Day Five -- Building Steps

This was a great day of service.  Thursday we built a new house for an elderly lady named Ofelia. Today, we went back to her house to build a new set of stairs leading up to her house.  Remember that we had to move the house forward because of the large boulder in the back of the property.  By moving it forward we had to place it less than twelve inches from the edge of a rock ledge.  The stairs leading up to the house belong to the house next door so we gathered a smaller group of men from our larger team to go and build a separate set of stairs for her.
     We first carried up bags of cement (concrete without the sand and gravel) and then divided into two teams;  one to gather large stones and the other to start preparing the surface with picks and shovels.  Once we had a fair amount of rock we began mixing the cement with the gravel and sand.
   While we were mixing the cement and sand, one of our teenagers accidentally got the powder cement into one of his eyes.  We had to stop to wash it out with water.

 
     Once again we had to send the hose down to get more water.  We worked hard and didn't even take a lunch break.  We started around 10:00 and had to quit by 2:00 pm.  We were able to get almost all of the stairway completed and then paid a local man 20 solaes (Peruvian money) to complete the job. (by the way, 20 solaes is not quite $7.00.)  To put that in perspective, many men work at unskilled labor jobs all day for as little as one solae per day.  That is equivalent to 33 cents.
    The reason we quit so early today was because we were invited to a barbecue at the home of Carlos Burgos.  You remember that on our first day of work we stopped on the way to the village to meet the Provincial Mayor ( The mayor of San Juan de Lurigandcho)  He lives in a very large house and he is, in addition to being Mayor is also a very wealthy businessman.  He owns a seafood export business and is the owner of the Peruvian division of Coca Cola which also distributes a very popular soft drink called Inca Cola.  Needless to say, his home was expansive at least in Peruvian terms.

The barbecue was held at an outdoor courtyard surrounded by walls.  The food was being prepared when we arrived, very dirty from wall building and moving sand but he knew where we were arriving from so it was completely fine.

The food was amazing and being there was a welcome relief from the work.  The menu included chicken and steak. While I wasn't real excited about having to leave the worksite, this meeting was important because this man has the ability to assist the team in acquiring the necessary permits, can grant land, etc.  And he controls the purse strings for the municipality where the village is located.  He wields great power and is a great asset to have on our side.  Linda, our team leader, and Alphonso, our foreman along with a few other team members expressed a desire to open a dental/health clinic in the village.  One of our translators, Jose, just completed dental school and has agreed to help keep the clinic manned, once it is completed.  As a result of this meeting, the Mayor committed to providing 500 square meters of land and the administrative resources necessary to get the clinic built.

   So today was a productive day on all counts.  Please continue to pray for the safety of our team.  I cannot wait for worship tomorrow.  As I reflect back on this day, I was reminded of the passage from Proverbs 21:1 that says, "The king's heart is in the hand of the LORD; he directs it like a watercourse wherever he pleases."  I am not sure of this man's salvation but God has heart in HIS hands and is directing it to support God's work here.  Pray for the ongoing work here as well.
More tomorrow!