by Edwin and Diane Porter, SIM Australia (formerly served in Peru)
15 October 2009

	Boy plays a "learn to trust" game.

Just over a year ago, Wiñana Counselling Centre in Lima, Peru, received its first client and it has been steadily growing ever since. Although Wiñana, the local name for the Lima Counselling Centre, recognises the huge need in the community, it has had to work hard to gain exposure on the street so that those most needy could benefit from its services. Although slow, growth has nonetheless been pleasing as more and more cases are being recommended by churches and clients are recommending Wiñana to friends and relatives. In addition, more churches and institutions are booking Wiñana to give talks and workshops.

Over the past year, Patricia has also been proactively preparing and offering workshops and talks to various groups in the Wiñana office. These have included courses on self esteem for women and adolescents, workshops to train child carers, and talks on child discipline and marriage related issues. Just recently, Patricia presented two workshops—one in a school for around 60 parents and another at a teachers college, in a week long training session for teachers.

Much of the work that Patricia does is with individual cases. These are primarily to people who are living in crisis. I asked Patricia if she would share a couple of these cases with us to give us an idea of some of the struggles that people have and how they are working to resolve them with the help of God and Wiñana. Client's names have been changed for privacy reasons, but their stories are as follows:

Silvia (32-years-old)

When Patricia first met Silvia she had low self-esteem and depression. Silvia was being abused psychologically by her partner, who regularly told her that he didn’t love her and that the only reason he stayed with her was for their daughter. Furthermore, his mistreatment of her was often in front of their child. In an attempt to escape from her situation and avoid confrontation with her husband, Silvia took refuge in her work. However, Silvia found that in distancing herself from the home environment her relationship with her daughter was being affected and she was losing any authority that she had previously as the child’s confidence in her diminished. Her husband on the other hand, was spending more time at home and therefore more time with their daughter. Whilst Silvia tried to avoid the problem the situation became more difficult. She was not only maltreated and rejected by her husband, but also by their daughter.

Desperate, Silvia called Wiñana and was soon undergoing therapy to recover her self esteem. To help her in this area, Patricia initiated a strategy to improve Silvia’s relationship with her daughter. After about six months, she was not only recovering her sense of worth—her strength and sense of inner beauty, she was also conscientiously dedicating more time to her daughter. As a result, the relationship began to improve. Today, Silvia has the skills to manage her relationship with her partner and she and her daughter have recovered their friendship and confidence. In addition, Silvia is growing in a relationship with God.

Pedro (5-years-old)

Pedro was being abused daily, physically and verbally, by his mother and as a result he became morose. At school he was being bullied by some of the children. When Pedro arrived for counselling the first time he was experiencing nightmares of monsters that chased and ate him. Pedro’s mother is a single mum, trying to bring her son up alone. In order to pay the bills, she often works long hours which means that Pedro is often left alone at home for lengthy periods of time each day. Sadly, this young mum had also been abused as a child and had never received affection or love. She was explosive and impulsive. Because of her treatment of Pedro, she realised that she had lost authority and control over her child.

From the abuse that he had received, Pedro had become aggressive, had low self esteem, and lacked love and affection. He repressed his emotions and feelings and easily lost control, often becoming impatient. On several occasions during therapy he said that he had been hit by his mother and that he had only known love when he was a baby. Patricia worked with the mother and son in tandem.

During therapy the mother shared about her past and the traumas that she had experienced throughout her life. As a child she had never received affection from either parent, she had been abused by her father and rejected by her mother. A child playing a learning-to-trust game. After working with the mother’s feelings and emotions, the child’s conduct began to change. They started to develop a new relationship based on a better foundation. Now Pedro can enjoy his mother’s company, he feels loved and appreciated. His bad conduct has almost disappeared. The mother has learnt patience and can now express her love for her son. She has finally freed herself from her past. Both mother and son are now attending a church near their home.

The future

In order to reach out to the poorest and neediest in the community, Wiñana charges a nominal fee to help cases like Silvia and Pedro. It is endeavouring to reach as many people as possible through talks and workshops and to raise awareness and prevent cases such as these from arising in the future. Currently Wiñana is earning sufficient funds to cover Patricia’s income. However, to ensure the future of Wiñana, we need to raise a further $4,000 to cover the cost of rental and utilities to the end of the year—at which time we are hoping that Wiñana will be financially sustainable.

Pray

Please pray for Patricia as she seeks to heal the broken lives through the power of the Gospel.

Give

If you would like to contribute to the continued functioning of the Lima Counselling Centre, please send your donations to the SIM office nearest you, marked for project #91886.

Go

Take a look at the opportunities to serve in Peru!