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Post by Jess on Jul 16, 2007 14:28:03 GMT -5
Well, I had the time of my life while I was visiting Lima, Peru. I made some life-long friends and had some awesome experiences. First, let me start out by saying I won't be able to tell you guys everything that happened because it's difficult to explain everything. (JadeHorse, you can help me explain if you want, since you were also on the trip) All the kids that went on this trip were split into teams. This year, there were 16 teams of about 35 people. I was on Team 13 (woo!). The first three days were spent in Fort Lauderdale, Florida for drama training. We had to learn Spellbound, a drama we used to share the gospel. It wasn't an actual drama, it's better described as panamiming. Well, Spellbound is an allegory of the Bible squeezed into a 22 minute story. In a nutshell, it's about a Toymaker and his son. They create Toyland and some toys to live there. Enter the Evil Magician. He casts a spell over Toyland that separated the Toymaker and son from the toys. The Evil Magician controls the toys for a time, since Toyland is spellbound. The Toymaker then sends his son into Toyland as a toy to help the ones that were broken and sad. Enter the Kats. The Kats are cool toys that came to rule. They end up "crucifying" the Toymaker's son. Well this is all very exciting to the Evil Magician. That is, until the Toymaker's son comes back to life. The Evil Magician is then cast out of Toyland forever and the spell is broken. The Toymaker and his son are reunited with the toys and well, that's the end. I got to play the Evil Magician in the drama. XD It's the part I wanted. When I get my pictures posted online I'll link y'all to a couple of pix. Enough about the drama. When we arrived in Lima, I was so excited to get out there and present the good news to the people there. They were so receptive and they loved us to pieces. All the children gave us hugs and kisses and asked us all for our autographs. They wanted to get their pictures taken with us and everything. During the evening, all teams would come back to the resort and we would have FUAGNEM meetings. (Fired Up And Going Nuts Every Minute) It was sort of like a huge youth group meeting. I know some of you here don't believe in God, but I really believe He touched my heart there. I know I'll never be the same. All my friends on Team 13 will keep in touch (cause we're cool like that XD). I wish I could tell y'all everything, but my mind is blank atm. so, I'll leave y'all with this. Jadehorse, feel free to add something anytime. I know I'm missing quite a few things. XD
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Post by ruukah on Jul 16, 2007 15:26:09 GMT -5
WELCOME BACK!! *hugs* Wow that sounds really cool! I would love to see those pics of you as the evil magician! Heheh. Well you know me, I believe in God, and I think it's awesome how he used you and used this trip.
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JadeHorse
New Pridelander
If the enemy is in range, so are you.
Posts: 28
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Post by JadeHorse on Jul 16, 2007 20:42:33 GMT -5
First things first..... Go team 13!!! ... okay, I'm good now.
Well, Jess, I think you just about summed it all up. (But if I do think of something then I'll add it.) Currently, I'm just trying to catch up with everything at home. In fewer words: my mind is in overdrive. After a couple of days though, I might add something.
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Post by Jess on Jul 17, 2007 12:51:16 GMT -5
yeah, same here. they weren't kidding when they said it would be difficult at home X( to me, being back at home and back to my normal life, the trip seems almost unreal now. I wish it didn't have to end. Ok, I'm gonna stop typing now cause I'm starting to cry...
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Post by ruukah on Jul 17, 2007 13:04:52 GMT -5
Aww.. I had similar feelings when I left the maternity home back in 2004, because it was such a Spirit-filled house you could feel it all over you and then going back to my old home was kind of like diving into cold water lol. Man, I wish I could go on a trip like that. Did you fly down? I guess you must have. How is Peru different from the US? Do they drive on the right side of the street or the left? Was there a lot of outpouring and talking in tongues while you were there? Did God teach you anything in particular, something that really stands out in your memory that changed you? (Sorry for all the questions lol I'm just trying to get a feel for the whole thing.)
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JadeHorse
New Pridelander
If the enemy is in range, so are you.
Posts: 28
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Post by JadeHorse on Jul 17, 2007 13:53:49 GMT -5
Ditto. I wish that we could go back for a little while longer. It is sooo different to be back home. It's really frustrating to try and explain the trip and how it affected me to others. I guess that's why they said to keep in touch with the others from your team. Yeah, we flew down to Peru. First, though, everybody flew to Miami, Florida, for two and a half days. Then we went to Peru. Almost everything about the US and Peru is different. They have few traffic lights so it's sorta like driving on a New York / Autobahn street. The people are more polite and open to visitors and residents. Peru is a third-world country so that pretty much sums up the idea of how they live. But the people are so grateful to have what they do- it's almost unreal. Ummmm.... people drive on the right side of the road (and use the car horn a lot). I wouldn't say that there was a bunch of 'talking in tongues'. Hmmm..... God taught me peace. Yeah, weird thing to have 'taught' to you. Oh, and, I don't mind the questions. Jess, feel free to add anything. I know that I haven't done a good job explaining everything right now. I'll write more later but right now I have to go unpack. Yeah, I'm lazy like that.
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Post by ruukah on Jul 17, 2007 16:36:27 GMT -5
That's awesome. I may sound dumb for saying this, but I didn't know Peru was a third-world country. Wow.
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Post by Jess on Jul 18, 2007 8:45:32 GMT -5
yeah, the people there are mostly poor. there is a 'rich' side of town though...its almost like the middle class in america. but most of the places we visited were very poor communities. their houses were plywood walls, thatch roof, and holes in the ground for toilets. oh yeah, and dirt floors. it really made me grateful for what I do have. Also, we weren't allowed to flush the toilet paper while we were at the resort. it would back up their sewage system and cause the toilets to overflow. so we had to put the toilet paper in a little trash can next to the toilet. XD umm....about what God taught me... *thinking* I guess He really taught me forgiveness and acceptance. Forgiveness for others and acceptance for myself. One night during our "Bible study" meetings (FUAGNEM), the speaker taught on dying to yourself. To make the message real, she brought in a real casket and everything. Inside it was a mirror so when you looked inside, you saw yourself in the casket. It was a little freaky, but it totally hit home for me. We had to die to something that night... I died to unforgiveness, anger, and bitterness. So yeah, sorry 'bout getting all in depth here... Also, I think God taught me (and is still teaching me) to be transparent. if you got any more questions, feel free to ask. *edit* also, if anyone did speak in tounges, I didn't notice. At the FUAGNEM meetings, I wasn't paying attention to anyone else. During ministry days when we visited the poor people, they all spoke Spanish. If they did speak in tounges I wouldn't have been able to tell cause I can't understand either language!! lol
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Post by ruukah on Jul 18, 2007 18:52:01 GMT -5
That's neat. I like the casket thing.. Very creative. Oh yeah and I like your new avatar too! XD You make a surprisingly good evil magician!
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Post by Jess on Jul 19, 2007 14:15:45 GMT -5
thank you XD.
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Post by chenshui on Jun 23, 2011 1:51:20 GMT -5
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