Peru 2

We are now in Uganda and it is so amazing! But let me finish telling you about Peru and then I will move onto Africa!
I look back and see God's provision throughout so many things that happened on the trip. The first day, a man busted the window of the car we were in to try to steal our bags. The window shattered. One of our flights got cancelled. There was a strike going on and when we got off the bus there were hundreds of strikers holding spears, chanting. The strike was not directed at tourists... thank goodness! Because of the strike, our train ride was cancelled. We had to walk 12 kilometers down the train tracks through the jungle of Peru. Supposedly there were some cannibal tribes through the part we were walking... still don't know if they told us that as a joke or not! But we didn't get eaten, so we're good! Then after the hike we had to drive 6 hours up the mountain to 13,000 feet above sea level. While driving up the mountain, our van went over a rock slide and started fish tailing towards the edge of the cliff. We serisouly thought the back wheels were off the cliff. The van drove on the edge of these mountains the whole time. Through all these things, God's hand of protection was over us. Never in my life have I been on a trip where there were so many setbacks, yet I believe it is one of the best trips I have been on. The team and I went was amazing! We got along SO well- maybe a little too well at times. :) Let's just say we know too much about each other now, but in a good way.
The ministry in Peru was awesome! We went into the schools in Jimbe and taught English as a Second Language. In the afternoons, the guys would play soccer and the girls would just hang out with the girls in the village. We had the opportunity to givr gifts to the teachers and they offered so much encouragement. Most of them were from low incomes, yet they all had master's degrees because of their hard work. One night, we showed Fireproof in the community and a few people accepted Christ!! The men that went with our team did training for church leaders. Cool story about this: Brett, one of the men that went with us had gone to a village in Peru about 3 years ago. While there, a little girl named Ibete burned her face so Brett took her and her dad, Sylvia, down the mountain to get medical care. While driving, he shared the gospel. It turns out that Sylvia and his family were at the training for chruch leaders! And he is donating family land to build a church. Also, while we were there, Sylvia was baptized. It really showed me the effect that sharing the Gospel with just one person could have on an entire community.
I must say, I fell in love with little Ibete! She is three now and the most precious thing ever! She would come running to me, yelling “mi tia, mi tia” and would grab onto my legs and reach up for me to hold her. When I picked her up, she would give me kisses. “Tia” means aunt in Spanish. She would tell her mom over and over again that she loved me! One day, she was playing with my hair and looked me in the eyes and said “You are very pretty like my mommy” (in Spanish of course). I never knew that one little girl could impact my life so much after just a few days! She was a precious, precious child of God!
So to end, I loved Peru! Just about as much as I love Africa! I never thought I would say that, but it's true- Peru has captured my heart!