Da Le Gracias - Give Him Thanks

This evening during ESL we read in Luke 17:12-19 about Jesus healing the 10 men with leprosy.

To have leprosy at that time was a very “unclean” thing, these people were shunned, sent out of the city, and set apart from everyone else. The fact that someone would approach them was unthinkable. Jesus not only approached them, but spoke to them; he sent them to see the priest and as they walked in obedience and faith to the priest they were cleansed of their disease; an extraordinary gift and blessing.

Only one of them came back to thank Jesus for what he had done. This one man realized that what Jesus had done, and was compelled to return to Jesus not only to acknowledge and thank Christ for this miracle but to throw himself at Jesus’ feet in the deepest and most sincere appreciation and gratitude. The other 9 may have continued to the priest or perhaps something else, we do not know. However, upon being healed they showed no appreciation to Christ they did not even acknowledge that he was the one who cured them; they took this amazing gift and gave Him who granted healing no recognition.

How often do we go through life taking credit for, or simply not acknowledging the provider of all the things that, when you sit and think about it, are marvelous gifts or blessings? Big or small they are all blessings and He deserves our recognition and thanks.

For example:

Family and friends. Whatever family we have is a blessing to have, we will not always have our family and friends; each second together is a gift. Thank God for whatever family and friends you have or have had the blessing of having.

All the material and physical supplies we need to live, talents/skills, knowledge, a job/income, food, a home/shelter, clothing, breathe, etc. These are all gifts. Be thankful to God for whatever amount of these things He has blessed you with, He knows exactly what we need.

Faith. What is the purpose of life without faith? What would we have to hope in? Absolutely nothing! The Bible tells us God is perfect! And only the perfect can dwell with Him in His sight. It also tells us we are all sinners, one tiny sin is all it takes for us to break the law. And the penalty for our sin is death and eternal separation from God in hell. We deserve death. But God in all His justice, had mercy on us. John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only Begotten son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.” Christ lived a perfect life, and “For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ,” 2 Corinthians 5:21.  Jesus, who did not deserve to die, died in our place and paid the penalty of death that we deserve…  And Then! Not only did Jesus pay our penalty but He conquered the grave, He rose 3 days later and ascended into Heaven showing us that Christ was the Perfect Sacrifice, His sacrifice was enough to pay for ALL sin. WOW! What a Gift! Jesus Christ paid for my sins…all I have to do is accept His gift, “repent and believe,” Mark 1:15b. We have been given an immense amount of grace through faith in Jesus Christ. Thank God for his mercy and grace through Jesus, and the hope that we now have to one day live in Heaven for all eternity.

All of these things are incredible gifts. If we stop and think about them we ought be compelled to acknowledge the One who has Provided us with all of these blessings, just like the one man healed from leprosy. Not one of us can take even the smallest bit of credit for any of these things. We did not get to choose our family, we did not get to pick our talents, though we may have chosen to invest time into certain ones, and we could not save ourselves from death.

Today I beg you to set aside some alone time to sit and reflect on all the gifts God has put in your life. I pray you are compelled, like the man, to 1. acknowledge our Provider and to 2. in your own way show God how appreciative you are for all you have been blessed with.

 Happy Thanksgiving.

A Testimony in Lima

One part of the REAPSouth ministry is offering Free English Classes to any and all people interested in learning English.  During the class they are taught a bit of English and then we use the Bible to teach the second part. It is a really neat ministry that allows the people to learn English for free, and at the same time learn about God! Many of the people who come to the classes become translators for REAPSouth. I have attended 4 classes so far and I just wanted to share a little from this evening's class.

It was a small group of regulars tonight so we began by reading Acts 21:1-22, Paul’s testimony. After digging into the verse and elaborating on a few things, Mike, the leader, had asked Andrea to share her testimony, so she wrote it out on a sheet of paper and Michael made copies of it for everyone to read and follow along as she shared it. Afterwards we decided to open it up for anyone else who wanted to share. Michael shared, I shared, and Antonio shared, there were two that chose not to. After some more discussion a young lady, that I had seen there before, always with a big smile on her face, piped in gently:

“I would like to share my testimony too. I feel like I should. But it is difficult for me to share. I feel embarrassed because when I hear people share their testimony it always seems so easy for them, but it was not easy for me. It was a battle.”

“Both of my parents believe that there is a God but go no further than that. When I was a young girl my parents fought all of the time. My father had problems with alcohol; he was an alcoholic and so was my mother. They would fight and yell and yell and yell at each other every night. I would cry and cry in my room so hard that my neighbor would come to my room and get me and take me to his house so I wouldn’t have to hear my parents; so I couldn’t see them fighting. It always made me so sad, but I would also wonder why they stayed together. I had a bad childhood.”

“But I was also a very angry person. I used to yell at people and treat them badly. I didn’t know why. And I felt bad; I wondered, ‘Why do I treat people like this?’”

“I started coming to REAPSouth English classes/Bible studies; I don’t know why. If anyone tried to tell me something about the Bible or about God I would say ‘Oh I don’t believe that.’ You couldn’t make me believe anything about God.”

“But I was a very dependant person. I had a boyfriend and whenever I wasn’t with him or my parents I felt very very lonely. I could not be alone and I became depressed. I went to see a therapist and I took medicine for my depression, but I still felt a hole that I cannot explain.”

“I still kept going to REAPSouth classes and I felt like I needed to pray but I did everything in my power not to. Whenever I felt like I needed to pray, ‘Oh I’ll watch tv instead,’ or something like that. So many times I felt that way and I would never give in.”

“Still my depression continued until I was to the point that I was a mess; I could do nothing, I could not watch tv, I could not go to class, I could not eat, without feeling this emptiness, I could do nothing…but pray.” 

“It is amazing how much I have changed because of Jesus. I have peace, even when people are fighting. I have happiness all the time. And I appreciate life.”

“I was a mess. And I am a mess without Jesus. I still cannot believe He loves me!”

(This is from memory, but it truly is almost word for word…her testimony really meant a lot to me, which is why I felt compelled to share it with you all, I pray this touches your hearts too.)

Glory to God in Yauyos!

Well I just got back from my first “journey”.  Friday morning at 8:00am I met with a team of people from Northside Baptist Church in Brunswick, Georgia.  The Assistant Pastor Scott, the Ministry Pastor Buddy, and two Sunday school teachers, Billy and Jan. Each of them left behind their spouse and family including children and grandchildren. The Northside Baptist Church has “adopted” 3 villages outside of Lima in the Yauyos providence, and they are Putinza, Pampas, and Allauca.  Early in the summer Buddy had taken a different team from the church out to the villages.  And so again we were journeying out to each village to support them and encourage whatever they have going or to help establish a church body if there was no church. Martin and Sonia were our two Peruvian translators.

We left Friday morning, but not without a few bumps in the road. As we reached the top of the on ramp onto the Pan-American Highway the clutch of our SUV type vehicle went out. Billy and Pastor Scott jumped out to push us out of the way of the on-coming vehicles to a somewhat shoulder (still not a legal or safe place to be). None the less 3 hours later we unpacked the SUV and jumped onto a van. Brother Scott later noted what a blessing it was that the clutch went out there and not on one of the mountains!

Because of our late start we only made it to Lunahuana that night. We stayed at a very beautiful hotel and were blessed with our last shower for the next week. It is so odd to me to see such a magnificent hotel in the midst of such a third-world village. There is definitely a huge division between the upper-class and the lower-class, the middle-class is almost non-existent.

PUTINZA

The next morning we made it to Putinza a village at about 6-7000ft elevation and of approximately 300 people. Putinza’s main crop is apples though they do have a few other things, they are also close to the Canete river so they fish trout quite a bit. Even though they are close to the river, it is down the mountain from them so running water here is a scarcity. The water when available runs early in the morning for a few hours and then is shut off for the day.

Upon arriving in Putinza we were immediately welcomed by the Evangelical church leader Victor and his wife Chela and daughters Kayla and Damaris. The church here is pretty well established but there pastor rotates from village to village; they are lucky to see him once a year. 

It was Saturday but we held a small service that night Victor led the congregation in singing hymns and  Pastor Scott gave the message. It was so touching, there were about 20 people in the church and to watch them sing these hymns whole-heartedly, eyes closed and hands raised, pouring out their hearts to God singing him praises…it was incredible and so sweet and so humbling..  At the end of the service an older woman came to the front unannounced and shared a confession: she was a believer and had broken her leg she had stopped going to church for a while and in December she started coming back she was so sorry and felt compelled to share that with the rest of the church including an encouraging verse about suffering and trials and how God is always with us. She also asked us to sing a hymn that was especially encouraging to her. Pray for the continued healing of Florencia’s leg.

We had intended on sleeping in the municipal hostel that night but there was not enough room for us. The area soccer team was staying there for a while. Arturo, one of the leaders in the church pulled some strings and got some of us in.  Billy and Buddy had to sleep in the van, while Martin and Scott slept in a room with a traveling salesman.

Sunday morning we went to church and held a children’s service. Jan told the story of creation and the children all sat so attentively listening and then we played a few games with them.

That afternoon the men took us to the river to do some fishing, we ladies grabbed as many children as we could fit in the van and played in the water instead.  

That night we held a public service in the plaza. Many people attended or at least watched and surrounded the plaza, including some of the soccer players. We sang songs; Jan and Billy gave their testimonies, and Bro. Scott shared the Gospel and we finished with some singing of Spanish hymns. It was so wonderful to see so many people intrigued by the message. As we went to bed the traveling salesman who was staying with Marin and Scott had many questions, they stayed up late in the night and woke up early in the morning answering this gentleman’s questions. He wanted to make a commitment but was afraid of what his father would think. Pray for Anibal David Vega.

The next morning we presented the school with an Evangiball, a soccer ball that has five colors on it, each color is used to tell the Gospel, so Buddy shared the Gospel with the entire school using the ball. Afterwards the principal wanted to talk with us for quite a while; he had studied biology and had many questions about evolution vs. creation. Pray for Tomas.

 Earlier as Buddy was prepping for the visit to the school one of the soccer players, who had attended the service the night before, saw Buddy with the soccer ball and approached him asking about the ball. Soon Buddy was surrounded by soccer players, so he shared the Gospel two of the men were extremely interested so we gave the team a ball and a New Testament Bible. They then walked off to work in the fields but not 3 minutes later one of them returned and said that he had heard Billy’s testimony last night and it had really touched him. He had dedicated his life to Christ a while back but because of the hypocrisy he saw in the church he didn’t want to be a part of it. He was soon going to be a father and wanted to rededicate his life. Buddy and Martin prayed with him. Pray for Cesar and his family.

  PAMPAS

That afternoon we made it to Pampas, a village at about 10,000-11,000ft elevation, and approximately 900 people. As we asked around about an Evangelical church we found out that there indeed was a church and that the leader was Merdardo, on our way to Merdardo’s we met Izikial who we found out is the actual main leader. That night we held a public service in the town plaza. Jan shared the story of creation and we sang a few children songs in Spanish. Then Bro. Scott shared a message as well as the Gospel, we sang a few songs in English and a few in Spanish and we closed with prayer. There were quite a few people and many of them wanted to know if they could have access to the music we had played over the team’s little speaker system. We handed out several Gospel tracks to the adults and they were very receptive.

The next morning we presented the school with the Evangiball again using it to share the Gospel with them. One of the teachers followed us out to thank us for talking about God. She told us that the majority of the town looks down on any talk about God and so she was very thankful and hopeful that we had stirred some interest or conversation even. She too was a believer.

ALLAUCA

We left that afternoon for Allauca a village at about the same elevation as Pampas but about 1,200 people. After talking to a few people around the village we had heard that there was no Evangelical Church nor were there any believers. However, we did run into a VERY delightful couple Cesar and Lionida, and their children Ladi and Jose. They had a little restaurant at which we ate all of our meals. Both of them were very joyful and kind, and had such servant hearts. We spoke with them quite a bit, they were very friendly. That night we held a service in the town plaza; there were many kids but not many adults. We started out by playing games and then Jan told the story of creation. While Jan was telling her story a man came up to Martin and Scott and asked them if they would come after the service and pray for his wife and they of course said yes. After the story we sang a few children’s songs in Spanish and then Bro. Scott shared a message including the Gospel. There were so few adults and even the children had grown rowdy and disinterested, it was very discouraging. And the man who wanted us to pray for his wife didn’t even show up after the service.

The next morning during our devotional, Brother Scott shared that he felt a certain conviction to stay in Allauca another night, though some of us, including myself, hesitantly accepted his decision.  Also that morning we presented the Evangiball to the school as well as some English-Spanish Dictionaries they had asked for during the summer trip, and also 2 New Testaments for their principal and library. We spoke with the principal afterwards and set up a time later that afternoon to do a demonstration for the students and teachers of the Rocket Stove.

The women in these villages cook over an open fire; the smoke from these fires increases the potential and growth of cataracts in their eyes as well as causes respiratory problems. The Rocket Stove is a simple stove made out of materials that the women in the villages would have easy access to including bricks of any type and a few scrape metals (if they choose). The men ended up demonstrating it to the school, including many women who came in off the street just to see what was going on, and then also to a group of women in the town plaza including Cesar. It was so neat they had many questions but were so thankful and excited to put this stove into practice.

Sometime during the afternoon the man who wanted prayer over his wife found Bro. Scott and Martin and they went to his house and prayed with him and his wife for 2 hours! It was fantastic! The man, Alfonso had received a Bible from his Uncle 3 days earlier. His uncle Abrehem grew up in Allauca but had moved to Lima. About a week ago Abrehem had a dream that he was in a small village leading a church so he, his wife Rosa, and his cousin Herario, packed up and moved back to Allauca, 3 days before we had got there! WOW! Pray for Abrehem’s leadership and Alfonso and his wife Clautilda, who is deathly ill with stomach cancer, the doctors said they cannot operate and she cannot keep anything she eats down. She is so weak she has to stay in bed (which is a couple blankets on the dirt floor of their house). Pray for a miracle.

That night we held a second service in the plaza Billy shared the story of Noah’s Ark and Scott again shared another message; again a very poor turnout of adults. However, it was absolutely incredible, there was a young boy, about 10 or 11 maybe, who stood in front of Scott as he preached the entire time while all the other children played soccer behind him. After Scott’s message we sang a song in Spanish, this time we had written the lyrics out on a few sheets of paper so we could pass them out. Oh the children loved it! They sang so loud it was so heartening! They all wanted copies of the music; one little girl went into a building and even made a few copies. They may not know the depth of what they were singing right now but I pray one day they will!

“He decidido seguir a Cristo” – I have decided to follow Jesus

“No vuelvo atras, no vuelvo atrás” – No turning back, no turning back

Our final morning we woke up early and on our way out of town we stopped at Alfonso and Clautilda’s home and we all prayed over her. Again I ask you to pray for Clautilda and Alfonso.

REFLECTION

God,

WOW… you are so amazing it brings me to tears… I feel so humbled to have even been allowed to be a part of this truly incredible team. Each of them immediately felt like family and that is the way it is when we are in Christ! Thank you Lord that I have family everywhere. Thank you Lord that YOU are everywhere. Thank you for blessing me with opportunity to witness and be a part of your work in these villages! Sometimes I forget how quickly you can work but Lord you have shown me in a matter of minutes how you and you alone have the power and the ability to change a heart; you God are the greatest doctor and can heal anything from a cancerous stomach to a broken-heart; cysts, masses, tumors, and Satan are no match for you, and I am so thankful! May All the Praise and Honor be to You Lord!

Pan-American Highway

Hotel in Lunahuana

Putinza Plaza

Putinza Hostel

Putinza

Canete River

Jan & Gabrial

Michel & I

Gabrial found a sitting rock

My computer wouldn't let me add any more pictures I'll try again another day :)

Nov. 1st - Travel Day #1

Yesterday I left home for Peru.

My first flight was at 11:41am to Newark, NJ (kind of a side track, yes)
Then I flew from NJ to Panama City, Panama 5:15-9:45pm. I am here now waiting for my final flight to Lima Peru at 9:35am.
Last night I had to privelege of sleeping in the airport, so I picked a nice empty place to unload, take off my shoes and relax. I had talked to an airport attendent about how I was planning to stay in the airport and she laughed and sighed and felt compassion for me. I reassured her it would be fine and she smiled.
As I sat with my computer to see if I could pick up any internet, one by one airport workers came and sat in the chairs just rows away from me until there were 15-20 of them. I wondered to myself, "Did I do something wrong? Do I need to put my shoes back on? Am I a spectacle? or maybe they are goig to have a meeting!?"
All of a sudden they ALL got up, got in a circle, joined hands, bowed their heads, and prayed...
How AMAZING!
It was just the kind of reassurance and encouragement I needed to feel comfortable and peaceful enough to rest. Thank you God.
  

Totally God

Wow...Praise and Glory all to God!!! Not only did He bring in the amount I needed but He surpassed that amount, what an amazing God we serve. A Sincere Thank You to ALL for the financial support, for the verbal support/encouragement, and for all of the prayers!!!

Love & Blessings,
daniela