Gospel Adventures (formerly Online Mission Trips) is going to South America in 2019! Lutheran Hour Ministries, in partnership with Group Publishing, is giving kids a five-day passport to Peru to explore this fascinating country along South America's western coast. Through activities, video and discussion, kids in the United States will learn about Peruvian culture, the country's amazing history, and what it's like to be a kid living in Peru today. Better yet, kids will see more clearly the love God has for the whole world as they bridge into a place many thousands of miles away.
Experiencing the Good News of Jesus at work in other cultures is often reserved for adults and older teens who work on mission teams in foreign countries. Gospel Adventures: Passport to Peru, on the other hand, brings the country to kids-whether at home, in the classroom, or in Sunday school. Once you or, if you're a teacher, your school registers for Gospel Adventures, a world of excitement is on your doorstep. Kids will encounter and learn about Peru's people, places, animals, landscapes, foods, music, and more. Along the way, Peruvian kids will tell their own stories about what it's like to live in a country that has places as wonderful as the Amazon rainforest or the Incan temple complex of Machu Picchu.
To give you an idea how this works, Day One of Passport to Peru features six different elements. There's a 1) geography lesson on the country of Peru and its place in the world; 2) a video trip with Neil and Sharith, Peruvian twins who share a bit of their daily lives and who then visit the ruins at Machu Picchu; 3) fascinating information on the Inca who built Machu Picchu and the culture that thrived in Peru some 700 years ago; 4) video and pictures of wildlife in Peru; 5) a look at Psalm 23 with questions about how God comforts us as our Good Shepherd; and 6) additional discussion questions for students which review the day's highlights.
And that's only Day One!
"We are super excited about the new release of Gospel Adventures: Passport to Peru," says Ashley Bayless, curriculum development manager for LHM. "With high-quality videos and engaging activities, the curriculum helps kids learn about life and culture from kids like them but who live in another part of the world. Kids are constantly surprised how life isn't all that different in other places around the world. Kids go to school; they help with chores; they play soccer with their friends—and yet life can still look very different: new foods, different transportation, another language. One of the greatest similarities, though, is God's love for all His children, no matter where they live in the world. Gospel Adventures helps kids and adults alike know His love for them! This is one of the messages kids will learn in this year's trip to Peru," she adds.
To sign up for Gospel Adventures: Passport to Peru, go to gospeladventures.org. Please note, while many schools will use the program during National Lutheran Schools Week in January, Gospel Adventures: Passport to Peru can be utilized anytime during the year.