As I write this up-date, I find myself locked in my house, trying to avoid the worldly effects of Carnaval! Typically, for this long weekend, I join my church along with other churches in going to camp or campamento as it is called here. This year, however, I decided not to go. It really wasn't a difficult decision to make initially since my church was planning to travel to a town which is about a 10 hour train ride from Santa Cruz. Due to the fact that I have to be back at school on Wednesday morning and many of them weren't returning until Tuesday night (arriving here Wednesday morning), I decided not to go. Then, they were unable to get train tickets for the whole group so they joined another church in going to a camp only a couple of hours from here. I toyed with the idea of going, but I had so many things that I had hoped to accomplish while here in my house, not to mention that after the busy week I had last week, I just really thought I could use the rest!
Carnaval in Santa Cruz...
The two biggest threats in being out and about during this time of the year are the drunks and the water balloons. I think people being drunk whether they're walking in the street or driving a car, needs no further explanation of the dangers that can occur. However, water balloons/squirt guns may seem to be an odd form of threat. Let me explain that after a couple of days of using water, it appears that people begin to get a bit bored and choose to be somewhat adventurous in the types of amunition that they are using. This means that water balloons begin to be filled with dirty water, car oil, paint, rocks, ice, etc., which obviously begins to pose a much larger threat. Therefore, most people advised that I could go about on Saturday and Sunday as I wished with some caution, but on Monday and Tuesday, I should plan to stay home. I don't need to be warned twice of such matters...so I have a stack of paperwork awaiting me, several books to read, and a pile of movies for when I need a bit of a break!
CIET board meeting...
You may remember that I asked for prayer concerning the CIET board meeting that we had last Tuesday night. Thank you so much for your prayers, I definitely felt them as God granted me the wisdom to understand some changes that the rest of the board wanted to put into place which I knew SAM wouldn't approve of at this time. He then gave me the strength to voice my concern in making that change. He also helped me to realize that in this male dominated culture, it is going to be very difficult if not impossible for two women to voice the concerns of SAM and have their concerns legitimately heard...in addition to the struggles that we have already been having. This primarily will pose a problem when we hold meetings in order to write the bylaws for CIET which have not yet been written. Therefore, I plan to talk to the SAM field leadership and request that they replace my position on the board for a MALE representative of the mission...at least for the meetings designed to write the bylaws. Please continue to pray for wisdom and strength as this is a battle not yet won.
Well, I think that's about it for this week! Not too many exciting things to share. More than anything, I would like to express my gratitude for all of your faithful support and constant prayers! It means so much to me to have your support in this way! Thank you!
Monday, February 23, 2009
Sunday, February 15, 2009
February 15, 2009
Happy Belated Valentine's Day to all of you! I hope you enjoyed the day celebrating with those you love! I had fun delivering a few "Valentines" this weekend, although it wasn't Valentine's Day here...it still was fun to spread a bit of joy!
As I write this up-date, it is actually Sunday night...typically I up-date my blog on Monday mornings since I don't have to go into school until late morning, however, the PreK teacher has dengue (a rather serious illness spread by mosquitoes...it has been running rampant in Bolivia for about the last month so I've known a lot of people to get very sick from the disease) and needed someone to substitute for her tomorrow. So, I'll be doing that until about noon then finishing up a couple of my own students, then I have basketball practice after school. Since tomorrow is Monday and the new semester has also started up in CIET, I'll be there teaching classes from about 7:15-8:30pm. As you can see, it will be a busy day so I thought I should go ahead and up-date my blog before going to bed tonight.
I will confess, this may be a rather short entry. Saturday night, there was a wedding at my church with the reception afterwards...typical Bolivian wedding...I got to get all dressed up...the reception included dinner at about 10:00pm or so plus cake sometime after that and loud music in between...no, I didn't catch the bouquet (much to the chagrin of several of my friends from church...hee hee)...I was taxi driver to an older couple (parents of the groom) and a friend of theirs so fortunately we left "early" at about midnight or so...but by the time I took them home and then got home myself, it was after 1:00am. Of course, I still had a few things that I wanted to take care of around the house, plus I was a little wired after the wedding, so it was about 3:00am before I went to bed. Needless to say, my Sunday afternoon nap wasn't quite enough to recover from that. All in all, the wedding was beautiful and I think everyone seemed to enjoy themselves.
Do you ever have one of those Sundays when you go to church and get the feeling that the pastor preached both sermons specifically for you? Well, today was one of those days for me. This morning he used the example of David and Goliath and how we all have giants that we face on a regular basis...he chose three giants specifically: loneliness, inferiority, and the battle to forgive ourselves for things of our past. All three of these are a struggle for me as I'm sure they are for many other people...but the first two are particular struggles for me on the mission field. The pastor used Paul as an example in helping us learn how we can combat these giants as David did Goliath. It was an excellent sermon...but one that's so hard for me to put into practice...it's much easier to hear something than it is to actually believe and live it out! This evening's sermon was from 1 Kings 19 (the first 7 verses) when God sent an angel to Elijah. Elijah was extremely depressed, wishing he were dead, so after falling asleep for some time (getting much needed rest), God sent an angel to him with food and water, then allowed him more rest, and sent him more food and water...giving him strength and encouragement when he needed it most. The part that struck me a great deal this evening, was that in the afternoon I toyed with the idea of staying home from church. I didn't need to play on the worship team so I had no specific role, I was tired, feeling discouraged, feeling lonely, etc. Basically, I didn't want to go. I decided to take a nap (knowing that was the root of my problem) and only set one alarm. When I'm really tired, that's not usually enough to wake me up. So, I said a little prayer...not always the best to make bets with God, but I said that if He really wanted me at church tonight, then he was going to have to wake me up with this ONE alarm. Of course...He did! He had quite the struggle to wake me up...several times I think He tried, until finally I remembered my promise and decided to get up. Levantate y come (Get up and eat)...the angel's words for Elijah and God's words for me today...Get up and be fed by my Word...let it encourage and rejuvenate you! Oh, and that it did!
The last thing I wanted to share with you is that on Tuesday night I have a CIET board meeting...you may remember a couple of weeks ago I shared how difficult that was for me so I would appreciate your prayers this week, particularly on Tuesday night...as well as in general...this will be a busy week and I expect that I'll be tired...which is often when my giants of loneliness and inferiority attack...pray that God will help me to defeat them with one stone in my sling! Thank you so much for your prayers and friendships! You are such a blessing to me!
As I write this up-date, it is actually Sunday night...typically I up-date my blog on Monday mornings since I don't have to go into school until late morning, however, the PreK teacher has dengue (a rather serious illness spread by mosquitoes...it has been running rampant in Bolivia for about the last month so I've known a lot of people to get very sick from the disease) and needed someone to substitute for her tomorrow. So, I'll be doing that until about noon then finishing up a couple of my own students, then I have basketball practice after school. Since tomorrow is Monday and the new semester has also started up in CIET, I'll be there teaching classes from about 7:15-8:30pm. As you can see, it will be a busy day so I thought I should go ahead and up-date my blog before going to bed tonight.
I will confess, this may be a rather short entry. Saturday night, there was a wedding at my church with the reception afterwards...typical Bolivian wedding...I got to get all dressed up...the reception included dinner at about 10:00pm or so plus cake sometime after that and loud music in between...no, I didn't catch the bouquet (much to the chagrin of several of my friends from church...hee hee)...I was taxi driver to an older couple (parents of the groom) and a friend of theirs so fortunately we left "early" at about midnight or so...but by the time I took them home and then got home myself, it was after 1:00am. Of course, I still had a few things that I wanted to take care of around the house, plus I was a little wired after the wedding, so it was about 3:00am before I went to bed. Needless to say, my Sunday afternoon nap wasn't quite enough to recover from that. All in all, the wedding was beautiful and I think everyone seemed to enjoy themselves.
Do you ever have one of those Sundays when you go to church and get the feeling that the pastor preached both sermons specifically for you? Well, today was one of those days for me. This morning he used the example of David and Goliath and how we all have giants that we face on a regular basis...he chose three giants specifically: loneliness, inferiority, and the battle to forgive ourselves for things of our past. All three of these are a struggle for me as I'm sure they are for many other people...but the first two are particular struggles for me on the mission field. The pastor used Paul as an example in helping us learn how we can combat these giants as David did Goliath. It was an excellent sermon...but one that's so hard for me to put into practice...it's much easier to hear something than it is to actually believe and live it out! This evening's sermon was from 1 Kings 19 (the first 7 verses) when God sent an angel to Elijah. Elijah was extremely depressed, wishing he were dead, so after falling asleep for some time (getting much needed rest), God sent an angel to him with food and water, then allowed him more rest, and sent him more food and water...giving him strength and encouragement when he needed it most. The part that struck me a great deal this evening, was that in the afternoon I toyed with the idea of staying home from church. I didn't need to play on the worship team so I had no specific role, I was tired, feeling discouraged, feeling lonely, etc. Basically, I didn't want to go. I decided to take a nap (knowing that was the root of my problem) and only set one alarm. When I'm really tired, that's not usually enough to wake me up. So, I said a little prayer...not always the best to make bets with God, but I said that if He really wanted me at church tonight, then he was going to have to wake me up with this ONE alarm. Of course...He did! He had quite the struggle to wake me up...several times I think He tried, until finally I remembered my promise and decided to get up. Levantate y come (Get up and eat)...the angel's words for Elijah and God's words for me today...Get up and be fed by my Word...let it encourage and rejuvenate you! Oh, and that it did!
The last thing I wanted to share with you is that on Tuesday night I have a CIET board meeting...you may remember a couple of weeks ago I shared how difficult that was for me so I would appreciate your prayers this week, particularly on Tuesday night...as well as in general...this will be a busy week and I expect that I'll be tired...which is often when my giants of loneliness and inferiority attack...pray that God will help me to defeat them with one stone in my sling! Thank you so much for your prayers and friendships! You are such a blessing to me!
Monday, February 9, 2009
February 9, 2008
Well, as usual time tends to fly on by and we're already into the second week of February! I really only have a couple of little things to report, I guess you could say that last week was rather uneventful!
First of all, I may have mentioned before that I serve on the board for CIET (the Bible Institute that SAM supports). This is a new role for me and basically temporary until others who typically serve on the board return from furlough later this year. There is one other SAM missionary who serves on the board of 6 people with me. Anyway, this is a difficult role for me for several reasons. The Spanish vocabulary used during these meetings is more advanced than I am accustomed to in my interactions with people at church and in the community. This in and of itself, is a challenge because I need to work much harder to understand what's going on and still there are many things I apparently miss. Also, my fellow SAM missionary and I both have similar personalities...neither of us are confrontational...and there are a couple of men on the board who have started making suggestions for things that SAM does not think would be wise for CIET. Therefore, as the SAM representatives, we're basically expected to watch out for those things and voice SAM's concerns. Again...when you're struggling to understand what's going on in a meeting it's difficult to add more things to be watching for. The other SAM missionary's Spanish is very good and she's served on the board for quite some time so she understands what's going on. However, she's also the secretary so it's hard for her to be typing in Spanish, taking notes, thinking about what others are saying, having her own thoughts, and then trying to voice any of those concerns. So, if you would just pray for wisdom to do what's best for CIET as well as strength to voice our concerns when necessary!
The second thing I wanted to tell you about this week concerns the Jr High Camp and Sr High Camp that the kids at school take each year. Last week, Wednesday through Friday, the Jr High students were gone to camp. Based on all that I have heard things went very well, no one got hurt, and it was a very fruitful time, so please join us in praising the Lord for that! This week, starting today and going through Friday, is Sr. High Camp. There is a speaker and others who have come down from the states to lead the services. The chaplain for the jr. high and sr. high groups organizes these camps and some teachers go as chaperones. I am not going as a chaperone this year, however, Bill and Bev Smith (fellow SAM missionaries and good friends of mine) are going as cooks for the week. Their oldest son will be with them at camp, but they have two younger children who will be staying behind, Benji (3rd grade) and Jessica (8th grade). I will be staying with them at their house this week to look after them...it's a chance for me to fulfill the role of Aunt Laura! Anyway, please join us in praying for camp this week...that God will bless that time, that students will come to a greater understanding of who He is and that He will draw them unto Himself in a closer way, that the teachers/speaker/others will have the strength they need to get through the week...also for those of us not going to camp, that we'll be able to fill in the holes left by the missing teachers for the week, that the kids in the Smith home and I will be kept safe this week and enjoy each others company, etc. Thank you for praying for these things this week!
Well, I have lots to do, so I guess I better get my day started! Blessings to each of you!
First of all, I may have mentioned before that I serve on the board for CIET (the Bible Institute that SAM supports). This is a new role for me and basically temporary until others who typically serve on the board return from furlough later this year. There is one other SAM missionary who serves on the board of 6 people with me. Anyway, this is a difficult role for me for several reasons. The Spanish vocabulary used during these meetings is more advanced than I am accustomed to in my interactions with people at church and in the community. This in and of itself, is a challenge because I need to work much harder to understand what's going on and still there are many things I apparently miss. Also, my fellow SAM missionary and I both have similar personalities...neither of us are confrontational...and there are a couple of men on the board who have started making suggestions for things that SAM does not think would be wise for CIET. Therefore, as the SAM representatives, we're basically expected to watch out for those things and voice SAM's concerns. Again...when you're struggling to understand what's going on in a meeting it's difficult to add more things to be watching for. The other SAM missionary's Spanish is very good and she's served on the board for quite some time so she understands what's going on. However, she's also the secretary so it's hard for her to be typing in Spanish, taking notes, thinking about what others are saying, having her own thoughts, and then trying to voice any of those concerns. So, if you would just pray for wisdom to do what's best for CIET as well as strength to voice our concerns when necessary!
The second thing I wanted to tell you about this week concerns the Jr High Camp and Sr High Camp that the kids at school take each year. Last week, Wednesday through Friday, the Jr High students were gone to camp. Based on all that I have heard things went very well, no one got hurt, and it was a very fruitful time, so please join us in praising the Lord for that! This week, starting today and going through Friday, is Sr. High Camp. There is a speaker and others who have come down from the states to lead the services. The chaplain for the jr. high and sr. high groups organizes these camps and some teachers go as chaperones. I am not going as a chaperone this year, however, Bill and Bev Smith (fellow SAM missionaries and good friends of mine) are going as cooks for the week. Their oldest son will be with them at camp, but they have two younger children who will be staying behind, Benji (3rd grade) and Jessica (8th grade). I will be staying with them at their house this week to look after them...it's a chance for me to fulfill the role of Aunt Laura! Anyway, please join us in praying for camp this week...that God will bless that time, that students will come to a greater understanding of who He is and that He will draw them unto Himself in a closer way, that the teachers/speaker/others will have the strength they need to get through the week...also for those of us not going to camp, that we'll be able to fill in the holes left by the missing teachers for the week, that the kids in the Smith home and I will be kept safe this week and enjoy each others company, etc. Thank you for praying for these things this week!
Well, I have lots to do, so I guess I better get my day started! Blessings to each of you!
Monday, February 2, 2009
February 2, 2009
I guess we can safely say that the year 2009 has officially gotten underway! During one of the prayer meetings at church last month, we read Isaiah 43. Other than the comforting reminder that God is always with us, there was one particular passage that jumped out to me, verses 18-19.
"Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?" (Isaiah 43:18-19a, ESV)
This happened to be the exact message I needed to hear right now. How easy it is to get caught up (and fearful or depressed I might add) about the things of our past without focusing on the things God wants to do anew in and through us each day! Oh, that I might focus on the LIGHT ahead rather than looking back! Lately it has been a struggle for me to focus on the work God has for me here and now...without being fearful of being evacuated again and leaving my friends behind...or without dwelling on past wrongs done to me or that I've done to others...etc. Please pray that God will strengthen me and allow me to sense His presence each new day in order to encourage me to press forward toward the goal!
Last week was Vacation Bible School at church! It was a long week...teaching at school in the mornings, running errands and taking care of things in the early afternoon, VBS at church (plus cleanup) until about 6:30, then hanging out with friends until close to 9, and going home and heading to bed in order to start it all over again the next day! Boy was I ever tired by the time we got to the weekend! However, the exciting part was that on average 70 kids heard the gospel expressed in ways that they could understand...and memorized Romans 5:8 as a reminder of Christ's death for their sins! How awesome it was to see their excitement of being in the house of the Lord...everyday! Probably about half of them were already coming regularly to Sunday School and our Saturday afternoon children's club...but the others weren't. So, now comes the difficult part...the follow-up and discipleship! Pray that we, as leaders/teachers in the church, will be diligent about seeking out these precious children of God so that they can grow in a greater knowledge and understanding of Him!
Well, this will be a shorter post than some of them have been...but that's about all I have to report for this week! "Thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of Him." (2 Cor. 2:14, NIV)
"Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?" (Isaiah 43:18-19a, ESV)
This happened to be the exact message I needed to hear right now. How easy it is to get caught up (and fearful or depressed I might add) about the things of our past without focusing on the things God wants to do anew in and through us each day! Oh, that I might focus on the LIGHT ahead rather than looking back! Lately it has been a struggle for me to focus on the work God has for me here and now...without being fearful of being evacuated again and leaving my friends behind...or without dwelling on past wrongs done to me or that I've done to others...etc. Please pray that God will strengthen me and allow me to sense His presence each new day in order to encourage me to press forward toward the goal!
Last week was Vacation Bible School at church! It was a long week...teaching at school in the mornings, running errands and taking care of things in the early afternoon, VBS at church (plus cleanup) until about 6:30, then hanging out with friends until close to 9, and going home and heading to bed in order to start it all over again the next day! Boy was I ever tired by the time we got to the weekend! However, the exciting part was that on average 70 kids heard the gospel expressed in ways that they could understand...and memorized Romans 5:8 as a reminder of Christ's death for their sins! How awesome it was to see their excitement of being in the house of the Lord...everyday! Probably about half of them were already coming regularly to Sunday School and our Saturday afternoon children's club...but the others weren't. So, now comes the difficult part...the follow-up and discipleship! Pray that we, as leaders/teachers in the church, will be diligent about seeking out these precious children of God so that they can grow in a greater knowledge and understanding of Him!
Well, this will be a shorter post than some of them have been...but that's about all I have to report for this week! "Thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of Him." (2 Cor. 2:14, NIV)
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