What a wonderful Sunday.
We woke up and had our individual quiet times with the Lord.
I've been trying to memorize some verses in Spanish.
We had a quiet morning studying and on the computer. Mary did a couple loads of laundry. We baked some chicken breasts, potatoes, carrots and onions. I had a little bit for a late lunch.
We got ready for church and waited for German to pick us up at 2:30. It's a good thing he came early, because we ended up with flat tire on the way into town. German said he had not checked his spare tire in a year, so we were hoping that it had air in it. The funny thing is that when we got in the van at the house, Mary was talking about what all she carries in her car for emergencies and was telling us about an air pump that plugs into your cigarette lighter to take care of flats. Then we drive down the road and have one! While we were parked there in the road (there are not really shoulders to pull off onto), Mary and I took pics of each other and of German changing the tire. We don't like to miss any photo opps! We made it into the Texaco station in town and aired up the spare and put in some gas. Then we headed off into town.
We couldn't get ahold of Chris and Evelyn, so we ran by their house. No one was at home, so we didn't get to see them today or go to church with them. We were early for church, so we parked near the park and walked around to the different vendors. I bought a few woven zippered bags that I like. Mary spied a 'Tall Lady' and a drum band. I joined her and we watched a Tall Lady and (short) Nic man dancing. It was quite funny. I took a video of it on my camera. I hope it turns out well. Mary also got some great pics of little kids dressed up in traditional dress. The little girls had on makeup and the boys had mustaches and goutees painted on their faces. They were soooo cute!
We found German when it was time to head to church. Today was a festival/parade of horses. Many of the roads (which are mainly one-way streets anyway) were blocked off. We ended up parking a few blocks from the church and walking down the parade route. Some of the horses were dancing. It was cool. We finally made it to church. German made sure we were in good hands and then he went to get the tire fixed for his van.
It was so exciting to see Joe and Marcela arrive. She had surgery just a few weeks ago and was walking very gingerly. Her big smile was beautiful. I got a wonderful hug from Joe. He calls me his Mami. I met his Mom and Dad tonight at church. They are nice. Joe introduced Mary and I to the congregation, even though we have been quite a few times. I love that little church. Joe asked if I would give my testimony tonight. I am always happy to talk about what God has done in my life and how blessed I am walking with Him now. Juan Pacheco was my translator. When Joe introduced me, he mentioned the special connection that we have and how I call him son and he calls me mami. It made me tear up. He said that when he was at the hospital during Marcela's surgery and praying very hard for the outcome, that he knew I was praying very hard for them. What a sweet, sweet man of God he is. I'm thankful for our special relationship. I love the pics I got of him and Marcela and one of the three of us. I will treasure them.
The music was awesome, of course, since Joe is the worship leader. They have a great little praise team and they have added drums to the band. This church meets in a tiny room and the music would be loud enough even without the speakers, which are huge. They gave us a place of honor to sit on the front row, so we really got to experience the music. I recognized a few songs and we clapped through them all. My hands were red and I loved every minute of it. Of course, in Nic, you stand for all of the music, and you end up dancing through most of it. So it's a good workout! It's very worshipful. No question that you are praising when you are singing these songs!
When I was giving my testimony, Juan was translating and we had a few funny moments. One came when I was saying that I live opposite of the "American Dream" of owning a house, car, furniture and other things. I said instead of having my own house, I live with a friend. Juan translated that to amigo (which means friend, but the ending means male, even though it is used generically sometimes). I quickly corrected that to amiga (which definitely means female friend). Everyone laughed. The church family were so attentive and friendly and encouraging. I told them that they always make Mary and I feel so comfortable.
The Pastor is traveling, so Joe gave the message tonight. Juan translated it into English just for Mary and myself. It was wonderful to see he and Joe up there side-by-side sharing Jesus in both languages. I count myself so blessed to know these 2 fine gentlemen. I could catch most of what Joe was saying before Juan translated it. It was nice for me to see some improvement in my listening and comprehension skills with Spanish. I pray fervently to become fluent someday in Spanish. I should spend more time in study and I'm hungry for it. At times like these in Nic, and when I'm with my Cuerpo Vivo family back in Rogers, I want to soak it all in!
Joe's message was very good. I enjoyed it very much! I was so blessed this evening. I'm so proud of the Joe and Marcela and how much they love the Lord and want to serve Him. They are an awesome couple. I pray for her full and fast recovery from her surgery. They have postponed their December wedding to May, so that she will be healthy and strong. They have been dating for 8 years and Joe says their love is so strong, especially after going through her health problems these last months. I know that God has big things planned to accomplish through this wonderful couple. I'm honored to know them.
After church, we met up with German around the corner. He had picked up his kids and got them some dinner. They were eating in the van and rode with us back to the team house. Ishmael (about 1 1/2) rode on German's lap and helped him drive. Mariangel (2nd grade) rode in the second seat with Mary and those two laughed and had fun all the way home. I got a good pic of our two drivers, father and son. It was a fun ride home.
Smelling the kids' dinners made Mary and I hungry. We warmed up our chicken and veggies and had a nice dinner. Then we retired early to our rooms.
I got on the computer to catch up with people on facebook and to do my daily post here on my blog. I found out that some friends (and Deanna's daughter and son-in-law) made it back to Las Vegas after going to San Francisco for Jake's graduation from seminary. Their big news is that Jake will be the interim Sr Pastor of their church in Las Vegas. They are very excited. I'm so happy for them. I pray that this fresh start will give the church the boost of positive energy and momentum to make a huge difference in their community.
Deanna has been with Jake and Elaine and family for the last 2 weeks so that she could go with them to the graduation. She'll be returning to Rogers in a week or so. I know the animals will be glad to see her. It's been a while since they didn't have at least one of us there with them. Deanna's grandson is house/pet sitting. I'm sure he is doing a great job, but I doubt that he will spoil those pets the way Deanna and I do. :)
From some posts on facebook, it sounds like Pastor Wes (back at my home church, FBC Rogers) has been having some really good messages lately. I can't download them from here, but I'll catch up on them when I get back to the states. I've enjoyed the quotes that people from church have posted on their statuses.
I guess I should go to bed soon. We'll leave in the morning to do a feeding for the people who live at the dump, and then go to the Concrete Pit area to meet with the people and hand out Bibles. It will be a good day.
God has been giving Mary and I experiences that we don't normally get to have when we have teams in. It's been wonderful. We're loving it very much. And we are loving our God even more.
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