Leaders of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in the Lake Union recently put their faith into action on a Maranatha project in southern Peru. This group included conference presidents, secretaries, and treasurers who worked together to construct a church building for the Chillca congregation. These worshippers used to meet in a member’s home, placing special emphasis on children’s programming in the smaller space. But now they have a beautiful building to worship in every Sabbath.
“This year for our annual officer’s retreat, we decided to come to Peru to build a church,” explained Lake Union President Kenneth Denslow. “We wanted to expose [volunteers] to the need there, but we also wanted to expose them to the success stories of the South Peru Union.”
The group was immediately struck by the passion of the Chillca congregation, which persisted even without a proper place of worship. “The level of their dedication and commitment to that local church and the large Church is overwhelming,” said Denslow. “I think it’s an inspiration as we go forward to pass along and encourage churches and schools and even family groups.”
The Lake Union team was certainly inspired to partake in service, but they weren’t initially convinced of their capability. Denslow admitted, “I had never laid block before, and, frankly, I was a little nervous about whether we would have the skill level to do it.” His team members had plenty of experience in churches–ones that were already constructed that is. “To be honest, I think expectations for a church administrators group were pretty low,” Denslow joked. But Maranatha’s in-country crew members were ready to provide the training necessary, and the volunteers were quick learners. “Everybody pitched in,” said Denslow. “It was a powerful experience for them. It was bonding time for us as a team.”
This project was part of the Lake Union’s broader collaboration with the South Peru Union, called Project Amigo. “[We’re] doing an exchange of volunteers in all sorts of ministries: evangelism, construction projects, student missionaries, health programs. Whatever we can think of to be able to have this exchange and understand and realize that we’re a global community, a global church,” said Denslow.
From 2004-2006, more than 3,000 Maranatha volunteers landed in Peru, constructing nearly 100 churches and schools. In 2019, Maranatha returned to Peru at the request of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in South America. Maranatha’s in-country crew and volunteers have worked here ever since, providing urgently needed structures for faith communities.