This is dedicated to you- my faithful reader and supporter from years before, last year, and years to come. There is a second part coming soon! Stay tuned!
This
is a tiny glimpse of this past year with random memories thrown in the
mix! I hope that you can get a slice of what I experienced and you see
the Kingdom of God was manifested in each area, established, and freedom through Christ was released as we stepped out in faith because we, January 2008 World Race Team, were and are some crazy KINGDOM OF GOD BUILDERS !!
Chincha, Peru –aka- “Dust Bowl”: I
LOVE PERU ! 5 weeks we lived in our tents, took bucket showers, and had
3 accessible toilets of which 1 that clogged always- A group of us
nicknamed each toilet- a hint of how much we occupied them :>). We
worked along side a couple of Pastors and there families to help
restore these broken and battered communities: Tambo De Mora and Los Jardines.
They had both been ruthlessly affected by the devastating earthquake
and we became the hands and feet of Jesus, the very heart of Him to
reach out to these broken and poor people. I became broken for them
each passing moment. A community, who had once flourished in the
business of the fisherman’s dream, became poor and hopeless in a matter
of minutes. They had all been displaced from their homes and now filled
with uncertainty, new diseases, and no privacy. It had, sadly, become
the way of life. Having nothing except hope, we (with the help of you
as our financial partners) decided to purchase tarp to replace the old.
We replaced as many tarps as we could; from many roofs, to the sides of
their “homes” and to dividing those homes into separate rooms, we
witnessed these hopeless lives receive a glimpse of hope through Christ
by the provision of new tarp! Oh how I miss this place and those
amazing people!
Random memory:
Getting this weird case of “herpes” behind my ear. It was painfully
uncomfortable to say the least- I had to wear a hat and blue bandana
for a couple of weeks, while my fellow brothers and sisters help apply
cream on it each day- not so cool!
Nauta, Peru
: There along the dirty waters of the Amazon, well a river off of it,
we all lived for 10 days. It was hot, mosquito territory, our dishes
being cleaned by river water after each meal, lush land filled with
exotic animals, and beautiful children whose laughs were contagious.
This place is plagued with the sprit of “suicide.” Many of these young
children are orphans who are lost, desperate for love, and
unfortunately turn to card games, etc. and end up “selling their
souls.” Folks, we are fighting a battle on this earth! It’s not a joke!
So, we focused on the children and brought LIGHT and TRUTH through VBS
daily. Along side of this, we had a men’s and
women’s group where we discussed the bible and issues that we all go
through daily in life. We became vulnerable so they could see Jesus
clearer. I desire for them to understand Christ
grew each day as we shared life. This place is being transformed by
Christ. Our translator Crystal who was with us the whole time in Nauta
and Iquitos has dedicated herself to that place and is now currently
living their and bringing light into a dark place for the cause of
Christ! Pray for her!
Showering late at night at the front of the boat while everyone was at
church- I had guard duty this night to protect our “things.” I showered
here because it was; well–“easier.”
Iquitos, Peru
: God blessed me for sure. I was able to meet some of my T Bar M family
there because it was spring break and a group was down for our camp
which is now taking place and children are hearing the Gospel! Here we
were able to go to a small village. We brought laughter, hope, VBS,
skits, bible teachings,
etc. We lived in community with them each day from morning to evening
and had a blast. The last week, we had a special event each night in
which we participated with them through communion, sharing of the
gospel, a painting of Jesus, and even a rock solid skit. We did
anything to bring the gospel of peace and hope to this village.
Getting to play in mud and having a blast with the kiddos. Then Jen and
I left to go rinse off because it was becoming pretty thick and hard on
our bodies, so as we begin to rinse off, the running water at our house
stopped of course and we had to wait a while for it to come back on,
while the whole time Jen and I laughed…what else could we do?
Cochabamba, Bolivia
: We arrived in this beautiful country and were welcomed by a new cool
climate, amazing culture, and friendly faces. We went in the jungle to
help clear land, finish painting an orphanage in the jungle, Mark using
his talent to build a beautiful staircase, and bathing in the river!
Through a lot of miscommunication we “men” returned to Cochabamba
a few days after we went to jungle as the girls, along with Rusty and
Mark finished and worked their butts off in the jungle (what is the
irony in that). While the men stayed back in Cochabamba, we
participated in this amazing baby washing event which feeds a multitude
of people, along with washing women’s/mothers hair who have no other
means to do so themselves. We became servants to say the least- exactly
what Christ has called us to be. This is such an amazing ministry tool.
We also painted an orphanage for about 3 day’s non-stop. This place was
amazing and beautiful. There was this huge Jesus statue on top of a
mountain and it was a beautiful sight over looking the city. The mountains were grand and majestic- a pure reflection of our maker! I loved the feeling in Bolivia– I loved how at night time it would be cold and the day it would be warm. I miss it!
On the way back to Cochabamba after a mentally exhausting day- we men,
were on a bus going back to Cochabamba and our bus literally was on the
edge of a mountain for a few hours- we easily could have plummeted to
our death :>). Yes- it was a fun night as Matt Peters and I got to
know each other well by playing “Would you rather.”
Mozambique, Africa :
I LOVED this place! It has a huge place in my heart. These people CRAVE
Jesus! They are poor, hungry, and thirsty- completely relying on Christ
for their daily meals, necessities, etc. and you know what…He PROVIDES!
We were blessed to stay with Mama Rita and her 32 (7 of her own, and
the rest adopted children.) I loved the spirit in this place. JOY and
LOVE. It was enough to go around the whole world! Team Isaac felt led
to raise money and provide them with a new piece of property that Mama
Rita wanted in order to build a new house. God had other plans and
through our support raising- we were able to purchase 8 new mattress
for the children who had never felt comfort like that EVER before, a
big freezer, new brooms, a blanket for each person, 3 bags of rice, and
money for a down payment on land! AMEN! I was radically changed here
with Gods love- for the first time in my life- I understood it- it has
truly and completely transformed me- God used the broken and poor to
show me His love for me! How amazing?
! We sat on a 20 hour bus ride that I will claim to have been the most
miserable ride I have ever gone or since experienced! Chickens, baby
poop smell, heat, pot holes, sitting on top of one another while a man
sleeps on my shoulder, basically… Africa all compacted in this bus
ride…yeah; it was a ride of a life time!
Capetown, South Africa : This place was amazingly beautiful. Literally. We were stationed in a house which over looked Gordon’s Bay, pointing towards Table Mountain
, (beautiful sunsets), and the ocean changing colors every day.
Sometimes I could count 7 or more shades of blue! This place, we
learned how to “be” rather than “do” it was challenging- yet a new side
of my walk with Christ that I had not really experienced. We were able
to focus on our personal growth/walk and I tell people that this place
was for Eli more than anything. I was just honored that I got to see
Eli step into his role as a Son of God!
That is the most amazing thing to experience with another man-seeing a
man of God rise up and the passion ignite-it rocks! We also
participated in a Great White Shark cage diving experience and it was a
blast! I became sea sick because of the swells–but nevertheless…I
loved it!
Random Memory:
Eli and I hiked a dang mountain behind the house and it took a couple
of hours to get up. Then a forever walk back down a different path. How
about a little hitch hike back with 2 elderly women? That never hurt
anyone did it? That was a memorial day.
