I always learn new things which is good as it indicates that I am not dead. So, on the way to Ciudad tonight, I had to take a taxi as Fedex didn't show up with my parcel until 7:30pm. Talking to the cab driver, I found out he used to live in Ciudad, used to do drugs because of the people he hung out with and knew all of the guys out there. He was surprised there are still guys out there as he thought they had all moved downtown. I told him they are still there. He told me he left that lifestyle when his daughter was born and he completely left the area and the people and moved to a different area. I was encouraged by his story as he showed that this is not impossible. He kept saying he was old now but he's like 28 years old. I know in my heart that Luis can change. And we will continue to be there for him.
He didn't show tonight. We didn't see him. Maybe that's good. But I want to feed him the word of God more, to give him a foundation to stand on when things get difficult. We will keep praying for him and be there for him. The cops were in abundance tonight. The guys were not permitted to be around us to even receive food. So Jorge and I left for the hospital area to see the street girls. Luchin could not meet up with us today so it was just the two of us.
Walking on the sidewalk where the street girls work proved to be dangerous for Jorge tonight. A he/girl lunged at him as he walked by to try to seduce him and I was only a half step behind so I quickly stepped in turned to face the person and said, "Hi". Which calmed the person down. The transvestites don't like me, they won't talk to me at all and the hate on their face when they see me is incredible. The street girls are different. They greet us and ask about us and listen to us. Later I told Jorge that by the hospital, the roles are reversed. I would have to protect him from the girls on that street!
One of the girls Katy asked about where she could go to meet me to converse about problems and such. I gave her my card and told her to call and we will go out for coffee and talk away from there. Later, we saw Susana, another Katy and 2 other girls whose names I can't remember. One of them, I have talked to extensively and I was sharing about Luchin and my wedding plans so as they gave their opinions on marriage, Jorge and I took the opportunity to teach them about how God sees marriage and sex without being judgemental of them. Then the Holy Spirit showed me the condition of one of the girl's heart whereby her heart was so fortified by chains and bars and walls that she had put up because she had been so abused and hurt by people. However, deep within was a little girl imprisoned, dying to get out and be free. I told her that. She told me that at night in her room when there is no one, she would cry and cry and cry all night to release all the pain she felt. But on the streets, she is hard as nails because no one was going to hurt her again. I sensed the Lord say to give her a real big hug so I asked her if I could. She laughed but I told her it was important that she knows that she does deserve to be hugged and loved without conditions attached. She let me hug her. And the others as well. As we left they had tears in their eyes.
Claudia hasn't been there for a while. Hopefully that means she has changed for the better. Karina wasn't there tonight although I did call her last week. Little by little as we show them that we mean what we say, that we will love unconditionally and that we keep showing them that we are there for them, I know that they will start to see Jesus in us and let Him into their hearts too.
Please keep praying for them. We hope to have a drop in centre by next year where they can come and just rest for a bit and not feel judged. Pray for that too please.
Monday, November 7, 2011
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
Not In Vain : Luis' Story, A New Beginning
For some reason it felt darker in Ciudad tonight, physically and spiritually, even though the street lights were working fine. There was a lot of movement and not a lot of police presence. Jorge and I started out first as Luchin was going to be late. We prayed in our usual spot, at the door of the casino then headed to the usual areas. Jorge had a bag of clothes for Luis and in my heart, I was really hoping he would show up tonight. Most of them will say that they will show up but then they never do...time and space has no place in their lives as their movements and behaviour are lead by the drugs they smoke. But Luis showed up. A totally different Luis.
He was cleaner and almost unrecognizable. He had clean clothes on and he had this amazingly huge grin on his face when he saw us. He couldn't wait to talk and tell us what was on his mind. I was in awe. The whole week, I had been thinking that I wanted to celebrate his birthday and since he received the Lord last week and his birthday is in November, it would be a great time to take him out for a chicken dinner to celebrate and also to have an opportunity to sit down and talk to him without distractions around. When I suggested that, his smile grew bigger, "Today is my birthday, I turn 18 today!" I squinted up at him menacingly with my tiny chinese eyes. "So, why did you lie to me and tell me you didn't know the date of your birthday?" I never mince words with them. I just go straight to the heart. "I don't know. But really, today is my birthday!" he said still with his huge grin. "I want you to know that you don't have to lie to us, Luis. You can always tell us the truth and we won't think badly of you. " "Yeah I know," he said. Meanwhile, I'm going in my head, "Dang, now what else did he lie about?" But then, I had to change my attitude. I was in their world and until they trust us, they will lie and hide things from us. But tonight, there was a change in Luis, a huge change and he couldn't stop wanting to tell us about his change. And I really didn't care if he had lied because I know that God will deal with him and transform him.
We went to a chicken restaurant and let him talk. He told us that after what we had told him last week, he couldn't stay the same. He couldn't live in filth and just exist the way he did, living beneath the bridge. So he decided that he had a future and he began to hope (yes, that is the power of the living God working in him!!) and the first thing he knew he had to change was the way he viewed himself. So he made a date with soap and water and got clean and felt better. Then he went to look for a place to rent. He found a place to rent for 10 soles a day in a hotel (rent is expensive for them cos they have no documents and fixed jobs, so no one will let them rent long term) and he gave up smoking terokal 4 days ago and has stopped stealing. I asked him again if he had stopped smoking terokal and stealing and he said yes and he couldn't do it anymore because he felt bad. So he now works helping direct passengers to the minibuses and he makes about 10 soles or a little more each day. Jorge told him to talk to his landlady about lowering his rent a little more in exchange for him cleaning the passageways or certain parts of the hotel.
He started telling us that he also decided to stop living the way he did because he has a 3 year old daughter who lives with his ex girlfriend and her new boyfriend. And that through his sister in law, he found out that the ex girlfriend and boyfriend both beat his little girl and his main concern now is to get her out of there. I told him to not take matters into his own hands but to go through the proper channels of authority. But first, we need to help him keep bettering himself so he can help his daughter. And also to pray for God to lead and open doors in this case. He also wants to finish high school so he can attain his dream of becoming a cop. I told him that Siembra will and can help him if he truly wants that. He does. And Siembra will also help him go through the channels to help his daughter.
Tomorrow I will check with Blanca, the policewoman in charge of children's rights in Lima on how to proceed with Luis' daughter's case. In the evening, I will meet him at 6:30pm to take him to church with me. He wants to go. He has never been to church before nor does he know anything of God. And yet, God has never left him nor abandoned him.
If you're reading this, please pray for Luis. And his daughter Anjeli. And us to know how we can keep helping him. God is just awesome.
He was cleaner and almost unrecognizable. He had clean clothes on and he had this amazingly huge grin on his face when he saw us. He couldn't wait to talk and tell us what was on his mind. I was in awe. The whole week, I had been thinking that I wanted to celebrate his birthday and since he received the Lord last week and his birthday is in November, it would be a great time to take him out for a chicken dinner to celebrate and also to have an opportunity to sit down and talk to him without distractions around. When I suggested that, his smile grew bigger, "Today is my birthday, I turn 18 today!" I squinted up at him menacingly with my tiny chinese eyes. "So, why did you lie to me and tell me you didn't know the date of your birthday?" I never mince words with them. I just go straight to the heart. "I don't know. But really, today is my birthday!" he said still with his huge grin. "I want you to know that you don't have to lie to us, Luis. You can always tell us the truth and we won't think badly of you. " "Yeah I know," he said. Meanwhile, I'm going in my head, "Dang, now what else did he lie about?" But then, I had to change my attitude. I was in their world and until they trust us, they will lie and hide things from us. But tonight, there was a change in Luis, a huge change and he couldn't stop wanting to tell us about his change. And I really didn't care if he had lied because I know that God will deal with him and transform him.
We went to a chicken restaurant and let him talk. He told us that after what we had told him last week, he couldn't stay the same. He couldn't live in filth and just exist the way he did, living beneath the bridge. So he decided that he had a future and he began to hope (yes, that is the power of the living God working in him!!) and the first thing he knew he had to change was the way he viewed himself. So he made a date with soap and water and got clean and felt better. Then he went to look for a place to rent. He found a place to rent for 10 soles a day in a hotel (rent is expensive for them cos they have no documents and fixed jobs, so no one will let them rent long term) and he gave up smoking terokal 4 days ago and has stopped stealing. I asked him again if he had stopped smoking terokal and stealing and he said yes and he couldn't do it anymore because he felt bad. So he now works helping direct passengers to the minibuses and he makes about 10 soles or a little more each day. Jorge told him to talk to his landlady about lowering his rent a little more in exchange for him cleaning the passageways or certain parts of the hotel.
He started telling us that he also decided to stop living the way he did because he has a 3 year old daughter who lives with his ex girlfriend and her new boyfriend. And that through his sister in law, he found out that the ex girlfriend and boyfriend both beat his little girl and his main concern now is to get her out of there. I told him to not take matters into his own hands but to go through the proper channels of authority. But first, we need to help him keep bettering himself so he can help his daughter. And also to pray for God to lead and open doors in this case. He also wants to finish high school so he can attain his dream of becoming a cop. I told him that Siembra will and can help him if he truly wants that. He does. And Siembra will also help him go through the channels to help his daughter.
Tomorrow I will check with Blanca, the policewoman in charge of children's rights in Lima on how to proceed with Luis' daughter's case. In the evening, I will meet him at 6:30pm to take him to church with me. He wants to go. He has never been to church before nor does he know anything of God. And yet, God has never left him nor abandoned him.
If you're reading this, please pray for Luis. And his daughter Anjeli. And us to know how we can keep helping him. God is just awesome.
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
His Strength is Made Perfect in My Weakness
It has been a while since I last posted an entry. Street ministry has never stopped, we go out every week each time praying for a God encounter for them, a victory to loose the chains of slavery to addiction. I may have been silent on the blogging front, but the work continues. It seems like we had been on a flatline for a while, trying to reach the street people while they didn't want to be reached. But tonight, it seemed like God reached down and something just happened.
Luis is 17 going on 18 in November. He doesn't know the exact date of his birthday. He has lived under the Atocongo bridge for 2 years now, since his mom died and his dad remarried. He has no siblings and smokes terokal once a day. I love honesty like that when they tell you that they are addicts and do not try to hide it. He hangs out alone, robs to feed himself. He was sooty black. Everything on him, his skin included, is black. Not because he has African descent, but because he has probably not had an encounter with water and soap in a long while. His shoes are wide open, with black toes sticking out of them. We had never met him before now and he was open to talking with us and talk we did. We wanted to convey that we care for him, that he can call us and not have to be alone. We talked to him and at the end asked if he wanted Jesus in his life to transform it and to be able to live an abundant life. He had tears in his eyes and he wanted to be transformed. We prayed and he prayed and received Jesus in his life tonight. And Jorge told him he will get him clean clothes and shoes for next week.
We talked to Jhonny too. And it turns out that he has received Jesus into his life before and had gone to church. That was before his addiction to marijuana and probably something else. He lives on the streets of Ciudad because he is running from responsibility; to his child and ex girlfriend and to his mom and siblings. He's 19. I started talking about the image of God that most of them have, that God is a God with a lightning rod waiting to strike down and punish, and he nodded at the picture. Then I told him that God is not that kind of a God, that He loves us so much and that He wants to bless us but it is us who decide to turn away from Him. Jhonny told me he knows the Word of God, having gone to church before. I told him it gives life, it never returns void. He said he knows. Then I said that he just needs to call on Jesus and right aways Jhonny quoted Jeremiah 29:12 word for word. We prayed for healing in all aspects, for his hand that was burned in a fight, for his heart that needs to be turned into a heart of flesh, for his mindset to be transformed by the living Word, for him to desire after the Lord instead of substances. He prayed with his own words as well. And promised to call with unshed tears in his eyes.
We then took a bus to the Hospital area as we normally do, to talk to the street women there. It's still in the area of Ciudad, just 5 blocks away. Jorge had decided he wasn't going to speak to the women tonight. Generally, the guys in our group leave the talking to the street women to me or whichever female is there just so that the street women don't think that they are soliciting them for their services. However, he made a joke in the vicinity of one of them who is named Karina. She then thought he was there for her services but he quickly told her he was there to share about God. She opened up and told him that today, she had wanted to kill herself. And in the taxi that she was in, the taxi driver turned out to be a Christian who started sharing the Gospel with her without knowing what her intentions were. The Word of God calmed her down so that she didn't throw herself in front of a car after being dropped of. She had wanted to throw herself off a building too. And now Jorge was there to talk about God. She wanted to listen because it had calmed her down in the taxi. He shared the Word and she received the Lord in her heart. And now she wants to go to church with us. She has my number and I have hers. I will be calling her for sure.
Coincidences? Not a chance. Not a one. God's presence tonight was so evident and so palpable that those hearts melted before Him. He had gone before us and He has given us His favour and grace. The feeling in my heart is indescribable. All four of us were so thankful to have experienced such an amazingly tremendous night as His instruments out on the streets. His strength is made perfect in our weakness.
Luis is 17 going on 18 in November. He doesn't know the exact date of his birthday. He has lived under the Atocongo bridge for 2 years now, since his mom died and his dad remarried. He has no siblings and smokes terokal once a day. I love honesty like that when they tell you that they are addicts and do not try to hide it. He hangs out alone, robs to feed himself. He was sooty black. Everything on him, his skin included, is black. Not because he has African descent, but because he has probably not had an encounter with water and soap in a long while. His shoes are wide open, with black toes sticking out of them. We had never met him before now and he was open to talking with us and talk we did. We wanted to convey that we care for him, that he can call us and not have to be alone. We talked to him and at the end asked if he wanted Jesus in his life to transform it and to be able to live an abundant life. He had tears in his eyes and he wanted to be transformed. We prayed and he prayed and received Jesus in his life tonight. And Jorge told him he will get him clean clothes and shoes for next week.
We talked to Jhonny too. And it turns out that he has received Jesus into his life before and had gone to church. That was before his addiction to marijuana and probably something else. He lives on the streets of Ciudad because he is running from responsibility; to his child and ex girlfriend and to his mom and siblings. He's 19. I started talking about the image of God that most of them have, that God is a God with a lightning rod waiting to strike down and punish, and he nodded at the picture. Then I told him that God is not that kind of a God, that He loves us so much and that He wants to bless us but it is us who decide to turn away from Him. Jhonny told me he knows the Word of God, having gone to church before. I told him it gives life, it never returns void. He said he knows. Then I said that he just needs to call on Jesus and right aways Jhonny quoted Jeremiah 29:12 word for word. We prayed for healing in all aspects, for his hand that was burned in a fight, for his heart that needs to be turned into a heart of flesh, for his mindset to be transformed by the living Word, for him to desire after the Lord instead of substances. He prayed with his own words as well. And promised to call with unshed tears in his eyes.
We then took a bus to the Hospital area as we normally do, to talk to the street women there. It's still in the area of Ciudad, just 5 blocks away. Jorge had decided he wasn't going to speak to the women tonight. Generally, the guys in our group leave the talking to the street women to me or whichever female is there just so that the street women don't think that they are soliciting them for their services. However, he made a joke in the vicinity of one of them who is named Karina. She then thought he was there for her services but he quickly told her he was there to share about God. She opened up and told him that today, she had wanted to kill herself. And in the taxi that she was in, the taxi driver turned out to be a Christian who started sharing the Gospel with her without knowing what her intentions were. The Word of God calmed her down so that she didn't throw herself in front of a car after being dropped of. She had wanted to throw herself off a building too. And now Jorge was there to talk about God. She wanted to listen because it had calmed her down in the taxi. He shared the Word and she received the Lord in her heart. And now she wants to go to church with us. She has my number and I have hers. I will be calling her for sure.
Coincidences? Not a chance. Not a one. God's presence tonight was so evident and so palpable that those hearts melted before Him. He had gone before us and He has given us His favour and grace. The feeling in my heart is indescribable. All four of us were so thankful to have experienced such an amazingly tremendous night as His instruments out on the streets. His strength is made perfect in our weakness.
Friday, August 26, 2011
6 Years in Peru
Where have I been? To tell the honest truth, it seems like everywhere. I don't think I can ever and will ever know how to relax and just sit. Yes, I am learning how to be still and know that God is God, that I am well aware that I need to do. However, if my life were just to be a regular life, with everything just going on as planned, I think I would waste away from boredom. Thank God I have God and because of that, my life can never be boring.
Well, with our wedding coming up, Luis and I have had to run around getting prices for stuff. 99 days isn't that far away. We have been seeing how God's hand has been in all this, blessing us with blessings untold and unforeseen, through people who must love us very much. Something deep in me tells me that we will be able to pull off this wedding and also go on a honeymoon on the very tight shoe string budget that we have, just because our God is our Dad and He wants the best for us. And that through all of this, all the glory will go to Him. We are already seeing this. The costs of our wedding rings are already covered by friends, another friend is blessing us by paying for the wedding cake, people have been helping us get points through their shopping. God is good.
On the ministry front, we are working both ministries now, Luis' La Taba V and the one God has called me to do, Siembra S.O.W. La Taba V is a ministry that reaches out to the community through drama and comedy. And right now, Luis is working to raise it up by giving worskshops and cultivating talent within churches. Siembra is praying for God's timing to work alongside with the community of Ciudad de Dios to start up a drop in centre within Ciudad itself. I am not rushing into starting the project asap because I want to be sure I can be there most times and also for God to provide people who can work turns with me. With our wedding in the works and me having to travel before, it just seems unwise to jump into having a drop in centre where I will be absent for most of the time. The work on the streets continue as we keep going down to offer food and the Word.
This week, we had a group of guys hanging out with us and we had the chance to counsel a couple of them with the Word. they have questions, they need a place to go to and I know that a drop in centre would give them a place to go where they can feel that someone will listen to them, a place where someone cares, a place where they can go without having their friends listen in on what they want to talk about. God's timing and hand in this is crucial in procuring a place that will not break us in rent. We are hoping that the municipality can help us in this area.
Today marks my 6th anniversary here in Peru. Hard to believe I'm still here and probably going to be here for some time yet. I almost went home to Canada for good several times in my first 3 years. But I see now that God allowed me to go through everything I went through so I will learn how to get over myself. With that said, I can say that I still need to go through refining and molding but I hope that now, I can react in a way that Jesus will be seen in the fires of my refining. I was asked if I would have said yes to God if I knew all that I had to go through these last few years. Though I may not have started up movements that rocked the nation, though I have blundered through many situations, though I haven't done more, there have been lives that were touched. Lives that came to know the Lord, lives that returned to His feet, lives that needed to hear and know that He loves them, lives that needed to know how to love the Word, lives that got healed. So, I guess with all that said, I think I would still say yes to the Lord if I had known all that I would have had to go through. Even if God had sent me here for just one soul, it is worth it. Because that is His heartbeat. Every one of us.
Well, with our wedding coming up, Luis and I have had to run around getting prices for stuff. 99 days isn't that far away. We have been seeing how God's hand has been in all this, blessing us with blessings untold and unforeseen, through people who must love us very much. Something deep in me tells me that we will be able to pull off this wedding and also go on a honeymoon on the very tight shoe string budget that we have, just because our God is our Dad and He wants the best for us. And that through all of this, all the glory will go to Him. We are already seeing this. The costs of our wedding rings are already covered by friends, another friend is blessing us by paying for the wedding cake, people have been helping us get points through their shopping. God is good.
On the ministry front, we are working both ministries now, Luis' La Taba V and the one God has called me to do, Siembra S.O.W. La Taba V is a ministry that reaches out to the community through drama and comedy. And right now, Luis is working to raise it up by giving worskshops and cultivating talent within churches. Siembra is praying for God's timing to work alongside with the community of Ciudad de Dios to start up a drop in centre within Ciudad itself. I am not rushing into starting the project asap because I want to be sure I can be there most times and also for God to provide people who can work turns with me. With our wedding in the works and me having to travel before, it just seems unwise to jump into having a drop in centre where I will be absent for most of the time. The work on the streets continue as we keep going down to offer food and the Word.
This week, we had a group of guys hanging out with us and we had the chance to counsel a couple of them with the Word. they have questions, they need a place to go to and I know that a drop in centre would give them a place to go where they can feel that someone will listen to them, a place where someone cares, a place where they can go without having their friends listen in on what they want to talk about. God's timing and hand in this is crucial in procuring a place that will not break us in rent. We are hoping that the municipality can help us in this area.
Today marks my 6th anniversary here in Peru. Hard to believe I'm still here and probably going to be here for some time yet. I almost went home to Canada for good several times in my first 3 years. But I see now that God allowed me to go through everything I went through so I will learn how to get over myself. With that said, I can say that I still need to go through refining and molding but I hope that now, I can react in a way that Jesus will be seen in the fires of my refining. I was asked if I would have said yes to God if I knew all that I had to go through these last few years. Though I may not have started up movements that rocked the nation, though I have blundered through many situations, though I haven't done more, there have been lives that were touched. Lives that came to know the Lord, lives that returned to His feet, lives that needed to hear and know that He loves them, lives that needed to know how to love the Word, lives that got healed. So, I guess with all that said, I think I would still say yes to the Lord if I had known all that I would have had to go through. Even if God had sent me here for just one soul, it is worth it. Because that is His heartbeat. Every one of us.
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
Seasons and Faith
I had written up my entire blog and then it got erased. Gotta love technology. I guess it has been incredible to me to see that every time I sit down to write my blog, something happens and I have to leave it and when I get back to it, it's weeks later.
Heavy on my heart is to have a drop in centre in Ciudad, to be more of a permanent presence there. Yet, I am only at the praying stage now, not willing to go ahead with it, scared that I will fail, scared that I stepped out on my own flesh. I guess the doors closing on the house in Jose Galvez has made me hesitant. In my previous blog I had mentioned that doors had closed to using the house there as a rehab centre. Yet, I know my time there was not in vain as God used me to minister to various people in the neighbourhood. However, that does not lessen my fear of starting something up in Ciudad now. I guess if it had to do with me alone, it would be one thing. But now that it has to do with a ministry which people are supporting and blessing, I am scared to take steps. Yet, it remains heavy in my heart. It sucks in a sense because what stops me other than my fear that I am doing this of my own flesh is that we lack resources for the rental of a place and also labourers for the harvest. Right now, it's just me and Luis, my fiance, and when we have the drop in centre, it will only be me covering it all the time. That is not wise as many things can happen especially since I am dealing directly with drugged up youth. I am in no position to pay anyone to work with me but unless I do that, I don't think I will have anyone. However, I don't think paid workers are needed but people who have a heart, a love and a calling to do this work.
In the last weeks, we saw God's hand in the streets. We got Henry his ID card which was the only thing stopping him from working a real job and he didn't have money to get one, and we found out that he is now working at a warehouse for one of Peru's largest departmental stores. We also got invited to Claudia's (a street worker) house to share the gospel with her husband but we ended up sharing with her cousin Yolanda who has had a constant migraine headache for a very long time and who had gone to witchdoctors to get cured and been made to drink dog's blood. We shared the truth of the gospel with her and she joyfully accepted the Lord and last night we spoke to Claudia and she said that Yolanda's headache is slowly going away. Our God is a healer God! Claudia knows the Word, was preaching it to her cousin when we were there but is still pulled to work the streets. Having a drop in centre would perhaps get her to visit us and talk and perhaps through that she would see Jesus in a tangible way and not as mere words on the street. All I know is I have to trust the Lord because His ways are not mine and they are higher. And nothing is impossible with Him.
We will keep doing what we do, it is not in vain. I have asked the Lord several times, is this in vain? People have told me that it is in vain. Some days, it gets really discouraging. Yet, every time I ask my Lord that question, He shows me that it truly is not in vain and to keep going. Perhaps we are not reaching hordes and multitudes of people but the one life we might touch with the love and truth of the Gospel of Salvation might be the one to totally change and transform all of Ciudad and beyond for the Lord. I will keep believing and doing because my God is a big God.
Heavy on my heart is to have a drop in centre in Ciudad, to be more of a permanent presence there. Yet, I am only at the praying stage now, not willing to go ahead with it, scared that I will fail, scared that I stepped out on my own flesh. I guess the doors closing on the house in Jose Galvez has made me hesitant. In my previous blog I had mentioned that doors had closed to using the house there as a rehab centre. Yet, I know my time there was not in vain as God used me to minister to various people in the neighbourhood. However, that does not lessen my fear of starting something up in Ciudad now. I guess if it had to do with me alone, it would be one thing. But now that it has to do with a ministry which people are supporting and blessing, I am scared to take steps. Yet, it remains heavy in my heart. It sucks in a sense because what stops me other than my fear that I am doing this of my own flesh is that we lack resources for the rental of a place and also labourers for the harvest. Right now, it's just me and Luis, my fiance, and when we have the drop in centre, it will only be me covering it all the time. That is not wise as many things can happen especially since I am dealing directly with drugged up youth. I am in no position to pay anyone to work with me but unless I do that, I don't think I will have anyone. However, I don't think paid workers are needed but people who have a heart, a love and a calling to do this work.
In the last weeks, we saw God's hand in the streets. We got Henry his ID card which was the only thing stopping him from working a real job and he didn't have money to get one, and we found out that he is now working at a warehouse for one of Peru's largest departmental stores. We also got invited to Claudia's (a street worker) house to share the gospel with her husband but we ended up sharing with her cousin Yolanda who has had a constant migraine headache for a very long time and who had gone to witchdoctors to get cured and been made to drink dog's blood. We shared the truth of the gospel with her and she joyfully accepted the Lord and last night we spoke to Claudia and she said that Yolanda's headache is slowly going away. Our God is a healer God! Claudia knows the Word, was preaching it to her cousin when we were there but is still pulled to work the streets. Having a drop in centre would perhaps get her to visit us and talk and perhaps through that she would see Jesus in a tangible way and not as mere words on the street. All I know is I have to trust the Lord because His ways are not mine and they are higher. And nothing is impossible with Him.
We will keep doing what we do, it is not in vain. I have asked the Lord several times, is this in vain? People have told me that it is in vain. Some days, it gets really discouraging. Yet, every time I ask my Lord that question, He shows me that it truly is not in vain and to keep going. Perhaps we are not reaching hordes and multitudes of people but the one life we might touch with the love and truth of the Gospel of Salvation might be the one to totally change and transform all of Ciudad and beyond for the Lord. I will keep believing and doing because my God is a big God.
Monday, July 18, 2011
New Directions
It has been almost a month since my last blog. I apologize for my tardiness and although there is no excuse, I do have to say that my personal life got super crazy and busy in the last 2 months and also due to some other changes that happened in Ciudad, there was nothing to write about. Shocking, huh? I got engaged about 2 months ago and all of a sudden, my life got all hyped up with a lot of drama and activity like meeting new friends and family, particularly people from my fiance, Luis' life. Then came a whole bunch of wedding planning which we're still doing, just that it's a whole lot more manageable right now and not so overwhelming like at the beginning when people would continually ask me what I had planned and what decorations I was getting, etc, etc. when I had absolutely no clue how to even begin. In Ciudad, there was a heavy police presence for the last few weeks and we could find none of the street youth. Not a one. Poor Luis had to eat a lot of sandwiches those few weeks. We also learned that aside from that, they did not come anywhere near me because they thought that Luis is an undercover cop. Oops. Once we learned that, we set things right and they are appearing again.
Last week, we talked to this couple, Jessica (18 years) and Henry (21 years) and found out that the reason he wasn't working a real job was because he had lost his DNI (ID) and he didn't have the money to get another one. They have a baby, Emmanuel and a 3 year old son, Joshua who lives with her mom. They rent a room for 20 soles a night which is a lot. In talking with them, Henry demonstrated that he wanted to work. He does love the baby and Jessica. It shows. So we told them we would pay for the paperwork of getting the duplicate DNI. They followed through and showed up each time we said to meet so we could go and do the paperwork. Well, Henry should be able to pick up his DNI this Wednesday and his younger brother said he will try to get him work in the warehouse of Saga Falabella, a huge departmental store here. It made me glad to see that we could help in a tangible and practical way to help this couple learn to fish for themselves. We sowed the Word too and we hope that in time, they will see us as people who really want to help them and will also come to us because they see Jesus' love operating through us.
Luis, another youth (aka Naño) and I talked extensively last week when I brought them sandwiches. At the end of our conversation, he invited Christ into his life. He is 22 years old. Been smoking pasta for the last 8 years, too embarassed to tell me that he works as a beggar musician in the buses. I went to look for him tonight but he wasn't there. I haven't seen Luis Enrique or Carlos for a very long time and I'm scared for them.
Tonight, I met Daniel who smokes marijuana. He's 20. Been smoking it for the last 7 years. I don't understand when people say that weed is a herb. If it's just a herb, you could stop whenever you want to. If it's a drug that causes addiction, you will be controlled by it. Why is it that they don't see that? I shared Jesus with him and tried to make him see that he needs a different lifestyle. He gave me his phone number. I desperately want to find him a job to at least give him a push, some sort of motivation to do something in the day.
Later on, I met Felix (17 years old), his girlfriend, Lucero (18 years old), their daughter Genesis (7 months) and Felix's cousin, John Howard if that's his real moniker (16 years old). They rent a hotel room for 30 soles a day. I don't know how they make 30 soles a day. They work in the buses, selling candy and doing comedy. I want to help them work real jobs.
I know that Siembra, our NGO, needs to have a drop in centre in Ciudad and that is what we're praying into now. A place where they can come during the day to rest, to talk, to eat, to seek help. I also know that somehow we need to find those who are capable of working, real jobs so they can start moving ahead. Right now, we need prayer for God to lead us regarding the drop in centre (the rehab centre will have to be in the future because God has to provide us with land outside of Lima to do that) and to provide jobs for some of them and also funding. Please also pray for Luis (Naño), Luis Enrique, Carlos, Anderson, Henry, Jessica, Daniel, Alex, Felix, Lucero, Jhon Howard, Oscar, Carla to name a few. We also need more workers who have a heart to work with street youth.
Last week, we talked to this couple, Jessica (18 years) and Henry (21 years) and found out that the reason he wasn't working a real job was because he had lost his DNI (ID) and he didn't have the money to get another one. They have a baby, Emmanuel and a 3 year old son, Joshua who lives with her mom. They rent a room for 20 soles a night which is a lot. In talking with them, Henry demonstrated that he wanted to work. He does love the baby and Jessica. It shows. So we told them we would pay for the paperwork of getting the duplicate DNI. They followed through and showed up each time we said to meet so we could go and do the paperwork. Well, Henry should be able to pick up his DNI this Wednesday and his younger brother said he will try to get him work in the warehouse of Saga Falabella, a huge departmental store here. It made me glad to see that we could help in a tangible and practical way to help this couple learn to fish for themselves. We sowed the Word too and we hope that in time, they will see us as people who really want to help them and will also come to us because they see Jesus' love operating through us.
Luis, another youth (aka Naño) and I talked extensively last week when I brought them sandwiches. At the end of our conversation, he invited Christ into his life. He is 22 years old. Been smoking pasta for the last 8 years, too embarassed to tell me that he works as a beggar musician in the buses. I went to look for him tonight but he wasn't there. I haven't seen Luis Enrique or Carlos for a very long time and I'm scared for them.
Tonight, I met Daniel who smokes marijuana. He's 20. Been smoking it for the last 7 years. I don't understand when people say that weed is a herb. If it's just a herb, you could stop whenever you want to. If it's a drug that causes addiction, you will be controlled by it. Why is it that they don't see that? I shared Jesus with him and tried to make him see that he needs a different lifestyle. He gave me his phone number. I desperately want to find him a job to at least give him a push, some sort of motivation to do something in the day.
Later on, I met Felix (17 years old), his girlfriend, Lucero (18 years old), their daughter Genesis (7 months) and Felix's cousin, John Howard if that's his real moniker (16 years old). They rent a hotel room for 30 soles a day. I don't know how they make 30 soles a day. They work in the buses, selling candy and doing comedy. I want to help them work real jobs.
I know that Siembra, our NGO, needs to have a drop in centre in Ciudad and that is what we're praying into now. A place where they can come during the day to rest, to talk, to eat, to seek help. I also know that somehow we need to find those who are capable of working, real jobs so they can start moving ahead. Right now, we need prayer for God to lead us regarding the drop in centre (the rehab centre will have to be in the future because God has to provide us with land outside of Lima to do that) and to provide jobs for some of them and also funding. Please also pray for Luis (Naño), Luis Enrique, Carlos, Anderson, Henry, Jessica, Daniel, Alex, Felix, Lucero, Jhon Howard, Oscar, Carla to name a few. We also need more workers who have a heart to work with street youth.
Monday, June 20, 2011
Valley of Dry Bones
It has been a long time since I made an entry. The last few times we were in Ciudad nothing really happened. It has been hard looking for the guys. We haven't been able to talk to them or find half of them. Sometimes, it seems as though we take one step forward and two steps back. We started off with Carolina, Vladimir and Milagros as a team, then lost them one at a time to job situations. We still have Milagros and I am truly grateful for that. On the bright side, Jose and his sister have joined us as has Luchin, my fiance. But it seems that it is more elusive now to find the guys on the streets. In the meantime, the plans for the refuge or the home to get them off the streets have been placed on hold. Every door to get it going has closed, yet, God keeps placing ideas in my head on how to work the home and I finally figured out that God's vision is much bigger than mine and that I was thinking to start small but God wants to go big. And so we will have to wait until God provides everything needed for His bigger vision regarding the home. In the meantime, we focus on the street and how we can be more effective out there.
At this point, I have to admit that I do feel like a failure, that I have failed. With the plans for the home part postponed, and having difficulty meeting up with the street youth I do feel in a sense that I have failed. Yet, I know I cannot leave my post. I know that Ciudad is where God has called me to be and where He has placed me. But I see no fruit. I see nothing. It seems like a whole valley of dry bones out there and I'm calling them to come to life, but nothing is happening. I see nothing. Yet, the Lord tells me to keep going, to be faithful to what He has called me to do. He tells me that He will be faithful to His ministry and that I need to keep being faithful even though I see nothing. It is not easy. I feel like I have failed people, their expectations. Yet the Lord says to keep going.
So I will keep going. I will take one step at a time. I will search for the guys. I will keep walking out there even though it seems like nothing. Even though I see nothing. I will keep going, I will keep searching, I will keep praying and I will keep sowing. I will be faithful to do my part and prepare the land for the rain. And God will be faithful on His end to bring the rain when He is ready. I can't be a failure. Because I am more than a conqueror. I can't be a failure because of He who lives in me. I can't be a failure because when I am weak, I am strong. I can't be a failure even though I feel like one because He is the One who has called me to this, and He is the One who will grow His ministry.
All I can do and will do is to be faithful. Because He is faithful.
At this point, I have to admit that I do feel like a failure, that I have failed. With the plans for the home part postponed, and having difficulty meeting up with the street youth I do feel in a sense that I have failed. Yet, I know I cannot leave my post. I know that Ciudad is where God has called me to be and where He has placed me. But I see no fruit. I see nothing. It seems like a whole valley of dry bones out there and I'm calling them to come to life, but nothing is happening. I see nothing. Yet, the Lord tells me to keep going, to be faithful to what He has called me to do. He tells me that He will be faithful to His ministry and that I need to keep being faithful even though I see nothing. It is not easy. I feel like I have failed people, their expectations. Yet the Lord says to keep going.
So I will keep going. I will take one step at a time. I will search for the guys. I will keep walking out there even though it seems like nothing. Even though I see nothing. I will keep going, I will keep searching, I will keep praying and I will keep sowing. I will be faithful to do my part and prepare the land for the rain. And God will be faithful on His end to bring the rain when He is ready. I can't be a failure. Because I am more than a conqueror. I can't be a failure because of He who lives in me. I can't be a failure because when I am weak, I am strong. I can't be a failure even though I feel like one because He is the One who has called me to this, and He is the One who will grow His ministry.
All I can do and will do is to be faithful. Because He is faithful.
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