Las Estrellas

Cool air breeze, dark night sky, stars sparkling, and the Holy Spirit as I walk down a road in a part of town called Alto Libertad. I couldn't have asked for a better night.

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Now that the "honeymoon period" is over, I am no longer just in spanish school and a tourist. Now I am in Bible classes with homework....yes, back to homework! Usually we have to read about 80 pages a week in spanish and create a power point and presentation on our book/chapter/topic. So I have been a little grouchy and especially missing home the past two weeks or so. But tonight was just what I needed!

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Fransisca, my Peruvian counterpart, and I left our "house" to go to our cell group (aka, small group). We got to the neighborhood and went to a house where we invited some ladies last week who came to the Bible study. But they were not there this week. So we went to the house where we hold our cell group and we got our friend Julia who is the most adorable little viejita (old lady)! She is short, skinny, wrinkled, wears an apron, her pantyhose are always baggy and she has the cutest voice ever. Hermana Julia walked with us to the house of her grandchildren to invite them to the cell group. Cati, her oldest granddaughter couldn't come because she has a test tomorrow but Sergio, her 14 year old grandson said he would come. This just astonishes me! (Or just for you mom....it fathoms me!) In North America I couldn't imagine a 14 year old boy coming to a Bible study with his grandma and some strange missionary girls at his aunts house. But thanks to God, he did come! And next Wednesday is his 15th birthday so we are planning a birthday party so he has to come again next week!

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We had our Bible study and Fransisca talked about why we call these groups cell groups, or in spanish: celulas. And she talked about how a cell in our body is so tiny but is powerful as it works with all the other cells to contribute to the function of the entire body just like in the church.

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So after singing, praying and reading The Word of God together in our humble meeting place. Our hostess brought out a banana cake/bread she made in her solar oven and shared with everyone. And the ladies in our group remembered that I don't take sugar in my tea or drink juice. So Julia prepared a special glass of tea without sugar for me! As we were eating our cake I was thinking about some of the scripture we read during our study, about breaking bread together. How wonderful to break bread together in the name of Christ with a young man who we can anticipate will become a disciple, a lady who has many years behind her, a four year old girl and her mother. Three generations of this family are learning about how to have a relationship with our Creator for the first time!

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God reminded me tonight why I am here and that He's going to use me to reach these Peruvians. He is giving me a heart for these people and allowing me to see them through His eyes.