up considering the classic pattern of culture shock or culture stress, and how to be firmly anchored in God, to be able to consistently produce fruit (Psalm 1 and Jeremiah 17:7-8).

I spent quite a lot of the time helping prepare the food - it was quite fun, and turned out delicious.

It was a great time of teaching, fun, encouragement and comparing ideas for how the different CBUs can learn from and support each other.

With those who didn't have to leave early, we went down to the colonial bridge in the gorge and walked along to some hot pools right next to the river. 

Perhaps too many people for the 15-seater minibus?  (In the end we took 2)

 

It was VERY windy!