During our afternoons this past week the teams have taken the two-mile walk into town several times. I’ve been in there probably five times or so to use the internet, take care of some visa stuff, order some birthday cakes and do some A.T.L. (Ask The Lord) ministry.
Sometimes I’ve gone in intending just to post blogs but have ended up meeting locals on the street and talking to them.
The first day was one of those days.
Me and four others were beginning to head back to camp after using the internet when we all walked by a crippled beggar on the sidewalk. I made eye-contact with him as I passed him by. When I got about 20 feet past him I stopped for a second and knew I needed to go back and talk to him. I just felt it in my gut, and it’s God when I feel that.
Talia was one of the others with us and I knew she knew some Spanish so I asked her if she could come back with me to talk to him. She said yes, and we went back to him.
His name is Andrés. He’s lived in Palenque for 58 years and probably barely comes up past my knees. He has both of his legs but they aren’t right (I´m guessing it´s birth defects) and he leans on one of his hands on a sandal. When he walks it reminds me of Yoda from Star Wars. He has a very good attitude and smiles a lot. Talia and I introduced ourselves and asked him what his name was and just talked for a little bit. We asked him if he went to church and he said he was Catholic. Then we asked him if he knew Jesus, and if I remember correctly he said Jesus was in his heart. Praise God! (I actually just saw Andrés again maybe 20 minutes ago and Jeff was there and he reassured me that Andrés is a believer.) We talked a little bit more and asked him if we could buy him any food or anything. He said not right now, but we agreed to meet him in town the next morning for tacos.
Talia, me and Eric Hanson (we brought him because he’s fluent in Spanish) found him the next morning. He had already eaten for some reason, but we ended up buying him some chips and yogurt drinks. He said he had to go, but we agreed to meet again the next afternoon. So Talia, me, Jenny Willis and Jeff Goins (both media teamers who know Spanish well) went in search of him the next afternoon. After searching for him for almost an hour we called it quits. Talia was eerily exhausted so we stopped in a coffee shop for some pick-me-ups. Then we ran into Gary Black and Andrew Shearman and got to talking a little bit. We talked a little about how another team was up in the plaza playing frisbee and how we didn’t want to be the kind of people who did that all year.
*I’m not implying that those guys are going to do that all year, nor that God can’t use you by playing frisbee if that´s what He´s telling you to do, but we were just thinking about how we want to really engage ourselves in finding people and getting to know them this year.*
So with that said, someone said something about a lady sitting in front of a bank that we could go talk to. So we went.
Talia, Jeff and Jenny sat with her and talked. I felt like I was supposed to stand back and pray over thsem all, so that’s what I did. It was pretty cool too. I really felt God there as they talked and how almost everyone that walked by did a double take when they saw three foreigners sitting on the sidewalk and talking to such a woman.
Turns out she’s likely on drugs and isn’t all there mentally to the point that she doesn’t even know her name. I don’t remember all the things that they talked about, but apparently she was kind of all over the place in her words. We gave her some bread and water. Chad passed by and they all prayed over her and prayed for healing over her eye and her mind and that people would just come around her and love her.
Let me know if you want to know more about that encounter, because there is a little more to tell in terms of spiritual warfare.
I didn´t have a picture of Andres until just now, and am not able to post it, but I will next time.
Please pray for Andres. Pray that he will get to know God more and more and that God will continue to provide people around him that will love him and help him grow in the Lord.
Pray for the nameless woman in front of the bank. Pray for her mind that God will clear it! That she will be herself again and that she will know her own name! Surround her with love God!
PS – Check out jeffgoins.myadventures.org for a better account of the story.
Thanks everyone!
STAY TUNED for updates on our ministries in the mountains near Jerusalem, Arroyo Palenque, Santa Maria and Aguilar.
