They say it takes 21 days to create a new habit.
If you do something continuously for 21 days, it will become part of your life, methodical.
You will feel incomplete without having done it, this new thing.
We were with the teams for 21 days, each person living out the missionary walk. Being a missionary is an incredible thing. It means giving up everything for a period of time, maybe even for your entire life, and therefore giving your all to other people so that they can know the love of the Father. It takes great bravery, great love, a great heart. But this all comes from one single moment- the moment you say "yes" to Jesus when He awakens your heart to the call of missions. You are revived by your response to Him. It is a miraculous thing.
42 people said yes to His call to Peru this summer. 42 people and countless more were changed forever by His love.
The Month of July has been completely filled with adventure. God put three nurses and several medical students on the Crosspoint team. He provided medicine, medical equipment, reading glasses, and a facility to house a medical clinic in Peru. We hosted the clinic with great joy, and during three days we were able to see and treat almost 300 patients. Nearly 70 pairs of reading glasses were given out. It was all so intriguing to me and I watched the intricate and unique way the Lord moved within our team. Vered, a 70 year old Jewish woman, flew into Peru from Jerusalem to head up the medical mission. She told us about her years traveling the world, mostly to very poor areas, and providing medical care. We asked her questions about her life and she shared her traditions with us, praying in Hebrew and taking communion with us before dinner.
Someone donated 6 water purification systems and we were able to provide 6 families with clean water for one year. In Peru, clean drinking water is an incredible gift and it is very rare. We climbed the mountains and played with the children and gave the gift of clean water and God's love. Every night we were at a conference at a different Church, preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ to those who need him more than their next breath. I cling to their desire for him, soaking it up and drinking it in. The Peruvian people are desperate for Jesus in a way that I have not experienced in many other places. It is not only a desperation to hear His word, but also a desire to see Him move in their lives in a real and tangible way. No matter what it takes. They will stay at church until midnight and cry out until something happens. Many times, they ask for healing knowing that it is their only hope. Medical treatment is not an option because there is no money for that. Most of them live day to day, buying their food with the meager amount they bring home. Yes, they wait on the Lord and he comes. He comes in the most detailed and special ways. During the medical clinic, I had the great privilege of translating in the prayer room. I saw the Lord heal the largest and the smallest of problems. I heard testimony after testimony of headaches being healed and pain leaving a body. Of hearts being restored and hope renewed. Of breast cancer being healed forever. I learned again and again, memorizing it and writing it on my heart, that our God is a God of detail and of care. Every single person and every single problem is so important to him. The great and the small.
Nearly 500 people were saved. Lives changed forever and ever. We celebrated and rejoiced along with the angels in Heaven as hundreds gave their lives to Christ. Tears fell and God filled and everyone was made new. Renewed, redeemed, restored. Above all else, this is why we travel to Peru.
My favorite day of the Summer was spent going to the market to buy brand new beds for a precious family. Jacky is my friend and I have known her for three years. This summer, while Chris and I were in Peru alone, we spent time together with Jacky and her family. On one occasion she invited us into her home, showing us the one bedroom and small kitchen that she and her family of nine share. She showed us their beds. They were tattered pieces of foam, similar to the egg crates we may purchase to go on top of our mattresses, folded up in the corner of her home. She told me that every night her family rolls them onto the cement floor and that is where they sleep. Jacky apologized to me then, telling me that she was sorry I had to see the conditions in which they were living. I told her that she should never be ashamed of her family or her home because God was her provider and she was already blessed and favored by Him. And so she was. God provided the money for our team to buy fold up beds for their family. We took the bus to their home, unannounced. Knocking on the door, we all yelled surprise when her mother opened it wide. We told her that we had a gift from the Lord and she began to cry. A few nights later she gave her heart to Jesus and she got saved. I will never forget that day.
Chris and I have been so blessed to be a part of the teams this Summer. Every single person was changed forever. We ate rice every day for a month, the entire city ran out of water for three days and none of us showered, we slept very few hours and worked very hard, and in the end God gave us the strength to do it all with so much joy. When we had no water, we prayed for those who live their lives without running water. When we were tired, we prayed for strength and a new touch from the Holy Spirit. When we were sick we joined hands and lifted one another up to the Healer. Every day and every moment caused us to call upon the Lord. One of my favorite things is watching the Lord transform the hearts of the team members. He calls everyone into a new level of relationship with Him and they jump in, head first, desiring more and more of who He is. It is a beautiful thing.
21 days. My prayer is that this will be a habit in our life. Serving others and giving it all for Christ. Not letting one moment or one day go by without prayer for one another. Seeking the Lord in all things, even down to the smallest detail.... like where to eat supper or where to stop for gas. Remembering that there is a purpose in every moment and every situation. Each trip is different, each lesson new. Upon returning home, all I can think about is how blessed I am to know the Lord. How thankful I am to have His love and His friendship. How glorious it is to serve Him and to live for Him. And how beautiful it is that nearly 500 people in Peru are beginning to experience the same thing, the same joy and thankfulness that comes from knowing Him.
Thank you so much for sending us. For sending the teams and the supplies. For praying for us and for praying for Peru. May God bless you and fill you with his beautiful Love.
Love,
Ellyn
The Month of July has been completely filled with adventure. God put three nurses and several medical students on the Crosspoint team. He provided medicine, medical equipment, reading glasses, and a facility to house a medical clinic in Peru. We hosted the clinic with great joy, and during three days we were able to see and treat almost 300 patients. Nearly 70 pairs of reading glasses were given out. It was all so intriguing to me and I watched the intricate and unique way the Lord moved within our team. Vered, a 70 year old Jewish woman, flew into Peru from Jerusalem to head up the medical mission. She told us about her years traveling the world, mostly to very poor areas, and providing medical care. We asked her questions about her life and she shared her traditions with us, praying in Hebrew and taking communion with us before dinner. 
Someone donated 6 water purification systems and we were able to provide 6 families with clean water for one year. In Peru, clean drinking water is an incredible gift and it is very rare. We climbed the mountains and played with the children and gave the gift of clean water and God's love. Every night we were at a conference at a different Church, preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ to those who need him more than their next breath. I cling to their desire for him, soaking it up and drinking it in. The Peruvian people are desperate for Jesus in a way that I have not experienced in many other places. It is not only a desperation to hear His word, but also a desire to see Him move in their lives in a real and tangible way. No matter what it takes. They will stay at church until midnight and cry out until something happens. Many times, they ask for healing knowing that it is their only hope. Medical treatment is not an option because there is no money for that. Most of them live day to day, buying their food with the meager amount they bring home. Yes, they wait on the Lord and he comes. He comes in the most detailed and special ways. During the medical clinic, I had the great privilege of translating in the prayer room. I saw the Lord heal the largest and the smallest of problems. I heard testimony after testimony of headaches being healed and pain leaving a body. Of hearts being restored and hope renewed. Of breast cancer being healed forever. I learned again and again, memorizing it and writing it on my heart, that our God is a God of detail and of care. Every single person and every single problem is so important to him. The great and the small. 
My favorite day of the Summer was spent going to the market to buy brand new beds for a precious family. Jacky is my friend and I have known her for three years. This summer, while Chris and I were in Peru alone, we spent time together with Jacky and her family. On one occasion she invited us into her home, showing us the one bedroom and small kitchen that she and her family of nine share. She showed us their beds. They were tattered pieces of foam, similar to the egg crates we may purchase to go on top of our mattresses, folded up in the corner of her home. She told me that every night her family rolls them onto the cement floor and that is where they sleep. Jacky apologized to me then, telling me that she was sorry I had to see the conditions in which they were living. I told her that she should never be ashamed of her family or her home because God was her provider and she was already blessed and favored by Him. And so she was. God provided the money for our team to buy fold up beds for their family. We took the bus to their home, unannounced. Knocking on the door, we all yelled surprise when her mother opened it wide. We told her that we had a gift from the Lord and she began to cry. A few nights later she gave her heart to Jesus and she got saved. I will never forget that day. 
21 days. My prayer is that this will be a habit in our life. Serving others and giving it all for Christ. Not letting one moment or one day go by without prayer for one another. Seeking the Lord in all things, even down to the smallest detail.... like where to eat supper or where to stop for gas. Remembering that there is a purpose in every moment and every situation. Each trip is different, each lesson new. Upon returning home, all I can think about is how blessed I am to know the Lord. How thankful I am to have His love and His friendship. How glorious it is to serve Him and to live for Him. And how beautiful it is that nearly 500 people in Peru are beginning to experience the same thing, the same joy and thankfulness that comes from knowing Him.