Empowerment at its finest

Here at IMPACT, we believe in partnerships with people across the globe that are empowering them to help themselves - giving them the tools to have sustainable income without American intervention and loving them immensely while they sort through the process of going from poverty to success.

This article is GREAT.  Some of my very best friends are living in Peru running this program for 10 women there.  Some of my other good friends plug six interns I love dearly are living in Haiti doing the same thing.

We all have a story to tell and loving our neighbor as we love ourselves means helping them write their story while they continue to give life to ours.

Simply Complicated

I’m learning that Peru, Spain & Mexico have alot in common: es simplemente complicado 

• las cucarachas (look it up) - they’re in the shower usually, awesome. 
• internet - here & in every other developing country, inconsistent & at times no bueno (but don’t get me wrong, i’m crazy grateful for wifi)
• nothing is easy - it took us 3 hours to run two errands - traffic was horrendous, parking was an issue, we got pretty darned lost, we almost got in an accident (or three) and the people here drive like they didn’t to drivers ed & don’t have driver’s licenses... oh wait, many of them don’t... notice the painted lane lines?  they totes don't matter.

• clean - the term “clean” is relative in places like this.  blowing your nose & having it be straight dirt AFTER your shower is totally clean, right?
• on time - means about 20-30 minutes late.  i mean, what’s the big deal... everybody’s doing it.  

But I’m also learning alot about what it would look like to simplify my life... to live the way most people in the world do.  To stop “needing” so much of what we’ve thought we were entitled to and to start living more simply in order to be able to provide more for those who only dream of things like hot water, internet, a mattress and a washing machine.  

I did some laundry here in Peru tonight and there’s a sweatshirt I never dry when I wash it - you know, one of those “it fits perfect & if I dried it I know it wouldn’t” sweatshirts? That one requested special permission not to be dried so I decided to hang it out on the clothes line.  As I was clipping the little clothespins, I had a glimpse of simple.  I turned around and went back into the little kitchen with no dishwasher and no garbage disposal and thought, “This actually is the life.  This is the better way to live.” 

You see, I think sometimes we think we have it good because we have every modern convenience and everything we could want easily accessible and readily available, but I actually think it harms us.  I think hanging up my sweatshirt, drying my dishes, losing my internet connection and showering with cucarachas has brought more life to me in the last week than my hot shower, my automatic coffee maker, my super speedy wireless distraction tool internet and my strip malls have done for me in the last 10 years.

I think less is more... stay tuned to hear why.  

Easter in Peru

Holidays are hard in another country.  I don't care who you are or how tough you think you are or how long you've lived in a different place than your family - holidays are when it hits you that this is not home.  Yesterday I got a glimpse of what it's like to spend Easter in another country.  I can't say I've ever done that before.  I've spent many Easters away from my family, but never spent one this far away from everything I know... except for these people who I truly consider family.

We woke up and had cereal for breakfast, per usual... except the 3 older kids had a little surprise on top of their cereal - a peep, I know, disgusting but I couldn't resist :)  We then headed to Peruvian church for Easter service.  There was something about worshipping in Spanish that took me back to how and where I grew up and it made my heart glad.

As much as I missed ROCKHARBOR's Easter service, baptisms & craziness at the amphitheater, it was amazing to see how easy it was to have a full heart despite missing what I think makes me happy on Easter.  I was sitting in church with the people I've spent the past 5 Easters with, worshipping the same risen God on what might be my favorite day of the year.  He is still risen.  He is still alive and active.  He is still in control.

We came home, had PBJ's for lunch - you know, your standard Easter feast and we hid some eggs in the yard for the kiddos, making our best attempt at keeping Easter as normal as possible for the 4 little people in the house.  All 3 of us adults called our parents & wished them Happy Easter, I know at least one of us felt a teensy bit triste that I wasn't celebrating on the lake with my family.

But we sucked it up - we played games, jumped on the trampoline, died laughing watching Blake & Sarah's wedding video, I got bit by something & my thumb swelled up and went numb, we treated ourselves to the only Mexican joint in Lima and we had a great conversation about missions - about Jesus being worth the sacrifices, about how stinkin' hard it can be at times, about transition and trust.    These people have been family to me for the last 7 years and on any day of the year, that is enough.  And we went to bed glad to be together.

Easter was still Easter and He is still risen.  Yesterday's grew my appreciation for my friends all over the world who have sacrificed much and spent a ridiculous amount of holidays away from family because Jesus is worth it.  I have a feeling this may just be the beginning of the holidays-on-another-continent journey for me.  And my first year, I think I'll be TOTALLY open to amigos joining me - come one come all... wherever it is that He's gonna have me.

Happy Easter from Peru to you.