Well, we arrived here in Bolivia on February 28 and spent most of the day driving along Death Road to get to our ministry site for the month here in Caranavi. Death Road weaves through the mountains and is mostly safe now, except for one portion several miles long that has not yet been modernized with railings or paved road. As we drove over that portion of the road we came sometimes within inches of the edge, and had the muddy road given way at all, we might have a had a difficult time keeping that bus from falling off the edge of the mountain into the river far below us. But we made it safely here to Caranavi to our host home with Paul and Jay at Radio TV Caranavi.
My hips were quite painful all last month from sleeping on the ground, but now I have a bed to sleep on, and the pain is completely gone. We get delicious food to eat every day, sometimes Bolivian but mostly American meals with a Bolivian twist.
We have worked pretty hard. The first few days had us working to build up a washed-out road, which involved putting hundreds of large rocks in cages made of chain-link. Then another few days were spent cleaning up all the cut-down trees in a lot next to the radio and then leveling the ground with a back hoe. There were also a few hours of planting shrubs to border the property. At the radio/tv station, we have been helping out with doing inventory, transferring VHS to DVD, converting CDs to MP3 on their computer system, staining/varnishing furniture, and even washing walls.
Every Saturday we get to help out with a children’s program, just sharing the love of Jesus. Crisco Unico was interviewed on the radio to announce the different Saturday outreaches. We also appeared in a couple little commercials in Caranavi tv announcing the programs. Yay! We’re famous in Bolivia now! For the children’s program we get to perform songs, do sketches, and perform the puppet show we created in the DR.
I got to lead a small devotion for the workers at the radio station. I spoke about running the race the Lord has set before us (Hebrews 12:1-2). I decided to use it as an opportunity to practice some Spanish. I spent the evening before writing it all down in Spanish, without a dictionary or any help with grammar. So, it was definitely some very broken Spanish that came out of me that morning. It definitely helps with my learning process and confidence in speaking with people, even if it’s terrible.
A phrase that is frequently coming up in my team is “Choose Joy.” You see, not everyone feels especially useful or effective when they are carrying rocks or scrubbing walls or interacting with children. It can be frustrating to look at what you are doing and feel like it doesn’t make a difference. Thus, we encourage one another to choose joy no matter the circumstance because God is still present, still working in our situation, still sovereign, still loving us, still using us, even when we don’t see it. And the attitude we choose influences our perspective and effectiveness in those times. I want to encourage you that the choices you make have an impact. So, choose joy when you feel useless. Choose joy when you don’t understand why you are where you are. Choose joy in the midst of monotony or difficulty or frustration or pain. “Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I say Rejoice!” (Philippians 4:4).
