So I have had a couple of weeks to prepare my heart for this.  It took all day, but the sadness is setting in now.  Since I am not there, it seems so surreal.  I think I could easily let myself stay disconnected and be glad that I’m several countries away right now.  But I don’t want to do that.  I want to celebrate the life of this amazing, Godly woman right alongside everyone else.  I want to sing songs with her family and friends and hear the laughter when stories are told of Marilyn that will make you smile so long your face hurts.

I have been waiting to share these next thoughts.  Because I know there are so many out there who are, who have been, or who will be someday disappointed with God.  There are so many emotions that come when God doesn’t do what we wanted Him to do.  Sadness, anger, frustration, pain.  Just to name a few.  I think those emotions are normal, okay, and to be expected.  There comes a time, though, when we are called to take off the clothes of mourning and step into the light of the face that brings warmth and draws you close.

The heart that presses in harder to the chest of God so as to hear His heartbeat, instead of pushing Him away or holding Him off at a distance because you are not so sure about that anymore… the heart that shouts cries and beats the breast, but then just lets Him hold you is the kind of heart that I think can be described as “a man after God’s own heart,” like David in the Bible.  Ask “why?” all you want to.  Tell Him how it made you feel.  Pour it out like a rushing waterfall if you need to.  Then let Him come nearer.  Be not offended.  Just trust and believe He is Who He said He is.

Be not offended.  Maybe it was years ago when things didn’t go the way you wanted them to go and the pain from it has torn you to pieces inside.  But you keep waking up, day after day, and have figured out how to put one step in front of the other.  Life even looks pretty normal.  Back to usual.  But your heart has your hand up, saying, “No, no, not too close.  That is far enough.  I can’t handle anymore disappointment right now.  It’s not worth the risk.”  If this is you, then let me say with great care…you are called to a better place than that.

The time has come or it will come when God will restore you and redeem you back to that place of immeasurable faith.  The place where you aren’t afraid to ask Him to do things for you again.  A time when His blessings will so fill your heart with joy that you will dance and sing with laughter at His goodness and say, “Why, Lord?  Why would you do this for me?”  And you’ll just know the answer in your heart as He says to you, “Because I Am Who I Am and I love you because you are Mine.”

Lastly, I want to share with you my last letter to Marilyn that I sent her a couple of weeks ago after the prayer vigil.  I guess I want to share it, because so many of you have joined me, joined us, in praying.  In praying with great faith.  This relationship journey that we are on with Jesus Christ is one, wild ride!  It is indescribable.  I hope that you will continue on with me.  When He calls me to pray and to trust in the authority of the Holy Spirit inside of me, I will pray.  There will be times of disappointment.  But I’m pretty sure the victories and leaps of joy when He does something only His glory can contain…those will outweigh and outlast the moments of heartbreak.

Marilyn,

I am at a loss of words.  I think because I don’t want to say good-bye.  But I want to share with you how wonderful it has been to be on this journey of my faith and to have you be such a big part of it.  I love our God and how He speaks to us and moves in our hearts.

And I love that He put the same passage of scripture on mine and Kimberly’s heart this past weekend–Daniel 3.  I talked to her and then read her blog post.   I was able to do that Beth Moore Daniel study with her while we were living in New Braunfels, before moving to Lima.  That was a special time for me, a hard time of therapy and unknowns as I was getting treatment for depression.  God put Kim and I together during that time and it was perfect.  I needed her and she was and has always been such a good friend to me.  All of His plans are perfect aren’t they?

On Saturday morning of the prayer vigil I woke up with Daniel 3 in my heart.  Verses 17 and 18 running through my head:

17 If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. 18 But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.”

I want to have that kind of faith.  I thought about how those three young men didn’t know the end of the story like we do.  But they said, “Our God is able to deliver us.”  And they also said, “And he will deliver us.”  Then, “But even if he doesn’t…”  God is still God and we still love Him and trust Him.

I want you to know that I believe with all my heart that God wants us to have the kind of faith that trusts in the authority we have been given by the Holy Spirit.  The authority and faith to believe and say–”Our God is able and HE WILL deliver us.  But even if He doesn’t, my love and trust in Him will not fail.”

Thank you, Marilyn.  Thank you for walking this journey of faith with me for so many years.  Thank you for being proud of me.  Thank you for praying for me and for my family, for praying with faith that pleases our God.  I will miss you so much.  But I am so happy for you that you get to be with Jesus face to face, surrounded by His light and His love.  I’m kind of jealous about it.  :)  I love you.   I’m so glad I got to hug your neck when I was there in July.  But I’ll see you again someday soon.  And when that day comes, I can’t wait to be singing with you again–glorious, unimaginable songs, praising the lover of our souls.

Thinking of you and your family whom I love so much,

Stacy

Marilyn, what you said is so true.  You’ll be smiling the next time I see you!

For me, and my family and friends, Camp Bandina is a place where the Word of God was preached and lived out.  It is a place where friendships formed and blossomed.  Stars.  Many nights on this hill gave me a love for basking in the bigness of God.  Laughter.  I can’t think about camp and not think about skit nights and the jokes that were played on friends.  And camp is a memory of tears, too.  Sad tears and happy tears.  You can’t go there and not remember, “It Is Well With My Soul.”  This is where so many of us learned more about what life is all about and how there is so much more to it when Christ is your reason for living.  Countless children, including myself, died to themselves there and made a statement for all to see–baptized in the name of Jesus, plunged below the water of that cold river, buried with Christ and raised to new life with a new beginning, a fresh start.

The memories of Camp Bandina go on and on, but the one that I want to share the most, is of Marilyn.  This particular summer at camp, as a teenage girl surrounded by a cabin of girls dreaming about their future, we had a Bible class teacher that was no ordinary teacher.  Marilyn brought the Word of God to life for us, for me.  Every hour of every morning of every class that week I was captivated by her stories, by her life, by the way she spoke with passion.  I’ll never forget her story of the bird in her garage that God used to tell her it was time to let go.  I was drawn in by her love for her Lord and motivated to live a life with that kind of legacy.  This is Marilyn.  A lover of Christ with an incredible legacy.

Me and Marilyn on July 28th of this year,

the last day of furlough before going back to Lima.

And this is Marilyn.  A woman with a gun who is not afraid to kill a chicken snake!

June of 2009 when our family went for a visit at “Tranquility Farm.”

And this is Marilyn.  A woman so full of joy and laughter that one of her highlights of living on a farm with her husband, Chuck Jobe, is having goats that faint.

Chuck and Marilyn with Jakob and Derek.  And the goats.

I wish I had a picture or a video of this, but I don’t, so you’ll just have to use your imagination.

On this particular visit to the farm Marilyn said, “Wes, scare the goats so we can watch them faint!”

Right away Wes jumps the fence with one leap to run after the goats and we all die in hysterical laughter as the goats fall over like dominoes!

I could also tell you about the time when I was in college and I went to visit Marilyn.  That visit with her saved me from a terrible sin (having a friendship with a married man over email), because I was young, ignorant and naive.  She practically knocked me upside the head to reveal that sin in my life!  I’m so thankful that now we can laugh about that moment, because through her, God corrected me and set me straight, preventing a lot of heartache and unforeseen dangers.

And Marilyn has three children, all grown and married with children of their own.  This family has a special place in my heart.  They are some of my best friends and they are each living out their own legacies of a Godly life.  When this family gets together you can be sure of three things–

1. The best kind of home-cooked meals that make you fat,
2. Hours of laughter, and
3. Songs, songs, and more songs!

If you have had the privilege of sitting in their living room around the piano, then consider yourself blessed!

SO HERE’S THE DEAL. I live in Lima, Peru.  Thousands of miles away from here my friend and mentor, Marilyn, is suffering from cancer.  About 5 months ago she was diagnosed with metastatic colon cancer.  I know that there are many out there who are losing hope or have lost hope.  I admit I have been tempted to also lose hope myself.  But the thing is, I have this God and this Holy Spirit that I am growing in intimacy with, and they keep telling me to believe and have faith.  So that’s what I’m doing.

People, this is a call for faith.  The kind of faith that believes.  Or the kind of faith that cries out like the desperate father of the boy in Mark 9, “I do believe, help me with my unbelief!”

I believe we have found ourselves in a situation like that in Mark 9.  Jesus has just come down from the mountain after having been transfigured with glory and encouraged by Moses and Elijah.  And the disciples who were left at the bottom of the mountain are caught up in the middle of an argument with some teachers of the Law about why they were not able to heal this particular boy who was tormented by an evil spirit.

14 When they came to the other disciples, they saw a large crowd around them and the teachers of the law arguing with them. 15 As soon as all the people saw Jesus, they were overwhelmed with wonder and ran to greet him.

16 “What are you arguing with them about?” he asked.

17 A man in the crowd answered, “Teacher, I brought you my son, who is possessed by a spirit that has robbed him of speech. 18 Whenever it seizes him, it throws him to the ground. He foams at the mouth, gnashes his teeth and becomes rigid. I asked your disciples to drive out the spirit, but they could not.”

19 “You unbelieving generation,” Jesus replied, “how long shall I stay with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring the boy to me.”

20 So they brought him. When the spirit saw Jesus, it immediately threw the boy into a convulsion. He fell to the ground and rolled around, foaming at the mouth.

21 Jesus asked the boy’s father, “How long has he been like this?”

“From childhood,” he answered. 22 “It has often thrown him into fire or water to kill him. But if you can do anything, take pity on us and help us.”

23 “‘If you can’?” said Jesus. “Everything is possible for one who believes.”

24 Immediately the boy’s father exclaimed, “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!”

25 When Jesus saw that a crowd was running to the scene, he rebuked the impure spirit. “You deaf and mute spirit,” he said, “I command you, come out of him and never enter him again.”

26 The spirit shrieked, convulsed him violently and came out. The boy looked so much like a corpse that many said, “He’s dead.” 27 But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him to his feet, and he stood up.

28 After Jesus had gone indoors, his disciples asked him privately, “Why couldn’t we drive it out?”

29 He replied, “This kind can come out only by prayer.”

I don’t know about you, but I’m ready to be overwhelmed with wonder as I run to Jesus.  And I am ready to stop arguing about whether or not Marilyn can be healed from cancer.  I’m ready to stop arguing with myself, with others, and with all the forces that are against us.  I am ready to be a part of a believing generation that is being transformed by their faith, because they believe that Heaven has invaded Earth!

I’m ready to be a person of prayer, a disciple of Jesus that wants more than anything to be just like my Rabbi, to have perfect intimacy with my God and His Holy Spirit.  To be a disciple who hangs on every word of Jesus and can’t get away from the four Gospels, because how can I know, really know my Jesus if I’m not hanging on His every word and action recorded in the first four books of the New Testament.  This is a call for all of you who want this, too.  This is a call for those of you who believe Jesus when he said to his disciples in John 14,

“Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you I do not speak on my own authority. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the works themselves. Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.  If you love me, keep my commands. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. “

For those of you who believe that Jesus has been given all authority and has called you, yes you, to be his disciple and live a life as one who has intimacy with the Father, just as Jesus did.

For those of you who believe that Jesus has called you to do works like the kind of works Jesus did, and that because you have the Holy Spirit living in you, you will do even greater things than what the disciples of Jesus had seen while He was on Earth.

For those of you who believe that Jesus will do whatever you ask in his name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.

For those of you who love Jesus and keep his commands and want nothing else more than to be just like your Rabbi!

Prepare yourself. Prepare your heart.  Fast.  Pray.  Spend time with the Lord.  Ask to be filled with the Holy Spirit and feel His presence within you.

One week from today, November 12th, at 9:00 PM Eastern time, I am going to be praying out loud for God to heal Marilyn, and inviting those around me who are walking this life with me right now to join me in praying out loud in faith.  Gather together and pray out loud in the power of the Holy Spirit.  For those of you that can, gather around Marilyn and lay your hands on her and pray in the power of the Holy Spirit that she be filled with Him and that she be healed of this cancer.  Pray for the glory of God to be revealed through her by the power and love of His Son, Jesus.

Spread the word.  Put it on your blog, put it on Facebook.  Tell everyone who wants to be a part of God’s Kingdom on earth.  Tell everyone who has a story about Marilyn that they can share it and encourage others with it.  You can leave your stories in the comment spaces.  Get the word out everywhere!  How exciting it is to serve a God that bridges the oceans, the continents, the States, and all of our hearts.  We are united under ONE God Who cannot be contained or explained!  This is the kind of God we serve and love!

There is just one last thing I want to say.  This is the message and the good news of Jesus Christ, evidence of God’s Kingdom on earth, and I will not be ashamed of it!

I will not be ashamed.

Sometime after writing that last post about chick flicks and mine and Wes’ anniversary I had some memories from my childhood resurface.  I am so thankful for my parents!  In many ways it is because of the values they instilled in me that I have a healthy perspective of marriage and relationships.

Here’s one of those memories from when I was about 14 or 15.  A value that my Mom shared with me and one that I would eagerly share with any girl in need of some encouragement when it comes to boys.

I think we were riding in the car somewhere and I was telling my Mom about my guy frustrations.  I was probably complaining about how I liked this boy but he didn’t like me, or how there was this other boy who liked me but I didn’t like him, and what is a girl supposed to do about that?!  I honestly don’t remember much about that conversation…except this one thing that my Mom said to me.  After listening to me worry about my future and how it was all going to work out, she spoke these words of wisdom to me and it felt like time stood still.  The world stopped revolving around me and for a moment all my problems were solved.  She said,

“Stacy, you don’t need to worry about finding that right guy.  What you need to be concerned about is being that right girl, for that right guy.”

And for some reason that only God knows, I not only believed her, but made that my mantra over the next several years.  I stopped worrying about boyfriends and going out on dates and started paying more attention to the kind of person I wanted to be.  Over time I began to dream about my future and trusted that God was preparing someone out there just for me.  Looking back I can see how I unconsciously decided that if I was going to work hard at being who God wanted me to be, then I wasn’t going to settle for anyone who wasn’t focusing on the same thing.

Thanks for that, Mom.

Another value my Mom help instill deep within me is, “I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made.”  Psalm 139:14.  It was the first scripture I memorized, and I’ve known it since I was five years old.  Psalm 139 is still one of my favorite Psalms.  What girl doesn’t struggle with an identity crisis along the way?  Or lacks confidence and has moments of weakness when it’s hard not to believe lies of worthlessness.  I know that I can always go back to Psalm 139, the truth that tells me who I am and Who’s I am.

Thanks for that, Mom.

Approachable, Available, and a Listener.  In my teenage years, especially in high school, that is how I saw my Mom.  Maybe it was because she took me seriously and talked to me like I was mature (even though I wasn’t in so many ways).  I knew that I could talk to her about anything.  And I really appreciated that she let me do most of the talking.  She listened so well, with few things to say in response to me.  But when she did respond I could tell it was well thought out and reflecting wisdom from the Lord.

Thanks for that, Mom.

Bible Class Teacher.  Teaching God’s Word to little ones was always a priority for her when we were growing up.  I remember one time when I was in college and had gone home for a holiday or something and she and I went to a class at church where we were handed a Bible trivia questionnaire that was relevant to the lesson we were about to hear.  I think my Mom was the only one who knew all the right answers.  I remember her being surprised by that.  But when you have spent 20 plus years in the Word, teaching it, then of course it is going to be written on your heart!  Because of her example, I want to be the primary Bible teacher for my own kids.

Thanks for that, Mom.

Hospitality.  Another value instilled by my Mom.  Having people over was always a joyous thing.  The presentation and how nice everything looked wasn’t ever the focus when we would be getting ready for company.  I learned that it’s more important for your guests to be comfortable and feel like your home is a safe and welcoming place.  My Mom truly finds pleasure in cooking for guests in her home.  So much so, that I think it is a form of worship for her!  She taught me a lot in the kitchen when I was growing up.  It was like pulling teeth for me to be in there, though.  (Sorry about that, Mom!)  But now that I am 32 years old and have a family of my own, does it surprise you that I love to cook for people and desire for our house to be a place of peace?

Thanks for that, Mom.

Okay, one more thing.  This one is just for fun.  When I am my Mom’s age, I have hope that I will look as good as she does!  She taught me the importance of taking care of your skin!  Without even realizing her influence on me, I began to do the same thing in my early twenties and started taking skin care seriously.  You can be sure that when I am her age you’ll be hearing me say,

Thanks for that, Mom.

I love you.  Happy Birthday!

Mom and me with baby Jakob on my first Mother’s Day, 2006.

Mom and me.  June 2011, our first furlough trip back to Texas.

The wikipedia definition–Chick flick is a slang term for a film mainly dealing with love and romance designed to appeal to a female target audience.  Although many types of films may be directed toward the female gender, “chick flick” is typically used only in reference to films that are heavy with emotion or contain themes that are relationship-based.

Yes, it’s true.  I can almost always go for a good chick flick.  I saw one recently and it got me thinking.  What is it about these movies that draw us to them?  “Us,” being girls, typically, as the definition says.  Love, romance, relationship.  Words that either make you sigh and bat your eyelashes, or sigh and make you crinkle up your nose.

This particular film that I saw stuck with me for a couple of days, so I couldn’t help but ask why.  And I couldn’t help but write about it.

To me, this is one way a good chick flick can go:  Boy likes girl.  But girl initially rejects boy.  Their paths continue to cross and eventually the girl decides to be friends with the boy.  Despite her rejections and hardness of heart, the boy accepts the girl as she is, and he enjoys her company.  He decides she is worth pursuing even if she does put up a fight.  He believes in her, values her, adores her.  All the while she is blind to this, because it is too hard for her to accept him for who he is, and also too hard for her to accept that she is who he sees her to be.  She fights against his love for her.  She fights against the love she feels for him.  But the boy is patient, kind, forgiving.  He is up for the challenge and continues to give her grace that she doesn’t deserve, because he can’t deny his heart.  She is worth fighting for.  But he endures another rejection and has to let her go.  He knows she has to decide on her own that she is who he saw her to be all along.  He knows that she has to believe on her own that he is the one she loves and the one that she is meant to love forever.  When the veil is finally lifted from her heart then she goes to him and makes herself vulnerable like he had been with her all along.  He could say many things in response to her, but he says the truth he can’t deny… “I love you.  I never stopped loving you.”

Roll the credits.  I take a great sigh, bat my eyelashes and imagine how they live happily ever after.

Then it’s back to reality, right?  Well, I woke up the next morning after watching that movie and read my devotional thought for the day.  From Sarah Young’s, Jesus Calling:

Come to Me. Come to Me. Come to Me.  This is My continual invitation to you, proclaimed in holy whispers.  When your heart and mind are quiet, you can hear Me inviting you to draw near.  Coming close to Me requires no great effort on your part; it is more like ceasing to resist the magnetic pull of My Love.  Open yourself to My loving Presence, so that I may fill you with My fullness.  I want you to experience how wide and long and high and deep is My Love for you, so that you can know My Love that surpasses knowledge.  This vast ocean of Love cannot be measured or explained, but it can be experienced.  Rev. 22:17, John 6:37, Eph. 3:16-19.

Wow.  So this is why I love chick-flicks so much!   It’s true!  It is the reality of how God pursues a love relationship with mankind!  Girls, next time your man rolls his eyes at the mention of you wanting to go see another chick-flick, just reassure him that it’s the Godly thing to do!

Just kidding.  Sort of.

No, really, though.  The other reason why this particular chick-flick stuck with me is because it was all too familiar.  You can substitute “boy” in that description above with “Wes,” and “girl” with “Stacy.”

Wes and I are celebrating 9 years of marriage!  On August 24, 2002 I married the most amazing man.  I married my best friend.  I married the one I was waiting for–someone who would love God more than he would ever love me.  I married Wes, took a great sigh, batted my eyelashes, and dreamed of how we would live happily ever after.

The Lord knows the kinds of trials we have been through over these last 9 years.  And the kinds of trials that we went through before we even got married!   Who ever said being in a committed relationship was easy?  If you have been told that, then you have been straight up lied to.  Happily ever after doesn’t mean perfectly easy.  It means that even when times are tough you hold on tight to the promise that God will see you through that fire.  And then you rejoice together, because you endured the flames and came out stronger, together.  Closer, with a greater dependence on your Lord.

It was about 10 years ago when that veil was lifted from my eyes and I could finally see what was before me clearly.  I began to realize that Wes has taught me more about God’s grace and unconditional love than anyone I’ve ever known.  And since that day I am constantly given a picture, in the flesh, of what my relationship with God is like.  What it was like.  What it is supposed to be like.  What it can be like.  What it will be like with time.  Who ever said being in a committed relationship with God was easy?  If you have been told that, then you have been straight up lied to.

But maybe there is something you haven’t been told.  Here it is again.  What God says to you,

Coming close to Me requires no great effort on your part; it is more like ceasing to resist the magnetic pull of My Love.  Open yourself to My loving Presence, so that I may fill you with My fullness.  I want you to experience how wide and long and high and deep is My Love for you, so that you can know My Love that surpasses knowledge.  This vast ocean of Love cannot be measured or explained, but it can be experienced.

It’s true.  It can be experienced.  God desires intimacy with us.  A kind of intimacy that is even greater and stronger than the kind of intimacy between husband and wife.  It can’t be explained.  But it can be experienced.

Thank you, my Lord, and my God for pursing me even when I fight against the magnetic pull of Your love.  Thank you for not giving up on me.  And thank you, sweet Lord, for giving me Wes.  I don’t deserve him, as I don’t deserve You.  But I will praise You and thank You all the more!

Happy Anniversary, Wesley.  I love you more and more each day.  It is such a privilege to live this adventure with you.  Thank you for loving our God even more than you’ll ever love me.

Even though we just passed our one year mark in Peru (woohoo!) and it is winter here, I still am thinking of the months of June, July and August as summer.  For the past several years I have always looked forward to a good book to read over the summer.  This year I read three.  (I’m not a HUGE reader, so three is a lot for me.)  Third Culture Kids, Love and Respect, and Searching for God Knows What.  I highly recommend all three.

Third Culture Kids by David C. Pollock and Ruth E. Van Reken  is a book about growing up in more than one culture.

Since the time we decided to be missionaries and move to another country, we have heard about this book, because Jake and Derek are now “third culture kids” or “TCKs.”  They are not fully American, they are not fully Peruvian.  They make up a culture of their own–a childhood cross-cultural experience.  This book explains and describes so well the challenges and rewards families face because of their different cultural experiences.  At first I thought that this was something I needed to read about later on, but then a friend recommended I read it now and mailed it to me (All the way from Singapore!  Thanks, Jenn).  The wisdom and knowledge and personal stories in this book are invaluable.  It covers the board–it’s not just for parents.  It speaks to adult TCKs, family members, sponsoring organizations, and anyone else who wants to understand how being born or raised in a different culture can shape someone and impact them differently.  I find this stuff pretty fascinating (which probably explains why I chose a degree in Psychology).  I realized after reading this book that you don’t have to leave the country to have a cross-cultural experience.  I think the newest edition of the book explains in more detail what that means and looks like.

Love and Respect by Emerson Eggerich is a marriage book.

This is actually the second time I’ve gone through this book.  It’s divided into three sections–the first is written to both husband and wife, and then it’s split into the “how to love your wife” and “how to respect your husband” parts.  I think the strongest message of this book is how little we know (us wives) about the importance of respecting our husbands.  It’s pretty revolutionary, actually.  I’ll probably be re-visiting this one throughout our different stages of marriage and life as a fresh reminder.

Searching for God Knows What by Donald Miller is a book that has set me free in a lot of ways.

I mentioned this one on Facebook a while back.  It is the kind of book that, as a Christian, you can be proud of and actually want to share it with everyone you know.  And it’s the kind of book for people who believe in God or want to believe in God, and who can respect Jesus but want nothing to do with Christianity or the church.  It set me free, like I said, because I am understanding the message of Jesus in a way I never have before.

We focused our efforts in a community in a part of Lima called Villa Maria del Triunfo and more specifically in an area known as “Paraiso” or “Paradise.”  In this, our first medical campaign, we were really just shooting in the dark on a lot of things.  Sometimes inexperience can be a blessing as well as a curse.  We decided that we wanted to have a traditional medical campaign like most people imagine when they think about such a thing.  We talked with a local government run preschool and were able to use their facilities, which turned out to be ideal.  We had several rooms with doctors, dentists and nurses seeing patients.  Plus another room for vision checks and passing out eyeglasses.  All of this enclosed in a fence with a playground for the kids and space for the adults.  It was perfect and we invited the community to come receive free exams and, if we had what they needed, free medicine.  We saw hundreds of people over the three days we were there.

Also, though, we wanted to do something a little different.  Our ministry here has been one that is not a massive, shotgun approach.  We haven’t plastered signs on billboards and played ads on the tv or radio.  While those certainly have their place, our ministry has all along been intentionally very relational.  We have gotten to know our neighbors and the people that work in our communities.  We talk on the street corners and in our kids schools and play soccer on the local “canchas.”  We do a lot of talking over lunch and generally sharing life with our new friends in a one to one kind of way.  So, we decided we would try something similar with our medical campaign as well.

We formed two small teams with a medical doctor and a few helpers that traveled on foot through the surrounding neighborhoods.  We primarily worked by word of mouth and through many of our relationships in the community, going to visit people in their homes that we knew to be sick and need help.   One of the great things about this approach is that we were able to visit many that were unable to get out of their house and come to the clinic we had set up.  Equally as great though, was that we simply had the opportunity to sit down in these peoples very humble homes and talk with about their troubles, pray with them about their concerns and their health, sometimes drink some tea… we were able to go to them and meet them where they were.

I just put up a post on our team ministry website as well… www.twentyeight19.org.  Go check it out.

Also, John Mark made a fantastic video of our weekend.  Take a few minutes and get some better insight into the kind of neighborhood I’ve been talking about and see some of the faces… of our Peruvian neighbors and our American volunteers.

Medical Campaign 2010 – Paraiso from Twentyeight19 Ministries on Vimeo.

One of the lessons I listened to was on parenting.  Here are a few of the things I gleaned that boosted my day:

1. I am a better Mom when I spend time everyday with God.

2. My kids need to see me put that time with God at the top of my priority list.

3. Our top goal in parenting is to raise kids who love the Lord and hate sin.

The enemy is hard at work over here to destroy our spirit and keep us down!  Please pray for God’s Light to shine bright in our dark areas of weakness, struggle, and hardship so that as His word says, “everything exposed by the light becomes visible—and everything that is illuminated becomes a light” (Eph. 5: 13).

Only God can turn what was once dark into a light that reflects His glory.

Okay, so now about Easter, or Pascua, as they call it here.  We had seven of our new Peruvian friends come celebrate with us!  Including us and Mark, there were 10 adults and four kids there.  We were very excited that God brought them here even on such a short, one day notice.  Here’s a quick run-down of what our afternoon looked like.  I made two pans of my trusty Baked Spagehtii, because I’ve never met anyone who didn’t like it.  And even though they all said they liked it, I think it would have tasted better if I had actually gotten to bake it instead of cut it all into pieces and put it on plates in the microwave, because we ran out of gas for the oven!  Minor detail that the enemy would have loved to drag me down with, but I stayed calm and didn’t freak out.  :)

Anyway, so before the meal, Wes read a scripture passage about the Passover meal, and Mark prayed for us.  The conversation between all of us flowed really well and we all felt comfortable being there together, just enjoying each others company.  It was awesome.  After lunch Wes and Edgar hid the boiled eggs (that Wes and the boys dyed in food coloring that morning; yes we did finally find food coloring by the way) in our backyard.  They don’t have egg hunts here in Peru, so this was all new to them, and the kids were beside themselves excited about it.  So also, as you can tell in the pictures, we couldn’t just run to Wal-mart and pick up some Easter baskets, either.  We had to go with bags from our Wal-mart substitute, Wong, instead.  And made do with just putting some candy in the yard, since they don’t have those hollow plastic eggs here, either.  Regardless, the kids had a blast!  And we did, too, watching them!

After the egg hunt Wes took pictures of everyone.   Now you can have a face with the names.  Which is great, especially for those of you joining with us in prayer for them.  Also, a funny story.  The day after Easter we were talking with Edgar and he told us how his little girl, Danna (sounds like Donna), went home and told her grandma about the Easter egg hunt.  She said, “Grandmother!  We went to The Gringo’s house and hunted for eggs in their yard and got candy!”  We laughed pretty hard.  And Edgar said that Danna’s grandmother didn’t believe her!  Maybe it won’t be too long before we won’t just be The Gringos.  :)

Anyway, Edgar also told us that day that he and his wife, Graciela, were talking and wanted to ask us about some ideas they had.  He said they thought it would be great if we could get that same group together every Sunday and not just have a meal, but have a Bible study and sing some songs, too.  Then he asked us, “Do you think that’s a good idea or a bad one?”  Needless to say, Wes and I jumped on board with that and told him we had had almost the exact same conversation as well!  Our prayer all along has been that our relationships with the people we meet would serve as a foundation for introducing them to Christ.  In our minds we pictured that happening and then finding ourselves in a position with new friends who would want to start meeting together for Bible study.  God has answered our prayers!  The next Sunday not everyone was able to show up, but those that did, taught me how to make Lomo Saltaldo and Ceviche, two Peruvian dishes.  After the meal, Wes led everyone in a Bible study that went really well.  We have been so blessed by their interest in the Gospel, participation in discussions, and in taking ownership to our gathering together!

Sergio

Sergio is 17 years old, lives in a neighborhood close to ours, and he works on our street as a guard.  He is far away from his family, because they still live in the jungle, where he spent a good portion of his childhood.  He has been playing soccer with the guys on Monday nights and we get to talk with him often.  Sergio told Wes this week that he wants to be apart of what we are doing here.  It won’t be long before he finds out what that means, and Lord-willing, his life will change forever because of it!

Graciela, Edgar, and Danna

Wes met Edgar on his way to Monday night soccer.  You can read that story here.  Wes meets with Edgar to study the Bible every Tuesday.  We have been so encouraged by Edgar’s desire to know God more and to become more like Jesus.  You can pray that Edgar continues to grow closer to the Lord and that his wife, Graciella, will come to desire the same thing.  She and Edgar have been reading the Bible together and learning together.  We are excited about her desire to want to be apart of what we are doing, also.

Derek, Juan Carlos, Maritza, Jake

This is Jaun Carlos who is also a guard on our street, and his girlfriend, Maritza (sounds like Mar-eeska).  Wes has been studying the Bible with Jaun Carlos every week and has been getting to know his family and friends in his neighborhood district called, Villa Maria.  Both Jaun Carlos and Maritza have shown a great interest in studying with us and getting to know us better.  (And Maritza thinks Derek is the cutest thing she has ever seen!  I happen to agree with her.)

Sonya, Davidson, and Martin

Martin is a gardener and works for many people in our neighborhood (including us).  He is also the head guy over the guards on our street and does other side jobs like painting.  We found out early on that Martin is well respected in our community.  Wes describes him as a “person of peace.”  His wife, Sonya, is one of the hardest working women I know.  She has the heart of a servant and an awesome laugh!  Seriously, I love to hear her laugh!

You may have noticed Sara and her kids missing in all these pictures.  Well, she hasn’t been able to join us on a Sunday yet, but we are still keeping in touch with her.  We’ve had her over for a couple of meals during the week and are hopeful that our relationship with her will continue to grow.  Thanks so much for all of your prayers for us and our new Peruvian friends!

]]> http://theyoakums.net/blog/our-pascua-passover-in-spanish-celebration/feed/ 4 http://theyoakums.net/blog/humbled-by-hospitality-part-2/ http://theyoakums.net/blog/humbled-by-hospitality-part-2/#comments Fri, 09 Apr 2010 06:51:27 +0000 Stacy http://theyoakums.net/blog/?p=686

Sara has three daughters and two sons; ages 15, 13, 10, 6, and 4.  At about 11:00 AM on Good Friday two of her daughters showed up at our house.  We all piled in our car and they directed us to their house.  Manchay is the kind of district that reminds Wes and I of a small country town.  It is quiet, pretty small, and just outside of the big city.  Only it is desert country, so don’t imagine grass and horses.  More like dirt and dogs.  It took us about 30-40 minutes to get there.  We passed through the main part of town and kept going.  Pretty soon the only kinds of houses we were seeing were shacks.  My stomach just kind of dropped as it occurred to me where exactly we were going.  We got off the main road and passed through a valley.  No more roads, just dirt paths.  And lots and lots of wooden shacks that look like the outhouses you see in Western movies.  The sun that day was strong and hot.  It was a beautiful day.  But there was little beauty outside our windows.

When we arrived at their house we were going to park outside, but then we saw Sara open her gate made of tin and motioned for us to pull inside.  We literally parked in their living room.  But it was a dirt floor, and there was no furniture, and most of the ceiling was missing.  We found out later that the wind blew it away.

There was a small area that was a concrete slab.  She had two small dining tables on that part and that’s where we ate our meal.  They had two bedrooms and one bathroom without a door.  One side of the house had a brick wall.  And they have a small area where they keep some ducks.  (Jake and Derek were looking forward to seeing the ducks.)

In the kitchen was a stove, a small counter space, and a small cabinet that held their dishes and other things. Later I noticed that the two barrels outside their house were full of water.  There is a water truck that comes by every day to fill them up with water.  They use that water for everything–drinking, cooking, cleaning, flushing the toliet, feeding the ducks, etc.  Though most of the floors are made of dirt, we could tell she takes care of their home, because it was clean and organized.

The sink.

Well, she prepared a FEAST for us.  It is tradition here that everyone eats fish during Holy Week.  When she was at our house she was asking me what we liked to eat.  She made ceviche for Wes.  And I told her I don’t like fish very much, but that I do like fried fish.  Of course, I was talking about the fried fish you get from Luby’s.  It never occured to me that her version of fried fish is to put the whole fish in oil and fry it in the pan–head, tail, eyeballs and all.  Sure enough, there it was.  An entire bowl of fried fish staring back at me.  All I could think was, “Oh, Lord, help me!  I have to eat this!”  Along with the fish she prepared corn on the cob, rice, green peas and potatoes.  And lucky for Wes he had a side of seaweed with his ceviche.  Everything was made on her gas stovetop.  We were absolutely blown away by her generosity!  We found out she left at 4 in the morning to take a 2 hour bus ride to the fish market to buy the fish that morning, and then another two hour ride back home.

Derek, Stacy, Sara.

Our boys had a great time playing with the kids and playing in the dirt, of course.  I think the highlight of Jake’s visit there was the fish on the table.  He was so curious and amazed at the fish and all its bones.  He wanted to know what was inside the heads, too.  We asked Sara, “Can you tell that he doesn’t eat fish often?”  She was hilarious, because Jake was sitting next to her, practically sitting in her lap trying to see the fish on her plate.  So she picked up her fish head and opened it’s mouth and made the fish talk to Jake saying, “Hola, Jakob.  Como estas?”  (Which means, “Hi, Jakob.  How are you?”) I wish we had a picture of Jake’s expression, because it was priceless.  He was elated and laughed so hard!

After lunch we sat around and talked.  I was amazed at how comfortable it was to be there.  She and her family were so welcoming and totally at ease with us being there, which made it easy for us to relax.  Wes brought a Bible for her to have and he briefly explained the outline of it and the order of how it’s written and how there are different versions.  He suggested that she start reading Mark and they planned on picking up there the next time they met together.  We also met one of her neighbors while we were there, who invited us over to see her brand new baby puppies.  We were there for at least four hours and the only reason we left was because Derek was exhausted as it was well past his nap time, and he’s been fighting a cold.  So after taking a bunch of pictures we headed back home.

I had the rest of the afternoon and evening at home to take it all in.  I thought about how Sara barely even knew us, but invited us into her home and gave us more than she could probably afford.  I thought about how I couldn’t think of the last time I showed such an act of kindness and sacrifice like that.  And I thought about all the people we’ve been meeting and wondered what kind of Easter weekend they were having.  God used Sara that day to humble me and teach me what kind of person He wants me to me for His people.  I told Wes that we should try and invite as many people as we could over for Easter lunch and have an egg hunt with the kids in our backyard.  I told him that at like, 10:00 at night on Friday.  So we had one whole day to invite people and prepare everything.  We didn’t know who or what to expect.

I love the way God works.  We’ll tell you about it in our next post!

(See all the pics here.)

Then I met Sara.  A couple of weeks ago Edgar showed up with Sara at our front door (here, though, it was actually at our front gate, not door).  Edgar knows Sara through their jobs working with the bus system.  This particular day Edgar noticed that Sara looked sad and he asked her what was wrong.  She basically said, “Well, I am a single mom of five kids, my husband left me a few years ago, I work all the time, and life is hard.”  Edgar looked at her and said, “You need God.”  And she laughed at him thinking he was joking!  But Edgar said, “No really, you do and I know a guy that can help you.”  Realizing that Edgar wasn’t kidding and recognizing that there had really been a change in Edgar’s life and he seemed much happier, she followed him and they walked to our house.

Doesn’t that just make you say, “Wow, God, You are so amazing!”

Wes met with Sara and Edgar for a little while and listened to part of her story, then they planned a Bible study for the following Sunday, when Sara would have a day off of work.  Well, Sunday came and we were not sure exactly what time Sara was planning on coming over or if she was still coming.  Wes left to go help Mark with a meeting of Peruvians at his house.  Not three minutes after Wes left, Sara showed up at our gate with five kids.  I was in a panic!  I knew that she lived pretty far from here and that it takes her almost an hour to get here on a bus, and I didn’t know how to communicate to her that Wes had just left.  I didn’t want to send them home, either.  I called Alison and asked her to translate for me.  Sara was really sweet and kept offering to help me clean up and it was clear that she didn’t want to be a bother to us.  (Since she showed up unexpectedly there happened to be plenty for her to help me clean up all over the floor.  Jake loves to use the scissors.  And tape.  Need I say more?)  She wouldn’t let me take the broom away from her, so after we cleaned up the floor we went and sat in the living room.  We watched the kids play and I talked to her as much as I could.  I was able to talk more than I thought I could, but we mostly just talked about family, food, and what the kids were doing.  Her kids were really well behaved and they were all so kind-hearted.  Which is not surprising, because I could already tell that their mother is such a great example for them.  Before she left she asked if we had plans for Semana Santa (Holy Week).  I said no and she asked if we could come to her house for lunch on Friday.  I said that sounded great!  Then she kept saying that her house is muy feo (very ugly) and not pretty like our house.  I guess she wanted to warn us of the differences.  I remember Wes saying he thought that she lived in a house that had no running water or electricity.  Well, we did just that.  We had a traditional Peruvian lunch of fish at her house on Good Friday.  But, that deserves it’s own post… more to come.