Monday, May 26th we welcomed 6
interns to Paraguay. Over the next 6
weeks they will be shadowing us as we minister, completing reading assignments
and discussing them during afternoon classes, living with Paraguayan families
and learning culture and language. It’s
always a busy 6 weeks for us as we purposefully pour into these college
students’ lives, but we absolutely love it.
The first few days are all about orientation
and introduction to Paraguay. The first
night in Asuncion we sat around eating empanadas while our director and his
wife shared about SIM in general and SIM’s work in Paraguay. Then they gave their testimonies of how God
called them to the mission field.
The following day we left Asuncion. Our first stopped was in to the impressive
Catholic church in Ca’acupe and then we headed to Escobar (about an 1 ½ away)
to our missionary friends’ house.
The Bowens help us put on a great (if I do
say so myself) orienatation to Paraguay and T.I.M.E. The students had classes in Guarani and we got
them pumped up about learing the heart language of the Paraguayan people. They had a class on expectations and a class in
Paraguayan history. The students had
time to hike and explore Andy’s property and they went on an “adventure tour”
complete with swinging bridges, a zip line, and rapelling.
Relaxing
One evening we listened to Andy and Lizet’s
testimony, another evening we watched The Mission (a taste of Paraguayan
history) and a third evening we ate s’mores (thanks, Dalia, for bringing those
U.S. goodies). After three days, the
students were ready to head out into the Great Unknown.
One aspect of the trip we really value is
letting the students meet our team mates and hear their stories. On our way home we stopped at a team mate’s
house for terere, lunch and a time of sharing.
Then we pressed on to the next town and the next missionary house where
we had cupcakes. Finally we hit the
muddy road which seemed really long in the dark and in the rain.
spending time with missionaries
practicing Guarani
sopa
Lunch
We arrived in town at 6:00 and by 8 all the
students were dropped off at their host home.
They were a bit nervous but I know they’ll do great. They've been practicing their Guarani
greetings, diligently reading about Paraguayan culture, and asking lots of good
questions. But more than that, I know
they’ll do great because they are a great group with servant hearts and a
wonderful sense of adventure.
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