Well I am now two weeks in to life in Santiago.  It has been going great! I´m going to try and give an idea of what the last week has been like, hit a few of the high points, share some prayer requests, and describe what goes on during the week. My writing will probably be a bit scattered and stream of thought, so please excuse that.

There are different discipleship groups in El Oasis in which the students rotate through different focuses. The current service discipleship group made soup and coffee and invited us all out into the streets to serve the homeless of the city. We went last night after Donce (Devotional Dinner). There was a big group of students that walked from the house towards some areas in the city where we could serve and talk with the homeless. Many people were very thankful and receptive and talked with the students for a while.

interesting graffiti on a wall as we walked around the city

Hogar Sion
On Saturday we went with a group of students to an orphanage for boys. It was only a short bus ride away. One of the students of El Oasis organized a group to cook lunch beforehand and bring to the orphanage to feed the kids. After lunch, we played games with the kids and painted some drawings.  The kids were a ton of fun, and the El Oasis people had a great time playing with them.

Spanish classes

All of our meetings at El Oasis are totally in Spanish.   Formally, I have not taken Spanish classes since the sixth grade.  I was able to learn quite a bit over the last year, but I still have a very long way to go.  Usually I can talk to someone after our meetings if I need something cleared up.  Each day I feel like I’m understanding more and more, and able to say more and more.  My prayer is that God will continue to help me learn rapidly.   I have started Spanish classes that I go to 3 days a week.

During our Tertulia, our Bible study, we have one segment which is our prayer focus for the week. The first week I was here, our prayer focus was for a group 33 Chilean miners trapped deep inside a mine.  I believe 17 days went by without a single sign of life or any way of contacting the miners.  Then Sunday, as my friend Pancho and I were eating lunch after church, we heard over the radio that all 33 miners were alive!  It could be up to 4 months before they will be able to get all of the miners out, but they have made contact.  Part of our next prayer focus was a huge praise for the miners being found alive.  I hope to write more on this incredible story soon.

I am most excited about getting to know the students.  I have made friends already with some new guys that started coming to the events a few weeks ago, and hope to build on those friendships.  We are preparing for Tertulia tonight, and then tomorrow we are having a mini-retreat.  We will be going to a church nearby for an all night event called Pasar de Largo.  We are going to stay up the entire night.  The three interns are going to give there testimonies throughout the night.

Prayers:

• Retreat this weekend.  For the interns as they prepare to give their testimonies and that it will have a big impact on the students.
• 33 Miners.  Continued safety for the miners and that they will be rescued soon. Praise that they are alive.
• That I can improve on my Spanish daily and be able to communicate clearly