1 Year and Counting

Today is the 22nd of May which means that today is the anniversary of the Salcedo Church of the Nazarene. It has been one year on those 4 benches preaching, teaching, and praying. I remember the 22nd of May last year which was our inauguration service. We invited all who we knew or thought were interested which was a total of 20 people. 19 of them said that they were going to come. Out of those 19 that said they come, nobody showed up. We sang, preached, prayed, and ate cake amongst ourselves. 4 months continually it looked like that; Geremías and I singing, preaching, and praying amongst ourselves. I didn’t know how hard the next year would be for me, us, and the church.

This past Sunday we celebrated the 1 year anniversary in Salcedo with much greater success and a higher turnout than the 0% at the inauguration. We decided to do it outside in the street. We got permission from the president of the street to close it down to have the event.

We scheduled it for 3:00PM and 3:00PM rolled around. Then 3:15, then 3:30 and there were very few people there. It doesn’t matter what event we do but 30 minutes after the “should-be” start time no one shows up and it is so demoralizing. But that usually all turns around and people start staggering in and it ends well. It’s never reassuring, though, at the next event when the same thing happens. Well, I was discouraged again 30 minutes after the original start time, but by the time we were really started there were over 50 people there. A ton of people from our church plants, a ton from Kristen’s church in Huascar, and a handful from the center church!

The program went really smoothly and wasn’t long or drawn out. The weather was perfect. I was smiling. The pastor preached. And at the end we had hot chocolate, sweet rolls, and cake for everyone.

This anniversary Sunday was really encouraging for me to end here strong and hand off Salcedo to the next person with the best possible church. It’s not often that I can have a good time at an event of which I’m in charge, but this was a legitimate change of pace for me.

We also have had 6 short termers from Mid-America Nazarene University to help us out which was more of a blessing than anything. They helped out at the anniversary setting up, serving food, and taking down. The biggest thing they did for us was paint Viviana and Paulina’s house on Tuesday. This is now the location of our newly formed cell group. It was an Extreme Makeover: Home Edition (see what I did there?) for real. The transformation by just throwing 2 coats of paint on that house was incredible. It was amazing for me to see the house be beautified in such a simple way.

 

Random: I was given the opportunity to drive a car here in Peru. We were in a tiny pueblo called Chipana and I asked the taxi driver if I could drive back to the main town of Ilave about 15 minutes away. He kind of chuckled and dropped the subject. About 2 minutes down the road he picked the subject back up and asked if I was serious. I said yes and he stopped the car and let me drive all the way back to the main city! It was an awesome experience and I told him that I would never forget it! It’s just one of those things that would never happen unless you’re truly in the culture.

I cannot stress enough how much this year from inauguration to anniversary has changed me. How hard this past year has been, but how much it has been worth it. To see that yes God has been working through us to reach these three pueblos just outside Puno, Peru. It’s not often I get to see all this come together (and enjoy it!) but I thank the Lord for providing with a memory so great, and I’m still so sure it will not be the last because there still is a month to go. Until next time, check this out as always.

Shoulda, Coulda, Woulda

I should be graduating from college today, which blows my mind. I should be starting a full-time job right now as an actuary at some insurance company. I could be getting my own place, perhaps I even would be engaged or in a steady relationship. Maybe I would have my own dog, motorcycle, or even lawn mower (which is really what matters in life…)
I would be doing all these things at the age of 21, which is what I’ve wanted to do my entire life, but a tiny little 4 letter word changed all of that: Perú.
I think back to what I heard in 8th grade English class, and how I learned it my freshman year of college:

“The best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry.”

And considering the fact that my human plans above went awry, I find myself on this graduation day sitting in my bed sick with a sinus congestion and sore throat in Southern Peru writing this blog.
In reality, I can’t be more thankful that God brought me here even though it might seem to you like I regret it, I do not in the least bit. I think about how much I’ve changed and how much I’ve been stretched and I can’t help but be thankful for the blessings I’ve received in going through so much down here. I look at my plans above and I think of those piercing words that Jesus said:

“For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul?”

I was definitely on track to gain the whole world and forfeit my soul at the same time, the same state many of you are in today. I was in that American bubble and I had to come here and live here to realize it. Sometimes I look back and I think if I would have been one who said “Lord, Lord” but failed to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. And my fear is that many of you are in this category, whether you don’t realize it (like me) or whether you do have a conviction of it.
I’m studying 1 Samuel in the mornings now, and I found how much my testimony was like that of king Saul before coming down here (taken from 1 Samuel 14-15). Like Saul, I had the outward pretentions of being a man of God, a worshiper of  the Lord, a builder of altars, and a man of prayer. But just like Saul, it was all surfacie. I was stubborn, I was self-righteous, and I did religious things because “that’s what you do.” I was all outside in my faith. But God still used Saul to defeat nations upon nations, and that’s what God has done with me.
Why do I share this with you? My prayer is that one of you will also take the leap that I took. My prayer is that you would leave your lukewarm state and do something radical. I told a short termer that came that he should be a missionary and I was dead serious. His all-too-quick answer was, “I have 3 kids and a wife.” And I said, “I think you, your wife, and your three kids should be missionaries.” Don’t be the one that has excuses, every single one of you can step it up today, and that’s the purpose of this blog. Don’t gain the world and forfeit your soul.
I do look back and I do think about where I’d be, but then I give myself a reality check and remember how much God has molded and matured me. I want to see that in you, dear reader, and believe me no excuse will do. This applies to everyone: be different and do something that changes the world.

(In the airport May 17, 2010)