From the moment we arrived at the border (and proceeded to wait 4 hours in line at immigration) it became clear that the Lord would be working on our patience and flexibility during month 3 in Peru.
The entire squad of 58 people then spent the whole afternoon into the evening that day on a curb in the border town of Tumbes trying to figure out how to get 8 teams to their respective ministry locations throughout the country.
Our large group caught the eye of the Tourism Police, who had implored us to relocate, since the area we were in was known for being unsafe. With all of us and baggage in tow, we were an easy target and we knew it, but we had no plan, nowhere to go and no way to get food or water, while sitting in the blazing sun all day.
As the sun started to set, the area became increasingly dangerous and it was clear we weren’t finding travel arrangements that night. We were exhausted, sun burned and thirsty and we were running out of options. Thankfully, at the 11th hour, we found a hostel in Tumbes with enough room for all of us that was still in our budget with the help of the Tourism Police.
Nice guys! They even gave us a lift to the hostel! Finally a place to rest our heads for the night.
4 days later we had all arrived safely to our respective ministry locations throughout Peru, just as unseasonably heavy rains started to blanket the country. They caused massive flooding and mudslides throughout the coastal areas and washed away roads, bridges, and homes.
The team I was staying with in Lima, felt the effects immediately. The city’s water filtration system flooded causing them to shut off the water city-wide. Our attempts to aid in the relief efforts were blocked several times with limited supplies and impassable roads/bridges.
We did finally get the chance to make it to a village outside the city to aid in the relief efforts. The scene was devastating and brought me to tears as I walked past deserted homes and stood on the river bank watching the raging muddied waters rush past me, which had already taken homes, businesses and lives. (*see video clip at the end of this blog!)
In that moment, on the river bank, through tears, all we could do was pray.
We prayed for the children and young babies who don’t understand what is happening, who are helpless and should never have to live through conditions that leave them hungry and thirsty and without shelter.
We prayed for the women who are struggling to care for their families and don’t know when they can feed their children next.
We prayed for the men who have worked hard to provide for themselves and their loved ones only to have everything swept away in an instant.
We prayed for the elders who have a difficult time getting around even without the new challenges of the mud and debris and that they would not feel abandoned or forgotten.
We prayed for hope for Lima and all of Peru as they prepared for even more rain and flooding that was expected to come in the following week. We prayed that through all of this, they will lean on God and find strength in Him to pick up the pieces and continue to move forward.
As we made our way home that night I was so emotionally and physically exhausted. All I wanted was to get out of my dirty, sweaty clothes and take a shower, but alas, upon arrival at our ministry location, the water was still off.
As I sat there, feeling defeated, I started reflecting on the day and it struck me, an interesting dichotomy of circumstances – we were facing a water crisis: too much and not enough at the same time.
Then the Lord spoke to me:
“This is often the case. We find ourselves surrounded by the things we thought we wanted, but when we really examine our circumstances, the thing we thought we wanted when found in excess, has the power to harm us, and we realize we are missing the thing we actually need.”
In this case, the country is facing more than 10 times its normal rainfall, but this surplus is causing so much destruction and is actually hindering our drinking water.
It’s hard to reconcile the two when in the morning you’re standing on a flooded river bank, but that same afternoon you’re in line at the grocery store buying your allotted 10L of drinking water per household at a 500% markup.
The water our team was able to get from the grocery store.
Then the Lord nudged me again… “Tell them about my Living water.”
I swear I can picture Him smiling at me as He elbows me and reminds me of His word.
Jesus said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” John 4:13-14
In the midst of it all, He is always bringing me back to the truth and reminding me of what is most important.
I believe I was created by a loving, Heavenly Father, who desires to have an intimate relationship with me and with each and every one of His beloved children with the goal of reconciling us all back to Him and having eternal life with Him in Heaven. Luke 15:11-32
I believe in Jesus when He said “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” John 14:6.
That is the reason I’m even here –
in Lima, Peru
during the country’s worst natural disaster in over 3 decades.
I’m here to tell His children who are lost,
about a Father that loves them so much!
He loves them so much, “He sent His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16.
And He can’t wait any longer to tell them! He doesn’t even wait for them to maybe, hopefully, one day wander back to Him. He actively goes out searching for them! He uses ordinary people like you and me to send out and share this good news with the people He puts in our path! Whether it’s a colleague at work, the barista you see every morning making your coffee, or the people we’re delivering water to who are displaced by the flooding and mudslides of Peru. They all need to hear about the hope we’ve found in Jesus.
“For ‘everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’ How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, ‘How beautiful are the feet of those who bring the good news!’” Romans 10:13-15.
I’m so blessed to be the hands and feet of Jesus at this time, in this country, during this crisis.
Too much and not enough.
But I know this to be true… He is my portion. And He is enough for me.
Financial Update: Thank you all for your prayers and support! I still need to raise $2,471 to be fully funded. Would you consider making a tax deductible donation? Any amount will help. Thank you!
