Oh come! Come and delight yourself in the Lord.
And He will give you the petitions of your heart.
Trust only in Him, and He will give to you.
Wait only on Him, and He will do it.
In just a few hours, I'll be on a plane headed back to Peru for the summer, and I absolutely cannot wait. Hilda, my pastor's wife from last summer, called me today from Lima and we had an AMAZING 13 minute conversation (in Spanish! GREAT practice, getting back in the habit of speaking and listening) about everything from the kids in Yungay to the presidential elections coming up in Peru and she told me that she was so excited that tomorrow I would be on my way to being Peruvian again. :)
Ahhh.... being Peruvian again. I'm pretty sure that's been "the petition of my heart" this year. Somewhere in the background behind all the other crazy busy-ness I was caught up in, there has always been this small but significant part of my heart left there in Peru. And by the grace of God, I get to go back. I have this crazy mix of confidence and nervous anticipation about returning for two months this summer. I've experienced the culture. I know more what to expect from food and weather and travel. I hope enough of my Spanish will return to me to get by, and I also know our AMAZING translator for the summer and trust her immensely. But I'm also in a completely new place - in a different town in Peru AND in a different place in life. I have so many distractions - worries about student teaching and housing for next year, my sister's expecting twins in November, my two roommates moving to Africa for two years, and other crazy wonderful plans for the future... But God has also changed me so much since last summer. He has taught me how His guidance and His plans are so much more than I could ever ask or imagine. I have learned to trust Him - to remember that He goes before me... preparing the way... This summer He has placed me in a team of girls whom I can't wait to meet and serve and share life with. And He has placed us in Recuay - a town about two hours away from where I served last summer - a place where His Spirit is already moving, already preparing hearts, already drawing people to Himself. He's called us - Lynnlee, Olivia, Karen, Jordan, Mary Elizabeth, Noemi, and me - to go. To share the Word. To give a reason for the HOPE that we have in Christ. To spread the Gospel of PEACE. To MAKE DISCIPLES.
So we need your prayers... That we would first and foremost delight ourselves in the Lord. That we would allow His grace to amaze us day by day. That we would fall madly in love with the Creator of the universe and the Author of our salvation. That we would seek to KNOW HIM.
And then, that out of love we would be obedient to His voice. That we would go where He leads us. Radically abandoned to His will. Displaying His love through our unity.
And pray for the people of Peru. That their hearts would be drawn to the Lord. That His Spirit would do the work. That as we scatter seeds of His Gospel and His Word, that some would fall on fertile souls that are ready to hear and put their trust in Christ alone for salvation. That they would come and delight themselves in the Lord, and He will give them the desires of their hearts.
Trusting in Him... Waiting on Him...
Where He goes, we will follow...
