in Nazca

Have you ever heard of the Nazca lines? That´s where I am right now... in Nazca, Peru. We arrived yesterday from Lima and on the way stopped in Paracas (near Pisco) to go sand surfing! Oh we had such a blast on a dune buggy in the desert; I´ve never seen sand dunes like this. You take a skateboard without wheels and ride (fly!) down the dunes. Then today I went to see the Nazca lines... maybe it would have been different had I paid for the airplane ride, but I only climbed a tower to see two of the symbols ( a tree and a hand) and they were much smaller than I had originally thought. Interesting but a bit anticlimactic.

I met my new teammates Allison and Justin today. Allison and I bonded instantly and had a sweet time of prayer and singing this morning and encouraging each other with scripture. Both my new teammates are both strong in their faith and will be amazing travel buddies; I can´t wait to hit the road with them! Next stop after Nazca... Bella Union. For now we are in Nazca for a mid-summer briefing of all the volunteers who are in the village teams. In total we are about 75 people here in Nazca and we´re staying in a nice hotel and holding meetings in a local baptist church. The next two days I will be doing one on one and group interviews to check up on everyone and see how it´s been going so far, to encourage and pray with them, and to see if any conflict has risen among the teams. I really enjoy this type of informal counseling... I pray that it will be beneficial for all.

I´m starting to remember some of the cultural differences that I learned when I spent time in Chile that change life for me when I´m in Latin America. Time is more relaxed and people actually take time to talk. When I´m in the states I have my own schedule which is my top priority... everything else comes second. Here if someone wants to talk to get to know me, I don´t stop them and say that I have to go make a phone call or something; I talk to them. This mindset seems to have infiltrated all the gringos on our team and those with the IMB here and I absolutely love it. I love being in a culture where relationships and conversation come before schedule and self. It truly opens the doors for conversations of a spiritual nature.

I am ashamed to say that I am a different type of believer in God here. My prayers are more often, my time in study sweeter, and my conversations more intentional. Even my moment by moment thoughts are more God-centered. I am so grateful for this time in Peru. Many more updates to come; thank you for your sweet emails and especially for your prayers.

Life in Lima

I have three days left in Lima and plenty of internet access, so I thought I'd write again. I did end up going surfing yesterday; I'm not so good at it when it's wintertime here and the coast is rocky. I'd like to try again on a sunny, sandy beach. I rode three waves and never really stood up. Oh well, I can still check it off on my life "to do" list.

My engagement ring has moved to my right ring finger because apparently that's where you wear it here. And I want everyone to know I'm "taken." :) I've been eating out quite a bit... don't know what food will be like when I leave Lima. I've also had just a few lattes from Starbucks. Awww yeah. Good stuff. I've enjoyed getting to know the other missionaries here - volunteer and career. I've been especially blessed and excited about a possible missions career in watching one family - the Austins. They have three pre-teen/teenage kids and have been in Peru a few months. They seem to have such joy in their ministry here in Peru and their kids have adjusted well. The entire REAP South gang is a pretty fun group to be around.

Some of the down time here these last few days has been very nice. And thank God for free downloads from Desiring God and an ipod! It seemed very cushy when I bought it, but I am grateful for sermons and music right now. This morning I was reminded of our hope in future glory... I can't wait to be glorified and finally display Christ's perfections. It's not very often that I ponder eternity in this way, but it's a great time to have a renewed joy in this. It's brought me to prayer for the work among REAP South and reminded me what this is all about. Spent some time praying for you guys at home. I'm excited about what God is doing in our church and community with Adventure Camp. To God be the glory!

I think I am headed to an orphanage in the outskirts of Lima today and then to an evangelical church tonight. Thank you for your prayers. Les extrano!

Estoy en Lima!

Just a quick update to say that I'm here in Lima. God blessed me with incredibly easy travel. Smooth sailing. I walked up to my team just as they had lifted the "Ashley" sign at the end of the tunnel of people at the Lima airport. They had gotten there just in time to meet me.

I sat in on a REAP South team meeting with two career missionary couples and a few other volunteers. I will stay here in Lima just helping out with things/learning/SURFING for a few more days. I know there's a movie night tomorrow night with an ESL class here, church on Saturday and Sunday, etc. Then on Tuesday or Wednesdsay I will head to Nazca where all college volunteers who are all over south Peru will meet up for a mid-summer briefing. I'm very excited about this time of worship and story-telling. During most of the free time there will be individual and team interviews. My first real role will be as an interviewer to give the students a chance to share what is going on with their village team. I hope to be an encourager as well as have wisdom should any conflict management or intervention arise.

After Nazca my team of one other girl and guy (who have already been traveling with a third, but I will take her place) will begin the Barnabas team role and we will spend the next month traveling from village to village. As far as I understand the travel plans are sort of in our hands, so that is one thing to pray for. I also forgot a towel... oops. Other than that, all is well and I will keep you updated as I can.

Thank you for your prayers! Bendiciones de Peru!

T Minus 8 Hours & Counting...

Hi friends & family!

As of tonight at 11pm I am in Peru for the next 40 days. I'll be using this blog to keep you all updated on my travels (as internet is available). I'm working with the IMB through REAP South Peru (REAP stands for Rapid Entry Advance Plan), a church planting movement among the indigenous population of the southern region of Peru. I'll be serving on what's called the Barnabas team traveling from village to village checking on U.S. college students who have volunteered for the summer. The original plan was to be in Lima for a week working with English classes, go to a mid-summer briefing for all of the REAP teams, and then travel for about a month. I've recently heard that some of these plans may have changed so I'll just have to see when I get there tonight.

Please pray that I would be open to God's voice during this trip; that I would learn and be comforted through his word; that I would learn selflessness and be able to minister to my team, to the volunteers I am visiting, and to the nationals. I'm excited about learning more about church planting and how God may guide mine & Chris' future through these experiences.