Jojo in the USA... at least for now

where to begin

2011-09-12T13:33:00.000-07:00

I am not really sure how to go about starting this thing up again. But for some reason I don't want to let it go yet. I feel like somehow there's still some sharing left to do. So, as you can see, I gave the page a new look as it is a different season than when I last wrote. If you are reading this I hope that you are experiencing immense blessings from the Lord and finding joy in each day.

Many of you know that I am currently in pursuit of a career in nursing. It has been a bumpy road so far and there have been several disappointments and setbacks. As for now, I am taking some classes at Morehead State Univeristy in preparation for nursing school. I am applying to schools along the way. I am trusting the Lord with all the details... this is not always easy but He knows best. I must constantly remind myself that His way is infinitely better than mine. I ask that you would pray for me as I get back into the swing of classes. I am taking 10 hours worth of classes but each one feels heavy in it's own way. If there is any way in which I can pray for you, feel free to message me or e-mail me at: jojosorrell@gmail.com.

"This is what the LORD says—
   your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel:
""I am the LORD your God,
   who teaches you what is best for you,
   who directs you in the way you should go.""
- Isaiah 48:17

Hallelujah! His ways are best.

Mad love and blessings

I'm baaaaack

2010-11-23T12:23:00.000-08:00

Sooo... I am not quite sure that anyone will be following this as most are aware of my return and a couple of things may happen:

1. They may assume my blogging days are over now that I am back.

2. They may see that my silly rants continue and opt to discontinue tuning in.

Regardless, my news to you is that the blogging will continue. I find it fun. It's also great for me to reflect on things going on in my life and share them with others. Most importantly the cool things that the Lord is doing. I want to share with you a verse that has really been on my heart since I have been back. I am here in Morehead, KY living with parents and I have lots of doubt. I am often unsure about what exactly I should be doing with my life right now. I want to come up with all these grand plans and schemes for what things are going to look like in the coming years. But I know with God... our plans and ideas usually aren't the same as His. So instead, I am learning to resign myself to complete trust in Him. Cause guess what? He's incredible. He has been guiding my life all along.

"Many are the plans in the mind of man,

but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand."

-Proverbs 19:21

God's word is so awesome and it speaks to us exactly where we are... I am thankful for that. I am also thankful to experience my favorite time of the year. This season brings... colorful leaves, cooler weather, pumpkins, hot chocolate, turkey and all the fixins. Something else really cool happens, we get to experience a time of thankfulness and reflecting on God's goodness in our lives. I hope that some of you will think on those things. And your responce with be to give the Lord praise for his goodness and to tell people in your lives the ways that they are blessing you. I can't wait to share some more with you soon.

Mad love.

Blessed month

2010-09-23T10:16:00.000-07:00

I have a lot to catch you guys up on as it has been a pretty busy month. I spent a few weeks living in the village of Huarochiri followed by a research trip. I won't be able to cover it all but what I can tell you for sure is that it has been a amazingly blessed few weeks.

So... Huarochiri was without a doubt one of the richest experiences I have had in a village. It began with uncertainty and days without much to do. However, the plans of the Lord became clear in time. We spent time with a couple of local believers on a regular basis. One of them was an old man, named Nisefero, and he wanted to meet every day... so we did! It was wonderful to see both Nisefero and Rayda (the other believer we met with) growing in the word of the Lord and trusting in Him more each day. Something amazing happened toward then end of our time. A lady came to Rayda to ask about us because she has the desire to read the Bible. We got to know her and spend time with her and she also was a believer! By the end of our time we got together with all three of them and they did a Bible study on their own. Hallelujah! We are praying that their time together will continue and that the Spirit will give them more and more understanding of the word.

An opportunity I was originally not too pumped about, but, which turned out to be one of the coolest was spending time with the children in the primary school. We visited one or two classes each day and taught Bible stories and english. It was unbelievable how they received us and the way they participated, picking up the stories and english quickly and with excitement. Our prayer is that those stories and the lessons about what God did will continue to stick with them... that the truth that they heard will not be forgotten. We pray that their little ears would be closed to any untruth that may come from a variety of sources. We got so close to one of the classes that they through us a party before we left and made us cards and flowers to take with us as a memory. Their gratitude to us was something I had never seen in any other place... I was truly humbled.

If you would like to check out some of the pictures you can see them here:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=233281&id=638611248&ref=mf

I had to switch gears and get into research mode. The research trip went well but because of difficultly of public transportation in the area we were only able to get information from half of the villages on our original list. It was a real bummer leaving and feeling like we weren't able to accomplish all that we had hoped. I resigned myself to the fact that God knows best. We spent our last night as a team (Arturo, Michelle, and I) praying over the places we had been visited and those that we weren't able to visit. There was little gospel presence in the villages and we hope this will change soon if it's in His plan.

I am now enjoying a little time in Lima. I will be heading out for a few days on a mini-vacation to visit some places in the north. My team mostly covers southern Peru so it's time to get a little taste of the north. I will update you at least once more before this journey ends... which is only a little over three weeks away! I have completely mixed feelings at this point. All I know is that God is good. I am soaking up Peru in these last few weeks and am eager to see all of your faces very soon.

MAD LOVE

Been reading through some of the Old Testament books that are little and at the end. It has been awesome. And I wanted to share a verse.

"Fear not, O land; be glad and rejoice, for the Lord has done great things!"

- Joel 2:21

Momma's visit and Huarochiri (try pronouncing that one)

2010-08-18T11:16:00.000-07:00

Friends, the time has come to head out on another trip. But, before I talk about that I just wanted to mention a little bit about the time I spent with my mom when she visited August 2-9. I cannot explain how cool it was to see her come out at the arrival gate in Lima and give her a huge hug. We had the chance over the course of the week to spend time talking and sharing more about what has been going on here and back in the states, to see some of the sights in Lima (some of which I hadn't yet had the chance to see), to eat LOTS of amazing food, to travel to an area about 5 hours away and experience the desert and the sea, to enlighten my mom a little more about the reality of Peru, and what was most significant to me was that we got to love on each other and praise God for how wonderful he has been, is, and will be.

You can check out pictures here:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=199040&id=638611248

So... my next adventure begins tomorrow. I will be part of a team of three serving in a village about 7 hours from Lima called Huarochiri. This was not our original destination, but as is often the case, things changed. My team is made up of Arturo, Ginny, and I. We have had the opportunity to talk with members of the church that comes from the states several times a year to work in this village. They were able to give us many names and specific information on some of the people who are believers, some who are interested in the Word, and others with whom they have had contact but not lots of interest yet. We are excited to see what the Lord has for us there. A Bible study was supposed to have began there a few weeks ago after a team from the church left but we are unsure if that happened. This will be something we will seek to find out and either encourage them to keep it up or try and encourage them to start the study. we will have approximately three weeks in this village before returning to Lima. I would ask for your prayers for this village and my team. We are expecting to be used in big ways and to seek the Lord as we make relationships and share.

This verse always comes to mind when I am preparing myself to head out to a village. I claim this. I pray this. I believe this it true.

"Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think. Glory to him in the church and in Christ Jesus through all generations forever and ever! Amen." -Ephesians 3:20-21

Mad love

I'll be in touch in a few weeks if not before then.

Farewells

2010-08-12T07:27:00.000-07:00

Dear friends it has been some time now and I have much to tell you. It's been a busy couple of months. The Lord continues to shine through all of it and show himself faithful. This hasn't been the easiest season of my time in Peru or of my life for that matter. But I am confident that He has purpose in everything.

"Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand."

-Proverbs 19:21

"For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven"

-Ecclesiastes 3:1

I am gonna go all the way back to late June and pick up there. As you may remember, I was traveling with a couple of college students doing research in some different regions. We had a rough time in the early parts of June and were pretty tired by the time we reached mid-summer and at this time we were able to have a big reunion with all of the summer volunteers and with my close friends that I work with here. The timing of this was perfect and the Lord granted his grace to us with some good rest and time to fellowship with brothers and sisters. We had a time to share stores from the month of June. We had a wildly fun talent show. I did a dance with some friends and some peruvian animal impression. I hope to get a link up of the video so you guys can see it as well.

Shortly after this reunion my team and I headed back to Lima with some of my close friends so that we could wish Ryan, another Journeyman and one of my best friends, farewell. It was a blessing to be with all my dear friends that I have been working with since the beginning of this journey and to celebrate and praise the Lord for how He has used Ryan in Peru and in each of our lives.

Once my team and I worked out a tentative plan for part 2 of the summer we headed back out to Ayacucho to finish up research that we were unable to complete during the first half of the summer due to sickness. The Lord blessed that trip although we were constantly tired from the long travel and started getting sick again. During this time I met a dentist from the states who was visiting Peru and doing some volunteer work in the area. She and I became friends and I helped her out with figuring out some places where she might be able to use her abilities to help the people. Some of you may remember me talking about Domingo and Berta in some previous entries. Domingo is a pastor and Berta is his wife. She also teaches for kindergarten aged children. My dentist friends, Mariana, came to the school where Berta teaches to check out the children's teeth and show them how to properly brush. I was sort of her assistant for the day. It was so cool for me to help out in that way and tough at the same time to see the how bad some of the children's teeth were but to be able to teach them something important was neat. The Lord continues to reveal to me the passion I have in helping people out in a physical, tangible way. Serving them by meeting some of their needs.

The rest of the summer brought more travel and a nearly constant with sickness and fatigue. In our weariness, I petitioned the Lord for energy and strength. He provided. We had to commit ourselves to the work but also to taking rest when we needed it. I'll share with you about one specific village we visited and it was there that we really saw God open some doors. We were in the town of Congalla doing research in mid-July. We had gotten most of our information and it was evening so we walked around town trying to find something to eat. Some young kids approached us and wanted to know if we would like to do an interview of sorts. We complied and spent about an hour talking with them and answering all kinds of different questions. We tried to sing the National Anthem but it didn't go so well, cause we were unaware of how incredibly HIGH it is, hahaha! During the conversation told them about the purpose of our visit. At the end, the Lord gave us the opportunity to pray for them. Hallelujah! My teammate, Sarah, prayed in English and then I translated her prayer and prayed in Spanish. Just one example of how we saw God's faithfulness in our travels.

We made it back to Lima around the 25th of July in order to take all of our information and put it into documents that will be taken to churches in the states with the hope of stirring up interest to adopt these places and come down in order to share with the people in these towns. Towns where there are many lost and confused people who are in desperate need of truth and the word. After finishing all the computer work we reunited once again with all the summer volunteers and had a few days of sharing about the month of July. It was a time of listening, prayer, and fellowship. Most of them left shortly after this time. It was refreshing and inspiring to hear their hearts and see their obedience in spending two moths here and carrying out the purpose that the Lord has set before them.

The last couple of weeks have been crazy including sending off a couple more of my dear Journeyman friends and a week visit from my mom. I hope to write again soon and tell more about the time with my mom and some specific things that the Lord has been teaching me.

Mad Love

One more things... my team and I went through some of Psalms in our time together and the Lord revealed to me how weak I am when it comes to my knowledge of the word. I am working on putting scripture to memory and the Psalm below is where I began. I hope he will continue to challenge me in this way and that I will be obedient to guard the word in my heart.

Psalm 100

Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth!

Serve the Lord with gladness!

Come into his presence with singing!

Know that the Lord, he is God.

It is he who made us, and we are his;

we are his people and the sheep of his pasture.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise!

Give thanks to him; bless his name!

For the Lord is good;

his steadfast love endures forever and his faithfulness to all generations.

A few bumps in the road

2010-06-17T16:56:00.000-07:00

After writing this title I realize that this not only holds figurative meaning as we have come across a few obstacles since our research journeys began but it holds a quite literal meaning as it is a rare occasion to travel on a paved road while traveling in Peru. The majority of our trips are quite literally bumpy the entire way.

Greeting to you all from Ayacucho City. We are back here after a research trip that was cut a little short because one of my teammates came down with a pretty wicked rash. In our time out God showed himself faithful. We saw his constant provision as we were visiting town to town getting information. In the first place we visited after walking around for only a short time the Lord placed a believer in our path who helped us with information on the community, introduced us to other locals, took us to visit the school and share about our mission, and fed us an amazing peruvian meal. Our journey has been marked with divine meetings just like this.

We are so thankful for the people of peace that he continues to put in our paths. We were blessed to have a short visit by a couple of guys from the states. We laughed, traveled, prayed, and even struggled a little with our brothers. It was such a joy to share some with them and to be encouraged by them. We will most likely be heading out again tomorrow for out next destination. Please pray for my teammate who is beginning to get better from his rash and also for me as my body has been a little weak and with some stomach issues in the last day or so. We pray especially for endurance as the travel can be a little grueling. Our little issues do not compare to all our Saviour has done for us so we press on. Hallelujah!

I long to have an earnest desire for the Lord and his word. I long to grow in wisdom and understanding that comes from above. I have found myself struggling in this area. This truly troubles me. I see how this affects me negatively in every aspect of my life. I am taking this request to God in my prayers. I ask that you would also join me in prayer. Pray that I would not neglect my time nor be distracted when I am in the word.

The Lord is walking my through Hosea and Hebrews and I came across this tonight. Praise Him for this truth. I wanted to share it in the language in which I am currently living, Spanish, as well as in my own heart language.

"Ciertamente, la palabra de Dios es viva y poderosa, y más cortante que cualquier espada de dos filos. Penetra hasta lo más profundo del alma y del espíritu, hasta la médula de los huesos, y juzga los pensamientos y las intenciones del corazón. Ninguna cosa creada escapa a la vista de Dios. Todo está al descubierto, expuesto a los ojos de aquel a quien hemos de rendir cuentas."

"For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account."

-Hebrews 4:12-13

Be in touch again soon.
Mad love

ayacucho... let the research begin

2010-06-06T20:47:00.000-07:00

Hello to all you folks who are keeping up with my travels. Hope this finds you doing very well. It´s pretty late here in Ayacucho City in the Andes and the stars are shining bright. When I am this close to the sky I stand outside and say to myself, ¨stop... stop right there, look what your Creator made¨, I cannot tell you of the wonders that I have seen in my time here. I am continually amazed.

My team for the summer is made up of a couple of college students, Eric and Sara. Eric is a student at UNC Charlotte and Sara is at University of West Florida. I think we are going to have a lot of fun together. We laugh a whole lot. I am eager to grow with them, to encourage and be encouraged as we travel and seek after the Lord. We aks for your prayers as we start a pretty rigorous schedule of travel early in the morning.

I doubt that I will have the chance to update a lot in the following months but I can´t wait to catch up again in late July.

Mad love to all

I am clinging to this verse tonight as I am already a little tired and the traveling has hardly begun. You who are weary, find rest in Him.

¨In peace I will lie down and sleep, for you alone, O Lord, will keep me safe.¨
-Psalm 4:8

Good reads

2010-05-26T13:04:00.000-07:00

One of my most earnest desires is to learn from Scripture and have a true passion for God's Word. So I pray this for myself. I would ask you also to pray that I would be grounded in the Word before all else.

Apart from this I am interested in reading about the lives of others and the experiences people all over the world have had. Books have the ability to do just this. They can take you into a whole different world and allow you to view something from a completely different perspective.

I wanted to share with you guys a goal that I made for myself in late February. The goal is to read at least one book per month for the rest of the year.

Here are a couple of books I have read up to this point and wanted to tell you about:

1. Open - the autobiography of Andre Agassi. As you may know I love the sport of tennis. Not just playing, which I rarely get to do at this juncture of life, but watching as well. The life of this tennis icon is most interesting. A life filled with experiences that someone like me can hardly imagine. A huge part of his life involved pain... not just the physical kind because of injuries but the kind in your heart because of things that you go through. Now this is not just a downer of a book, I laughed and smiled a lot too.

2. A Million Miles in a Thousand - the newest book by Donald Miller. This book is about story. What it looks like to live a better story and to be a person of character. I can't tell you how many chapters I read and my mouth just dropped open. Such an applicable book to us as believers.

Lambrama and Alis

2010-05-23T21:56:00.000-07:00

During the early parts of May I spent a week in a village called Lambrama and later in the month a week in the village of Alis. I dealt with some sickness in the middle of these trips which made the time spent in each place a little shorter than I had hoped. But I the Lord was moving.

It was in Lambrama that I saw some of the most amazing things I have yet seen in Peru. Set between and surrounded by enormous mountains this place reminded me of the beauty of His creation and we were in awe of his majesty each and every day just by opening our door to see outside. After only a short time there we recognized God working. A young woman named Celia came to the Lord... Praise God for using us to share the gospel with her and to begin the process of discipleship. We made a solid relationship with a man named Dino and encouraged him in his walk with the Lord, we recognized in him a potential for a leader and strong christian male presence which is key to seeing the Church rise up. Through him we met a lady named Josefa who was over 100 years old. We helped in giving her a bath, cleaning the blankets that she slept on, and tidying the small room she inhabits. It was life-giving for me to have the chance to help Josefa in such a tangible way. She truly needs our prayers because she sometimes goes without food or care for days when Dino is not in town. He is the only person who is committed in aiding her and making meals to take to her home. Josefa is so desperate and in a given day mostly thinks about her desire for death to come quickly. We told her of the gospel and that there is a hope for the hopeless. We shared out of obedience not knowing if she would understand. For we trust that the Word does not return void. For all that happened there I am so very thankful. Please say a pray for these people and this village.

My time in Alis was also a blessing in several ways and I'd like to share a couple of those ways. The first is a blessing that reoccurs in most any place I go but I long to never take it for granted. The Lord's creation is in a word, marvelous. I have never seen a place as beautiful as this place in my entire existence. Yet again I was overwhelmed with the beauty I saw in the mountains, trees, rivers, birds, flowers. Thank you Creator. The second is the beauty that I saw in His people. The believers who lead a group in the town are named Juan and Delia. These people are the most solid believers I have met in Peru. Individuals earnestly seeking the will of the Lord. Looking to scripture to receive wisdom and understanding on what the life a follower should look like. These folks challenge and encourage me in my own walk. And though we are from starkly different backgrounds I found myself talking to them about the same issues that I often deal with in my own life. Again, I can only be thankful for a chance to have spent time in places like this with people like that.

Mad love

On the road again soon

2010-04-15T11:28:00.000-07:00

Well my dear friends. Since the last time I updated you much has happened. I served for a month in the village of Bella Union. Some wonderful things happened there including quality time and bible study with some believers there. The Lord used us to get them to start coming together as the church again before we left. It was one of the first time that I have seen some really tangible things that the Lord did in a village. It was hard to leave the people that we had been spending our time with but it was also really neat and comforting to know that even if we never saw them again we would be in Heaven together.

The time in Bella Union also brought on some adversity. We had some folks we were staying with who came up against our work and discouraged us. We tried to be a light to this family but it wasn't easy. From this situation I am learning even more about what it is to love people and to love them unconditionally. Even if they are coming up against you or if they are hard to love. The Lord was speaking to me a lot with 1 John 4. It talks a lot about what it truly means to love others and what it looks like. I still have so much to be taught and I am looking forward to the Lord sharpening me and molding me even more. I am praying for a humble Spirit and one that does not resist changes that He wants to make with me.

This break brought about another amazing experience as I got to take a trip with some dear friends up north to the beach. We were able to relax and enjoy the beach and the breeze. God's creation is unbelievably amazing and we were thankful to enjoy it and rest in Him. Part of this trip was to celebrate a last few days with a friends who headed to Haiti just this morning. I am so thankful for his life and I am praying for him as he enters a whole new environment where he will serve for at least 6 months. I am now prepping to head back out again, most likely tomorrow afternoon. God is so good in continuing to bless me with opportunities and ways to serve here. Pray for us as we learn about the work that the Lord has for us in this new village in the department of Cusco. Pray that we will dive into the work. Update coming again as soon as possible.

MAD LOVE

I was reminded of this passage as I wrote today:

"I tell you, love your enemies. Help and give without expecting a return. You'll never—I promise—regret it. Live out this God-created identity the way our Father lives toward us, generously and graciously, even when we're at our worst. Our Father is kind; you be kind."

-Luke 6:35-36 (The Message)

Firsts

2010-03-13T12:16:00.000-08:00

I am safely in the village now and currently in a nearby village getting some groceries and using the internet. I have experienced a few firsts this time around and wanted to share:

- Desert/coast weather (so much different than mountains)
- Olives as the primary crop
- Wearing sandals without freezing or putting socks on with sandals
- Sweating day and night
- A huge back porch at the place where we are staying (such a blessing to read, journal, and have prayer time with my team)
- Internet nearby
- Warm shower

So much different from some of the places I have been before. I am counting it all as a blessings. What is huge and different in some ways about this place is how open and friendly the people have been with us. I am so looking forward to time with folks we have met including a number of believers. Pray for us as we continue to meet people and allow the Lord to use us. Pray that we can really dive into the work as we only have a few weeks.

Mad Love

OH YEAH... and GO CATS!!! I am cheering them on from here even though I hardly know what`s going on.

Bella Union

2010-03-09T13:54:00.000-08:00

Well I wanted to let you guys know that I am heading to the town of Bella Union tomorrow. I have made part of my journey and will finish traveling tomorrow. I am excited to work again with Michelle and we are with a guy named Martin from Peru. We are excited to see what the Lord has in store for us there. A team from the states will be coming down to be with us in a couple of weeks. I have not worked with a states team in their village so I am looking forward to that time as well and talking with them about the work. Pray for us this month that we will be bold and sense the Lord's leading as we get to know the people and share.

MAD LOVE

Reflections on Chupa

2010-03-05T06:23:00.000-08:00

Well I am back in Lima now for a short break after spending a month in the village of Chupa in the department of Puno. I have been able to spend some time reflecting on my time there and wanted to share with you guys some of the things that went on while I was there. The Lord has been teaching me lots lately so I wanted to share some of that too.

As you might know I spent my time in Chupa with another girl from the states named Michelle and a peruvian guy names Lidman. Things got off to a pretty slow start. It was hard for me because I think the people were least responsive or interested in talking with us and meeting us than any other place I had ever been. I am use to at least curiosity on the part of the people even if they may not want to talk to us about their beliefs. But curiosity about us didn't really seem to be there either. We continually prayed for God's direction and guidance in showing us where he could use us. We knew of a couple groups of believers that were meeting as the church in a couple of surrounding villages so we went in the first week to see if we could find some these folks and maybe spend some time sharing a encouraging them. We found a group of about 10 in a village called Chocos and in the village of Kututuni we found a pastor and he told us there was 20 meeting in their group. This was such a blessing to us and gave us a sense of purpose. We spent weekends visiting these groups. We told them bible stories and discussed the things we were learning from the stories. We challenged the believers to be obedient to those stories and to try and put them to memory so that they could share with family, friends, and neighbors. The response to the stories and our time with them was most positive. We thank the Lord for their hearts and desires to learn the Word. We will continue to be in prayer for these church groups. In the village of Chupa we were able to spend some time with individual believers and sharing with kids. We were also thankful for that time but we are praying that the Lord will really begin to move there and that the few believers will understand the need to meet with other believers and share the good news with those around them. My friend Lidman will continue to work their and prepare for a medical team that is coming to the states at the end of this month. We are praying for him. That he will find strength in the Lord and always follow after the Lord's guidance for the work.

The Lord was teaching me a lot this month about wisdom. I have been reading in Proverbs and also in 1 Samuel. I am seeing a lot of repetition about seeking wisdom and understanding. And not just the kind that gives you earthly knowledge or knowledge of things. But the knowledge that comes from God. The kind that allows us to truly seek after His own heart. The kind that allows us to show love and sincerity to those around us. I am still working through a lot of it and the repetition of it is really good for me in the scripture cause it is a constant reminder. I was also reading in 1 Samuel about how were are to seek first to the obedient to our God and his Word. To do what he is leading us to do to heed the things that He is teaching us. Obedience comes before all else including sacrifice and Saul had to learn that the hard way. I think that is such a huge lesson. Truly seeking obedience. The same day that I read about this my team and I were reading in Romans and there was a similar message in the passage. It is so cool how God affirms and reiterates in the New Testament ideas that he was using during the Old Testament. And in Romans this whole idea of being obedient to the Lord is taking us through this process that is sanctification. I am so thankful that the Lord is revealing, teaching, and walking with me in the this sanctification process.

Right now as I am here in Lima I am preparing to head out again soon. More than likely I will be on my way to the mountains again sometime this weekend. Pray for my teammate Michelle and I as we discern where the Lord is leading us to go and more than likely a new team member. I will update you all again once I know the location where we are headed and the name of my other team member.

MAD LOVE

Rapìdo

2010-02-20T08:23:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone!

Just wanted to give you a quick update. We are headed to Chupa this afternoon for our last week or so there. I ask that you would pray for us because tomorrow (Sunday) we will be meeting with some believers in a village outside of the one where we live to encourage and train them. Pray also that we would be able to encourage and share with those in Chupa. It has been a sort of slow with ministry but we are praising God for this opportunity and planting seeds. I will be in touch again soon.

Mad Love

Back to the Mountains at Last

2010-02-05T14:59:00.000-08:00

It's been quite a while since I updated everyone. I have spent the last few months in Lima and also took a short trip to the states to spend some time with my family in Florida. It has been a wonderful time or reflection over the past year and enjoying time with my teammates. It was so life giving to vacation in Florida for the holidays. I got to see a couple of college friends who came down as well. The Lord knew that I needed that time to get filled up on my love tank and get lots of hugs from people that mean so much to me.

During January we spent a couple of weeks training a new group of semester volunteers that will be serving with us through May. I am not actually serving with any of them but it was great to pour into them about the work in the mountains and where we have seen the Lord working. I am excited to hear about their experiences in the coming months. As for me, I am heading out early in the morning to serve for a few weeks in the department of Puno in a town called Chupa.

I have a few prayer requests for you guys as I head out. One of the things that I have become apprehensive about some during my time here is team dynamic. I know how important it is to have team members with the same heart and common goals so that the Lord can use us in the most effective way. I have been on teams where that hasn't always come naturally or some issues have surfaced. I ask you to pray that the Lord would knit us together in such a way that we compliment each other a uphold one another. We want the people not to just hear about Christ with our words but to see it in the ways that we love one another.

"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."

-John 13:34-35

I will be back in Lima for a brief time in early March and will look forward to updating you guys about this trip and what will be coming up for me. Mad love you all!

2009-12-24T06:45:00.001-08:00

It has been another blessed month. Some opportunities that the Lord has placed in my life in the last month have been working at an orphanage outside of Lima, helping teach english for a group of young people, and having down time here in Lima with my team members (seen above). I has been praying for the Lord to open up some way to get connected here in the city while here for the holidays. And he was faithful. Another blessing is coming up for me as I will be traveling to see my family in Florida in only a couple of days.

So this is me wishing each of you a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. I know that I won't be seeing many of you during the holiday season but I am thinking of you and praying for you. This has been such an awesome year for me. Full of many new experiences and learning how to do life in Peru. The Lord has taught me so much and for that I am thankful. I am also thankful for each of you and your prayer and support. I am praying during this season that I can share the love to those around me that was shown to me when Christ was sent to earth. I have been reading in 1 John and would like to share just a short bit with you.

"This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him." 1 John 4:9 (NSV)

Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another." 1 John 4:11 (ESV)

Still here

2009-11-20T15:44:00.000-08:00

Well it's been almost a month. I wanted you all to know that I am still here. Following my trip to Spain I spent a couple of weeks out of town. Now that I am back in Lima I am eager to catch you guys up a little on what has been going on with me and more importantly what the Lord has been doing. More than likely I will be here in Lima for a month or two as there are some things our team will be doing to prepare semester missionaries in January and we are going to enjoy the holidays all together in Lima. I am so very thankful for this upcoming time to be with team and to have some down time.

I never really got to fill you in much on my vacation to Spain. I'll take this time to tell you that it was one of the coolest vacations I have ever done. My friend Brittne and I visited the capital city of Madrid and then headed to the coast to see Barcelona. We kept ourselves super busy because we wanted to see as much as we could in the week that we had. I was wonderful to experience a country that I studied at length in college. I saw Spanish history come to life as I looked at paintings of famous artists in museums, walked through palaces of past kings, looked at building of famous architects, and stood on ground where it all went down. A couple of other highlights were going into La Sagrada Familia (a church designed by the architect Gaudi) and riding mopeds throughout Barcelona. I was so thankful to get away and to see some of the world and the wonderful creation of God. I hope I can go back someday and maybe even visit some other parts of Europe.

Following this trip I came to Lima for only a day or so and headed to a pastors training in an area about 9 hours from Lima called Ayacucho City. It was great for me to see meet and share time with some other believers who are excited to learn more and spread the gospel into their respective communities. We talked about storying the Bible and ways to plant simple churches. What an encouragement and blessing to see nationals living out their faith.

Following this trip I went to another part of Peru with my friend Brittne and three members of a church from the states. This church from Alabama is interested in adopting an area and they came down to check out a specific village and begin to for a vision for how they can bring the gospel their and how to prepare the people of their church for a culture and setting completely different from their own. It was neat to see a fresh perspective and passion for the people of Peru. I was reminded and affirmed by them in my love for these people and in the call that the Lord has placed on my life for this time.

Now I am back here in Lima. We have finally settled into a new apartment after all the chaos with the fire that happened in our apartment. I have a wonderful family down here in my team, they have helped us in all the moving around and all the drama that has surrounded this incident. It's also been so great to have the ability to regularly communicate with my family in KY, they have also loved and supported me through this busy and chaotic few weeks.

In all of this the Lord has urged me to claim this verse:

"Rejoice in the Lord always, again I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." -Philippians 4:4-7

Home from Spain

2009-10-23T09:00:00.000-07:00

Wanted to let you know that I made it home from an absolutely wonderful trip from Spain. It was such a blessing to get away, see some of the world and enjoy God's creation, and meet some cool people. I will be updating again very soon.

Be praying for me and my team as we are preparing for a pastor training in Ayacucho this coming week. We will be heading there on Sunday and stay for a little less than a week. Many blessings to all of you.

I'd like to add that if there is ever anything specific that I can be praying about for any of you then please let know through a comment or e-mail.

MAD LOVE

My new birthday tune

2009-10-13T09:43:00.000-07:00

So when I woke up on my birthday I was thinking... I would really like for someone to sing to me or hear a birthday song, hahaha! I got my computer and checked my Itunes library to see if there might be anything. I found this fun little song from the wonderful decade that is the 80's. If any of you are having a birthday I would highly recommend this songs. It was just the perfect way to start of a birthday!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=40K2S0-5Xo0

Strange Days

2009-10-13T09:20:00.000-07:00

So the last fews weeks have been a little crazy and weird for me. I got back from a research trip about a week ago (more details on that trip to come) and was enjoying down time at the apartment where we stay in Lima, trying to catch up on things. On Saturday of last week, in the afternoon, some men came to install a gas tank so that we would have gas for our stove and for hot showers. Not long after they had come and gone something happened with the gas tank or with the hot water heater and a sort of explosion/fire took place in the house. I managed to get out of there before it all happened. I can be nothing but thankful to the Lord for getting me out and also that there was not much damage to our house and most of our belongings were just fine.

The time following this incident has been trying for me. I was initially overwhelmed, in shock and later just wore out. This feeling of being wore out seems to linger. But my family here has been so encouraging and hospitable. Since all the events, I've been blessed with a place to stay with a missionary family until things get worked out and we can move to another location. I want to ask for your prayers as I continue to work through this emotionally and also as I try to work with the police and our organization on getting down to exactly what happened and what can be done.

I have been learning more and more about my necessity to depend on the Lord for absolutely everything. I have been depending on him specifically for strength, for comfort, for healing, for rest, for guidance, for joy... I pray that each of you are also depending on the Lord wherever you are and whatever you might be experiencing.

As some of you may now I recently celebrated my 24th birthday. It was amazing to spend time with friends here and to celebrate life. I can't tell you how thoughtful my team has been and how much support and love I was shown for my birthday. It was hard to be away from family as always. I got to talk to my family on skype the day after my birthday and it was life-giving to hear their voices and see their faces.

I am heading out tomorrow on a little adventure/vacation to Spain. Which is actually kind of big for me and really exciting as I have never been to Europe. I will be there for a week with a friend of mine that I work here in Peru. It is going to be such a blessing to get away for a bit and enjoy the Lord's creation and have a time of rest and relaxation. Love you all and will be posting again soon.

Off to research in Apurimac

2009-09-16T08:33:00.000-07:00

Well I am off to begin research in some villages in the department of Apurimac, province of Grau. Ryan, Mandy, and I are going to try and get into 12 different villages in the next couple of weeks. We will be back in Lima round the 5th of October as Ryan will be preparing to go on another trip and I will be preparing for a short trip to Spain!

I ask that you would all be in prayer for us as we travel and try to find out lots of information. We are confident that the Lord will provide people for us to talk with, places to stay, and food for our bellies. I am also in prayer for all of you. Love you all and miss you very much!

I wanted to give a shout out to Uncle Vernon because I know he has been keeping up with me so well and trying to pinpoint to the rest of the family all the places that I have traveled to on a map. I thank you so much for your interest and support in what I am doing and especially your many prayers!

Be in touch soon.

Mad Love

Loong time no hear

2009-09-10T15:34:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone! I hope that each of you has had a wonderful summer and that you are enjoying the transition to fall. I have to be really honest and say that I am deeply going to miss the fall in the states. My home is such a wonderful place in that fall. I am thinking of the bright oranges, reds, and yellows that cover the yard and hills all around my house and the mums and pumpkins everywhere! If you know me then you most likely know that I love anything that has to do with pumpkin. So enjoy some pumpkin carving or pumpkin delights or pumpkin pie for me!

I wanted to catch you up just a little as to what I have been up to the past months and weeks. I spoke in a previous post about how I had been working for the months of June and July with a couple of college students from the states. That was such a blessing to me to be able to travel with them and also to get into doing research. I was able to visit over 20 villages and make friendships with people in hopes that the gospel will be spread in these places in the near future. I continue to think about those people I have met and pray that they will be reached soon. It was a wonderful time of growing. The Lord continues to give me such a love for the people here in Peru and a desire to serve.

After my two research buddies headed back home for a break before they started school again I remained in Lima for a few weeks and was able to reflect on summer and on all I had learned about research and how it works here and how I can improve as a part of the research team. I also got to meet and spend time with my new teammate, Mandy, with whom I will most likely be serving for most of the rest of my term. It was great to get to know here a bit and talk to her about all I had learned here and what she was in for. It was also such a blessing to get to be here, to eat some good food, to take hot showers and to cook. Some of the things that aren't always possible when I am in the village. AND get this... during the month of July I went a total of about 16 days WITHOUT a shower! WOW, I never thought I would see the day as I am normally a pretty clean girl. But it was actually not that bad but I was reeeeaaaal dirty by the end of over two weeks. I am sure that you are all trying to picture that and it was not pretty and you are probably even a little disgusted which is totally fine cause I was too. But I am thinking it will probably happen again and I may even try to exceed the 16 days at some point in the time I have left.

In mid-August Mandy, another brother who has served here for over three years, Steve, and I went to a region of Peru called Puno to finish up some research that my summer team was unable to finish as we had experienced some illness toward the end of July (some of you may have heard about my bout with the flu... it was icky but God is good and I am healthy as a horse). I was eager to get to work with Mandy and "teach her the ropes" and to get to work with Steve who has been her for a lot of time and served in a lot of different capacities. We researched in four villages that were all very far and we had to take buses and truck rides that would last more than 8 hours one way which wasn't always easy. The Lord was so faithful to provide us with food, shelter, transportation and people to talk to as we visited each place. We did a 10-hour hike to one of the villages which I am now referring to as "my new Everest". It was a difficult hike and at high elevation so it was a struggle but we made it and were so thankful for the time outdoors and just enjoying God's creation and thanking him that we made it! Another funny thing that happened was when we had to ride in a cargo truck from one village because there was no other form of transportation coming through for many days. Sooo we hopped in and rode through the evening and some of the night and it got incredibly cold but again God provided and some people in a town that we passed through gave us some blankets to cover up with. I have no doubt that it would have been a pretty miserable trip without having had those blankets. It has been so amazing to have such tangible ways that the Lord has been providing all along the way. I praise God for all that he has done.

Well that catches you up quite a bit on what has been going on with me recently. I am sorry that these posts are often few and far between but I love being able to tell you about what I have been up to and how God has been working. I hope that wherever you are that the Lord is also teaching you and blessing you. I love you all and will try to update you as soon as I can. I should be heading out in the next day or so to do research for a month or so in a region called Apurimac.

MAD LOVE

Slideshow

2009-08-07T20:56:00.000-07:00

Found a new little gadget to add to the blog... check it out! ---->

More to come soon.

Mad love!

Lots of traveling

2009-07-12T15:44:00.000-07:00

So since I last posted I have been all over the place and visited over 17 villages and have since more of Peru in the last month and a half than the entire first 4 months or so. I have two wonderful traveling buddies. We have had a great time serving together and learning a lot as we go.

Research basically involves going into a village which statistics from past years tell us is less than 2% evangelized. Once in the village we begin to find basic information on that village. We seek to find information about what the primary language is (spanish or quechua), whether or not the people in the community are literate, where could a volunteer team stay if a they came to the village, is there a medical facility, are there schools, what kind of needs do the people have, and one of the most important elements is finding out if there is a church or believers in the village. Basically we get a good mental picture of what that particular village is like. We also take lots of photos. Once we have our info we spend time talking more with people around the village and making some relationships and seeking out any believers that we have heard of or trying to make sure there are none. Normally the research takes no more than a day or so. All of the info on a particular village is then put into the little hp computer that we carry with us and these "reports" will later be put into a physical form and shown to churches in the states in hopes that the villages will be adopted.

I have really enjoyed learning about how to do research and the importance of really getting a good idea of each village and what makes them different and significant. It is often really hard to leave places because of how well we are recieved and the fact that we know so many people are lost in each and every place. We have developed a strong passion to continue praying for each of the places we go and the specific people we meet. We know that God has big plans for each and every village.

I hope to tell you some specific stories in the near future. I should be back in Lima at the end of July and will look foward to updating this more as well as posting tons of pictures on my flickr.

OH by the way I totally got to visit Macchu Picchu last month with my team and it was amazing! The Lord has blessed us with so many opportunities to see his beautiful creation and we are really thankful for that!

MAD LOVE

2009-06-01T10:08:00.000-07:00

Another light note before getting on to the serious stuff again. I wanted to share with everyone some cultural differences that I have found to be quite amusing. A friend and I were discussing some of these so it has been a cooperative effort to put a couple of examples together.

The first is that the majority of Peruvians believe that if you drink a cold beverage you will get sick with a cold. This explains why all beverages here are warm. It is very difficult to find a beverage that has been refrigerated. Maybe their logic is that if something cold goes inside your body that your body is bound to get cold and then sick. However, in some villages (like that of some of my co-workers but none of the ones that I personally have stayed in for a significant period of time) they eat ice-cream all the time which would clearly oppose this reasoning. So the mystery remains on why Peruvians think this way. So when one is in the mountains of Peru you can just plan on always drinking lukewarm or hot beverages.

One that shocked me initially but eventually became my favorites is how being called “fat” is not offensive. It’s like calling someone tall or short. It’s a fact about someone. But, being an American, it makes for an awkward moment when someone calls someone else fat who is standing right there. It’s only natural for one to want respond by saying “No you’re not fat” even though, let’s face it, this person probably is overweight and they are most likely not offended whatsoever. However, we know from our own experience that in the states words such as this can get a person slapped across the face. Another example of how this is not offensive is that some Peruvians may refer to a female family member, such as their mother or sister, as “Gordita”. This translates into English as “fatty” or “chubs”. But for them it is kind of like a term of endearment or a way to show affection to someone with which they are close.

I am lovin' Peru. More to come soon.

2009-05-24T20:31:00.000-07:00

New photos available from my second village experience in Tambo. Check them out at http://www.flickr.com/photos/jessjojosorrell/.

A little fun

2009-05-19T07:54:00.000-07:00

So... Here I am in Lima again. I am really looking forward to a week break or so before summer missionaries arrive and then travel begins full force again. I hope all is well with each one of you and that you are enjoying Spring. I am going to be catching you all up on what's been going on in the next few days!

I also would like to share something with each of you that you may or may not know about me. I have a slight obsession with youtube. In light of this I thought I would share with you some of my favorite videos! Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nda_OSWeyn8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yHBwi_CGQ-k

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PIpsHrlWuoA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a_zK2apRHI4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q9yAkBSrMk0&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lj3iNxZ8Dww

I suppose that is enough for now, hahaha!

2009-04-04T09:48:00.000-07:00

Well I am here in Lima. I am in anticipation for my next trip for which I will be leaving sometime tomorrow! I am heading to a small town called Tambo. It is actually close to where I was these last two months. The travel time should be about 11 hours. I will be going there with three other guys. It is gonna be interesting to be with all guys for a month but they are really great and I have no doubt that the Lord is gonna use us in awesome ways. Please be in prayer for us as we head out and begin a new journey! The guys names are Rob, Josh, and Chris. They have spent a couple of weeks in this village and are excited to return. I am looking forward to getting to work with the women and possibly teaching english in the schools.

I would like to take some time and talk about all the things that went on in the last couple of months in Santiago de Chocorvos. We made some really awesome relationship with a number of folks in that village and toward the last few weeks we were meeting and hanging out with some pretty regularly. I was really blessed by a number of situations. One of which was with a lady named Pilar. Pilar had two young kids and lived with them and her husband and her brother-in-law. We were able to share stories with her on a number of occasions. One specific time that was awesome was when we were sharing the story of Joseph. We did the story in two part and when we came to share the second part she had already read it and told the whole story to us! We were amazed and rejoicing that the Lord was giving her a passion and desire to read the Word! We are praying that he will continue to do that.

We also spent a lot of time with a lady named Marcelina. She loved to hear us sing. Salomon had his guitar with us and we learned a number of praise songs in spanish so we would go and sing all of our songs with here and then share either a story or read scripture verses. Sometimes it was hard because she would be really tired. But I know that the Lord was using us and that she was understanding much of what we said. I feel like her heart was in wonder about what the Word said and about the stories. In the last week she told us that she found out she has pancreatic cancer. We were alarmed at the news but were able to pray with her and let her know that the Lord can be her refuge and strength. I am continuing to pray for her and her family as she learns more about the cancer. Please pray for her as well.

I was so blessed by a number of people in this village and made some relationships that were really hard to leave. I don't know if the Lord will ever take me back there but I would love to visit again at some point during my time here.

It is really hard for my to sum this up. There were so many amazing and fun experiences. I have decided that I am just gonna bullet some sweet memories that I would like to share:

Making pancakes with two families as well as a young lady that I became friends with
Playing cards and Phase 10 with various people in the village in the evenings
Purchasing the movie Fireproof and passing it around so that various people could see a godly perspective on problems in a marriage... the response and questions that developed from the movie were amazing
Going to work in the fields on numerous occasions and doing tasks that included: picking potatoes, leveling the ground to sow seed, gathering wood to carry back for cooking, picking pumpkins
NO electricity for days at a time
Showers once a week with only cold water
Eating enough potatoes and rice to last me for the rest of my life
Spending a day by the river with some of the kids
Teaching english to the kindergartners
Playing volleyball with government workers and locals in the afternoons

Needless to say the Lord really blessed me and taught me a lot! It was hard to be away from family and without a way to talk regularly with them but we made it through. I can't wait to see what is in store for this next month in Tambo. I hope that this finds you all well. I will be blogging again in early May when I get back to Lima. The first of May will mark a transition for me as I will be starting research projects and will hopefully be doing research primarily from here on out.

Mad Loooooove

Psalm 62:5-7

"Find rest, O my soul, in God alone;

my hope comes from him.

He alone is my rock and my salvation;

he is my fortress, I will not be shaken.

My salvation and my honor depend on God;

he is my mighty rock, my refuge."

2009-04-02T13:21:00.000-07:00

Hello from Lima!

I am gonna be here a short time longer before heading out on another trip to the mountains but I will be writing a long blog about my first trip this evening or tomorrow.

I have a flickr site now so that you can all check out some photos from my first village trip. Here's the web address: www.flickr.com/jessjojosorrell

Mad love

First month of village life

2009-03-07T05:14:00.000-08:00

So my team and I have enjoyed a quick break here in Ica, Peru at the Huacachina Lake. We were able to meet up with another team that is serving closeby. We have had a wonderful, relaxing time here. One of the highlights was yesterday afternoon when we went on a sand buggy/sand boarding adventure! We were in this huge buggy and we went over the dunes at high speeds and then would stop on huge hills so that everyone could get out and either sandboard or the slightly more fun and maybe safer choice which was sand sledding, haha! I chose the latter but it was soooo fun and the board would go super fast. I have some sweet scrapes on my elbows and knees as proof. We also got to see the dessert sunset before heading back. The Lord's creation never ceases to amaze me. I never knew that there was dessert and large sand dunes in Peru. I always thought of Egypt when I thought of sand dunes and dessert. Needless to say it was beautiful. I will be posting pictures as soon as I get back to Lima in a month from this trip and from the village!

Now this is gonna be the hard part... trying to sum up an entire month in Santiage de Cochorvos. Let me just say first that the Lord is definitely working in this village and I think He still has big ways that he is going to use us in this coming month. We have met some great folks and we are looking foward to spending more time with them. The early parts of the trip were a little slow going as we spent the majority of our time trying to get to meet a many folks as we could and getting initial relationships in place. The town is not a highly populated town and especially during this time of the year as it is the rainy season and many families go to the coast to work for a bit and are in and out of the village. We met some sweet children early in our time and were able to spend quite a bit of time with them in the afternoons. And during the days we would often just walk through the streets and go into some stores or houses to spend time with sharing testimonies, scripture, and prayer. This continued to be a regular thing for the first few weeks. Some days were really awesome and other days were harder because we may not get to visit a lot with people if they were busy or even out of town.

We took a trip to one of the small villages about a 4 hour hike from our village to spend some time with them and encourage some folks there. Salomon has been there before and new of some families that he hoped to visit. We had a really great time there and shared with a number of families and encouraged the believers that were already in the village. We hiked quite a bit each day, which I really loved and stayed in tents for about 4 nights. There was only an outhouse and no showers, haha!

We headed back to Santiago expecting madness because there was to be a big carnival taking place for about four days. Soon after we settled back in the crowds began to file in and there was loud music and dancing in the street for basically four days straight. These people were nuts... I think the only reason they lasted was because there bodies were numb from all the alcohol they had been drinking. We spent most of this time praying and taking some time during all the madness to begin memorizing bible stories to share. Once the carnival was over we started our daily visiting up and began sharing stories as well. I am so excited about the beginning our storying in homes with people as I think the Lord is really going to use it. We are really hoping to get some sort of bible study going where we could share stories with a group of people but we are really gonna need to the Lord to guide us and to capture the hearts of the people. Please be in prayer for our visits with the people and that He would help us to continue learning the stories.

On another note... lanuage has been going well. I continue to learn by messing up and by just listening to the native speakes. It was hard to talk about spiritual things in the early parts as I had never really been used to speaking with that sort of vocabulary. That is another place that I would like to ask you continue to pray for me. That I will continue learning and begin bold and letting the Lord use me even when I am not sure of myself. And somethng else really cool is that I have been learning some quechua which is a language used by folks in various parts of the mountain... it is way different from spanish but the people love to teach us and so we always try to get involved. It is definitely an area of pride and interest for them and a huge part of their identity and history.

Oh man... so I don't know how great of a synopsis that was but I think I am going to leave it at that. I just want to let you all know that I am feeling your prayers as I go and I take each one of you with me. I pray for you all as well and I hope that the Lord continues to bless each one of you. Please continue to pray for me and my team as we go back to Santiago. We are looking foward to the Lord using us in awesome ways and changing our lives as well as lives of people in the village.

Mad love
I miss you all
Look foward to getting more to you in a month and I will post pictures as well!

I just finished the book called "The Shack" and I loved this quote and found it to relevant to life right now...

"You can kiss your family and friends good-bye and put miles between you, but at the same time you carry them with you in your heart, your mind, your stomach, because you do not just live in a world but a world lives in you." --Frederick Buechner, Telling the Truth

A little break

2009-03-05T09:19:00.000-08:00

Hey everybody

I am in Ica, Peru for a few days. My team and another team have met up to hang out and fellowship a little before our second month in the village. I think we are gonna go sandboarding today. I am gonna do a big blog before I head back and let you all know how things have been going in the village. Maaaad love

Miss you all very much

How beautiful on the mountains

2009-02-02T05:52:00.000-08:00

It's early Monday morning and after additional training, great fellowship with my team at a prayer retreat and a fun super bowl party I am about to start packing up for my first village trip. Our departure should be for sometime tomorrow evening or possibly early Wednesday morning. I am so thankful for this opportunity and eager to see how the Lord is going to use my team and I in the village of Santiago de Chocorvos.

I am part of a team of three. It is made up of Salomon, Tiffany and I. Salomon is a peruvian and he has traveled as a translator numerous times and has some experience in the village to which we are going. He will serve as leader of the team. He speaks english well and will be a huge help as we may not understand everything in the early weeks. Tiffany is a college student and she is taking this semester to serve in Peru. I admire her willingness and excitement to do the work of the Lord. I think we are gonna have a great team dynamic.

My team and I will be spending approximately two months in the village. We hope to meet believers in the town and see where they are in relationship with Christ and begin some discipleship and bringing up strong believers, even leaders. We want to continually be spreading the gospel to those who do not believe. We are also looking forward to beginning some ministry with the children. One of the biggest ways we will reach the people is through storying the Bible. We are going to be learning and memorizing numerous stories in spanish and sharing them with the people daily. The Lord has already blessed my team as we practiced storying here in Lima for the past few weeks. The people of this culture really respond to the stories and He is going to use it in an awesome way in the villages.

I would like to give you some very specific prayer requests as this journey begins. My team and I need your prayer more than ever if we are going to see lives and villages changing and turning to Christ.

Prayer requests:

- safe travels to the village

- Salomon

- Tiffany

- the people of Santiago de Chocorvos and then surrounding area, that the Lord will prepare their hearts for receiving the good news

- fluency in the language

- good health

- a personal passion to grow in the Lord through scripture and prayer each day

- my family as I may have very little contact with them

- the other teams that will be traveling to villages in the south of Peru

I am praying with boldness and confidence about what the Lord is going to do and claiming this verse:

"Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all that we ask or imagine, according to the power that is at work in us, to him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen." -Ephesians 3:20-21

May love never end

2009-01-22T12:02:00.000-08:00

I have to confess that most of the times on here I am letting you know all the great things have been going on and leaving out the messier, harder parts. It's absolutely true that the Lord has provided many blessings in the last 20 days that I have spent in Peru. But there have been some struggles and emotions that I have been working through. And what I have found is that this time in Lima before traveling has been the Lord's time to help me found my foundation and worth in Him.

I have had more free time than I had expected. I have been using that time to hang out and get to know my new team members, get settled in my apartment, learn the city, practice spanish, and also to talk a lot with family back home. A few times while talking to my mom I have found myself swelling with emotion followed by a good cry. And then right away she begins to cry as well, something that is pretty normal with my family... one cries we all cry. Spending time with Lord and in prayer as well as talking further with my family, friends, and fellow missionaries on the field in other places. I am so very thankful for struggle because of the lessons learned. Now I know that if I am gonna get through this adventure, that often seems overwhelming, I am going to have to fully depend on the Lord.

These last few days have been training days as my first trip is a little over a week away! I am so excited for what is in store in the villages. We are specifically focusing on storying the Bible and practicing this skill daily in the city with nationals. It has been a humbling and unique experience. We have daily visits with women at a flower shop each day. They are interested in our stories and willing to listen and participate. The goal is to tell the stories to people in a way that once we leave them that they are able to understand it and take it to heart and then pass it on to others. Please pray for the women in the flower shop that we share with daily. Pray that the Word will penetrate and begin to change their lives and that they will want to spread what they have heard.

Pray for me in as I prepare to go out on my first trip. That I may be bold and glorify the name of the Lord!

Mad love to all

I have been reading in 1 Corinthians 13, a chapter about love. It spoke to me recently. Here's a little piece of it:

"Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends"

Blessings of new friends

2009-01-16T10:22:00.000-08:00

It has been a crazy week! Two new team members recently arrived, one of which is my roommate. Her name is Brittne. We have had tons of fun together already along with the other newbe Ryan and our housemates Kristen and Claudia. The Lord has blessed me with some awesome folks with which I can share my experiences.

Brittne and I spent most of this week cleaning around the house and trying to get our things unpacked and slightly organized. We also did plenty of grocery shopping as we are eager to start cooking some of our own meals in our kitchen. We cooked enchiladas for a group of eight friends and few nights ago and it turned out great.

I have also been running some in the mornings. One of the morning runs was down on the "malecon" which is a nice wide sidewalk that goes for miles up above the beach. It was beautiful and so peaceful to enjoy God's creation. The weather here is pretty amazing... daily highs are around low to mid 80's with overcast skies and high humidity. It's nothing like the frigid air in Kentucky that I have been hearing about, haha!

More to come soon...

Mad love

Jess

P.S. I listened to the UK game against Tennessee the other night online and was pumped to hear the outcome! And how about Meeks? A night for the history books!

Lost in the city

2009-01-07T13:04:00.000-08:00

So this is day 5 in Peru. Things are still going very well. I am currently taking it easy in my apartment. I had my first meeting with the team today and met a couple with a little boy who are working here in Lima as career missionaries and they were very sweet people. It's always an encouragement to see a husband, wife, and their young child/children out on the field fully surrendering themselves to the Lord. At the meeting we discussed the upcoming arrival of many folks and about all of the many church groups and individuals that will be coming in during the US summer. I am so thankful for my current team members and am looking forward to meeting more in the next few weeks.

I have been trying to walk many of my routes and learning street names and where important places are in town. I got lost for about a half hour the other day on my way home but eventually figured it out. And again today I found myself a little confused but managed to get back safely and saw many beautiful parks with blooming flowers, green grass, and big trees while I was lost so it wasn't so bad. The Lord is really showing me how with just a little faith and trust he can get us through anything. Whether it be large or small. I am finding joy in small victories... like finding my way around town, figuring out how to make the shower warm, and fixing the constant running toilet.

May each of us find joy in the small things in our lives. I ask that you would continue to pray for a smooth transition into the culture and language. Pray for the missionaries that will be joining us very soon and that together we can begin doing the work in the small villages of South America to which the Lord has called us.

MAD Love

P.S. If any of you have skype please let me know so that I can add you.

Goodbyes, Planes, Beaches, and Bem Bos

2009-01-03T18:01:00.000-08:00

Hello all!

Hope you have all had a wonderful holiday season. I am so happy to say that this is my first post from PERU! I am in my apartment and about to head to bed!

Saying goodbye to family was really hard. I already miss them dearly. During my last days I was able to go to the lake with poppa, momma, and my brother to enjoy the warm weather, we went to my favorite restaurant Pasquales, we spent lots of time just hanging out with the in the house, and we had a wonderful celebration with friends and family on New Year's Eve. I could never thank the Lord enough for the blessing of my family.

My day on plane rides went pretty well besides a little spurt of sickness on the way to Lima. I flew with a couple of girls who will also be working in South America which was very comforting. We finally arrived in Lima, Peru around 2:00 am on Saturday. We were met by a number of missionaries working here in Peru. After getting luggage loaded we headed to my apartment. I was the only girl in the apartment last night although there are 2 others living here who will be back tomorrow. I unpacked until around 4 am and then hit the sack.

Today was spent with two new friends who are working on the ReapSouth team. We spent lots of time talking and walking. They helped me to get familiar with the city. We then took a trip down to the beach. This was quite an experience as the beaches were packed with locals. We set up a spot and enjoyed the warm air. But ended up spending most of our time avoiding the burning looks from a group of surfer guys who were smoking marijuana. We left the beach and headed back for home and later went to a local restaurant called Bem Bos where I got cheese sticks and a burrito! It was a good meal for my first night. I am looking forward to church tomorrow and more time with my new friends. More to come soon!

Please be in prayer for me as I try to get back into the groove of understanding and speaking spanish constantly. Be in prayer for the people in Lima and for Christ to have a strong impact on their lives.

Besos

2008-12-19T09:04:00.000-08:00

The tree @ home

Back in Kentucky

2008-12-19T08:15:00.001-08:00

So... I am back in good ole Kentucky once more. I am sitting on our comfy couch, listening to the rain, marveling at the Christmas tree. It is wonderful to be with family after a couple of months away and I look foward to this blessed time together during the holidays. I have been talking with them about the many things that I learned at orientation. But more than anything I continue to share about the believers that I met and how they sharpened me and how they did life with me for two months. Another example of how the Lord has put amazing Godly people in my life. I continually missed friends and family but the Lord provided.

Prior to orientation my family and I struggled in coping with me being gone for two years. My entire family lives really close and we spend lots of time with one another. There was an overwhelming sadness for us at times. The one thing that sustained my was the Lord and knowing that my obedience to go and fulfill his call was above any of the wishes of my family and my own doubts.

Recently the Lord again proved faithful when my grandfather met a young woman who had served in Peru through the same program as me. She was able to share with him and put some of his fears at ease. He was able to share with other family members. The Lord has not only revealed his call to me but he continued to reveal it to my family while I was away.

Great is his faithfulness!

Blessings to all

Much Love

"I will sing about the LORD's faithful love forever; with my mouth I will proclaim Your faithfulness to all generations." -Psalm 89:1

2008-12-08T08:14:00.001-08:00

How cool is this? The largest floating christmas tree... it's in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

2008-12-08T07:58:00.000-08:00

We finally got some snow here in Virginia. It didn't last to long but our spirits were joyful when we looked outside and saw a winter wonderland.

This weekend consisted of more security training on Saturday, dinner out, and movie night. On Sunday we had small group time. I committed to spending the majority of my day resting and reflecting on my time here that is quickly coming to an end. It was really tough this weekend because I talked to my mom on the phone and we broke down crying because we are beginning to realize how very close it is to saying goodbye. I know the Lord is faithful and he will comfort us, and all the other many families sending out loved ones, in the this situation and teach us how to deal with saying goodbye. I talked with some friends and prayed over our time at home during the holidays as well as our farewells with family.

Last night a bunch of us decided to go ALL OUT for dinner and head to Cheesecake Factory. It's hard to believe that there is one so close and I hadn't been already. It is probably one of my family's most favorite places to go. I had an amazing appetizer of Thai Lettuce Wraps and then, of course, finished it off with a big honkin piece of white chocolate macadamia nut cheesecake. DELICIOUS... and an excellent time of fellowship. The people I have met here have been such a blessing, it's heavy to think about leaving here in a little over a week.

Mad love to all

"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." -Romans 8:28

2008-12-04T17:56:00.000-08:00

Hey!

I am about to head to bed for the night... and it's only 9:00! This will be the earliest for me in a while. I am going through security training right now and it's pretty heavy stuff. There are lots of things that we need to be prepared for in the area of security because we never know exactly what we may face on the field.

Please pray for all of the missionaries here as we are in the home stetch of training. It has been an awesome process and we are all eager to begin our work on the field! I will be praying and thinking of you all during the holiday season. Blessings to all!

DC

2008-11-29T18:27:00.001-08:00

So in the last week or so I have had the opportunity to go up to Washington, DC twice. My first trip was this past Saturday to visit a dear friend of mine who is now working there. I got into the city and parked at her house and then took the metro down to the Smithsonian where she had just finished a walk for the homeless. It was a wonderful meeting when we finally sited one another as we had both been on our cell phones directing each other on the phone about our location! We walked to the grand re-opening of the American History Museum and it was packed but we walked around. Some of the cool things I got to see were Dorothy's shoes from the originial "Wizard of Oz", three or four Stradavarius violins, Apollo Anton Ohno's speed skates from the olympics, a photo moment with R2D2 from "Star Wars", and a nostalgic moment when we listened to some live bluegrass music. We took a walk through Chinatown and then ate some delicious food at an Irish Pub and watched some soccer and rugby. We spent some more time walking around and got hot white chocolate before heading back to her house. I was so blessed to have been able to spend some time with her and catch up and encourage one another. Please be in prayer for her as she works with the homeless of DC.

My second trip was yesterday. The entire orientation group headed up in tour buses on a mission to explore DC, meet some people from the country where we will serve, pray, and spread love. When we first arrived my group for the day decided to take part with some other groups in going to a large catholic church there. We went and walked around in the church and it was a gorgeous church with ornate architecture and detailed murals and mosaics throughout. But it almost gave me a sick feeling at my stomach because there were people praying to saints and there were mostly statues of Mary and praise to here rather than to God and to Christ. While there we sat and began to pray for the people who were part of this idle/saint worship and also the misinterpretaion of Mary within the catholic church. After we left the church we journeyed across town to go to a Peruvian restaurant called "El Pollo Rico" or "The Rich Chicken". We had a delicious meal of chicken and steak fries! I had expected it to be a sit-down type restaurant but it was more like a fast-food place with a really small menu, but it was very tasty so we all enjoyed ourselves. The afternoon was spent seeing some of the monuments and a rushed return to Union Station so we wouldn't miss the 5pm departure time.

Please pray for the people of DC. There are tons of different people groups represented in that city and so much lostness. But we definitely saw evidence of the Lord working there! I have a little over two weeks of training left and am looking foward to a strong finish here before heading back home for the holidays!

My first marathon

2008-11-16T17:35:00.001-08:00

So this weekend one of my good friends here at training competed in a marathon. It was my first marathon experience. I loaded up a crew in momma's van and we all headed down to cheer him on. We had planned to meet him around mile 17 to yell and encourage but we didn't have a map of the race or any idea how to get there. We decided to disperse ourselves along the last leg of the race. Some of the girls cheered him on around mile 22 others around mile 24 and then another friend and I stuck around the finish line so that we could cheer him at the finish and get some pictures of his elation when he was finally done!

It was a blast... I stayed on the lookout for him after we had been warned that he was getting close. When I saw him coming down the hill on the final stretch I ran to my friend so that he could snap the photos. The environment down at the finish line was so cool because there was a constant roar of people cheering on everyone crossing the finish line. My friend was hurting for most of the afternoon but there was no doubt that he was so thankful that he had finish and with an awesome time!

Another friend of mine who came the marathon was celebrating her birthday and so after the race it was only appropriate to go and celebrate at Red Robin. I had never been, but the burgers were delicious! I had to order this particular burger because it had an egg on it and once in Argentina I had a burger like it! Let's just say... I inhaled both!

Things to remember:

Marathons are fun

Egg on a burger= amazing

Mad love,

Jess

Phil. 1:3

And so it begins...

2008-11-11T16:56:00.001-08:00

So... this is all so very exciting. I finally have a blog. I am looking foward to sharing lots of stories and joys and stuggles with y'all as my journey begins. I am currently in Richmond, VA at orientation. Each day involves seminars on various topics which have included spiritual warfare, doctrine, anthropology, and church planting movements. It has been such a huge blessing to be poured into each and every day. We have been going through the book of Acts and learning about how the church began and how the apostles worked and moved around to spread the gospel and Paul's coming onto the scene. I have found, however, that some of the days are long and sometimes leave me overwhelmed.

There are so many amazing people here that are also going on the field and I have made many deep relationships in only a short time. There is an instant connection between all the people I meet because of our hearts for the nations. The Lord is strengthening and encouraging me through those people, through you, and through his word and constant prayer.

I am so thankful for each of you who are reading this and I carry you with me as I go. I would ask that you pray for me as I continue in orientation... that I will have endurance and a teachable heart. I also ask that you begin praying for my work on the field and especially for the indigenous groups of South America. I love you all so much and I can't wait to hear from you. Please let me know if there are ways I can pray for you.

Mad love,

Jess/Jojo

P.S. I found this verse and am so encouraged and excited at the idea of being able to live this out in only a few short weeks!

"How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of the messenger who brings good news, the good news of peace and salvation, the news that the God of Israel reigns!"
-Isaiah 52:7