In the last week, we've been to this church a lot. Tim attended last Sunday morning, met with the pastor twice on Monday and again once on Wednesday, led Alpha training Wednesday and Thursday evenings, and was a guest star at the youth group last night. I showed up for a number of those as well.

The youth group we attended last night was full and exciting-- loud music with choreographed dancing, a skit contest (which we judged), a sermon, and some other games. I imagine it's the largest youth group in town. They say their normal attendance is about 250-- larger than church attendance. They have a host of teenage leaders who also lead cell groups in their homes on Wednesday nights. Pretty exciting stuff.

At the end of the night, Tim had a meeting with the university students (remember, "youth" group is more like 10-30 yrs old). This pastor has worked on universities in the past and is excited about the prospect of raising up leaders among these students to lead a university-specific home group and also perhaps to run Alpha on some of the university campuses next spring. His enthusiasm is encouraging!

Starting next Wednesday, I'll be back in action as a Spanish teacher, this time very part-time and for just a handful of assorted elementary school kids. This is a twist I definitely didn't see coming.

SAM Academy (the school we run for missionary kids in Pucallpa) has about 15 students total across K-12. It's a small and rustic (!) facility, and there are 2 full-time teachers. With school starting in less than a week and no Spanish teacher possibilities, they needed help, and I said yes.

My main fear was that I would have to invent a curriculum and design all the activities. Since I've never taught elementary school Spanish before (save one small and very bad blip in my past), I didn't feel prepared to do that. Fortunately for me-- and for them, because I probably would have declined otherwise-- they have a plethora of materials. I've got the Level 1 teacher edition, student book, and student workbook, and I'm ready to go.

The class is only 3 days a week for 45 minutes, and the school is a short jaunt from my house. Like I said, very part-time. I'm also going to be teaching a novel in Oct/Nov for the high school literature class, and Tim and I will be teaching high school Bible for a few weeks in Sept/Oct.

Wish me luck! While my certification is K-12 Spanish, elementary kids will be a new adventure for me.

One of the things I've been working on since arriving in Pucallpa is encouraging different pastors and churches to run the Alpha course like we did in Puerto Supe. I've had several pastors show a strong interest, but none had committed to run the course. Just last week at the SAM prayer meeting we prayed that there would be at least one church that would start the course before the end of the year.

Well God didn't waste any time answering.

I went to a new church on Sunday and scheduled a meeting to talk to the Pastor on Monday (I try to schedule a meeting with every pastor I meet). Thirty minutes into the conversation I mentioned the Alpha course and about five minutes later he was telling me he wanted to start the course this Wednesday, just two days later!

I explained to him that there was work to be done beforehand and we needed to train the leaders prior to start the course. We agreed to hold off till next Thursday but we went ahead and started training the leaders tonight. It's kinda crazy just how quickly all of this has happened and despite my initial concerns, I really believe that this is God's will.

Please be praying for the Alianza Church, Los Rosales, its leaders and pastor, that God will use them and the Alpha course to change the lives of those who come. Also pray that new people who don't know Jesus will come and the church will be strengthened during this time.

I also met with the church board of a different church Tuesday that's really interested in the course. Please pray for them that God will show them whether the Alpha course is right for their church or not.

Age groupings are different here and still fairly baffling for us. "Jovenes" or young people, seem to include everyone from teenagers to perhaps 35. This is particularly true if you're single or don't have children (and most people who don't have children are single).

Saturday night we attended the young professionals- type group at Mil Palmeras, the church that SAM missionaries have been most involved in founding and growing. The fact that they have a group of this type is pretty unique. We were dreading going, to be honest, but suppressed all our anti-social tendencies and made our way out the door.

Mil Palmeras has specifically reached out to more educated and financially stable Peruvians, a group largely ignored in past by many missionaries and churches. The group we attended was made up of bankers, doctors, teachers, and businesspeople. It was amazing how comfortable we felt. Of course there's something to be said for getting to people who aren't like yourself, but it felt great to sit and have an easy conversation about topics that interest us, too.

We still have one more Sunday of church-visiting before we make the call, but the idea of going to a church where we might be able to make friends is pretty enticing. There are lots of factors to consider.

Here are a few other things that have been keeping us busy recently:

• Tim learned to shoot a pistol and a shotgun (and has the bruises to prove it).
• I've been sleeping WAY too much-- not sure yet if I've got a bug, it's the heat, or something else.
• Our neighbor Marshall is giving Tim swim lessons.
• "Community meetings" on bad internet access are giving us a chance to get to know all our neighbors. Now our friend David is scheming about throwing a neighborhood BBQ!
• I've been studying up on STDs in preparation for an abstinence course I'm getting ready to help out with in a local high school. Wow have I learned a lot! I had no idea STDs were so dangerous and so prevalent.
• We've been spending a lot of time with our neighbors and fellow SAM missionaries-- playing cards, having birthday cake, small group, going out for ice cream, grilling out, etc. I can't tell you how good it feels. I'm so grateful to God for surrounding us with His love in this way.  
• And of course work. We're still trying to figure some stuff out about this university ministry. Keep it in your prayers! Updates to come. 

Let me start by saying that if you haven't read this between the lines, this has been a very strange summer for me emotionally. I was an anxious wreck through May and June, and since we've been in Pucallpa, I think my emotions have mostly been turned off. While I'm glad for a break (and for having my physical health back now that the anxiety has passed), I know this isn't a stage I want to be in for forever.

I'm ready to "come back"-- to God, to Tim, to myself. I know I've been avoiding feelings because they're complicated and difficult, but I'm discovering too that my life isn't worth much without them. I feel distant, and now that I'm floating in outer space, not exactly sure how to return to earth.

This past week I've found myself longing for God and not knowing really how to connect with Him. All the familiar ways seem empty, and the one solace I've found is in music-- sitting quietly listening to worship music and letting someone else's words be my own prayers. I like that, but I also want more. I have had a sense all week that I will come out of this funk by God's initiative and grace and not my own effort. That's partly relieving and partly terrifying.

Today I attended the first half of a Precepts training conference where the presenter used the book of Jonah as a tool to teach inductive Bible study. Since I'm fairly familiar with that method, I got to spend my energy actually focused on Jonah, and I was surprised by what I learned. The teacher walked us through the descending spiral of Jonah's prophetic career, and I found myself identifying with the guy in the belly of the big fish.

Jonah ran from God, isolated himself from others, and managed to fall deeply asleep when everyone else was freaking out. I feel distant from God, isolated from others (but circumstance and choice probably), and asleep to my emotions right now. I don't feel sad at all these days, but I feel kind of empty. Our director's piercingly true comment reverberates in my mind-- my joy these days is in vegetables and dogs. Safe. But not "life to the full."

Jonah ended up at the absolute bottom by rejecting God's directions and running from Him. Did I do that? It doesn't feel like it off the top of my head, but I want to at least ponder the question. What got me here?

The good news? Ah yes, there is good news! As I write those words even, I'm filled with a deep and mysterious joy. God rescued Jonah from the very place He had put him. When I see Jonah's rescue and restoration, I see the story of a merciful, faithful God and know I can have hope, too. Jonah couldn't and didn't rescue himself; God did it. Terrifying and also a huge relief. I'm fully dependent on God to bring me safely out of this fish's belly. And yet I know beyond the shadow of a doubt that I can trust this God on whom I depend. That's good news.

If God is for us, who is against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things?

There's a three-inch long spider in my kitchen sink and it's not a daddy long legs. I wonder when would be too early to go solicit the help of a neighbor....

I'm pretty sure I'd make a lousy single missionary.

Here's what I did today in Tim's absence:

• ate an entire kilo of strawberries myself (minus the 6 I gave to Christy H)
• got the computer motherboard replaced-- thanks to our supporters for getting a 3-yr warranty!!
• bought 8 Christmas presents
• took Taza for her second jungle-dog haircut
• and a host of other perhaps less notable things, most involving Christy and David

The increased housework has taken its toll on me, and my back has been giving me some trouble this week. Thank goodness for Tim, who has cheerfully assumed some of my responsibilities, and for our friend David, who is washing the dishes as I write (a job I think he has performed for the last three meals).

Sitting on the couch staring at the dirty floor, the dusty table top, or the ants marching by is revealing a deep-seated need for control that I can't satisfy right now. It's also illuminating how much of my sense of self-worth comes from insecure and ridiculous sources like a clean house and good cooking. I'm not handling this very well.

I'd like a healthy back, but even more I crave a healthy spirit. I want to hold things more lightly, accept what comes my way, and ground myself deeply in my identity as a precious daughter of God.

In our meeting with our boss a few days ago, we decided that our next steps should be to determine if and how we can support the existing university ministry (CBU) in Pucallpa. Before Tim takes a few days off to scramble around Machu Picchu with his dad later this week, he's going to meet with a local CBU leader-- whose role is thus far a mystery to us-- and the CBU national staff in Lima.

Here are some questions I have.

• Do they see a gap between their stated mission and what is being accomplished on campuses in Pucallpa?
• Are they interested in establishing CBU groups on new campuses in Pucallpa?
• How would they like to grow or strengthen existing groups?
• To what degree are they interested in support and input from people who aren't university students?
• What is the current relationship between CBU groups and local churches?
• How can local churches better support ministry to university students?

Yesterday I was (stomach) sick, and took on my usual pitiful pose for most of the day. Somewhere in there I decided I'd better think about what I like about living here, particularly my new home of Pucallpa. Here's what I came up with:

• the feeling of a cold shower on a hot day
• a smaller, more manageable home
• green everywhere!
• watching the dogs run around in the grass
• listening to my super cute kiddo neighbors laugh
• 20 liters of water for $1
• living so close to Rachael (and soon to David and Marshall)
• starry nights
• jungle sounds
• being part of a missionary community 
• living in a more sizeable city with more things available
• SAM prayer meetings (truly!)
• hearing about all the neat ministries going on*
• catching some of the fresh enthusiasm of all the short-term summer mission teams coming through here
• Tim having more defined work
• cool jungle morning walks with the dogs at 6 am
• a quieter home environment
• more privacy 

We passed these bugs on our weekend adventure to the Boqueron. I'm keeping my eyes peeled for more interesting wildlife. So far nothing very exciting, except for the iguana on the day we arrived. I'm wondering now if the Powells planted it on their sidewalk to impress us :-)

C'est Si Bon, our favorite ice cream shop, is quickly becoming our office the way some people work out of Starbucks (oh, how I wish we had one of those). Last night we took another girl out for ice cream and talked to her about university ministry. She was the president of the CBU (Intervarsity) group at a different university until she left to pursue a different career track a year ago. One meeting at a time, we're beginning to get more of a feel for what existing work there is here with university students.

Our initial game plan involved researching possibilities and then helping to establish a ministry toward university students, perhaps like Campus Crusade or Intervarsity. What we've discovered is that that ministry already exists and has some kind of history or presence in five different universities in Pucallpa. Only one of those groups is really functioning, and from our perspective at least, there's a lot of room to grow and change.

Now what? We're meeting with our boss tomorrow and are looking forward to talking over the possibilities. Again, we have tons of ideas, but we're looking to see what direction God leads us in.

We were pretty exhausted by the time we got home, but it was an awesome day. We had a great time at the Boqueron and even more so, hanging out with the Schmidts, Marshall (our soon-to-be-neighbor) and Myron, a SAM flight intern this summer.

Our first visit to a university in Pucallpa! This is the largest one. Strangely (God?) our visit coincided with the surprise visit of another American missionary, a man unknown to the Christian group we were visiting but a recently hired leader in its national organization. We're hoping to meet with him soon to learn more about the organization (the South American branch of Intervarsity) and how we might be able to help out.


Here are some things that stuck out to me from our visit:

1. There were about as many guys as girls. Very unusual around here for churchy stuff.
2. The students seemed remarkably mature.
3. They stood in a public place and sang worship songs while people gawked. I could care less now, but I would have died of embarrassment had I been one of them.
4. It seems like there could be a million ways to grow and strengthen this group. I wonder if they're interested.
5. I can't imagine an "outsider" coming in. It's also clear that they have a desire to reach out. I wonder if they don't know how to do it.
6. They don't have a paid leader or any adults who invest in this group on a regular basis.