What a week it was with the medical team here. Before we knew it, Dr. Campos was leading the devotional on Friday morning reflecting that the week was already over. It was such a blessing for many people here in Collique in the district of Comas to have been seen by the doctors. We know that many never go to a dentist or a doctor because they can’t afford to. The hearts of the members of this team have been moved by God to share their skills and blessings with others in a remarkable way. Jessica had a unique opportunity to work with the dentists as a translator. She shared a story of a women that would not smile. She had a tooth in the front that made her very self conscious. After West and Jim had pulled it out, made a new tooth and put the new one in, the smile on the woman was priceless. Jessica said that it was from ear to ear. I saw many OSA children leaving the building with cheeks packed with gauze, but I know that they were thankful for the work done. The blessings by the medical team continued to reach us even after they had left. We have felt more secure in our apartment since they’ve been here. Having so much movement at OSA house during the week made us feel like we weren’t so isolated from you all anymore. There were friends downstairs that we knew. Gradually through the week we slept better and better, not waking up to wonder what caused certain sounds. Last week we slept great, and we needed it as we hit the ground running. We’re so grateful for answered prayers and this sense of peace that God has given us. Thank you medical team for your encouragement and your presence.
While the medical team worked hard at the OSA house, I worked with the construction team repairing two homes in the area. There are 200 homes that could have benefited from some repairs so it was difficult to limit ourselves to these. Bill and Greg from South Main along with Guillermo and Vidal from Comas were part of our hardworking team. Bill and Greg joked with me about how their building inspector friend would not approve of some of our methods. I had never seen a person balancing on a rickety ladder, on uneven ground, use an electric saw to cut a vertical post with one hand while holding on with the other, all the while knowing that he can’t turn off the saw but that the person holding the two electric cords together needed to pull them apart in order to cut the power. We shared some good laughs, and even some goat. The Senora of one home insisted the team eat lunch with her, so we did. A few more people from Houston happened to be with us so they got to experience it as well. After all, how many times does one get to eat a special lunch in the home of a Colliqueno? You can see pictures and read more stories about the week at South Main’s blog: http://www.smbc.org/NEWSITE/missionsblogperu.html
Jessy and I would like to thank the Sunday school classes, our friends and our families that sent special treats for us with the team. We have new teaching supplies, clothes for Joshua, baby food, books and a few items to spoil us such as Oil of Olay soap and chunky peanut butter! Thank you all for your blessings and the time you put into these gifts. It was wonderful to receive them and we’re looking forward to using the teaching supplies.
I had the unique opportunity last week to find out what it meant to change the status of my visa. For two full days I traveled around the city to 4 different locations, to some several times, and made numerous bank deposits to pay for fees that kept surfacing. Having waited in long lines before in Chile, I packed my backpack with snacks, water, a book, warm clothing and all of the documents I might ever need. It all came in handy as I spent several hours in the basement of one building (with cold air conditioning) waiting for some paperwork. I found it funny that no one could tell me exactly what I needed to do. Each place I went to they informed me of another task or of another fee to pay. The people alongside me in the lines were all very helpful though. Many Peruvians had been through similar processes various time so they all helped fill in the information gaps for me. I was thankful for that.
We’ve hit the ground running this week with classes starting up again and visa paperwork to complete. Thursday was the equivalent of Labor Day so the children did not come which gave us a chance to catch up. Friday we celebrated Jessica’s birthday with our OSA team and 3 mothers of the area. They prepared her favorite Peruvian dish, aji de gallina. They even bought ice cream, a special treat in Collique where usually it melts before it makes it up the hill from the store. A touching gesture came from several other mothers who wanted to invite us to a home that evening. We ate humble ham sandwiches while sitting in a cramped living room. The food isn’t the purpose of the celebration, is it? It is the meaning behind the actions. We shared great conversation and encouraged one another in the small concrete home high on the hill. It will be a birthday to remember.
Sorry it has been so long since we have blogged last. We are still here and doing well and we have many good friends visiting. The medical team arrived on Saturday night. We have been busy here preparing for them. Organizing rooms for the dentists, the doctors and the pharmacist. It has been great getting to know the team. This is our first medical mission trip and it has been great. I have become the on call dental assitant ( minor squirting of the water into the mouth of patient while the dentist is drilling) and the translator when needed. Usually this would turn my stomach and I honestly have had some small moments with the sight of teeth coming out and blood, but it has been pretty interesting and not too bad once you get used to it. I will say that the hygienists and dentists are pretty good at their Spanish. They won’t need a translator after a while.
Really everything has been going very well with us here. We are having some rough nights in regards to sleeping. Both of us do not feel completely comfortable at night. We always seem to have a not so welcome feeling to either of us that we are trying to confront. We both get up to check the apartment for the bumps we hear in the night. In all cases it has been nothing but we are still concerned. There have been some sketchy things happening in the neighborhood so we know this is the root of our worries. It has been nothing towards us but it still makes your imagination go crazy. The enemy loves to use this to get to us. This one of the phases of adjusting to a new environment and we will get through it with the peace God will give us. We just need to learn to put ALL of our trust in Him. He is our only protector and He will grant us the peace we need. Please pray for peace and comfort during the night.
We are starting to look for other ways to minister to the people of Collique. We both love teaching the children but we also want to work more on Spiritual matters as well. After having to delay the class, M (our social worker) and I are getting prepared to start the mother’s Bible/social program for the mothers of our OSA students. I am really looking forward to this. We will be using many resources but also the MotherWise Bible study as a guide. Please pray that the Lord would have favor on this project.
Joshua is getting big! He is becoming more and more active. He does not like to be held to much any more these days. He falls a lot but he just shakes it off and gets back up continuing on. He seems to be a little man on a mission. He is loving all the attention he is getting. He has a nice size goose egg on his head from a fall he took but he is pretty durable (luckily). He has now said a couple of words “abba and mama”. I don’t think they mean anything to him yet but hopefully mama will soon. We are also working on papa or dada. We’ll see how long it takes him. He has also started clapping his hands. It is very cute. We are working on waving but he doesn’t seem to think it is as important as clapping. He is very funny and has a very bright and big smile. As you can see he is also making quite a big mess for me to clean up. He loves opening drawers and in this case taking all the plastic containers and spices and putting them on the floor. He is pretty mischievous these days, although, he is not too happy when he accidentally crunches his fingers in the drawers. Ouch!
Well we hope that this blog finds everyone well and happy. Good night and God bless….
Here’s our Joshua working on walking, he prefers to walk these days! It will be soon, but when? It is such a fun journey to watch him. It has been a bumpy road, but he is still going strong. Enjoy!
We are sorry it has been a while since we last blogged. We have been pretty busy with our English classes that are now underway. Then our internet went down but now it is back, yeah! Well we had a pretty eventful weekend this past weekend. We had two earthquakes! At first, I did not mind them but now I have apparently changed my outlook. On Saturday, the 29th was our first at 1:40 a.m. Joshua had just woke me to eat not 15 mins. before so we were awake when it began. It was pretty weak, but we still ran to the safest room in the house. After it had stopped, we put Joshua back to bed quickly and went to bed ourselves. The next morning we were actually looking the first quake up on the internet to see where it originated and the whole building began shaking. We quickly grabbed Joshua and ran under the table. It was so loud and powerful. The windows and items on the tables were shaking. I held Joshua tight and Chris lead us in prayer until it stopped. The second earthquake originated off the coast of Lima. It was give or take 20 miles from us as the crow flies. It registered at 5.5 at 7:50 a.m.
We were literally and physically shook up. Chris is doing better but honestly I am not. I am very nervous. Anything I hear that is loud startles me, for example because we are on a hill when the big trucks come around they shake the ground and my stomach immediately get butterflies. I am constantly running escape plans through my head and noises that were once normal everyday life have become triggers (for lack of a better word) for my nervousness. I feel that if we would have had just one I would probably be just fine, but it seems to be difficult for me with this. You think you have a strong faith and then something happens that is just out of your control and you lose it. My prayer is that I would trust God through anything, even earthquakes. Thank you to those of you who have given us certain verses and psalms to read for encouragement. We really need this encouragement, especially when faced with new and exciting situations in our lives; whether good or bad. I have been praying that God would restore my sense of adventure and that he would deliver me through this trying time. Our neighbors are very sweet, one said to me just yesterday. Oh, we hardly ever have earthquakes. They just show up once in a while, there is nothing to worry about. Even though, he did not know it, his words really comforted me. Needless to say, I have become a very light sleeper since entering into mommyhood and now with earthquakes even more. Please pray for me that the Lord would bring me closer to him during this time of difficulty and that he would give me peace. We are blessed that the Lord left us behind his Word to comfort us and to guide us. This has been a saving grace for me. I cannot even imagine life with out it.
A week ago I was having a pretty rough time.Our apartment was a mess with the books and materials we’ve collected to teach with, the personal and work computers were taking up table space and their cords were all over the floor, Joshua was demanding a lot of time, we had too many English students to know what to do with, and our patience was running out.There was always something to clean or laundry to wash or invading insects to attend to.I just didn’t feel like I was accomplishing anything. Then we had our Tuesday morning devotional.
As I shared my frustrations and opened up about how we were struggling, one of our coworkers spoke up.She said that before we came she felt alone.There wasn’t anyone to share with about how God was working in her life.She longed for another coworker with whom she could pray and talk openly about God.She expressed heartfelt gratitude that we were here.Even though we didn’t feel like we were completing physical tasks everyday, she made it clear that our presence and fellowship with her meant a great deal.Then another coworker shared how her eyes were opened to a new way of reading the Bible.She hadn’t paused before to look at the layers of God’s word and to discuss with others how to apply it to life.She was grateful that we were here and willing to be a part of a devotional where she could learn in this way.Jess and I made it clear that it wasn’t us that had brought about any change, but God’s work in all of our lives.
Walking out of that room I felt reassured that we were answering God’s call in relation to being a part of the spiritual growth of our team.Though Jessica and I have encountered our first speed bumps, we heard encouraging words at just the right moment last week.
For the first time someone from the community came to us and shared their problems.A lady who is the mother of an OSA student asked to talk with us one evening.Due to the fact that Joshua wanted to give his opinion as well, we left Jessica to listen and lend a shoulder.They experienced some heartfelt moments together.It was a blessing to be able to be there for one of our neighbors.
We had our first English classes this week.Seventy-four adults came to the planning meetings last week.As with any course, some showed up on the first day of class, and some didn’t.Plus we had a quite a few that heard about it through word of mouth (the best way to communicate in Collique) so they showed up as well.Right now we’re teaching 3 different classes in order to accommodate everyone. Hopefully we’ll be able to combine two of them so we don’t have such a late class on Tuesday and Thursday.This is a student body we are not used to.Some have never finished school; others are continuing their education after high school.Each will have their own challenges, but we pray that we’ll have opportunities to develop relationships and share God’s word with them.Already it has been a great way to learn the names of many.We plan to use an easy translation of the Bible as a teaching text once we are at a level where we can read simple sentences.
Please pray for Jessica and me as we continue to search for a church home.It has taken its toll on our relationship with one another and with God not having a community of believers to worship and grow with.Pray that we will continue to seek Him, no matter what struggles we encounter.We need prayer for several friends that are going through difficult times with debt, children and work.Pray for Senora A., for Senor W., and Senora C.
Well we have had an eventful week in regards to the earth this week. Late Monday night (10:30) Chris was reading in bed and Jess was in the living room, when it got really loud all of a sudden and the apartment started moving slightly. Yes, we felt our first tremor. Actually it was not as big as I am probably making it sound, but it was still pretty exciting. The sensation made my stomach jump. I LOVED IT! Earthquakes probably should not fascinate me that much, but they do. Of course, I have never had to deal with a strong one, that might change my mind later.
Later on this week it rained twice, or should I say sprinkled. Because we are in a desert, we will not get a lot of rain, maybe 4″ a year. The day after, Chris and I went to get bread early and ran into one of the neighbors. He said, “did you see how hard it rained last night?” We just laughed silently remembering the down pours in Houston that our friend has never even seen. I definitely don’t miss the downpours but I do miss the beautiful thunder and lightening storms.
Well it is official, Joshua is on the move. He is getting into a lot of trouble. As I was sweeping one morning, I had him in his walker (a safe zone you would think). Well he decided it would be fun to see how the electrical outlets work. I caught him just before he was going to stick his finger into the socket! What a little boy we have. I frantically searched the house for the socket plugs we had bought. It is amazing how fast they can get into things in a blink of the eye, no? Our next project is hooks for the cupboards. He definitely does not like to stay in one place. You put him down and he is off and running, usually toward a surface that is higher so that he can use it to support himself as he attempts to stand all by himself. It is joy to watch him but he is definitely a handful!
We are having devotionals with our team twice a week and they are getting better and better. One of our coworkers that does not consider herself a Christian has really opened up. You can tell that the Lord is really using our times together to strengthen her faith. She shared that she has started turning more to the Word during times that are very troubling. She told us that she has walked away from the devotionals refreshed and reminded that God loves her and is with her. She is working on building her faith and I pray that during this journey she will truly find Jesus. I really look forward to nurturing a relationship in Christ with her. Since I have arrived we have become good friends and my prayer is that the Lord will use me to bring her closer to Him. I do not know what role I will play, but I praise Him for bringing me to her to share with her. I praise Him for this team. I can see how he is working through us all in different ways to bring her closer to Him. I just leave refreshed knowing that God works in such fascinating and joyful ways. Please pray for her.
On February 28th the students of OSA went on their first field trip. We all hopped into a ‘combi’ (a van used for public transport) and started for the Congreso Nacional del Perú.The ride was long, but we passed the time by singing children’s VBS songs.‘Padre Abraham’ was one we recognized as well as ‘Yo Tengo Gozo.’One young boy stood out as a song leader.He started each new song and sang loudly with joy so others could follow.It was great to see his love for the Lord and his desire to praise him with song.
At the Congreso Nacional the children had a chance to visit both houses of what was once a bicameral congress.There was a group of young soldiers also touring the congress and many news cameras throughout.We think some of the children were most interested though in the pigeon that had flown into the building. Here is a short video of a song you might recognize…
Have you ever had a list of school supplies to buy for your child? Or as a teacher have you ever had to sort through the supplies that the students bring to school the first day? We had a combination of both last week. Thanks to the help from all of OSA’s supporters, OSA was able to buy school supplies for the students in the program as well as those in the lunch-only program. I had never seen so many notebooks, pencils and rolls of papel lustre (some pretty cool stuff we should import). We sorted over 40 bags of supplies for students in 2 grades at 2 different schools. Here is a picture of Jessy’s feet after walking around the dusty floor for hours. We had even swept that morning!
So that morning off we went to several school-supply fairs with multiple school supply lists in hand. After getting estimates for our HUGE list we decided upon one large shop to buy almost all of our supplies. This process takes longer than one expects, so we had a lot of time to get to know people in the office-supply shop and on the street. Jess and I figured that a good way to get to know the security guard at the door was to buy him ice cream. Who can’t resist it on a hot day?! The walls of silence melted away and he shared his story with us while we waited.
Our new friend, Roger, was from a small town in the north called Piura. He was saved when he was 19 and was very active in a Bible study group and church. It was clear he knew Scripture as we spoke. He admitted he uses drugs occasionally and has backslid quite a bit since he has moved to Lima. His wife wants to start a family, but he isn’t ready yet. We talked about how important it is to be a good role model for your children and that using drugs would only lead to negative consequences. I shared my testimony with him, which made it clear that we had many past events in common. At the end he thanked us for talking to him about God and sharing Scripture with him. He said it had been a long time since someone had done that with him. We ended up talking for over an hour. Roger then said he was motivated to find a church in his area in order to be fed spiritually. He also realized the importance of discontinuing his drug use and being honest with his wife. We prayed together at the end and the security guard who opened up because of some ice cream gave us an emotional goodbye.
Let’s pray that our Lord will speak to Roger as he returns to reading Scripture. Pray that He will lead him to a church home where he can grow. We are so thankful for moments like these when the door is open and God practically shoves us through. In our experiences so far, the Peruvian people have been open to listen about why we’re living in Collique and what it means to us. Please pray that we would be obedient to his will for us here.
Thank you for all of your prayers so far. Our health issues have been cured, we’ve adjusted well, Joshua is sleeping so much better, we have opportunities to share the Gospel; it’s been a blessing to us that many of you are faithfully praying for us. Thank you.
