There and Back Again

So, the other day I was taking a shower. While I was taking a shower, someone knocked on the door, “Please, Melissa, May I use the bathroom! It’s an emergency!” Well, of course I had to say yes. I couldn’t let the poor girl suffer through my long shower. Anyway so I unlocked the door and she came in and used the bathroom…before she was done using the toilet, someone else walked in the door to brush her teeth and use the mirror—and while she was doing that, there were two girls standing in the small hallway just outside the bathroom and they were talking with all of us in the bathroom….this was quite humorous…because honestly…this bathroom is very small and there really is only enough room and privacy for one person at a time. ---just thought I would start off with a funny little story.
  Okay now, so an update on my health. The last few days, my stomach has been great. I’ve been able to eat just about anything I want and drink coffee again!  So, that is good. The doctor did say that it would be a come and go kind of virus, so I’m not going to be surprised if it comes back, but I really do hope and pray that the Great Physician has healed me for good.
  The last week had been filled with writing papers. I’ve written 3 papers in the last 4 days and I only have 4 more to write! One of them is due on Thursday and the others are due sometime in May, but I still have a decent amount of work to do. My issue is always getting started with these things…so once I get started, I’m usually pretty good and I can speedily get through the rest of the work. Yesterday was supposed to be my day off, but I had rehearsals all day long and papers to pretend to be writing. I had rehearsals for this Sunday because I am singing for the English service in the morning and the Spanish service in the evening. I would much rather sing than not sing, but I’m a little conflicted. Singing takes up all of my paper time! So, any time I am not in rehearsal, I’m either reading one of my text books or writing a paper or listening to Chuck tracks!
  I don’t have too much to update you on, because I’ve really just been busy with things here on campus, but the Lord is teaching me so much! Oh, I don’t know if I’ve mentioned it before or not, but I am learning German online. And next semester, I’m going to be taking German lessons from one of the staff members here on campus. I’m really excited about this. I can understand a lot of Spanish—but I’m just not catching onto it very fast and I really don’t enjoy Spanish. German, on the other hand, I really enjoy. I finally told Daniel last night that I didn’t like Spanish. I’m not quite sure how he took it, but as long as I’m honest with him, we are pretty good  I also told him that I really want to go to Germany and that I couldn’t see myself raising my children in South America—but I could picture us raising our children in Europe. Yes, we do talk often about the potential for us to have a family in the future. We are very hopeful and we are very confident that the Lord has amazing plans for us. We can’t wait to know what they are—but the Lord’s timing is perfect, so we will know when it is the right time. So if anyone want to contribute to a trip to Germany, just shoot me an email :P Kidding! But, I will go someday. That and Israel. Although, it’s not quite Europe or the middle east—but I do have an opportunity to go to Alaska this summer for like a week and a half..so, I’m considering it—but I should probably find out soon, so I can get my plane ticket! 
  Anyway, I should probably get out of bed now. They will be calling for breakfast soon—Mmmm pancakes! 
P.S. See you in 28 days!!!!! 

I wrote a song today. I was inspired while writing a paper about the life and character of David. It's not the greatest recording, i messed up some words and chords, but it's the best I have now. I'm not coordinated either...so singing and playing at the same time is a challenge. If your ears bleed, let me know, I'll delete it. But the Lord really gave me these words out of Psalm 23. It really ministers to me...because I need to remember that the Lord gives me rest.
http://www.sendspace.com/file/9eqr01

Lyrics:
Yea, though I walk through the Valley of Death,
I will fear no evil. (2x)

And he restores my soul! (3X)
(1) For I will fear no evil,
 (2) For I know you're with me.
(3) For I know you lift me.

When I'm alone with much to bear.
For I know you're with me.

When I am weak, I know that you're strong.
For I know you'll lift me.

So, I saw that my mom posted something like this on facebook--and i spent all day trying to find pictures that I feel reflect me. This was a pretty cool application, so, I figured i would share it :)
The Questions:
1. What is your first name? Melissa
2. What is your favorite food? Cheese
3. What is your favorite color? Green
4. Favorite drink? Sweet tea (even though green tea cake came up....i like that too :)
5. Dream vacation? Torres Park in padagonia, Chile
6. Favorite hobby? Photgraphy
7. What you want to be when you grow up? Mommy
8. What do you love most in life? Love
9. One word to describe you? Bride (of Christ, DUH!) ;)

Goodmorning! Today, is Easter. It’s funny, I didn’t know until this past Monday that Easter would be today. I totally missed Palm Sunday. They didn’t even mention it in church last week! I totally missed it! But anyway—that doesn’t change anything about what the Lord has done for me—but sadly, even this Good Friday, I barely even stopped to think about what he has done for me or even thank Him!! When I realized this—I couldn’t even believe myself—then I asked myself, well, how often do I really stop to thank the Lord for what he has done for me? In fact, I do a whole lot more complaining than I do thanking. When I realized this I decided that their needs to be a change. Even in simple things, I need to give thanks and have a good attitude. When I’m not feeling well, I need to keep a smile on my face. When I’m angry, I need to keep a smile on my face and surrender those emotions to the Lord! Because when I take things into my own hands, I do nothing but mess myself up and dive right into my human nature—throwing my emotions into the air like a stack of cash. Back to Easter—I’ve been asking myself a lot of questions lately that have been bothering me for a very long time. I love the Lord, yes, and I’m a Christian, yes. I believe that Jesus is my savior and that he died and rose again, yes, and I believe that I am saved by grace through faith. I could give you a textbook definition of grace—but that doesn’t mean that my hearts understands it! Also, the character of Christ—I am continuously struggling with the idea that Jesus was both 100% human and 100% God. This boggles my mind. Yes, I believe it, but I don’t understand it! I get so distracted from loving god and getting to know His character by things that are just not important! I’m not going to be able to understand all of these crazy things either—not until I get to heaven! BTW-Heaven is going to be great. I’m going to get to sing and dance before the Lord with all my might—more so than David did, and I’m not even going to have to worry about other people watching! There are not going to be judgmental people there to criticize my “moves” or my “notes”—it’s simply going to be a joyful noise and a joyful dance! I don’t want to wait until I get to heaven to start my rejoicing in song and dance. I don’t want to wait until I get to heaven to live completely for the Lord. In light of grace and in light of the hope that I have that will surely never disappoint me—I’m going to do just that—I’m going to sing and dance before the Lord. I want to worship Him with all of who I am—even if that means feeling uncomfortable. Even if that means—giving my emotions to Him and giving Him all of my insecurities-- Nothing is too big for him to handle. So, this Easter, I want to make a vow to give everything to the Lord. I want to start a new chapter in my walk of faith. So seriously, keep me accountable. That’s what brothers and sisters in Christ are for right?! We help each other grow, pick each other up, love each other for who we are and nothing less, and we walk together with the Lord. He is our reason for life. Our purpose for all eternity is to bring glory and honor to Him and to Him alone. Our reward is not here on earth---but it is in heaven. But what more can we ask for than to be able to run and jump into our heavenly Father’s arms and sit on his lap in the throne room—just talking and just rejoicing. Lord, make yourself real to me. Keep me in line, and convict me when I am doing wrong. Keep me in step with you and never let me go. Amen.

The Divinity of Christ

The doctrine of Christ's divinity is the central Christian doctrine, for it is like a skeleton key that opens all the others. Christians have not independently reasoned out and tested each of the teachings of Christ received via Bible and Church, but believe them all on his authority. For if Christ is divine, He can be trusted to be infallible in everything He said, even hard things like exalting suffering and poverty, forbidding divorce, giving his Church the authority to teach and forgive sins in his name, warning about hell (very often and very seriously), instituting the scandalous sacrament of eating his flesh—we often forget how many "hard sayings" he taught!

When the first Christian apologists began to give a reason for the faith that was in them to unbelievers, this doctrine of Christ's divinity naturally came under attack, for it was almost as incredible to Gentiles as it was scandalous to Jews. That a man who was born out of a woman's womb and died on a cross, a man who got tired and hungry and angry and agitated and wept at his friend's tomb, that this man who got dirt under his fingernails should be God was, quite simply, the most astonishing, incredible, crazy-sounding idea that had ever entered the mind of man in all human history.


Christ was either God
or a bad man.



The argument the early apologists used to defend this apparently indefensible doctrine has become a classic one. C.S. Lewis used it often, e.g. in Mere Christianity, the book that convinced Chuck Colson (and thousands of others). I once spent half a book (Between Heaven and Hell) on this one argument alone. It is the most important argument in Christian apologetics, for once an unbeliever accepts the conclusion of this argument (that Christ is divine), everything else in the Faith follows, not only intellectually (Christ's teachings must all then be true) but also personally (if Christ is God, He is also your total Lord and Savior).

The argument, like all effective arguments, is extremely simple: Christ was either God or a bad man.

Unbelievers almost always say he was a good man, not a bad man; that he was a great moral teacher, a sage, a philosopher, a moralist, and a prophet, not a criminal, not a man who deserved to be crucified. But a good man is the one thing he could not possibly have been according to simple common sense and logic. For he claimed to be God. He said, "Before Abraham was, I Am", thus speaking the word no Jew dares to speak because it is God's own private name, spoken by God himself to Moses at the burning bush. Jesus wanted everyone to believe that he was God. He wanted people to worship him. He claimed to forgive everyone's sins against everyone. (Who can do that but God, the One offended in every sin?)

Now what would we think of a person who went around making these claims today? Certainly not that he was a good man or a sage. There are only two possibilities: he either speaks the truth or not. If he speaks the truth, he is God and the case is closed. We must believe him and worship him. If he does not speak the truth, then he is not God but a mere man. But a mere man who wants you to worship him as God is not a good man. He is a very bad man indeed, either morally or intellectually. If he knows that he is not God, then he is morally bad, a liar trying deliberately to deceive you into blasphemy. If he does not know that he is not God, if he sincerely thinks he is God, then he is intellectually bad—in fact, insane.


The strength of this argument is that it is not merely a logical argument about concepts;
it is about Jesus. It invites people to read the Gospels and get to know this man.



A measure of your insanity is the size of the gap between what you think you are and what you really are. If I think I am the greatest philosopher in America, I am only an arrogant fool; if I think I am Napoleon, I am probably over the edge; if I think I am a butterfly, I am fully embarked from the sunny shores of sanity. But if I think I am God, I am even more insane because the gap between anything finite and the infinite God is even greater than the gap between any two finite things, even a man and a butterfly.

Josh McDowell summarized the argument simply and memorably in the trilemma "Lord, liar, or lunatic?" Those are the only options. Well, then, why not liar or lunatic? But almost no one who has read the Gospels can honestly and seriously consider that option. The savviness, the canniness, the human wisdom, the attractiveness of Jesus emerge from the Gospels with unavoidable force to any but the most hardened and prejudiced reader. Compare Jesus with liars like the Reverend Sun Myung Moon or lunatics like the dying Nietzsche. Jesus has in abundance precisely those three qualities that liars and lunatics most conspicuously lack:
His practical wisdom, his ability to read human hearts, to understand people and the real, unspoken question behind their words, his ability to heal people's spirits as well as their bodies;
His deep and winning love, his passionate compassion, his ability to attract people and make them feel at home and forgiven, his authority, "not as the scribes"; and above all
His ability to astonish, his unpredictability, his creativity. Liars and lunatics are all so dull and predictable! No one who knows both the Gospels and human beings can seriously entertain the possibility that Jesus was a liar or a lunatic, a bad man.

No, the unbeliever almost always believes that Jesus was a good man, a prophet, a sage. Well then, if he was a sage, you can trust him and believe the essential things he says. And the essential thing he says is that he is the divine Savior of the world and that you must come to him for salvation. If he is a sage, you must accept his essential teaching as true. If his teaching is false, then he is not a sage.

The strength of this argument is that it is not merely a logical argument about concepts; it is about Jesus. It invites people to read the Gospels and get to know this man. The premise of the argument is the character of Jesus, the human nature of Jesus. The argument has its feet on the earth. But it takes you to heaven, like Jacob's ladder (which Jesus said meant him: Gen 28:12; Jn 1:51). Each rung follows and holds together. The argument is logically airtight; there is simply no way out.

What, then, do people say when confronted with this argument? Often, they simply confess their prejudices: "Oh, I just can't believe that!" (But if it has been proved to be true, you must believe it if you really seek the truth!)

Sometimes, they go away, like many of Jesus' contemporaries, wondering and shaking their heads and thinking. That is perhaps the very best result you can hope for. The ground has been softened up and plowed. The seed has been sown. God will give the increase.

But if they know some modern theology, they have one of two escapes. Theology has an escape; common sense does not. Common sense is easily convertible. It is the theologians, now as then, who are the hardest to convert.

The first escape is the attack of the Scripture "scholars" on the historical reliability of the Gospels. Perhaps Jesus never claimed to be divine. Perhaps all the embarrassing passages were inventions of the early Church (say "Christian community"—it sounds nicer).

In that case, who invented traditional Christianity if not Christ? A lie, like a truth, must originate somewhere. Peter? The twelve? The next generation? What was the motive of whoever first invented the myth (euphemism for lie)? What did they get out of this elaborate, blasphemous hoax? For it must have been a deliberate lie, not a sincere confusion. No Jew confuses Creator with creature, God with man. And no man confuses a dead body with a resurrected, living one.

Here is what they got out of their hoax. Their friends and families scorned them. Their social standing, possessions, and political privileges were stolen from them by both Jews and Romans. They were persecuted, imprisoned, whipped, tortured, exiled, crucified, eaten by lions, and cut to pieces by gladiators. So some silly Jews invented the whole elaborate, incredible lie of Chrisitanity for absolutely no reason, and millions of Gentiles believed it, devoted their lives to it, and died for it—for no reason. It was only a fantastic practical joke, a hoax. Yes, there is a hoax indeed, but the perpetrators of it are the twentieth-century theologians, not the Gospel writers.

The second escape (notice how eager we are to squirm out of the arms of God like a greased pig) is to Orientalize Jesus, to interpret him not as the unique God-man but as one of many mystics or "adepts" who realized his own inner divinity just as a typical Hindu mystic does. This theory takes the teeth out of his claim to divinity, for he only realized that everyone is divine. The problem with that theory is simply that Jesus was not a Hindu but a Jew! When he said "God", neither he nor his hearers meant Brahman, the impersonal, pantheistic, immanent all; he meant Yahweh, the personal, theistic, transcendent Creator. It is utterly unhistorical to see Jesus as a mystic, a Jewish guru. He taught prayer, not meditation. His God is a person, not a pudding. He said he was God but not that everyone was. He taught sin and forgiveness, as no guru does. He said nothing about the "illusion" of individuality, as the mystics do.



Attack each of these evasions—Jesus as the good man. Jesus as the lunatic, Jesus as the liar, Jesus as the man who never claimed divinity, Jesus as the mystic—take away these flight squares, and there is only one square left for the unbeliever's king to move to. And on that square waits checkmate. And a joyous mating it is. The whole argument is really a wedding invitation.

Well, yesterday, I was asked to take some pictures for a friend who got engaged this past Monday. She wanted to send an announcement to friends and family with a couple pictures—the cool thing is that she didn’t know that I was into photography when she asked me. So, this was my second gig as a photographer. I’m not a pro or anything—but I’m leaning in that direction for a possible career. I just realized how much I really enjoyed doing it—and it really boosted my mood while I was working on it. So—I think there is potential there. So, congratulations to Darci and Gino! May God bless you in the adventure of life as you seek the Lord together. I’m so excited for you guys!
As you read in the last blog entry—I mentioned that I had quite a few papers to write—but I was too busy writing blogs instead. Well, The case is the same now. It takes a whole lot less energy to write out everything that I’m thinking than it takes to actually sit down and write a paper.
*Current song playing on my iTunes: Wishing you were here by Chicago *
*Current person I’m missing: Ellen! Wish you were here!*
My goal for today is to finish a few more chapters in my life of David book and writing or at least starting on of my Genesis papers. Then I have band rehearsal for Sunday. My roommate sings for the English service here in lima, but this weekend She is going to be in Pisco* so she asked me to sing for her while she is gone. So, I said yes. Anyway—rehearsal is tonight. Maybe I’ll post the song list and some videos later..but actually if you get a chance—check out the song “Profundo Amor” by Vertical on youtube—maybe I will post the link of the video here—who knows. But it is my favorite song since being here. I’ve sang it several times for Believers night. It’s beautiful in Spanish—I don’t think it would translate well in to English and still be as beautiful as it in en espanol  Anyway—good song I really don’t know what the point of this blog entry is—except to waste time and distract my mind from my stomach ache. I ate oatmeal this morning---big mistake—I forgot that they cooked it in milk instead of water. Oops. That really messed me up. I’m pretty sure that I’m lactose intolerant now. Anything dairy hurts! I’ve tried Lactose free milk since being here and that seems to do just fine in my stomach. Anyway—this stomach ache is getting old. I’m starting to pray that Jesus either comes back or takes it away….okay okay, or gives me patience to endure until it is His perfect timing to take it away. If I am still sick on Monday when Rachel comes back from Pisco—then I am going to go to the doctor and she is going to take me. This particular Dr. that we are going to go to likes to use needles—so I’m praying that I’m better so I don’t have to get poked 
Last night, I spoke with someone from church back home. I was incredibly sad and angry when I heard the news that the Singing Christmas Tree is no more. I was very angry at the new pastor for coming in and taking over the place and ripping us apart….but then I got even angrier---angrier at the fact that that was my first reaction. The pastor is doing what he believes that Lord wants him to do with the church. He is not taking over us. We have been without a steady pastor for a few years and we prayed for the Lord to bring us a pastor to stay—and He did. Why should I complain about the Lord’s will. I know that the Lord is going to be honored through this decision. I thank God for the examples that the people from church have set for me. They encouraged me and we all mourned together 3000 miles apart.
I went to bed last night and used ear plugs. I couldn’t hear a thing. So, I started to pray and especially prayed for the Lord to bring me joy when I woke up the next morning. Well, this morning, I woke up refreshed and I had Joy! Seriously! I don’t understand. It’s hard to react the right way right when bad or sad things happen, but when we rest in the Lord and he renews our joy and strength and gives us understanding—then we can see what he wants us to learn and how he wants us to react. God is good—even during the storms.
Anyway, I thank God for Pastor Jimmy Scroggins. He is a man of God.
*current song playing on my iTunes: “Prodigal” by Casting Crowns.* “Daddy, here I am. Won’t you take me back again. One day you’re a prince, the next day you’re a slave. Daddy, here I am again. Will you take me back tonight.”
I love Casting Crowns—the words to all of their songs are so true to the things that are going on inside me and even in the world today. They are always good at writing lyrics that make you think and they lead you to the cross. Thank God for good Christian Music  Anyway—I should probably get onto my paper writing.

I took some engagement photos for a friend today. I only had 20 minutes...they aren't the best---but it's the best I could do with the small window of time that I had. It was tons of fun though! Enjoy!! :)

If only I could add words to my research papers like I add words and entries to my blog—maybe I would be a little more stress free. I think I have 8 research papers to write in the next 5 weeks. That’s definitely a handful of stuff that I’m afraid to look at. One is due in less than a week and two more are due the week after that. I love the end of semesters! Catching up on missed reading assignments or work missed from sitting out of class sick! UHG! It’s a bit overwhelming at times; but it’s my own fault—I’m a lazy procrastinator! I think I write better papers under stress anyway. I get them done in record time!  Well, since I arrived back home from Iquitos, my stomach has been acting up a bit, but since Friday, I’ve been in bed basically all day every day. I’ve had a fever the last couple nights and I can’t keep anything in my stomach. The doctor did say that this Virus would come and go—there’s no cure for it, but I’m just waiting it out. He said it could even take many months. The frustrating thing isn’t simply the running to the bathroom every 5 minutes—it’s the weakness that comes along with it. Sometimes it gets to the point where walking from one room to another is a chore. But I think the Lord has a lot to teach me. I’m kind of praying that this stomach issue isn’t going to be the main thorn in my flesh for the rest of my life though—that would seriously suck, but, whatever the Lord wills is best---even if it ruins my stomach and kills me—at least I’ll be home in heaven with no more tears or pain. I honestly can’t wait for heaven. I mean, I can enjoy my life here on earth and I want to do everything I can here, like get married, have a family, see my children have a family and so forth—but, if the Lord decided to take me home today—I don’t see how I could complain. At least my prayer for a new stomach would come true! 
I’m really rather homesick right now. My parents came to visit last week and I had a really hard time with them leaving. I don’t know why I took it so hard, but I guess I realized that being 3000 miles away from everything that I know isn’t as easy as I thought. I mean, I love it here and I can deal with everything, but sometimes I wish home was two doors down and I could just go home and sleep in my own bed, by myself in the room with my cats keeping my feet warm and waking me up in the morning to play, taking a shower for as long as I want, in my own bathroom where I can find all my stuff because I would be the only one that touches it, cooking in my kitchen—better yet, cooking at all would be nice! Oh, the things I miss from home. I actually miss working and getting a paycheck! Living here really isn’t expensive at all, but I’m slowly using up my account and I hate watching it fall and knowing that I have no choice but to work all summer long to build it back up. But enough with the negative—it has been nice not having to worry about getting up at 4:30 in the morning to make it to work on time. It’s been a nice break, where I am focused on the Lord and building godly relationships here, in a worldly-distraction free environment.
I have a couple of things planned for when I get home. One, I am going to do my best to spend some time working on my novel at least 3 times a week, if not every day. I’m thinking I might buy a journal and keep it with me at all times, so when I have a few minutes I can add a little here and a little there to the story. I mean, honestly…that’s the only way anything is going to get done. Two, I am planning a photography project. I asked my sister Heidi to model for it and she said yes. This was a while ago that I asked her, but hopefully she will remember. Three, I’m going to join the choir again at church and try to get involved again in the music ministry as much as I can. I really miss the church. Four, my goal is to finish all of my chuck-tracks for next semester by the end of the summer—that will be really nice for next semester because chuck tracks are time-consuming and stressful!! And five, I’m planning on working for chick-fil-a again, unless I get a better offer. I usually get good pay and good hours with CFA, so I really have nothing to complain about with that---oh yes, AND we get free food! YUM! Anyway---that’s just a list of things that I’m going to try and do this summer. I’m going to be busy. Maybe I can do some babysitting on the side—any need a baby sitter?! Oh, and Nicole—as for you—we are going to meet at LEAST once a week---I think we need to go back to the cute diner downtown. That was a nice place with good food, good coffee and clean bathrooms.
I think I’m just blabbering now, but anyway—that’s what has been on my mind lately. Now, off to some more reading. Maybe I’ll get a paper done today…who knows—it’s my last day off before my classes start back up again! I’d love to hear from you. I like to get letters or even e-mails would be nice. If you need the school address, just let me know. But my e-mail is Mstimely@bellsouth.net .  Have a great day!

I just missed home and Nicole, so i figured i would post some videos and pictures to help my heart :) I miss all of you!! See you soon! :)

P.s. did i forget to mention my spicy altos?!!! I love you!!! Possible reunion over the summer?!

  Before I get into details about my trip, I want to inform you about a guy that I went to high school with. He was in a car accident on Sunday Night or very early morning, I’m not sure. But he was driving home around 3 in the morning and fell asleep and when he woke up he over corrected and his car started to roll. He has a shoulder injury and a serious hip injury, also he has a horrible injury to his foot. His wounds are open and he is wrapped to keep from infection until he is stable enough to do reconstructive surgery. This is a very serious situation. There are many details that I do not have permission to give out, but I ask that you would join me in prayer for Brandon Jacobs. 
  Lord, I pray right now for Brandon. I don’t know all of the details and I’m not sure what kind of relationship he has with you. I know that he knows of you, Lord, but if he has strayed from you, Father, then I ask that would draw him close to you. I ask that you would use the pain and the suffering from these injuries and even the long-term effects that he knows it will cause to have him run to you. Lord, great physician, I pray for your hands of healing to come overwhelmingly over his body and to miraculously heal these injuries. Lord, you are perfectly capable of healing even the most deadly of injuries and diseases. Lord, This is nothing for you. But father, if it is your will, that Brandon is not healed, I ask that you would use this as a testimony of you to all of those that will hear his story. I pray that not only would you heal Brandon and use him according to your will but also that you would heal the hearts and souls of others that need to hear about you and your amazing works and beautiful character. We don’t know why all of these things happen, but we do know that all things work together for the good of those that love you. In our weakness, lord, you are made strong. Lord give Brandon strength to endure this incredible amount of pain. Let Him know that your strength is what sustains him. That it’s your kindness that leads him to repentance, not your wrath. Sometimes you need to do big things to get our attention. Lord, I pray that those that need to direct their attention to you will have open eyes and hearts to what you have to say through this. I know that your will is going to be done. I know that you love Brandon. Comfort him and his family now as they go through this incredibly tough time. We love you, Lord. And we trust that you know what you are doing. Amen.
  Please keep in prayer for Brandon.
  So, my trip to Iquitos was pretty incredible. It was very trying. I didn’t always have the best attitude, and I really regret not fighting it and just smiling—because technically, I was going there to be a witness to the people of Iquitos and Panguana. I was extremely tired the entire trip and we were busy a lot of the time. Every night we went to the boulevard to perform dramas, witness to the locals and play with the kids. The scary thing about this was seeing all of the witchcraft going on in the streets and with some of the parents of the kids that we were playing with. We could really feel Satan’s hand over this community. Many were open to the gospel, but many were also so stuck in their ways and Satan had such a tight grip on them that we were not able to penetrate their walls. Luckily our job is not to convince people of God’s love and grace—it’s simply to share. The Bible doesn’t say that we remove the veil, but that God removes the veil. I would venture to say that around 100 people or more altogether in Iquitos came to know the Lord. Several nights we went to the Church which was about a 30 minute bus ride away from the house where we were staying at. This area is incredibly poor: mud roads, children running around without shoes, dirty water, shack like buildings…it was crazy to see this. But the kids all seemed very happy. It really was such a blessing to be able to play with them and bless them. On Thursday, we got up early in the morning and went out to breakfast at this Texas restaurant down the road. This place is awesome and open 24 hours! After breakfast, we all caught motor taxies to the port which was like a little opening in the trees by the water where you walked the plank onto this sketchy looking boat. When we got inside, we all took our hammocks out and hung them up all lined up in a row on the top floor of the boat. Most of us slept, but some were doing the Lord’s work and led 3 of the guys that ran the boat to the Lord! The boat ride was a 3 hour trip----this brought to my mind the Gilligan’s island theme song. Once we arrived to the shore of the area of the jungle that we were to trek through that day, we walked over the plank onto the muddy shore of the Amazon River. After getting everything together we started a good 30-45 minute walk through the jungle to get to the village. We came to a part in the walk where the path was under water from flooding and we had to take a canoe to the other side. Luckily, there were canoes there.---that was one of my biggest fears, was having to swim through snake infested waters. But the lord provided a canoe and that held me off a little while until the next challenge. We all finally made it to the other side of the flooded area—some did have to swim though because there wasn’t enough room in the canoes. We had to walk about another mile on the other side to get to the village. Just as we arrived to the church in the village, it started pouring rain. It was such a relief because it was so hot outside! It really cooled us off. We were supposed to paint the building but because it rained, we weren’t able to. So, instead of painting, we went to a little creek down a little path and went swimming with some of the locals. The water was pretty disgusting. We held a children’s service in the afternoon and afterwards went to the hill and ran around with them. In the evening we held a service for the adults. Not many came though because just before service started and incredible thunder and rain storm and lightening display came upon us and it lasted all night. We didn’t leave until around 10 at night….let me mention that there are no lights out there and we are in the middle of the pouring rain in the pitch black darkness and on a path that has missing boards----through water that is snake infested (but the Lord did provide canoes) that was a blessing! And then back up through the mud to the edge of the water where we waited for the boat to return and take us back down the river. Did I mention that there is no such thing as a toilet in the jungle?! I avoided going to the bathroom all day. That was a serious chore! Hehe. But the walk back to the boat in the jungle was probably my favorite part of the entire missions trip. We saw beautiful displays of lightening and heard amazing thunder and thanked God for the rain the kept us cool and kept the mosquitoes away! Some of the guys were telling silly jokes along the way to keep everyone entertained. So the big joke of the night was the thunder was God laughing at the dumb jokes and the lightening was God taking pictures! Ha! This was probably one of the most memorable experiences of my life thus far 
  On one of the other days in Iquitos we visited a district called Belen. This area is right on the shore of the Italia (?) river which is a small river that branches off of the Amazon river. But during half the year (rainy season) the entire area of Belen is under water---so the people’s houses are all built up several levels because they always expect the first floors of the house to flood every year. The streets turn into canals that need to be traveled by canoe. It is very sad to see this part of town but it was very eye opening. At one point, we crossed the Italia river and saw a catholic church that was almost inaccessible. The people of that area know that the pastor is a drunk and have seen his behavior outside of church---they all refer to him as Satan. It really is very sad.
  On the plane ride home, a few of the members from my team claimed that they sensed some sort of evil spirit on board. A woman collapsed during the last hour of the flight and caused an uproar onboard with all passengers trying to figure out what was going on. Medics were helping her out and the flight attendants were trying to get the pilot to land the plane. In the last few minutes before we landed, they got an oxygen mask on her got her back into her seat. We landed and taxied up to the terminal where we were met by an ambulance ready to take her to the hospital. Interesting experience.
  When I arrived back here on the Lima campus, I ran directly up to apartment 2, where I was met by my parents! Yes, they came to Peru! It was my Dad’s first time outside the states. Pretty cool. They brought tons of stuff for all the students. I sent an idea request list and they brought almost everything that was asked for. I saw about 5 of them making burritos today for a snack with some ingredients that my parents had brought for them. They can’t stop raving about how awesome it was that my parents came. I had a great time with them here. I didn’t realize how much I missed them until I got to hug my mom and chat with dad on morning walks to get coffee. The first day was Sunday and so we spent the day going to church services and just visiting. On Monday, dad sat in on my class where we watched the Luther film because my professor was out of town. We really enjoyed that---it was pretty intense. I would definitely recommend it. Later on that day, we went to the Indian Market and burned holes in our pockets. We could have looked around there all day if we didn’t get tired…there is so much stuff!!! The next day, we walked to the cliffs, where there is a beautiful and peaceful view of the coast and we could see for miles! It was a fairly clear day  We took a bunch of pictures, did a little chatting and then caught a taxi over to the mall that is constructed down in-between the cliffs. After that we caught another taxi to parque Kennedy and the market and then to Dinner at a Brazilian SteakHouse called Rodizio—it was delicious!!! We ate Big bird—oops, I mean albatross  on Wednesday, Daniel was sick, so he wasn’t able to be the translator…so I had to be…that was definitely interesting. I caught 4 (?) taxies. We went to the Indian ruins, the Indian market, and T.G.I. Fridays for lunch---then we came back home to pack up for their flight home  I was incredibly sad. I’ve never been so homesick in my life. I really missed them. Daniel and I rode with them to the airport and caught a taxi back. So today it was back to normal schedule—chores and sleeping in my own bed  Only 44 days left!! I miss home! Don’t get me wrong, I love it here; but I do really miss home. I’d like to apologize for the disorganization and the horrible grammar in the blog. It’s a lot of time to cover in one blog and I was trying to remember everything. I’ll do my best to get back into the swing of posting several times a week to keep you updated!!