Changes Ahead

In my last post I alluded to big changes that will be happening for me in the next couple of months. Well, here's the news...

The last 2 ½ years, I have been living in La Paz. La Paz sits in a bowl and boasts a population of about 1.5 million people. It’s sister city, El Alto, sits on the rim of the bowl and has a similar population of 1.5 million people.

During my first year at HIS, I met a family (The Bakers) who worked in El Alto; their son was in my 5^th grade class. They began to share a little bit with me about their lives and the work they are involved in. The Bakers moved to Bolivia 12 years ago with a ministry called “Word Made Flesh” (WMF). Word Made was founded in 1991, as a non-profit organization existing to serve among the most vulnerable of the world’s poor. WMF has since established communities in 12 nations. When the Bakers initially moved to Bolivia, they began to scout the area, to pray and to ask, “What is the need here?” What they found was an active Red Light District in El Alto. Despite the fact that prostitution is illegal in Bolivia, the practice continues to flourish, with government support and even encouragement. The Bakers saw women enslaved in prostitution and they caught God’s heart for these women, despised and rejected by so many, yet loved deeply by their Father.

I believe that we, in Western society often have a skewed view of those in the sex trade. We think, “Why would someone get involved in that? Can’t they get a job anywhere else? Why don’t they just leave?” Here is an expert from the WFM Bolivia website that may broaden our perspective a bit.

“We understand that when a woman feels there is no other option, she may turn to the streets. Maybe hungry tummies await her at home or debts crowd heavy around her. Maybe he beats her viciously and she’s inconceivably trapped. Most likely someone wounded her long ago, and under desperate circumstances, she considers the unthinkable. Over time she withers away, hating what she does, yet unable to see any other way out.”

The WMF community in El Alto accompanies such women during their journey, sharing the hope we have in Christ along the way. And, when the opportunity presents itself, WFM accompanies the woman in leaving a life enslaved in the sex trade and supports her in finding a different life, a different job, and a different hope.

Since 2012, WMF Bolivia has grown from two individuals to 12 staff members and numerous volunteers. Since I learned of WMF in 2013, I found their ministry to be very powerful and wondered if it might be something I would like to be a part of in the future. However, as I thought and prayed about it, God made it very clear I was to stay at HIS. The door to WMF seemed sealed shut, which surprised me. Last fall, I was in the midst of praying about what was next: Should I commit to another year at HIS? Should I return to the States? Through times of prayer I felt impressed to email Andrea Baker and inquire a bit more about Word Made Flesh. Within a week, Andrea and I met up for coffee. As we shared our hearts and I learned more about the ministry, I felt a tremendous sense of peace. This peace has remained and I as I have pursued the Lord’s leading, I have decided to do an internship with WMF beginning in August of 2016. God’s leading has been so clear and this makes me very excited!

HIS will dismiss in early June. Language school (required to join WMF) will start June 20th in Cochabamba, a large city 550 kilometers east of La Paz.  I will have a couple of weeks in La Paz to pack up my apartment and debrief a little before transitioning to language school; this will be the first summer I not be returning to the States for summer break. The school is a full immersion school and will last for 7 weeks; during this time I will live with a Bolivian family. I am beyond excited at an opportunity to study Spanish for 7 weeks and for this to be my main responsibility! I have long wanted such an opportunity and though my Spanish has grown little by little, I have found it difficult to truly immerse myself while working at an English speaking school and trying to balance other responsibilities and opportunities.  After language school, I will begin the internship; it will last approximately 4 months. At this time I will move to an apartment in El Alto with either a host family or fellow staff member (please pray for guidance in this decision). At the end of the internship, I’m not certain what the Lord will have next for me. It is a possibility to join WMF staff or to return to the States or maybe He has something completely different planned!

During my time with HIS, I received a small stipend from the school that covers room and board. With WMF, I will be completely on support. As the time nears, I may need to do a bit more support raising. As I discover more in the next few weeks, I will be able to share more details.

If you would like to learn more about WMF, please check out their website, http://wordmadeflesh.org/bolivia/ and please feel free to contact me with any questions you may have. I will keep you updated as things unfold and I would like to ask for your prayers. This is a very exciting time, but it is also a time of transition, saying goodbye to precious people and places in La Paz, and learning to trust God in ways I never have before.

Prayer Points:

• Finishing the next 6 weeks strong at HIS
• Grace to say goodbye to dear friends who will be leaving Bolivia
• Grace to transition to a "new life" here in Bolivia
• Wisdom about where to live during my internship
• To find great community in this new season
• Emotional stability within all the changes

God's constant reminder to me:

" 'Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor my covenant of peace be removed,' says the Lord who has compassion on you." 

Isaiah 54:10