Cañete continues to capture my heart

We had a special event in Cañete for Mother´s day. Much time was spent praying that the mom´s of the kids would come. As long as LLilda has had this ministry in Cañete, she continues to pray that the mom’s would attend the events. Time after time after time she has invited them, but they never come. Last Saturday prayers were answered!! 12 of the mom´s showed up for the special mother’s day service we had!! The past few weeks we have been working with the kids, preparing songs, choreographies, and poems for them to share. The event was a success!! It was so awesome to see the 12 moms there! This past Saturday in Cañete, a team of 11 came with us from a church in Lima. It was nice to have many extra hands helping! We split into different groups and spent the morning visiting homes. Some groups did door to door evangelism, and my group went and visited the mom’s of the kids. It was nice to visit with the mom’s because so often they send their kids at 3:00 for the program, but want nothing to do with it themselves. We also invited them to attend the service in the night time. Many of them came that night! The 12 that came the week before returned, plus some! A lady from the community has graciously been letting us use her home for our events, but we can no longer all fit inside (Which is a good problem to have!). We had our service outside of her home on Saturday, but with the weather getting colder, we are diligently praying for God to open doors to be able to buy our own space. We want to buy land in the area where the kids live so their mom’s can continue to attend. We are hesitant to keep meeting in Violeta´s home because where it is located, is not convenient for the mother’s to come. And the home we have recently been meeting at does not have sufficient space. We desire to have tables for the kids to use. Right now we meet in the street and only have chairs for the kids. We desire to have storage space for the materials we need, a place to keep their arts and crafts. We desire to have a place we can meet with the families one on one without imposing in their homes. We desire to have a place that the kids can come to, hang out and feel safe and comfortable. We desire to have a place that we can cook, and sleep at if needed. We usually leave Lima early morning on Saturdays, anywhere between 5-7 am and don’t return until 1:00 am. My Saturdays are usually a good 20 hour day… Please help us in prayer for this need!

My good friend Sandi came to Lima and spent the weekend with me. She is a missionary in Iquitos (where I served last year). It was nice to be able to express myself in English and catch up after not seeing each other for about a year. I am blessed by the friendships the Lord has provided me with!

Cañete captures my heart more and more each time I am there. My heart breaks for this place, yet rejoices at the same time. One of my strengths is empathy… I think this is both a really good thing and a really hard thing to have. It is hard because I can identify with people’s feelings and can emotionally put myself in their situation. I have the ability to understand and share the feelings of others. I can’t tell you how many nights I lay in bed thinking about my dear friends in Cañete. I cry and pray for them. When I see the sadness and struggle in their eyes my heart feels their pain. I am learning to use this strength in connecting and relating with people, yet also learning that is it something I truly need to give to God every single day. It is a heavy and unhealthy burden to take on the feelings of others. I am learning how empathy is a powerful strength to have in ministry, yet if not used wisely can really weigh me down.

The month of June is going to be jam packed. The 3rd to the 15th, I will be working with a Pastor in Villa Maria, another district in Lima. This is bittersweet. Bitter because I really love the people here in Lince, the ministries I am involved with, and I am quite comfortable in my living situation. I am sad to be leaving them for this time. However, I am excited because I will be able to experience a completely different life for 2 weeks. I will have new experiences, new challenges, and see how God is working in different parts of Lima! After serving for 2 weeks with this pastor, I will return to Cañete Saturday the 16th, and then I leave for Iquitos the 18th!! A team from Texas will be going on a mission trip through the church I attend in Lince. They will be going to Iquitos for the weekend of the 22nd. I will be leaving for Iquitos on the 18th so I have some time to visit with my friends there and then meet up with the team on the 22nd. So the majority of the month of June, I will be away from ¨my home¨. I have mixed feelings about this. But the Lord is good and I am sure that this will be a time of growth, and opportunity!

An update on Prison ministry…
I returned to La Fatima this past Wednesday. It was a powerful experience!! Mary and Kim asked if I could share a testimony. I asked God what He wanted me to share, and a story of my niece Hannah kept coming to mind; an experience I had with her, my brother in law, and my sister at a park that showed me a beautiful picture of what it looks like to give God our fears, and the fatherly trusting heart of God. Before we went to the prison, we prayed for God´s favor with the guards, that prison doors would literally be opened for us. We headed to the prison, and barely had to wait to get in. We went to the spot to have our things checked, and the guard saw our bibles. He asked if we were Christian, and we said yes and shared that we were there to visit the foreigners. He too was a Christian and encouraged us in the work we are doing there. We passed all check-points without any problem! With each group of women, I shared my story, Kim took it a little further, and Mary ended it with a powerful time of prayer/application. We went to the ¨medium¨ section and decided to split up so that we would have time to visit all the women. Mary headed to maximum, and Kim and I stayed in Medium. We began to share, and before we know it, Mary returned to Medium with the women from Maximum… Let me just explain this situation… it is almost unheard of for the women to be able to go to other sections. They are confined to the section they are in. They are not allowed to leave that section. The Lord literally opened prison doors. We were able to meet as a big group…we had a time of sharing, bible study, prayer, and a time of beautiful worship (which never happens in La Fatima). It was a powerful and awesome experience!! We all left encouraged and so thankful for the Lord’s favor in our visit that day. The prison guard who was a Christian saw us on the way out, and referred to us as his sisters in Christ. Kim and Mary are working on getting permission and details figured out to be able meet as an official bible study in La Fatima, where all the foreigners can meet in the same place at the same time, where we will have a set time each week to all meet together. We wait and pray earnestly for this to happen!

The Lord is with you.

On Wednesday I went to visit a women’s prison in Chorillos, a district of Lima about 30 minutes from where I am living. A few weeks ago I was put in contact with a missionary from South Africa, and a missionary from Canada who visit two different prisons in Chorillos. Each week they go and visit with the foreigners who are English speakers and have been put in prison for drug trafficking. I will be visiting the other prison next Thursday, so for now I will share my experience at La Fatima. La Fatima is split into different pavilions, minimum, medium, and maximum… It is mandatory to be in a skirt when visiting. Outside of the prison, all of the little tiendas rent skirts for 1 sol. We arrived at the prison and we waiting outside of the gate. Visiting hours start at 9:00 a.m. The prison guards take their time, and are not concerned with the time at all. When the guard finally decided to open the gate, we then waited in a line with the other people visiting for the guards to check IDs, put stamps on the people’s arms, and then in marker write a number. Once passed the first checkpoint, we then waited outside of the door for a guard to open it. After waiting about 10 minutes, they accepted about 4 people at a time. Kim and I were called in and then received 2 more stamps on our arms. After making it half way through the different checkpoints, one of the prison guards told me I could not enter wearing a dress. I had to have a skirt and a blouse. So we left, crossed the street, and rented me a skirt. We returned to the prison and once again waited behind the big black door. We were called in, and then received more ink on our arms, another number. (Which later I found out was the number of the cubby they held our ID in). I’ve never really had the desire to get a tattoo, and seeing all this ink on my arm confirmed that…not a good look for me! So we were then sent to another checkpoint. One of the things Kim and Mary (the missionaries) do is help with the communication between the prisoners and their families/friends through emails, letters, etc. Kim had a packet of envelopes, letters, and emails for the women. The prison guard literally opened every single letter; probably about 20. I found out that the women who are in La Fatima were once in Santa Monica (the other prison Kim and Mary visit). One night, a group of women were told they had 5 minutes to pack their things, and they were sent to La Fatima, leaving behind friendships they had made in Santa Monica. Many of these letters were from the women in Santa Monica to the women in La Fatima. After making it past yet another checkpoint, one by one we were taken into a small room to be checked…To put it simply, my personal space was completely invaded. Now I know why they require a skirt and blouse, and not a dress. So we successfully made it passed the security scan, and each door we needed to enter required us waiting for a guard to open it. We entered one pavilion and it was fairly big. We were greeted by a few women latching on to Kim, with such excitement in their eyes to see her. It was amazing to see the bond they have. There were a few women from South Africa, one from Greece, 2 from Thailand, one from the states, and a few more. Kim shared a quick word of encouragement with them. She shared about the story of Joseph, how his brother sold him into slavery, and was later put into prison. She read Genesis 39:20-23…

But while Joseph was there in the prison, the LORD was with him: he showed him kindness and granted him favor in the eyes of the prison warden. So the warden put Joseph in charge of all those held in the prison, and he was made responsible for all that was done there. The warden paid no attention to anything under Joseph’s care, because the LORD was with Joseph and gave him success in whatever he did.

She asked the women what they heard in those verses. Each one responded, ¨The Lord was with him¨. Kim then proceeded to look each woman in the eyes and tell them, one at a time… (Name) the Lord is with you! (Name) the Lord is with you! (Name) The Lord is with you…. She encouraged them to each take time this week to read the story of Joseph, and gave them a bible study to complete. We talked with the women for a bit, prayed with them, and then left to the next pavilion. We went to the next area and just had a few moments to drop off the letters, and pray for 2 women. We then headed to the next area, Maximum. On the way there, the guards stopped us and insisted we were only allowed to visit one section per visit. Kim explained to them all she wanted to do was drop of the letters for the women and then we would leave. They agreed and said to be quick. When we arrived to the area, the guard was not there, so we talked with 2 women through the bars; one lady from California/ Iceland, and the other from Indonesia. After a few minutes the guard came, opened the bars, and told us to enter. This pavilion had a different feel. It was very small; a dark concrete patio. The women in general seemed much tougher. We sat with the 2 women, being forced to pay 1 sol to ¨rent the table¨. She told them we only had 2 minutes because the guards did not give us permission to stay… Kim quickly shared with the women the same verse, we prayed with them, and went to leave. The guard at this door would not let us leave…She said we couldn’t leave until 12 and she would inform us when she was opening the door for us to leave. So we stayed. We had no choice. We were concerned about the other guards, yet happy we could spend more time with the women. One of the women talked to us about her kids in California…she showed us pictures. It all came to real life for me at this moment. My heart broke. The women I met that day, you couldn’t pay me $10,000 to tell me they were involved with drug trafficking…that they are guilty. They are in prison for a reason. They are paying the consequences for their poor decisions. They were so sweet and so appreciative for our visit. I wanted to believe that they were all innocent. When she was showing us the pictures, I started thinking about how messed up this situation was, from both sides. The kids do not have their mom. Their mom is in prison in a completely different country. The mom cannot see her children. She is not there to see her twins grow up. She is not there to see her daughter grow into a woman. She was not there to see her son get married. All because of the poor decisions she made.

These women are lonely, frustrated, and ready to get out and return to their homes. Each day they wait for any information get can get, any answer they can find. Each day is a struggle. They know nothing of the outside world. They are constrained to 4 concrete walls. Yet through all the crap, and in the midst of their absolute worst days, the Lord is with them and The Lord loves them. They have committed crimes, and have made terrible decisions, yet the Lord forgives. The world has a hard time comprehending this type of love. It is unconditional.

At 12:00 we were interrupted by a woman yelling it was time for us to leave. We gave hugs goodbye and made our way out; which actually consisted of us waiting behind closed doors once again and waiting for the guard to open them. We finally made it outside, and then waited to be signed out. We left the prison, returned the skirt, and returned to the outside world. That day I experienced two completely different worlds.

Next week I will return to La Fatima with Kim and Mary on Wednesday morning, and then visit the other prison, Santa Monica, Thursday afternoon. It’s funny how the Lord works. Last year while working with Ywam, I visited a women’s prison in Iquitos. The Lord did something in my heart that day. He put a curiosity, a desire, an inkling in my heart for women’s prison ministry. How I crossed paths with a missionary from South Africa who was looking for help with this ministry can only be described as a divine appointment. I do not think it was a coincidence. It was God. When I think of a prison in Peru, the thought of English speakers does not even cross my mind. There is a community of foreigners who are so far from family, do not speak Spanish, and are in desperate need of hope.

The Lord is with you. Wherever you are, whatever you are doing, however stressful or terrible your day is, the Lord is with you.

My heart is both content and heavy at the same time

There are certain moments we experience that will never leave our hearts. I had two of these moments on Saturday. Cristhel, Llilda, and myself returned to Cañete this Saturday. It’s amazing how it is the same place, the same people, yet every Saturday is so different and unique. This week I took photos of some of the kids to make special mother’s day cards. Following our normal lesson and activity, we took 9 of the older kids on a ¨field trip¨ to the beach. The ride costs 1 sol each way… which is less than a dollar round trip. We paid for their transportation because the did not have the money to go. A few of the girls were able to pay their own way, and had a few extra soles for snacks. The 12 of us packed into the back of a Combi (a van) and headed to Cerro Azul. ( a beach in Cañete). On the way, there were 3 kids on the bus performing music for money. A girl who was singing on the bus was telling me they go from bus to bus until 8:00 at night when they can then return home once they have made money. The girls who had money for snacks used their extra snack money to give to these kids performing on the bus. It’s convicting to see 7 year olds give their snack money to kids in need, when they are just as much in need. We arrived at the beach and there are no words to describe the joy that was on these girls´ faces. Many times the girls argue with each other, they are mean to each other, they fight, but this day was different. There was nothing other than joy. It was as if for this block of time, all of their problems, fears, doubts, pains, etc. vanished. Their eyes sparkled with contentment. Their smiles were glued on. They were laughing with such innocence. Pure fun. It was a glimmer of heaven for me. No more pain, no more fears, no more sadness, just the joy of the Lord. One girl in particular is a bit rough around the edges. She has a very strong personality, and a very hard outer shell. I could not believe the smile and the softness on her face. Seeing their joy and appreciation that someone took the time to spend quality time with them, take them to the beach, and just have fun…it was life changing for me. I have tears in my eyes thinking about it.

When we returned from the beach we took the girls to their homes. By this time it was dark out. We arrived at the home of Brittani. She had so much fear and did not want to enter her home. The other girls were scared too. None of the kids wanted to enter her home. Llilda took her inside to change her clothes because she was all wet from the beach. Brittani has no electricity in her home. Llilda used the light from her cell phone to try and find clothes for her to change into. Brittani is 7 years old and is very unwell kept. She has very poor hygiene, but a heart of gold. There was such fear and sadness in her eyes. She came with us to the service that evening at Violeta´s home and when we brought her back home afterwards, one of her sisters was outside. We asked her what was wrong and she said she couldn’t enter her home, that there was too much oppression and darkness inside. She had to wait till her mom came home to light the candles. We asked if she wanted us to light candles so they could go inside, but they insisted they would wait outside. On the way home I asked Llida if she would share with me Brittani’s story. Brittani has about 12 other siblings. Her mom is constantly out with different men. The kids are left to raise themselves. About a year ago, Brittani’s father commit suicide in their home. The kids are terrified to enter their home at night. They live with this intense fear.

This story continues to flood my mind. I couldn’t sleep that night… I just kept thinking about Brittani and the life she lives. This is just one story…there are so many just like it. I am frustrated because I can’t rescue her out of this situation. I can’t rescue any of them. But I am encouraged because I can do something. I can pray, and I can teach them to pray. I may not be in their lives forever, so me going each week is great for now, but what happens once my time is up…I don’t want them to become dependent on me to bring them hope and joy, they need to learn how to receive this hope and joy from God…no matter what may come their way, they will have the power of prayer. This is my desire, that the kids of Cañete would truly learn the power of prayer.

The goal is to be able to buy land in Cañete by December to build a center; a center for the kids to meet on Saturdays instead of in the street and a place for the cell group Saturday nights to meet and have their church service. Please join us in praying for this!

Please be praying for the people in Cañete, the kids and adults. Please pray that the Lord would provide this community with a Pastor to be with them permanently.

I met with 2 missionaries here in Lima last week, one from South Africa, the other from Canada. They have a women’s prison ministry working with the foreigners who are in prison due to drug trafficking who only speak English. I will be checking out their ministry and praying about if it is something I feel led to help with. Please pray for discernment if this is a commitment I should make.

Day to day I am seeing the Lord at work, not only in Cañete, but here at the church. I am continuing to build relationships with the people here and I am thankful for this opportunity. I am thankful for my mama Luz who has been caring for me as if she was my real mom. I learn a lot from her, and thoroughly enjoy the time we spend together each day. I am thankful for the excessive laughter I experience every day with my family here. I am thankful for my new friends at this church that have made me feel so welcome. God is good.

(p.s. the first picture is Brittani)

Learning to Listen

A big advantage of my lack of Spanish is that I am learning to sincerely and attentively listen. I have always been somewhat of an observer…watching, listening, analyzing…But I am realizing now that much of what I would normally say is not necessary. Many times I want to share a story, or insert my opinion, but when I go to speak, I can’t find the words, so instead I remain silent instead of trying to figure it out. The amazing thing is that many times when I am supposed to say something, the words are already in my mouth. I am learning a lot by simply listening. I am learning a lot by not inserting my opinion when it is not necessary. I am learning self-control. Through learning to listen, I am learning to put others above myself. However, it is extremely frustrating when I really want to share something, yet cannot quite express exactly what I want to share.

On Friday I spent the day at Minka with Cristhel. Minka is a huge market/mall. It has everything from a movie theater, restaurants, clothing stores, and a giant market for food, products, etc. Cristhel works in her grandpa´s vegetable stand. I got to experience a day of work at Minka. It was a day I really wish I had my camera with me but silly me I left it at home on accident. I got to help pack bags of beans, and peas, and see the hustle and bustle of the veggie market! There is an older man that works with Cristhel. He was a bit crude at first, insisting that he is single, and I am single, which means we should be together. He seemed lonely, rough around the edges, bitter, empty. Later in the afternoon, through conversation, I ended up talking to him about Jesus, sharing my testimony, and explaining to him about the peace and joy that the Lord fills our hearts with. By the end of our conversation he ended up accepting Jesus into his heart and asking forgiveness of his past mistakes. It was weird, in this moment while Cristhel was leading him in a prayer, the busyness of the market completely stopped. It was as if the world stopped for just a moment. As soon as the prayer was done, the busyness resumed. Cristhel share with me that she has worked with him for quite some time, and was amazed. She did not think HE of all people would actually accept Christ. But that is the problem, and I am just as guilty of this. Sometimes I think, that person will never change. HE will never accept Christ. But the truth is that God is capable of all. Who am I to say, HE will not change… The angels were rejoicing in Heaven on Friday!!

After leaving Minka, we went to dinner with a lady named Judith who works at the stand next to Cristhel´s stand and her 2 kids. Her son, Albi (4) and Jocelyn (7) were at the market all day with Judith. I sat next to Jocelyn and she was so excited to learn some words in English. She and I talked almost the whole dinner and I got to see what a sweet girl she is. She has such an excitement for the little things in life.

Saturday was a great day in Cañete. Llilda could not go, so just Cristhel and I went. I taught a lesson to the kids about why Jesus came. Most of these kids come from very poor and unstable homes. I can see the effect their families have on them. They have such a loving sweetness to them, yet lack discipline and love in their homes, which causes a disobedient and disrespectful side to them. As I was trying to start the lesson, the kids were playing, arguing, fighting, and not listening. So I asked them, who wants to share why you are here? Many of them raised their hands and shared they wanted to learn more about God, or they wanted to learn God’s word. So I asked, so if you are here to learn more about God, why are you not paying attention? I told them if they didn’t want to be there, they didn’t have to be, it was their choice. Most of them then started paying attention. I am excited to be working with these kids because they really need someone to be loving on them. These kids need a lot of prayer. They listen, and understand the bible stories, but I do not see them putting any of it into practice. Yes, they are just kids, and this is only my 2nd week working with them… but I know the Lord is and will continue to work in them. I desire to see great change in their actions. I am hoping to start meeting with some of them one on one.

Saturday night, a few more people attended the house church at Violeta´s home. I am so thankful for Cristhel because she helped me so much! I had a lesson prepared about the spiritual war, and I totally choked on my words. The Spanish was just not flowing well. Please pray that the people would be open… a few of them have their own ideas and opinions, and are very set in their ways. Please pray that they would be able to receive truth, and be open minded.

Sunday evening I went to visit the church I attended last year in Lima. They were celebrating the anniversary of the church, and it was great to be able to celebrate with them!

A few pictures

I wanted to upload more pictures, but for some reason wordpress is being difficult for me.

1st update from Peru!

It has been a very full past few days. The people I have met so far have all been amazing…it feels like I have known them for years when in reality, I haven’t known them more than 3 days. I arrived at the airport with a very warm welcome from Pastor Samuel. He has a big personality and has such a warm heart. His family is also very sweet. I am excited to be serving here! I think there is a lot I can learn from Pastor Samuel and his wife Margarita. It turns out I am not actually staying with a family, I am staying in the church. I have a little room with a bed and a desk. I have to be creative in figuring out how I can make it homey and how I can make it so that it doesn’t feel like I am living out of my suitcase for 8 months.

First I will introduce you to Mama Luz. Luz is a woman who works with Christ for the City here in Lima. She has been assigned the role of my Peruvian mom. She is the one who takes care of me, makes sure I am fed and have what I need! She also helps to coordinate my schedule. She is such a sweet lady and I am really looking forward to working with her! I couldn’t have asked for a better ¨Peruvian mom¨.

Next I will introduce you to Llilda (pronounced jilda). Llilda is 24 years old and every Saturday for the past few years, she has been going to Cañete (a city about 2 hours south of Lima..a city that was extremely effected by the big earthquake in Lima back in 2007) to minister to kids and women. She has been praying for someone to help her with her ministry so when she found out I was coming, she was very excited! Her and I will be working very close as I will be going with her to Cañete every Saturday.

I went to Cañete this past Saturday and was able to meet the people I will be serving. I was asked to prepare a lesson for the kids and a testimony for the women…all in Spanish…. Llilda, Christel and I left Lima at 7:00 a.m. and headed south to Cañete. Christel is a girl from the church who lives in Cañete. She comes to Lima during the week to work and then returns to Cañete on the weekends. She also helps Llilda with her ministry. We arrived, ate breakfast, and spent some time at Christel´s house. We went to Santa Cruz (a small coastal community about 10 minutes from Cañete) and visited homes. This area felt so desolate. There were a ton of animals… donkeys, cows, chickens, pigs, sheep, horses etc etc. We went to the home of the leaders of a church there, and the man took us around his property and showed us all of his animals. His wife made us some fresh mango juice. You are probably thinking, that sounds delicious, and normally mango juice is delicious in my opinion… but this juice was not so enjoyable. It was made with lukewarm water, and had a funny taste. But the three of us drank a whole pitcher of it and snacked on some flavorless cookies. She wanted to make us more mango juice but we insisted one pitcher was plenty! We will be planning a weekend for me to stay there in Santa Cruz and visit the church on a Sunday. After visiting a few more homes and taking a walk on the garbage filled, dreary looking beach, we headed back to Cañete.

In the afternoon we gathered with the kids and I did a lesson on the story of David and Goliath. (Thank God for $3 story books in Spanish and English!) The kids were a little rowdy, but I knew they were paying attention because a few of them shared what they had learned from it. After the lesson the kids had time to color…which actually turned into a time of Q&A between me and a few of the kids. And a small English lesson as well! The kids were all thrilled to meet me and are really excited that I will be with them on Saturdays for the next 8 months.

In the night we met with the women. By this time my Spanish had significantly decreased due to exhaustion, but Llilda and Christel assured me that they could still understand. I shared my testimony (in very broken Spanish) and they were all very thankful I was there. One of the ladies shared that she had been praying for someone to come and teach them…a missionary or a pastor…and then when she entered the house and saw me, then heard my testimony and how I ended up there with them, she was very blessed and said I was an answer to her prayers. Another woman, Violeta, shared how she would absolutely love to be able to travel to Lima with her family to go to ¨the big church¨ to be encouraged, and taught, and meet the church members and Pastor, but because of lack of money, it is not possible for her to go. She shared that me being there was a taste of the big church for her, and it encouraged her. I started thinking how much I take church for granted. These women meet in Violeta´s home every Saturday evening. They are not able to take a bus to Lima to experience what the big church is like, to hear a message from the Pastor. Yet every week, they faithfully gather and sing praises to God, and thank the Lord for what they have. They are so hungry for God’s word.

Starting next week, Violeta has offered her home for me to start an English class in Cañete Saturday mornings from 10-11, for whoever wants to come. She is hoping this will motivate the kids/teens.

We arrived home around 12:30 am… it was a very long day, and every Saturday will be that way, but I am very thankful for this opportunity to serve in Cañete. To hear people tell me I am an answer to their prayers is very humbling. When I really think about it, part of me is freaking out. I am expected to teach kids, and teach women…all in Spanish. I honestly don’t think I am capable of this, but everyone here seems to have all the faith in the world that I am able. So with God’s strength, and nothing of me, ready or not, here I go!

I had a long, but great day on Sunday as well. It went a little like this. 9:00- 1st church service. 10:00- young adult class taught by Pastor Samuel´s wife (who I can actually understand very well!) . 11:00- 2nd service. 12:30 ish- lunch. 1:00- impromptu English lesson with a group of the youth from the church. 3:00- meeting with church leaders from other churches in the area. 5:00- planning meeting with the youth. 7:00- 3rd church service. 9:00- dinner.

When I say youth, I actually mean young adults, around my age. The youth here have made me feel so welcome. I feel like I have known them for years! I am really excited to get to know them better and spend more time with them. In the planning meeting, they asked me if I would be willing to start a permanent English class with them after lunch on Sundays! I am really looking forward to this!!

As far as during the week…it’s all still a bit foggy to me. I think it will be very random and spontaneous things. Pastor Samuel has told me that there is much to do and many churches are looking forward to working with me, so I am just trying my best to be patient and flexible…and accept the fact that having a plan and a schedule is just not going to happen, at least right away. I do vaguely remember this from last time I was in Peru! (I actually remember it all too well…flexibility is key!)

Sorry this update was so long. I will try to keep them shorter for the future! So much has happened in such little time, and naturally I tend to write a lot.

So far I am feeling good, a bit tired, but encouraged and excited to be here. Please please please be praying for supernatural ability to speak and understand Spanish. My head feels like it is going to explode with all the Spanish that is entering my brain and my heart feels like it will pop out of my chest every time I am put on the spot to speak in front of groups. One on one, no problem… in groups, different story! Thankfully people are very patient and helpful with me!

Please also be praying for strength and energy during the weekends, especially Saturdays when I am in Cañete. 7 am to 12:30 am is a long day and my body definitely feels it.

Much love from Peru!

Pictures coming next

Ready or not…

In 24 hours I will be starting my journey back to Peru. I couldn’t be more excited! I feel like this is a very familiar place for me, yet completely different and unknown. It doesn’t seem like reality that I will not be sleeping in my own bed tomorrow night. This is now my fourth time going to Peru, yet Each time is totally different than the last. I am trying my absolute best to go into this new adventure with very few expectations. The only expectations I want to have are that God is already moving in Lima, Peru, and that He will use me to fearlessly and effectively make known the gospel through my actions, and when necessary, through my words. I also want to expect that this will be a time of maturing and growing in my faith. Always with growing come growing pains. I don’t expect this to be a breeze and I don’t expect everyday to be magical. Of coarse I will not complain if everyday is magical, but life usually doesn’t happen that way!

In short, the desire of my heart is that I will go willing; willing to serve, willing to love, and willing to learn…and all that these three entail. If the Lord chooses to use me to touch just one life in Lima, this whole journey would be worth it!

Prayer requests:
- Please pray for travelling mercies.
- Please pray for effective communication as I transition back into speaking Spanish.
- Please pray for deep relationships to be built between myself and the people I will be living/serving with.
- Please pray for my body to quickly adjust to the changes in environment. (Climate, food, water, etc.)

Thank you for joining with me on this journey. I look forward to sharing my experiences with you. Your support has blessed and continues to bless me tremendously!

Ready or not… the time has come!

Love,
Pam

Next update will be from Lima, Peru!