Creative Chronicles

Alright, so here´s a little run-down of the stuff we got to do and experience this past week.

Saturday night started us off with the arrival of our friends from the Grove back in good old Cookevegas. Then Sunday morning when the CMT rolled into town, things really started to take off. After a jam-packed morning Bible study and some time for the wearied traveling team of artistic gospel spreaders to grab some shut-eye, the whole crew of gringos set out for the orphanage to spread some good news to our good friends on the other side of town. These kids not only soaked up the message spread like a dry sponge in the ocean, but there were even a few who when invitation was made, raised their hands saying they wanted to accept the free gift that God had offered them through the death and resurrection of His son, Jesus Christ. Which gave us a great oppurtunity to see people coming with "faith like a child." Plus even for those who may not have understood what exactly was going on, seeds were planted that now just need some time to water, and some love to fertilize. Plus, after we had a chance to share the gospel, all of us just kind of hung out with the kids and gave them some good old fashioned loving. I mean, if you can make someones day just by holding their hand, or giving them a hug, or holding them for a little while, do it. Take my word for it. There's no reward like seeing the smile on a kids face when you just let them ride around on your shoulders for a few minutes, or let them sit in your lap and just be close to you. Even if they may not smell good, or you may get snot all over you. The end product is better than any silver or gold you can ever get. OK, enough of that.

Now on Monday, we had some good College time, an arrival, and some departures. At 8 o'clock in the morning, we were invited to come to the local Technological college and present the gospel to the students during one of their in-between class breaks. After we introduced ourselves and made our presence even more known, the CMT presented the gospel through song, the LifeHouse skit, and also through some direct sharing from Tommy Leach, a Spanish teacher from Cleveland, TN. Several of the young adults there accepted the offer made to them during the invitation, and we even got the chance to invite several of them to a Bible study with us. After a short time of just hanging out with the few students who either didn't have class or didn't go to class as is most likely, we headed back to town to grab some grub. Then, due to news floating around that there were going to be local and nation-wide strikes on Tuesday and Wednesday, we had to say goodbye to our good friends Walt, Tammy, Greg, and Edinson from the grove and also to Beth and Elsa from the CMT a little earlier than we had hoped. However, we were surprised that afternoon by the arrival of a straggling CMTer, Derek, who had visited the nearby village of MarcoBamba where he had served two years ago. During his original stay in MarcoBamba, Derek helped their struggling football(soccer) team to actually win the regional championship. However, this time, he was only able to stay for a few days, and then, since the local strike had already started and all of the public transportation was down in the area, Derek made his trek to Coracora by faith by walking, riding a motorcycle and a donkey, hitching a ride in a mining truck, acting as a tarp over a truck full of firewood, doing favors, and even saving a motorcycle driver who had driven off of a cliff.

The next morning broke to an eerie silence as the strike was in full-blown action. The stores, restaraunts and businesses were all closed and the streets were mostly deserted except for the occasional parade of strikers chanting their demands to the Peruvian President, Alan Garcia. Even after some ominous advice to stay inside due to possible danger, we decided to go ahead with our pre-arranged plans of letting the CMT present the gospel in the two biggest plazas in town. Which turned out to be a great decision since there was no school and most people were out of work, meaning they were all able to stay and listen to the message that we had to offer them. Which, of course lead to multiple people of nearly every age group making decisions for the Lord. We were even able to invite our good friend, Catya and a friend who we had talked to on one of our first days in Coracora, Reuben to our nightly John Bible studies that we have been having.

Wednesday woke to another quiet day of striking, which rendered the CMT unable to meet their desired departure date. So, with a free day, everyone from the CMT except for Nick, who was suffering from the bicicleta, decided to make the short hike over to the Hot Springs for a nice chance to get some fresh air and some exercise. Since I was then nursing a soar throat, I decided to hang back with Nick who didn't exactly know where anything was in the city. Then, after an hour or so Kat and Jodi showed back up at the hostal all smiles after holding some "baby pterodactyls" , as Kat claimed, which were really just some chicks of some large bird of prey like some kind of falcon or hawk. Then, after another few hours, the rest of the crew meandered back into town and after a little while of rest, we all headed back to the orphanage for some more kid-loving time. Then, as we were heading out we received news from a bus driver we passed that all of the obstructions and danger eminating from the strike would pass that night at midnight.

Thus, Thursday was spent saying goodbye to the rest of our visiting friends. After a morning of fending for ourselves and segregated male and female lunches, we meandered around the city for a little while enjoying the last few hours we would have with these friends until End of Summer Debrief. Then at 3 pm we got our hugs, prayed for a safe journey, and waved good-bye as the CMT made their way to the next village on their schedule. We then spent the afternoon falling back into our regular old Coracora schedule and praying for one another to keep pace with the race we had set before us. I hope you will pray for us, too, as we spend our final two weeks in service here in the heart of the Andes. Pray that we will not grow lazy, but instead work harder than ever to spread the gospel to the people here in this wonderful town.