Peru 2008 :)

Hola, amigos y familia!

Thank you for all your precious notes, letters, and especially for your coveted prayers! Te quierro mucho - I love you all very much!

I am now home in Canada and am settling back into routine. I have a huge praise report: I've been home only a week, and already am back to work! Praise the Lord for providing in this way!!

I've decided that Canada is...chilly! Each morning as I wake up and go to wear shorts and a teeshirt, I throw my blankets off my bed, (blankets???) and stand up to the window...only to realise that it's 8 degrees outside and much to cold for barefeet! Then I remind myself how much I love hot chocolate and fireplaces, and I'm okay after that. But...I confess I miss the Lima sunshine.

Hmm...where to begin? I'm procrastinating because I have too much to say; how can I summarize two amazing months of God's gifts and faithfulness? I guess I could start with saying that God is really giving. And faithful. As I try to absorb the riches of everything I've experienced these past two months, I find the message consistent: God is faithful, and He completes His promises.

He promised to take me to Peru. He did.

He promised to provide for my needs in this trip. He did.

He promised He would teach me. He did.

He promised He would hold my hand and guide me. He did.

He promised He would be my strength. He was.

He promised to give good things. He gave.

It makes me cry that I got to meet these people I have prayed for over the years, because I don't deserve such a huge gift. For so long, I've heard about their love for the Lord and for each other, and now I've seen it firsthand and have experienced their friendship. Two worlds met. What can I say, except for our God is a big God, and it's a small world, after all. We laughed together. We cried together. We prayed together. And these things we did, even though we spoke different languages. There is a friendship that goes deeper than can ever be communicated with words. It is communicated through tears, through giggles, through hugs and through living life together. It is communicated through events, both normal and of routine as well as special occasions. It was communicated through smiling eyes and through tiny hands slipped into mine. Towards the beginning of my trip, I wrote in my journal a question: "What is love?" I think I understand better...it cannot be confined into words.

I want you all to be encouraged - if you have dreams, if you have hopes, if God has things He has placed in your heart - don't let go. Hold on. Pray. Grasp His promises with both hands. Because when we forget, He doesn't forget. He remembers. And He fulfills. My second day in Iquitos, I wrote the following: "After we got here yesterday and had lunch with Camella and her son, Daniel, we headed into town. I caught my first glimpse of the Amazon River from a few blocks away...wow. God, I don't even know what to say, except to thank You for making childhood dreams come true. (If I thought I was dreaming when I arrived yesterday, that theory was blown by the drenching Amazon rain that absolutely soaked Brandy and I last night ...wow... when it rains, it POURS!!) So thank You. And I am filled with fresh hope that You are a King of fulfilled promises and that You can make my other dreams come true - You have that ability and those resources! WOOT! Thank You for bringing me here. Thank You for bringing me to this place in my life. Thank You for what You will do next...."

As one of my current favorite songs proclaims; "Now I know that I'm alive, all the loneliness is filled by You inside, and as I finally breathe the air, You've opened up my eyes. Now I'm alive." (Hotel Aquarium, by Falling Up).

Alright, I have so much more to say, but I fear this may become rather boring, or repetitive, or boring and repetitive.... Thank you all, each one of you, for your love and support in SO many ways during this time. It was not just a trip to Peru for two months, it was life. And this is just the beginning.... Be blessed and encouraged today!

Because of His rescue, Katie

Joshua 1:9! WOOT! :: "This life is very crazy!!!!! ...it is an adventure, in which we live on the edge and strive for the best, and when we fall, we get back up and climb higher; God always offers us His strength." - me and a friend in Peru. :: "You cannot take hold of all that God has to offer until you first let go of what you already hold in your hands."