"Filamena's Face" (Peru - November 15, 2004)

what a day! words cannot express all that God is doing through the team here, but I will tell one story so you can get a glimpse.

this morning i was working in a very impoverished area on the outskirts of this desert town. The first house we went to was that of Elia. She was a little shy but as I shared my testimony with her she opened up a bit. After a short while of sharing with her she indicated that she would like to receive Christ. One of the first things we ask is if they know someone else that needs to hear the gospel. She pointed across the dusty road and said that her best friend and neighbor needed to hear this. We made our way across the street and knocked on the door. The older lady that came to the door looked a bit surprised. When we introduced ourselves I was blown away by her response. The lady I later came to know as Filamena said she had been waiting all of her life for God to send someone to give her hope. And at that she welcomed us into her modest courtyard and cleaned off a bench seat. She sat down on a stool in front of me and told me that she was ready to receive what God wanted to tell her. As soon as I started sharing my testimony tears welled up in her eyes. At one point I just had to stop talking and put my arm around her. But she requested that I continue on. She eventually revealed to us what a sad life she has lived. She was left by her husband years ago. Filamena has four children, three of which have left their own children with her to raise, and the other who is abusive to her. She told us that she had never had a happy day in her life. After hearing of Gods love for her, we asked her if she wanted to place her faith in Jesus for the forgiveness of sins and so He could change her life. She responded with an enthusiastic OF COURSE. We explained to her that she now has a family in the members of the church that we are establishing in her neighborhood. She was excited to hear what it meant to be a part of Gods family. We invited her to come with her neighbor, Elia, to our evening bible study to learn more about Gods word. She assured us she would be there.

We were to begin at 630, but we are on latin time. By 830 they had not showed up so I decided to model a cell group meeting for the church members there. We got about half way through and Filamena and Elia stuck their heads in the door and asked if it was too late to learn more about God. We welcomed them in and started over. As we studied the simple lesson on the meaning of salvation, the two women hung on every word. I noticed that Filamena had Elia writing the answers on her sheet as well as I assume she cannot write. By the end of the service I saw a big smile on Filamenas face . . . something she said she never does. As we left the meeting tonight I knew that God had done an amazing work on this day. I watched those two precious new believers going the opposite direction down the dark, dusty road and my translator, Manuel, looked at me with a grin and said, I would love to overhear what they are talking about right now. I agreed. In one day they both received hope, peace, salvation, and a new family . . . the family of God. What could be better than that?

Keep praying. There are a hundred more stories of lives changing as God works to bring glory to His Son.