Summer!

Here is an old post from before the move (I just realized that I never shared it, it was in "drafts")

SUMMER 2016

Can you believe it? It's Summer! As we get closer to our proposed departure month, October, we're getting more and more excited. But, we're also constantly having to remind ourselves that we need to rest in the Father's timing and not be anxious. It would appear that there are some big, hard mountains to move (selling house/stuff, raising funds, saying goodbyes, etc...) but we know that He is good and He has good plans for us, so we trust that since He told us to go, He'll help us move those mountains :)


Daniel's mom, Adela (Mamadela), is here visiting this Summer from Peru. What a treat! The girls have been having a blast with their abuelita and, of course, we have had fun catching up. Hearing stories about family in Peru makes our hearts long to be there, so pray that we can exercise patience these next several months :)

Speaking of family....Nueva Vida Lima, our church family in Lima, is doing great and growing! They've started weekly men's and women's bible studies, children's classes on Sundays, and have had other opportunities to serve and get to know the folks in the neighborhood. We've been able to enjoy parts of their services with the live feed feature on Facebook. They're a passionate and lovely group of believers that we can't wait to do life with :)

The process for Daniel's US citizenship is moving right along. We went to Oklahoma City for his biometric appointment (finger prints and picture) and are now waiting on a letter to tell us when his big interview will be scheduled. They say it could take two months from the biometric appointment to receive the letter and that the interview will be scheduled out two months from there. So, the interview should be in September sometime. And if all goes smoothly, Daniel could be part of an oath ceremony in the beginning of October.  Please pray that the Lord's favor continues to rest upon this process and papers get passed quickly :)

We are now entering the time for serious fundraising.  The Lord has provided in many ways so far: work, selling things, generous donations. In a couple of months, we will stop working full time so we can focus solely on getting things ready to go, selling the house and cars, and fundraising.

LIFE IN LIMA

Here is an old post from the move (I just realized I never shared it here, it was in "drafts")



December 2016

Hello everyone! It's been a while since we've updated here, and as usual, a lot has happened :)

We made it to Lima!
Thanks to favor from the Lord and your prayers, travel went smoothly :) Originally we were scheduled to pass through Chicago and Canada to arrive in Lima (crazy, I know...and cheap!) but upon arrival at the Tulsa airport, we learned our first flight was delayed so much that we would miss all other connecting flights. The airline quickly offered to fly us from Tulsa, to Houston, and straight on to Lima! A flight that would have originally cost almost double what we paid for the Canada tickets :) Wow! And it was so much easier and faster!






We arrived around midnight and were greeted by friends and family, some of whom we hadn't seen in years. Such a sweet reunion!


Since arriving, we have lived in 3 different places.

First with Daniel's parents for a few weeks through the holidays. This was a great opportunity to reconnect with family and old neighborhood friends. It also confirmed our heart for the hurting and lost specifically in the neighborhood where Daniel grew up and that one day we will move back there :)






Next, we moved into the apartment of a friend of a friend who was traveling. This apartment was close to the neighborhood where we were looking for a permanent place to live, La Calera. It's on the 11th floor of the building and has a spectacular view of the entire community.  Looking out the window everyday, we were reminded to pray constantly for our new neighborhood.

After a few weeks of searching and preparing our hearts, the Lord led us to where we are now :)

The Lord is really connecting us with the community as a family and as a church family. We're getting to know our neighbors, shopkeepers in the market, neighborhood security guards, moms and kids in the park, etc.  

Mary and the girls frequent a park that's a couple blocks away with the purpose of creating friendships with the neighborhood families. It is always full every weekday around 5pm when the sun starts going down. Going to the park is really great way to connect with people!

Twice a week for the past few weeks, a small group of us have gotten together to play with the kids in the park. We do activities like story time, Spanish/English songs, games, puppet shows, etc. There have been anywhere from 15-40 kids at a time. The minute we get to the park, the kids start running up asking what we brought to do today :) We've also had some good conversations with moms, dads, and grandparents. The plan is to stick with two times a week for one more week and since school starts the beginning of March, move down to once a week. We're also praying about starting a mom's group on a regular basis in one of our homes.

We've gotten to know some families that live in the neighborhood but haven't even met the folks that live in the same compound as us. They come in a different entrance than us and it seems like our schedules are quite different. Pray that we can connect somehow with them.

These past few months have had their difficulties but, through it all, our faith and trust in the Lord have grown.

We had some hard moments with all of the transition and moving, especially Ellie and Adela, but now we're starting to get settled in. It helps that the girls are making new friends at the park and that we are developing more structure in our home.

Keep praying for Ellie's schooling situation. There are a lot of hoops to jump through to put her in a national school. They start in March and the schools are filling up fast. In the next week or so, she will have to take a test to prove she can enroll in 3rd grade. But even in this, we've seen God's faithfulness. When we first asked how to enroll her in school here, we were told, over the phone, by the Department of Education that there were documents that needed to be professionally translated and certified by the Peruvian consulate in the US. We went to their offices and asked the same question face to face and were told the same thing :) But then Daniel explained that it would be extremely difficult and inconvenient to get these papers, and they said, "OK, all you have to do, then, is fill out this form and have your daughter take a placement test." No up front fee, no translated and certified documents. Hallelujah!

Also, please pray for health. We've all had our share of sickness, including Daniel's parents. 

Moving forward

The Lord is faithful. We can't say it enough times. We've seen His faithfulness and goodness so much over this Summer. And it's been a crazy one! Here are a few things we give Him glory for these past few months:

We had a rollover car accident on the turnpike and came out alive! Praise Jesus

We celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary!



Ellie turned 8 and started 2nd grade!



Adela turned 3 and started ballet and preschool! (whaa??!)



Mary and the girls got to spend the Summer enjoying some sweet moments with Grandma Ruthie before she went to be with Jesus on Sept 10th. So thankful for the hope that we have in Jesus! We look forward to seeing her again :)



Daniel became a US Citizen! It was a really meaningful experience to get to be a part of the Oath Ceremony in Oklahoma City with friends and family. Mamadela even got to come!

We sold and packed up most everything and put our house on the market.

We're living with Mary's momma until our departure date. 

And some of the most exciting news....we have a departure date! We purchased tickets for Friday, December 2nd. One month from now! These next few weeks will be full of spending time with friends and family and last minute packing.

We would like to have a get together before we leave, so stayed tuned for more info.

Here are some needs and prayer requests that we have:

*House to sell: It would be ideal for our house to sell or be under contract before we leave. We can sign paperwork before we leave if there's a contract.  If there's no contract before we leave, the paperwork can be mailed back and forth, still doable but a little bit more complicated. Either way, though, we won't have to be here for closing, so that's good! However, the sooner the house sells, the sooner we can stop paying mortgage payments and basic utilities...

*Start-up funds for now and when we arrive in Lima: We will need to make a deposit and buy furnishings for an apartment as well as set up utilities. The approximate cost will be around $2000. If you would like to give toward our start up fund, check out the info at the bottom of the blog or contact us at losherolds@gmail.com or 918-712-0560 (call or text).

*Partners: We are asking the Lord to send people who would like to partner with us financially and in prayer. We have an approximate budget of $2000 a month. Right now we have a little under the half way mark in pledges. If you are interested in supporting us financially, check out the info at the bottom of our blog or contact us. Also, we would love to journey with a group of people in prayer so we are setting up an email/message group. If you are interested in joining our prayer team, please email Mary at losherolds@gmail.com.

*School for the girls: One of the things we have been praying for since the day we knew we were moving was schooling for our girls. There is a wonderful English school not far from the neighborhood we'll be living in that we are seriously considering for Ellie and one day for Adela.  It runs close to the United States' school schedule, so Ellie would be right on track for her second semester of second grade. Since we are missionaries, the school would give us half off of the tuition. And if Mary were to work at the school, the discount would be greater. However, they are not hiring until the next school year.  So, the tuition for one semester after the missionary discount would be close to $200 more a month than we had budgeted. Please pray for wisdom as we decide where Ellie will go to school and also provision to pay for the semester (Feb-June). Also, please pray for clarity and wisdom as we decide if this is a job that the Lord wants Mary to apply for.


Thank you to all who have already so generously given toward our move and mission and have been covering us in prayer! We love you dearly and are thankful for the blessings that you are in our lives.

Blessings,
The Herolds