Its been awhile... as usual

So there are a lot of things that i've been wanting to write on here and lists help me think so here goes:

1. Since most of my blogs usually start with apologies for not having blogged in such a long time i think i will skip the apology this time.

2. I had an AMAZING time in the U.S. of A. I'm still sorta processing through it but it was great to be with my family, see so many people that believe in what we are doing here in Lima, share about what God is doing in my heart and in the lives of our friends on the street, and to laugh a lot with good old friends that know me through and through. To old friends and new, young and old, thanks for the good times. Some of my favorite times in the U.S. include: eating a cruchwrap supreme from taco bell, watching Chad play basketball, shopping with mom, watching Christmas Vacation in May, getting to know Moweaqua Illinois and its quirky veterinarian, walking around in the sub hearing stories about Laura's grandmas, watching jeopardy while eating fried fish with daddy and bub, oh gosh... the list could go on and on. Mostly i just want to say thanks to those of you who went out of your way to make me feel special, loved, celebrated, relaxed, and really really cared for while i was in the States. I am blessed.

3. My first couple weeks back in Lima have been INSANE. here's why (also in list format):

A. Camping trip: The day after i got back to lima I left for the camping trip with the youth we hang out with on wednesdays and fridays. we spent three days with them outside the city at this beautiful, peaceful place where we could see the stars, play in the freezing cold river, swim in the "ginasty" swimming pool, roast marshmallows, and have fun with some of our friends who have known mostly difficult lives. It was a joy to spend my first days back in Lima with those friends in that place.

B. Police Raid: The night we got back from the camping trip we went out to the street to hang out with some of the kids we know. The police, along with child protective services, had planned a raid for that night at the specific place and time that they know that we always hang out with the kids. They surrounded us and began to take the kids, one by one, until every single kid that was hanging out with us was in the truck ready to be taken away. Two of our staff also got taken with the kids that night. I was left with another staff and our servant team standing on the sidewalk, somewhat traumatized, watching them pull away with something like 50 kids and our two staff in the truck. I took the servant team home and we prayed and debriefed while Monica went to figure out what was going on. I've never seen so many police involved in a raid against our youth. We counted 19 trucks and i would guess over 100 police were involved in the raid. Eventually that night the let all the youth that were over 18 go, including our staff, and detained the minors. They sent them to a place similar to juvenile detention to await an opening in a home which they will probably escape from shortly after being placed there. We are safe and our friends are ok, a little shaken up. We continue to cry out to God, "INJUSTICE! WHERE IS YOUR JUSTICE?" This incident is sadly the reality for many of our friends. There is little that we can do except continue to cry out to God and ask him to bring his justice.

C. Despedida of the Servant Team: Three days after that our beloved servant team left. Darcy, Rachel, Ben and Joel spent four months with us, learning and growing, and it was SO sad to see them go. We had going away parties for them and lifted up on their behalf many prayers.

D. Contract Decision: In the middle of all of this i am having to make a decision about renewing my contract. Seems like a crazy way to enter back into life here, but the truth is that if it were a quiet couple of weeks that would be abnormal. So its probably better that these weeks of trying to make a final decision about my contract are filled to the brim with joys and sorrows because thats how life is here. FULL! I have a couple more weeks to decide... but for the first time in almost a year i feel so much peace! My prayer has been the verse in Isaiah that says, "You will go out in joy and be lead forth in peace." For most of the last year this has sorta been wishful thinking for me but i finally feel like i and going out in joy and being lead forth in peace! THANK GOD! (this doesn't mean that there aren't hard things or that my heart isn't heavy sometimes though)

E. Field Trip to Lurigancho: Then today we went to prison to visit our friends there. I haven't been to prison to visit since i was on my servant team in 2005! Going to prison is a bizarre experience. Today was women's visit day. You have to wear a skirt (not black) and sandals. All the women are all dressed up, red lipstick exceeding the normal amount, toting around huge bags of homemade goodies for their men, dragging two or three children behind them, many trying to cut in line. They check our documents at least 5 times (giving us a hard time without fail because we aren't peruvian), write weird numbers on our arms and stamp over it a couple times (i have no idea why), and we are finally permitted to pass through after some women police officers feel us up to make sure we don't have anything hiding in our bras or skirts. We enter the sea of young men and within seconds have several surrounding us. They all ask if Casa Job, our day center that closed in 2006, is still going. They ask how Mia, Daniela, Walter and Adriana, Emily, Craig, and others are doing (all staff who haven't lived in Lima for at least a couple years). They tell Sarah she looks old or young or fatter or skinnier. They ask who the new girl is (me... i've been here for almost two years now). Many are excited to share that they are studing the Word, going to the church, listening to the brothers and sisters that share the good news with them. We pray with some, sneak chocolates to others, give pictures to others. We notice that some look so healthy and others look thin and still sadly addicted. Some tell us that they haven't been sentenced yet even though they've been there for over a year, two years, 8 months, others tell us how they got there, some for good reason others for no reason at all, but they still await their sentences for months or years. We tell some how good their daughter is doing in school or how their son is looking more like them everyday or how their daughter took her first steps a few weeks ago. We encourage them to look ahead, keep the faith, stay strong, pray. We promise we'll be back soon, knowing that it will probably be longer than we hope before we are back again. As we leave, the little kids wash off the numbers from our arms and we give them 20 cents and a smile. We're tired, cold, emotionally exhausted, but glad we went. I continue to reflect on how young most of the men there are, how long their sentences seem for stealing a cell phone, how much they respect "the sisters," how many of my young friends are growing up with dads in prison, how an entire business is centered around prison visit days (renting skirts, selling food, shoes, soaps, make-up, keeping your things that would be confiscated while you go in, people who you pay to get you a better spot in line, the little kids that wash off your arm), i reflect on the sheer number of young men that we know who are in prison, and i wonder at what it would be like to be confined to one place for months or years of your life. I'm sure the reflecting will continue.

ok well thats the update from me... as always i'm going to try to be better about blogging... we'll see if it happens :)