This past week gave me a taste of home. First came the arrival of Jenna and Hannah!! Two wild and crazy girls from Iowa. :) They are so full of joy and love for the kids. Itʼs been an enormous blessing to have them here to know more and especially seeing their love for kids just exploding from them. They donʼt need any language to reach the kids but continue to have fun playing games with them. Now our house is full of four gringa (American) girls, which brings a lot of fun moments, talking, just being girls and joking around. It has been messing with my mind a bit more as I have to switch between my Spanish mind and English mind. Sometimes I think my mind just wants to
shut down and think in no language. lol. :)
Then, we had a group of seven Americans from Orlando, Florida come to work in Church Berea for four days. Monday started the week with a sports tournament day, volleyball for the women and soccer for the men. It had a great turnout and the winners got cash prizes. The teams fought hard for that prize. I had so much joy giving the volleyball prize to the winners, because they really needed that extra blessing in their lives. In the mornings of Tuesday through Thursday, the American group did training on water filters that provided clean water for people in the neighborhood around Berea. I sat in on one of the teachings where the Americans taught about the water filters and gave an underlining presentation of the gospel, as the water of Christ can clean our hearts from our sinful nature which gives us new life. Then the afternoons of Tuesday and Wednesday were full of kids ministry. Children came by the bucketful! There were songs, candy, and activities for the three different age groups. I helped with the youngest age group which was a bit of a challenge as I donʼt work with them much. But Godʼs name was lifted high during all of these days. Thursday afternoon contained door to door evangelism. This was one of my favorite days, to see how Sister Mele from the church presented the gospel with the love of Christ and truth pouring out. An Paul, one of the Americans, and I went with her, so I translated to him what I could and translated questions that he had. Please pray for all of those who were presented with the gospel that they may have their hearts turned to rely on God and be brought to his kingdom. The entire week we had prayed for no rain, because if it rained we wouldnʼt be able to have the ministry. God was faithful (as He always is) and it didnʼt rain at all until the last group came in after door to door
evangelism when we were literally done. It was such a cool God moment to see his faithfulness time and time again.
God has also presented an awesome opportunity to go with another group of missionaries this next week (July 3-8ish) as translators and helping with kids ministry. Bethany was asked to be a translator and so weʼre all going. I think maybe us three younger girls might be helping with the kids ministry. Itʼs in a village a little bit up the river, so weʼll be getting a bit deeper into the jungle.The neighborhood kids are doing great and I have enjoyed getting to know them even more, playing games in the street or sitting and talking with the little bit older kids. Thatʼs where my passion is, with the kids in middle school/high school. God continues to show me where he is planning on using me and affirming my identity in Him. That he has made me exactly as he meant to, even when thatʼs completely different than other people around me. He continues to give me encouragement and love everyday as I am satisfied in Him and his plan as we walk together throughout life. Lately he has given me a huge love for Berea church and the people there! Their hearts are so dependent
on Him and they wait on the Lord and have faith in Him, that he will satisfy their needs. There is a great lesson to be learned here I feel. At home I didnʼt have to have this type of dependence because I knew that I couldnʼt at least get through the next week with food for example. Here they must depend on God for even their next meal. God has his children in His hands, and thatʼs the faith they we should be living every day.
Monday, June 27, 2011
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
At the Heart of Noriega
So Iʼm staying in the house of Bethany and Nelton Norgiea. I couldnʼt be more blessed to be spending my summer with them. They have one daughter who turns one year old on Friday. Bethany and Nelton are so deep in doing the work of God. Everyday I see more and more of Godʼs work being done through them here in Iquitos, as they unselfishly give of themselves to help others around them. Their main passion and goal is to work with people in the jungle. They want to be godly encouragers to the villages, by spending a couple months there discipling and mentoring the ¨the forgotten Christians¨ who want to learn more about God, but don´t have the resources or connections to learn. So they are raisingmoney to buy a house boat so they can go up and down the Amazon River working with different villages in the jungle. They are now waiting patiently on God and partnering with a local church, Iglesia Berea, while funds come for their boat. At Berea, Nelton is a pastor and gives messages on Sunday morning and night, and sometimes at the Wednesday prayer service. He is a very powerful speaker and truly speaks what God has been laying on his heart. He speaks the most passionately about faith and living by faith. That includes moving in steps of faith because we know of whom we believe and we can look to the future in the hope of the glory of the Lord that is to come. Romans 5:2b -”...And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.” Not only does he preach this, but he and Bethany live out stepping in faith with God and through that God has just blessed them! A part of their mission right now is to teach this to the church members. Not to be legalistic on rules, or try to take control of recieving more of God´s blessings, but to wait on the Lord for the blessings he will provide to the faithful! Iglesia Berea has a vision to be a megachurch with international connections where they are characterized by giving to needs that they hear. The people in the church are great, as I see them giving all of themselves at every service. I would say there are about 30ish people who attend every Sunday, and I am met with their bright smiles and Dios te bendiga “God bless you”. Bethany works with the childrenʼs ministry as they meet during the message on Sunday morning. She leads them through some songs, a message, activity, and game. Of course Kyliana helps her parents with all of their activities in church by adding with her little cries, giggles, or wandering up to the stage.
These next two weeks bring to us two mission groups from the states. One is very small with about 7 people I believe. They are going to do some stuff with water filters, and lead a bible camp for the kids, including games of volleyball and futbol (soccer). Iʼm not sure of all that is happening, but I do know that itʼll be great and Iʼm so excited to see some Americans and just hear their stories and what their passions are within this ministry theyʼre helping with. I feel like a lot can be learned and shared between the relationship that weʼll have. Also the end of this week is bringing Hannah and Jenna. They are two girls (one a sister of Bethany) who are joining up for the rest of thesummer with the ministry weʼll be doing. So prayers for Bethany and Neltonʼs ministry and funding for their vision to help those in the jungle would be so appreciated; and the following week with the Bible Kids Camp, sharing Jesus and hopefully changing lives there all for the glory of God!
P.S. Feliz Cumpleaños to Matt today!!!
These next two weeks bring to us two mission groups from the states. One is very small with about 7 people I believe. They are going to do some stuff with water filters, and lead a bible camp for the kids, including games of volleyball and futbol (soccer). Iʼm not sure of all that is happening, but I do know that itʼll be great and Iʼm so excited to see some Americans and just hear their stories and what their passions are within this ministry theyʼre helping with. I feel like a lot can be learned and shared between the relationship that weʼll have. Also the end of this week is bringing Hannah and Jenna. They are two girls (one a sister of Bethany) who are joining up for the rest of thesummer with the ministry weʼll be doing. So prayers for Bethany and Neltonʼs ministry and funding for their vision to help those in the jungle would be so appreciated; and the following week with the Bible Kids Camp, sharing Jesus and hopefully changing lives there all for the glory of God!
P.S. Feliz Cumpleaños to Matt today!!!
Saturday, June 11, 2011
“Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him and he will do this: He will m
I entitled this blog “Godʼs Work in Peru,” and so for this post I want to dedicate it to what
God is doing so far in Peru.
When I first got here, I wonʼt lie I was a little disappointed because I expected to being
doing ministry all day, everyday and jumping over mountains for God sharing the love
and joy of the gospel. But it wasnʼt like that at all. I found myself being a little bored with
a lack or ministry. Yet Bethany and I had wonderful conversations about theology, grace,
and living life for God through the struggles and triumphs. In college I felt desperate to
have time to just be with God, not feeling rushed reading my bible or praying. Here I
have that time. The culture is a slower pace, and instead of feeling like it was dragging,
God changed my heart to crave the slower days so I could easily just sit and think about
the ministry here. Meditating on what God is doing right now, this week, and what his
plan for me is within the ministry for the rest of the summer. In the states, I feel a lot of
people have to find a place to fit God into their busy schedule, this is including myself.
But shouldnʼt our entire day be about God, taking moments throughout the day to listen
when the Spirit is nudging at your heart? I realize more so now than ever, how
dangerous it is to make God so small. Living by the Spirit isnʼt a checklist of praying
before bed and reading our bible. Itʼs taking the time to just be with God and hear Him
speak to your heart, without distractions or only giving God partial control of your life
while you still wanting the driverʼs seat. Many times I would put conditions on how God
was leading my life, because whether I realized it or not I wanted to take the control.
Here in Iquitos, Iʼve learned and seen from example of Nelton and Bethany, to wait on
the Lord throughout the day, and listen to the Spirit in prayer just as much as you read
the Bible. This is the biggest thing Iʼve learned here, to spend time in the presence of
the Lord, being satisfied in Him whether or not I feel like Iʼm accomplishing something
ministry-related. I read in a book, when we are most satisfied in God, He is most
glorified.
The last couple of weeks were slower, and a couple days I went through a phase of
missing family, friends, and American life. But now things are picking up. Last night we
started “Chicas Unidas” meaning Girls United. There were about ten girls from the
neighborhood and Church Berea, ranging ages 11-17. We played games, talked about
our theme verse 1 Timothy 4:12, “Donʼt let anyone look down on you because you are
young, but set an example to the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith, and in
purity.” Then of course at American food of cinnamon rolls and popcorn. :) Bethany and
mineʼs purpose is to build relationships with these girls that will lead to intentional
conversations ending up at the truth of the Gospel. I feel like weʼre off to a great start
and relationships are starting to grow. For example, I met one girl named Brillyt (Bridget)
at the plaza last week. We had a great conversation and she seemed very eager to get
to know me and help me learn some more spanish. So I wanted to invite her. Before the
party I was going to go for a walk and see if I could find her. In the afternoon I was a
little tired and wanted to take a nap but before I could lay down the phone rang. It was
Hannah and Jenna (two girls who are coming here in a week and weʼll all be doing
ministry together). They asked if I wanted to talk, and although I really wanted to lie
down I decided to talk. Weʼll while we were talking Brillyt showed up at our window. After
I got off the phone I went outside to talk with her and her friend and give them the
invitation. They were stoked and came to the party. If I had laid down, none of this
wouldʼve happened. While we were talking in the afternoon though they asked if I
wanted to see her house. So I went with them, after telling Nelton where I was going,
safety first, I didnʼt want them to get worried! This was my first look at a little deeper
poverty. Their house is basically four walls, and a thatch roof. They have a kitchen, tiny
backyard, room for work, and a bedroom and bathroom. It wasnʼt much, but at the same
time that didnʼt seem to matter to her. Their family still had joy and seemed thankful to
just have the house that they did. Itʼs great to see that material possessions donʼt
matter, and they especially donʼt matter to God. I feel God telling me that some great
conversations and a friendship will come from this! It makes me so excited!
The little kids in the neighborhood are doing great too. Everyday they want to play tag or
some other game. Last night it was raining hard here and I wanted to run in the rain. So
the younger kids and I went to the plaza and ran around. We went down the slide, but
since Iʼm bigger I didnʼt land as easily as they did, so I fell forward to the ground. haha.
So I was all wet and sandy. They led me to a big puddle where we “washed off” by
laying in the puddle and wiggling around. It is so much fun to act like a little kid!
So I went from little action, to God bringing people and building relationships to me.
Praise be to Him. He just wanted me to wait on him patiently as He spent a while
teaching me first! The next couple of weeks are busier, as we have a vacation bible
school with two teams from America, and in July we are planning a trip to the jungle for
about a week! Yes the jungle! Iʼm so excited! Thank you all so much for your prayers
and keeping me updated on your lives. I love hearing what God is doing in your lives as
well.
“Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your
way to the Lord; trust in him and he will do this: He will make your righteousness shine
like the dawn, the justice of your cause like the noonday sun.” -Psalm 37:4-6
God is doing so far in Peru.
When I first got here, I wonʼt lie I was a little disappointed because I expected to being
doing ministry all day, everyday and jumping over mountains for God sharing the love
and joy of the gospel. But it wasnʼt like that at all. I found myself being a little bored with
a lack or ministry. Yet Bethany and I had wonderful conversations about theology, grace,
and living life for God through the struggles and triumphs. In college I felt desperate to
have time to just be with God, not feeling rushed reading my bible or praying. Here I
have that time. The culture is a slower pace, and instead of feeling like it was dragging,
God changed my heart to crave the slower days so I could easily just sit and think about
the ministry here. Meditating on what God is doing right now, this week, and what his
plan for me is within the ministry for the rest of the summer. In the states, I feel a lot of
people have to find a place to fit God into their busy schedule, this is including myself.
But shouldnʼt our entire day be about God, taking moments throughout the day to listen
when the Spirit is nudging at your heart? I realize more so now than ever, how
dangerous it is to make God so small. Living by the Spirit isnʼt a checklist of praying
before bed and reading our bible. Itʼs taking the time to just be with God and hear Him
speak to your heart, without distractions or only giving God partial control of your life
while you still wanting the driverʼs seat. Many times I would put conditions on how God
was leading my life, because whether I realized it or not I wanted to take the control.
Here in Iquitos, Iʼve learned and seen from example of Nelton and Bethany, to wait on
the Lord throughout the day, and listen to the Spirit in prayer just as much as you read
the Bible. This is the biggest thing Iʼve learned here, to spend time in the presence of
the Lord, being satisfied in Him whether or not I feel like Iʼm accomplishing something
ministry-related. I read in a book, when we are most satisfied in God, He is most
glorified.
The last couple of weeks were slower, and a couple days I went through a phase of
missing family, friends, and American life. But now things are picking up. Last night we
started “Chicas Unidas” meaning Girls United. There were about ten girls from the
neighborhood and Church Berea, ranging ages 11-17. We played games, talked about
our theme verse 1 Timothy 4:12, “Donʼt let anyone look down on you because you are
young, but set an example to the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith, and in
purity.” Then of course at American food of cinnamon rolls and popcorn. :) Bethany and
mineʼs purpose is to build relationships with these girls that will lead to intentional
conversations ending up at the truth of the Gospel. I feel like weʼre off to a great start
and relationships are starting to grow. For example, I met one girl named Brillyt (Bridget)
at the plaza last week. We had a great conversation and she seemed very eager to get
to know me and help me learn some more spanish. So I wanted to invite her. Before the
party I was going to go for a walk and see if I could find her. In the afternoon I was a
little tired and wanted to take a nap but before I could lay down the phone rang. It was
Hannah and Jenna (two girls who are coming here in a week and weʼll all be doing
ministry together). They asked if I wanted to talk, and although I really wanted to lie
down I decided to talk. Weʼll while we were talking Brillyt showed up at our window. After
I got off the phone I went outside to talk with her and her friend and give them the
invitation. They were stoked and came to the party. If I had laid down, none of this
wouldʼve happened. While we were talking in the afternoon though they asked if I
wanted to see her house. So I went with them, after telling Nelton where I was going,
safety first, I didnʼt want them to get worried! This was my first look at a little deeper
poverty. Their house is basically four walls, and a thatch roof. They have a kitchen, tiny
backyard, room for work, and a bedroom and bathroom. It wasnʼt much, but at the same
time that didnʼt seem to matter to her. Their family still had joy and seemed thankful to
just have the house that they did. Itʼs great to see that material possessions donʼt
matter, and they especially donʼt matter to God. I feel God telling me that some great
conversations and a friendship will come from this! It makes me so excited!
The little kids in the neighborhood are doing great too. Everyday they want to play tag or
some other game. Last night it was raining hard here and I wanted to run in the rain. So
the younger kids and I went to the plaza and ran around. We went down the slide, but
since Iʼm bigger I didnʼt land as easily as they did, so I fell forward to the ground. haha.
So I was all wet and sandy. They led me to a big puddle where we “washed off” by
laying in the puddle and wiggling around. It is so much fun to act like a little kid!
So I went from little action, to God bringing people and building relationships to me.
Praise be to Him. He just wanted me to wait on him patiently as He spent a while
teaching me first! The next couple of weeks are busier, as we have a vacation bible
school with two teams from America, and in July we are planning a trip to the jungle for
about a week! Yes the jungle! Iʼm so excited! Thank you all so much for your prayers
and keeping me updated on your lives. I love hearing what God is doing in your lives as
well.
“Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your
way to the Lord; trust in him and he will do this: He will make your righteousness shine
like the dawn, the justice of your cause like the noonday sun.” -Psalm 37:4-6
Thursday, June 2, 2011
One Week Later
It seems like I´ve been here for a month, but it´s honestly been only one week. Starting off slow I had to work at adjustng to the culture of being more laid back. Instead of working to get as many things done in a day their is a lot more just hanging out and only doing a few things in one day. After feeling super lazy for a couple of days, I began to really appreciate the time to sit and think things through and to just investigate what God is up and being more in tune with Him. In the states I always complained of being distracted from God because of the million things to get done, but here I don´t feel that at all and it´s super fantastic to be able to just sit and listen to my Father and his love for the people here in Peru.
On Sunday we went to the Iglesia Berea (church). It´s a small building with no front door and a thatch roof, but many generous people with warm smiles, inviting me to join their family of believers. I was asked to say a few things but got nervous and basically just said my name and that I would be staying for two months..haha..I don´t know what those people are saying that I talk a lot, because here it hasn´t been quite as true. Of course that´s because I´m trying to get to know the culture and finally understand the language. I´m comprehending more everyday and starting to join in conversations..Praise God!!! I couldn´t do it without him that is forsure!
Monday night the leadership from the church came over and we talked about a group of kids coming from the states (about 7) to lead a vacation bible school in about two weeks! The head Pastor directly asked me to help and that I would represent the church with a Christ love. I felt very honored to be asked in such a way to be a part of their church and that they trusted me so. So I´m helping with the sports of futbol (soccer) and volleyball!
The other most exciting thing actually happened today! God has been putting this burden on my heart for the kids in our neighborhood. Just to play around with them and become friends. About three days ago I joined in with some girls playing volleyball in the narrow street. That way I may two friends and we talk for a bit everyday now. Today I was going to take a picture of the red clouds in the sky (sunset plus rain clouds) and all of a sudden I had a swarm of new friends from the neighborhood inquiring about my camera and wanting to take pictures. From this I now gained about 10 new little friends as we played with Kyliana (Bethany´s little girl) and listened to a band playing in the streets. The girls clung on and just kept hugging me. I can tell they have hearts that are so large and just loving life! I´m so excited to get to know them more and play with them all summer!
Through all of this that happened only in one week, I feel even more in love with God and how his plan works for the good of those who love him! A reason to smile and have joy everyday! He is such a good God and I absolutely can´t wait to see what he has in store for the rest of these nineish weeks left!! All for Him. -Jess
On Sunday we went to the Iglesia Berea (church). It´s a small building with no front door and a thatch roof, but many generous people with warm smiles, inviting me to join their family of believers. I was asked to say a few things but got nervous and basically just said my name and that I would be staying for two months..haha..I don´t know what those people are saying that I talk a lot, because here it hasn´t been quite as true. Of course that´s because I´m trying to get to know the culture and finally understand the language. I´m comprehending more everyday and starting to join in conversations..Praise God!!! I couldn´t do it without him that is forsure!
Monday night the leadership from the church came over and we talked about a group of kids coming from the states (about 7) to lead a vacation bible school in about two weeks! The head Pastor directly asked me to help and that I would represent the church with a Christ love. I felt very honored to be asked in such a way to be a part of their church and that they trusted me so. So I´m helping with the sports of futbol (soccer) and volleyball!
The other most exciting thing actually happened today! God has been putting this burden on my heart for the kids in our neighborhood. Just to play around with them and become friends. About three days ago I joined in with some girls playing volleyball in the narrow street. That way I may two friends and we talk for a bit everyday now. Today I was going to take a picture of the red clouds in the sky (sunset plus rain clouds) and all of a sudden I had a swarm of new friends from the neighborhood inquiring about my camera and wanting to take pictures. From this I now gained about 10 new little friends as we played with Kyliana (Bethany´s little girl) and listened to a band playing in the streets. The girls clung on and just kept hugging me. I can tell they have hearts that are so large and just loving life! I´m so excited to get to know them more and play with them all summer!
Through all of this that happened only in one week, I feel even more in love with God and how his plan works for the good of those who love him! A reason to smile and have joy everyday! He is such a good God and I absolutely can´t wait to see what he has in store for the rest of these nineish weeks left!! All for Him. -Jess
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)