105! There were 105!

The Sunday School is growing so fast that there is absolutely so room for them. I am starting my journey back today. While I am gone for the 2 months they are going to finish as quickly as possible and fill in the parts that they can't get to with adobe bricks that can be knocked out later. They will set up straw mat dividers inside the property to start having classes there instead of in the guys house. Oh, and we also had 3 new adults! There were 114 in total not counting me, Walter or and of the teachers who come from the church here at the school to help out there.

73! There were 73!

God is so good. The Sunday School in La Villa Milagro has been averaging roughly 45 kids each Sunday and 5-6 adults. This is awesome because of the placement of the Sunday School on the edge of the village and considering that the other 3 annexes have about 30 kids. Milagro has been the biggest annex for a while. When the work camps were here, the numbers went up a little because everyone down here knows that gringos bring candy and toys when they come. Well the last 2 Sundays have been awesome. Last week there were 61 children and 4 adults. Walter had me take an extra table from the church here out with me one day when I went to work because they lacked table space for 61. There wasn't enough space in the room for the tables that we had, but we crammed one more in. This week I counted as the children left and there were 73! I almost fainted. It was unbelievable. And with only one gringo...me. We need more tables! What a great problem to have. No more major updates, I was just really excited about that one, so I thought I'd write. Excited to see everyone in 9 days.

Final Full Week

I have 10 days until I leave Peru for a while. Mixed feelings. Most of me is extremely excited to see my friends and family. There is a part of me, however, that knows I will miss Peru while I am home. Another part knows that the church tour will be long and tiring. Right now I am really excited about it, but after driving to so many states I may not want to ever drive again. the board is looking at having me stay in the states for 3 months now. They were originally going to put me on a 2 month tour and have Ken come back in January to do one month. Because of the possible weather issues in January, he mentioned that maybe I could just do 3 months and go to the places they would have had him speak at in January such as Colorado and other places that would have rough winter weather. The states we are looking at are Ohio, Kansas, West Virginia, Illinois, Texas, Colorado, Minnesota, Florida, Washington and possibly Illinois. It will be crazy, but fun. The only places I am for sure speaking at right now are my home church August 31 and First United Methodist in Sterling, KS Oct 19. You should come if you can. I'll try and update my tour schedule on here so you know if I am coming close to you. I may also be speaking at a Stelring College chapel. That one is extremely exciting, because I would love to get Sterling started on bringing work camps. They take so many trips each summer why not Peru? And I could totally use Sterling as a feeder school for the internship program that I am trying to get started.

Work is coming along well. We are almost all the way around the main property with the main wall. I know that seems slow to those of you who do any construction in the states, but you have to remember that we are working in Peru. Nothing makes sense, and since we do everything by hand including leveling the ground and diggin gthe trenches and mixing and pouring cement, it takes a while. I am looking forward to hopefully seeing some of you when I am in the states. Dios te Bendiga!

My new life

Great news! I have finally felt the calling into full time missions. The plan right now is that I will be the stateside missionary for LACF. I will take over a lot of the fundraising and organization of the actual sponsorship program. In order to do this, I will have church supports like Ken does for pay. The main way that we will accomplish this is by instating an internship program. For one semester each year, we will have a small group of interns, paid, who will get opportunities in missions stateside and in Peru. I will be working with them first hand and be with them when they come down to Peru. This will give young people who are interested in missions an opportunity to gain experience in several areas. They can help with the paperwork side, setting up church tours, searching for funds, doing medical and pastoral things in Peru, and many other areas that people don't always think about when looking at missions. i am really excited and a little bit scared. Please pray for guidance and discernment for me, the board, and Ken as we decide where I will be stationed, what my first steps will be and who I should contact for backing. I will stay on the Milagro project down here until May and then start immediately after that in the states. Thank you for all of your thoughts and prayers and I will update everyone as I know more. Dios te bendiga!