momentary light affliction

"Therefore we do not give up; even though our outer person is being destroyed, our inner person is being renewed day by day. For our momentary light affliction is producing for us an absolutely incomparable eternal weight of glory. So we do not focus on what is seen, but on what is unseen; for what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal."
2 Corinthians 4: 16 - 18

* FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO GET MY PRAYER LETTERS THIS IS A REPEAT

I know that many of you have been curious as to my health. I have had quite a week or so, but I am now on the road to recovery. I will spare you all the "not so fun" details. However, for those of you who are in Med or Nursing School (Arthur and Amanda) or those who just like all the gorey details of my sicknesses (Lyle) I'll be happy to send ya'll another email full of details. :)

So, now for the general public:

Ever since I had parasites in late February/ early March (I can't even remember now) my stomach has not been acting "right". Two days before my next scheduled trip (April 5th) to the Asheninka communities I woke up and felt very bad. I was not sure if this was something in my head or something that I could just shake off. However, I decided to go to the doctor anyway. Doctors in Pucallpa are not much help, but I did get some blood tests done. They didn't reveal much, but I still was not feeling well.

I made a final decision on Wednesday April 4th not to go on the trip to the communities. This was a very difficult decision because I had already been "out-of-commission" since mid-February. I didn't want to let my team down, but I also did not want to be unwise about my health. So, I just prayed for wisdom.

Well the trip ended up being postponed one day due to rain. By Thursday morning, the original travel date, I was quite sick. Let's just say I was running to the bathroom very frequently. My team left for the communities Friday morning and I left for Lima Friday night -- still unsure if this was going to be a passing thing or something more serious.

I went to the doctor on Monday morning and it was pretty clear that I had him baffled. (He is a WONDERFUL doctor who speaks perfect English.) He ordered me to have tests run. On Thursday all of the test results were in and I was pretty dehydrated (from my FREQUENT trips to the lady's room--we are talking 10 -15 times a day for a week!). So, the decision was made Thursday for me to check into the clinic (like a hospital) to get on a drip and then I would have a colonoscopy done on Friday morning because my tests showed "unknown inflammation", but no parasites.

I was in pain most of my hospital stay and the colonoscopy results showed that I had an inflamed large intestine and ulcers. The doctor immediately started me on anti-inflamatories and a handful of other medicines. I am recovering at the Shearer's home in Lima. I am in much less pain now and I think I will be able to eat some pretty normal food within a few more days.

I have a follow-up appointment on April 25th. I will then learn the results of the biopsies and if I have a more serious Inflammatory Bowel Disease or if it was just a flare-up. I will be in Lima until at least the 25th, maybe longer.

I would like for ya'll to pray for any future decisions I will have to make about my health. Right now I'm just focusing on getting better, but sometime soon I'm sure I will have to make a decision about continuing to live in the jungle or possibly switching jobs because of my health and risks, etc. Please don't take this as me saying I'm going to switch jobs or move. I simply need your prayers for making the wisest decision.

Now for all of you "super-worriers" out there. I AM FINE! People in Peru have the same kinds of sickness and diseases that we Americans have and the medical professionals are able to take care of them. I am being very well taken care of and in fact my doctor studied at an Ivy Legue school in the U.S. I have better medical care than we do in Mississippi. So, DON'T WORRY!!!

I appreciate you all so much. I know that God is in control of my life and I fully trust Him with it. Being overseas does not change the fact that He is in control of my life and being diagnosed with a somewhat stubborn disease does not change that fact either. He is good (say it with me)...ALL THE TIME!

Now that you have your Sunday Morning Sermon feel free to skip church today! Just kidding!

Remember what is unseen is eternal...and ya'll's prayers are working for eternity.
-Remember to lift up my team as they continue to work in the jungle for the next two weeks.
-Please pray that I will have opprotunities to share truth with people as I am here in Lima.
-Pray that I will not get frustrated with my circumstances, but will be able to rejoice.

I love ya'll so much!!

Lane

Sick Again...

well friends,

i'm back in Lima. i'm not sure if i have parasites again or something different. i went to the doctor yesterday and had lots of tests done. i'm sure i will hear from the doctor tomorrow as to what it is that is completely tearing up my stomach. he gave me some medicines that are really helping to calm my stomach, but i'm still running to the potty way too much! he threatened to put me in the hospital on a drip, but thankfully i was able to keep more food and liquid in me today for longer amounts of time.

i'm not sure what God is wanting to teach me through all of this. i haven't been with my people group since the beginning of February. but through it all i will continue to praise Him. He deserves all the glory.

pray that i will continue to seek His face. that i will have wisdom when it comes to deciding things about my health.

i will keep ya'll updated as best as i can.

i love ya'll!

esperate hasta.......SIEMPRE!!!

WAIT!...just one more thing!

so, i'm with Hilda today waiting once again to get some small task accomplished in town. the task itself is never all that hard, but you always have to wait hours upon hours before the simple task can be realized. for example,in order to get my moto licencia (i can't spell that in english any more) i had to have a "medical exam". so, i was at some random "medical clinic" for like 3 hours today and when i finally get to go in for the exam the "doctor" practically tells me the answers! i mean, i couldn't see this #2 on a color blind chart (evidently b/c i'm color blind) and he freakin' tells me the answer!-- WHAT! no wonder the Peruvian roads are so wild. anyways, in the midst of all this waiting, i blurt out "la vida peruana es una vida de esperando"....basically--"the peruvian life is one of waiting". and as i'm saying it i realize, not just life in Peru, but life in general. i think waiting is highlighted in places like this where life moves slower and businesses aren't as efficent, but it's the same everywhere. especially the Christian life is one of waiting. i don't know about you, but i can't wait to see my Savior face-to-face...this moto licencia (and legal access to Peruvian roads) may just be my fast track to Heaven--JUST KIDDING YA'LL!

so, after being in town from 8:30 - 12:30 we get back to the house and start working on getting our second phone line--which we "got" last week. so Hilda calls them and after about 30 minutes of discussion she gets off the phone and looks a me and says, " esperamos"--we WAIT!!

but all this waiting really is teaching me something... while i was waiting with Hilda she began to pour her heart out to me. i'm talking she is crying in the lobby of the doctor's office. that my friends is why i went to town to "wait" today. it's never about the actual thing, but it is about the relationships. that's what God wants us to realize too. the more we have to wait, the more we put our trust in Him, the more we fall in love with the Father, and that my friends is what this Christian life is about--Loving God and Loving Others. Just you wait, i'll grasp it all one day!

love ya'll!!!

p.s. no the photo doesn't really have that much to do with actual blog. but i was waiting in this picture... and it does have the said "moto" in it. and i actually had on that same outfit today-- 7 months later. ha!

A Day at the Lake

hey friends

i've had such an amazing day today!

i'll just share the highlights. since my camera broke i've been unable to give ya'll any photos...so today i had some friends take pictures so that i could share with you.

i promise i was not posing for this photo...it was a candid!

this evening while the sun was setting we were able to watch hundreds of white herons fly across the sky and land in the tops of these trees across the lake. the sun was setting on our side of the lake and the last rays of the day were shining over right onto those trees. it was one of the most beautiful things i've ever seen. and the birds just kept coming and coming in their V formation across the blue sky. BEAUTIFUL! words could never describe it...i just wanted to share a little with all of you!

the sweet little girl i was with today said to her mother:

"mommy, they look like flowers in the sky"--refering to the birds!

i love ya'll!

Mosquitero

yay!! my new mosquito net. i love my room!

so, i have returned to Pucallpa. for those of you who don't know, i'll let you know that i still have parasites. they are slowly dying however...and i should be bug free very soon. i will know more on Monday. but for now it looks like i will be traveling on April 5th with the rest of my team.

since returning to my jungle home i decided to invest in a dream of mine. since i was a child i always wanted something covering my bed like a curtain or netting. well, what better time in your life to buy a mosquito net to cover your bed than when your home is a mosquito infested jungle? there is no better time! so now i have a lovely pink "mosquitero" hanging over my bed. i slept under it last night and i loved every minute of it!

and just a little update on Sunny, my lab puppy. i have decided to give her away. i found a nice lady who can afford to take care of her. i don't think it was fair to Sunny for me to be away from her as much as i was. my trips will not get any less frequent so i think it is better for her overall well-being that she has a more consistent owner.

so it looks like i traded one childhood dream for another-- a puppy for a mosquito net. not sure that's an even swap, but that, my friends, is life. and i'm learning daily that life is not always what your childhood dreams consisted of.

okay, i love ya'll!!!

Wait and Rest

Wait for the LORD; be courageous and let your heart be strong. Wait for the LORD.
Psalm 27:14

Rest in God alone, my soul, for my hope comes from Him.
Psalm 61:5

It is very comforting to know that the God of the universe has my life in His hands. I trust Him completely that He knew I would be sitting in Lima, Peru at 12:25 a.m. on Monday March 12th unable to sleep. He knows my every thought and worry and He gently says, "Lane, sweet child, give that to me; it is not for you to carry". I do not wish to carry the burdens I have on my heart any longer. As much as I know that "being effective in ministry" is not the goal of my life it is very difficult for a driven person like myself to take so much "sick time". I have long desired to save the world, but it seems that each time I get to the next "big thing" in my life the infamous WAIT sign in put up. Right now I feel like I am wearing the sign on my forehead.

I have been in Lima for over 2 weeks now and as much as I know that this is what my mind, body, and emotions have been in need of...I still very often feel that I am failing someone. I'm not quite sure who I think that I am failing. And when I start trying to figure it out I realize that the most important One already loves me. In fact before opening my Bible this morning I said to myself, "Lane, you are not doing this to earn God's approval, you cannot earn that. He already loves you". I know that what God truly wants is intimacy with me. He wants to talk with me, converse with me, hear my thoughts, my fears, my joys, and then He says, "go ahead give that to me". Why? Now, that I do not understand. He has chosen me. Chosen. How amazingly, wonderful!! Chosen me and now He wants to fellowship with me, spend intimate time with me. I think I understand this better than I ever have in my life. Maybe that is what all this waiting is about...learning about love--how to accept it, how to give it. I praise God that He is giving me a small glimpse here on earth of the infinite love with which He loves me.

I talked to my Aunt tonight and I started trying to say "I don't know what I'm going to do when....." and she gently interrupted me and said, "Lane, just rest". All I could say was "yes ma'am". She is right. God has given me this time. No, I may never understand why, but I can take advantage of every moment to learn more about His love and in turn thank Him for that love.

God, I praise you because you first loved me. You chose me before the foundation of the Earth. You have sent me to Peru. You knew exactly where I would be tonight and You know why you have had me in Lima for so long. I pray that I will learn that this is not about what I'm DOING, but about a RELATIONSHIP with my Creator. My goal is not to please others, but to sit at your feet and to find my joy in that. I pray that my life will bring glory to your name. Until you move me I will rest and wait.

Wait for the LORD; be courageous and let your heart be strong. Wait for the LORD.
Psalm 27:14

Rest in God alone, my soul, for my hope comes from Him.
Psalm 61:5

As Promised

alright friends. i am terribly sorry that this has taken so long. first i was sick and didn't want to write and now i'm just lazy! but here we go....

on January 29th i left Pucallpa on a plane for the "port town" of Atalaya. Autumn and I stayed in Atalaya over night and left the morning of the 30th for the community of Pensilvania. we weren't able to take our team boat because something has happened to it. no one can really be sure...we live in Peru.

Quilmer is our Peruvian partner that works with us on the Rivers (i think i have mentioned this before...but i'm not good at names so i like to review:) so, he and his dad and sister went with us on the boat. quilmer and his dad went to another community while autumn, myself and flor (quilmer's sister) went to Pensilvania.

the highlight of our trip was visiting in the homes of Asheninka people. typically, (as in, the way it has always been done) we have had a time at 3:00 each afternoon when the people are invited to come listen to us teach about the Bible. well, Autumn and I decided to do things a little differently and take church to the people. we still had teaching times at 3, but we also visited in the homes of sick people and hiked trails to get to their houses (huts i should say).

the second day we were there we helped Tomas and his wife cultivate (cut grass with machetes) their yard. other members of their family came also. then we ate lunch with them (or brunch i guess). we had some jungle bird (and we wonder why i have parasites right now:)

then, that same day we went and visited in the home of a sick lady. it was about a 15 minute walk. we visited her a total of about 4 times. i shared the gospel with her twice (her and her husband once). sadly, they decided to just "think about it".

another day we went about a 40 minute hike(through creeks and over logs and lots and lots of mud) to another family, including grandparents, brothers, wives...9 adults total. and i shared a creation to Christ story. the grandfather said, "no" therefore no else even considered accepting.

we repeated this in another home close to the center of the community. the teenage son in that family is already a believer, but his family is very cold. they did not accept the truth this time either.

finally, we shared with a lady and her daughter in a home close-by. i shared about God's love and what Jesus did for them on the cross. both of them accepted the truth with smiling faces. it was such a joy to lead Asheninka to Christ.

each time we went to these places Tomas (the church leader) went with us. he clarified things in the Asheninka language. i also used those opprotunites of walking to share with him that this is what the church does. i told him about the functions of the church...that its not just about Sunday's, etc. i made him share the gospel with the people we visited so it wasn't just the white missionaries doing it.

on our final day i shared the message about Jesus feeding the 5000 and how the next day they came looking for Jesus because their stomachs were filled. i encouraged them to seek Jesus for the right reasons. i encouraged them to go to their neighbors.

overall i feel the trip was very eye-opening. i learned a ton. it was hard. i felt homesick alot, but God was sufficent. i fed on His word like never before. i devoured huge chunks of the Bible. God taught me so much. i'm still processing it all really. and then i immediately got sick. He has His reasons for everything that He does. most importantly, i TRUST Him!! He is my Father and He desires to give me good gifts. and if it hurts...that's okay too...my reward is waiting for me!!

i'm still in Lima for at least another 2 weeks. God is good and i'm recovering physically, emotionally, and spiritually.

i love ya'll

ever thanked God for your toilet seat?

hey friends,

some of you may be surprised to see a blog from me since i am suppose to be in the jungle right now...but you know, plans change which always keeps life interesting.

so, with that said i find myself awake at 4:30 a.m. back in Pucallpa. i guess you are now waiting for an explanation for the change of plans and the fact that i'm awake before the roosters. well, long story short, i'm sick. i won't go into details here because i don't believe that the general public will appreciate the details.

however, i do want to tell ya'll a little story. one involving kind peruvians, a float plane landing on the river, and, of course, toilet seats--no, let me rephrase; the absense of toilet seats.

on monday february 12th Autumn (my partner) and i left the community of Pensilvania to head back to Atalaya (a jungle "town"). this was a planned trip. we were to rest there for like 2 and half days before going to the next community of Jose Olaya.

well things were going along as planned until about Wednesday the 14th--that would be Valentine's Day. so Wednesday late morning i called Dena, my SC's wife, to inform her of some health issues that i thought might need to be considered before going to the communities again. i asked her to get in touch with my doctor in Lima. she did and i called her back that evening to get info from the Doctor. well, i was instructed to buy a certain kind of medicine and keep them updated on how it was treating my symptoms. the plan was still for me to leave the following day at noon for the next community (aka village, aka middle-of-NOWHERE!).

so, i took the medicine as instructed and woke up kind of late Thursday morning (about 9). i didn't have the greatest feeling about the trip, so i called Dena back. told her i felt a little weak, but i would tough it out. she said, "no, you call this doctor." soooo, i called my doctor in Lima. we conversed IN SPANISH. not that big of a deal i guess, but none-the-less difficult. she told me not to go on my trip and to go get the same medicine in an "ampolla". i had yet to come across that word while sharing the gospel in remote villages; however, the day before the pharmacist tried to sale me the medicine in the form of "ampolla" so i knew she had it. so i went straight back to the pharmacy (well, we will call it a pharmacy to make all of you worriers feel better) and i bought the "ampolla". haha, i soon learned, after being led to a back room with one of those lay-flat doctor chairs, what an "ampolla" is. a SHOT. yes, my friends a shot, in the jungle, in something i will refer to as a pharmacy. i completely trusted the lady because this town is so small that i had already conversed with her about 4 times and that day learned that she was a believer. so i was injected. i left there and went to tell Autumn what all was going down. well, i had to walk about a block and a half. i found her and i told her the story. she, however, didn't realize that i had already gotten the shot, but thought that i was going to have to get a shot. so i left to go back to our hostal to call Dena and lie down. now here is where things get interesting...

i was walking with Quilmer (our Peruvian partner) and i told him that i had not been able to get Dena. he informed me that he had the cell phone numbers in his calendar. perfect. so the plan was for me to try the house one more time while Quilmer went to get the cell numbers (up in his room in the same hostal).

so i picked up the phone and realized that i needed to lean on the counter a little because i was feeling weak. then, i heard Dena's voice on the other end. and this is how our conversation went:

i heard myself say: "Dena!".
she said: "yes, Lane."
i said: "we can't go and the doctor told me to get a shot."
she repeat: "a shot"
then i heard myself say: "Dena, i feel really weak."
Dena said: "sit down, where is Autumn"
then as if from dream world i heard my voice say, "mama, i want my mama."

the next thing i know i'm laying on the lobby couch with several Peruvians around me spraying water, rubbing alcohol and amonium. i was extremely confused and Quilmer was sitting beside me. i said--IN ENGLISH--"what happened"...to which he looked puzzled. then i said, "que paso". to which he tried to explain, but i couldn't put anything together.

i proceeded to cry and try and figure out what happened. it was all very overwhelming. but i finally got the entire story.

i fainted, Quilmer caught me, the kind Peruvians awakened me, but sadly I never talked to my Mama!

well, needless to say Autumn and i did not finish the second half of our trip. a plane was sent for us on friday...but because the regular plane was unavailable we were sent for in the float plane. you know the kind that lands in water!

so what's all this about a toilet seat? well, in my 2nd home there of Atalaya the toilets had no seats...only the rims. now coming from a squatty potty i have found myself numerous times thanking God for my seatless potty. however, when your body goes through what mine did the result seems to be long periods of time spent on the toilet. therefore, as i was sitting there, dizzily (with my head resting on the sink cushioned by a toiletpaper roll), for those long periods of times i was thanking God for all the toilets in the U.S. and in Pucallpa that had nice soft seats. then i thanked him for the toilet in Atalaya that was not a squatty potty. and then i prayed for all the Asheninka who get sick with no float planes to rescue them and no soft potties to comfort them.

i am back in Pucallpa now. still spending lots of time in the bathroom, but this time with a much more comfortable seat. i will go to Lima either Monday or Tuesday to visit my doctor and get everything straightened out.

before you click off of here...please thank God for your comforts. however meanial you think they are...you have been given much. i too have been given much. and to those who are given much, much is required. will i ever learn this truth?

i love you all,

lane

A Sittin' Spot

I like to think I’m pretty much the same girl I was at age 13 and things like this morning tend to prove that to me. As I escaped the heat of the house at about 11:00 this morning my screen door slammed shut behind me only to be reopened by my ever-growing lab puppy, Sunshine. How wonderful I thought. How many times in my childhood did I pray for a dog that would follow me around with love and devotion? So with these thoughts in mind I started down the gravel neighborhood road on my “prayer walk”. Now for all you prayer walkers out there let me redefine the word. My prayer walk this morning was more of the “selfish” variety. Because of my ADD/OCD personality I often find it hard to pray while sitting still. I will either fall asleep (which doesn’t fit into ADD or OCD but more like lazy) or think about one million other things to do in that moment. I also can’t sit in a room and pray if things are untidy because I will have to get up and fix them. So the point is, I left the house to walk and pray and my beautiful lab puppy followed me all the way.

Now you are asking, “what does this have to do with your childhood?” Well as I was walking I found a spot to stop and sit. Now I didn’t find it as in “discovered” it because I’ve seen it before and even sat there before. I think I may be the only person in the world that would find this little spot exciting, but as I sat on the broken gray concrete under the Mango tree I was taken back to my adolescent years. In my neighborhood in Brookhaven there was an old rusty metal box (the kind that covers wiring for the neighborhood) with a lock on it and it sat under a Gumball tree. Now why those spiny things are called gumballs I have never quite figured out. I asked my Daddy once and I suppose that his hour-long lecture was too much for me to remember. He tends to answer the simplest questions with nice, long drawn-out stories. (At least ya’ll know where I get the long-windedness from)

So back to the Mango tree and cinder block… it took me back home. I realized that I have been searching out shady spots and walking to think for many years. My adolescent years where filled with lots of thinking and confusing thoughts and now that my memory has been jogged I remember that I battled out lots of questions under that Gumball tree. I was that neighborhood girl that sat alone and looked lost in her own little world. I suppose really I was always imagining this world—the one I am currently living in. I know that I spent many of those hours praying for a dog that would be loyal to me…or that my Daddy would allow me to own ANY dog. I did have to leave his house and that lazy neighborhood in order to see all those summer daydreams realized. And as I sat there under the Mango tree I came to understand a couple things: 1) Mangos can be much more dangerous than gumballs when falling from the tree even though they don’t have spines. 2) I will always be that girl that has to battle out her thoughts, dreams and realities. That is just who I am. I’m a thinker. I want to save the world and yet I struggle daily with laziness and business (how’s that for a contradiction). 3) I think I’m as much of an absentee parent as ever there was… poor Sunny has only seen me for 6 days and I’m leaving her again on Monday. I don’t deserve the love and devotion that she is so ready to give, but you know what friends we don’t deserve Grace and Mercy either. I have done nothing to earn the love that is daily given to me by my Heavenly Father and yet he gives it—new every morning. And the harder I try to earn that I love the less I am able to enjoy it.

So, today, if only for an hour before the mosquitoes drove me back indoors I was able to thank God for my past, present, and the future that I know He has waiting for me, without feeling like I needed to “straighten-up” something in my life to come before Him.

I love God so much! I need Him so desperately. I cannot do this work, live this life, or make decisions without Him! Praise Him for the fact that He has reached down from Heaven and made a way for us to know Him. We are welcomed into His throne room only by the saving blood of Jesus Christ. Have you reflected on that today? Thanks to a shady “sittin’ spot” I was able to do just that.

I love ya’ll!!

llegamos con la lluvia

It has been too long since I have updated my blog. I kinda have an excuse but not really. My team and I have been in Lima for about 10 days. We had a mission meeting where I was able to hang out with lots of other missionaries from Peru and Ecuador. I thoroughly enjoyed myself. I met some amazing people that really helped renew my purpose for being here.

In these past two weeks I have also had the privilege of influencing several teenage lives which in turn reminded me of my teenage years and my calling (which occurred during my teenage years). The first group of teenagers that I was able to hang out with was some MKs (missionary kids) there in Lima. Their energy was contagious and just reminded me of myself at that age. In so many ways I feel like I am still that teenage girl. I still feel small a lot of times and that the world is a scary place…but then I am reminded of who I am in Christ and I am ready to take on that big world again. I hope that I was able to remind those girls of who they are in Christ.

The other group of teenage lives I was able to be a part of was the 9th grade Sunday school class from Broadmore Baptist Church in Madison, MS. I was asked by their teacher to call their Sunday School class and talk about my call to missions, etc. They are studying Acts and Paul and his persecutions during his missionary journeys. While I in no way would put myself on a level with the Apostle Paul, studying the scriptures with this class helped the passage come alive to me. Even from thousands of miles away I was able to put myself in their shoes (I could see myself sitting in my high school Sunday School class) and talk from my heart. Things I wish I had heard at that age and things that I want people to know about me. And that is this: it is all worth it! Everything I go through here in Peru is worth it…because the gospel is THE most important thing EVER! How small and insignificant my “persecutions” seem in the face of God’s glory. Daily I fight with what my flesh wants to do like sleep late, waste time, complain, etc and then I am reminded of what it is I have come here to do!! I did not come here to sit, but to share the Truth! And if I don’t tell these people, who will? Oh Lord, I pray that I will be faithful to the call that You have put on my life. Being a part of that Sunday School lesson really reminded me of all these things. To all of Sunday’s 9th graders…thank you for letting me talk with you! I will pray for your group that God will raise up many missionaries from that group. Know that He desires to use each one of us in making His name known among the nations. Do what you can to be a part of that now!!

In other news… I will head back to the Asheninka communities on January 29th. I will be gone until February 26th. I covet your prayers during this trip. I know that Satan is going to try and attack our efforts, but we know who has already WON!! Every day in the communities is a challenge…from finding a place to use the bathroom to cooking lunch---everything is harder there. It is hot and there are always bugs—lots of biting bugs…and honestly sometimes I just want to sit down and not get up again, but as stated above: I did not come here to sit!!!

Please pray that I will be faithful in the work. Pray that the teaching times will be productive. Pray that I will use every minute to tell about God’s truth. Pray that I will invest in peoples’ lives for eternity. Pray for the Asheninka people that they will understand and grasp the truth of God’s word. Pray that the Holy Spirit will move among them to teach them!!!! And most of all that I will just get out of the way and become an empty vessel that is used by God! I can't do this without ya'll's prayers!

Bout Time

This blog entry is way overdue and yet I’m still not sure what I have to say. I have to walk a thin line between being informative and entertaining…in order to keep all parties interested. What am I talking about? I don’t even know who the “parties” are. So if you are reading my blog be advised that whatever I am about to write is being written in order to keep you coming back.

First order of business I suppose is the fact that my camera is broken. Yes, I know it is a very sad day. However, my mama and I are working on the warranty right now and trying to figure out how to get a replacement. So just be advised that for several months I may not have any pictures on my blog—sorry folks. The jungle is kinda hard on our “modern technology”.

Secondly, Sunshine is learning commands! She is a very smart dog—don’t we all say that about our dogs though. She sits very well; she is learning stay and come. However she fails to remember these commands at the most important times and so it goes.

I guess ya’ll are curious about how my first Christmas away from home went. Well, I made it through. No major tears and one John Grisham book richer!! Our team was actually able to celebrate this event with an Asheninka family from the community of Alto San Luis. Their oldest daughter had been studying here in Pucallpa for the past year. It was very interesting to house this family of 7 here in our home. For me it really made me question over and over what it is I came to Peru to do. It is easy to get the mentally that my people group live in the communities and I go there and see them. I should endure hard times while I’m there and then I can come back and rest. However, when the people group comes with you, you can’t just stop ministering. All this is to say, I was challenged to act like Jesus every day and really seek his guidance throughout the Christmas season a time when giving is of highest importance.
Somewhere on this list of things that ya’ll need to know is: I got lice. Yep discovered the little boogers on Christmas Day. Well Merry Christmas to you too I thought. My second thought was, “no stores are open on Christmas Day.” My third thought was, “I wonder if Hilda has something I could use.” (now for those of you who don’t remember Hilda, she was my tutor for 1 month and now she is basically my Peruvian mom. We see each other on a daily basis and she can pretty much get anything done.) So I told Hilda about my “visitantes”(visitors) over a piece of pound cake (which I made!!) to which she responded by getting up, walking into her bathroom and bringing me a bottle of cream. She told me she always had it on hand for her granddaughter who often came home from school with lice.

Also of some interest was HOW the bugs were discovered. Well as I was sitting in the McAnally’s house on Christmas morning waiting patiently for the hour when I could open my presents I laid my head over on the arm of a chair. Berta (an Asheninka girl that is also visiting us) started picking through my hair. This is a very normal thing in the communities. Children sit for long periods of time combing through each other’s hair looking for “piojos” (lice). Well, just before we were given the go ahead for opening presents Berta whispered to me, “tu tienes piojos” (you have lice)! Well, first thing I did was look up the word “piojo” in my dictionary, second thing was to shower, third I made the children look at my hair again to confirm the lice finding. Sure enough I had “bastante”(a lot). However, you all will be pleased to know that I used the cream Hilda gave me, bought some more along with lice shampoo the next day and currently there are no signs of lice in my scalp.

Now for those of you who are not totally grossed out and are still reading I suppose I will tell you about my trips to the pool.
Yes over the past week I have gone to the pool 3 or 4 times. I am looking more Peruvian every day (minus the blonde hair that keeps getting more and more bleached out with the sun) and this makes me very happy. Plus I just thoroughly enjoy the fact that I can go to the pool the week of Christmas. Doesn’t every kid dream of that? Well right after they dream of a White Christmas then they dream of being able to swim during their Christmas vacation.

Let’s see… in other news…..
Hilda and I are still working through the Bible study. She pleasantly surprised me two nights ago when we were doing our study because she had already filled in the blanks. She told me that she couldn’t sleep one night so she did the study! I was so excited and just started laughing and clapping…haha! I gave her a new Bible for Christmas…it should be easier to understand than the one she had. I also gave a Bible to Limni—the girl who cleans our house. She has recently accepted Christ and she did not have a Bible. I asked her yesterday if she has been reading and she said yes that she started at the beginning. I told her that was good, but to go ahead and start reading in John as well and if she ever had questions about anything to let me know.

Last thought---
As I was riding down the road this morning in a motortaxi this thought crossed my mind. As a child, how many times did I dream of riding on the back of a fast moving open vehicle like this (in those days I was thinking in terms of go carts—remember those). And here I am 24 years old riding on motorcycles, swimming at Christmas time, waking up each morning to the “whoop” of a monkey and sharing my love for Jesus Christ! How good is God?!! REAL GOOD I tell you! He’s all there is and if we follow him he will fill us with the desires of our heart.
Pray that I will seek Him every day and take advantage of ever opportunity given. I have the freedom to share with anyone why I am here and what I am doing. I have co-workers in other parts of the world who do not have this privilege. I pray that I will take full advantage of the freedom I have to speak into the hearts of Peruvians the love of Jesus Christ. God became man, was born of humble birth, was murdered on a cross, was raised to life three days later, and all for US!! Now stop and really think about that for a minute! No, you can’t grasp it, but you can accept it…all it takes is faith the size of a mustard seed.

I love ya’ll!!!

And the List Grows

Things I can now do with a machete:

1. Cut firewood
2. Dig a hole
3. De-tar(not sure that is a word) a boat
4. Cultivate the yard (Cut grass!!)
5. Oh, and pose like a kung-fu fighter!!

There are examples of all these in my pictures from this trip and previous ones.

Okay, so I’ve been promising stories for a while now. It’s just so hard to get them started. I think ya’ll will enjoy some explanation of our Asheninka field day.
While in Puerto Burmudez for our Asheninka leadership training we had a field day, so to speak. It would have been a field day had it not rained the entire mourning, but with the rain came mud; therefore, the day turned into “mud day” for quite a few of us. Had we been in the states the slow rain probably would not have stopped us from getting out in the weather and getting completely drenched, but I AM NOT in the States. And when the weather gets down to oh 75 degrees Asheninka people freeze! And wet and 75 degrees and you’ve got people shriveling up on you. So instead of making them get in the rain we played most all activities under a thatched roof, but before we even get to the thatched roof we had to walk to the place. So how do you walk about a mile with 30 people without getting wet? Well, you buy a huge piece of plastic and walk under it, of course!!! So, that is what we did. When we arrived at the site we went under the thatched roof and began our series of relay races with a sack race. Please try to imagine Native Indians putting themselves into a Rice sack and jumping…trust me…it is hilarious! All of the relay games kept me laughing because they have never seen anyone do the things we were asking them to do. Now, the bow and arrows were a whole different story…they were the ones laughing when I attempted to shoot that thing. Now don’t get me wrong, my Daddy taught me how to shoot a bow and arrow and I never skipped out on archery class at camp, but those kind in the hunting magazines come with automatic release and all kinds of other conveniences. This bow was made of metal and string. The arrows were cane, feathers, and a metal arrow head—and there were no notches in the end of the arrow to hold it onto the bowstring! Hey, I’m just impressed I was able to get one to release…it went a good little distance after I finally stopped trying to hold the string while releasing the bow.
Other fun or should I say funny events were tree climbing and tug-of-war, both of which we had to go into the drizzle in order to participate. Tug-of-war was after lunch…not sure how good of an idea that was…but the ground was fully saturated by this point and there was plenty of mud. Just use your imagination on that one. Thankfully there was a river close by and Dena and I were able to rinse ourselves off!
After a fun-filled day of “deportes” we had a baptism at the same river. Two of our training participants had never been baptized and desired to be. It was a great ending to a great week.

Please see the links on my previous blog entry BELOW in order to view pictures from this day of recreation!

Picture Links

for now just look at my pictures and i'll have some stories for ya'll later this week...

THIS IS THE LINK TO MY PICTURES FROM DECEMBER: (my most recent trip)
http://olemiss.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2055906&l=c614d&id=6518921


THESE ARE NEW PICTURES FROM MY NOVEMBER TRIP:
http://olemiss.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2055903&l=c5805&id=6518921


THESE ARE PICTURES FROM NOVEMBER ALSO: (that some of you have already seen)
http://olemiss.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2052486&l=cc410&id=6518921

a few more pics before i go

This is the place where we buy our Christmas decorations. Actually this is one of the many stores where you can buy decorations. There is a sidewalk like place with stores like this on each side...not exactly Hallmark--but you get ornaments nonetheless!!!!
this is an orange juice stand in the same place where we get the Christmas stuff. notice the girl peeling the orange with some contraption and the man (to the left u can see his hand) squeezing the oranges...and about 2 minutes later i was drinking the juice!!! mmmm! i love Peru!!! fresh squeezed orange juice while you buy christmas ornaments. we might not have snow, but there are plenty of things that make up for the lack of cold weather!

Rocking Chairs, Yellow Curtains and Various Otras Cosas

so here is the picture of my new rocking chairs--as promised

and here are my new yellow curtains that i LOVE! notice my little christmas tree also!

i don't think i have shown ya'll a picture of the market yet. this is where we can get all the fresh vegatables we could possibly need for like $5---there is a meat section too!

and this is sunshine under the Christmas tree..i've always wanted a puppy under the tree!

Safe with Me

okay, sorry it has been so long friends. but i have two wonderful pictures of God's love that i would like to show you! now, you can't see these pictures with your physical eyes...only with your mind's eye.

both of the "pictures" that i'm going to show you i "saw" in a motortaxi. now for those of you who are new to my blog a motortaxi is the "vehicle" that i go to town in. imagine a motorcycle with a cab attached (large enough to fit 3 comfortably, but known to carry at least 6 plus various cargo!). anyways..if u can't picture it just go to my archives and their is a video and some pictures of motos.

NUMBER 1:

i was on my way to town with Rita on Monday and she had her little grand-daughter with her. Now, first, you need to understand that the traffic here in Pucallpa is WILD!! there are no "lanes" (not me; the driving lanes) so to speak. so their can be up to 4 or as few as 2 lanes at one time. and their are constantly crazy motorcycle drivers wizzing by you as well as big mack trucks lurching around you or in front of you. and everyone is trying to get ahead.
so we are in the midst of this craziness in our motortaxi and Ilene(the grand-daughter) was in Rita's lap. about 4 minutes into our ride Ilene was fast asleep in her grandmother's arms. this gave me a beautiful picture of how we should be with God.
although the world is CRAZY around us we are completely safe in God's arms. He is not going to let anything happen to us...and like sweet Rita, He will even shield our eyes from the dust flying all around!(and yes i do realize that he allows trials, but we can TRUST him is my point!) He loves us so much more than any earthly parent ever could--but do we TRUST HIM?!!!

the other story is like it:
i was in the motortaxi last night with my tutor/Peruvian Mama, Hilda and we went to buy some rocking chairs for the front porch. so we went to town found the chairs and had them tied onto the motortaxi. (i wish i had a real picture of that--but hauling stuff like that on motortaxis is nothing new here.) so anyways, we are on our way back home with the chairs tied to the back and just for precaution i stuck my hand through the back and was holding the chairs. halfway home i realized that my arm was really tired. then i thought...here i am holding these chairs on like their well-being rests soley on my shoulders--on my ability to hold them here. when in reality they were perfectly secured by the rope that had been tied around them.
this is what God said to me in that:
why are you trying to this in your strength? i have secured everything already... your well-being does not rest in your strength!! (PRAISE HIM FOR THAT!!) so, He said, "let go and rest!. and with that i also let go of those chairs...and do u know that they made it home safely without my help!

below you will see pictures of our rocking chairs--just so u won't be thinking those beautiful white chairs you find on the porches of victorian homes or even john walter homes for that matter!

well there was suppose to be a photo here...but i can't get it to load right now..so yeah..i'll try again later!

i love the chairs though..they are awesome!!

we leave again on December 4th to go to Puerto Burmudez. we will drive on the Carretera (remember that wild road?). and we will stay in Burmudez for 5 days training the Asheninka leaders and encouraging them to go out among their own people and share the gospel! then on December 11th we will go to Amambai (an Asheninka community) where we will have a Christmas meal and give gifts. we will also teach here.

• please pray for the Asheninka people that they will realize their task and be missionaries to their own people.
• i will be sharing two devotionals during our time at training. i will also have other various responsibilities.
• please continue to pray for my Spanish communicating and that i will be able to rest well and teach well!
• I pray for all of you as well that you have a wonderful Christmas season!

other than that i have been meeting with my tutor and preparing for this next trip. every day has been really busy and full of activities. i'm still really enjoying my time in peru. each day God teaches me something new. my house is becoming home--i have new curtains(yellow of course) and my room looks just like it would in the states..and with my hammack and rocking chairs on the front porch--i'm pretty much set!!

i love each of you so much!!!

Arbol de Navidad!

this is our tree with lights! and some of our other christmas decorations. notice the presents under the tree! they all came in the mail today! how exciting...now i only have to wait 1 month before i can open them!

i LOVE christmas time..i've been listening to christmas music since thanksgiving afternoon. surprisingly it still "feels" like Christmas even though i'm sweating as i sit in front of the tree.

Happy Thanksgiving...a day late!

I just want everyone to know I had a wonderful Thanksgiving! I am going to put several pictures of us decorating the McAnally's tree and our tree and also some of our food. I hope ya'll enjoy them...i haven't had a chance to put any stories from my last trip on here...but ya'll go look at my pictures...they tell alot of stories without words(the link is below on my last entry)!

Marty cutting the turkey which was bought in Lima in July and has been sitting in our freezer ever since.

My green bean casserole...it looks like my mama's but didn't taste like it!

Me beside the McAnally's tree

Autumn and I putting the angel on top

Me beside our tree today

Ya'll leave me comments and let me know what u think!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm home and Pictures

hey ya'll,

i'm back in Pucallpa. I got back on Saturday the 18th and i've been resting and recouping since then. I want to show ya'll all my pictures and i figured the easiest way to do that is to give you a link. so for those who are interested enough to look go to: http://olemiss.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2052486&l=cc410&id=6518921

i have lots of fun stories to share, but i'm not sure that i have the energy to type them all out right now. so for some highlights.

on the road there: the road was washed out and we had to wait for 6 hours while random Peruvians cut down trees and put logs in the hole for a makeshift "bridge". we slept in some hole in the wall place that night and woke up the next morning at 5 a.m. to finish our drive Burmudez...from there we took our boat to the communities.

Three accpeted Christ in the community of Campinas. God gave me a rainbow on the day that I taught Noah's ark. It rained every day the first 5 days. Mud was everywhere. the boat got suspended between a tree and the bank...then it partly sank....oh yeah..good times! Abuela --the grandmother in Campina--I love her!

San Francisco, the second community, had running water...well not like indoor plumbing...just a faucet...which is way better than washing your dishes with river water, by the way. The cutest old man in the world and his little dog came to church each day(with his worn out and yellowed New Testament). The word for the entire trip was "Barro" (Mud) another key word would probably be "moscas"--the nastiest biting fly ever that leaves little drops of blood after biting!

the drive home: one stuck cattle truck (and a dehydrated cow), one stuck log truck (and an "alternate route" to get around it), and 2 roadside stand chicken sandwiches (don't ask where the chicken has been...just eat it!)

that is enough for now. enough to keep you coming back for more anyways...i hope.
and don't forget to look at the pictures!! http://olemiss.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2052486&l=cc410&id=6518921 --CLICK ON IT! :)

i love ya'll!!!

Randomness

hey everyone,

i just want to give ya'll a little update on my life. i've been very busy these past few days. my team got back on tuesday and i had a big meal prepared for them upon their return. i was so glad i could do something for them--i had missed them so much. the next day we all cooked for some friends of ours...and it was quite adventurous. all was well until we blew a breaker. then we flipped the switch and the stove/oven worked for a while longer. but eventually the whole thing just stopped working(we just had too much going--and dena's stove is electric). so, we take stuff over to my house to cook...but my stove has been acting up for several weeks now. it is gas and it just hasn't been burning strong enough. but no worries because we have an extra stove in our extra bedroom out back. so, we ended up finishing the cooking in our back bedroom! the picture is below.

this is Rita and Dena cooking away in the very hot back bedroom; we had sweet potatos and cake in the oven and 3 things going on the stove top.

besides that we have been getting ready for our next trip out. we leave the 6th to go to two new communities. our team has never been to either of these places...brand new ground! very exciting. there is lots to do to get ready. pray for us as Marty and Autumn have just returned and are leaving again (they will have only had 5 days rest between trips). we all have alot on our plates right now as we prepare for the next trip.

i have lots of stories that i would love to tell ya'll, but i'm just finding i don't have the time to do them justice. so hopefully you can enjoy my pictures and pray for me without all my wild stories. :)

this is sunshine with her new collar on her new bed (she gets a sleeping bag too!). notice they r all yellow so that she will live up to her name. i took her to the vet this week to get her shots and buy her collar, leash, bed, and toys.