Peru was no exception to the complete and utter annoyance I felt entering her beautiful country. After days of travel on a 50 passenger bus, my squad of 47 entered into Peru with absolutely no idea how this month would look like. Thankfully Jaz and the girls were there to share the pain of yet another 30 hour bus trip. My mental mind took a hiatus most of the bus ride through the countryside. All I could think about was how Peru was a step up from Bolivia in simple ways like, this country has paved roads, train tracks and healthy- looking livestock. These simple yet much appreciated things gave me a sense of hope that Peru would would be kind to us after all. The stench from the Porter potty bathroom snapped me out of thought as we approached what looked to be a large city.
It was like Christmas to see Lima. All the busyness and the hub-bub of a capital stirred about our bus like everyone had an agenda and a place to be. There wasn’t a word said as we approached the bus station. I’m sure every thought in that bus consisted of five words “Get.Me.Off.This.Bus.” As we screeched to a stop, we all piled off waiting for ministry staff to arrive. My team splurged a little and got KFC for lunch! The irritation had finally wore off as I leaned back into my chair after some good food. Lo looked at me as if she had something funny to say but instead gave me that typical Lauren smirk and silently agreed with my abrupt sigh stating that I was finally satisfied.
Crisco Unico and my team United Warriors were the last two teams to be picked up from the bus station, 5 cars came to get us and we piled into yet another port of transportation. By the end of the night and after much miscommunication and confusion, we all ended up at a campground for a few days. Because of lack of knowledge from our host that we were even in the country, they had not prepared for our arrival. They decided it was best to bunk us at this campground so they could get our living situation back in Lima arranged and situated.
Now our team had decided by the end of our stay at this little getaway that we would go to Lima and work in Cristo La Unica Esperanza with Pastor Javier. We were told we would stay at the church. Naturally we though we would be sleeping in our sleeping bags and pads. But to our surprise, we walked into a room with 7 newly bought beds, complete with pillows, sheets, blankets, and comforters. A big screen t.v, Blue Ray dvd player, and hot dinner ready to go.
I came into this country with expectations of how I thought based on my experiences in Bolivia this month would be. But I was wrong. All god wanted to do for my team is to bless us, bond us, and lavish His love all over us. We all stepped up and stepped out as women of the Most High God. Some of us were blessed to see the manifestation of the Holy Spirit for the first time, some of us received words of wisdom and others spoke into lives with complete authority. We fought spiritual warfare every day while others prayed into their giftings and receiving their giftings. God did a work here in Peru not only through us for His kingdom, but in us.
Today is the day we will leave and move onto our next month of the World Race. And for the first time since beginning this journey, I don’t want to leave. Team changes will happen and United Warriors will no longer exist. My heart is so heavy… I love these girls. I love watching them prefer each other and call each other into greatness. I love the laughing, the crying, and the spontaneous combustions. I love putting my fingers to the grind and pushing back the darkness hand-in-hand while calling down the glory of Heaven onto earth. We are like pillars of vessels for God to rain His love down on this earth and flood the nations.
Such a bittersweet moment to watch as Joane’ packs the remains of her Pack as she takes frequent pauses to take in the little moments of Crystal’s silly attempts to make everyone smile with her crazy dance moves and silly one-liners. Christina’s packing her Marry Poppins backpack with all kinds of cool things that always come handy. Jaz, starting her packing process, makes every attempt to not really live in the reality that we won’t be together in a few days. And Lo… she sits in silence, bags packed, waiting for the clock to tick down to her final hour.
I’m not ready to leave this place. I’m not ready to leave my team. Goodbye means it’s over. It means it’s time to move on. It means investing all over again. It means VULNERABILITY. Depending on someone else. It means leaving the only people who know you more intimately than anyone but God. It means the idea of them not knowing what’s going on in your life in just a few short months. It means unlocking the tight grip, the bond your hands have made by fighting for each other everyday through thick and thin. It means letting go.
How do you say goodbye when you’re not ready to…I Hate this part.
