“The goal is for you to leave something here that was not here before you came.” This was battle cry spoken by our fearless leader at every meeting we had in Chile named Ruben Guerrero. Ruben is a Pastor of incredibly vibrant and active church which is fitting as the name of the church is “Iglesia Activa” (Active Church, in English). We lived with him and his family in the little mountain town of Los Andes, Chile. The town was small, not the mountains. THEY WERE HUGE. Los Andes is tucked away in the heart of the Andes Mountains, which by the way is the most beautiful mountain range we have ever seen, and is located about 1 hour north of Santiago (the capital).
So, what did we leave behind?
Ruben quickly became a great friend of mine (MATT). The first thing we did together was go and visit a family who had recently given there lives to Christ and got involved in the church less than 2 weeks before. They owned a truck stop for international truckers to rest for a while along the road. If you remember, our very first month we worked with Muslim truckers at a truck stop in The Ivory Coast, so my heart knew exactly what these men were going through. We spent time loving on the family and sharing with them Biblical truths about following Jesus and answering their questions and after that Ruben and I went up to a group of truckers and I was able to share my experience with them and how I knew where they were. Ruben translated and we also shared the Gospel with them and all three of them accepted Jesus. After this, mine and Rubens mind began to turn. “There is a new family that really loves Jesus and wants to make a difference and a huge opportunity and harvest field right in front of them,” we thought. We discussed the option of having a big barbecue (hands down the most popular way to celebrate in South America and it is always with steak and chorizo) for the truckers free so that they can feel loved. We mentioned it to José (The Father, Husband, and Owner) and guess what?? He said he had been thinking about doing something like this for a while and now is the time. So, we did it. We sat around the table and listened to them share all their stories and how much this dinner meant to them because their job is thankless, hard, and demands them to be away from their families so often. Ruben and I got to share the Gospel with them and again they all wanted to receive the truth of Jesus. We also got to witness José share his story with them and they LOVED it! Disciples making disciples!! Thank you Jesus. God planted His church right there in a truck stop in Los Andes Chile.
The Church was VERY focused on community!! They had 12 small groups set out all over the city and during the week we would go and visit them and encourage them. We got to do life with them! We also got to go out during the week and do evangelism. This looked like us taking a guitar and setting up in the middle of the park and singing worship songs and believe me, nothing catches peoples attention more than foreigners singing at the top of there lungs in public. When people would stop or look at us we would approach them and share the gospel and also invite them to church. We did this at parks, in front of a hospital, and on the side of the street. It was great! So many lives touched and truth shared! We will never forget the Sunday when a man that Kalyn and Ruben shared with actually came to the church, brought his wife and sat in the front row. Ruben was starting to give announcements and he began to cry when they walked in. No one but us knew why, but it meant the world to him and you know what he told us after, “You have left something here that was not before.” 🙂
We would be doing the church and the entire time we are there injustice if we stopped at what we left and did not share about what it left with us.
For us it was not only what we left but what we took. GOD IS SOOO GOOD!! For me, Matt, many of you know that this journey has been hard for me with the lack of male community as I am 1 of 2 men on a squad of 33 and the other guy has been on a different team for the last 4 months. This has been a challenge, but not in Los Andes. God sent me so many amazing men who knew English and reallyyyy loved Jesus. The youth pastor (who looked like a Chilean Steven Furtick) quickly became a close friend and my favorite guy to get coffee with. He went deep with me so quick and I had honestly forgotten what it was like to have really deep conversations with men. I also got to hang out with another guy who was as small groups leader and he was so great and full of joy. Even most of the small youth group knew English and they were so great to be around. I mean what are the odds???? In the little town of Los Andes, Chile where almost no one speaks English that I got to have great male community. I swear all the English speakers in the town go to that church! God used this to remind me the power fo community not only for myself but also in how God is using Iglesia Activa to change the city by it!
For me, Kalyn it was the first time I was able to have a real conversation with a married woman my age who spoke English in a very long time. We met at a married small group that we were invited to at the church. No one there spoke English besides her and she saw us struggling to understand what was going on. We were honestly just expecting to sit there the whole time and just be able to pick up on concepts if we were lucky. But she came to our rescue and I was so thankful that she did! The couples were HILARIOUS and it really blessed my soul to be a part of it. They started off their group my rating their spouses on a scale from 1-7 on how they had been that week. At first it was like WOW that’s crazy. But the leader explained that when people can’t share their struggles in a room full of believers and people who love them, people won’t share at all and they may stay stuck in their struggle because it. As people talked and rated I began to really appreciate the heart and honestly behind it. No one was bashing. People spoke truth in love. After that first meeting was over, my friend began to pursue me in a way that I never expected. We were able to have deep real conversations about joys and hard aches. The day before we left she surprised me with a Sherpa sweater and a beautiful framed picture of the 5 of us (Her, her husband, their young girl, and Matt and I). God brought her and the married small group into my life right when I needed it the most. He is so faithful. I am leaving with a great friendship!
Chile altogether was great and we are so thankful for all the people we met and the love we received and were able to give.
UPDATE ON OUR TIME IN BOLIVIA COMING SOON!!
