I don’t know about you all, but I can not believe that we are nearly halfway through November already!!! This year has gone by extremely fast! While I spent the first half of the year deep in recovery, the second half has been more about returning to activities that I have not been able to do in more than 3 years. I celebrate that victory with all of you and thank you for your continued prayers for my healing and for our family.
This month we celebrate Thanksgiving, my favorite holiday because we can slow down for just a day or two and reflect on being grateful. Even if you have had a really hard year like many I know, there is still an opportunity to be grateful. Personally, I am grateful for so many things. Above all, I am grateful that I get to live my life each day knowing that God is leading me. That I am not alone even on the hardest of days. I am grateful that He has put a calling in my heart that has given me purpose in life and He has put me in a family in Peru that has that same calling. I am grateful that He has provided for every single need that I have and that He will continue to provide even when I don’t see how.
October for us was a very busy month and so much to be grateful for. We celebrated our 2nd annual Disability Awareness Sunday on the second Sunday in October. Our theme this year, based in 1 Corinthians 12:22-27 “Created with Purpose” and our message was that everyone is created by God and have purpose given by God. In Kids church we celebrated the many God given talents that our kiddos have by having a talent show! It was SO fun to see some of our kiddos with special needs showing off their talents to all of the kids in the service! We had musicians, artists, dancers, and even a stilt walker! Our message was simple but profound. It is our desire that we continue to make disability awareness, acceptance and belonging part of our church culture. We shared the story of a young lady named Viviana who developed MS as a teen. Her story is moving and inspiring. She has an attitude of gratitude that oozes from her, despite her current physical condition. It is humbling and challenging to me personally to see life and live life with a similar attitude like Viviana. Please take the time to watch her testimony that is dubbed in English for you to hear her heart.
Right after this Sunday, we welcomed a mission team from Free Wheelchair Mission to Peru. Teams from FWM have a special place in my heart because I came to Peru for the first time on a short term mission team with FWM just like theirs. It was an honor and a privilege to help host this team along with Clever and our amazing team at CDV. The week consisted of visiting people who were waiting for the gift of mobility in their homes and then we closed the week by having a large wheelchair distribution giving out 37 wheelchairs in a group setting. I want to share the story of one of the people who received a wheelchair during that week. A man whose story is that of a true story of eternal healing despite his current situation.
His name is Javier. Over 20 years ago, he fell off of a 3 story building after touching a live wire during a construction job. He broke his neck in the fall and ended up with a spinal cord injury that left him without the use of his legs, trunk and most of the movement in his hands. He told us his life was hard and he didn’t want to live. He wife and 3 yr old son took care of him as much as they could. However in the pandemic, his wife left him and took their son with her. He was all alone, and depressed. It was in that lowest moment that he shared that he heard a message from God online. It said, “if you have nothing to live for, live for me.” In that moment Javier received Jesus in his heart. He said that things began to change. He started to do things for himself that he didn’t think he could do. He began cooking with adapted equipment and helping as much as he could. His father at that time was his primary caregiver. Since then, Javier’s son has returned to live with him, and so has his niece. He dreams of studying something that could help him with income . His outlook on life is positive despite his current conditions. His current wheelchair was falling apart. He said that he had been praying for provision for a new wheelchair and then we showed up. We are so grateful to have been able to be a part of the FWM team to have been able to take him this new wheelchair and continue to give him the gift of mobility.
We closed out the month welcoming 2 kids who are deaf into the kids ministry with interpretation for them. This was a big feat since our team is very small who is able to interpret in sign language and it requires a lot of preparation apart from the preparation they already do to interpret the church service for adults. It has been so amazing to see how the kids in the kids ministry are eager to learn how to communicate with these kids and are welcoming them into the service. In Peru there are not many opportunities for the deaf community to attend a church where there is sign language interpretation. We are grateful for this community of volunteers who are making the extra effort to include these children into the church with open arms.
On a personal level I got to travel to Florida to connect with a few churches, and then go to South Carolina to celebrate my niece Cassidy and her new husband Quinton! Back home in Peru, I came back to a birthday celebration for our 9 year old Kaleb who insisted on a American Football themed birthday party. Fun was had by all!!!
While we have SO MUCH to be grateful for, we do have some pretty significant prayer requests and we ask you to join us in prayer for the following things.
Upon my return from the US, we got word from our landlord that they are selling the apartment and will not be renewing our contract. This is the 3rd apartment in 5 years that we have moved into and had this happen. While it is not the end of the world, it is a tremendous stress on our family emotionally, financially, and physically. Finding an apartment here is a bit like finding a needle in a haystack. We know that God will provide for us but we ask for specific prayer for a great place to live within our budget and in the area we want to live in so that getting Kaleb to school is not difficult each day.
Pray specifically for the health of our family overall.
Pray for more volunteers/leaders for our ministry. We are growing, however the amount of leaders and volunteers always tends to wean towards the end of the year which makes extra work for us.
Pray for provision for all our needs as end of the year also means an increase in prices for the upcoming year….medical insurance, school tuition, rent etc……
Pray for us to be able to rest over the holidays -despite having to move so that we can be refreshed for the upcoming year.
Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for You.
1 Thessalonians 5:18
As you all know, as a missionary family, we rely on the generosity of others to cover all of our living expenses to be able to do what we get to do here. We thank you for those who have come alongside us providing for us. We ask that if you know of anyone who might be interested in partnering with what we get to do here -as the hands and feet of Jesus, please put us in contact with them. If you would like to give to our mission, please click on the link below. We thank you from the bottom of our heart and thank you for believing in the mission that God has put us on to serve vulnerable people in Peru in orphanhood and with disabilities. May God continue to bless you all and fill your hearts with gratitude in every situation.