New Faces
This week has been full of new people. Tracie's family has come to visit for a little over a week; three brothers, a sister-in-law, and a new niece. It's fun to have a house full of people...although, I'm not really a huge fan of sharing a bathroom with so many other people. Asà es la vida, I suppose. It's nice to see Tracie so happy. It's been a while since she's been able to hang out with her brothers, and I can understand how she could miss that so much. Her relationship with her brothers reminds me of mine with mine. It's nice to think of being back home in a couple months with my own family and friends.
But meanwhile, there are so many new faces around here, and it's wonderful! Not just the family, either. We met so many people while the Chilean team was here, while we were doing presentations in plazas and things like that. And some of those people have continued to come to our house for Bible studies and prayer meetings. It has been really neat to meet all these new people and see them grab on to the hope that Jesus has to offer them. I wish I had pictures, so that you could put some faces with names...but I don't yet...so...get over it, I guess.
Well, first of all, it's been so awesome to see Cesar growing so much. He has been inviting friends left and right. He and his friend, Jose (who you can see helping with the puppets in a picture a couple posts ago) have been coming faithfully to every meeting we have during the week; Bible study on Sunday night, prayer meeting on Wednesday night, youth meeting on Friday night...they even show up at the house unexpectedly during the week just to hang out with us and talk a little. And they have been inviting their friends from school. Cesar has brought his new girlfriend, Ivette, with him a few times, and tonight, she showed up on her own for our Bible study! I think that is so cool.
Another guy that we met in Plaza San Pedro has been coming over to talk a lot too. His name is Jhon (that's how they spell John here). He's a student at the university and it seems like he really wants to know more about how to be a Christian. Last week, he came to the Sunday night study...then he showed up randomly on Monday night on his way to class, and asked if we had a Bible that he could read. Then he came over again on Thursday to talk about the things he had been reading. It was so neat to see the way that he was taking the things Ricky was saying to him and really pondering them. And neat to see his desire for understanding.
It's amazing the things I take for granted, having grown up in a church, learning week after week since I was a baby, the stories and concepts in the Bible. I have been taught about the trinity, for example, since before I can even remember. I know that the trinity is three in one. God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. I get it, and I trust it, and I believe in it. Why? Because I've heard it over and over and over again, to the point where it's really not that amazing to me...that's kind of sad.
But to see Jhon's reaction to this new knowledge...wow...there was awe in his face. Three times, he asked Ricky to explain it again, and when he came to an understanding of it, all he said was, "wow." It was so cool! Why do I take that knowledge for granted? Why am I not in awe of it like that? And what else, besides the trinity, have I lost a respect for? What else is there that lacks that awesome wonder for me? Seeing his example, his search for truth, and his wonder at the truth that he is finding is inspiring to me. I want to be that way! I want to be hungry for truth! I mean really hungry for it. And God is faithful. I have been asking Him to give me the desire to really seek deeply His truth...and He is giving me that hunger that I see in Jhon. God is so good.
Thank you for your prayers. Thank you for supporting me, for supporting the ministry in Cuzco, and in so doing, for being God's witnesses "in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth," as God has called you to be. Please continue praying for the people we have been able to develop friendships with in the last couple weeks; that those friendships will grow in Christ.
But meanwhile, there are so many new faces around here, and it's wonderful! Not just the family, either. We met so many people while the Chilean team was here, while we were doing presentations in plazas and things like that. And some of those people have continued to come to our house for Bible studies and prayer meetings. It has been really neat to meet all these new people and see them grab on to the hope that Jesus has to offer them. I wish I had pictures, so that you could put some faces with names...but I don't yet...so...get over it, I guess.
Well, first of all, it's been so awesome to see Cesar growing so much. He has been inviting friends left and right. He and his friend, Jose (who you can see helping with the puppets in a picture a couple posts ago) have been coming faithfully to every meeting we have during the week; Bible study on Sunday night, prayer meeting on Wednesday night, youth meeting on Friday night...they even show up at the house unexpectedly during the week just to hang out with us and talk a little. And they have been inviting their friends from school. Cesar has brought his new girlfriend, Ivette, with him a few times, and tonight, she showed up on her own for our Bible study! I think that is so cool.
Another guy that we met in Plaza San Pedro has been coming over to talk a lot too. His name is Jhon (that's how they spell John here). He's a student at the university and it seems like he really wants to know more about how to be a Christian. Last week, he came to the Sunday night study...then he showed up randomly on Monday night on his way to class, and asked if we had a Bible that he could read. Then he came over again on Thursday to talk about the things he had been reading. It was so neat to see the way that he was taking the things Ricky was saying to him and really pondering them. And neat to see his desire for understanding.
It's amazing the things I take for granted, having grown up in a church, learning week after week since I was a baby, the stories and concepts in the Bible. I have been taught about the trinity, for example, since before I can even remember. I know that the trinity is three in one. God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. I get it, and I trust it, and I believe in it. Why? Because I've heard it over and over and over again, to the point where it's really not that amazing to me...that's kind of sad.
But to see Jhon's reaction to this new knowledge...wow...there was awe in his face. Three times, he asked Ricky to explain it again, and when he came to an understanding of it, all he said was, "wow." It was so cool! Why do I take that knowledge for granted? Why am I not in awe of it like that? And what else, besides the trinity, have I lost a respect for? What else is there that lacks that awesome wonder for me? Seeing his example, his search for truth, and his wonder at the truth that he is finding is inspiring to me. I want to be that way! I want to be hungry for truth! I mean really hungry for it. And God is faithful. I have been asking Him to give me the desire to really seek deeply His truth...and He is giving me that hunger that I see in Jhon. God is so good.
Thank you for your prayers. Thank you for supporting me, for supporting the ministry in Cuzco, and in so doing, for being God's witnesses "in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth," as God has called you to be. Please continue praying for the people we have been able to develop friendships with in the last couple weeks; that those friendships will grow in Christ.
posted by Amy at 7:42 PM
1 Comments:
When you see someone else become a Christian, like you can see the beauty of your own faith in their eyes. It's euphroic
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