Greetings from Santa Cruz Bolivia. The first 48 hours have been a whirlwind adventure and left us little time to stop and update everyone on what’s been happening. We are happy to report that aside from a few minor hiccups the trip has started off incredibly. After touching down in Santa Cruz around 6:00 AM the team hit the ground running going straight to the store to pick up supplies, shopping for some tools in the local market (which was quite an experience), and we have attended three services already.
Pastor Jason Finns delivered the message Saturday evening for their young adult ministry. He did a great job, and the people really seem to engage with him. Directly following service, they were celebrating national friendship day and the team was treated to a chocolate lovers buffet. It was so great for the returning team members to be able to just hang out and reconnect with all their Bolivian family that they’ve created over the years.
Sunday morning had the team up bright and early as we prepared for church. Pastor Jason again gave the message in the first service and Pastor Gil gave the message for the second service. They both did an outstanding job and represented Lakeshore very well. It was surreal having services in an amazing worship center that, on our first trip, was just a field of dirt. The transformation is incredible, and the best written blog and pictures still will not do it justice.
Directly following services, the team’s adventure continued as Pastor Ruben and Isabel, along with their daughter Alejandra and son-in-law Bruno went out for a Bolivian lunch and then headed to explore Peji. At Peji, the team quickly felt and saw the overwhelming potential for ministry. The landscape is so beautiful, and the potential is endless. Since our first trip down there have been a few new additions that we were excited to see. One of the most noticeable was the large community bathhouse that has been completed. This is a small step toward their goal of being able to host ministry events on this property.
One of the most special moments was when the team began to hike through the fields to explore some of the more remote parts of the property. Once we finally arrived at the top of a small hill where you can overlook the majority of the area the team was able to pray for Robinson who is the missionary that has been living on this property full time, working as a bread maker to sustain his family and provide for Peji.
The first 48 hours have truly set the groundwork for what will be a life changing work week for both the team members here and our church family in Bolivia. We can’t wait to see what the Lord has in store for us as we begin to start our physical work today.