With only two days left in Peru, my mind is reflecting specifically on the people I have met in this month. The people of Peru and the people simply visiting Peru; either way, Peru has given me many new friendships and my heart beams just thinking about how thankful I am!!!!
Jessica & Aine:
Two new friends from the States that I met after doing a listening prayer in the plaza. I asked the Lord who He wanted me to meet that day and He showed me a blonde girl around my age that I should seek out friendship with. My friend, Alyssa, and I went out and we’re talking to people, praying, and sharing stories. We ended up in Starbucks (wasnt sure if it was a calling from God or the chocolate muffins). As we walked in, I prayed for God to give us some English speaking friends, and then BAM, He answered all the prayers leading up to this. We saw Jessica, a sweet blonde girl around my age, and her friend Aine. We went to talk to them and WOW they speak English- thanks God!!
Jessica and Aine are in Cusco for 5 weeks volunteering at a special needs orphanage, Missionaries of Charity. Through this friendship, we got to keep up throughout the week and Catie Collins and I got to go to this orphanage. This organization is run solely by volunteers, so the work they are doing here for 5 weeks is incredibly impactful. There are many special needs students here that need more love and attention than they are able to recieve without these volunteers. If you’re able, check out this mission- the need is there! It was incredibly eye opening to the need that there is right outside of the plaza of Cusco. I am so impressed with these new friends and their hearts to serve these kiddos even in more difficult situations.
This friendship was so fun for me in Cusco! I am encouraged by their willingness to serve and see God in all circumstances.
Shandra:
A friendship made in a pizza restaurant, where all good things happen. Some teammates and I were having lunch and talking about our upcoming trip at the time to Machu Picchu. Shandra heard us and asked us questions about how we were traveling to Machu Picchu, since she was planning her trip. Wow- English again!!! Thanks God! Shandra is also from the States, and we invited her to eat with us and we could explain our travel plans to her. She explained that it was her birthday and she really wanted to take a picture with a llama, so we promised we would take her to the llamas after lunch. We asked her about her birthday trip to Peru and she told us how the Lord specifically called her to Peru. About a year ago, she had a dream of being on a mountain filled with colors, and a plane ticket. Later on, she was planning her birthday trip to be to Ecuador, and then on Instagram she saw a photo of Rainbow Mountain- a sight in Peru!!! She felt the Lord calling her here and that He was speaking to her, so she changed her birthday trip. How cool!!!! Such obedience to follow Him even when she had no clue why He gave her the dream. We had a fun afternoon with pizza, llamas and praying for each other’s trips.
Iwailia:
Ive talked about this sweet lady in previous blogs, but she deserves some more recognition. Catie Collins and I met Iwailia in the market she works at during our day of fasting. We gave her the last of our food and she gave us the sweetest smile. She shared her faith with us and showed us her Bibles in Spanish and the native Incan language.
Catie Collins and I returned to see her on our last day in Cusco and she gave us so many free gifts from her market. We didn’t understand each other too much, but there was so much love in her store. We prayed together and gave so many hugs. One of my hardest goodbyes of Cusco.
Juan Carlos:
The most hospitable man in Lima, I’m sure of it. Some friends on my squad and I were walking around and Juan Carlos, the owner of a bar down the street from us, quickly invited us into his restaurant. He gave us free soda and shared about his life. Such a quick and easy friendship with this kind man. A couple days later, Abby, Catie Collins, and I returned to see him. He sat us down and gave us endless amount of free sodas. We tried to stop him, but he couldn’t pass up the opportunity to serve us. I was amazed at his hospitality and instant love. We got to pray together and keep up with this friendship throughout our stay in Lima.
Marcos:
A worker at the grocery store here in Lima. I asked him where the chips are and he instead shared the gospel with me. What!! His instant response was to share His faith and invite us to church with him. I learned a lot from this interaction. I learned that the Lord is going to use His people, whether we are intentional of it or not. I’ve been more so complacent this week and not seeking out times to share, yet still He has put people in my path to seek me out and ask me about my faith. How faithful He is when we are faithless. He has given me so many times to share in Lima, but all from His people in Lima seeking me out first.
Here are a handful of sweet interactions the Lord gave me throughout my time in Peru. On Tuesday, my team and I head to Quito, Ecuador, where we will be doing university ministry through CRU. We will be there for 2 weeks and I am expectant of the Lord’s goodness!!
