New Year, New Location, Same Purpose

On December 1, we packed up all our belongings once again and relocated to Lima, Peru. Saying goodbye was bittersweet. On the one hand, it has hard to say goodbye to friends we made in Puebla, Mexico. On the other hand, we were excited to finally be heading to Lima, where we'd be transitioning from language school to serving in our full-time role.

When we arrived in Lima early on December 1st, we were greeted by several team members at the airport. They helped us get all of our luggage unloaded and we headed to a guesthouse where we stayed for a week. Once we bought beds and had them delivered, we moved into our own apartment. 

Getting To Know Lima

Lima is a lovely city. The weather is comfortable, but humid. Most homes don't have air conditioning and you don't drink water out of the faucet. But you get used to leaving your windows open and we've installed a water filter to provide us with safe drinking water. 

Our house is conveniently located within walking distance of grocery stores, the IMB office, restaurants, stores, and the beach.

Sickness and Spiritual Warfare

Unfortunately, upon moving into our apartment, the entire family developed the flu, which hit us hard for almost 2 weeks. Jared still has an ear infection, but the family is generally feeling much better.

With Christmas and New Year's, we've had time to rest as a family and enjoy Christmas together, while also purchasing items for our home. 

In our experience, big transitions like these can be an opportune time for spiritual attack. So we ask you to pray for our health, both physically and spiritually. We also know that this year will stretch us in ways spiritually as we begin focusing more intently on the missionary task. We'll be seeking to serve God's Kingdom and we know Satan won't be sit by idly. But we also know that greater is He who is in us than he who is in the world. 

All that to say, please continue to lift us up in prayer. Being sick for so long is physically and emotionally draining and it takes God's grace to make sure we continue to abide in Him rather than sit around and have a pity party. 

Praises

This year has been full of things to be grateful for. We were so thankful that our kids have transitioned well both to Mexico and now to Peru. They have been so flexible and adventurous. 

Towards the beginning of the year, we really struggled to feel like we were connecting to our local church in Mexico. However, by the end of the year, we saw God work in our lives and deepen relationships. 

We praise God that Jared reached Advanced High in Spanish at the end of November. Amy reached Advanced High in May, but now we are both Advanced High and we have officially moved to the next stage of the missionary task.

Lastly, we praise God for His sovereignty. When we start our journey this year, we thought we would be in Bogota, Colombia by the end of the year. But we also had concerns about Bogota because of Visa difficulties and changes in the political process. God knew we'd be here in Peru and we are grateful for how things have turned out. We think it will end up being a blessing that we ended up here.

Prayer Requests

Please be praying as we get settled here in Lima. We are looking for a church for our family to attend. We'll also focusing less on "getting settled" into our apartment, and start focusing more on serving the Lord in our roles as Digital Engagement Strategist. We'll share more about the job as we start focusing more on it in January and February.  

As the year ends, we thank God for the opportunities we've had this year to learn Spanish and serve the Lord with the IMB. We are in a new location and beginning a new year, but our purpose remains the same: to share the gospel and make disciples of all nations. We hope that you'll continue praying for us and even consider going yourself.

Sincerely,

The Mitchams