My response to the unexpected that I’ve come to expect while on this journey. The Lord has brought me through some crazy experiences while in Peru and as is typical for me in stress inducing situations I have laughed my head off while simultaneously crying.
When leaving the mountains of Negritos, we were riding in an old pick-up truck, taking the curves at fast speeds on some very bumpy dirt roads. To avoid all the potholes, the driver was skirting the edges which happened to give us a glimpse of a potential plummet off the side of the mountain. Not only was it raining but the windows were fogged up and every few minutes the passenger up front would wipe it off in front of the driver’s face. Mary had a pack of tissues that they kept asking to use. At one point she looked at me and said “I was planning to use those for travel days but more important than wiping my butt it’d be good to be alive!” Then the truck had difficulty ascending the steep road so we were asked to get out and push the truck up the mountain. My response “Sure!” Afterwards Mary and I just kept praying. While laughing I said the only thing that would be worse is if it was also dark out. Sure enough night came but by then we were exhausted from clenching our teeth for a couple hours so we gave in to the ride of our life.
It was late one afternoon when Mary and I set off to get a taxi to come back to the house to pick up the rest of the team and then head into town. We were lectured by Mamacita before leaving, she would have rather we called the Pastor for a ride than getting a cab but we just told her everything would be fine because we had taken the taxis before. We walked several blocks to where the dirt streets of the neighborhood meet the paved roads but there weren’t any taxis so we kept walking. It started to get later and we had been warned not to be out walking around at night. I suggested we give up and head home but as we walked in the direction we thought home was we weren’t recognizing any of the stray dogs we were used to. Darkness settled in and some very interesting people came out on the streets. We were followed by a pregnant woman, who was probably looking to pickpocket because she walked right into me, brushing past my jacket. There is no more uncomfortable feeling than to know you are lost in a foreign country with barely any local language skills. The taxis finally came out for the evening but the four we approached refused to take us. They were either headed to one of the plazas in town, didn’t know the address or found it crazy we wanted a ride to another location within what would be considered walking distance. In my head there was a little conversation going with God, “Really, Lord, getting lost at night?” to which He responded “Sure!” then said “What are you looking for?” I replied “Home” He said “Look for me.” Mary and I finally stopped wandering at a restaurant, went inside, called our host home and then settled in to wait for our ride. I looked around and there were pictures of Jesus all over the restaurant. “Found ya!” Then Home came to us, a truck full of six people all expressing concern, but more importantly love and joy over finding us.
The other day I was asked two hours before dinner to provide the sermon for the service that evening. This would also have to be presented in Spanish. I responded “Sure!” Not! After a little hissy fit of hesitancy, I actually went upstairs to a room across from the chickens and cried. At training camp I heard stories about the last minute requests for sermons and it terrified me. Of course that would be what the Lord would ask me to do in my first month. After my cry I finally got that sure out of my mouth and prayed for direction. I read my devotional for the day, I reviewed some notes and started writing. Yes, I fumbled my way through the translation but afterwards I received a touching compliment that it was beautiful and provided great direction.
It’s a really good thing I got to practice my “sure!” response because when asked to share my testimony in front of a camera for a local television program I already knew what to say. Although intimidating, God had demonstrated His faithfulness in taking me through the hard places and this time I met the challenge with enthusiasm. I also remembered what had been shared with me at training camp, that my testimony would reach hundreds if not thousands. The Lord certainly delivered on that promise. The redemption of Christ and the hope that comes with resurrected life is soon to reach the airwaves on the wings of this starling’s story.
