Just wanted to update you all on the plans for Peru...and share some amazing stories about how the Lord is working things out.
But first, here is a picture. (front) Hannah, Victor, Naomi, Celina (back) Christina, Jason, Marshall, Caleb, Tom, Willy, me
Oh, and Victor is holding the computer with Diego on webcam. Diego is from Columbia, and he's meeting us in Peru, so meanwhile, we talk to him over the computer during our meetings. :)
I just thought I would share some more of what the Lord has been doing in my life as of late. At Christmas time, a friend reminded me that "we walk by faith, not by sight," and I am learning so much about that. If we choose to step out in faith and obedience and seek the Lord's will regardless of what common sense tells us, He WILL guide and direct us and He will make our paths straight (Is. 45:2). So often when we think of a possibility, we say, "no, I don't have the money," or, "no, that wouldn't be very practical" or "it's too presumptuous of me to ask the Lord for that." How can we reconcile this attitude with a walk of faith? James says, "Ye have not because ye ask not." Mark 9:23 says, "If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth." All things are POSSIBLE - the things we want may not happen like we plan them, but anything is possible if we believe and seek the Lord first of all. Belief is stepping out, sometimes nudging open the door that the Lord has cracked open for us and taking that one step that shows we are seeking Him. "Seek ye FIRST the kingdom of God and all these things will be added unto you."
The reason all of this is so present on my mind is because of our Peru trip. I'd like to tell you a little about our team. Caleb and Victor are brothers from Japan whose dad is a teacher at a missionary school. Hannah's parents are missionaries to Mexico, Celina's parents are missionaries to Bolivia. Naomi's parents work at a Bible camp in Kansas, full-time workers for the Lord. One student's parents just underwent bankruptcy. Willy works at McDonald's, Jason works at KFC. And me, well, you know me. Some of us work, some of us don't, but we all have school bills and expenses and none of us can exactly write a check to buy plane tickets to Peru. We started praying about this trip and asking the Lord's will concerning it. We all told Him, "Lord, you know we don't have any money - we're asking you to show us if this is your will, and asking you to provide if you want us to go." We didn't stop there and sit back, either. We started preparing and planning and continued praying. That was two months ago...now, our tickets have been purchased and paid for, with the exception of some details, we all have the finances to travel 3,577 miles from home to spend 9 days in Trujillo, Peru, serving the Lord with our brothers and sisters down there. For 12 people who had nothing, really, to pay the way, God has provided almost $10,000 dollars for a trip to South America.
God has broken down walls and made our crooked paths straight in so many ways. For instance, Hannah is our main Spanish speaker, and when we bought our tickets, we didn't get one for her, because she didn't have any money, or any visible prospects of getting any, and didn't feel at peace about it. The next day, a friend and fellow student told her, "Hannah, I feel like the Lord wants you to go on this trip and I want to pay for your entire trip." Also, the church some of us go to gave our team $1000 and the Lord provided another $500 for our team from another church. Tom's church from home has paid for him. One of Naomi's friends sent $200 for Victor and Caleb after hearing about them from her in passing. Folks, finances and other seeming obstacles are NOTHING - the Lord has been showing me that over and over again. If He wants something to happen, He makes a way! Don't doubt Him. And don't presume that because you want something, it will happen. Seek Him first - try those doors and obey Him and pray and pray and pray and He will show you the way.
So, please, please continue in prayer for our team. Some requests:
~ Unity on the team, that it would continue and even be strengthened
~ Leadership of the quieter guys - that they would step up and that we girls would stand behind them and encourage them without taking over (as three of us five girls have very strong leader personalities)
~ Boldness, excitement and passion to share the gospel with others
~ Physical strength, as we'll be traveling for about 28 hours, spending about 15 hours in various airports between O'Hare, Chicago and Trujillo, Peru
~ Continued provision and the working out of various details
~ Caleb, who is leading our group, has a lot on his mind right now besides the trip - please pray that he would be able to focus and be able to lead our group in a Christ-like way
~ Micah and Amy Tuttle, the couple we are visiting
~ ABOVE ALL - that God would be glorified in our lives and in this whole trip - that He would be praised and honored and that many people would be touched with Christ's love as a result of this trip - that it would be HIS trip, not ours
Thanks so much, everyone, for praying, and for reading my rambling. God is so much bigger than we think. "Fear not, stand firm and see the salvation on the Lord, which He will work for you today...the Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent." Ex. 14:13-14.
