Hola!
After five days of travel, two nights in hostels, and more than sixty hours on a bus I arrived safely with the rest of my team in Cusco Peru last Tuesday! We are already diving into our new ministry and have started to see God at work. This month our team is being hosted by a Christian couple Steve and Araceli. Steve is local pastor and he and his family have been involved in this community for decades. Roughly two years ago, they took over operations and full ownership of The Meeting Place Café. The Meeting Place Café partners with several programs in the community geared to spread God’s love and help the less fortunate. %100 of the proceeds from The Meeting Place are put back into these programs. This month our team is split into three pairs. Luis and Dara as well as Cal and Darlin are working at separate after school programs helping children with their homework, doing arts and crafts, and pouring out love onto some of Cusco’s smallest citizens. This leaves Cristen and I to volunteer at the Café greeting droves of tourists, serving tables and, making drinks. Though I’ve only had a few short shifts, it’s been awesome to be able to share with a couple customers who I am, why I am volunteering, and what God has been showing me on this amazing journey!
God has shown me some amazing things in just two short months. I have witnessed miracles. I have seen demons cast out, supernatural healing, and people filled with the Holy Spirit as they dedicate their lives to Christ. I sometimes find it hard to put these events into words and truly convey the awesomeness of what God has done. I have found at times when I have tried to share these events with friends, I am met with apprehension, confusion, or doubt. I haven’t been met with negativity. I love my friends and they love me, but at times it seems that they struggle to wrap their heads around what I am trying to share with them. When I shared with a friend that “A demon possessed person was writhing around as if they were having a seizure” and my friend skeptically responds “You mean they were having a seizure?” I didn’t really know how to further the conversation. I’m not sharing this to condemn my friend. I myself have struggled with skepticism for much of my life.
Growing up, I loved science and the scientific theory. Science is great but the scientific theory trained me to be skeptical and try to poke holes in things to see if they still held water. And though I have always considered myself a believer, at times, this mindset has been a real challenge to my faith. It caused me to put God in a box. I put walls and limitations on what I thought He was capable of, and where I thought he would show up. When I first applied for the World Race I had this same mindset. I knew that I wanted to serve, I knew that God was calling me to go, but I didn’t have a clue where. The World Race seemed like a good fit. It would give me an opportunity to see eleven different countries, work with eleven different missions, and hopefully find a place where I felt he was calling me long term. I saw this as a stepping stone to where I would have a true impact. After all, how was I supposed to impact others’ lives in just one short month.
Coming into The World Race I was of the mindset that short term missions were good but I didn’t really believe they had a long-term impact. Once again, I was putting God in a box. I have spoken with others that thought short term missions were even harmful in ways. It took a real change of heart and a change of motives for me to see the truth. If the goal is community development and long term sustainability, then short term missions may not be the best fit. (I understand the value of teaching a man to fish rather than giving a man a fish.) However, if the goal is spreading God’s love to the nations then there is no reason that that can’t happen in one week, one afternoon, or even a single moment. For me to change my perspective, I had to understand that I am not the one here to impact others in just one short month. God is! I do think we have a responsibility. Though He is more than capable of… well… anything, he wants us to be a part of it. If I am no longer trying to be the change myself but simply trying to be present, listen for his voice, and inviting God into the situation, anything is now possible! It only takes an instant for God to step in and change someone’s life. Last month I saw just that.
A group of us were standing in line at a bus stop when Austin noticed a business man with a severe limp coming down the platform. After the man, had made his way to the front of the line, Austin asked “did you see that?” Luis and I, who had not noticed the man until this point shrugged and one of us replied “It’s nothing new people cut all the time.” Austin corrected us and explained that the man was limping. He then asked if we would come with him to pray for the man. We approached him and asked him if he was okay. There was a language barrier but from my understanding, he had recently had surgery on his foot and he was in excruciating pain. The surgery had not worked and the doctors were planning a second surgery to correct the issue. The three of us prayed for him and asked for healing. He still limped as he got onto the bus but he assured us that he was in less pain. Luis continued to talk to him as he rode with us on the bus. He learned more about the man, his family, and prayed for him again before we all got off together. As our group crossed the street we were astonished to see this man not limping to the next platform but running full speed, uninhibited to catch his next bus! We didn’t heal this man, God did. We simply prayed big prayers and had faith that He would answer. God healed this man in moments and this man’s life was changed.
My challenge for each of you, is something I have been working on myself. Pray big prayers and don’t put limitations on what you think God is capable of or how you think he will answer. He loves us. We are his children. He is simply waiting for us to ask boldly and have faith that he will answer. In my last blog, I asked for donations. My fundraising deadline was just days away and I didn’t have a clue how I was going to reach it. I didn’t have faith that God was going to come through and that He was going to provide in a timeframe that I perceived as too short for Him. God did show up. I received donations that I wasn’t planning on. Though I did not reach my goal, those donations were a sign of God’s faithfulness to me. I am still nearly $2,000 away from reaching that deadline that is now past due. I am praying big prayers that He will provide that money before I leave for Africa on the 7th of next month. I have faith that He will answer.
Thank you once again to all of you who have supported me with kind words of encouragement, financially, and with prayer. Another way you can support me is to share my blog. If you know of any friends who would be interested in where God is taking me, how He is already changing lives, or donating, please don’t hesitate to share.
Love,
Caleb
