Easter Week

Well, this last week, we have gotten to be a part of some pretty cool stuff. I am praying that God shows Lauren and I individually how we are supposed to contribute to this thing we call church planting. Personally, the idea of teaching a Bible study in Spanish to people who will lead their own groups is something that fills me with a little terror.
I was praying this morning that about this whole thing and kinda worrying about how it would all work out, and I was reminded by a still small voice that the Holy Spirit is going to do this. About an hour later, Lauren walks in with Alvaro and says that they have found another person who has been searching for Christ to fill her life, and who wants to have a house church in her home. Alvaro was able to share his testamony with her, (which, by the way, was the first time he had been able to do that). So, this Sunday, Lord willing, we have house church number that will start. Praise the Lord.
So cool how God works. One person can be praying for something to happen while God is doing that very thing with the other person. All glory to God.
Yesterday was a great day too. We got to go eat with fellow missionaries Shaun, Amanda and Mark. It´s great to talk with no language or culture barriers that we all from time to time experience with being gringos in Peru =) Shaun and Amanda also shared their heart about church planting, and that was so encouraging. We talked about how important it is to disciple as well as be discipled. Please join with us in prayer about both of these aspects. We were also able to go to Mark´s Bible study, which was so encouraging to be a part of. Great to hear the Word in an atmosphere where you can just listen and do not have to teach.
After the Bible study, one of the girls who was about my age came over and sat on the couch next to me and started talking to me. She very quickly got serious, telling me that she was a Catholic, and so for her all of this was a new experience for her. She told me that she had been looking for something to fill her life, and that she had tried partying, alcohol, smoking etc., but those things could never fill it. She told me that it seemed mear coincidence that she had met Mark and he had invited her to this Bible study. She also told me that they had talked, there was something different about him, something that he emitted that was unlike other people that she talked to. We talked about how that was the Holy Spirit, and how we were created to be with God, and that´s why we have that place in our lives that only He can fill. She said that she wanted to God to be in her life, and so we talked about that for a bit. So, please pray for her, that Holy Spirit will move mightly in her life and draw her to Him in a way that she can´t deny it.
Church went well on Easter Sunday, although the numbers weren´t high. We talked about the resurrection because most of the people here don´t focus on the resurrection. There is usually a processional that involves some images that people sometimes end up worshiping...which is not good. Other than that, there doesn´t seem to be much Easter tradition. So, for us, it was a great day. Played volleyball after church and came home and hung out.

Please pray for us this week...we´re doing Easter events with the 15 houses in the orphanage...by events I mean talking about the Lord, watching a movie about the ressurection, doing a craft, etc. Please pray that their hearts will be open and that the houseparents allow us to come in and work with their kids.

Thanks for the prayers!

Life These Days

So getting back into the swing of things has been good. I was given a trip to Germany, and got to go hang out with one of my dear friends before her wedding. She had asked me to be the maid of honor, so it was a ton of fun being able to do that, and even more adventurous in a different country! It was so much fun to spend some time with her and Nathan (the groom) before the wedding, especially since I had never met him. It was such an unexpected blessing to be able to go, and I am so thankful for the miracles my life is filled with. I kept telling Christa that the whole time I was there, it felt like I was in a movie! The scenery is gorgeous (and so are the people =) food is great, and just the laid back country life that I love so much was so refreshing to be around. So Nathan and Christa were happily married (soooo many details I´m leaving out here, so sorry for those of you who want to know more…just ask!) and left for their honeymoon, and I came back to Peru.

Arrived at the airport Monday evening and Nicchola (our taxi driver and second dad) picked me up. Keep in mind, when I had left, we had just moved and were still in the process of getting moved in, buying furniture, appliances, etc. Amanda (one of our amazing gringa ¨Peruvian¨ friends =) and Lauren had been hanging out while I was gone, and poor Amanda had already helped move us when I left in December, so moving again was probably not the first thing on her list. Anyways, Lauren had told me that they really hadn´t gotten much done on the house while I had been gone, so I was ready to get to work when I got back. I was soooo tired from the 12 or 13 hour flights, so when I got back, I was expecting the house to be a mess, but just wanted some clean sheets and a chance to pass out. Well, I got way more than that when I walked in. Turns out, Lauren and Amanda had worked their butts off to not only finish unpacking, but get custom doors made and installed for the bathroom, our room, guest room and kitchen, pick up and hang custom made curtains, paint, find new sofa cushions, get pillows made, install the kitchen, create an play by play list of EVERYTHING that is in the supply room (down to the last pencil lol ), organize a library in the living room, get the water tank working, and a whole ton of other stuff....even down to buying Tupperware. I could not have asked for a better gift. These girls are amazing. Lauren wrote the sweetest letter…so humbling. That girl is an example of generosity, organization, love, compassion, and a whole lot of other things. I am so blessed to have her as a ministry partner. And Amanda? Incredible. What married woman gives up a week of time from her ministry and husband to come help two crazy girls move and organize their stuff? For the second time? And then be there to rejoice with you when you open the door. Oh, yeah, did I mention that when I opened the door to the house, everything was ready, clean and organized, they had baked cookies and cakes, blown up balloons, and Lauren´s mom even got to be there on skype. So cool.

So that night we went to eat at Chili´s to celebrate. Nicchola of course came with us (he had been in on the whole thing =) and it was his first time to go to Chilis. So yummm.

So then, Tuesday was spend getting organized, going grocery shopping, catching up on Skype, and all of that good stuff.

Yesterday we started ministry stuff again, which was so great. I was kinda not sure about everything, cause we really hadn´t started doing ministry stuff when I left, and since our life and vision is now training people to be church leaders, but God is always faithful.

So Alvaro met up with us and we went to go look for a map of the city so that we can plan out where we need to try to establish house churches. Well, it seems that nothing is ever easy here. We went to the municipalidad (municipality) and asked for a map and apparently they can´t give out maps because the people receiving it might be terrorists. Not like you can just go buy a map. So here we are sitting in this government office taking pictures of this map up on the wall to try to make copies of it…a map that doesn´t even have our house on it. It´s a big white spot. Oh well. Can you say ghetto. This is our life. =)

Anyways, the cool part of the day happened while we were waiting for the director to show up to the municipalidad, Lauren wanted to get a little snack from the market, so I went with her. While we were there, we started talking to some teenage girls and then as we walked out, there were a group of kids that were playing in the street. Lauren (baller she is) walks right up to them and is like ¨Hey ya wanna learn a new game?¨ And right there she starts playing the hand game (for those of you who don´t know, it´s a game that explains the gospel while playing a clapping game). So, as we kept going, before we knew it, kids were coming from all over and so were the adults. We must have had about 15 or 20 kids there playing this game, singing songs about Jesus and hearing the gospel. Then some policeman walk by, and we´re thinking oh great…this looks like a riot maybe…we could get in trouble for this. But. No. They just looked at us, hung around to hear what we were saying, and then continued on. Sweet. I had to leave to go help out with the map situation, but Lauren stayed a few minutes longer and we got invited to come hang out there in the street with the kids. I think a lady that owns a store said that we could come and do a Bible study or whatever at her store…on top of that, Lauren met a Christian pastor (which is almost unheard of here) and he invited us to his church. Sweet stuff.

So we headed back to the municipalidad and finally they were able to give us a copy of the maps (guess we passed the non terrorist test) haaha.

Sitting on the front steps...waiting for the director to come back to the municipality so we could get the map...

Playing with some kids in the street...teaching them the hand game.

new friends

Then after that, we went to the grocery store to go shopping for Nicchola´s birthday. We are in the process of making Lomo Saltado (one of my favorite Peruvian dishes...and I have included the recepie at the bottom for all of you adventurous ones =). We had such a great day yesterday. While it´s great to have a wonderful dad that is states side, God has also given me two father like figures in Alvaro and Nicchola. They encourage us and watch out for us and really go out of their way to make sure we are okay.

Here are some pics.

Lomo Saltado

1 (16 ounce) package frozen French fries

vegetable oil as needed

1 pound beef tri tip, sliced 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick

salt and pepper to taste

1 large onion, sliced into strips

3 large tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and sliced into strips

1 yellow chili pepper (preferably Peruvian aji amarillo)

1/4 cup distilled white vinegar

1 dash soy sauce to taste

2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Aside, prepare 4-6 servings of rice (add a bit of garlic and salt for true Peruvian flavor) =)

Directions

1.Prepare the bag of French fries according to package directions.

2.While the French fries are cooking, heat the oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat. Season the sliced meat with salt and pepper to taste. Fry the meat until just cooked, and the juices begin to release. Remove the meat from the frying pan, then cook the onions, with additional oil if needed, until they are transparent. Stir in the tomato and aji amarillo; cook until the tomato softens. Pour in the vinegar and soy sauce, add the French fries, cover, and cook until the beef is done, about 3 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper, and sprinkle with chopped parsley. Serve over steaming white rice.

Thursday, April 7, 2011

God is so good to me. He loves me and takes care of me better than anyone ever could. He already knows my hearts and desires and He never has to guess what those are. I am overwhelmed by His love. By his compassion.  That he cared enough to make us in His image. Incredible to me.

Well, so much has happened since I last wrote. We ended up renting the second floor of a house Lauren and Nicchola (our taxi driver and Peruvian dad) found about a two weeks ago.  It has been so exciting and incredible to be able to have a place that is our own. The family we were staying with was so hospitable and it was hard to leave. This new place, however is more central to where we will be working and whom we will be working with. So, this week has been about unpacking, shopping for furniture and appliances, etc. Nicchola has been so sweet to come over and do some of the handy man stuff. 

This house is amazing and much more than some Peruvian houses in this area but there are still some things I am still getting used to or find a little weird. The house was constructed with cement walls and there are different rooms, however there are not doors. Peruvian houses are usually pretty open and either have open windows or parts of the house where there is no roof. Our laundry room does not have a roof, but it`s great for the ¨drying room¨ for the house since clothes dryers are not common here and can be pretty pricey. We do have electricity and water until 8 at night, and then the region turns the water off. We usually have electricity constantly.  If you live at the top of the hill, you may have water until later or possibly the whole night, but we live at the bottom, so we don´t =).  Unfortunately, we didn´t learn that until after we had moved in, of course. Oh well.  Nicchola hooked up an electric hot water heater to our shower, so we can have hot showers (don´t worry, electric shower heaters are common here), however, I discovered the other day that if I touch the metal shampoo holder that we put on the shower head, it is an electricity conductor and will yield a small shocking sensation to a human finger =). So, we gotta get that fixed.

It is also kinda funny because the washing machine has a tube where the dirty water comes out, and you are just supposed to leave the tube in a nearby sink so that when the washer needs to drain out the dirty water, it just sucks it out and throws it into the sink. We had to ask Nicchola how the washing machine works. Never thought at 25 Id have to ask that question. Ha.

It has been a lot of work getting this house together, but it has also been a lot of fun. Lauren is really good at organizing things, and I am decent at putting stuff together and getting the mechanical stuff done. I got a new set of tools which has been amazing, so I have been putting those to good use. Because all of our walls are cement, we have to drill a hole in the cement in order to hang anything. Hey, I guess it´s more secure in case of earthquakes right?? Mom, don´t freak out.  =)

Anyways, God has been so merciful to us. It´s so crazy to me that God not only gives us the things we need, but also knows the things we desire and if those things glorify His name, His gives us that too. When I went back to the States, I started thinking about what my life would be like if I lived back in the states it would probably be a lot like it was before I left for Peru.  I´d probably be an apartment or living with my parents and be doing this or that or whatever. The Lord saw those thoughts (as He sees all of our thoughts) and gave me the best of what would have in the states, but in a place where my heart truly is….here.  Lauren and I now have a place we can really call our own for now and where we can really relax. Even the neighborhood we live in is great. We have fried chicken restaurant 1 min away and a sweet open air Ventanilla version of Chinese dine in or take out (Chifa, aeropuerto and Wonton soup? Hello. Yes. ). We can buy cokes and put minutes on our phone at a store that is 2 minutes away. Grocery store and market is 15 or 20 minutes away on combi. Everything a lot more central.  God is so so good to us.

Yesterday, Lauren and I met with pastor Robert of Camino de Vida, a very influential church in Lima and Peru, and he talked about so many encouraging and uplifting things.  Pastor Robert is from California, but has been in Peru for 30 years doing missions and accidentally founded a church as he says. So great. He says this because he talked about just following the little steps God has for you now. He also came to Peru when he was about our age and it was so cool to hear him and his family´s story. They were one of the few families that stayed here during the political unrest in the late 80s and early 90s. For more info on the political unrest during that time, google ¨Shining Path.¨ He said that 7 men in his church were killed and that he had had several attempted kidnappings and several death threats. I have so much respect for him because he stayed when it was not easy and he chose to follow God in something that others had given up on:  reaching the youth of Peru for Christ. This passion started with a band named VOMIT getting saved and then going out and ministering to the youth of Peru. Out of this grew the church Camino de Vida. Such a cool story. If you want to know more about them, check out their website. www.cdvenvivo.com  Anyways, I hope that we will be able to be more involved in that church. It is 2 to 3 hours away, depending on traffic and mode of transportation, so maybe something we are only able to do every other week or something. Anyways, super excited about this.

One of the things Pastor Robert was talking about during the meeting that really encouraged Lauren and I was about making a life here.  It was the first time I had heard an American encourage me or remind me that making a life here is okay. But, actually, when I think about it, I think most of my close family and friends already suspected I´d be here for a while. I´m going to be honest, I think being here has cost me some friendships and maybe even a couple possible relationships.  But I have made hundreds of friendships here with people who have impacted my life greatly, and I have no doubt that if I am supposed to be with a guy, God will put us in each other’s paths at the right time.  God has made it evident that this is where He wants me right now, and this is my home for now. It´s not how I thought my life would be when I was younger. I so many ways, it´s even better =).

I am so glad that the Lord did not send me here by myself. Lauren and I were talking about that yesterday. I would not do well, and she told me the same thing about herself. So, while we both would like to be married one day to amazing Godly men, the sweet friendship that God has given Lauren and I is something that I hope is always there.  She is such an amazing woman of God.

Lauren and I at Subway...finally, Subway! You made it to Peru...

So, this is a little taste of what life has been like for the past week or so. Today consists of cleaning and organizing and packing to go to Germany. One of my sweet sweet friends from Texas who lives in Germany is getting married is paying for me to come out there and be the maid of honor in her wedding. So, please pray for traveling mercies and that God will protect Lauren and draw us both closer to Him during this time.

Much love.

Nancy

A Cord of Three... March 31, 2011

A cord of three is not easily broken.

It´s so cool to look back and see God working things out that you could never do. Really, it´s incredible. I am blown away. So, specifics.

I honestly thought this week would be a challenge because it is the first week of having a changed vision and still figuring out what all that vision entails. Lauren and I were talking about how different this year has been even so far…last year,  we were teaching 5 or six grades per week, working in 5 outside schools, doing 8 or 9 house bible studies with the kids in the community, and then house church on the weekends. Every moment that we did have free, we always felt guilty for not doing something else, because when you live with 800 kids, there is always something else that needs to be done.

This year, we don´t live in the orphanage. We are not teachers, but house planters. We are learning the value of spending the time praying and in the Word before we go out. Lots of changes, and change is not always easy.

So Monday, we stayed in Lima and took care of some shopping for the house. You know, kitchen utensils, sheets, pillows, stuff for the bathroom, etc. It´s kinda weird for me, because this is the second time in about three years that I have bought stuff to ¨live on my own¨...looking back, if you would have told me three years later I would be here living, doing this, part of me would have thought you were crazy, and the other part would have thought…¨FINALLY!!¨=)

So that was Monday. Tuesday, I spent a lot of time working on my monthly newsletter that I will be sending out soon (send me your email if you would like to be added to the list. (lane.nancy@sbcglobal.net) Then I headed over to Alvaro´s house to meet up with him and Lauren.

For those of you who don´t know, Alvaro was the high school religion teacher at the orphanage were we taught last year. Alvaro was a Catholic when we first met over a year ago. He and Lauren started meeting for weekly discussions over the Bible in about June of last year, and through much prayer, tears, arguing, and the Holy Spirit drawing Alvaro to Himself, Alvaro became a follower of Jesus Christ in October of last year. The Lord revealed Himself to Alvaro while he was in his house one day and he surrendered His life to Christ. I don´t know if I´ve mentioned Alvaro´s story before, but if you don´t know, it´s really really interesting and really funny.

Alvaro grew up in Peru and at a young age decided to begin to study to be a Catholic monk. He went to school, and studied and labored years to become a monk. However, love changed his mind when he fell for a girl who was studying to be a nun. So the two of them left the school to start their lives together. They couldn´t get married within the Catholic church, because imagine how that would look….a monk and a nun getting married. Fantastic. So in reality, I guess they are common law now or something…not really sure. Anyways, they now have two precious kids of their own and a whole bunch more that live with them. Alvaro had been a high school teacher for years, teaching history, Catholic religion, and I think a few other things. 

So, when he became a Christian, it was definitely a work of the Holy Spirit, because this was a man with 40 plus years of Catholic upbringing, teaching, doctrine, etc. Maybe he would have been the equivalent of one of the religious leaders in the Old Testament because of how much he knew about the Bible and stuff, but the relationship with Christ was not there.

Anyways, so these last 5 or 6 months of watching him grow as a follower of Christ have been incredible to watch. But, the pinnacle so far for me, was what happened on Tuesday night. We had been talking about church planting with Alvaro (he is also working with us as a part of our team several days a week) and so he went out this last weekend and bought video about the lives of Peter and Paul and about the early church. Let me tell you, it was SOOO good. Tuesday night we watched it. It was such a sweet moment too, because Alvaro made pan roasted popcorn for us and the other kids that live with him and his family. We were sitting in the living room eating our little bags or Tupperware dishes of popcorn watching a movie about the lives of Peter and Paul. A moment I hope I never forget.

Anyways, after the movie finished, we were talking, and Alvaro started talking about how important the Holy Spirit is in one´s ministry. He was talking about how none of this can be accomplished without prayer and the Holy Spirit. We talked about our vision to see the little districts surrounding us come to Christ. For the first time since we´ve been here, all three of us were exactly on the same page. Lauren and I are sitting there watching a man who just became a Christian a few months ago talking about a ministry to reach the city and develop house churches.  A man who was not a Christians year ago is now encouraging and uplifting us with his enthusiasm and vision. This was truly an act of the Holy Spirit. Forget the book…that was only the tool God used to turn my heart. Plus Alvaro didn´t even read the book. Only the Holy Spirit could have brought all three of us together in perfect agreement that night, with a passion to share intentionally plant ourselves in different parts of Ventanilla and ask God to raise up house churches.

We all three prayed together, and it´s crazy, because although the prayer time was so simple, with each of us praying short, direct prayers, Alvaro said it was the best prayer time he´d ever had. It lasted no longer than about 6 or 7 minutes. Because he´d said recited  or repeated prayers his whole life, I guess spontaneous prayer was something that he had not experienced. It is so cool to have the opportunity to sit beside a new believer and watch them discover the joys of salvation and experience that same joy over again.

Yesterday, Wednesday, was a really good day. We went to take hot showers (never been so thankful for hot water in all my life as I have this last year!!) and then we headed over to Alvaro´s house to go with him to find a map of the city so we could be strategic! =) Before we headed out, we went by our house to see how the floors were coming along. It looked really good! They finished up yesterday, and the cement should be dry in a day and we should be able to move in this weekend. 

Anyways, we ended up talking to the owner (who lives in the first floor right underneath us). She is a widow who recently lost her 25 year old daughter who died of a brain aneurism, and is now taking care of her 2 year old granddaughter who now does not have a mom. Anyways, we ended up staying hours listening to this woman´s story. It was really cool because Alvaro was able to talk to her about what it means to completely follow Christ. She is at a very critical point in her life. She is at the crossroads of Catholism and following Christ.

So, by the time we got done talking to her, it was pretty late, so we went to the district to see if we could find a map, but to no avail =(. Oh well. This weekend.

We ended up buying pizza for Alvaro´s kids and taking it back to his house and having a pizza party while listening to Hillsong in Spanish. For about half of them, it was their first time to eat pizza. They were so cute sitting there- these little chicito kids with their big ol slices of pizza and little glass of inca cola. Again, another memory I never want to forget. After dinner, we just hung out with the kids and did puzzles with them and practiced English with them. Alvaro decided he wanted to give out the rubber arrow bracelets that we have, so Lauren explained the gospel to them and gave them each one.  So precious to hear the gospel explained back to you by an enthusiastic 7 year old who has just heard it moments before as they point to each one of the symbols on their bracelet. =) Here are some pics

Alvaro and his son.

So, to sum things up, please be praying for Alvaro´s family. So far, I think Alvaro is the only one who has given his life completely to the Lord. He has such an influence on his family. Please pray for his wife that she will come to know the Lord. She is so precious and I love her so much. Please pray that she will not feel left out of what is going on, but that the Holy Spirit will draw her heart in His timing.

Please pray for Alvaro, and all of the ministries that God has him in right now. Please pray that he will be able to have time alone with the Lord, to grow, and that God would continue to speak to him and show him many things.

Irene and their two kids.

Also, please pray for Richard. He is a little boy that is 11 years old. I met him two nights ago when I was crossing the bridge on my way back home. Richard cleans the bridge over the highway each night. I´ve seen him and talked to him 2 nights in a row. Please pray that God draws his heart to himself and that he will become a follower of Christ.

Please pray for Sandra, a lady who we met at the pizza place were we got pizza yesterday. She has three boys, 13,11 and 8. She told me she was a Christian, and would be open to having a Bible study in her home. She is supposed to call me.

Please pray for Sarah. We met her last weekend after church service we went to at Camino de Vida. She lives in Pachacutec, which is very near where we currently live. She is not a Christian, but I believe God is working in her heart. 

Today we are going to the community (orphanage) to talk to Miguel about being able to teach Bible studies, something similar to what we did last year. I also need to tell him that I will not be teaching English there this year. Please pray for grace, wisdom, opened doors, softened hearts, and truth.

Our team, (Lauren, Alvaro and myself) are all reading through the book of Acts. Please pray that God gives us a clearer vision and specifics and as we learn as much as we can from this book.

Peace, love, grace and joy!

Nancy