Crossed Paths

With hopes and prayers of starting a local body of believers here in Recuay, Pastor Cristian from the Bible Baptist Church in Huaraz joined us here on Friday night to have a Bible study... And even though we invited everyone we met and of course they all responded, ¨Sure! We´ll be there!¨ ... no one showed up except for five of our most faithful kids from Bible club. So, never give up! We prayer-walked down the street to the plaza, handing out tracts and inviting everyone we saw to meet us in the plaza in just a few minutes... and no one showed up. So. We saw some people waiting on a combi or a taxi and invited them to come as we shared our stories and the story of Christ. And lo and behold - they came.

Eva and Gregorio are two Peruvians, native to the jungle, who just happened to be in the area until October. They came and listened as we shared the story of Christ and His love in our lives, but how sinful and separated we are from God. As they listened, Eva said she knew that God allows peoples´ paths to cross for a purpose, and she knew this was exactly what she needed to hear.

Crossed paths for the purpose of the Cross.

Yesterday for the Fourth of July, we gringas went to Huaraz, the capital of the area, for a fiesta with several other Americans - and one British girl who didn´t seem to mind we were celebrating our independence from her country. :) It was a beautiful reunion of brothers and sisters from around the world, from different denominations, all united in Peru for the cause of Christ. The stories they shared encouraged us and challenged us to continue on steadfast. They shared how the Lord called them to Peru, how the Lord provided all they needed, and how He is continuing to work in their lives.

Crossed paths for the purpose of the Cross.

And in God´s divine sovereignty and grace, as we were walking in Huaraz, we met Joel, my pastor from Yungay, who just happened to be at the same place at the same time! He asked how the work was going in Recuay, and we shared how discouraging it can be at times to see the lack of interest in adults here... He asked about our work with children, and we were thrilled to share all the times kids run up to us, asking us to sing songs about God or tell stories about Jesus... and he said, ¨Why don´t you connect with adults THROUGH these kids? Hang out with their families. Get to know them. Work alongside them. Share life with them since you´re already sharing life with their kids.¨ Why have we not thought of this before??

Crossed paths for the purpose of the Cross.

When we got home from Huaraz, we went next door to a store to buy some bread, and as soon as we step out of our door, we meet up with Nelly and Marisol - two sisters we met on our first day here. Talk about crossed paths for a purpose! We walked with the girls to the store talking about life... and now praying for opportunities to reach out to their parents.

So pray with us... that God would continue to cross our paths with people for His kingdom´s sake... and that we would take notice when He does. Less than one month left. Continue praying that we would make the MOST of the time we have. There´s also a group from South Carolina coming at the end of July right before we leave to teach parenting classes to the families here in Recuay. Pray that THIS will give us even more motivation to get to know the parents of these kids that have stolen our hearts.