Our visas have arrived! We are going to Spain!
I (Crystal) called this morning because Jeremy was tired of the one hearing the bad news.
When I got through to the guy that deals with checking on the visas.
Before even asking my name, he asked when I applied.
Me: We applied at the end of August
Consulate: "Geez, you should have heard by now!"
Me: "Well My husband received his at the beginning of December but we're waiting on mine and our daughters."
Consulate: "Oh yes...I remember you now....Mrs Nel...."
Me: "Mrs. Nelson"
Consultate: Yes Mrs. Nelson...let me go check on your situation
He comes back and says "YOU'VE GOT MAIL! Great news! I'll see you soon to pick them up"
HA! What great news! Now we are entering a flurry of activity. Finishing up those last minute to-do items and final packing. We should fly out sometime next week depending on when we can get the cheapest ticket!
Showing posts with label praises. Show all posts
Showing posts with label praises. Show all posts
First Neighborhood Kids Bible Study
So this week I've been meeting with our 12 year old neighbor, Malu, to study the Bible. We met Wednesday, Thursday and Friday for about 2 hours each day going through the gospel (she accepted Christ =) and then we've been going through how to study your bible, pray, what obedience looks like etc... Anyways so on Wednesday she asked me if I could substitute for a Peruvian missionary that was doing a bible study at her house on Saturday but couldn't come. Since then I had gotten very little information from her on it- just that it should be about an hour long, some games and studying the Bible.
So I prepared all of that and showed up at 4pm. Malu came out of her house and said no one had showed up and then I found out that this was going to be the first week. She didn't invite anyone from school, like she thought, because she didn't know if everything was going to work out. There was a continual mix up with the Peruvian missionary. Anyways- so Malu said- well you're here and I want to study, so let me go find some friends. So she gathered up 3 other neighborhood kids that were outside playing and we had bible study.
We read the parables of the lost sheep and coin and I explained to them that each of them were very important to God. Asked them if they had ever lost something important to them and how did they feel when they found it. After that I said that is how God feels when a person confesses their sins and accepts Christ into their lives...that its a big party in heaven. We read John 3:16 and talked about that fact that God loves them so much that he sent his son to save them. Then we read the parables of the hidden treasure and pearl of great price. I explained to them that their relationship with Christ (because some are Christians and some aren't) is the most important thing that they could ever have in their entire lives. Then I pulled out a bucket of sand (which I got for free by walking down to the end of the street and scooping it up from the mounds of it heaped around all the construction equipment being stored on our street by the government). I had them search in the sand with a pair of tongs (from my kitchen) for their hidden treasure. I had buried 12 braided bracelets in the sand. Since only 4 of them were there, I let each of them find 3. They really enjoyed it and I told them that when they looked at the bracelets it could remind them that their relationship with Christ is their greatest treasure. Two of kids like the game so much (the two youngest ones 8 & 10) they re-hid their bracelets and searched some more.
Well Malu wanted to study some more and that meant I would be "winging" it (which I don't really enjoy, so much). So the 10 year old John-Pierre said he wanted to read Luke 8: 1-10. Which is the parable of the sower. So then I asked if they were a seed, what kind of soil would they want to fall into? They all said the good soil, so then we talked about what living in good soil meant. Which lead into what does producing good fruit look like in your life? They gave some examples and then we read Galatians 5:22 and I explained the Fruit of the Spirit.
Then Malu busted out the big guns and said she had been reading in Revelations and wanted to know when and if God created Satan, since he created Adam & Eve. So I explained that God did create Satan that he used to be an angel but that he wanted to do things in his own strength but most importantly he wanted to be God. So he was punished for this and cast out of heaven forever. We also talked about the end of times, the 1st church in Acts and giving God glory.
Then a huge storm started to brew on the horizon and we decided that we should probably wrap things up. We had a prayer time and I returned my borrowed sand to the heaps at the end of the street.
But I have to say that the Lord really helped me with this, I wasn't nervous, my Spanish made sense (most of it anyways- haha) and scripture came to mind easily and I was able to have answers to difficult questions (which usually I just panic and then can't think of the answers). So God really was in, through and wrapped around this little bible study.
Pray for Malu, she really wants to keep doing this bible study and I want to help her with it but don't want to step on any toes and really it would be best of this Peruvian Missionary would help/lead it because we are leaving soon. Pray for Malu as she continues to grow, she has such a sharp mind and is so intrigued by the Bible.
So I prepared all of that and showed up at 4pm. Malu came out of her house and said no one had showed up and then I found out that this was going to be the first week. She didn't invite anyone from school, like she thought, because she didn't know if everything was going to work out. There was a continual mix up with the Peruvian missionary. Anyways- so Malu said- well you're here and I want to study, so let me go find some friends. So she gathered up 3 other neighborhood kids that were outside playing and we had bible study.
We read the parables of the lost sheep and coin and I explained to them that each of them were very important to God. Asked them if they had ever lost something important to them and how did they feel when they found it. After that I said that is how God feels when a person confesses their sins and accepts Christ into their lives...that its a big party in heaven. We read John 3:16 and talked about that fact that God loves them so much that he sent his son to save them. Then we read the parables of the hidden treasure and pearl of great price. I explained to them that their relationship with Christ (because some are Christians and some aren't) is the most important thing that they could ever have in their entire lives. Then I pulled out a bucket of sand (which I got for free by walking down to the end of the street and scooping it up from the mounds of it heaped around all the construction equipment being stored on our street by the government). I had them search in the sand with a pair of tongs (from my kitchen) for their hidden treasure. I had buried 12 braided bracelets in the sand. Since only 4 of them were there, I let each of them find 3. They really enjoyed it and I told them that when they looked at the bracelets it could remind them that their relationship with Christ is their greatest treasure. Two of kids like the game so much (the two youngest ones 8 & 10) they re-hid their bracelets and searched some more.
Well Malu wanted to study some more and that meant I would be "winging" it (which I don't really enjoy, so much). So the 10 year old John-Pierre said he wanted to read Luke 8: 1-10. Which is the parable of the sower. So then I asked if they were a seed, what kind of soil would they want to fall into? They all said the good soil, so then we talked about what living in good soil meant. Which lead into what does producing good fruit look like in your life? They gave some examples and then we read Galatians 5:22 and I explained the Fruit of the Spirit.
Then Malu busted out the big guns and said she had been reading in Revelations and wanted to know when and if God created Satan, since he created Adam & Eve. So I explained that God did create Satan that he used to be an angel but that he wanted to do things in his own strength but most importantly he wanted to be God. So he was punished for this and cast out of heaven forever. We also talked about the end of times, the 1st church in Acts and giving God glory.
Then a huge storm started to brew on the horizon and we decided that we should probably wrap things up. We had a prayer time and I returned my borrowed sand to the heaps at the end of the street.
But I have to say that the Lord really helped me with this, I wasn't nervous, my Spanish made sense (most of it anyways- haha) and scripture came to mind easily and I was able to have answers to difficult questions (which usually I just panic and then can't think of the answers). So God really was in, through and wrapped around this little bible study.
Pray for Malu, she really wants to keep doing this bible study and I want to help her with it but don't want to step on any toes and really it would be best of this Peruvian Missionary would help/lead it because we are leaving soon. Pray for Malu as she continues to grow, she has such a sharp mind and is so intrigued by the Bible.
Singing Praises from the Jungle
So one of the major struggles for me (Crystal) living in Iquitos has been the heat and humidity here. Now I've lived in hot countries before in my life but Iquitos really just tops in all. I've told Jeremy on numberous occassions that its just really hard for me to show the love of Christ to others when I'm in a chronic state of agitation from being so hot. With that said, I know what to sing Praises to the Father for the AMAZINGLY cool weather that we've been blessed with in Iquitos over the past few months. I know that its not going to last forever but its lasted way longer than I expected and its even surprised our national friends too! I wake up each morning thinking, will God bless me with another day of cool weather!?! Its been awesome and I will say its helped me love living here even more! =)
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