Touring Andahuaylas

While visiting Andahuaylas, our friends wanted to be tour guides and show us some of their local sites. We found a bus willing to drop us of at an Incan archaeological site called Sondor. Sondor was said to be a place of religious activities and for this reason was pyramid shaped with 500 stairs leading to the top.

We were amazed at the mountains behind these Inca ruins. The clouds were covering the peaks. But, thankfully (?) our taxi driver did NOT come back for us so we had plenty of time to wait and watch. The peaks never appeared, but the mountains were majestic! Because of the location, taxis don't just pass by so we proceeded to walk down the side of the mountain following the shepherds route down to the lake.

From Sondor, Lake Pacucha can also be seen. The funny thing is that as they began to explain the "history" behind the lake, it resembled stories we had heard before. In various locations throughout Peru the lakes are said to have once been towns, riddled with sin. In some way or another, the town flooded and virtually disappeared. In Lake Pacucha it is said that explorers have not reached more than 10 meters of depth due to tangly seaweed.

The End is Only the Beginning!

One of the main reasons we headed east to the Andes was to participate in the graduation of two dear friends from the Instituto Biblico Teologico in Uripa, Chincheros, Apurimac. Every year students come from many places in order to participate in the classes at the Institute for 8 weeks. The classes in Uripa are held in January and February, but there are other locations which hold their classes at other times of the year.

We spent a few days preparing for the special night by finding the right clothes, buying the right cake and encouraging the graduates. As the special night approached, the underclassmen came dressed up and the graduates decked out in their finest. Elias mentioned that he had always worked very hard to earn money to purchase the things he needed and the fact that someone was buying a suit for him was more than he could believe. For him, donning the new suit meant that a great level of ministry was to begin.

As part of the closing charge, I shared a few words with them, encouraging them to guard carefully the vision God has given them and the call He has placed on their lives. Too many people receive a call of the Lord and fall short of completing it because they are discouraged from the things others say or they just don't see it coming to pass. "Don't let anyone rob your vision, steal your vision or tell you that it is not good. If God gave it to you, hold on to it tightly!"

Esta es la Esquina

In an effort to share the creativity of my friends, I bring a new "music video" featuring the song by Vico C called Esta es la Esquina. Enjoy!

Young and Old

It always amazes me to see how different the "cultures" are even within the country of Peru. Enjoy seeing the faces of Apurimac, both young and old!

What Are You Hungry For?

When visiting the markets, I am always amazed by the quantity of items offered. I still have yet to understand how people actually make money. Each product is offered by a multitude of people. So my question becomes, if you sell the same thing as someone else, how do you get business? Usually it depends on your service to the customer and the relationships you build. Interesting way of doing business I think. I love the change to explore, ask questions and smile at the curious onlookers.

Here is a variety of the things offered in the Apurimac markets...

How Many Mangoes Equal a Dozen Oranges?

Peruvian markets are full of rich colors, flavorful smells, interesting people and delicious food! In Uripa, the market was full of people speaking Quechua. Jacky wanted to speak with one of the ladies selling fruit and Elias had to translate for him. He said he felt like "a visitor in his own country" since he needed a translator to communicate.

He also commented that in history classes, he had learned that at one time in Peru's history, those in the market did not use money to buy the wares of others, but instead paid with the products they had. He was rather surprised to see his new friend fill up a woman's skirt with oranges only to have her bring back mangoes in exchange. He commented that although this practice was said to still exist in parts of Peru, it was the first time he was actually seeing it with his own eyes.

Pachamanca

Although I had eaten Pachamanca a la Olla, I had never eaten the true Pachamanca. In Quechuan, pacha means earth and manca means pot. Peruvians have developed creative ways of cooking things over the years and the Pachamanca is one of their many successes. The graduates from the Bible Institute wanted to do something special for us and decided to host a Pachamanca. Hope you enjoy it too!!!

Abuelita Linda

As we prepared for the Pachamanca on Friday afternoon, an abuelita came in to the garden where they were working. She found her way to the wood pile and sat down. Similar to most abuelitas, she has a colorful cloth wrapped around her shoulders filled with secret things. From her shoulder pack, she pulls out a blanket to cushion her wood pile chair. After a few minutes she began to speak to me in words I did not understand, unfolded her cloth to reveal a square tupperware filled with what looked like chutney. She handed me the container coupled with some sort of instruction that again, I did not understand. I asked Jael to help me and she began to translate for the abuelita and I; she speaks Quechuan, I do not. She had given me mazamora de durazno to try. One more moment in which I wished I could speak in Quechua.

She later pulled off her hat only to reveal a handful of leaves. Many in the sierra chew on coca leaves, but I recognized that these leaves were not coca. I asked why she would carry leaves in her hat. Someone repeated my question to her in words she could comprehend, for my Spanish was foreign to her. She replied, saying they were for her nervios and cast a quick smile my way.

Small Town Smiles

One of the things I adore about traveling is "people-watching" although when in a foreign country, it is hard to say if you are watching them or they are watching you!

The people of Uripa were incredibly friendly; almost everyone greeted us as we walked through the town. Many looked at us a bit strangely but after we smiled and said hello, they would usually smile back. I know that a lot of the people avoid smiling because they do not want to expose their teeth - or lack of teeth. But, I typically tried to get a smile out of them because I loved seeing their face light up!

First Town Mayor

One day, we were approached by Victor who wanted to tell us all about the town. He had been the first mayor of Uripa once the town was established. The original name is Anccohauyllo, which is the name of one of the last Incans. In 1935, the roads were extended from the town of Chincheros to Uripa, which is now a 20 minute bus ride. The people from Chincheros essentially ruled over those from Uripa until about 60 men stood their ground and decided that Uripa should be it's own city. They held elections and Victor was chosen as the first mayor in 1964.

Uripa is located in the provincia (county) of Chincheros and departamento (state) of Apurimac.

Stopover Adventures!

After winding through the mountains on a 10 hour bus ride, we finally were able to get off the bus in Ayacucho. Instead of getting a much needed break from traveling, we were immediately escorted to yet another bus station. The bus had left just a few minutes before and next door we were pleased to find a combi which could take us to Uripa.

We settled into our seats and before long I realized that my purse was not in my carry-on bag, so I no longer had my wallet, camera or my gum! I raced back to the first bus station and without much explanation went aboard the bus to look for my belongings. Luckily, my purse was found tucked under my seat and I quickly snatched it up and began to look through it as I got back off the bus. Camera...gum...no wallet!! I raced back into the station and was holding back my tears as I tried to explain that not everything was in my bag. Again, I searched in the bus but at the same time tried to retrace my steps in my mind. By doing that, I almost convinced myself that I had taken my wallet out of my purse and it was indeed in my carry-on bag. So back to bus station #2 I went, hoping that I would find the last of my lost possessions.

Upon arrival, I tore into my bag once again and found the wallet was indeed among the items. I was so very thankful that I was able to recover all of the items and without much hassle! Onward on the seven hour journey which would bring us to Uripa...

A Visit to the Market!

Of course I had to see the markets of Argentina. Let me give you a glimpse of what I saw!

It Takes Two to Tango!

The Things Above

It is amazing how often we allow our circumstances to rob us of our perspective. Things begin to happen in our life and we focus on the "things." We worry about money, we worry about people, we worry about the future and so many times we worry about ourselves.

So many times, we begin to define God through the particular set of circumstances we are currently facing. If we are facing loss, we choose to see God as someone who takes away. If we are facing difficulties, we may see Him as One who doesn't care. And even as we experience good times and blessings, we may take the perspective that God loves us more than at other times.

We cannot allow our circumstances to define who God is. We must allow God to define our circumstances. It is as though no matter what is set before us, we must see it through God's perspective in order to understand it.

It would be easy for me to take an earthly perspective and be crushed in the midst of difficulties. But, what I must see is how God is using those very situations to form and mold me. How can I do this?

I was reminded of this as I walked through the downtown of Buenos Aires. To see the true beauty, so many times I had to look up. Oh, the building were beautiful at eye level. But people went through the trouble of designing architecture that was not only beautiful at eye level but it drew your attention upward.

Our life circumstances should do the same. We should not only focus on what we see at eye level but should allow those very things to force our gaze upward. God has not randomly selected things for us to go through and grow through. He has us each individually in mind when He orchestrates our lives.

Allow whatever you are going through to force your gaze upward. See the beauty through God's perspective. Realize the God-designed details when you look heavenward.

Start Off Your Morning Right!

While in Buenos Aires I enjoyed a number of delicious coffee shops, but one of my favorite moments included drinking this delight in Havanna Cafe. This is made with a layer of sweetened condensed milk on the bottom and a shot of espresso on top.

To top these off, they also have wonderful alfajores and other treats definitely worth trying!

Refreshment

This past weekend, I was praying for my friend and the conference that Refresh Life had on Saturday when the Lord reminded me of how important the word "refresh " has been in my life.

Several years ago, I was in the initial grieving period following a death in the family. I had never really faced the reality of someone dying and the tragic circumstances in this particular situation made things almost unbearable. I remember spending quite a bit of time trying to journal but really only remember writing to God "I know that you don't give me any more than I can handle, but I just want to let you know I don't think I can handle any more than this." I felt as though I was at the end of my ability to comprehend, understand and make sense of what I was facing.

Much of the time, I poured through the Psalms as it seems to be full of human emotions in difficult times as well as the acknowledgment of the greatness of God in the midst of trying moments. One evening as I sat in a large group Bible study, I had my Bible open to Psalm 84.

How blessed is the man whose strength is in Thee;
In whose heart are the highways to Zion!
Passing through the valley of Baca, they make it a spring,
The early rain also covers it with blessings.
Psalm 84:5-6

In my Bible, the definition listed for Baca is "weeping." So I read "passing through the valley of weeping..." and my heart leaped for joy. I was in the valley of weeping. I had already understood that although we seem to crave mountiantop experiences with our Savior, we will never know Him like we know Him in the valley. There, He draws close and tends to us individually.

Suddenly the promises jumped off the page and right into my heart. First, it did not say that I was going to remain in the valley forever. I was going to pass through the valley. What a relief! The valley is dark, it is painful and incredibly lonely. I was hoping to find the exit soon! I now had my hope on the fact that in His timing, I would pass through this very valley and make it to the other side. Second, I discovered a purpose for my journey in the valley. As I passed through the valley, I would turn it into a place of springs. To my heart, this meant that I would bring refreshment to others due to my journey through the valley of weeping.

To refresh means: to restore strength, to freshen up, to maintain by renewing one's supply, to update or renew, or to run water over. As a result of my time in the valley, I would be equipped with the ability to restore strength to others, to renew their supply and to "pour water over" them. I could not comprehend how I would do these very things, but then and there I noted in my Bible,

With God's strength, I can pass through valleys of weeping and turn them into springs. The valley will be covered with blessing.

This was of great encouragement to me and became my verses of hope during the darkness. Be someone who refreshes others.

Impression or Impact?

Not long ago, I visited the sand dunes of Ica. I found them intriguing and fascinating. A group of us climbed to the top of one of the dunes and I went crazy with the camera. The line of sand as one side meets the other was never erased. The wind blew; people could try and stamp it out. But, the fact was, the line of the dune was always maintained by nature. After a great deal of time, and many photos, we ventured back down. Some returned straight down the sand dune and some took the planned path around the side.

After we all arrived at the bottom, it was amazing to look back up to the top and consider that we had just been up there. However, you would never know it if you were looking for evidence. The marks our feet or shoes had made were quickly filled in with sand, rapidly blown away by the wind and simply leveled out by others.

How often does this describe our life? We cross the paths of others, we have possibilities to speak into the lives of those around us, and constantly God gives us opportunities to minister to people. But…what do we do with those opportunities and possibilities? Do we make an impression or an impact?

We left many impressions as we walked on the sand dunes that day. What is an impression? Merriam Webster describes it as “a characteristic, trait, or feature resulting from some influence,” as well as “an often indistinct or imprecise notion or remembrance.” We may be considered a good influence or someone that others remember. But is that enough? Is that what we are called to do?

I believe God desires to use our lives to make an impact in the world around us. This is defined by “a significant or major effect,” or “to have a direct effect on.” I find it interesting that some of the synonyms listed include: shock, collision, and concussion. Have you ever considered that your life should cause a shock to others? Do you think that God wants you to cause significant or major changes?

What do we do when we see wet cement? Almost always, the temptation comes over us to step in it, write in it or somehow “make our mark.” We want to leave something that will last and as the wet cement dries, our mark becomes permanent. When others pass by that spot, they will forever see what we have left there.

We can easily walk through life and leave a “footprint.” But, these sand dunes reminded me that if I am not careful, I will only leave an impression that could easily be erased by whatever comes along next. That is not my desire. I do not desire to climb the mountains of life only to look back and wonder where it is I have walked. I do not desire to cross the paths of many people only to look back and see that my interaction with them marked nothing but the surface.

As Christians, we have a responsibility to make an impact and not just an impression. We must see people and situations as wet cement and be led by that same overwhelming desire to create a permanent mark. As opportunities arise, we must make an IMPACT so that our encounter with another is not easily erased.

Make it a goal in 2007 to use every opportunity, every possibility and every encounter to make an IMPACT and not just a good impression.

Joy to the World!

Prospero Año Nuevo!

So you are wondering how to celebrate the beginning of 2007? Peruvians have their own ideas of how to ring in the New Year. Get prepared so you too can celebrate Peruvian style on Sunday night!

At midnight, eat one grape for each month of 2007 under the table and ask for a wish for each grape you eat.

If you want a year full of travel, take your suitcases and walk around the block with them at midnight. They need not be full. This will bring a year full of trips for you!

For a year of abundance, take coins in your hands and throw them over your shoulders at midnight. They can be old coins or ones that are otherwise “useless.”

Write your heart’s desire on a piece of paper then place a gold candle on top of it. Burn the candle through the night and allow the melted wax to cover the paper. You then throw out the wax covered paper in the morning.

Make a doll (scarecrow style) out of old clothes and at midnight, burn the doll with the old clothes in the street. This represents burning up all of the “old.” You should be dressed in all new clothing.

To welcome the New Year, decorate your table with sunflowers!

Wear yellow clothing on January 1^st in order to have a good year. It is best to have yellow clothing that has been given to you. Those that truly believe this dress completely in yellow but most just make sure their underwear is yellow!

Most importantly, may GOD bless your New Year!!!

Peace in the Storm

Storms can be very destructive. I have read lately about rain storms flooding the Aceh Province of Indonesia, displacing hundreds of thousands, killing more than a hundred and requiring aid for thousands. The blizzard in Denver, Colorado essentially shut down the city and they are bracing themselves for yet another snow storm this weekend. The Bay Area reported storms so fierce that electricity is out for tens of thousands and a woman became the victim to a toppled tree. Even here in Peru, some desert regions have been hit by storms causing ancient mud ruins to be saturated with water.

The disciples of Jesus were also affected by storms. After a great deal of teaching, Jesus led his disciples onto a boat with the intention of crossing the Sea of Galilee. As the fierce winds rose and water began to fill up the boat, these men likely drew on their knowledge of the stormy seas; many of them were fishermen by trade. Once they had depleted their own resources, they called upon Jesus, who was sleeping! How did Jesus respond to the disciples' news that they were perishing at the hands of the wind and rain? Jesus simply declared peace over the storm. He rebuked the winds and told the sea to be still.

We have storms in our lives. They may not be brought on by wind and rain, but their effects can be just as destructive. What is our response to life's storms? Often times, we react just as the disciples did that evening on the Sea of Galilee. We draw upon our knowledge, our experience and our very own resources to save ourselves. Once we realize that it is not within our power, we call out to Jesus. Could we respond differently?

Jesus was able to speak peace over the wind and sea because He had peace within Him. He did not allow the storm to enter Him. In contrast, the disciples were affected inwardly by the storm around them. They cried out to Jesus in desperation, "Save us, we are perishing!" The storm entered into the disciples and they were not filled with peace in order to calm the storm.

What storms are you facing? What storms am I facing? You and I must be committed to maintaining peace within our heart. We must not allow the storms to get inside of us, but we must cultivate the peace of God within our hearts which allows us to speak peace over the storms in our life. Although the storms will bring external destruction and chaos, our hearts must be full of reassuring peace.

"Peace be still."

Innocence of Children

A normal method of shopping here would take a person to the mercado. Shopping in a market can be fun and yet confusing. When you walk into a market, you see stand after stand with the same products. Todos tienen platanos, todos tienen mandarinas, y todos tienen bolsas negras para llevar tus cosas. So what makes you buy from one and not the other? Relationships. You buy one week, you buy the next week and then you are a regular customer - you get the better deals, the suggestions, and the extra treats. As you go from stand to stand, you select products and pay for them on the spot. Each stand has it's own marketing technique (compratelo!), each has it's own scale and it's own money box.

What happens when a person who has shopped all their lives in a mercado goes into a supermarket? Often they are overwhelmed by all the products, are confused by the aisles, have never used a shopping cart in their lives, and usually do not have any idea where to begin. I have had someone ask how to open the display refrigerators to take out a bottle of coke. I have had people hesitate to select and bag the produce. I have watched people fearfully take a cart because they have never pushed one before.

What happens when a child enters a supermarket for the first time when all he knows is the mercado? He tells his mother to "take some of everything in the store - we don't have to pay for it; it's free!" Later, he learned that they collect money for everything at the checkout stand.

How cute! Que lindo!

Feliz Navidad!!

Stores here in Peru have not quite caught on to the After Christmas Sale frenzy, much to my demise! Most stores were already marking things down before the holiday so that their stock would be depleted. So my Day After Christmas here in Peru is not quite as exciting as I might like. I missed 6am lines for the limited stock items and the 75% discount on Christmas items for next year.

Being that things are celebrated late on Christmas Eve, I did not arrive at my destination before 10:30pm and even then I felt I had arrived a bit early. At midnight, the air was full of firecracker smoke and popping sounds. It was then that we all headed down the hills to the home where we planned to eat dinner. Yet again, it was though we had arrived early.

Many here in Peru either have too small of an oven or no oven at all, so the turkey is sent out to bake. The turkey was brought home after 1am and then the tables were arranged, set and the plates served. For the second night in a row, I ate dinner at 2am. Dinner was followed by the very traditional paneton y chocolate.

Christmas morning brought about another helping of paneton y chocolate. Instead of doing more dinners on Christmas Day, I rested, relaxed and baked a blackberry cobbler. I enjoyed the movie Christmas With the Kranks along with a snack of chips and salsa. Most of the evening I spent on the phone with family and friends.

Ahora nos preparamos para Año Nuevo!!!

Thank God for Thick Curtains!

A few months ago, I was asked to be the madrina for Nancy's graduation. Before coming to Peru, I thought "godmothers" were only for baby dedications but learned last year that madrinas and padrinos also participate in weddings. This year, much to my surprise, I discovered there are also madrinas for high school graduations! I was honored to be the godmother for her graduation.

The trip out to Zapallal lasted 3 hours and involved 2 buses. Holiday traffic led to the extra hour of travel time. We arrived later than expected and I still needed to change into my dress and fix my hair. We traveled back the way we came with Nancy to the graduation location. Although the invitation stated 7pm as the time of the ceremony, 11pm was the actual start time!

There was a graduation class of about 50, separated in two groups, made obvious by the colors - pink and light blue. All the girls dress accordingly and some of the guys even joined in. There were no caps and gowns, no moving of the tassel. All of the teachers had a few words to say and some were welcomed by the cheers and clapping of the students. Each name was announced, followed by "what they want to be when they grow up" which included engineers, stewardesses, professional soccer players and accountants.

The dancing began with the students doing the waltz with their partners. Afterward each student invited one their guests to dance-including fathers, mothers and brothers. (Check out the picture of Nancy and her brother!) The meal was served shortly-to about one third of the guests! Once that part was nearly finished, they were done preparing the rest of the plates. Dinner, consisting of beef, French fries, salad and Inca Kola, was served at 2 - and that is AM not PM!!!! The students were invited to dance again to a variety of Reggaeton songs.

About 3am, we began to wonder if any bus would be running to head back into the city. Unfortunately, the only available bus leave us at an unsafe intersection waiting on another bus. We decided to wait until 5am when the other buses would begin running again. But, a bit of a scuffle broke out between one of the girls' fathers and a young graduating boy. Since there was a bus heading out of the city, we decided to take Nancy home and catch the bus from her house. The difficulty was that the bus had been specially contracted, but the contract was for 1am and the people who had paid had not left the party. The bus driver decided to fill the bus with other paying customers. The man who had paid had a few words to say when he realized it, but eventually gave up the bus to those who were already on it.

Just before 5am, we left Zapallal and headed back into the city. Since there was very few people on the road at that time, we arrived back to my apartment just over an hour later. Quite a difference from the 3 hour ride it took us to go to the graduation!! Fortunately I was able to sleep in quite a bit this morning, thanks to my terrific "blackout" curtains - especially since tonight will be another "all-nighter" for Christmas!

What a contrast from my high school graduation in June of 1991!

Pain

"The pure truth, spoken in pure love, will always attract. You will remember the pain you feel here, and it will help you through the rest of your life. Pain is good; it shows you where there is a problem. Do not try to reduce the pain until you find the problem. God's truth often brings pain as it highlights a problem that we have, but His truth will always show us the way to freedom, too. When you know this you will even begin to rejoice in your trials, which are all allowed to help keep you on the path of life." (from The Final Quest by Rick Joyner)

The Unknown, The Unseen and The Uncontrollable

God does not always let me in on what He is doing and often that leaves me in the dark. Funny, I think that is where He wants me to be! Not in the dark in an evil sense; but in the dark walking by the Light who is Jesus. However, I too experience moments of confusion, of panic, of worry and I long to know how He will fix the problem. But God does not have to fill me in on how He will resolve things; I must simply trust that He will.

God is teaching me that I cannot rely on my understanding or my perception of a situation. True understanding and complete perception lies in Him alone. Being someone who really enjoys making plans and know what direction things are going in, it can be difficult when I don't seem to have a clue. Recently I was doing some studying some events in the life of Jesus. The healing of the bleeding woman taught us that He has authority over disease and the resurrection of a little girl teaches us that He has authority over death. The funny thing is that He was afforded the opportunity to show His authority over death because the woman "interrupted" His journey to heal the sick little girl and allowed enough time for her to die. Upon arrival at the house, He created a private moment and healed her. At times Jesus allows a delay and an apparent worsening of the situation in order to bring more glory to Himself. I must choose to trust His timing, His wisdom, His leading in the many occasions that I simply do not understand.

Take today for instance. I had coffee with a friend and upon leaving the mall, I had already set my mind on taking the bus home - a nice 30-40 minute ride back to my street. The red and green bus pulled around the corner (and no it is not because of Christmas!) and I climbed aboard. After some time of winding through the streets of Miraflores, we came upon a detour. We were in gridlock while herds of people were walking the other direction, dressed or decorated in purple. Today is All Saint's Day and they had closed down a number of streets on my route in order to take the idols for a walk. After we passed through the gridlock, I assumed we were making our way back to the original route; but something within me told me I had gotten on the wrong bus. Panic arose and I began to look for a place to get off and for another familiar bus. I was using the time to pray and try to understand how God was at work in my life through the various situations I am faced with. I had no idea what direction I was headed, I had no idea where the destination would be, but I had to calm my heart and trust that God was in control. Eventually, I realized I was headed back to my street; I had taken the scenic route which afforded me a 2 hour journey, a cobrador who was upset I paid only 1 sol for my trip and time to be reminded I must trust.

When I want to know what the outcome will be of a difficult situation...trust
When I claim to not understand...trust
When I desire answers, reassurance...trust
When I cannot see the end at the beginning...trust

Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
Lean not on your own understanding.
In all of your ways acknowledge Him and
He will make your path straight.
Proverbs 3:5&6

My prayer is that I would trust My God with the unknown, the unseen and uncontrollable. May He and He alone be Lord over my heart.

My Knees Went Weak

I was on one of my routine visits to Wongs which is my supermercado favorito. I wanted to pick up a few things I needed for the rest of the month. Semola took me down an aisle I usually frequent only when buying rice or the occasional lasagna noodles. Before I made it 10 steps, my eyes were drawn to an unbelievable sight.

There are many things one chooses to go without when they live in an another country. Granted, any of you who have shopped with me, packed with me or had the extreme pleasure of taking me to the airport while my suitcases go to the throne of judgment - the airport scale - you are the people that know I do bring the things I know I will want to use here and simply cannot buy. There are such favorites as: pure maple syrup, red lentils, brown sugar, peanut butter chips, and a variety of spices. But one thing I do not often tote with me from sea to shining sea is Mexican salsa.

Don't get me wrong, when I can, I visit all the Chipotle's, Baja Fresh, and Chevy's possible. I get my fill of chips and salsa; all the while remembering that I gave up those delicious chips as one of the forbidden frituras. When I was in Ecuador, my friends and I did everything possible to track down the Taco Bell that was said to be in Guayaquil. Laura even smuggled Pace Picante Sauce back across the border and served it as a delicacy at Bible Study one night.

But my friends, I must confess...Old El Paso Salsa has made it to Peru!!! And not even just a few dusted covered bottles grace the shelves of the supermarket. There are muchas! It comes in HOT, Medium and mild for the variety of heat tolerance. Sure, I know you know this, but I must remind you of the novelty of bottled salsa.

Hear me now, I don't think I will ever choose to live without my Peruvian food. I wonder if God has me move to yet another country, would I tote the treasures of Peruvian gastronomia across fronteras? I don't last three days in the US without craving my Seco de Carne with arroz and yuca, sprinkled with jugo de limon laced with rocoto. Yo amo la comida peruana.

But...Old El Paso Salsa?!? I confess, the $5 bottle did not sway me. The HOT salsa made a jump for my cart and the smile could not be wiped off my face. And when I thought about sitting with a good movie and a bowl of chips and salsa...my knees went weak.

Lighthouses

One of the most exciting parts of trips for me has been locating and photographing lighthouses. I think I appreciate the majesty and responsibility of lighthouses. But also, I love the shapes and colors they come in. You find them near the water. There seems to be so much power in the little light close to the top.

While out in the Chicago area in 1999, I set out on a hunt for nearby lighthouses. I found and took a roll of pictures of the lighthouse on the Northwestern University campus. Later that night, my friend and I were told of one at the end of Tower Road in a northern suburb. Certainly, I planned to head out there the following morning.

After a train ride, long walk and quite a bit of time spent, we finally arrived at Tower Road. I could see the top portion of the lighthouse from the train station. I was thrilled to photograph another lighthouse!

We walked to the end of Tower Road and out to a vista point. I began to take pictures of this magnificent structure. It was tall and white. The water below had a blue green color. The beach was closed on this particular day; however, there were several people on the dock below. After taking some pictures, I asked if we could go down to the dock area so I photograph the front as well as locate the sign displaying the name of this enormous structure.

We proceeded to walk down a steep hill and made our way onto the dock. I continued snapping pictures although the official lighthouse sign was not nearby and we were beginning to doubt that this structure actually was indeed a lighthouse. My friend went to ask someone looking official. “No, this is a smoke stack,” the gentleman said with a look of half confusion and half ridicule.

I was highly disappointed. It had the shape, location, colors and many other things that you would associate with a lighthouse. Essentially, the only thing lacking was the light source itself.

Do you think ship captains out at sea consider the same things? Do the shape, color and location of these tall, magnificent structures confuse those trying to keep their ship on course? I do not think that the ships get close enough to identify the building itself. Instead they simply use the light itself as a means of guiding their course. The light is evident even while they are a great distance away. A building cannot be a lighthouse simply based upon shape, design, color, or location. A lighthouse is a lighthouse if it has a light.

Do we ever function like this? It is easy to take on the shape, color and location of a Christian. We may look and seem like a Christian to those stopping by to observe and “photograph.” But, do we serve our real purpose? We were designed to be a light of the world (Mt. 5:14), a light to the nations (Is 42:6, 49:6, 60:1-3), to have a path which is like the light of dawn (Prov. 4:18), to have the light of life (Jn. 8:12), light of the gospel (2Cor 4:4), light in the Lord (Eph 5:8), children of light (Eph 5:8), and to wear the armor of light (Rom. 13:12).

If our light is not evident to wayward ships, what purpose are we serving? We must not be content to have only the look & location of Christianity, but we must also allow our true purpose to be fulfilled!

Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works and glorify our Father who is in heaven. (Mt. 5:16)

PS-I have some great pictures of a smoke stack in Winnetka, Illinois!

Love Like Oil

I am always fascinated by the great characters in the Bible. Today, I came across yet another. I was studying this morning about the woman who broke the alabaster jar upon the feet of Jesus. She had spent a great deal of money...money earned turning her nightly tricks...to buy fragrant oil in a delicately carved alabaster flask. Her intent? To pour out this very costly oil upon the feet of Jesus; feet that had been dirtied by the walk to the home of the Pharisee. This unnamed woman stirred my heart, for she took action on her gratitude for Christ. Oh that I would recognize how many things I have to be grateful for and not just consider my gratitude, but that I would act upon it. As I studied, these words came to me...

I pour out my love like oil
All I can give
I lay at Your feet
The flask has been broken
The oil is freely flowing
Show Your face to me

This is sort of how I feel..."show Your face to me." Like those moments when you just want to fall on your face and cry out for God to show Himself. This woman gave all she could, did all she could and when the Pharisee condemned her, Jesus turned His face to her and acknowledged her FAITH. I feel as though I am doing all I can, giving all I can and I just want Him to turn to me and acknowledge my FAITH even though I have not the feelings.

I want to pour out the love I have for Christ as easily as oil pours out from a flask. I want to give all I can

When The Cat is Away, The Mice Will Play!

This is what my video editors do when the creative bug takes them over!

Things You May Not Have Known About Me...

Four Jobs I Have Had in My Life...
1. McDonalds (both cash register and grill)
2. Blue Banner Software (my name is even in one of their software manuals!)
3. Serota Studios (I sold photo packages)
4. California Farm Water Association (for about a month!)

Four Movies I Would Watch Over and Over...
1. Sweet Home Alabama
2. American President
3. Bounce
4. Tortilla Soup

Four Places I Have Lived...
1. England!
2. Sunnyvale, CA
3. Milpitas, CA (on Gross Street nonetheless!)
4. Lima, Peru (and I am still here!)

Four TV Shows I Love to Watch...
1. Amazing Race (I am addicted!!!)
2. Friends (I can watch the same episode several times a day!)
3. Everybody Loves Raymond (it makes me laugh out loud)
4. America's Next Top Model (I love watching the catfights!)

Four Places I Have Been on Vacation...
1. Napa, CA (to taste wine with Chanda)
2. Colombia, South America (to visit Kim)
3. Boston (to visit friends and lighthouses with Joel)
4. Ecuador ("the" roadtrip with Laura and Kyle)

Websites I Visit Almost Daily...
1. mail.yahoo.com
2. www.cnn.com
3. orangette.blogspot.com
4. www.studylight.com

Four of My Favorite Foods...
1. Peruvian Food (cannot live a week without it!)
2. Mexican Food (I miss my burritos and salsas)
3. Indian Food (I make it almost twice a week)
4. Pasta (HA! those of you who know me know...)

Four Places I Would Like To Be Right Now...
1. Apple Hill in Sacramento, CA (I love the fall season and wish I could see it up close and personal)
2. Red Square in Russia (it has been my dream to stand in middle of it since I was seven)
3. Sitting in Starbucks (anywhere in the world) with a few good friends
4. Photographing a lighthouse (something I haven't done in a few years)

What about you? What are a few of your favorite things??

Friends, Feedback and Naps?

You know, you have to recognize when those little things happen that just make you feel good. Especially when days are long, moods are blah and your food doesn't have much flavor - you need to see the good in those days.

Today I have a few things to be thankful for and I do not want to forget them.

1. I am thankful for friends who listen, even when I don't know what to say. As I try to explain what I am thinking and feeling, words cannot really describe what I would say if I could. When someone takes the time to listen even when that which is heard remains incoherent, you know they are a friend. I was privileged today to have such a friend just listen to my ramblings and encourage me in the nonsense.

2. I am thankful for feedback. Almost daily I am teaching about the life of Jesus. Today, I shared about having faith like the centurion. I have always been impressed by his faith, I suppose I was impressed because Jesus himself was impressed. I never want to be caught up in the trap of teaching with the expectation of receiving comments, commendations and kudos. But, when you finished teaching and someone immediately tells you that God used the message to speak to their heart, you cannot help but be encouraged.

3. I am thankful for naps. I don't often take them but relish the moments when I do. I had just gotten off the phone with a friend and really had little energy to attack any of the tasks that lay before me. Instead of trying to motivate myself to start moving, I curled up into a ball, placed my head on a pillow and turned the volume down on the TV. Suddenly, 2 hours had passed by and I couldn't help but smile! There have been seasons in my life that I took naps regularly but letely they have been far and few between. So, when I have the chance I allow the day to pass into dusk while I visit dreamland.

May you find things to be thankfully for today too!

Growing Weary

We must not grow weary in doing good. Paul tells us that in Thessalonians. That for me is an encouragement. I should not grow weary in doing good. Or in other words be encouraged or be strong in doing good. Or in other words do not grow weary in not doing evil or maybe even in taking a stand against evil. Weary...being tired. And Jesus tells us those who are weary must come unto Him and their souls will be refreshed.
What a relief...I am told that I should not grow weary in doing what Jesus has asked of me. But when I do, I already have His provision that if I run to Him, He will refresh me...will refresh my soul. I may not even feel refreshed physically, but my soul will be. Praise God that He does not want me to be weary and has provision for me once I do get to that point.
May the weariness of doing good not overtake me...may my doing good overcome my weariness.

The Ministry of Friendship

Sometimes we wonder in what grandious ways we can minister? We wonder how we can share God's grace and love with others. Sometimes we occupy our time with great events, interesting services and more ways to meet more people. How often do people stop and consider how to minister to those God has already placed in their path?

I am talking about our friends.
Not those people whose paths you cross regularly and you happen to know their name. I am talking about people you have invested in over the years. People you know from way back and have watched them change. People you trust and who trust you - with the good and the difficult.

I am talking about ministering.
Now, I am not necessarily speaking of the times we just kick back and have fun. I am not thinking of how we love when we find new shopping buddies. And I am also not thinking of those we can sit with and sip a rich cup of joe.

I am talking about ministering to our friends.
How many times do we call, not just to chat, but because God gave us a word of encouragement for them? How often do we write down a verse and send it off to someone God placed on our heart? When was the last time we truly tried to minister to even those closest to us?

I suppose I was in need of that today. I needed that person who knew me "back then" and who knows me now. I wanted someone to call and just say, "God placed you on my heart and I wanted to see how you are doing." I wanted to be important to someone today.
Sometimes I feel sad that even some of my closest friends work so hard to minister to so many others and forget about me. Please...this is not a guilt trip! But be encouraged...your friends are your ministry too! Especially those that have chosen to serve God in a faraway location.

Minister to your friends today!

Me Robaron!!!

So, a couple weeks ago I walked into my apartment only to find out that my downstairs neighbors had entered my apartment and stolen a few things - one of which being the brand new camera I bought. In some ways I was thankful to know who it was that had been in my apartment and in some ways, infuriated. Just days prior, I had questioned the landlord again about their final day. "Be patient," he told me. Well, being patient not only cost me a few cameras and internet equipment, but also my security and peace of mind. The boys that broke in never returned and their grandmother tried to make me feel sorry for her.
In trying to view all things in a positive light, please let me share some funny moments...
First, I was actually on my way to the movies when I found that items were missing. I was going to see "Vecinos Invasores" (Over the Hedge) which means invading neighbors for you gringos.
Second, I had to yell down to the passing police car in order to get some assistance when it first happened. They did not want to respond to my phone call.
Third, when the neighbors began to move out, I let one of the police know, who in turn informed the guys on duty. They came to question the neighbors and when the grandmother could not confidently say where they were moving to, the police ordered them to return all their belongings to the apartment.
Fourth, the police told me that I did not "have to follow" my neighbors when they moved the next day. Funny, the night before I was told that when they left I should follow them and find out where they were going.

At least I have a good attitude, even if I cannot take a picture right now.

Memories of Lima

The famous Inca Market and it's treasures!
The beauty of nighttime!
The portable fruit stand!
As we traveled around Lima, taking pictures of treasured memories, we made a wrong turn and ran into this beautiful site!