Invisible Touch

The original title for today's post was going to be "Another Day in Paradise" - a wonderful song from Phil Collins, but his Genesis days won out.

Dave and I are team leaders for different teams, so we see different parts of the city. We work with one church in one barrio on Monday & Tuesday and on Wednesday & Thursday we go to another barrio with another host church. Wednesdays are the 3 day in the field, but really, they are Monday all over again. We have to remind ourselves that we're going to be with a church that has been waiting for us since Sunday, when we met both church teams. They have continued to pray and prepare for our arrivals.

The first barrio I visited was described as being full of drug addicts, prostitutes and hitmen. It was, but it wasn't as apparent as you would think. This area looked like most areas within the city. There wasn't anything blatant about the activities that take place here.

The neighborhood today was not very far from the first neighborhood, but it was much different. Drugs were evident, homelessness was more prevalent and the oppressive feeling was much stronger. These places are my favorite to visit. There's something that God has put on my heart that just yearns for these areas. The people are authentic, they are needing hope and love, they are forgotten amongst the crime and despair.

We were warned by our church leaders and the police that this area was much more dangerous. Gang activity is high and the conditions are far worse. You could tell from the attentiveness of the police that we were more in harm's way. Andreas and Christian are the 2 officers that have been assigned to us. They both committed their lives to Christ on Monday, and immediately their concern for us changed. They had bonded with us.

The first person that I met in the field with my translator and church member was a homeless man. He was addicted to marijuana, peyote and cocaine. This morning he was sober, and was very attentive in hearing the Gospel. After we talked, He committed his life to Jesus. I explained that the Bible says he is a new creation, born again into a new life as a new person. I then asked if he needed further prayer for change in his life. That's when I was told of his addictions. We prayed that the bonds of addiction would be loosed and he would be delivered from the hold of Satan on his life.

All I can say is that the Holy Spirit prompted me to ask him if he had any drugs with him. He said he did and produced a rolled joint in a pouch. Andreas, the police officer, was standing a few feet behind me. I asked him to join us and then asked the man to give his drugs over to the police. Andreas agreed to throw them away and he did shortly after. The man then proclaimed that he as freed from the addiction and would stay faithful to his new life. That was an invisible touch. God moved this man to a place where he can start new and become a clean & sober brother. The road he has before him will be difficult, but with prayer and faith he will make it.

As the day progressed, we found out that we were on the most dangerous street in all of Cali. There are 2 rival gangs that live here and there is a point in the road where the territory changes from one gang to another. We weren't allowed to cross over that line, because our presence in one gang's territory would be seen as an association with that gang. It just wasn't safe for us to continue on that road. Our police watch out for us!

Dave was taken up to the top of a mountain to visit a smaller community. While he said the views were incredible from the summit, the poverty of this area was always in the forefront. Again the invisible touch was everywhere. His team impacted this community, including a team of workers that were raising electrical lines. Not a planned visit, but God moves our groups into places we never expect.




I'm sorry I don't have more time and space to tell all the stories of the day. They are far too many to do so, but I can tell you that the Invisible Touch of the Invisible Hand is everywhere. His hands guide our steps and his angels protect us. That provides the opportunity to share the Good News with all that will listen.

Some quick numbers from my team, and please note that these are based on known numbers, but they are far from the totals because so much happens outside of what we record: 390 presentations of the Gospel. 300 new Christians in 2 barrios. We have seen many more professions of faith, from other police officers, van drivers, hotel clerks, random people on the street and at the restaurant areas. And this is only what is happening in one group of 4 "Gringos" in 3 days.

The harvest is plentiful and the workers are few. Another example of Scripture being lived out in today's world.

Please continue the prayers for our last official day in the field. There is much more soil to work, seeds to plant and harvests to gather.