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!

Day Four --Another house was built and a community worshipped

What a glorious day.  We moved to a different area of the village of Santa Rosita today and began again the process of moving sand up the steep hill to an even higher location.  More people than ever turned out to help with this process as we had a long way to go to get the materials to the top of the hill.  One small bag at a time moved the sand pile at the bottom to the top.  We (the team) were interspersed among the locals which gave us an opportunity to interact with them.  While communication was not perfect, we all were surprised at how well we could exchange ideas and thoughts.  It seemed that we transferred a LOT more sand that the other times but that just gave us more time to get to know one another.


We stopped in the middle of moving sand to bring the pre-fabbed  panels up the hill.  This was done in a hand over hand type method with three or four teams getting the panels from the previous team and carrying them a little farther up the hill.

The sky was overcast today and, because we working higher up the mountain, the temperature was colder but still very pleasant.  The view from where I was standing was amazing.  even in the midst of all the poverty, there was still something majestic as we looked down on the valley below.

After lunch we returned to the hill (this time I stayed at the bottom near the original sand pile) and we worked until the sand had all been moved up hill.

We left there and went back to the first area where our bus was parked.  Alfonso, our in-country coordinator/foreman had arranged for sound equipment to be set up on a soccer/basketball court.  We all met there and had an impromptu worship service.  I played my guitar and Jose (one of our interpreters) also played and we sang as a group the song Shout to the Lord in both English and then Spanish. They liked it so much that they asked us to sing it again.

 Afterward, my friend Steve Paschall brought a short message about the hope that is found in Jesus Christ and the Love that compelled us to travel so far from home to bring the Love of Christ to this village.

Carla, another of our interpreters, translated for Steve.  After the message from Steve, Linda English, our team leader came and led the group in prayer.  She became very emotional as we all sensed the presence of God in that Place.

After the prayer the entire group began to dance to the music of Hillsong's United but with Spanish words.  The people here love to dance and it was so wonderful to see the freedom they felt to worship in dance.  Young and old alike began to dance.

What a glorious day!  Tomorrow we go back to Ophelia's home to build a rock wall and stairs to her house.  Please pray for the health of our team members.  We have had a couple of our team members who have been sick, one bad enough to be taken to a hospital.  Please pray for the people in this village who are beginning to find hope.  Pray for the people of Santa Rosita.

Day Three -- House two is nearly completed

This morning our time began with our team making our way back to Santa Rosita. Linda English, our leader, asked me to lead a devotional on the bus on the way to the village.

When we arrived, three of us were asked to go up to the site where the second home will be built. The rest of the group went to the next site to begin moving sand. At our site, we spent the first two hours trying to remove a very large boulder with a large sledge hammer and two steel pickets. We broke half of the rock and removed it but we                               This is Michael, one of our team members.    

were unsuccessful at getting the large piece of it out so we re-grouped and moved the spot for the house slightly forward. The problem with that is now the house sits literally about 12 inches from the edge of the rock ledge.

                                                                                 

The rest of the team came back long enough to get the wall panels up to the work site and then Steve Paschall  and myself along with a local construction team of 4 men set about to erect the house. Now in the US we would pour the foundation and then erect the walls but that is exactly opposite of what is done here. The walls and roof were in place and then the concrete was delivered (by hand in buckets) into the house and poured onto the prepared ground.

                              Hauling the concrete up in buckets
 
   I mentioned that the concrete was brought up in buckets. The process for mixing the concrete was amazing. The concrete was mixed on the ground. The sand that we brought up in bags was mixed with the cement and formed a large pile on the ground. then the workers made a concave indention in the center of the pile and poured water (That is another story) into the center of it. Then we simply waited...and waited....and waited. Finally after more than 30 minutes of just watching this man-made pond the workers began to mix the concrete. Once mixed, to shovels-full of concrete were place in 5-gallon buckets and we did the bucket brigade thing again to get it up and into the house. One man was inside pouring and spreading the concrete and sending the empty buckets back down the hill. We repeated this process over and over until the floor was completely poured.

       Steve Paschall and me in front of the first house we built

 Some of the children in the village.  The crowns were made from kits our team members brought.


I mentioned the water story. There is no running water in most of these homes. There is, however, a community spigot and it was located about two hundred yards from this work site. The lady for whom the home was being built had a very large reel of water hose. Her granddaughter and I took one end of the hose and walked down the hill and around a corner to the spigot. There was no threads on the hose...nor on the spigot just a piece of pipe sticking out of the wall. I pressed the hose onto the pipe as tight as I could and then turned the handle of the spigot and I turned to leave. The hose immediately came off the pipe and a large stream of water hit me in the back lower half of my jeans. Needless to say, I turned around and turned off the water but I was very wet. The granddaughter was mortified at first but when she saw I wasn't mad, then she began to laugh uncontrollably. Shortly a neighbor came out with a piece of rubber bicycle inner tube and a strip of rubber. She placed the inner tube piece around the pipe and tied it off with the rubber strip. The water was, once again turned on and this time no inadvertent spray. My "accident" provided great comedy relief as the granddaughter related the incident to her mother and grandmother. It was good to see them laugh. It was worth it. After work, Steve and I reflected on the fact that much was accomplished toward gaining credibility with these people and the ability to laugh at yourself helps to make you human.

           One of the cardboard houses in the village.

 
Every chance I get I try to let the people of the village know that we are here, "In el nombre de Jesus" "In the name of Jesus." Please pray that our actions and attitude will match our purpose for being here. Pray also for Ophelia, the grandmother who will move into her new home in three days. Pray for healing for her and for her salvation. Pray for our team as we continue to show the love of Christ in all that we do. Thank you for praying for me.

Day Two -- Introductions and Smiles.

Today we woke early and quickly got dressed to meet the team in the lobby by 8:00 am. After breakfast we boarded the bus and were told that before we arrive at the village of Santa Rosita we would make a stop at the Provincial Palace to meet with the Provincial Mayor of San Juan de Lurigancho, the largest province in all of South America. We arrived and had a brief meeting with the mayor and his staff, received a brief tour of the “Palace” which was actually simply a large municipal building. After a photo op with the Mayor we boarded the bus again and made the 45-minute trip to the village of Santa Rosita.
On the way, we were told of the projects we would be working on while here in Peru. We were told that we would build one community center and three houses. The “homes” are really prefabbed wall panels, tin for the roof and a concrete floor. There is no running water and no electricity. There is also no insulation in the roof or walls but then, it is not really needed because the temperature here falls somewhere between 58 degrees and 76 degrees year round. It is now winter here (remember we are 300 miles south of the equator) but the temperature today was a pleasant 73 degrees most of the day. The average annual rainfall is less than 2 inches so everything is very brown and dusty here.
When we arrived at the village we were met with a large group of villagers and lots of dogs. The difference between downtown Lima and this village are like day and night. Lima is a metropolitan city with every possible convenience. The village is located on the sides of very large hills and the living conditions here are very poor and very sparse. As we had been told, many of the homes are literally made with cardboard or shipping crates or old tarps or a combination of all of these materials. The people are extremely friendly and though we are limited some by the language barrier, smiles and hugs make up for the language challenges.
Our work today consisted of carrying all of the prefabbed wall panels up a very steep hill. Once those were in place, all of our team and lots and lots of villagers lined the road from the materials site all the way up to the construction site. We then began handing up bags of sand in true bucket-brigade fashion with the ultimate goal of moving the large sand pile from the bottom to the top of the hill. This sand will be used to make concrete for the floor of these buildings. The afternoon brought even more villagers to help with the sand pile transfer. We called it quits around 4:30 today.
We were told that every family that will receive a new house has physical problems within their family. Please pray that we can bring both physical and spiritual healing while we are here. We will ask the local leaders to provide an opportunity to anoint and pray for the sick. The power of God needs to be unleashed in the village of Santa Rosita. Please pray hard for that to happen. It has been a good day. I will post some pictures tomorrow evening.

Day One --Getting There

Day One was a very long day. I said “goodbye” to Renee and Rebecca at the Nashville Airport at 5:30 am on Tuesday, July 13, 2010 and flew to Chicago then to Miami where I met the team from Pensacola Florida. My friend, Steve Paschall was one of the Pensacola group. We left Miami around 5:30 enroute to Lima Peru. We arrived here around 9:30 pm and finally made it to our room in the hotel around midnight. I was extremely tired but had trouble falling asleep because of the traffic noise outside the hotel. My I-pod and some quiet worship music helped me to finally get to sleep. Tomorrow we travel to the village and begin work. Pray for us to make significant relationships with the people of the village where we will be working.