BOLIVIA
In 2016, thirty-four students gathered in the city of Cochabamba for Bolivia’s first Perspectivas class. Out of that class, three regional teams were formed in Santa Cruz, La Paz and Cochabamba. Each year between 2017 and 2019, classes were held annually with instructors traveling three or four city circuits from Bolivia’s lowlands to the high plains of the Andes.
Logistics impeded the availability of Perspectivas in Bolivia’s more remote areas. In 2020, when the pandemic hit, classes were moved to a virtual format and this obstacle was removed. Students from all nine of Bolivia’s departments registered for the 2020 virtual class.
Over 600 people have taken Perspectivas in Bolivia. Many graduates subsequently trained as coordinators and instructors and are now serving as national and regional leaders.
Perspectivas has been instrumental in awakening Bolivia’s church to the privilege and urgency of world missions. It has raised awareness of the central role the church holds in God’s plan to reach every corner of the globe with His story of salvation. It has given impetus and tools to mobilizers to inspire action. In some cases, it has confirmed a missionary call. Perspectivas Boliva alumni are now serving as missionaries in places like Turkey, Ethiopia, France, Nepal, and to the least-reached ethnic groups within Bolivia’s borders.
“Perspectivas has helped me understand that even though God does not actually need my help, He has entrusted me with a very important task, which is to fulfill my purpose and my role in missions. Being able to see what God has been doing since the very beginning and what He is still doing today has produced a great deal of motivation in my life that has helped me to connect with Him better.”
-- Uschi Lehman Perspectives student
“Missions is not limited to just a few people but rather is something that is global in scope, and I can be part of it! Many people think that missions is a branch of the Church, but that’s not correct! It actually is the heart of the Church.”
-- Jorge Condori Ilaguita Perspectives student