The Georges in Peru

Mary Beth has been taking advantage of the fact that she had surgery and can run easily for the first time in her life by running frequently.  She even started a running club with the women from our church.  They usually run 2 km.  Pray for other women to join them as an opportunity to get to know more people here. 

It's been nearly a week of my wife doting on me.  I've been doing my best to not lift over 10 pounds as directed by my cardiologist.  I've been feeling better and better as well.  Yesterday, I felt 100% normal 99% of the time.  We drove from Crete, NE to Fargo, ND, with a stop at my childhood home along the way.  We arrived in Manitoba today and we'll be here a week before heading back to Peru.  Thanks to all who prayed for my surgery to go well!

We’ve lived a short time here in La Punta and as some of the only white-skinned people in town we kind of stick out which gets small town folks curious and wondering who we are.  It’s been interesting to see/hear about people’s first impressions:

Who do people think we are?  Wealthy, New, Organ harvesters, Druggies, Archeologists, Miners, Friends, Athletes, English Speakers… 

Being church planters in a new area has helped us relate better to  believers in the first church and even to Jesus.  Take Mark’s account for example.  He says:

“Jesus went out, along with His disciples, to the villages of Caesarea Philippi; and on the way He questioned His disciples, saying to them, “Who do people say that I am?” 28 They told Him, saying, “John the Baptist; and others say Elijah; and others, one of the prophets.” 29 And He continued questioning them: “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered and *said to Him, “You are the Christ.” Mark 8:27-30

Everyone was curious about who Jesus was, but few really knew the truth.  They had to spend time with him to figure it out.  That’s how it is when we share the gospel too.  It’s easy to present people with a first impression of Jesus Christ with a five-minute gospel presentation, but just because someone accepts Christ, doesn’t mean that they understand what they did or even that they are interested in being a part of a body of believers.  Walking with Christ is a journey, as well as a decision. The challenge we have before us is to bring people into the journey of walking with Christ.

Today we signed the papers for our new home!

Tuesday we decided to rent a house while we wait for the house we'd like to buy to get its paperwork updated.  A contact we made when we went to La Punta two weeks ago has a house to rent, so we took a YouTube video tour and told her we'd take it! (see below)

Wednesday morning we woke up a bit before 6 am and went out looking for gas.  The gas station two blocks from our house had gas and there was no line, so we filled our tank and went back home.  That was easy!  

We thought Thursday would be a good time to move to La Punta, but they planned to do some major work on the plumbing of the house we were staying in on Wednesday, so we decided that since we had gas we might as well just go!  We packed our car the fullest I've ever packed it and we drove the 2.5-hour trip to La Punta!  It took over an hour to unload it!

Our rental house for the next month or two in La Punta

 

This is a recap of today's activities:  We got up and went for a 6-km run to the ocean and back.  At the beach we saw a couple of people working out, but no other runners.  On the way back I saw a van I recognized.  It was the MMI (Medical Ministries International) van and they were in La Punta distributing wheelchairs!  Shortly afterward we met the team of a dozen people and chatted a bit.  After breakfast and devotions, we went out looking for the wheelchair project.  We were told it was in the sports complex, but there are 4 or 5 in this small town.  After asking a few strangers where it was, it turned out to be in a tiny village about 1km outside of La Punta.  Luckily, we were on our bikes, so we could get there quickly.  While at the medical campaign we met some people from the mayor's office and when we got home, a pastor from a local church that we've been hoping to meet arrived at our door!  We had a great time talking to him and his family over lunch and talked about how we can help them and their church in the future.  They are having their church anniversary tomorrow night, so we're going to help with the preparations.  I then made arrangements to get internet in our house and we took these pictures before going to the fruit store to get a mango for supper.  While there, a man named Villaomar came in the door and said, "Were you the two people we saw running this morning?"  "Yes!  Were you the people working out on the beach?!"  "Yes!"  We're going to love living in a small town again!

The view of La Punta a short walk from our house

 

Blessings pour like refreshing rain from heaven.  

As we think back on our home assignment and our arrival here, we are so thankful.  We are thankful to the many people who hosted us for the night and took us out for meals.  We are thankful for my parents who gave us their ‘Country Cottage’ farm house to stay in during the three months we were in Manitoba and for Ron and Lynn Tanner who generously let us stay in their Omaha house during January and February.  We were so glad for a place to receive guests and make memories.

It’s good to be back in Peru again.  Besides the sunshine, birds singing and fresh air coming in through open windows and doors in a mosquito-less land, we’ve been enjoying walking to nearby stores which are laden with things we have missed while in Canada and the States like mangoes and Peruvian peanuts!  It was encouraging going to our old church on Sunday and feeling the enthusiasm during singing as well as seeing the good church attendance.  Our friends there are sad to see us go to the coast, but are looking forward to coming out for visits and supporting us in our ministry there.