A Good Weekend

The past few days have been filled with meeting new people, building stronger relationships with new friends, and deepening relationships with old friends. On Friday, I spent the morning and early afternoon with the team (minus the Fletchers, of course – did I mention that they arrive in less than 3 weeks!!!), learning new Spanish praise songs, making a video for the Fletcher’s arrival, praying together, and eating lunch. That evening, I received a call from Bill, my missionary friend, who informed me that the Christian school where his kids attend was having a fun-raiser. What kind of fun-raiser, you ask? Well, it was of the “funny (and fake) wrestling matches between teachers & parents, selling food, and watching Nacho Libre” variety. In addition to thoroughly enjoying all the festivities, I was able to meet some really nice people that spoke English – always a bonus in the midst of living among 8 million Spanish-speakers.

On Saturday, I joined the Davidsons and two Peruvians for lunch at a huequito (hole-in-the-wall) that both fixes cars (Mon-Wed) and slow-cooks delicious meat (Thur-Sun). Man, I love living in Perú Cynthia is a private Spanish tutor, who I took lessons from for one month, and Israel is her fiancé. We had a great time together with them, telling stories, taking pictures of the cute Davidson kids, and getting to know each other better.

Then, on Sunday, our team gathered together for worship, which is always a special time for me: worship, prayer, communion, great friends, cute kids, and a meal together. Shortly after our time together, Justin and I headed to Villa El Salvador to see our friend José and to meet his parents. To my surprise, we ended up staying at his parents’ house from 2:30 until 7:00, talking about anything and everything and having a glorious time. Not only was our conversation with the Peruvians great, but I always thoroughly enjoy my time with Justin on the trips there and back. Then, after going to their house to get my stuff, I walked home and saw Walter, my new friend who guards one of the streets. We ended up having a good 45-minute conversation. So, in summary, lots of good conversations, lots of strengthened relationships, and lots of Spanish. Definitely a good weekend!

We love those Arequipeños

We have just been blessed by another visit from the Arequipa team. They took a quick trip to Lima in order to get their missionary visas, and we were thus able to spend some quality time with the Smiths & McKinzies. Between two meals together and several late night conversations, our relationship with this great group of missionaries continues to grow.

Life in Lima continues to accelerate, and the future looks bright ahead. The Fletchers have bought their planes tickets; they will be arriving on November 10th!!! With the Yoakums settling in more and more, the guys and girls have been able to meet with more flexibility and frequency. Many of our conversations have revolved around starting up gatherings and Bible studies in our homes, starting up worship gatherings in Spanish, plans for summer 2010, and ways to reach out to our neighbors and other communities. And with each conversation comes several tangible steps to help make these dreams into realities. Now, we eagerly await the Fletchers’ arrival. We also await the Lord’s leading as he leads us on this journey of faith.

Two New Friendships

Over the past few days, I have been blessed by getting to know two guards around the place where I am staying. Walter, who works just around the corner, is a soft-spoken man in his 60’s (just a guess) who has been very open to spiritual conversations. César, who works on the street that I have been walking down daily, is a jovial, friendly man in his 40’s. He told me tonight – during our first long conversation – that I remind him of his “pata” (which I gathered was good, but you never know), Andy, who is from Idaho. From each of these new friendships I have been reminded of the importance of three factors in forming new relationships: time, consistency, and kindness (on both ends). So, I guess I need prayers for patience, consistency, and a kind heart.

Finally…Pictures!!

Well, after holding out for as long as I could, I have decided to post some pictures of Lima. There are two major reasons for this delay: (1) I really hadn’t taken any pictures of Lima until today, and (2) I could really use some prayers concerning my house-hunting (especially for availability, since this area seems to be in high demand – low rent & good location), and I figured that some visual images would help you to know what to pray for. So, without further ado, here are some pictures from La Bolichera, the neighborhood that I am thinking about living. Notice the walking streets (perfect for meeting neighbors), the lack of driving streets (perfect for someone without a car), and the proximity to public transportation, a grocery store, and soccer courts (both of which you can’t tell from the pictures, but you can imagine). Enjoy. And please pray.

Below is a picture of an apartment complex that I am considering living in (if there is ever availability). It is in the same neighborhood. This is the only part of city in which I have actually found apartment complexes. There are definitely other buildings that have floors rented out as apartments, but definitely no complexes. Very different from the States.

Sundays with the Team

Our weekly gathering refreshes me in ways that are hard to express. In the midst of living in a city where I don’t speak the native language perfectly, where I don’t have any close friendships with natives, and where it sometimes feels as if no one knows that I exist, I am able to spend three hours weekly with family. We share meals together, talk, worship, pray, and remember the Lord together. I know their families, and they know me. In contrast to the way that I sometimes feel in Perú, I know that I belong with them. Definitely a nice feeling. All I have to say is praise the Lord for the body of Christ.

Cazando Una Casa (House Hunting)

My teammates have already done it. My friends back in the States have long since done it. So why can’t I? That’s right. Watch out, Perú, because I am officially looking for a place to live. Future neighbors beware.

Food & Spanish Songs

Well, it has officially been a long time since I have posted. During that prolonged silence, several big things have happened. Probably the biggest of those is that we had our first “Spanish” service this past Sunday. What I mean by that is that we practiced several songs in Spanish in preparation for the day (hopefully soon) when we will be having Peruvians join us for worship. We have more work to do, but it was a great start.

In other news, I went to the annual food festival in downtown Lima with the Davidsons and Elí, a Peruvian that we have been getting to know for a while. It was a great evening that filled my stomach with leche de tigre (basically raw fish, or ceviche, in some yummy juices & spices), pollo a la brasa (slow-roasted chicken), freshly baked bread, juane de pollo (a dish from the jungle), and ice cream – mmmm…I’m loving it. The festival was definitely a great way to experience more of the Peruvian culture, as well as to strengthen our relationship with Elí.

Long, But Fruitful, Day

Yesterday was a great day. It began with attending a church called Catedral de Fe with John Mark. This church has several hundred members, is one of the oldest evangelical churches in Perú, and they had a three hour service; my brain was mush afterwards. Then, John Mark and I were able to meet numerous leaders and ministers from the church, and we had a great conversation with a lady who works with several ministries here in Perú. I have no doubt that she will be a blessing to our team and our work here.

After John Mark and I parted ways, I went to a restaurant that serves food from Arequipa, the second largest city in Perú (shout out to the Arequipa team! – by the way, when are you coming on over?). Comida arequipeña is quite different from comida limeña, and what I ate was very tasty. But the best part came when some other Christians, who were sitting one table over from me, noticed that I was reading my Bible (what else do you do when you are sitting alone in a strange new place on Sunday?) . They invited me over to their table, we talked for 30 minutes, and they invited me over for lunch today. Their kindness and hospitality was very, very, very refreshing.

Later that evening, our team gathered together for our weekly gathering. We sang kids songs (and had a blast), we broke bread together, and we spent time worshipping, reading Scripture, and encouraging one another. All this topped off by a conversation with my parents. A good day, no doubt.

Thanks

Thank you to those of you who have responded to recent posts, as well as older posts. It is always nice to know who is reading out there

Jelly Jars

So, I bought my first ever jar of jelly today. Crazy, I know. But I have never been jelly’s biggest fan. But you might ask, “Mark, why start buying jelly now?” Well, I will tell you. It turns out that jelly often comes in large and unique glass jars, I must say, while I did enjoy my toast and jelly this afternoon, that my underlying motives are to use the empty jelly jar for storage of food staples. This is part of my effort to eventually decorate my new place (wherever that may be) with unique, simple, and cheap things. That being said, do you have any good ideas or know of any places to go in order to find ideas? I would definitely enjoy the suggestions.