Rachel Hartong - Day 8

Wow! Day number eight is drawing to an end here in Peru!  Sometimes it feels like we really have been here a full week, but other times it seems like just a couple days.  I was set to blog a couple days ago, but due to some unforeseen circumstances I was unable.  That being said, the last couple days have really opened my eyes and taught me a lot putting a lot on my mind to share with you so hope you have some time to spare!

First, I will explain the delay that we had yesterday, which turned into possibly the most convicting moment in my life.  In Peru, there are police officers everywhere and yesterday we had an encounter with officers on the side of the road who randomly select vehicles for checking paperwork.  Needless to say we were one of the lucky chosen vehicles to pull over, and it turns out that our bus had tinted windows without the proper permit which would require us to drive to the police station to pay the fine which would take at least a half hour.  This was our last day of the VBS campaign and we were in route to our destination with a bus full of people and balloon animals which we had made for the kids. We were already a bit behind schedule and the last thing we needed was a detour to the police station.  Rev. Kim’s wife got out of the bus to talk to the officers and we all stayed in the bus to pray that the higher official would allow us to go to our site and deal with the fine at a later time.  I was in the back of the bus with Pastor Matt and Rebecca, so we got together and prayed for that very thing.  A few moments later Edwin, our amazing driver, and Mrs. Kim climbed back on the bus. Rebecca looked at me with a “thumbs up” and said, “The power of prayer!”  I looked to the front of the bus and saw that the officer also got on the bus.  My interpretation was that this officer was to escort us to the station to make sure we pay the fine, therefore delaying us even more.  I looked at Rebecca with my thumb pointed down, with a pouty face, and said “Well that didn’t work did it.”  Matt had gone up to check on the amount of the fine and to offer to pay it.  He came back laughing and told us that the officer had decided to escort us to our site, to avoid any other incidents with police and that he and Edwin would deal with the fine during our VBS program.  WHAT?!  I immediately looked at Rebecca, never having felt so guilty, broken, pessimistic, disappointed in my life.  I had just doubted God, and the power of prayer and His ability and desire to care for His servants.  In our time of prayer, God cleared our path to get to our destination, which turned out to be a brand new location for the ministry.  We found out later that because of our program and the attendance, a new church will likely be started in that town.  No wonder Satan tried to place obstacles in our path.  What an amazing, convicting, and eye-opening experience!

Now I need to change gears a little to share with you what we experienced this morning at church. First off, these people know how to worship the Lord!  We definitely came here to teach people about God, but I feel that the people here have taught me a lot as well.  Their music is so uplifting, and even when we don’t understand everything in a song it just feels amazing to be a part of that worship.  Martha, the worship leader gave Josh one of their CD’s so I’m sure we will be sharing some of the music with the church when we get back.  Pastor Matt gave the message on Hebrews 12:1-2, pointing out the importance of casting off all sin that hinders us so that we may serve God and run the race of this life properly in order to meet Jesus at the finish line.  It was an amazing message as we are here to do God’s work and we cannot do that successfully until we cleanse ourselves and give our complete lives to Christ.

So much on this trip has brought me back to the concept of the power of prayer. At the beginning of this trip, I was feeling a bit discouraged that our schedule here wasn’t filled with enough measurable ministry and that we weren’t making an impact.  A couple of us had a very deep conversation about this with Pastor Matt and Krista and they told us to look for all those indirect ways and little things that can be a chance for us to serve.  Prayer is ministry that never has to cease and that can be performed no matter when or where you are.  After being a sole service trip to Nicaragua, I have struggled with the indirect, spiritual and emotion support we are giving these people opposed to leaving a tangible building or something similar upon our departure.  I have wondered about the effect prayer has, but its power has become more clear every day.  Seeing the smiles of the kids, the pastors, the parents, and other people from the towns have been so uplifting.  The conversations I’ve been able to create have been amazing!  The people we are serving have so little, and although we give them some food and some little gifts which they enjoy, we are really here to give them love and the knowledge of God – a gift that will last forever!

Rachel Hartong