Ā Thursday, January 2 + Friday, January 3
by Megan Strange, Upper School Principal
Our team gathered Thursday afternoon at NCCS at 4:30 p.m. to begin our adventure to Peru. Our Peru Crew has been such a blast to work with the past few months as we have all gotten to know each other better. We knew from the start that this team would work hard ā¦ and have a lot of fun while doing it!
The Peru team families helped us get prayed up and loaded up and on our way to the airport. Check in was relatively smooth, and security was a breeze ā¦ both big praises right off the bat! We were in the international terminal and ended up eating dinner and hanging out with our NCCS Kenya team ā¦ super fun!
Our flight took off a little after 10 p.m., and the kids had fun getting settled in. Because it was such a long flight, it was a huge plane with seats 2-3-2. Great movies and snacks! The kids even told me later that they had dinner on the plane around midnight, but I guess I just slept right through that! Several of our kids made new friends on the plane ā¦ super pumped to see how open they were to meeting new people. And some of them had some hilarious stories to tell about their seatmates or other things they observed on the overnight flight. It was a first for most of our team!
We landed in Lima a little after 5 a.m. and grabbed our bags and cleared customs. That went fairly quick except for a little hiccup about checking back inā¦we did, but we didnāt have to since we already did all that in Atlanta. Due to the weather, our flight was delayed a little bit, but that was another blessing because we had time to eat breakfast and stretch our legs a bit.
Our flight took off at 7:30 from Lima to Cusco. It was about a 90-minute flight, and most folks dozed off and on again. When we landed in Cusco, we picked up our stuff easily and were met by Pastor Cesar, Israel, and several other new friends.
They took us to a really cool restaurant where we had brunch and got to relax a bit before our drive to the orphanage. Most kids ordered breakfast. Check out the pics on Facebook of the avacado toast! Some were a little more adventurous and ordered alpaca burgers! And they said they were so good.
We walked back across the city center square to get to the vans. The temps were cool and it was rainy, but everyone was having a great time looking around and taking things in.
We loaded two large sprinter vans and started a ā3 1/2 hourā trip to the orphanage in Cachora. They warned us about the windy roads and switchbacks, so several of us preemptively took Dramamine. Those that didnāt assured me that they would on the way home š. It was a beautiful drive through the mountains with lots of elevation change, but it was a hard ride. It took almost five hours by the time you factor in a couple of quick stops for the restroom.
We arrived at the orphanage just in time to see a double rainbow over the property in the valley of the Andes Mountains range. Easily one of the most beautiful places any of us have been! Our arrival was almost exactly 24 hours after we departed NCCS ā¦ what a journey!
Jhon, the director of the orphanage, had the kids out front with balloons, and they cheered for us as we rolled onto campus. So precious! We loved greeting everyone and getting out of the vans. We got settled in our rooms and rested a little before dinner. The kids even enjoyed playing on the playground!
Dinner was a treat. We had trout, sweet mashed potatoes, grilled veggies, and pudding. Everyone ate well! We spent some time in our team devotional time and talking through where weād seen God at work in our journey. Addie and Peyton led our time talking about what it means to truly surrender looking at Luke 10 and the story of Mary and Martha. They encouraged us to āchoose the better thingā this week.
It was a long first and second day, but we shared a lot of laughs and are excited about whatās to come for the week ahead!
Saturday, January 4
by Megan Strange, Upper School Principal
After a great nightās rest, Saturday started out as a beautiful day! The orphanage is located in a valley in the Andes Mountains, and the scenery here is just spectacular. A few of us have teased that we are on the set of the Sound of Music with the rolling hills and mountains. Everything is so green and there are a lot of pretty flowers on the property.
When we walked over towards the dining hall, there were several students out and about doing their morning devotions. As a team, we spend time individually each morning in Godās Word to prepare our hearts for the day and then we wrap up each evening as a group talking about where we saw God at work that day, worshipping together through song, and then sharing a time of devotion led by our teammates. Part of Spring Term at NCCS is helping our students develop these rhythms and routines to help them draw close to the Lord and in fellowship with other believers.
We gathered for breakfast at 8:30 and enjoyed hardboiled eggs, a chicken and potato dish, fresh fruit, bread, granola, and cereal. All of our food is prepared and presented in a super cool way here. In Peru, they have a big hospitality industry for a variety of reasons, but mainly because of all the people who trek to see Macchu Pichu. The orphanage and all of Zone Zegura ministries work together to help prepare these kids for the opportunities ahead of them. The older kids in the orphanage are part of the āLife and Workā program where they are trained to work in the hospitality industry.
We heard a good bit about this program before we cameā¦mainly to prepare our kids that other teenagers would be serving themā¦but it was remarkable to hear the kids in the program explain it to our kids. Leo in particular has quickly connected with our team because his English is so good. We have watched him get up early to prepare for the day, then quickly change to play soccer with us, back to work lunch, hang with us during free time, and then back to work dinner. His work ethic and attitude are INCREDIBLE!
In the dining room, Psalm 27:10 is posted on the wall: āFor my father and my mother have forsaken me, but the LORD will take me in,” which serves as a powerful reminder for these kids that come from difficult home situations. After breakfast, we were honored to tour the orphanage to hear more of the story of this place and to see where the kids live. There are multiple houses for the kids that each have an adult house parent. The kids told us about their houses and introduced themselves. The highlight was getting to visit their rooms and see the things they are so proud ofā¦school awards, prized toys, etcā¦.just like all our kids at home. The houses were neat and tidy and it was obvious that the kids are very well cared for.
At each house, we prayed for the kids and their house mom. Would you join us in praying for these homes that the joy of the Lord would be central and that these kids would know that God sees them and is caring for them? James 1:27 is one of many places in Scripture that points to the fact that orphans are close to the heart of God.
We wrapped up the tours just in time for the bus to pull in full of kids from the neighboring community. They had come to spend the day with us and we started the festivities with a welcome parade as they came down the driveway. Just like our arrival the day before, lots of hugs, smiles, and the start of friendship!
Our kids jumped right in and started a soccer game, volleyball, kickball, card games, makeup, dances and cheers, and playing on the playground. Laughter was the soundtrack of the morning! Even with some language barrier, the kids figured things out with smiles and lots of hand motions. Also, our kids are realizing they know a lot more Spanish than they gave themselves credit forā¦much to Senora Petersonās delight.
We took everyone inside for VBS and a break from the sunshine. We spent time singing songs, studying Scripture, enjoying a Bible story puppet show, and dancing to a worship song. Precious smiles and new friends seated together made a special time. We played outside a bit longer and then came in for lunch. We enjoyed rice and chicken along with jello and a fun Peruvian juice. Definitely ask the team about some of the fruit juices and Peruvian sodas that we have tried.
After lunch, we jumped right back into all the games for a bit. Then we stopped for a birthday celebration for a little boy named Jesus who turned twoā¦so adorable. The kids all sang happy birthday and he got a cake and a fun gift. His mother was precious sharing with the group about her son. She was one of the moms that came with the community kids to participate in a Moms Bible Study. Many of the single moms are longing for connection and support and Zone Zegura wants to help provide that.
The Mom shared that she didnāt have the resources to do anything special for her sonās birthday and she was totally blown away by the celebration for him. She was emotional in sharing with the group about how God always provides for them and how she and her son would never forget the kindness shown to them. I assure you that none of us will ever forget the joy of being a part of seeing Godās provision for that precious mom and son.
Coach Parker, Mrs. Peterson, and I had a chance to talk with Pastor Jhon about the ministry and the support that they receive from Pastor Cesar and Zone Segura. It sounds like a healthy model for ministry as it is all geared towards helping the kids know the love of Christ and to help them prepare for leading their own families and careers one day. He asked us to please give him feedback on anything they could be doing better. We continue to be blown away by the humility of our ministry partners here in Peru.
The kids from the community loaded up and head back home around 4. We continued to play with the kids who live here and even did a second round of VBS for another story, worship, puppet show, and craft. We had been asked to do this from 4-5ā¦before we knew it, it was almost 6:15 and everyone was still sitting around playing cards, working in crafts, and just enjoying unrushed time together. We had a few minutes of downtime and then came back for dinner.
A storm rolled in and it was pouring by the time we sat down for dinner. The kids quickly recognized Godās provision in making the weather so beautiful during the day when we were with all the kids. With the cool rain coming down, we were thrilled to hear that dinner was soup! We had split pea soup, fresh bread, and apple stew for dessert. The dresser was interestingā¦basically most of an apple that had been peeled that was marinating in warm Apple cider. Really good and definitely warmed us up!
We wrapped up our evening with our team time. Several people easily shared when we asked āwhere did you see God at work today?ā A good bit of it revolved around the joy we saw in the kids we met and how open they were to new friendship. Several people shared about something they saw in another teammate or connected with something theyād learned at school. God is working in our team stirring up hearts and minds for sure!
That led into our evening time of worship, devotion led by Michelle and Katherine about putting our focus on the right things and being content in Christ, and a review of tomorrowās plan for church and in home evangelism visits.
We had a gentle break in the rain that was just enough to get everyone safe and sound back to their rooms for the night. It was a great day!
Sunday, January 5
by Megan Strange, Upper School Principal
This morning we are really starting to feel at home here in Peru. The team slept well and woke up to a beautiful day after the storms of last night. We gathered at 8:30 for breakfast after the girls had everyone take lots of pictures in their church clothesā¦the boys loved that. š
At the start of each meal, the Life and Work students āpresent the mealā to us by sharing what we will be having. Itās so cool to see the intentional preparations they make for our mealsā¦even polishing the silverware and setting the table nicely. Breakfast was another great speed that included: rice, chicken, eggs, fruit, pancakes, granola, and yogurt. We are eating well on this trip!
After breakfast, we broke into two groups to head to church. One group went with Coach Parker on the van to a house church near the city square in Cachora. We took the other group to a church that was āa short walkā away. It was a short and beautiful walkā¦mostly straight up. Butā¦we were all warmed up by the time we got to church and the home we met in was beautiful overlooking the valley!
Our house church was a cool mixture of Peruvians and Americans joining together for worship. Preston spoke, Olivia shared from the Psalms and her testimony, and Kat, Emma S, and I led worship. Some of the Peruvians also shared testimonies and Psalms as well. Coach Parkerās group had a similar experience with Ross speaking and LJ sharing a Psalm and testimony. Both churches wrapped up with a āhug timeā and our kids through that was super cool.
Speaking at the house church was a very interesting yet impactful experience. It was very humbling to see what these people had and how grateful they were. I prayed that God would speak through me and articulate an effective message through me. And I believe he answered my prayer. I was so very grateful for the opportunity to share my testimony that it might help anyone with similar struggles. My overall point was that no matter what has happened in your life or what will happen God has a plan, and we have to trust in that plan no matter if our circumstances seem bleak. This was a unique experience that I praise God he allowed me to have. God moved in me through this process and Iām hoping he moves in the hearts of all those who listened. – Ross Rea, 12th grade
We headed back to the Village of the Children and had some downtime before lunch. Some kids changed clothes and others played soccer or cards. Lunch was presented at 2pm and we enjoyed spaghetti, salad, and a dessert called āpassion fruit deliciousness.ā The lunch was great and the fellowship was fantastic! Another fun treat was a chance to enjoy a siesta after lunch!
The afternoon brought an opportunity to get into ministry groups. We let everyone choose what they wanted to do. One group stayed and did a VBS lesson at the Childrens home with Mrs. Peterson. Coach Parker and I each led a group that went into Cachora to do door to door evangelism. We talked to a lot of people and learned about their lives, their struggles, and what they are hoping for. Some of the families let us pray with them and leave gospel tracts with them to share with other people. We had the AWESOME privilege of leading a lady and a man to come to know the Lord and to pray with several others. (See our students’ insights on this experience, below!)
While we were gone, the team that stayed on campus had some awesome opportunities with sports and VBS. The best part about being in 2 groups for church this morning and then 3 groups for ministry in the afternoon/evening was that we all had stores to share when we reunited at dinner!
For our last dinner here, we were served a wonderful roasted chicken quinoa soup with bread and pudding. The kids have really enjoyed trying some new things and have eaten well!
Our team time tonight was rich. When we asked, āwhere have you seen God at work today?ā The stories just flowed. The team is becoming so intentional to recognize the love of the Holy Spirit and can articulate Godās movement even beyond just āsomething cool that happenedā. They are pumped to dive into a new ministry opportunity tomorrow!
Coach Parker closed our time together tonight by sharing from Scripture and his own testimony of how the Lord used door knocking to ultimately lead him to Christ. Who is someone close to you who just needs someone to share the gospel with them? Be bold.
We closed our time in prayer and headed to rooms to pack up. Breakfast is at 8 a.m., and then we will leave around 9 a.m. to head to the Life and Work campus a couple hours away towards Cusco. Thank you for prayers for safe travel. Also pray for our hearts, which will be sad when we say goodbye to the children here in the morning.
Glory to Godā¦for the great things He has done and is doing.
Insights from our students:
Aiden Phillips, 12th grade | “When given the opportunity to share the word of God to the people of Peru, walking up to random houses and hoping they would receive our message well was slightly intimidating. All we could do was pray they would open their hearts to what we had to say. In my group we were able to meet a young woman named Lucarlita. Her name means ābright lightā in Spanish. She informed us she had never heard the Gospel before but was curious about what it had to say. Through the help of our three circle bracelets, I was able to explain that we are dead in our sins and are in need of a Savior. All we must do is give our lives to Christ and ask for forgiveness of our sins. Through this message Lucarlita asked for us to pray for her and help her accept Christ into her life. It is unlike any joy to see someone put their faith in Christ. Seeing Lucarlita give her life to Christ was such a beautiful blessing to witness, knowing that she will go forward in life with a heart for Christ and be a light for him. I felt honored to be able to share such good news and witness the Holy Spirit working in this young woman.”
Peyton Phillips, 12th grade | “I had the pleasure of not only preaching the Gospel, but leading two people to Christ. This experience was unlike any Iāve ever had. Our first person was a man. At first, he was not being very open. He was pressuring us and trying to trick us. He didnāt understand how, if God is the one true God, there are different religions. I was taken aback by this question but then reminded him of God’s original design. I told him since sin entered the world, there was brokenness but that doesnāt change God’s intentions. God’s intentions are still pure and true. I prayed for him, and he was very, very grateful for us. He not only came to know Christ, but he told us that he wanted to join the church and tell people about the gospel. This was not the ending that I was expecting. We almost left because he was being so hostile at first, but Kaiden and I felt as if we needed to stay.
“The second was a mother. The day prior, children from the village came to the orphanage. There was this little boy named Jesus who was having his 4th birthday. We sang for him, gave him a cake and a gift. His mother was beyond grateful. Then the next day as we were just knocking on random doors, we knocked on their door. She told us that some other missionaries have come to her house and told her that they would be back one day. She felt as if when we arrived, it was a miracle from God. She cried in utter thankfulness for the amount of joy the Lord has brought in her life since she joined the church. She then told us that her husband is very closed-minded, and not open to giving his life to Christ. I asked if I could pray for her husband. While I was praying, she broke down. She couldnāt put into words the amount of love she has felt. Overall, this was such an eye-opening experience. Knowing that they will be walking their day-to-day lives for Christ and will now be a light to the Kingdom is unlike any feeling.”
Monday, January 6
by Megan Strange, Upper School Principal
We woke up to our last morning at the Village of the Children, and it was another beautiful day. The clouds settled in over camp, and our beautiful mountain background looked like it disappeared. Everyone packed up and set out their baggage before coming to breakfast. The Life and Work students came by and picked them up to load the van. This has been such a unique experience having our meals served and the great lengths of hospitality they went to in hosting us!
Breakfast was incredible, again: rice, beef, fried eggs, fruit, bread, yogurt, and granola. Also, Iāve been remiss not to mention the coffeeā¦it has been really good each day! Lots of great conversation around the tables reflecting on our first few days.
At 9am it was time to load the vans. Lots of hugs and tears and a special time of prayer for The Village of the Children. We loaded up and headed back towards Cusco. The bus ride is not easy … lots of curves and switchbacks. The kids were troopers. Motion sickness medicine was quite popular, and everyone made it fine today! We stopped twice for restroom stops and that seemed to help since everyone could stretch their legs a bit.
One thing that has been a surprise to us is the topography of Peru. We knew it was mountainous, but we didnāt realize that one of the main tributaries of the Amazon River runs right near where we are. That means officially we are in the Amazon basin. The weather has been beautiful: cool in the mornings and evenings and warm in the day time, kind of like October at home … and who doesnāt love October?
When we arrived at the ministry center, we were blown away by the special welcome. There was a family in traditional Peruvian attire out front with their alpacas to greet us. As we came into the beautiful campus, they had snacks for us and a special gift. Each person was given an alpaca hatā¦super cool ceremony of the hats being presented. So cool that we are all still wearing our hats 6 hours later. Also, we will probably add them to the school dress code. I realized that alpaca items are sorely underrepresented.
We went to our rooms to set our stuff down and hang out a few minutes before lunch at 2 p.m. We were introduced to the staff at the ministry center and then lunch was āpresentedā by the Life and Work students. And what a lunch it was!! Lomo Saltado (beef with onions and carrots), rice, French fries, and ice cream. Again, we ate well. We will not be hungry or thin when we returnā¦we will likely need new clothes. After lunch, we had some rest time before reporting back to the gathering area.
Our task for this afternoon was to make 150 pizza crusts and to prepare all of the toppings for a pizza party with the people from the house churches on the area. We like to think that we are a talented bunchā¦but making those pizza crusts from scratch is certainly no joke. We were planning to open our own pizza joint to put the new NCCS Pizza Perch out of business, but weāve all retired. We canāt hang.
There was plenty of time to play outside, take pictures of alpacas, and to set up for the pizza party. Our students are really enjoying the translators that have been hanging with us this week. These are young men and young women that love the Lord and that are using their English to partner in ministry. They have gone everywhere with us and have been a blessing!
Pastor Cesar is our host for this part of the week and he is over the whole ministry weāve been serving with. He reminded us that the people coming to the pizza party are walking through some difficulties and charged us to be an encouragement in the name of Christ.
When the families arrived, we greeted them and then Spears shared his testimony with the group and pointed to Romans 5:3-5 as a passage that the Lord had used to encourage him a great deal. After we prayed, our team began to serve the guests and then sat down to learn more about their stories. Wowā¦some of these folks are walking through some really challenging circumstances. They were so courageous to open up to us and to give us an opportunity to talk with them and pray for them.
After the party was over, we met as a team and several shared what they learned as they visited with their new friends. Our kids saw God at work today in the faces of these Peruvian men and women. There was a lot of laughter around the pizza and we hope the time was a blessing to the families!
Aiden and LJ shared the team devotion for tonight and had also prepared to use Romans 5:3-5ā¦such a cool God moment to see that Scripture as a key part of our day. They both shared about how the Lord uses hard things to help shape us and to be for His glory and the good of others.
We ran over our schedule for tomorrowā¦should be a super fun day. Will you pray specifically for our opportunities to share the gospel? We prayed and headed to the rooms for the night. This place is beautiful and Iām sure we will rest well!
Magnify the Lord,
Megan Strange
Tuesday, January 7
by Megan Strange, Upper School Principal
Happy Tuesday from Peru! We woke to a beautiful morning after a great nightās rest. At the ministry center, all the girls are two to a room and the guys are all in one room. Everyone is really enjoying the new space because there are some fun hangout areas, and the views of the mountains are just incredible. Definitely a great place to see Godās creation on display!
Breakfast was way above and beyond todayā¦super special: omelets, fresh fruit, hamburgers, yogurt, and bread. We have eaten so well this week, but we just keep eating!
We took a couple minutes to go to our rooms to get backpacks, fill up water bottles, and get ready to head out. Today we were in four groups: two groups were going to do some farming and evangelism, and the other two groups were going to doing some door-to-door evangelism and prayer walking.
We put our four senior guys in charge of each team, and they led us well! Ross and Spears led the farming groups, and Graham and Preston led the other groups.
Three groups got on the bus to ride out to their locations. Two of them went into the city square area to talk to people and share the gospel. Graham, Peyton, and Mrs. Peterson got to lead a lady to Christ! Would yāall please join us in praying for Paulina as she grows in her new faith?
Insights from a student:
Written by Graham Masson, 12th grade
Today, we met an Incan woman while walking through the town. Her name was Paulina and she did not really know who Christ was.
She did not want to become a Christian at first because she saw other āChristians.ā Those āChristiansā were not following Christās ways which led her away from him. Paulina also worshipped many idols due to her Incan background.
We told her about the gospel and the three circles, which explain how Jesus came down and died for us on the cross, so we can be forgiven of our sins and pursue Godās perfect design.
We brought up John 14:6 which says, āI am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.ā
This led her to be ready to accept Christ, and after the Salvation prayer, she was so excited to become a follower of Jesus.
The group I was with just had a āshort walkā to our location. We headed out. It wasnāt that far of a walk, but they forgot to tell us about the mountain between the ministry center and our work spot. We love surprises. After climbing up and over the mountain on our way there and backā¦we will be well conditioned for the second semester of school! 3.5 miles round tripā¦imagine two trips up and over Kennesaw Mountain, but at 11,000 ft elevation. Acworth, GA is about 1,000 ft above sea level and Kennesaw Mountain is 1,100 ft high. We are at 11,000 ft above sea level here in Cuscoā¦and you feel it every time you walk up the steps!
The two farming groups helped in potato fields mostly with weeding and straightening things up. I was in Rossās group, and the lady that owned the field (Lydia) was 60 years old and farmed circles around us.
Lydia seemed really glad to see us, so I donāt know if she realized we really donāt do a lot of farming at home. š She told us that we first should take off our shoes and socks. We thought we missed something in translation until we realized that she was standing there and waiting. Soā¦we took off our socks and shoes and headed into the field. We had the best time laughing, singing, and weeding!
It was a little hard to see why God wanted us to help with the farming, but it made sense about two hours later. After the farming, we were doing home visits in the community.
Our crew was dying from the hiking and altitude, but the ministry leader told us to follow a lady up the hill. She was an elderly lady carrying a big load and booking it up the mountain. I figured weād never catch her, but we learned that her house was around the corner. When Michelle, Kyiah, and I arrived, the lady invited us in with our translator.
We sat down and started visiting. The lady spoke an Incan dialect called Quechuan which is different than Spanishā¦and mainly from the Andes mountain tribes of Incas. That meant that anything we said had to go to our Spanish translator and then to another translator to convert to and then to the ladyā¦and then back our way. But she was so gentle and kindā¦very patient.
A few minutes later, she was telling us about how her daughter cares for her and that she would be coming over soon. You could tell she was proud for us to meet her daughter. Her daughter showed up a few minutes laterā¦Lydia! How about that?!! God had us weed that field so that we could earn the chance to share the gospel with Lydia and her mother!!
Lydia shared her struggles as a single mom who is estranged from her son. She feels responsible for her mother, but desperately desires to reunite with her son.
Michelle took the lead and shared about a difficult experience she had in her life and how the Lord met her there and encouraged her. I shared with Lydia that I grew up with a single mom and that I knew how hard that wasā¦but that God wanted to meet her in those struggles.
Insights from a student:
Written by Michelle Garcia, 12th grade
Today was an experience I will never forget. Today I realized how blessed I am with everything God has given me through the hard times and the good times. He has given peace and kindness, even when I may find myself lost in my faith. During my time with Lydia, I was given the opportunity to share my testimony. Iāve learned that all testimonies can be different, and the Lord can work in many different ways. I will not lie; it was difficult for me to share, but I know God was working through me while I was sharing my testimony with Lydia. Even though we are very different ages, I know God used me today for a purpose. God’s light shined through Lydia today as she welcomed us and radiated the love of God.
Lydia allowed us to walk her through the 3 Circles presentation of the gospel. The hangup for her came to asking Jesus to be the Lord of her life. She said she knows who Jesus is and believes in him, but she also practices the Incan idol worship. She knows she needs to stop worshipping the idols, but she just canāt lay them down. I know many of us can understand thatā¦even if our idols just look a little different.
Lydia and her mom allows us to pray with them and then we headed out. We visited two other families for a quick conversation and then met up with LJ, Ross, and Kaiden to visit at the home of Rudy, Saeda, and Krystal.
Saeda was very emotional telling us about her 16 year old daughter. She had left the area to study in Cusco which is about an hour away. The mom knows it is for the good of her daughter, but she misses her a lot. It was good for our students to talk about the fact that they are about to go off to college and I shared that I understand her feelings as a mom. Rudy came home from picking up Krystal and they sat and chatted with us a long time. We were probably there an hour just chatting about the Lord.
We prayed for their family and the translators promised to follow up with more info about the house church. After that, we started our hike back to the ministry center for lunch. We took a victory picture when we arrived at 2pm.
The other teams returned just before us and it was super fun to swap stories over lunch. Lunch was chicken fried rice with salad on top, the best pineapple juice, and chocolate cake for dessert. Then we got the good wordā¦time to rest and hangout before the evening activities.
The rest time was full of naps, sitting in the sun chatting, pushups and plank wars, chatting about things coming up back home at school, and getting organized for the rest of the trip. It was a fun two hours!
We met at 5pm to load the bus to head into a neighboring community. Our taskā¦to knock on doors and invite people to a movie night. We broke up into several smaller groups and started our door knocking. Weāve laughed this week about the door knocking because none of us would probably come to the door at home. However, the Peruvian people have been so gracious and kind to share their time with us.
Several of us stopped by a home and met a man and his wife. He was telling us that he works in agriculture and you could tell he works hardā¦but had the best smile! His wife was very kind. They told us that they were Christians and gladly took one of our 3 Circles booklets. When we invited them to the movie and dinner, the man said they couldnāt come because they needed to bring their cows in from the field.
The manās wife chatted a few more minutes with us and then turned to talk to her husband. She asked him to hurry up and go get the cows so they could come to the movie night with us. It was so sweet! The man headed out shortly to round up the cows.
Each morning the community takes their cows out to the shared pastures and then around 6pm each night, they round up the cows and bring them home. In fact, when we got to the place that we were showing the movieā¦the people kept their cow inside!!
We welcomed the families to the movie night and let them know we had come from the States to share the love of Christ. The first movie was a short cartoon for the kids. It was about William Booth who founded the Salvation Army.
After the cartoon, Ross shared his testimony about how he learned to find his identity in Christ rather than so many other things that he tried to find it in: school, baseball, friends, etc. Ross shared that once he placed his faith in Jesus, he finally began to find the peace he was looking for. He talked about the value of being in church and in Christian school to help him grow in Christ.
Preston followed Ross by sharing his story of how he came to find his ultimate joy and purpose in following Jesus. It has been so powerful to have these students from NCCS share the gospel confidently and with great compassion. These students are truly impacting the world for Christ!
After the testimonies, we shared sandwiches, popcorn, and coffee with the Peruvians from the community. As they settled in with their food, we started The Chosen as a way for them to learn more about Jesus. Our crew loaded up and headed back to the ministry center.
Our āWhere did you see God at work?ā time tonight was rich again. In fact, this is something that Iād encourage our families to consider doing on a regular basis. The reason we ask that question is so that we can be intentional notices of where God is moving and where the Holy Spirit might be prompting us to do something.
Mrs. Peterson shared our devotion tonight and talked about how much our words matter. She had several students share scripture to support that claim and had a beautiful illustration of what we have all experience navigating a different language this week. She encouraged us to use our words to build people up (Ephesians 4:29) and to share the love of Christ.
After devotion and team time, we shared our plan for tomorrow. The vans will pick us up at 4:45 a.m. to head to Machu Picchu for the day. We will ride the train two hours to Machu Picchu, tour for a few hours and eat lunch, and then ride the train back here in time for dinner around 6:30 p.m. The crew is ready to check out Machu Picchu. Weāve all agreed that our ministry has changed every couple of days here. Tomorrow and Thursday will be most like being at home because it will be easy to skip gospel conversations and not be so intentional. We have challenged each other to look for opportunities to have those intentional conversations.
Thanks for praying for us! Tomorrow should be a lot of fun as we explore one of the seven Wonders of the World!
Megan Strange
Wednesday, January 8
by Megan Strange, Upper School Principal
Rise and shine!! Today we had to be in the dining room at 4:30 a.m. to meet our bus to head to Machu Picchu. This is the earliest weāve been up all week, so that was a treat! The ministry center folks packed us a nice breakfast for the road, and we set out long before sunrise.
The vans took us about an hour to the train station in Ollantayatambo. From there we rode a train 2 hours to the Machu Picchu station. We walked through the market on our way to stand in a line to ride a bus up Machu Picchu. It was quite the adventure even before we entered the park! Our kids have the best sense of humorā¦we have enjoyed them so much!
The bus up to Machu Picchu gave us a quick glimpse of the side of the mountain. The weather was a little foggy and drizzlingā¦.temp was just right.
The tour guides met us at the entrance to help us get settled. Several of the kids had to use the restroom, and they enjoyed paying 2 sols for the privilege, š Many of them had never encountered a pay toilet before, but it is a great example of capitalism! There are no bathrooms in the parking lot and you are already at the top of the mountain with no other optionsā¦go ahead and monetize that!
We broke into two groups for our tour of Machu Picchu. The fog lifted just in time for us to take our team pic and then the clouds came right back for most of the rest of our time. We learned a lot about the history of Machu Picchu and the hard work of the Incan people. We can see why it is considered one of the Seven Wonders of the World. Our awesome team is considering visiting all the others together, as well!
Iād encourage you to read up on Machu Picchu so you can learn a little more about it. Lots of interesting history and architecture! It was definitely the ultimate Take One Wednesday for our crew!
Once we left the park, we rode the bus back downā¦marveling at the skill of our charter bus driver in those tight turns. Then we all ate lunch at a cool restaurant overlooking a rushing river. Since we are in the midst of rainy season here, the rivers are up and super cool to look at. Everyone enjoyed their lunch and some even tried some adventurous things. No one ordered the guinea pig, but a man at a neighboring table did and we were thrilled to see it was served on a pit over an open flame. Yikes.
After lunch, we walked back to the train station to head back to Ollantayatambo. The train ride took a bit longer this time as we head to stop a few times on the double track for other trains to pass one way or the other. The train ride is beautiful through the mountains and along the river. Some of the students kept themselves entertained by asking Coach Parker, Mrs. Peterson, and I the stories about how we met our spouses, were engaged, and married. It was fun to share those stories and to hear the fun questions the kids had.
The travel guide picked us up from the train station and we took the vans back to the ministry center for the night. When we arrived, dinner was ready! Everyone sat down and enjoyed chicken noodle soup, fresh bread, and homemade apple pie. What a treat after a long day of travel!
We took some time to shower, pack, and take a short break before our team time. Tonightās team time was our last oneā¦very special. Some of the students led us in acapella worship and then we shared āwhere we saw God at workā todayā¦lots of great testimonies. I shared the devotion tonight out of Philemon 1:4-7 remembering that when we share Christ, we have the opportunity to know the fullness of who Jesus is and therefore, who we are in Him. Also, in times like we have shared this week, it should be a time of refreshing for those involved and we agreed that it has been. We took time to go around the circle and share our secret prayer partners for the weekā¦we share something we have learned and appreciate about the person before we say who it is. This is always a special time.
We closed down our time by passing out letters of encouragement from home. The notes from home often say things that we may not necessarily take time to say in the day to day. Mission trips like this are āstones of remembranceā and we want to take time to celebrate.
Tomorrow we will begin our trek homeward. We will eat breakfast here and then head out to Cusco for some ministry time, lunch and coffee at the Life and Work coffee shop, and then a little shopping before we head to the airport around 3 p.m. Provided everything stays on time, we should land in Atlanta at 6:30 a.m. on Friday morning just in time to get home and pull out our sleds. Would you join us in praying for safe travel home for our Peru team, as well as the Belize, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Kenya, and Southwest Adventures teams?
Thank you for sharing your awesome kids with us! We love them dearly!
For the last time from Peruā¦the Peru Crew says Buenos Noches!
Megan Strange
Thursday, January 9
by Megan Strange, Upper School Principal
Today ended up being a lot of fun! As Iām typing this, we are about to land in Lima and praying we will make our connection to Atlanta and get back before the storm. All that is yet to be seen, but we trust the Lord with however all of that turns out.
We got up this morning to pack and get ready to head home. Breakfast was wonderful again: omelettes, bread, chicken with veggies and rice, yogurt, and fresh fruit. We have been so blessed by those who have prepared and served our meals this morning. We shared our gratitude with them and said some hard goodbyes as we loaded the buses to head to Cusco.
The trip to Cusco took about 40 minutes, and we followed a cool truck with a wolf on the back. We encountered a tree down over the road, so I reached into to see if our GO Team could help. š They offered to rush right over!
When we arrived in Cusco, we went straight to a market to look around and then hit the super mercado to pick up some favorite Peruvian snacks. This was a blast as the kids were all chatting about which snacks theyād loved the most this week and why they were buying so many to take home! We have no idea how all of that is supposed to fit in their suitcases š
One of the coolest parts of Spring Term each year is the way kids bond in a new way. Some of them were already friends before we came, or had a class together, were in the musical together, or played on a sports team with a teammate at some point. Many of these kids knew each otherā¦but didnāt know each other well. Itās amazing what an overnight flight, all day serving each day, 3 meals a day, and our evening devotions can do to build some sweet friendships. We havenāt even gotten home yet and our kids are sad they wonāt be together as much when we get home. What a gift Christian fellowship is!
After we left the market, we went to the Cathedral of the Assumption that was built in the 1500s. It is a beautiful space with a lot of unique architecture and artwork. We learned a good bit of the history of Peru and our tour guide did a great job keeping it interesting! Israel has been a huge blessing to us this week!
From the Cathedral, we walked a few blocks to a store that claimed āeverything you need is here.ā Iām so glad we found them! We all had a great time checking out Peruvian souvenirs and trying our hand at bartering. Spoiler alertā¦we are terrible at bartering! We enjoyed picking up some fun moments and then headed to lunch. With a group of high schoolers, most of them are always ready to eat!
We walked through the cool rain to a beautiful restaurant that we had all to ourselves! Because we ordered in advance, they brought the food right out. Most of us chose the ābeef awesomenessā we had the other day. Some of our more adventurous ones chose duckā¦they said it was great!
We enjoyed time to chat around the tables and reflect on the week. Then we hopped on the vans to go to the Life and Work coffee shop. This place is another step in the Life and Work program of the Zone Zegura church helping young people develop their skills in the hospitality industry. They live, work, and study in a three story house that has a garage they converted into a super cool coffee shop.
We enjoyed a variety of wonderful desserts and coffee before we said our farewells and loaded the vans for the trip to the airport. The rain picked up by nowā¦it almost seemed like Peru was as sad as we were that the trip was coming to an end.
As always, everyone was great getting off the bus and ready to checkin. When we walked into the checkin areaā¦it was packed! Busier than the Peruvian pastor had seen before. We learned later that some morning flights had been cancelled.
Then closer we got to flight time, the more harried it gotā¦but as always, we found the me humor in it. People tend to really bond in these situations and the crowd was working together to get everyone through. A lady walked up and tried to jump the line and some of the Peruvian men were not having itā¦we thought a fight was going to break out. One of our students may or may not have egged it on a little š It died down as quickly as it started and we finished checking in.
We really had to hustle to get to our gates. We were on two different flights that were supposed to leave 20 minutes apart. We all loaded up and sat on the taxiway for about 30 minutes. That was stressful since we knew we had a tight connection.
We landed in Lima and grabbed our bags and a very quick dinner. Now we are standing in the line for security and customs to board our flight to Atlanta.
We are hearing lots of reports about the pending weather and donāt know what tomorrow holds for us. But reallyā¦do we really know or is that just the illusion of control we enjoy? Weeks like this are great to remind us that God is in control.
Thanks for praying for us, cheering us on, and picking us up bright and early in the morning. We realize you may have to go to great lengths to pick us up. Thank you in advance!
What a week! What a Savior! Glory to God!
Megan Strange