Monday, November 28, 2005
Tuesday, November 22, 2005
Saturday, November 19, 2005
Evangelista
We just got back from a walk along the harbour...it was an interesting time. We ate our packed lunch of bread, oranges, and granola bars on the sea wall. Then we meandered through the downtown area, buying some bananas and some cotton yarn for crocheting, and of course, some maní confitado (candied nuts) from a street vendor. I was approached by a gypsy woman with the offer of my fortune read. She looked as though her life had been very hard. The few teeth she had were brown and broken, and her clothing was ragged and dirty. I told her that I had God in my heart, and didn´t need my fortune read. She replied, "Oh, of course, everybody has God in their hearts.." and went on to say how things in this life and people in this life cause bad things to happen (evidently as proof that we need some extra help from magic). I then emphasized, "No...I have Jesus in my life." Her eyes sparked and she smiled, "Ah! Tú eres evangelista!" (Oh, you´re an evangelist!). I nodded. She then asked that I would pray for the healing of her daughter. I said I would and we shared a tight hug.
It just occured to me as I wrote this last paragraph that God may be trying to tell me something. Last night we had one of a series of meetings with Antonio Ulboa, an EMM worker down here for a week, with the church here in our home. Eduardo and Juanita and their two children arrived early as a meeting they were going to go to first was postponed. They showed up wet and eagerly accepted the invitation to have some food and hot drinks. While they ate I dried their jackets and the little girl´s clothes in the dryer. Much later, when our meeting was done and they were getting ready to head out in the rain to catch the ferry back to their island, Eduardo shook my hand, hugged me, and told me that "I had the heart of an evangelist". What? For serving some food and drying some clothes?
When I think of an evangelist, I can´t help but picture Benny Hinn, and that is an image I cringe at. I´d like your feedback, what is an evangelist? Is it someone so consumed with the conversions of others that it drives them to door knocking and street preaching? Or is it the by-product of living a life of transparency and service? What do you think?
It just occured to me as I wrote this last paragraph that God may be trying to tell me something. Last night we had one of a series of meetings with Antonio Ulboa, an EMM worker down here for a week, with the church here in our home. Eduardo and Juanita and their two children arrived early as a meeting they were going to go to first was postponed. They showed up wet and eagerly accepted the invitation to have some food and hot drinks. While they ate I dried their jackets and the little girl´s clothes in the dryer. Much later, when our meeting was done and they were getting ready to head out in the rain to catch the ferry back to their island, Eduardo shook my hand, hugged me, and told me that "I had the heart of an evangelist". What? For serving some food and drying some clothes?
When I think of an evangelist, I can´t help but picture Benny Hinn, and that is an image I cringe at. I´d like your feedback, what is an evangelist? Is it someone so consumed with the conversions of others that it drives them to door knocking and street preaching? Or is it the by-product of living a life of transparency and service? What do you think?
Wednesday, November 09, 2005
Over the River
Hey Friends,
More adventures...Dustin had a great trip hiking in the Andes. He and Michael (our fellow missionary) and Eduardo (our fellow Chilean missionary) took a four day boat and backpack trip up in to the mountains to visit and encourage the isolated believers in those areas. For many of the people this is their only fellowship with other believers, and for some, this is their only exposure to the good news of Christ. The guys were always asked to come in to the homes, drink maté (an herbal drink passed around in a common gourd), and eat bread fried in pig fat. Then they mostly listened to and prayed for the people.
So where was I? Turning green with envy at home with the kids! But, big smile here, I´ll be going along next time, because the weather will be warmer for the kiddos so we´ll be able to camp outside of the homes (the homes are too small for such a large group). I´m very excited to go! The next outreach is to the islands sometime next week.
¡Estoy felíz porque mí español es un poco mejor cada día! In other words, my spanish is getting better. Dustin is improving too, the man can´t not talk. It´s against his nature.
So, anyways, I wanted to post our info. Our mailing address is: Dustin and Sarah Gingrich c/o Mike Hostetter, Casilla 760, Puerto Montt, Chile. And make the 7 with a slash through the middle or else they´ll think it´s a one! Our phone number is: 56-65-27-4476. Miss you all!
More adventures...Dustin had a great trip hiking in the Andes. He and Michael (our fellow missionary) and Eduardo (our fellow Chilean missionary) took a four day boat and backpack trip up in to the mountains to visit and encourage the isolated believers in those areas. For many of the people this is their only fellowship with other believers, and for some, this is their only exposure to the good news of Christ. The guys were always asked to come in to the homes, drink maté (an herbal drink passed around in a common gourd), and eat bread fried in pig fat. Then they mostly listened to and prayed for the people.
So where was I? Turning green with envy at home with the kids! But, big smile here, I´ll be going along next time, because the weather will be warmer for the kiddos so we´ll be able to camp outside of the homes (the homes are too small for such a large group). I´m very excited to go! The next outreach is to the islands sometime next week.
¡Estoy felíz porque mí español es un poco mejor cada día! In other words, my spanish is getting better. Dustin is improving too, the man can´t not talk. It´s against his nature.
So, anyways, I wanted to post our info. Our mailing address is: Dustin and Sarah Gingrich c/o Mike Hostetter, Casilla 760, Puerto Montt, Chile. And make the 7 with a slash through the middle or else they´ll think it´s a one! Our phone number is: 56-65-27-4476. Miss you all!
Thursday, October 06, 2005
Bread and Coffee
Dear Friends,
Why bread and coffee? Because I´ve never had quite so much in my young life. Our days here in Puerto Montt are lleno de cafecitos (full of coffee breaks). Bread and coffee for breakfast, bread and coffee at ten and two and four and eight and any other time you please. And of course, with lunch (the main meal) and dinner (which is a glorified cafecito). Well, I suppose there´s more to share than our cafecito schedule...
Wow, this first week was so hard! Here are my rants, the raves will follow. It´s very cold. Very very cold and the only heat is from the woodstove in the living room. My kiddos were shivering as I dressed them. We live with a Chilean family in the apartment because their house isn´t finished which means that the already complex dynamics of cross-cultural communication are magnified by the intricacies of living together. We have one room to ourselves, and even this is not sacred domain to children meandering through. We struggle to communicate properly. Upon hearing our broken Spanish, one member of the house church asked bluntly, ´¨Why did they come?¨"
Now...the raves. The son of Eduardo and Juanita (the couple that live with us) calls me "tia" which means auntie. It blesses me tremendously. Juanita is an islander with a heart of gold and is very patient with me as I try to communicate. It´s beautiful here. The Andes are breath-taking and it´s so green. I´ve learned to love and crave the simple bread and coffee breaks. We´ve also learned to like "mate" which is a drink made of herbs. It´s passed person to person in a little wooden cup on a stand. When you´ve sipped the liquid through the metal straw you refill it with hot water and sugar and pass it on (the herbs stay in the cup to be reused). So fun. My biggest rave: God has been so near. Praise be to God!!!!!!
What are we doing? We are helping and learning. Dustin is helping Eduardo finish his house and fixing random plumbing issues. I am cooking and baking and spending time with Juanita, using my Spanish. I also am going to be helping a university student in my women´s Bible study with her English. Mostly I´m herding my children, I mean, taking care of my kids.
Blessings to all of you,
May Christ be near,
Love, Sarah
Why bread and coffee? Because I´ve never had quite so much in my young life. Our days here in Puerto Montt are lleno de cafecitos (full of coffee breaks). Bread and coffee for breakfast, bread and coffee at ten and two and four and eight and any other time you please. And of course, with lunch (the main meal) and dinner (which is a glorified cafecito). Well, I suppose there´s more to share than our cafecito schedule...
Wow, this first week was so hard! Here are my rants, the raves will follow. It´s very cold. Very very cold and the only heat is from the woodstove in the living room. My kiddos were shivering as I dressed them. We live with a Chilean family in the apartment because their house isn´t finished which means that the already complex dynamics of cross-cultural communication are magnified by the intricacies of living together. We have one room to ourselves, and even this is not sacred domain to children meandering through. We struggle to communicate properly. Upon hearing our broken Spanish, one member of the house church asked bluntly, ´¨Why did they come?¨"
Now...the raves. The son of Eduardo and Juanita (the couple that live with us) calls me "tia" which means auntie. It blesses me tremendously. Juanita is an islander with a heart of gold and is very patient with me as I try to communicate. It´s beautiful here. The Andes are breath-taking and it´s so green. I´ve learned to love and crave the simple bread and coffee breaks. We´ve also learned to like "mate" which is a drink made of herbs. It´s passed person to person in a little wooden cup on a stand. When you´ve sipped the liquid through the metal straw you refill it with hot water and sugar and pass it on (the herbs stay in the cup to be reused). So fun. My biggest rave: God has been so near. Praise be to God!!!!!!
What are we doing? We are helping and learning. Dustin is helping Eduardo finish his house and fixing random plumbing issues. I am cooking and baking and spending time with Juanita, using my Spanish. I also am going to be helping a university student in my women´s Bible study with her English. Mostly I´m herding my children, I mean, taking care of my kids.
Blessings to all of you,
May Christ be near,
Love, Sarah
Tuesday, September 27, 2005
Here We Go
Dear Friends,
Well, we are living amidst a herd of boxes at present, cowering beneath their intimidating presence. We are quickly filling Great Aunt Mary's basement with our worldly possessions (why do we always call them "worldly", what would be the alternative, "otherworldly"?). I like her high-pitched exclamations of "how in the world could all of this have come from that little house?". You don't think you have much until it looms in stacks and stacks.
These last few weeks have been, well, rottenly busy and stressful. It gets to all of us, all the packing, good-byeing, sorting, in short, all the transition. Sophia is probably wondering where Mommy's horns and pointy tail came from (and how to rid me of them). I came apart a few days ago- I layed despondent and weeping on our bathroom floor (I like to be dramatic when I'm sad), and Dustin came in (he's used to my drama) and simply laid his hands on me and prayed. Such a simple thing, he prayed for peace in our home and in our hearts in this time. Whaddayaknow, it worked. How we forget that God loves to be invited into the "ordinary" in our lives, I don't know. His "divine interference" is what we often can look back on with such gratitude and yet fail to project onto current and future worries and cares.
I've been asked of late whether I feel "ready" for Chile. I have no answer for that. My readiness for anything is rather more immediate in nature. "I'm ready for dessert", "I'm ready to pack the linens", "I'm ready to throw packing peanuts at my husband" and the like. I'll let you know later if I was "ready".
So, we leave Friday, the 30th for Puerto Montt, Chile. Your prayers are coveted and appreciated!
Love In Christ,
Sarah Lenora Gingrich
Well, we are living amidst a herd of boxes at present, cowering beneath their intimidating presence. We are quickly filling Great Aunt Mary's basement with our worldly possessions (why do we always call them "worldly", what would be the alternative, "otherworldly"?). I like her high-pitched exclamations of "how in the world could all of this have come from that little house?". You don't think you have much until it looms in stacks and stacks.
These last few weeks have been, well, rottenly busy and stressful. It gets to all of us, all the packing, good-byeing, sorting, in short, all the transition. Sophia is probably wondering where Mommy's horns and pointy tail came from (and how to rid me of them). I came apart a few days ago- I layed despondent and weeping on our bathroom floor (I like to be dramatic when I'm sad), and Dustin came in (he's used to my drama) and simply laid his hands on me and prayed. Such a simple thing, he prayed for peace in our home and in our hearts in this time. Whaddayaknow, it worked. How we forget that God loves to be invited into the "ordinary" in our lives, I don't know. His "divine interference" is what we often can look back on with such gratitude and yet fail to project onto current and future worries and cares.
I've been asked of late whether I feel "ready" for Chile. I have no answer for that. My readiness for anything is rather more immediate in nature. "I'm ready for dessert", "I'm ready to pack the linens", "I'm ready to throw packing peanuts at my husband" and the like. I'll let you know later if I was "ready".
So, we leave Friday, the 30th for Puerto Montt, Chile. Your prayers are coveted and appreciated!
Love In Christ,
Sarah Lenora Gingrich
Tuesday, September 13, 2005
Welcome!
Puerto Montt, ChileDear Friends,
Well, it seems that I have succumbed to the whiles of the digital age. Here's my blog. It will mostly contain poetry and brief updates on what we're up to. Pictures will be forthcoming, they challenge my technology-impaired self as of now. But, I give myself credit-I didn't even know what a blog was until a month ago, HA! Blessings!
Sarah
"Bid Me Come" a poem
Bid Me Come
by: Sarah Gingrich
Away from prying eyes
I wish to walk
Wish to walk.
Away from prying eyes for to see
The beauty in the Quiet.
Yes, the beauty in the Quiet
Where water, tree, and
shadow bid me come.
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