theYoakums.net

Sorry for the long delay between posts.  Among other things, I started my language intensive study last Monday.  Keep praying, because God is answering my prayers in big ways when it comes to learning the language here.  I went to school every day this week, I’ve learned a lot, and my confidence in speaking Spanish is growing.  A huge praise!

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!