Machu Picchu is surrounded by beautiful and thick
jungle. Walking on the trail to the Sun
Gate, we had a great view of it the entire time! Right on the side of the trail
is pretty much a straight drop into the jungle which enticed me to throw a rock
down there. For some reason, I have a fixation on throwing things from high
places. So I grabbed a handful of rocks and threw them as far as I could! I
didn’t hear them hit the ground but it was still satisfying.
Kari Nelson
Thursday, July 12, 2012
Brenna Mahn - Day 11
On our first day in Cusco we went on a city tour and we met
a German family in our tour group. On the bus the two sons were sitting behind
me and I started talking to them and the elder one asked what we were doing in
Peru, so I told him about our mission trip. Then his parents started asking me
questions about it and right when I thought I’d get overwhelmed by their hard
questions, Kyu joined the conversation. They asked a lot of questions about
what we had to offer these people, and about why our religion was any better
than the natives’ religion and such. I’m sure we didn’t convert them but we
certainly got them thinking and possibly planted a seed that might someday
grow, so it was pretty awesome.
Brenna Mahn
Brenna Mahn
Matthias Otto - Day 11
To all those back home in Mount Vernon or other locations from where you might be checking in from in order to get your latest update or Step:Peru fix, our apologies for the last two days of "radio silence". Unfortunately, we stayed at a hostel in Cuzco that did not provide any internet access and were limited to a few minutes at lunch on Monday and about an hour at a coffee shop on Tuesday night, both of which were used to write a few e-mails and send a few Facebook entries on our STEP:PERU group page and neither of which were conducive to writing any personal entries by our student team members. We intend and hope to remedy this tonight with several shorter posts from the teens.
Currently, many of them are recovering from their most recent adventure, our exciting trip to the Incan city of Machu Picchu. I will not go into any details, as I am hoping that the students will take time to do that in their posts tonight, but instead, would like share one of the many blessings that I have been able to enjoy, as I have watched God do some wonderful things in the lives of these students during our time over breakfast.
Every morning, other than on our trip to Machu Picchu, our team has enjoyed a time together in the Word over hardboiled eggs, drinkable yogurt, fruit, corn flakes, rolls, coffee, etc. I spent some time before the trip picking out passages that I thought might be applicable to the students during various stages of our trip. However, I never imagined that God would use them in such a pointed way to encourage, challenge and convict us. The passages chosen included the following veses in order of time read:
Pastor Matt
Currently, many of them are recovering from their most recent adventure, our exciting trip to the Incan city of Machu Picchu. I will not go into any details, as I am hoping that the students will take time to do that in their posts tonight, but instead, would like share one of the many blessings that I have been able to enjoy, as I have watched God do some wonderful things in the lives of these students during our time over breakfast.
Every morning, other than on our trip to Machu Picchu, our team has enjoyed a time together in the Word over hardboiled eggs, drinkable yogurt, fruit, corn flakes, rolls, coffee, etc. I spent some time before the trip picking out passages that I thought might be applicable to the students during various stages of our trip. However, I never imagined that God would use them in such a pointed way to encourage, challenge and convict us. The passages chosen included the following veses in order of time read:
- Monday - Psalm 27:1; Romans 1:16-17
- Tuesday - Matthew 25::31-46
- Wednesday - Hebrews 4:14-16; Jeremiah 33:3
- Thursday - Colossians 3:12-17
- Friday - Isaiah 40:27-31
- Saturday - Matthew 9:35-38
- Sunday - Hebrews 12:1-2
- Monday - Philippians 4:4-7
- Tuesday - Habakkuk 3:19
Pastor Matt
Sunday, July 8, 2012
Jacob Miller - Day 8
An unofficial motto of our mission trip to Peru has been, “It’s not about me”. Over the last week I have learned the importance of this phrase. We can only be the true servants God wants us to be when we step outside ourselves and do hard things in faith for God. I’ve personally struggled with focusing on my own issues and concerns, and being a selfish person in general. However, through this mission trip, I’ve seen that the more I surrender to my petty issues to God, the more I can be used by Him.
Last night during our final VBS ministry, I realized how far I had come in just one week, and all the credit for that goes to God. After dancing around with a little girl who spoke no English, I realized how much I was enjoying it, and that can only be of God. I remember the first night, standing terrified of interacting with these little kids who spoke no English, knowing that I had a working Spanish vocabulary of eight words. But God pushed me to try to get out of my comfort zone and stop focusing on my own fears. With His help I learned ways to interact with the kids without using words; through high-fives, handshakes, rock-paper-scissors, and sometimes dancing. Last night, dancing with a little girl from Peru, something I would never do out of my own will, I got a glimpse at the joy of living a life freed from myself, and for Someone else.
Jacob Miller
Last night during our final VBS ministry, I realized how far I had come in just one week, and all the credit for that goes to God. After dancing around with a little girl who spoke no English, I realized how much I was enjoying it, and that can only be of God. I remember the first night, standing terrified of interacting with these little kids who spoke no English, knowing that I had a working Spanish vocabulary of eight words. But God pushed me to try to get out of my comfort zone and stop focusing on my own fears. With His help I learned ways to interact with the kids without using words; through high-fives, handshakes, rock-paper-scissors, and sometimes dancing. Last night, dancing with a little girl from Peru, something I would never do out of my own will, I got a glimpse at the joy of living a life freed from myself, and for Someone else.
Jacob Miller
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.
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
Saturday, July 7, 2012
Andria Nelson - Day 7
Good morning of day 7 in Peru! Today we are recording ourskit that we have been using to share the story of Daniel in the Lion’s Den with children in the Lima area. It is a bit scary being in front of the camera, but it is totally worth doing. Even if this helps lead even one person to Christ it will be worth it! What isa little stage fright compared to someone being lead to open the word, right?
After we eat lunch at the Kim’s house later, we will get onthe bus and make our way to the place where we will be ministering. During thebus ride we’re going to make some balloon animals for the kiddies! I hope todaywill be as fruitful if not more as the others. I can’t wait to see what Godwill have in store for us today!
AndriaKrista Otto - Day 7
We are back in the recording studio today at the AMED
ministry. AMED is a ministry that the
Kims work with to produce VBS and Sunday school material for Spanish speaking children. While the Kims were working in the
shantytowns, like the ones we have been ministering in, they discovered that
the church workers lacked the material to help them teach the children. Through the past 11 years, the AMED ministry
has really grown. They have their own
office and studio where they can record music, film videos for the motions to go along with
the music, and create animation and drama.
They do all this with four full time employees! They have an administrator, graphic designer,
sound technician and secretary. They
also have many volunteers to help! Most recently, some of these volunteers have been working
to redesigning their website. After four long
months of hard work, the website went live yesterday and it was so fun to be
here to celebrate with them. The website
has so many great features. An example of some things they offer are bible
stories, music with motions, advertisements for your event, banners, and decoration
ideas. These are available for the church leaders to use with a simple click of the mouse.
The most amazing part is that they provide all this valuable information
and resources for free on their website!
I am truly amazed how God is
using this ministry and humbled that they would like for us to participate in
recording our VBS songs and Bible story.
It’s amazing to think how we have such an abundance of teaching
resources in the US and yet there is such a need for them here. I wish I had better skills to offer
them. It’s amazing to think that it’s
difficult to make a name for yourself in the US in production, sound, and writing curriculum,
yet if you have those skills you could use them now to create materials to
share the gospel with millions of children around the world as the Kims and their ministry is doing!
This afternoon we went to another shantytown to minister to
the kids. It was the first time that the
Kims had been brought a mission team there.
What a great time we had again. Near the end of our time, I was
approached by two ladies. One lady works
for Compassion International. I hear so
much about this ministry each time I am at a concert or Christian event and it
was so interesting to actually meet someone who works with the kids instead of
just hearing about the kids. She has 200
children in that area that she works with that are sponsored children. Some of them were there at our meeting! Wow, again it was so neat to see these
children and be encouraged how their life is different because of
Compassion. The other lady I met is
actually a missionary with her husband and they work mainly with children’s
ministry. She really enjoyed our VBS
time with the children so much and wished that we could come back again. She talked with Pastor Kim after our
conversation and together they discussed her desire to have help starting a
church farther up the hill into the poorer portion of the shantytown. It’s exciting and humbling to think it’s possible
a new church plant will start because of our ministry today.
Krista
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