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Steve and Hannah JohnsonSteve, Hannah, Elizabeth, and Abiela Johnson
Steve traveled to Peru for the first time in 2005 with his mom and four younger siblings. After living in the Ayacucho region for three years, mostly working as an English teacher, he went back to the United States where he worked as an over the road truck driver for six years. During that time, he earned his BA in theology and developed a passion to take the Gospel to people who have never heard about Jesus. He returned to Peru in late 2014 and began to work with his uncle, Keith Powlison, who had been a missionary for over three decades. Hannah grew up in a small town in Indiana, and in her early 20's developed an interest in missions. She graduated from Grace College in 2008 with a BA in art. In 2014 she decided to sell her house and join a foreign mission. She studied for the next two summers at the Summer Institute of Linguistics at the University of North Dakota. Steve met Hannah in Indiana just before he moved to Peru in 2014 to work with his uncle. He knew that Hannah was also on her way to missions, and in 2015 he proposed that they "work together in missions for a nice long time." Hannah accepted and they were married later that year. Steve and Hannah came to Peru in 2016 to begin ministry together. They currently work in Usphabamba, a small town of around 150 people. It lies about 40 minutes outside of Cusco, depending on the speed of the vehicle you're traveling in. They have two daughters, Elizabeth and Abiela. While Steve and Hannah are fluent in Spanish, they quickly realized that Quechua is a crucial language among the Andean people. They are actively learning Quechua so that they can communicate the Gospel in the people's heart language. Their mission is to draw the people of Peru into a true and loving relationship with Jesus Christ by teaching them how to read, and study the Bible and by living out the love of Jesus. Steve has found that an effective way to connect with the Quechua people is to work with them in their fields and to visit them in their homes. Hannah is working towards her Master's degree in Linguistics, which will equip her to promote literacy in rural, indigenous communities like Usphabamba. Their goal is to raise up local leaders who are able to study the Scriptures for themselves and continue to evangelize their own communities and others after Steve and Hannah have moved on. "Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God" (2 Cor. 5:20). |