Farewell for Now Peru...Paraguay Here We Come!!!

As I am writing this I have 6 more days left in Peru before our Team heads on Christmas break and then off to Paraguay so this is a time where the words like "anxious"-"scared"-"sad"-"excited"-"nervous" and "bittersweet" can and are used in the same sentence and thought process at any given time.

I, as well as the rest of the Team, are ready to move forward and take our ministry to Paraguay but this also means saying "Farewell for now" to many friends, contacts, and ministry partners I have met and spent the last 7 months with in Arequipa.

As we wrap up our time here in Chachani here in Arequipa I would like to take a moment and recount some stories from Chachani.

The first story is about a women who we met for the first time when she was really drunk. I mean one moment she was crying, the next she was yelling, and then all the sudden she was jovial. The worst part of this entire event for us was that she was with her kids riding on a combi. Prior to this time we had worked with her kids a little so Emily and I got off this combi feeling awful that the kids were having to deal with their mom so we just continued to pray. The next time we saw the mom she was at the event where Felix Vargas was speaking. She showed up and wasn't drunk and by the end of the night she had accepted Christ into her heart. We tried to do a follow up with her but she was not interested but we continued to pray and reach out to her kids.

The next time we saw this mom was at another one of our events which was cutting hair and painting nails. She again accepted Christ and we did a follow up. This time she was interested. She has now come to two of our services and is talking about wanting to be baptized. It is amazing to see how this women has changed in the short time we have known her and my hope and pray for her is that she continues to grow, stays away from the beer, and helps her children grow in their faith also.

Another story is about the husband of one of our contacts, Jessica, who I have mentioned before. The first time we met Jessica her husband, Umberto, happened to be there. He did not talk at all and only sat there supporting Jessica. As Jessica started growing in her faith she started doing discipleship classes and while her husband came to one or two, he was just not buying into all this Christian stuff. He just wasn't interested. At this time he was between jobs and was trying to find another one. He went down one day to wait on the side of road looking for someone to come and offer him work. A car pulled over and a man offered him work. Umberto got into the car, but started to feel worried as they went to a dangerous part of town. The pulled over and much to Umberto’s surprise, the trunk was full of drugs. Quickly after, the police came and detained the car and the passengers, including Umberto. Umberto told the police that he had nothing to do with the drugs and that he was just looking for money. Really, this comes across as a sad excuse and here in Arequipa, the police never buy these excuses. That day, though, Umberto had brought his identification card, which he never usually has, and the police let him go free. When he returned back home, he was a changed man. He gives credit to God for protecting him in this situation and now believes that not only is God real, but has an active part in his life. We have yet to talk him into sharing his testimony in front of a lot of people but he has started to be involved in our services. It is amazing to see this change and the impact it has had on this family. The faith of this family is so strong I am amazed.

I have shared a lot about Jessica before and I want to share just a tad bit more. A while ago we found out she was pregnant. She was not happy and not sure what they could do about this baby given they did not have any money. It was a huge problem and Jessica had a hard time accepting it. Jessica finally accepted it but then Jessica ended up losing the baby and she was crushed. However, through all of this her faith in God never changed. She did not have the money to go to the hospital however she had faith that God would provide and he did. In her situation I could see her being very upset, hurt, and mad at God over this whole situation, possibly even turning away from God, but during this time Jessica kept pushing on believing that God would always take care of here. I think this serves as a testimony to the strength of her faith and how much she has grown.

There are many other great things that have happened and continue to happen in Chachani as the Spirit of God moves among His people. Things like people who were not interested in anything we had to offer who are now wanting to be involved and learn more about the Bible.We have had the opportunity to share devotions to hundreds of people multiple times. Lives have been changed and are continuing to be touched which it is a huge blessing to me. I have no doubt that there will be a Nazarene Church on Chachani very soon.

In other exciting news, I finished missionary school which I think means

I am "officially" a 40/40. While it was a long and sometimes difficult process of learning, both the information but also the process (skype is not the best way to have class especially when the internet connection is just okay) I have learned so much and am excited to see what God has in store for the Paraguay Team.

Also some exciting news is that I am getting to go home for Christmas. I am excited to spend some time at home with my family before I head off to Paraguay. Thanks for all your continued prayers as they are felt! I also ask that you prayerfully consider joining my support team through prayer or financially or would like more information on how to join the team click the following link: Kelsey Extreme Paraguay Click to donate or join the prayer team and follow the steps provided. The most efficient is direct withdrawal from a bank account, credit cards have charges so not everything you donate will make it to the field with me. Thank you

Foam Block Project Information and Love Extreme Paraguay Information can be found by clicking on either title.

"Something Heavenly"

"Whatever you're doing inside of me
It feels like chaos somehow there's peace
It's hard to surrender to what I can't see
but I'm giving in to something heavenly"
...
"Time for a milestone
Time to begin again
Revaluate who I really am
Am I doing everything to follow your will
or just climbing aimlessly over these hills
So show me what it is you want from me
I give everything I surrender..."
...
Whatever you're doing inside of me
It feels like chaos but now I can see
This something bigger than me
Larger than life something heavenly
Something heavenly

It's time to face up
Clean this old house
Time breathe in and let everything out"
-excerpts from "Something Heavenly" by Sanctus Real

Hey guys not sure if you know this or not but being on the mission field is hard. We have those days that are hard, tiresome, and just stink and we have those days that are great and beyond belief. God has already been changing me over these past five months on the mission field however I know He is not done with the changes yet. This is where it has hit the hardest - that I at times am fighting this change so hard as I refuse to surrender more and more of me til He has it all. You would think that me going out on the mission field was me giving it all, and it was at that point, but I now realize it is an everyday surrender. There is a song by Sanctus Real called something heavenly - I encourage you to take a listen if you have not heard it (here is a link with the song & lyrics). As I really listen to the words and as I surrender everything it is so much easier. I feel like I am really starting to listen daily and I am starting to find that peace. It is amazing how if we just surrender it can get easier.
Right now our work in Chachani is going great. We have been having children's classes, services for adults, and discipleship classes. God is blessing our work in Chachani and I am excited to see where it is headed.
My team and I have been working hard in school (which is taught totally in spanish) trying to get through all our classes and the mountain of homework we have. It has been really good and hard which is how it should be.
Our team has also been working hard at working together as a team. We have had our challenges as between all 6 people we have 6 leaders. So we are discovering how God takes a group of leaders and makes them into a Godly team. It has been tough, however I know God is working on all of us and changing each and everyone one of us into who we need to be. I am excited already for the changes that I not only see in myself but the other people on our team as we come together.
Please Continue to keep the team and I in prayer as we work together and slso be in prayer that we can find the other people we need to complete our team.
Also in this past week I had the opportunity to talk with the people at my church. It was great to talk to you all and share what is happening here in Peru. I love and miss each one of you and I know you are all praying for me.

Service in Chachani.

Today we had our first service in Chachani and it was awesome. Leon, Felipe, Gladis, and I went out early this morning because there was a meeting at 7 in the morning and we were going to have the opportunity to speak and tell everyone about our service. So we got there and while the boys went to the meeting Gladis and I went and talked to the people about the service we were going to have. We were really excited about this and we were so ready to have service.
The other people from our team got up to Chachani a little bit later and we started setting up for service in the building we were using. We got all set up for service and we were ready to start however there was only kids there. So we started the service anyways hoping we would attract more people. As we started service people started trickling in. By the end of the service we had a total of 37 people including 19 adults. It was amazing to have this many people at our first service. We also have many of these people excited to come back next week. God is amazing!. We are all excited for having more services in Chachani.
Tonight las chicas went back out to Chachani to have a discipleship class with some of the women. The women that said the were going to come never did however this turned out to be an okay thing. We got to meet with one of our other contacts who I have talked about before in these blogs. Her whole family happened to be there so while I played with the kids, Emily and Rayann led a discipleship class with Jessica and the rest of her family. This woman is so hungry for everything about God and it has been a blessing to have her as one of our first contacts.
It has been amazing to see the work that has already been done in Chachani. I am super excited for the plan God has for this area because I know it is going to be big. Please continue to pray for this area as we continue to work in it.

I finished Spanish School!!

I FINISHED SPANISH SCHOOL!!! Our graduation was last week were we had to give a five minutes speech in Spanish. It went well I guess because they gave me the certificate that says I finished the class. Thanks to all who were praying for me as I was going through Language school. The Paragauy team has started their second part of training which means we are back in school. We are going through missionary training classes. All in Spanish I might add. So please keep me and the rest of the team in prayer as we go through our schooling.
As many of you know we are working in the area of Chachani. God has been doing big things in this area and I am stealing a little bit of our Chachani blog to tell you all about it:
From the medical clinic we met a woman whose daughter was having trouble in school. We set up a visit that day in the clinic and we met with her the following Tuesday. We went and visited her and she talked about all the problems that her daughter was having in school. This women talked about how her job was hard to deal with while at the same time trying to help her daughter. We prayed with her and we all walked away from the visit knowing we would visit again but having the feeling that she was not interested in knowing God. On the following Saturday we had our normal kids group. This woman showed up and Rayann had the opportunity to talk to with her. She asked Rayann if we were planning to do anything for the adults. Rayann told her that we wanted to but we had not yet. The woman said that we needed to start something and she went on to describe a small group. Keep in mind, this was the woman who a couple days before gave the impression that she was not interested in learning more Now she was asking us to start a small group. It was mind-blowing to us but we jumped at the opportunity.
The following Wednesday Emily and Rayann went and visited this women again. They talked about how much we wanted to start a cell group in the area but we needed a location. The woman told us about a building that is a local building. She said that she would talk to the president about getting the key so we could use the building for meetings. It is amazing how God is using this women in a way we where not expecting at all. We plan to follow up with this women this Tuesday and see if she got the keys. If so we plan to start our first cell group in Chachani this Sunday. We know that God is going to use this women even more then he already has and we also know that God has big plans for this area. We cannot wait to see the big picture!

That was from a last week but we went out again yesterday and we wrote another blog post for that:
Today we had a special opportunity to visit with Jessica and her three daughters, and we were there for an emotional goodbye between them and her husband/their father. He is leaving for the rest of this month for work, which is good but also hard on the family. Unfortunately, this situation is quite common. If a man is responsible, not a drunk, and able to find work, he will often have to leave for long periods of time, probably not for what we would consider a fair wage.
But the joy we were able to share in was in talking with Jessica. She is very excited to begin discipleship classes next week, and on top of that she has helped us contact the president of her area to obtain keys to a 'locale' where we plan on holding a starter service this Sunday. We are hoping that many people will come, want to learn more about God and want a relationship with Him. But even if we have a service with just us + 2, we know God is working and trust Him to build His church if we will but lay the brick where He tells us.
Jessica shared a lot of very personal things with us, including how her daughter wanted to know what God is like, what Heaven is like, and why there is suffering in the world if God is good. We were able to share about God's love, sin and salvation, and just comfort some of her worries. We prayed with her and left optimistic for a chance to begin discipling someone who is yearning to know God more. (malvado, by the way, is the word for evil... we couldn't think of it while we were talking to her!)
The other group (we were split in two) got to visit some more of the contacts we have been trying to reach since the medical clinics, and were invited to share in "mystery meat" soup time! It is such a blessing to know we can connect, get to know and earn the trust of God's beloved in Chachani!

Isn't God amazing. He has blessed us with this women!
And yes I was part of the mystery meat visit but it was amazing to have an opportunity to visit with this group. The group that offered us soup is very interested in knowing about the bible but as of yet our schedules do not work to meet. Please be in prayer that we will have the chance to meet with them and start classes.

Chachani

Thanks for all your prayers for this past Saturday. We had 15 kids show up including 3 teens. We also had a mom show up with her three kids. Emily told the story of creation and the rest of the team and I did hand motions to help the kids remember. It was a great first class in Chanchani and I ask you all to keep praying for this area.

Chachani

In my last Blog I talked a little bit about Chachani, an area of Arequipa that the Paraguay 40/40 Team will be working in for the next few months following up on leads that have been gathered there. There were just some Short Term Missionaries here in Arequipa who helped hold medical clinics in Chachani, as well as many other areas of Arequipa. In one day over a hundred people were seen at the clinic in Chachani. It was a great first ministry outreach and will help us jump start our work there.

We also had the opportunity to show the Felix Vargas video which talks about his testimony. There were about 30 people who showed up to this video and after the video we were able to connect with a lot more people.

Now that the Short Term Missionaries have headed home the follow up work begins. We have started praying over the contacts, visiting them and will be starting discipleship classes for them in the area. One of the first ladies we visited was someone we had talked to at the clinic and who was very eager for us to visit. We were able to sit and talk to her and get to know her. After a while we asked about her children. She said that her older daughter, who is 11, was having a lot of problems in school and this was something that she was very worried about. She tries everything she can to help her daughter but sometimes feels helpless because the daughter needs help with homework that the mom doesn't understand. The mom also feels that the girls teacher doesn't believe in the little girl. This creates a sense of helplessness in the mom, but this is a small snapshot of many of the families in this area who are struggling. These are the families in Chachani that we are looking forward to helping, discipling, and loving.

I am super excited for this area and the work God is going to do in it. Today, Saturday, we are starting our first class with the kids. We plan on teaching a lesson, hanging out, getting to know them and having some fun. It is going to be a great day.
I ask that you all be in prayer for the area of Chachani and for the Paraguay 40/40 team and as we go and work in this area.

Praise, Prayer, and some very good Chocolate Cake

This past week provided me with an awesome chance to relax, hang out with friends, see more of Peru, and get to know my Peruvian Family better.
First it started with a BBQ with the Kuhn's, the Webb's, my Spanish teachers, Emily, Rayann, and I. We roasted hot dogs over an open fire, which my Spanish teachers had never done. It was a great time hanging out with everyone with the additional treat of some awesome cookies!
This past weekend I also got to visit a different city here in Peru, Cuzco. My Peruvian family, Emily, Rayann, a friend of my Peruvian Family, and I all went. We were suppose to leave about eighty-thirty Thursday night but did not end up leaving until 10 o'clock. It should take about eight hours I think to get to Cuzco from Arequipa but it took us about 12 hours instead. It was a long car ride at night and it was also FREEZING! (Yes, I had to use capitalization... it was that cold) We also stopped for about two hours and Ytalo and Luis (my Peruvian dad and the friend of the Family) slept a little bit. We finally got there at about 10 Friday morning and the first thing we did was get some coffee and then we went sight-seeing in the Plaza de Armas. The Plaza de Armas in Cuzco is huge and has tons and tons of tourist. It is also super pretty! I enjoyed walking around down there and taking pictures. The next stop was the place we were staying which was an hour away from the Plaza. When we got there the house was... rustic is I guess how I could describe it. After we came home and had dinner I went out again with the Family to the Plaza de Armas. When we went back out it was dark and so the plaza was lit up with a bunch of lights. It was great time spent with my Peruvian family. Plus at the end of the night we had some awesome chocolate cake! It was sooooo good!

The next day we walked to the water fall that was behind our house. The walk to the falls was pretty uneventful until we came along this stream. Now when I say stream I am not talking about a little trickle of water. It was a pretty decent size stream. So to get across this stream you had to step on a rock and then hop over to the other side. Luis got across and then It was my turn. As I was crossing I slipped and fell into the creek. The water was freezing, and instead of Luis helping me he started laughing at me! However after I fell in instead of crossing to the side I needed to get to I cam back to the original side... I know really smart on my part. So since I had to cross the stream again I just walked across in the water. I figured I was wet already. We finally made it to the waterfall and it was beautiful. It was really green which is not something you see here in Arequipa.

We were leaving that night and since Emily missed out on the Chocolate cake the night before she really really wanted some. So before we left we went to the Plaza de Armas once more some Chocolate cake. It was as awesome as the first piece I had the night before. The ride home was FREEZING again but we made it safe and sound after driving all night.
The morning we got home happened to be Sunday so that meant we had church that morning. Emily, Rayann, and I were hoping to catch a couple of minutes of sleep before church but as luck would have it that didn't happen. When we got home we found out that one of the pipes in our bathroom had broke. It ended up flooding our entire room! The good thing is that the floors in our house are hard wood so we did not have to worry about having stinky wet carpet. The bad thing is that Emily and Rayann had some of their stuff on the ground which meant it all got wet. We finally got all the water cleaned up and we made it to church on time. If you ask me that was pretty good on only about an hour of sleep.
Before I finish this Blog I wanted to tall you all some exciting news of Praise and something I hope all of you will be in prayer about. Here in Arequipa there is a District that Extreme has wanted to work in but have not had the missionaries available to. This district is called Chachani. Chachani is a little community that doesn't have a market and there are no combis that go there. The Paraguay group, which is Emily, Rayann, Mike, Leon, and me, have been given this area to start working in. Our goal over these next few months is to plant a church. I am super excited for the opportunity to work in this community. I have visited this community twice so far and I know that God will be working in this area. This Saturday we are going to have our first event there which is a medical clinic with the short term group coming down. Please be in prayer for this clinic that we will be able to help many people and that we will be able to make connections. I am so excited for this community and hope you will all join me in this excitement and also in prayer.

Been a couple weeks...

It has been way to long since I have done a blog post. I have been super busy and have not kept up on it. Sorry guys, I will try to get better at it.
Emily and I are in the same class and we have finished book number three and have started the fourth and last book on Wednesday of last week. This means we are a little ahead of schedule and will probably finish this book before we are supposed to be done with Spanish classes. We will continue to be in Spanish class if we finish early but we will just be doing different stuff.
My weeks have basically consisted of going to school, church and going out with the Arequipa 40/40's to their ministry points and events. It has been super fun spending time with them and I have learned a lot by these experiences. I think one of my favorite experiences in the past couple weeks was when I got to go to a different church then the one I attend normally. This church in Arequipa uses a method similar to "The Master's Plan," which is what we are going to be using in Paraguay. It was a very interesting and exciting experience that got me excited for our time in Paraguay. They also played some songs that I knew in English so I was able to pick them up in Spanish. It was a great church service.
I have a praise report also. I was able to go to the chiropractor and to our surprise he speaks English which was awesome as I was able to tell him directly where my back was hurting. My back is feeling a whole lot better. Thanks for all the prayers.

Camping,Foosball, and Another Combi Riding Adventure!

Two weeks ago we went out to this camp ground named Victor with my Peruvian family and their church. It was about an hour away so we rode in a fifteen passenger van on a road that was not my favorite, however it was extremely pretty. The road went out into the middle of nowhere and was super curvy and crazy high! When we got there I found out that it was not what I expected at all… it was awesome! They had a pool along with a volley ball court in one area. If you went down the hill a little there was a huge building that had a ping pong table, tables and chairs. There were also horses and cabins that people could stay in. It was super pretty. It was great hanging out with people from our Peruvian families church and practicing my Spanish. I also brought out Bananagrams, the Spanish edition, to play and I actually one game (with some help from those around)!
Another cool thing they had at this camp was a huge human foosball court. It was this huge cage with bars in it that ran across it. You hold on to a rope and you and the other people on the same bar move back and forth trying to score. It is just like regular Foosball only bigger. I was kind of scared to go into the cage with all the other people because Peruvians know how to play soccer and I thought this would be a lot like soccer, but it was my turn to go in so I did. Let’s just say it wasn't like soccer and I am awesome at Human Foosball! I was able to get the ball and help but I didn’t ever have a chance to score because I was in the middle although I had a ton of assists! My team also ended up winning the volleyball games to so it was a really fun day!
Now onto the another combi ride to remember. You all may remember how clumsy I can be sometimes, and especially on a moving combi, so I thought I would share another funny story in my Peruvian combi riding adventure series. Rayann, Emily and I were all waiting for a combi. The combi finally came and we waved it down and started to get on it. I was the last one to get on but sometimes, or really most of the time, as soon as the last person steps on the first step of the combi they take off and are already moving. So I stepped on, the combi started moving, and I fell on my face in the combi. I was super embarrassed but at that point I figured I was already on the ground of the combi I might as well just sit on the ground in the combi. (if you do not know already that is not a normal thing to do on a combi.) There was an older lady on the combi who could not stop laughing at me on the way there, so I hope I made her day!
On a side note I also have a prayer request right now. My back has been hurting really bad! Please just keep me in prayer that it will get better quickly and I will be able to do the things that I need to get done. Thanks!

Bueno...

Bueno...
Well this past week had been a very good week. This past Saturday we went to a presentation at Andrea's school for Fathers day. We sat around and watched all the fathers play different games and we ate some cake to! It was fun and interesting just to see how Father's day is celebrated much more here.
We moved this past week and it is exciting!!! The family and us moved to a new house here in Arequipa. The house is huge and very nice with plenty of rooms! There are three floors plus a really nice roof you can go up on and sit. There are five bedrooms, but possibly the best part of it now is that we have a bigger bedroom. That means Rayann, Emily, and I get to share the same room!
The first foam Church in Huacsapata was built and the Inauguration for it happened this past weekend! The building looks awesome and it was a great day of celebration there! It was also cool because the inauguration was on the one year anniversary of Love Extreme. It is amazing to see all the work, efforts, and prayer that went into Love Extreme as it continues a year later to bear fruit - in this case the new church in Huacsapata! God is Awesome!

So I just wanted to take a moment to share with you all what has be going on lately. First Emily and Rayann made it safe and sound to Arequipa and I am so happy! I have also finished to my second Spanish book! I had a test on the second book and I did pretty good on it so it is on to book number three and now that Emily is here I have someone else in the class.
Right now we have a group of short termers down here, they are doing medical clinics and helping with the first foam church for Arequipa! The foam church is being built in Huacshapata and the last time I was there they already had the walls up. Construction on the building is going really well and we will be having the Inauguration this Sunday at the church. They have also seen many people at the medical clinics!
Huacshapata is a district that is really far away so you really have to take taxis out to the site. This past Sunday Rayann, Emily, and I decided to go out to it with the short termers. So I ended up being in a cab out there with a couple short termers and Emily. This meant that I ended up being the one having to give directions. At first that was okay because we were going to be following the other group’s taxi which was good because Mike was in the one and he has been here for a while. Well I just happened to pick a very bad taxi whose car was having problems. My group had to end up getting a different taxi while the other group kept going. So at that point it was up to me to get us there. We finally found another better taxi and after we started going the taxi driver started to talk to me in Spanish. We started talking and I was able to tell him a little bit about the Nazarene churches in Arequipa. It was all in Spanish too, I was very impressed with myself. We also made it all the way to Huacsapata safe and sound!
It has been a good week with lots of fun. Please continue to pray for Spanish school and we are able to continue to learn it fast and well! Also be praying for the church in Huacshapata will be able to reach many people.

Friday!

This past Friday has been a very interesting Friday. It started out with me having to take two combis to school, which was weird because normally I get a ride from my Peruvian dad. The combis were packed with people because it was morning and we somehow managed to get a seat on the first one.The seats were not very ideal because they were at the back of the very packed combi, however it was nice to sit down instead of trying to stay standing on the combi. (which I have yet to master) Well the place where we had to get off was coming up and my Peruvian mom was not noticing. I finally told her it was coming and we started to wade through the people to get to the front. I am not very graceful as many of you probably know so I just happened to step on some lady, of course the first words out of my mouth were sorry only I said it in English and she gave me this crazy look. I was still distracted by this lady's look and didn't notice another person who I accidentally slapped, but somehow I managed to get off the combi without much more damage to the people inside. On the second combi we took I almost fell into which made my Peruvian mom laugh at me but that is not to weird because she tends to laugh at all the silly things I do. On the second combi we did not end up getting a seat so I had to try and not almost fall again but we finally made it to the next place we have to get off. As I was getting off instead of putting the sol in the ladies hand I dropped it under the combi. She started to scold me in Spanish as she was trying to find it under the combi. She finally found it and then instead of giving me my change they pulled away. I lost out on 30 centimos! I finally made it to class only 15 minutes late. I have to say I felt like an elephant getting on and off those combis and Friday.
Friday night my family decided to take me to a sauna. I kind of did not know what to expect because I had never been to a sauna at home. So we went and it was a huge place that had a sauna, a vapor room, four swimming pools, and a snack bar. We went into the sauna first and I had said something in English to Andrea and a man that was near us heard me and he started to talk to me in English. He asked how long I have been here and why I was here. I told him about Extreme and how I was going to Paraguay to be a missionary. He asked if there was a Nazarene church in Umacollo because he thought he had seen one there before. I told him yeah there was a church there and it happened to be the one I attend on Sunday's. We did not talk much more then that but I would love to see him show up at Umacollo sometime. Going to the sauna was a neat experience and I would love to go again!
Emily and Rayann will be here in 4 days and I am super excited! I am also only two chapters away from finishing my second Spanish book!

Well I have finished the first book in my Spanish class and I am already on to chapter 6 in the second book. I took a final for the first book and I did pretty good on it. Now my goal is to finish the second book in the next two weeks which I know I can do.
This week has really been just a chill week. All I have really done is go to school (in a Hummer one day which was pretty sweet) and do homework. Emily and Rayann will be getting here in about a week and I am so EXCITED!!! I am so ready for more people to be here! It has been a good week

So this week has been an amazing week so far. Right now we have all the short termers done here and I have had the oppurunity to not only hang out with them but also hang out with each of the 40/40 pairs that are down here.
The first day I got to hang out with them was saturday. I got to go out with Beth and Nohemy and help them and there short termers. We went into and area I have never been in before and we painted nails. We also made ballon animals and painted the faces of the little kids. Then some of the short termers put on a puppet show and the kids loved it. That day we also got a couple contacts for Beth and Nohemy to follow up on.
On sunday I went to church and then got to go with Wenday and Vanessa with there short termers to help teach an english class. They taught them how to say there name and where they are from in english and we at the same time got to learn to say those things in spanish. It was a really cool day.
On tuesday I got to go with Henrietta and Mapi and their short termers to a school. They played soccer with some of the kids during their break and we also played volleball with them. Then we talked with a english class and told them a little bit about ourselves. Then our group preformed a skit for the kids which led to Mapi and Henrietta getting some more contacts. After that we went back and met up with the rest of the group who were doing a dinner for some ladies. The 40/40 shared their testimonies with them and prayed with the women. It was an awesome night!
Wednesday I went out to Miraflores with Elisabeth, Sammy, Rueben, Gladis, and some of the other short termers. we put on a kids fesitval. We played with them made balloon animals, painted faces, sang some songs, and put on a puppet show. Most of the mothers of the kids were there so we preformed a skit for them. After the skit the people who spoke spanish (which is not me yet) prayed with the moms and there is a plan to go and continue to visit the mothers is this area. It was amazing.
It has been great to go out with these different groups because I not only get to see the 40/40's in action but I also get to see how God is working in the lives of diffrent people. It has been and amazing week! (I know I keep saying amazing but it is the only word that is good enough to describe it!)

First Week

I made it through my first week of Language School and so far it has not been to bad besides the mountain of homework I had to do this past weekend and also the amount of verbs I had to memorize. It definitly helps having the little bit of spanish I have before I started Langauge School.
This past week during language school I was able to go out into the town with my teachers and they showed me which combis I needed to take. Knowing which combis you need to get on it very important it is also sometimes very difficult to do. I know the people that have been here a while will probably read this and think what am I talking about getting on combis is so easy but trust me it isn’t. I think I finally figured out which ones get me home, but if I try to go anywhere else I have no doubt I will get lost. When I went out with my spanish teachers they took me to a mall. They asked me what the mall looks like in my home town and all I could do is laugh! Lompoc have a mall… yeah right!
This week I was also able to spend a little time with one of the 40/40 pairs in Arequipa. They attend the same church I do and they are having to pick me up on sunday mornings. It was great to talk to both of them (or at least try because one of them only spoke spanish) because I got to hear about some of the things that went through having been here a year now. They are a very neat pair and I can not wait to have the opportunity to hang out with them some more.
And for those of you who were praying for me I am feeling a lot better! Thanks all

So i just finished my first 2 hour session of Lanaguage school. It has not been to hard yet because some of it is stuff that I already have learned about.
Before I started Langauge school I had the oppurtunity to get to know the family I am staying with. I am staying with a pastor and his wife. They have a 14 year old daughter that has helped me get along with communicating.
I was also able to go out into Arequipa a little bit and see the sites. It is cool being here a second time and seeing some of the things that I never noticed before. I am also in parts of the town that I had not seen before. Over all I am getting along pretty well and I am excited to be here!

Well I am finally here in Arequipa! I arrived yesterday at about 1:30 on the afternoon and was greeted by some different people from extreme including the family I will be living with for the next 3 months. The family is very nice and they have one daughter that understand about as much english as I do spanish. It helps though because we are able to understand each other a little. I will start Langauge school on monday and I will be the only one starting right now. Then there should be more people joining me soon. Thank you to everyone who was praying for a safe trip and I will be keeping you posted on what is happening over here in Peru.

0 more days left!

Well the day has come! I leave TODAY to start my mission journey in Peru and Paragauy. I leave at 9:10 Tonight from LAX. I ask that as at this time you guys be in prayer that I will have a safe journey. I also ask that you pray for my family and I as I leave. This is going to be long emotional day for all of us, but I know that God will give us the strength to get through it!

Five more days!

It is almost scary to read the title of this post, because it means I only have four more days to get everything I need to do done. I am still trying to get packed which I have decided is very hard to do! I mean I only have 2 suitcase sand how in the world do you pack in 2 suitcases for 27 months! But luckily I talked to one of my 40/40 friends who is already in Peru and she gave me some good advice.
As my departure dates get closer I get more and more nervous. I am scared to leave my family and my friends but I know that this is where God wants me. I know he is going to be with me every part of the way but I sometimes find it is hard to believe when I start getting nervous about the future. I ask that you all be in prayer for me and my family in these last couple days. Pray that we can all leave it up to God!
As it gets closer I also get more excited. I can not wait to be there doing what God has called me to do!
Only FIVE more days!!!

Two Weeks!!!

I am just two weeks away from leaving for Peru and I am super excited! However I have no idea how I am going to get everything done... there is just to much to do it seems.
This past weekend I had the opportunity to speak at my Church here in Lompoc.So many people from the church here have committed to pray for me and support me. It is a huge blessing.
My last day of work at Michael's will be this Thursday and I am bummed. I really enjoyed working there and I am sorry to leave but I am super excited for what lies ahead.
I ask you all this week to be in prayer that my passport comes back very soon. I had to send it away to get the Visas I needed and it is not suppose to be back until the 22nd which happens to be only 4 days away from when I leave on the 26th. Pray that it comes back swiftly and nothing happens to it!
One more thing I wanted to let you all know was that I am still don't have all the funding needed but I am trusting God to provide the amount I need to be fully funded. I appreciate those of you that have already given and are praying for me. Please keep in prayer not only me but that the funds will all come together.
TWO WEEKS!!!!!!

April 2, 2011

I just wanted to update you all on what has been happening. I am still currently working on getting the funds I need raised. They way I figure it I am still a good 20,000 thousand away from my goal. But I know that with the Lord's help it will all come together.
The team for Paragauy is almost complete. We still need one more male 40/40 to go. I am already super excited about the team we have going already and I know God is going to do great things!
I am giving my two weeks notice this monday so pray that it all goes well. I have to admit I am kind of nervous about it because I have never given my two weeks notice before, but I mean how hard can it be.
This next week I am set to talk at my church about my call and what I will be doing in Paragauy. So you all do not want to miss that!
I also want to say thank you to all who are praying for me as I get ready to leave at the end of this month. Thank you all your guys are awesome!

Fundraising

So there is a friend from my church who restored a guitar. He then took this guitar and has decided to acution it off and give all the funds to my mission trip. This is amazing and this is a major blessing. Thank you to Derek, Tracy, Haliegh, Sam, and Taylor!

In this past week I have learned thet I will be starting Language School in Arequipa the first of May. So this means I will be leaving at the end of April. Yeah!!!! I am so excited.

One of the other things I want to share with you is that one of the other North American 40/40's I am going with is a twin also. This is very good news! I will have more comfort knowing I am going with someone who is going through the same thing. It is amazing how God works!

I am learning that I have to wait on God's plan and be patient through it all. Not only has this past year taught me that but I am still learning it now. So I will no longer be leaving on the 9th of January. My departure date has been moved though I am not exactly sure until when. It is good because it lets me spend more time with my Family. I also have time to better prepare myself for this next great adventure that God has laid out for me. Although there were things that were good about me not leaving yet I find myself disappointed. I am so ready to go and I can not wait to get there and start doing everything I can however I have to wait longer. I am once again learning patience and I know that it will only strengthen me having to wait.

I know that having to wait is all part of God's plan so I ask that you be in prayer as I am learning patience.

Tonight I got to help out with the kid's program at my church. The thing we talked about is that everyone has a choice. I had a choice this past summer when I had to decide to accept God's call on my life or not. I chose to accept this call. Like I said we all have a choice but the question is are you making the right one? So now I ask the you be in prayer about not only the choice I made and the path I am taking but pray that when you have a choice to answer the call you make the right choice.