Jungle Fever

We travel by plane, a one-hour flight from Lima, arriving on a warm Sunday evening. As we descend the stairs of the tiny plane, the warm tropical air blows in our faces, welcoming us to the relaxed atmosphere of true jungle life. We are greeted at the airport by Erling, who is part of the Shipibo tribe. Erling spent a few months living with us in Lima, and a few of his family members (including Rosa, his sister who lives with us currently) that also have either lived or visited us in Lima. 

After the warm welcome, we head to our hotel and get settled for the night, praying and finishing the last-minute details for the week ahead.

Our objective: our first ever learning community. By learning community, we mean that we are teaching a group of people how to come together as couples, families and churches and begin to disciple and be discipled as we follow Christ together. 

This means five different tribes sending their church leaders to a central location to learn about vision, problem solving in their churches, pastoral care, cell groups, teaching, and several other topics.

Some of them have little idea what the conference is about when they arrive. They just know it will be about Jesus, and they want to be there.  One particular tribe travelled 24 hours by boat to be at this conference. They have left wives, children, work, houses, and many other things. All for one thing: to learn more about God.

Monday morning comes bright and early. There are still a lot of questions.

How many people will come?

What will they eat?

Will they be able to pay the seven dollar fee we have charged them to attend the conference?

So many questions, and so many answers. Little do we know that before the week is over, we will see miracles happen before our eyes.

Monday morning, in the mototaxi, on the way to the church where the conference will be held.

The church where the conference will be held. 

We arrive on Monday morning and begin with worship. 

There seemed to be limited participation from the leaders, however, Anna Lu and I who were up on  the stage leading worship heard a host of voices singing with us during worship. There is no way that number of voices could be coming from the people that were there. I know there were angels in the room singing with us.  

Getting ready to hear the first session of the day: Our personal relationship with God. 

 

Anna Lu giving an illustration of Jesus (Shuan), arms wide open, being with us where ever we go, but many times we are too busy to take notice. 

We broke up into small groups (once in the morning and once in the afternoon) to talk about how to apply practically what we had learned.

There were three groups, each including leaders from one to three different churches.

Each leader had a Shipibo translator. In the picture above, I am teaching, and Erling is translating. This made things even more interesting, because each of us were already teaching in our second language, and then it was being translated into Shipibo so that everyone could understand. Most Shipibo men speak both Spanish and Shipibo, and the women can usually understand at least some Spanish, but might not be able to speak it.

Lunchtime! The Sipibo diet consists mostly of fish and an occasional banana. We were blessed to be able to eat fish and rice with soup and either boiled or fried bananas. 

The fish are normally cleaned, salted, and laid in the sun to dry before they are prepared. 

Rosa, (left) enjoying lunch with her cousin, Doria and Anna Lu. Rosa translated most of the week for us. The sermons come to life for the Shipibo people when Rosa translates. We are so blessed to work on this team with her.

At the end of every meal, we are served some type of juice (barley or corn juice usually). The juice is served in plastic bowls, and is drunk as pictured above :)

Tuesday, Mark talked about vision within a church. The leaders we able to sit down and list out all of the strengths and weaknesses within their churches. This was a emotionally difficult for some because of the sheer weight and amount of the weaknesses the leaders identified within their churches.

Listening. There were people of all ages at the conference. Children, young people, young couples, old couples, and many who came leaving spouses, family and work behind for the week as their desire to learn more about God outweighed anything else.

Tuesday, the music group, which was composed of some of the leaders who were at the conference, wanted to bless us  with a piece they had prepared. It was truly beautiful.

On Tuesday, Shaun spoke about the teaching in the churches. 

During the small group time, there was such a strong spirit of repentance that hit the room, and there was a time when people were kneeled down in couples or by themselves, asking God to forgive them for being like the Sadducess and Pharisees. For trying to teach something they haven´t lived. Wednesday, God gave us the realization that we can´t have successful churches if our families are a total disaster. God started doing a healing work between couples, between fathers and children, between mother-in-laws and son-in-laws. It was truly beautiful. 

Anna was a precious woman who had lived much of her life in the inner jungle. She was a part of my small group. Her story (from what I hear) was incredible, and Anna Lu got to share part of an afternoon with her.

Wednesday evening, we were able to go out and enjoy some time as a team together.

Thursday morning worship. 

Thursday, I taught on pastoral care (discipline within the church, doing house visits, and inner healing). In the picture above, I am giving an example of how to confront someone in love using the ¨praise sandwich.¨

After the teaching, we had a time of group ministry. Anna Lu led worship, and we all prayed for God to do a work in these leaders lives. 

Shaun praying for a few of the leaders.

People united like we had never seen before.

There were two things I felt God say to me during the ministry time. That he was restoring families and that he was multiplying money. 

Food had been a problem that week. The people had come, some of them spending all or most of what they had on the cost of arriving at the conference. There was no money for food or even for some of them to return back to their tribes. 

I saw families restored before my eyes. I saw husbands and wives paying together. I saw parents praying with their children.  I also heard afterwards that God had indeed multiplied the money. Somehow, all of the people were eating several times a day with money that should have only lasted for one meal. 

God also did incredible miracles during this week. We saw deep emotional wounds begin to be healed. We saw deaf ears opened. Literally. A paralyzed boy being healed. These are just some of the things that happened. 

Friday, we had a time in the morning for consultations over the different themes of the week. This time as well was incredible as we got to hear the thoughts and questions of the Shipibo leaders. 

Please continue to pray for the Shipibo people. We are planning on going back in August and September to spend more time with them. If you would like support financially what God is doing in the jungle, please check out 

http://modernday.org/modern-day-welcomes-nancy-lane-peru/

Live a Day With Me.

Today, I want to invite you into my world. Come on. Give me your hand, and I will take you through a small snap-shot of my life at the moment. It will be an adventure. 


Today, I wake up, go to the bathroom and splash water on my face. I look in the mirror. Ahhhggg. Didn´t know my hair could look THAT bad. Oh well. 


Splash some water on it and go downstairs to start the coffee up. 


Do a mental checklist of the day. I know I´m not a planner, but I´m learning to plan, and stick to those plans, even if it means I have to plan in spontaneous time. 


Cup of coffee in hand, I grab a pen and notebook, my Bible and head out to a quiet place. Yeah, you got it. I´m spending a bit with my Daddy. 


Today, I ask Him three questions. 


I ask Him what He has to say about my life, my ministry, and the people I minister to. 


He tells me that he wants to tell me what he thinks of me first.


He tells me that he loves me and that I am precious. That I am beautiful and incredible without even doing anything. 


Then I ask Him about my ministry. I feel behind. I feel that I should be ¨doing more.¨ 


I ask him about it. He tells me that he is teaching me how to love people. 


He tells me that my ministry is like a flower that is just opening. 


He tells me that there is so much potential but that I must have patience. 


I ask him about the people I am ministering to. 


He tells me that they are empty, need someone to love them. There is so much need. 


I can not always be opperating out of necesity, but out of an overflow of what He gives me. 


Help me to see the difference and have the wisdom to know when to act.


Thank you Jesus for these moments of realization. 


The rest of my day goes on, and while I am thankful for these revelations that God has given me, what will I do with them? 


Will I truly let them impact my life? Will I live by them?


¨Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.¨ Matt. 4.4 


The day continues as I go for a run, practice my Spanish, or go to a team meeting. 


Today, I practice Spanish, and hang out with Paulo and Justin, who are here for a week, spending time seeing what God is doing in Chorrillos. 


I eat lunch with the team and then go to the grocery store with Mark and the boys, my Daddy´s words still ringing in my ears. 


How can I live by these words? 



Ever had a realization of something in your life or in the world around you that just ¨hit you¨? 

It´s called a ¨Kairos moment.¨ A chance to learn something and let your life be changed...or think ¨oh, that was nice!¨ and then move on, never really changing.


So, here it is. 

Observe.
I must be honest before God. What revelation has He shown me?



For me, it was when God told me he was teaching me how to love people. When he told me that my ministry is like a flower that is just opening. When He told me that there is so much potential but that I must have patience. 


Reflect.
Taking what I have observed and thinking about what implications that has for my life and those around me. Maybe it´s seeing a pattern in my life, and realizing there is a deeper issue.




For me, ¨just doing¨ has indeed been a pattern in my life, because I want to see results, and I feel the best way to do that is just to ¨start working.¨ I don´t like patience because that means waiting, and not necessarily doing things in my own way or own timing. Major threat to my independent spirit. 


Discuss.
This is where community comes in. If I am telling someone else what I am observing and reflecting on, they can not only give me their perspective, but also pray for me and hold me accountable for my decisions regarding this issue.


Mark asked me what it meant that God was teaching me how to love people. I said I wasn´t sure. I knew though that it involved me letting God reveal His love to me, and then being able to funnel that to others. We also talked about how it takes time to get to know people to be able to minister to them. Yeah, that takes patience too, huh?! 


Plan.
This is where the action comes in. Taking responsibility for my actions, and formulating a plan that gets me to my goal.


My plan is to ask God what He thinks about something before I just jump into doing it. If He is teaching me how to love people, I want to learn. I want to model his love to others by first experiencing how he loves me. Instead of trying to figure out things on my own, I will ask Him first, and then wait for his voice. 


Account.
Again, where community is a MUST. Being honest with someone about the process up to this point, and what your plan of action is.


Meeting with my accountability group tomorrow, so this plan of action will be discussed =) 


Act. 
Go for it. When you get another ¨Kairos¨ moment, work through the process again.


!!!


I invite you to use it (as it´s not the answer-all to anything, however, it does help lay out the process in a way that is helpful and makes sense) and I challenge you to ask God what you ¨Kairos¨ moments are, and then start the process from there. 


I hope this blesses your heart as much as it did mine today. God is such a wonderful Daddy, and I am so thankful for His love. 


Oh, and just in case you´re wondering, the rest of my day was great too...I came home, worked on some computer stuff (including this blog) fixed some fried chicken for dinner, and I´m about to go hang out with the neighborhood kids!

Les presento mis compañeros del equipo!

Finalmente, aquí está el blog que les he prometido. Quería presentarles a mis nuevos compañeros del equipo y explicar lo que estamos haciendo aquí.

Todo comenzó cuando dos personas se enamoraron.

(Bueno, creo que la historia comenzó un poco antes, pero aquí es donde vamos a empezar)

Anna y Mark son de Inglaterra y se sintieron la llamada de Dios hacia Perú un poco después se casaron en 2003.

Se mudaron a Perú permanente en 2007, cuando Daniel, el primogénito, tenía sólo un año de edad.

Joel (3), Anna, Caleb (6 meses), Daniel (5), Mark

Durante los cuatro años que ellos han estado aquí, Dios les ha traído muchos desafíos y victorias y, finalmente, El los llamó a Chorrillos (un districto de clase media ubicado en el sur de Lima).


Ellos, junto con Shaun y Amanda son los líderes de nuestro equipo y Dios les ha dado una visión y pasión a ver más de 100 iglesias / comunidades misionales establecidos en el Perú. Para obtener más información acerca de la familia Burgess, echa un vistazo a http://theburgessfamilyblog.blogspot.com/.


Anna también tiene un blog fantástico que anima la alma. http://www.sittingunderanopenheaven.blogspot.com/

Mientras tanto, una otra pareja se enamoró se casó y encontró que Dios los estaba llamando a Perú también.

Amanda y Shaun Wissmann se mudaron a Perú en 2008, y en 2011, se unieron con Anna y Mark, en Chorrillos.

Amanda y Shaun

Mi querida amiga Lauren, que también es un misionero aquí en Lima (www.laurenservinginperu.blogspot.com) conoció a Amanda a través de Internet.  Con el tiempo, yo también conocí a Amanda y Shaun. Nunca soñé que Dios los usaría mi vida como lo ha hecho. Yo no hubiera conocido  ninguna de las personas maravillosas en este equipo si no hubiera sido por Shaun y Amanda. Estoy profundamente agradecida por su amistades, su deseos por los éxitos en mi vida y su verdadero amor, aun cuando era difícil.

Ahora, algo más ligero… quiero hablar sobre lo que sucedió después de que Amanda y Shaun se unieron con Mark y Anna.

Y, ahí es donde comienza mi historia.

No se preocupen.... No me enamoré… todavía jejeje.

Pero, así como ellos, Dios me llamó a Perú. Por lo tanto, pon tu cinturón de seguridad, porque ahora ya sabes quiénes son los líderes, voy a presentarles algunos de mis compañeros de equipo. Listo?

Yo, Amanda, Shaun y Daniel en la fiesta de cumpleaños de Daniel. El tema: Los super héroes.

Sabes quién es Daniel. Pero acaso sabes que secretamente, Daniel es un pirata feroz? Un pirata del río, para ser exacto. Su nombre es Mirador Mateo Daniel Burgess, o MMDB como a veces lo llamamos. Junto con Joel y cualquier otra persona sea en el bote (la hamaca en el patio atras), protegamos el río y mantenerlo seguro y utilizable para todos los ciudadanos respetables.

El es Joel. Sí, lo conoces también. Joel y yo vamos volando juntos (volar significa lo lanzo en el aire mientras que pone su panza de el en las espinillas mías).

Nancy y Ángela

Ella es Angela. Ella es la vecina de Anna y Mark y también una parte del equipo. Ella dirige una célula (estudia bíblica) durante la semana, y voy a tener el oportunidad a acompañarla también!  Ella es siempre usa ropa tan linda, incluso si sólo va a recoger algunas cosas de la tienda. Una mujer muy linda, en serio!

Nancy y Rosa

Ella es Rosa. Ella es de Pucallpa, una ciudad en la selva, y está estudiando enfermería acá en Lima. Bueno. Las cosas entre nosotros casi siempre terminan en una competencia de quien puede hacer una(s) cosa(s) mas ridícula ...en el fin, lo hacemos la(s) locura (s) juntos . De alguna manera nuestras edades de 26 y 19 se bajan a 6 y 4 ... no sé cómo sucede esto ...

Lili y yo, y Silvanna.

Lili es una gran bendición en mi vida. Ella ha pasado por muchas de las mismas cosas que yo les estoy pasando y Dios le ha dado muchas victorias en su vida. Por lo tanto, como te puedes imaginar, ella no sólo es un ánimo tremendo para mí, sino también alguien que sabe como me siento sin decir una palabra.

Silvana es fantástico porque nos reímos de las cosas ridículas, pero luego podemos tener un conversación sobre algo muy serio. Ella tiene un personalidad que es casi idéntica a el mío, pensarías que podríamos chocar pero en realidad nos caemos recontra bien. Todo el mundo ama a Silvana, y ella sabe cómo hacerles a todos sientan queridos y bienvenidos. Ella es sincera, y sin embargo capaz de tomar y dar chistes que son matas de risa…y  por supuesto, me encanta...

Ronald, un saltamontes y Nancy

No prestes atención al saltamontes, y no, yo no se lo comió.

Ronald es increíble. Tenemos los mismos gustos musicales y nos gusta hablar en jergas peruanas. Casi siempre estamos riéndonos de algo. Es tan increíble a ver su corazón también, porque él está buscando con tanto fervor a Dios y tiene un corazón tan suave y listo a aprender más. Él y Lili son hermanos, y es muy lindo como uno se preocupa mucho por el otro. Me hace extrañar a mis propios hermanos.

Karina (abajo en la derecha) con algunos amigos en un evento navideña. 

Karina, es genuina y piensa en una manera muy práctica. Ella se enfoce en las soluciones de las problemas, y es el tipo de persona capaz de darte la camiseta de su espalda. Ella vive en Ventanilla, donde yo vivía antes de venir a Chorrillos, y ella tambien le encanta hablar en jergas peruanas también. Su dedicación es en un nivel que nunca he visto. Ella es una mujer de propósito y determinación y que es un gran amimo para mí.

Nancy, Haseena (practicante del año pasado), Amanda, Shaun, Steve, Mark, Daniel y Joel a la hora de almuerzo.

Steve, o  Stevie B como lo llamamos es nuestro residente canadiense =). Todavía estoy conociendo a Stevie B, que recientemente el se juntó al equipo también. Él es un blogger y podcaster con mucho talento, así como el editor general de la revista fire press online magazine. Echa un vistazo a su sitio web en http://stevebremner.com/

 

Jessica y Nancy

Conocí a Jessica cuando fuimos a la selva. Nos sentamos juntos en el viaje a Pucallpa, en que teniamos más o menos 40 horas juntas. En este tiempo, he aprendido mucho sobre su vida y su pasión. Ella tiene mucho compasión por los de mas, y mientras ella no trabaja con nosotros diariamente como equipo, ella va a ser un gran líder en su pueblo. Recientemente ha llegado a conocer a Cristo y vive en una de las áreas en las que nuestro equipo ha estado ministrando. Es muy chévere a ver Dios obrando en su vida de ella.

Anna Lu 

Anna Lu es simplemente preciosa. Ella llegó hace unas tres semanas, y estará aquí unos 6 meses como un practicante. Dónde empezar con Ana Lu ... ella es una persona que, a pesar de que es seis años mi menor, lo admiro profundamente. No sólo por su dulce sonrisa y su belleza por dentro y por fuera, sino por la forma en que ella es capaz de relacionarse con Dios como su papá. Ella sabe quién es ella y eso es el base de su vida. Me encanta la forma en que puede hablar con Ana Lu, y de repente, la conversación sólo se convierte en una oración que se ofrece a Dios ... después acabamos el oración, seguimos hablando hasta que la próxima vez necesitamos hablar con Dios.

Aqui son algunos otros fotos de los momentos juntos.

Shaun, Ronald, Nancy y Haseena

Nancy y Silvana

Jessica, Haseena, Ronald, Caleb, Amanda y Nancy

Así que eso es el equipo. Nuestra visión es enseñar y discipular la gente de Perú en una manera tangible a través principios bíblicos. Voy a publicar un ejemplo del tipo de cosas que nos están enseñando en un futuro post. Bendiciones.

Meet the Team!

Finally, here is the blog I´ve been promising. I wanted to introduce you to my new team mates and what we are doing here. 

It all started when 2 people fell in love. 

(Well, it started somewhat before then, but this is where we´ll start)

Anna and Mark are from England and felt God calling them to Peru shortly after they were married in 2003.

They moved to Peru permanently in 2007 when Daniel, their first-born, was only a year old. 

Joel (3), Anna, Caleb (6 mos), Daniel (5), Mark




Through the four years they´ve been here, God has been brought them through many challenges and victories and eventually called them to Chorrillos in Lima, Peru, which is a middle-class district located in southern Lima. 


They, along with Shaun and Amanda are the leaders of our team and God has given them a vision and passion to see over 100 house churches/ missional communities established in Peru. To find out more about the Burgess family, check out http://theburgessfamilyblog.blogspot.com/. 


Anna also has a fantastic blog that will encourage the soul. http://www.sittingunderanopenheaven.blogspot.com/






Meanwhile, another couple fell in love and found that God was calling them to Peru. 

Amanda and Shaun Wissmann moved to Peru in 2008, and in 2011, they joined Anna and Mark in Chorrillos.

Amanda and Shaun

My dear friend Lauren, who is also a missionary here in Lima (www.laurenservinginperu.blogspot.com) and Amanda actually met over the internet. And, in time, I met Amanda and Shaun. I never dreamed that God would use them in my life the way He has. I would not have met any of the wonderful people on this team had it not been for Shaun and Amanda. I am so deeply grateful for their friendship, their desire to see me succeed and their genuine love, even when it was tough. 

Now, on a lighter note, I want to talk about what happened after Amanda and Shaun joined Mark and Anna. 

And, that´s where MY STORY begins. 

Don´t worry. I didn´t fall in love...yet. 

However, God DID call me to Peru. So, strap on your seatbelts, because now that you know who the leaders are, I´m going to introduce you to some of my teammates. 

Me, Amanda, Shaun and Daniel at Daniel´s superhero birthday party. 

You already know who Daniel is. He is Mark and Anna´s oldest son. But, what you don´t know about Daniel is that he is secretly a pirate, a river pirate to be exact. His name is Lookout Matthew Daniel Burgess, or LMDB as we sometimes call him. Together with Joel and whoever else happens to be on our boat (the hammock in the backyard), we protect the open river and keep it safe and useable for all respectable citizens. 

This is Joel. Yes, you already know him as well. Joel and I go flying together (flying being launched into the air while laying tummy-down on my shins). 

Nancy and Angela

This is Angela. She is Mark and Anna´s neighbor and also a part of the team. She leads a small group Bible study during the week. She is always wearing something adorable, even if she´s just going out to pick up a few things from the store.

Nancy and Rosa


This is Rosa. She is from Pucalpa, a city in the jungle, and she is studying nursing in Lima. She is also leading a small group (staring this month) and she and I always end up challenging eachother to do the goofiest things...and then doing them together. Somehow our ages go down from 26 and 19 to 6 and 4...don´t know how that happens...

Lili, myself, and Silvanna. 

Lili is such a blessing in my life. She has been through many of the same things that I am going through and God has brought her through it. So, as you can imagine, she is not only an encouragement to me, but also someone who just ¨knows¨ what I´m feeling without me saying a word. 

Silvana is fantastic because we can laugh about the goofy stuff, but then have a conversation about something serious. She is my personality twin, which would make you think we might clash, but we actually get along just swell. Everyone loves Silvana, and she is so great about making everyone feel loved and welcome. She is sincere, yet able to take and give some serious humor, which, of course, I love....

And, apparently, for whatever reason, no pictures will upload to this blog. So, I will just have to give you a word picture of Ronald, Karina, Stevie, Jessica and Anna Lu.

Ronald is a blast to hang out with it. We have the same musical tastes and we both enjoy talking in Peruvian slang, which always gives one or both of us a good laugh. It is so neat to see his heart too, because he´s seeking so fervently after God and has such a soft and teachable heart. He and Lili are brother and sister, and it´s so cool to also see their relationship with each other, and how much they care about the other. 

Karina, is genuine yet practical. She is very solution-oriented and would go as far as to give you the shirt off your back. She actually lives in Ventanilla where I lived before coming to Chorrillos, and she to loves to talk in Peruvian slang as well. Her dedication is like non I´ve ever seen. She is a woman of purpose and determination and she is an encouragement to me. 

Steve, or Stevie B as we call him is our resident Canadian =). I am still getting to know Stevie B as he just recently joined the team as well. He is a talented blogger and podcaster as well as the general editor of fire press online magazine. Check out his website at http://stevebremner.com/

Jessica has such compassion for those around her. She is easy to talk to, and fun to be around. We sat together on the bus to and from Pucalpa (the jungle), so we had about 40 hours together and I got to learn a lot about her life and passion. She has recently come to know Christ and lives in one of the areas where our team has been ministering. It is really need to see God work in her life. 

Anna Lu is just lovely. She arrived about three weeks ago, and will be here about 6 months as an intern. Where to start with Anna Lu...she is someone who, even though she is six years younger than I am, I deeply admire. Not simply because of her sweet smile or her simple yet gorgeous beauty both inside and out, but because of the way she is able to relate to God as her Daddy. She knows who she is and her life is based on this reality. I love the way I can talk to Anna Lu, and all of a sudden, the conversation just turns into a prayer being offered up to God...then after we are done praying we just keep on talking until the next time we lift something else up to God. 

So that´s the team. Our vision is to teach and disciple the people of Peru in a tangible way through Biblical principles. I will post an example of the type of stuff we are teaching in a future post. Blessings.