“Behold Your Mother”

June 2025

In His final moments of life—hanging on a blood-stained cross—Jesus looked down at His mother standing in the crowd. I imagine the agony she was in as she watched her beloved child—the Lamb of God—taking away the sin of the world—before her eyes. She had carried Him in her womb for 9 months and then in her heart for 33 years. Her husband Joseph had passed away many years earlier. And now Jesus was dying. He was leaving the world, and the sword Zechariah the prophet had foretold was piercing Mary’s heart. Standing beside Mary at the foot of the cross was one of Jesus’ disciples, John. Jesus left nothing undone before taking His final breath. He purchased our healing with His stripes, He took our judgement while He hung in our place, He ministered to the contrite thief on the cross beside Him, and He entrusted the care of His earthly mother to one of His faithful disciples. “He said to His mother, ‘Woman, behold your son!’ Then He said to the disciple, ‘Behold your mother!’ And from that hour that disciple took her to his own home.” (John 19:26-27).

I love that John took her into his own home from that hour. His response to the One spilling out His love for us on the cross was to take care of what mattered to the Lord, what had been entrusted to him by the Lord. He took care of Mary from that moment on as if she were his own mother. He fed her. He provided for her. He looked after her. And I am certain that as he did, he did so with a joy and confidence that he was blessing the heart of his Lord in the process. 

I believe Jesus is still looking for faithful disciples today who can be entrusted with the same honor as John. I believe that when we look upon the elderly in Peru, Jesus is still saying the same words: 

“Behold your mother.” Jesus said in Matthew 12:50 that anyone who did the will of the Father in heaven is His brother, sister, and mother. The will of the Father is that we believe in Jesus Christ whom God has sent (John 6:29). And Romans 10:14 asks the question: “How can they believe unless they hear?”  When you support this ministry, you are empowering us to share the Word of Christ—the message of the gospel—so that many people can hear and believe and become the brother, sister and mother of Jesus.  When you support this ministry, you are empowering us to feed them, to provide for them, to look after them. And when you support this ministry, I hope you sense the joy and confidence John had, knowing that Jesus is blessed by your love for Him.

Because of your gifts to this ministry, all the elderly we support in Ccarhuacalla had a Mother’s Day celebration like none they have ever experienced in their lives. We offered them a tasty grilled chicken dinner, complete with potatoes, salad, desert, and drinks. We had games for them to enjoy, and the elderly played like little children! They said they have never had so much fun in all their lives. I wish you could have seen the joy and heard the laughter erupting as they played. I believe the music of their joy reached to Heaven that day.

While we could not give them the gift we originally desired (walking canes, which were more expensive than we had the funds to purchase), instead we gave all the elderly a warm blanket because it is very cold in the mountains of Cusco and the winter is almost here. All of the elderly received a blanket, including the men. The celebration was for the mothers and fathers. 

These same elderly receive food baskets every two weeks, along with the Word of God, because of your faithful giving. Each time we prepare the food baskets, it takes 2 days to buy the food, prepare the baskets, and deliver them to the elderly. The process involves navigating mountainous roads for 1 hour and 45 minutes as we purchase the supplies in Cusco and bring them up the mountain to Ccarhuacalla. As you have read in past newsletters, what you are providing for these elderly people makes the difference in sustaining them from week to week. We are very grateful to you for your generosity. We are setting a goal to purchase the much-needed walking canes as a Christmas gift for them. We ask that you consider now setting aside money to help us reach this goal. With $2,000 we know that we can provide them a Christmas dinner to remember AND give them each a walking cane. Thank you for planning now to be a blessing to them for Christmas.

During the month of June, we observe Father’s Day. Please know that our hearts commemorate each of you who are fathers. Your role as men is impactful, life-altering, and essential in the family unit and the kingdom of God. We also thank you from the bottom of our hearts for helping us to extend that same honor to fathers in Peru—many of whom have no children caring for them in their old age. You are a blessing!

May the Lord bless you each,

Tony and Rosa Rivera

Home of Refuge International, Inc