Weekend in Arica

Here in Bolivia it's the fourth day of the long "Carnaval" weekend. It's a very pagan holiday with lots of drinking, dancing and immorality going on. You could say it's people's last fling at fun before "lent." 

Some friends and I decided to go away to Arica, Chile, for the weekend and enjoy the beach! Pictured above from left to right: Fabiola (Bolivian friend from La Paz), me =), Rachael (Canadian friend) and Janelle (Canadian friend). 

The adventures started on the way to Arica. The eight hour bus trip turned into a twelve hour trip because of long waits at the Bolivian and Chilean border. We had finally crossed the border and were well on our way into Chile, when we had to stop because of engine trouble and wait for another bus to come and take us the rest of the way! 

I had a neat experience of God taking care of me. Arriving at Chilean immigrations, I realized that somehow I had left my Bolivian ID card way back at Bolivian immigrations. I was tempted to feel quite upset, but I decided to rest in God and trust that He would work everything out--and He did! Thankfully I had decided to travel with both my Bolivian ID card as well as my Bolivian passport! I was able to use my Bolivian passport to get into Chile, and then on our way back into Bolivia, I was able to recover my Bolivian ID card! It was just a little reminder to me that when we run into unexpected "problems" God is still in control and taking care of things. There is nothing too big or too small for Him to handle. 

Living in a landlocked country, it was a real treat to enjoy the beach! It was also fun to see Fabiola experience the ocean for the first time! We spent long hours at the beach on Saturday. The result was some terribly painful burns! My worst burns were on the back of my legs, and I was walking around like an old lady the next day! 

We four girls shared a condo with three of Janelle's girlfriends. On Sunday night we seven girls had a lot of fun going out to eat and celebrate Valentine's Day. We found a cute little eating place all decorated with hearts on a little side street in downtown Arica.  I think we had more fun being all girls than most of the couples there! :-) 

Our last night, Rachael, Fabiola and I walked down to the beach with our towels. We laid on the beach, gazed up at the stars and enjoyed listening to the crashing of the waves. It was such a special time to meditate on the greatness of God's creation! I thought of how insignificant we are, and yet the fact that God notices and pours out His love on each individual makes each life so significant and special!

Childhood Friend and Seminar

Last week I was excited to get a phone call from Tatiana, a childhood friend from Potosí who now lives in the city of Sucre. She told me she was coming to La Paz to do some paperwork, and right away I invited her to come and stay with us. It was special to have her here for five days, and we did a fair bit of catching up. In the past, when I have visited Sucre, Tati and her family have always been very good to me, so I was happy for the chance to be good to her during her stay in La Paz. 

Over the weekend there was a seminar called "Ancient Paths" (on Biblical principles for family life) being held at the church I am currently attending. My mom and I were both going, and I signed Tati up to go with us. We were all blessed by the seminar. 

Summer Holidays Are Over

Monday morning, February 1st, kids could be seen in their school uniforms heading back to school. I must say I don't miss those days of being a student! Even so, summer holidays are over for me too, and I am currently filling three positions!

I am currently working as my dad's "secretary." He has a bunch of projects he's too busy for that he has passed on to me. This semester he is teaching the Christology class at the seminary. He has a full class of 70+ students, so as things pick up, he probably will have me help him with some grading, etc.

I am also filling in as "cook" these days. As my mom is sometimes busy homeschooling my sister Elisa, off to the prison doing ministry or, these days, going up to town to do paperwork (my parents have been trying to become Bolivian citizens for the last 5 1/2 years, and the bureaucracy here is ridiculous!) I have been making lunch, which is the main meal here in Bolivia. It's a great opportunity to practice and perfect my cooking skills! Some days meals turn out alright, and others not so good. Yesterday I thought I had turned off the rice, when in fact I had turned it on "high." Needless to say, the rice was quite burnt (I'm grateful for a patient and understanding family when meals aren't so great!)

My third position is that of "chauffeur." Elisa is quite a busy individual (I don't see much of her!) when she's not here at the house doing school, she's off to gymnastics or off to her church for some activity. My mom has been relieved to have me take over driving her to her different activities. Driving in Bolivia is definitely a different experience altogether. Just yesterday I had a couple of not so pleasant experiences. First, I got pulled over by a police officer who told me I was missing some sort of "inspection" sticker and wanted to see my license. I had no idea what he was talking about (for all I knew he only wanted to get money out of me!), but thankfully I was able to get away with telling him I didn't know anything about it, but I would inform my dad, the owner of the car. Second, I ended up going the wrong way on a one-way street! Two guards from the French Embassy saw me, but thankfully they were very gracious, and told me to wait till a car was past and then to cautiously keep going down the street (there wasn't much room to turn around).

Some of you may be wondering what my plans are for this year. At this point, I really feel like God wants me to take advantage of this time with my family and be a support to them (my wonderful parents are the couple in the above picture). In the meantime, it is also a time for me to wait on God for future plans. Please join me in prayer for clear guidance!

Exotic Locations

It's already late January and this is my first blog post of the year! It's summer here in the southern hemisphere, and I decided to get some traveling in before commitments started tying me down to La Paz.

After Christmas I made a two-day trip to Copacabana with Rachael and Janelle (my two Canadian girlfriends). Copacabana is a small town on Lake Titicaca (the highest navigable lake in the world). Our hostel was this place with a Mediterranean feel to it overlooking the beautiful lake! We enjoyed some good reading time in the hammocks.

On the 3rd of January my parents, Elisa (my sister) and I traveled to the city of Santa Cruz for a few days of family vacation. Santa Cruz is the city where I was born and is located in the lowlands of Bolivia. The climate is very hot and humid (definitely tropical). With the heat, Elisa and I very much enjoyed the hotel pools!

After four days, my parents headed back to La Paz, and I stayed on to visit different friends. I enjoyed spending several days with the Ojeda family, close family friends who know me since I was a baby. There was lots of reminiscing. From there I went and spent some days with a friend who I actually met at college in Iowa. The remainder of my time I spent with the Guzmán family. Ruth, Mrs. Guzmán, owns a hotel. Her ministry involves having missionaries or other full-time workers stay at her hotel for free whenever they go through Santa Cruz (that is how my family first met her about six years ago). Her and I often dreamed about me going and working with her and learning about hotel management (as I enjoy hospitality). I took advantage of these days with Ruth to learn a little bit about what it entails to run a hotel. I had fun manning reception a few times.

Let me share the most exciting thing that happened while I was in Santa Cruz! One day I ended up having a conversation with Janet, a young woman who is working cleaning rooms at the hotel over summer break. Somehow we ended up talking about spiritual things. I asked her something about where she would go if she were to die. She told me she would go to hell. I asked her if she wasn't afraid to die. She said she actually would like to die--that life seemed purposeless. My heart lifted up a prayer for God to help me, and I proceeded to share the beautiful gospel message. When I was done talking, there was a brief silence. Then Janet told me, "You know what? When you were talking right now--it wasn't you that was talking!" Could it be that God spoke through me?! I felt so excited, honored and humbled at the same time! Janet didn't make a decision that day, but I can tell she is really searching. Right then she had to go home, but she told me that she would really like to talk to me about some things. Sadly, there wasn't enough time left for me to get together with her before returning to La Paz. I promised her I would try to get a certain book for her (which I will have to try to send to her in the mail). I would appreciate it if you would please pray with me for Janet's salvation.

I'll sign off for now, but hopefully my updates will be a little more regular again!

Celebrating the Miracle of the Incarnation

As it does every year, Christmas has come and gone. It has been a very special season here in San Miguel.

I spent the weekend before Christmas with my friend Rachael (from B.C.) up in Llojeta (another part of La Paz). She had planned a gingerbread house party with her youth group, and we spent the weekend watching a seven hour movie (Little Dorrit), baking and cutting up gingerbread, doing other things in preparation for the party, and hosting the actual party.

At the party I met a girl who had taken sign language courses here in La Paz, and she was able to give me the name of an institute that offers these courses. I was surprised, because I had been told that there was only courses in the cities of Cochabamba and Santa Cruz. It also appears that signs in La Paz are slightly different from the signs used in the rest of the country. I believe God may want me to work with the deaf in La Paz, and it would probably be a good idea to take the courses offered here (vs. elsewhere).

For Christmas Eve and Christmas day, it was very special to have Rachael and Janelle (two Canadian girlfriends) with us, since my three brothers are in Canada with our relatives for the holidays. My poor dad was the only man in a house of five women! Last year my mom had a really rough Christmas, so this year I determined to take over a lot of the preparatives and give her a break. I had a lot of fun making my first Christmas dinner!

On Boxing Day (the 26th, for all my American friends), my dad, mom, Mario (a Bolivian Christian who sometimes does ministry with my mom at the prison), Rachael, Janelle and I went to Chonchocoro--a maximum security prison about an hours drive outside of La Paz. We sang Christmas carols (among other songs) and gave out Christmas bread and hot chocolate. My dad also shared a brief message, and we had time to visit with some of the interns. It was a special opportunity to share God's love with people who have experienced a lot of rejection and who don't often get a lot of visitors from the outside world.

A belated merry Christmas to you all! And as each of us heads into a new year, my desire is that God would root and establish us in His love (Ephesians 3:17-18), that we would be filled with inexpressible and glorious joy (1 Peter 1:8), and that God’s peace, which surpasses human understanding, would guard our hearts (Philippians 4:7)!

With love and appreciation for you all!

Celina

Quiero entregarte mis sueños...

PICTURE: Thought some of you might like to picture where I'm living right now...Here's a picture of my current home (my mom is standing on the corner). My parents rent the bright and sunny apartment on the top floor. It's located in the "Zona Sur" (The part of La Paz located lower down in the valley. Thus the climate is VERY pleasant, and it's an area where many diplomats and the more wealthy Bolivians choose to live.) I have to confess I feel a little like "a fish out of water" living surrounded by such affluence and people belonging to the "upper-class"! It's definitely a completely different world from the poor forgotten little city of Potosi where I grew up.

TITLE: I've titled this blog entry: "Quiero entregarte mis sueños" ("I want to give You my dreams"). Let me explain. Last week I started getting up early each day and walking up to "La Casa de Oración" ("The House of Prayer" A place at my sister's church designated specifically for prayer and which is open from 6 am to 10 pm every day). I find it's a wonderful place to meet with and spend time with God each morning away from all the distractions I have at home. The other day a song by one of my favourite Christian singers (Jesús Adrian Romero) was played while I was at "La Casa de Oración." The first line says, "Quiero entregarte mis sueños..." God spoke to me through that song confirming a message I have been receiving from multiple sources. During my time at the deaf centre, I went through the study "Experiencing God" by Blackaby where I learnt that God wants us to join HIM in what HE'S doing. This past week I have been spending a lot of time over at the Benavides (family friends) home helping the son work on a translation of his father's book into English. There is a part in Uncle Yecid's book where he talks about no longer asking God for what "I want" but seeking His heart and what He wants--His desires, dreams and plans.

I really feel like this is a time to rest, recharge and wait on the Lord. Please be praying with me that I would be sensitive to God's voice and calling, and that He would give me clear guidance on what HE WANTS for me in 2010.

What's Next?

In my last blog I was going to share my plans for next year, but I put it off for this week.

As I get older, the more and more I realize that we cannot know the future. Our plans and speculations fall far short of the materialized future. In a world full of surprises, it is a comfort to know that our futures are in God's hands. I am a planner--big time! I continually need to learn to "let go" and "let God".

Right now my future is a big blank. I have no commitments and no concrete plans. As I spend this time in La Paz with my family, I want to seek the Lord and wait on Him to guide my steps.

Though I have no concrete plans, let me share what I am tentatively thinking...

I just got back from a week spent in Potosi with my dad where I was able to renew my Bolivian driver's license and catch up with lots of old friends. I hope to stay in La Paz for the month of December. During this time I hope to serve and be a blessing to my family and friends and get my batteries recharged for whatever comes next. In January I would like to do some traveling around Bolivia and see some friends I have not yet been able to see. By February I hope to have made some decisions and be settling down to something. I am considering taking some courses and becoming a certified sign language interpreter. There are some courses in Cochabamba that would take me several months. There are also intensive week long courses I could take that would not require me to actually move to Cochabamba (which my sister Elisa really doesn't want).

Another option I have begun to consider is to study gastronomy here in La Paz (I could do this and also take the intensive sign language courses). I do not regret having gotten my degree in Bible and Theology, but it would be nice to have a degree that is a little more practical and useful in terms of secular employment. Studies in gastronomy would also be very helpful if God were to allow my dreams of starting bakeries/cafes/restaurants to materialize down the road. My dream is to start small businesses and generate employment for deaf individuals.

Deaf Friends

During my time in Potosi, it was special to reconnect with some of my deaf friends. Wilma (in the first picture) is a deaf teacher who works at the deaf institute in Potosi (where I volunteered for many years). She came to know Christ through a Bible study we did together in her home.

My deaf friend Paty and her deaf husband, Jairo, are the couple in the second picture. Jairo is from the city of Tarija (southern Bolivia) where he and Paty are now living. They happened to be visiting Potosi, and it was special for me to see Paty and meet her husband (they are newly married).

Blessings

-A safe trip to and from Potosi (This in spite of the fact that I did some of the driving! Bolivian highways have only two lanes, and if you get stuck behind a slow moving vehicle and want to pass, it can be quite the hair raising experience!)

-Getting to see and reconnect with old friends in Potosi.

-The whole process of renewing my license went smoothly (doing any sort of paperwork in Bolivia can be quite the ordeal sometimes!)

Prayer Requests

-Wilma's continued spiritual growth.

-Paty and Jairo's spiritual salvation.

-Clear guidance for next year.