First 2 weeks

FIRST TWO WEEKS

Well I’ve got about 2 weeks under my belt here in BA and it’s had its ups and downs for sure.   First off, I got sick the first night I got here so that was definitely not a good experience.  It was also a little overwhelming because we had a lot of briefing sessions, I didn’t have a roommate, the city is so different from Mississippi obviously, and also getting settled (groceries, unpacking, etc.) was a hefty task.   We still don’t have a refrigerator or internet but both of those things are in the works and should be taken care of soon.   Week one was definitely a tough one and very humbling.  On a lighter note, I did get to go to an Argentine church on the 12th with my co-leader, Jessica.  It was such a great time and really lifted my spirits.  A typical service there starts with small groups.  There are usually two or three groups with about 15 or so people in each and they all talk and discuss what they were supposed to read for the week.  After that there is a sermon and then some praise and worship time.  It was so great to get to experience this and while I know I want to look around a little while for a church, I know that this particular church is something I would definitely enjoy and benefit from. My favorite time was the praise and worship time.  It was all in Spanish but it was so great to see people lifting up praised to God in another language and feel His presence in the room.  It was just what I needed to lift my spirits for the week.

 Week number 2 was a lot better.   Ben, my roommate, arrived Monday morning (13^th) and it was great to see him again and to have someone in my apartment with me.  We also got to go on campus a lot more that week and I’m beginning to get the lay of the land.  The campus that our main presence is on is the Agronomics campus and it is great   It is kind of like an escape from the city because there is a lot of nature, animals, etc.  I’ve also joined a local gym, met some of my neighbors, and am really beginning to adapt to the culture.

I’ve gotten to do some evangelism on the Ag campus and it has been great.  I have had several deep spiritual conversations with people and hope that some of the contacts I’ve made will be receptive to the gospel.  The people are very lost and are very timid to get involved in a religion because many are against the Catholic Church and associate all Christians with catholicism.  They are not, however, timid to have a spiritual conversation so that has been a blessing and has made evangelizing and sharing the gospel easy.  I definitely feel like a big movement could take place while I am here or soon after because there are natives here who are believers and I feel like have a desire to grow and have an impact.   I can’t wait to get to know more people on campus and more of the people in our movement (Vida Estudiantil).  One of the great things about BA is that there is potential to have an influence on all of South America from in this one city.  The University of Buenos Aires is free so people from all over the continent come to take classes here and we meet people from everywhere.

The weekend of the 17-19 we went to La Plata for a training type thing.  It was directed toward students in Buenos Aires, La Plata, or wherever who want to share their faith, make disciples, etc.  It was a very informative weekend with many seminars that were helpful.  Also, it was great to interact with the La Plata team again as I havent seen them since we got off the plane.  The most encouraging thing about the weekend to me was to see around 40ish people that are native spanish speakers that want to share their faith and make a difference.  It was so great to see the same desire in them that I see in my STINT team. 

Prayer Requests:

-quick adaptation/language learning (I started language class on Monday the 20^th) and that my team and I would not feel too overwhelmed

-that God would direct us to a leader on campus who is receptive to the gospel
-guidance and wisdom for Andres Castro; he is a new student director for Vida Estudiantil (Campus Crusade here) who evangelizes with us on the agronomics campus. 


Thanks for reading.  My apartment will get internet this weekend I believe so more posts to come soon hopefully. 

Hasta luego,
JM