Cineguilla

On Tuesday Jose and I went out with a guy from church to an area close to where we live called Cineguilla (I am totally guessing on the spelling there.)


This cute little lady was very proud to have her picture taken


and when I say she was little I mean it. I had to contort my body to stand next to her and I'm barely 5' 2"


We also met a lady who runs what is called a wawa wasi. It's a government program to help single mothers work. They put together 8 moms. One of them watches the kids and the other 7 work. The ones that work pay the mom that watches the kids S/. 2 a day to pay for their water etc...(the exchange rate is about S/. 2.78 to $1) And the government pays her S./ 180 a month. That's about $67 a month. She also gets a little bit of money from her child's father but NOTHING like American child support.
While we were talking to her we really felt God impressing on our hearts to bless her. Like I said above she watches 8 kids including her own and only owns 6 toys and they are old and broken (things like a naked barbie - they don't own any barbie clothes, and an old stacking toy that we would have thrown away,) She also had an 8 year old son with one toy of his own. An action figure that he was super proud of.

Aside from that her home is a shack built of things like cardboard and plywood. Her front door is like a gate that is held shut by a large stick propped up against it. She has no running water but is proud to have electricity.
These are some pictures of her "house" from the outside and some of the other "houses" around hers


We want to help this lady and we need your help to do that. There is a list about a mile long of ways we could help her and we know that we can't do everything but here are the things we can do.
1. Secure her front door.
2. get toys for children ages 6mo-4years
3. get toys for her 8 year old son.
4. get some shoes for her kids
5. give her some teaching materials. Wall decorations etc... she tries to teach the kids and all she has is her own voice.

If you would like to help with any of these things send me an email at jkmission2peru@gmail.com especially if you want to send a package for her. If you want to help financially you can use the link to give through our church (just email me at the above address that you want your donation to go to blessing her) or through paypal. Next time we go we will get some pictures of her and her kids. Jose had the camera when we were there and he was the one talking ;)
We cannot take pictures of the kids she takes care of though. There are very strict laws here about that.


After we left her house we came across some kids playing. All of them live in homes where the parents are not married. We are finding that is extremely common here. It creates an environment where the mother is insecure and the father is unstable. It also makes it difficult to track the divorce rate here. People really don't have to get divorced because they rarely get married


Anyway, the kids stole my heart. The girl in the blue sweater wanted me to take a million pictures of her. She managed to get into most of the pictures I took.

I also think it is very important that you know I climbed up this mountain in what I used to think of as sensible walking shoes

There are "stairs" carved into it but you can't even see them. unless you are right there looking at them.
I am so thankful for paved roads and construction. And don't even get me started on how thankful I am for my home.

You live in a blessed nation. No matter what the news says or how you feel about the current political or economic situation. Next time you spend $67 think about what your life would be like if that was your entire months paycheck

Daily Thoughts “My Light”

Isaiah 60: 1 Arise, shine;

For your light has come!

And the glory of the LORD is risen upon you.

2 For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth,

And deep darkness the people;

But the LORD will arise over you,

And His glory will be seen upon you.

3 The Gentiles shall come to your light,

And kings to the brightness of your rising.

4 “Lift up your eyes all around, and see:

They all gather together, they come to you;

Your sons shall come from afar,

And your daughters shall be nursed at your side.

5 Then you shall see and become radiant,

And your heart shall swell with joy;

Because the abundance of the sea shall be turned to you,

The wealth of the Gentiles shall come to you.

As I read this morning I begin to understand that darkness, deep darkness is what covers the earth. The strong man oppressing Peru is not a lack of men; it is a strong man of Machismo and Matriarchy. Let me explain

When the Spaniards came over to Latin America it was not a migration full of families coming over together to start a new life, it was a conquest and for 200 plus years all that came over to this land were men. What began to be a common thing is that the men would kill the Indian men and then begin to have relations with the Indian women. Because the children being born of these relations would be despised of their fathers and rejected of their fathers they would come under the protection of their mothers. The children being left without a father would grow up only being cared for by a mother. So as it continued for over 200 years those children boys would grow up and instead of defending their mothers would actually reproduce what their Spanish conquistador fathers would do. This vicious cycle of conquest would make the men reproduce a machismo attitude that would enjoy the pleasure but would never take the responsibility of a father. This epidemic today is evident all over Latin America. Boys are not raised by a father but instead a mother takes all the Responsibility. It is evident on the streets and in the church. The men do not hang out with their sons, the moms or even in most dual working families the female maids take care of them.

I am so privileged to grow up in a church that has actually began to reverse the curse of fatherlessness. I was mentoring my timothy yesterday and as I was sharing with him our vision and mission here it became evident how we should see this work. We are ambassadors not only of Christ but our spiritual father and family back home. We came as Acts 17: 6 “These who have turned the world upside down have come here too. 7 Jason has harbored them, and these are all acting contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying there is another king—Jesus.” How evident it is that we bring something that is so foreign even to Christians here. The Fathers affirmation! I have had the opportunity to affirm about 4 men here so far and they are sticking to me like nothing before. They don't receive it, that’s why they don't do it, and that’s why they don't reproduce it

The beat goes on...

We are starting to work out a rhythm to our life here. I don't know how other people do it, but when I get in a new situation I feel like I just need to get my routine down and then I can feel comfortable. Ok, I admit it deep down inside I'm really 5 years old. I like to have a bedtime and a schedule. I don't like winging it too much.
Speaking of schedule's. We started school last week. I'm loving every minute of it. Well almost every minute the one's where Logan whines about stuff are not my favorite. But we are working through it. Logan has 3 favorite things about school. Math (I'm pretty sure he gets that from Jose) art (all me) and Lego's (no idea) Yes, that's right Lego's are a subject in our school. As a matter of fact if kindergarten had majors my children would be majoring in Lego construction. The amazing thing about Lego's is the boys will play with them for hours and they don't even fight over them. If I was catholic I would nominate the inventor of Lego's for sainthood. But since I'm not catholic I will just thank God for them. I never thought I would say Lego's that many times in one paragraph. Really, I never thought I would have any reason to talk about them. Who knew?

I may have mentioned this before but our house is actually an apartment. There are 3 other apartments in our building. One below us. One across from us and one on the third floor. Our front door is on the second floor but we have 3 floors to our apartment. Anyway, on Thursday the boys and I were home alone all day. It was a normal enough day. Friday morning Jose's dad went out to get some stuff and saw our neighbor. They told him that the apartments on the 1st and 3rd story had been robbed during a 3 hour period on Thursday. Our doors here have these crazy locks that seem impossible to break into but the robbers had a tool that broke them. I NEVER HEARD A THING. We believe that the thieves heard me and the boys in the apartment and weren't sure which one we were in so they skipped our floor. We also know that everyday we pray a hedge of protection around our home that no one with evil intentions would be able to come near us. God protected us and our stuff. We are going to use wisdom and have another lock installed and I think our landlady will be installing electric fences around the exterior walls soon. Just know that your prayers are powerful! We feel them every single day.

Daily Thoughts "My Word"

Isaiah 55: 10 “The rain and snow come down from the heavens

and stay on the ground to water the earth.

They cause the grain to grow,

producing seed for the farmer

and bread for the hungry.

11 It is the same with my word.

I send it out, and it always produces fruit.

It will accomplish all I want it to,

and it will prosper everywhere I send it.

The word comes down from God and stays on the soil of our hearts watering us. As maturity comes into our lives through discipleship, fruitfulness is the evidence of the word growing in our hearts. The farmer, who is at that time in our lives the beneficiary of the word, can measure and see the good fruit in our lives so that it can be used to benefit others and provide spiritual food for them. I see this time and time again in ministry. I have seen the positive and I have seen the negative. As a positive I continue to watch men of God being matured in a church that loves them and cares for them and disciples them. I see the evidence of their lives because wherever God places them they continue to produce fruit and God confirms it through prospering them in the ministry. Also, the farmer in their lives is like a skilled surgeon knowing the right balance and nutrition so that it produces good fruit that lasts and ministers to many. I have also seen the negative. The word is so powerful and it pierces the heart of the man, but either through not wanting to be tilled or corrected that it becomes more of a pit of hard and unfruitful soil, or it becomes a soil that looks to be muddy or over watered and like any immature person looks for any kind of spiritual teaching and becomes more confused than fruitful. Both do not work and it is sad to see Men of God called to ministry but get brought down because of lack of correction or not understanding the farmer as a tool of God to help them and see them as a lid and not a covering in their lives. In this case too, the farmer needs to truly understand the condition of his soil so that he knows how to treat it or through perversion, passivity or abandonment that soil becomes just another pile of dirt. Help us Lord to be trained up great to be a great soil so that you can fulfill the call in our lives. Also Lord help us when you make us a farmer to be one that inspects what you expect and to be one that is constantly looking to produce fruit through that soil that is healthy to feed hungry people that fill this world.

Ask yourself first if you are being watered by God daily? Are you allowing God to fill your heart with his word so that fruit comes out and helps so many out there. Second are you being a good sheppard? Are you relying on the Lord to help train up others so that his word does not return void but prospers everywhere it is sent.

Daily Thoughts 9/27 My Servant

Isaiah 51:1 “Listen to me, all who hope for deliverance — all who seek the Lord! Consider the rock from which you were cut, the quarry from which you were mined. 2 Yes, think about Abraham, your ancestor, and Sarah, who gave birth to your nation. Abraham was only one man when I called him. But when I blessed him, he became a great nation.” as I read today such a beautiful pivotal point in the bible where Isaiah 53 describes the servant of God, Christ Jesus. I am having such a powerful time in prayer and meditation of God's word about how Isaiah sees our Lord Jesus as the sacrificial lamb for my sins. I don't even know how I could finish this or even start because I know the condition of my heart yet I rely on him so I can truly grasp what it means to be purified by the Lamb of God. It was my weakness, my sorrow, my sickness, my rebellion and my sin that were placed on him as the one and only offering for my sins. Such beauty of scripture yet my heart aches because we do not grasp this reality of how worthy Christ is everyday. Isaiah starts today's reading by saying that we need to remember the rock from which we were cut, to not forget the quarry which we were mined. Such as true today as when Isaiah wrote it. so many times we forget what God uses as a training ground for us to be multiplied. Dr. Cole says that everything in life is according to a pattern based on a principle of the Word of God. to help those that may read this: God tells you to remember. remember that he is using this time to form you (discipleship) where he placed you (church), with who he placed you with (pastor), so that he can use you for greater things (sent out). Three principles that you have to see in your walk with Christ. 1) God calls you 2) God blesses you 3) God multiplies you my prayer today: Lord mercy on us when we do not have a fresh revelation of your total obedience as a servant of the Lord. Mercy on us when we choose to be weak, feel pity, allow sickness, choose rebellion, and commit sin. Teach us to present ourselves in light of Jesus and his commitment level to the Father. God help us!

Daily Thoughts 9/26 Commissioned

1 Listen to me, all you in distant lands! Pay attention, you who are far away! The Lord called me before my birth; from within the womb he called me by name. 2 He made my words of judgment as sharp as a sword. He has hidden me in the shadow of his hand. I am like a sharp arrow in his quiver. 3 He said to me, “You are my servant, Israel, and you will bring me glory.” 4 I replied, “But my work seems so useless! I have spent my strength for nothing and to no purpose. Yet I leave it all in the Lord’s hand; I will trust God for my reward.” 5 And now the Lord speaks— the one who formed me in my mother’s womb to be his servant, who commissioned me to bring Israel back to him. The Lord has honored me, and my God has given me strength. 6 He says, “You will do more than restore the people of Israel to me. I will make you a light to the Gentiles, and you will bring my salvation to the ends of the earth.” 7 The Lord, the Redeemer and Holy One of Israel, says to the one who is despised and rejected by the nations, to the one who is the servant of rulers: “Kings will stand at attention when you pass by. Princes will also bow low because of the Lord, the faithful one, the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.” Oh my Jesus how encouraging are your words that you have commissioned us to bring salvation to your people and the ends of the earth. Today was glorious in the Lord. Church, rest and then celebration time with all the volunteers that helped out with the "save the family conference," that was special. Dr. Cole taught us that we can't push string we have to pull it, and we can't push people, we have to lead them. The Lord has shown me that spending time with men and encouraging them and stretching their faith brings a level of leadership that is so needed in the body of Christ. To help those that may read this: Men you have been commissioned to take this salvation message to those that have fallen away in the faith and those that are perishing. What other words do we need to hear, what other books do we need to read, what new message has to played in our CD players, for us to know that we have been chosen by God! The Holy One of Israel has chosen you. My prayer again is that you may him who paid the ultimate price to bring this message to you and that you would be sent out because you have been commissioned to take this gospel to the ends of the earth. Isaiah in chapter 6 understood three things that made him willing to die to transmit this message. 1. He understood who God was verse 1 2. He understood who he was verse 5 3. He understood the provision of God for him verse 6 Jesus is that burning coal that has taken away our sins. Such a privilege to know that he touched, removed and forgave our sin. Only through this process can you say as Isaiah says in verse 8 "here i am, send me"

Daily Thoughts 9/25

Isaiah 45:11 This is what the Lord says— the Holy One of Israel and your Creator: “Do you question what I do for my children? Do you give me orders about the work of my hands? 12 I am the one who made the earth and created people to live on it. With my hands I stretched out the heavens. All the stars are at my command. 13 I will raise up Cyrus to fulfill my righteous purpose, and I will guide his actions. He will restore my city and free my captive people— without seeking a reward! I, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, have spoken!” As i am reading today i notice a thread throughout both new and old testament and that is a calling. In the old testament he calls Cyrus a non christian to help the Jewish people and rescue them and to restore God's city for his people. So profound how he calls even though we don't think or understand why he does that except he does things for his name's sake. An applicable example of this in our lives now is our residence here in Peru. We have seen God's hand move here ever since we got to Lima. The home we are staying in belongs to some actress that was popular here in the late 90's. We told her what we were doing here and our mission and brief testimonies. She began to tell us her non christian beliefs, but then quickly wanted to help us. We told her we got here only with our 21 suit cases and that was all we had. She asked about bedding and furniture and we told her that we would get it as we were able to month to month. We saw God use her to bless us, God's people, in that she furnished our home for an extra $200 a month. She said that she would give us the furniture when we left to move to Piura in the north. She also added that she has trucks that go there monthly and that she would be willing to transport all the things when we get there. She told us that the house that we are staying in is made to lease for highly affluent business people who can afford $800 a month more than our budget. But when they showed us the house the realtor said for some reason right now she is leasing it for exactly the amount we had been looking for. SO GOD! We have seen his hand move in our lives and we are privileged to begin this new work in Peru. I truly feel like Israel sometimes that even when we are the guilty ones for disobeying him, rebelling and sinning as Isaiah finishes off chapter 46, God still rescues us for his names sake...Mercy Jesus In the new testament we see Paul begging us to live a life worthy of our calling. So many times I did not understand my Pastor used by God to stretch me because I am called. I have come to realize that if those called could truly grasp their calling we would as Paul says work in such unity, love, and harmony in the body of Christ. It is sad to see members of the body trying to jockey for position and be someone that God did not create them to be. The reason why we raise up other men in the ministry is not so that they can be a clone of us. It is actually the contrary in that the training God has brought through my life and the impartation that is transferred to their life added to the measure of grace of that persons' calling would catapult them to even greater works in Christ Jesus. We see that multiplication in Jesus' group when he said greater works will you do because you trust and believe that I have called you. God help the men in my life to grasp their calling by you so that they can believe and continue what you have done and greater. Listening to Paul explain the reason for the 5 fold ministry gifts it truly blesses me to know I have a pastor, evangelist, teacher, apostle, and prophet on my side that equips me to build Christ's church. It truly blesses me to hear scripture like this: Ephesians 4: 15 Instead, we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church. 16 He makes the whole body fit together perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love. To help those that may read this: If you don't know if you are called ask your Pastor, Apostle, Teacher, Evangelist, Prophet. God put him there to help equip you. If you know you are called stop trying to be like someone else and be the best you that God called. If you are not doing your own special work in the ministry your hindering the body from being healthy and growing. Stop, repent and allow that special gift (5 fold minister) to equip you again!

This is the real me

I'm sure that there are many women in the world that have lived in a world similar to the one I find myself in. A world where being punched in the shoulder is a very meaningful sign of affection. A world where princesses on the television cause a quick dash for the remote but if there is gunfire or swordplay you better believe we will at least stick to the station until the next commercial. Yes my friends. I am talking about my home where 5 out of 6 residents are male. I happen to be the remaining 1.
Being surrounded by men has it's benefits and it's challenges. While I love it, every once in a while I miss the energy of women. I love how women can be 15 or 75 and they still think and act almost identical. Every woman I know looks at their reflection and can pick out at least 5 things that they don't like. But we deny that our friends have any physical flaws vehemently. And when we get together. It's magical. Like being transported to a place where there are no consequences for eating way too much chocolate. A place where feather boas are a must! Where no matter how tired you may be you still want to stay up and talk for 5 more minutes. That is what "This Is The Real Me" was like

Kari Jobe led worship. It was one of the first times in my life I went expecting a performance and experienced a worship service. I've always been one to prefer men's voices over women's. Just a personal preference, but listening to 600 or so women worshiping God from the bottom of their hearts was awe inspiring. And I got to sit next to Kari Jobe during the ministry time. So fun!

Isn't she cute? (and isn't that the girliest thing you have ever heard?)

Pastor Sheila Gerald ministered the first night and to start she told us all to look into the eyes of the person next to us and very sincerely say "your butt looks good in that" Then she said I know you where all worried about it and now you don't have to be. SO true.

I could go on and on about how much fun I had and how great it was but I will finish with this.

God has graced me with some of the best and sweetest friends on earth. It doesn't matter how far away we are from each other because I know they will always be there for me. I didn't get pictures with all of them but here are the few I did get.

 
                                   

You girls make me think of Philippians 1:3

"I thank my God upon every remembrance of you"

I do. I am blessed beyond words to know you