At my church in Manchay, we had Kids Club and Jovenes in the afternoon/evening. I am now officially the pianist for kids club! Even though I don't play that well, I will be practicing the songs so that we can at least hear the melody. So this is something new, challenging, and (hopefully) good for me. Maybe be the end of the year I'll even be proficient! For Jovenes, we began with a game of pictionary. This was a little challenging for me because the drawings were all based off of sayings like “One bird in the hand is worth more than 100 flying” and “don't look at the (gift?) horse's teeth” and others like this. So I had almost no chance of guessing what they could be, but I did okay at drawing the ones I had to. Pastor Jim brought a lesson on Revelation 4, emphasizing at the end the worthiness of God to be worshiped. I somehow ended up becoming the official pianist (despite the fact that I really don't play that well and have no convenient place to practice).
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These first days have been quite busy. On Thursday we flew to Atlanta and I ended up sitting next to someone with the same last name as me. He was a cheff on his way back home to Texas. Then we spent a couple hours in the Atlanta airport waiting for the connecting flight to Lima. This flight was much longer, about 6 ½ hours, and I had the opportunity to get to know the man on my right. His name was Paul and he was from Uganda. He was going to Peru on business as part of the United Nations Development Program. We got in to Lima at about 11:50 PM, and we made it to the Carlton's house around 1-1:30.
The next morning we got to sleep in a little bit, until 9, then after breakfast we got thrown right into our Spanish by going to the store and shopping for food and other things we would need next week for class. That was really something! The boys kept asking me questions and I would do my best to answer, but there is so much I don't know yet. I am learning already though. However, it took us at least 2 hours to get enough food for one week (mostly ham sandwiches) maybe longer. Then after lunch we got our paperwork done for our visas and changed money. I'm very glad that I know my Spanish numbers and that Mr. Carlton was there to help us! After that was all done and we made it back to the house (Despite the HEAVY traffic I might add) we had supper, made the boys clean up, and played Ticket to Ride before settling in for the night. Saturday, we all met our families that we'll be staying with. My family is Rosario and José and their little son Josías. They treated me to lunch in a restaurant and the Lego Movie in Spanish. I tried a drink made from black corn (chicha) that was very good and reminded me a little bit of grape juice. That night, I went to Jóvenes (a Bible study/youth group) with Rosario. One of the young men lead some singing and we sang Psalm 136, then the pastor discussed that with us for a little while. Next we split into small groups to share what we had been reading in our devotions recently. After that we came back together and he lead us through the first part of 1 John 2 and how to have a good relationship with God. I didn't understand everything he said, but I did get most of it. He talked about Jesus being our propitiation for sins and then two things we need to have a good relationship with God are recognizing our sin and confessing it. Rosario's younger sister walked home with us from church, and stayed for chicken soup supper before leaving for her own home just a few minutes away. The first Sunday went really well I think. I hadn't known quite what to expect though. We began with some choruses in Spanish, then dismissed to what I thought were going to be Sunday school classes (and they were, but different). I went with the two ladies, whose names escape me at present, to help in the 3-6 year old class. The lesson was about prayer. We talked about the story of the pharisee and the tax collector who both prayed, but only one was pardoned. The verse was Santiago 5:16b (James 5:16b). After Sunday school was over (it seemed to last an unusually long time) we went down to the sanctuary/auditorium area where I sat with my class. All the children sit in the front with their teachers and the parents and adults sit in the back rows. Each class shared a little about what they learned that morning and the memory verse. We took offering, sang a couple choruses, had announcements and then the service was over. When we left, the Carltons dropped me off at the church my Peruvian family attends and I caught the end of their service too. That afternoon, it was Jose's mom's birthday, so we went to her house with some Pollo Asado and fries to celebrate.I had my first taste of Inca Kola, which is a kind of pop, and some very good chocolate and carmel cake with a little strawberry filling. Very good, very rich. Josías and Kyle played while I took some pictures and chatted with Rolando and Rosario. Then the boys found a caracol, a snail. These things are huge here! I got to hold him (we named him Turbo) in my hand for a while and he came out and started moving around! The evening church service was much like we have in the states, but with more hymns. Monday was our first day of linguistics class and I'm pretty sure that after 2 whole days of speaking only Spanish and that first linguistics class, my brain was about the consistency of Arroz con Leche. But somehow I survived... Today was about the same as yesterday except I visited the market just down the street from my house. There is fresh fruit EVERYwhere! Oh yeah, I also watched the Lego Movie, Frozen, and part of the Hobbit 2 in Spanish since moving in with my family and we listen to the news on the radio every day. On Wednesday, we didn't have a church service. The church I attend has their prayer meeting on Thursdays. Oh Thursday was an adventure! I had gone to the market on again on Wednesday to buy Platanos (a type of banana for frying) for Thursday. Well, on Thursday I started to heat up some oil and sugar, because I had been told that you could add sugar to the oil to make the final product sweeter. But I guess I got the oil too hot or something because the sugar candied and burned. Whoops! Using my quick thinking skills (and maybe just a little help from one of the language helpers) I turned down the heat and was able to fry my platanos, which turned out quite delicious. The past three days Nolan, Kyle, Daniel, and I, have all been attending sessions at BMM Home Office in preparation for our upcoming flight to Peru. We have covered so many things! Culture shock, health precautions and expectations, finances, taxes, and everything else in between. We know where we will each be staying and a few of the cultural do's and don'ts. We practiced our Spanish at a Mexican restaurant. We have spent quite a bit of time together sharing our testimonies and getting to know one another a little bit better. Now, my bags are packed and I'm looking forward to catching the flight to Peru tomorrow afternoon!
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AuthorMy name is Kimberly and I just finished my sophomore year at Faith Baptist Bible College. I am going on this trip because that is where God is leading me at this point in my life. I am in the Elementary Education program at FBBC, and there is a large number of Spanish speakers in U.S. schools as well as Christian schools abroad that need teachers. I am seeking to follow God's leading and to serve Him to the best of the ability He has given me. Archives
February 2016
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