I asked my friend Andrea if she would tell me the story of the first man and the first woman.  (To read the story, click here.)  The tale involves a man who had a dog that could shape-shift into a woman.  The man stayed with the woman-version of the dog, and from the two of them came all the people of the world.

Andrea and Katie making tortillas in Andrea's kitchen

In summing up the story, Andrea said, “And that’s why women aren’t as clean as men.  Because we have one rib from a man, and one rib from a dog.”  The women here don’t think much of themselves, mainly due to messages such as this one that have been drilled into their heads.  They don’t believe that they are good enough to talk to God; only the men (or maybe a really, really wise woman) would attempt that.  Bottom line, they are no better than a dog.

We are not the first to expose the Nahuatl to ideas from the Bible.

The cross above the village that "scares off" devils

They throw around words like “baptism” and “blessings” in a story of the devil eating a young girl on her way to a party.  They have mixed in the beautiful image of God forming Eve with one of Adam’s ribs into a story that makes women universally unclean.  They know about the man in a big boat after the world was covered in water, and yet they fear rainbows.  They know Jesus as one of the saints you can manipulate with gifts of corn and peaches.  The Spaniards began “converting” the Nahuatl as long ago as the 1500s.  A priest still comes and blesses the surrounding mountains and valleys so that the devil will “pull back a bit.”  The Nahuatl do not lack exposure to ideas from the Bible.  What they lack is understanding of message of the Bible.

Every comment I have ever made to Andrea about truth from the Word has been met by the affirmative.  She nods her head and says, “Yes, that’s true.”  She asks if I’m afraid of the dark and I say that God will never leave those who know him and so even when I feel alone I know He’s with me.  “Yes, yes,” she says.  “That’s so true.”  I know that if I told her tomorrow that Jesus was the only way to have right relationships with God she would agree with me.  If I said, “Andrea, Jesus died for your sins and if you believe in him you will be TRULY clean,” she would say I was right.  Does that mean we’re on the same page?  Of course not.  She would still feel alone—still be scared of the dark—still consider herself unclean.

Katie and I with Nahuatl sisters

We want the people here to know the truth.  We want their understanding to be apart from, not mixed in with their current worldview.  And because we feel that the burden of being clear is on the teacher, our team has resolved to learn to speak the language fluently, while we build relationships that give us the chance to be heard.  We know that the job before us will take time and we thank you for your faithfulness to those on our team and to the Nahuatl as we labor.

After about 2.5 weeks of well-drilling and reaching 90 feet, the drilling apparatus broke INSIDE the well.  The tube that connects the drill bit to the drill rig snapped about 25 feet down.  Because of the way it broke, there was no way to get the 65 feet of metal tube and the drill bit out with the tools the drilling team had.

The broken tube is visible on the right side of the well shaft.

So, making sure they had tried everything they could, the drill team packed up their equipment and headed home to do maintenance on the drill rig, talk over a plan of action with their boss, and find equipment to extract the broken tubing and drill bit still in the hole.

As of right now, we’ve not heard back from the drilling team as to future plans, but when they left, they assured us they would be back to finish the job!

The well-drillers left the village to do repairs on the rig and to return with better equipment.

Obviously, this is not how WE had planned this.  We had in our minds the plan that we thought would best glorify God and help us.   However, from knowing God, we know that this is NOT beyond His control.  We know Him as the Creator of the World, the rocks, the water, etc.  He is the Provider of everything we need, and the Lover of our Souls.  His plan for us and for this community of Nahuatl is infinitely greater than anything WE could dream of, and so we rest and trust Him to work His plan in this situation.

Thanks for praying with us for the Nahuatl, for their salvation, and for water.  Please keep praying!  The needs have not changed!

Today the well project grew in intensity.  Now it is no longer something that will be a “great blessing” or “filling a great need” in the community.  It is a spiritual battleground.

One of the men of the village recently stopped by to “help” us.  We’ve been battling through hard rock now for many days, not passing through it yet, and not finding water.  There’s been little things that have broken, a hose connection, a stripped bolt – small but vital.

Checking a bolt that is stripped and getting ready to "fix" it with duct tape

Our friend stopped by to help us.  He said, “You know, you’re struggling through the rock, your things are breaking, and your not finding water because you haven’t given an offering to [the territorial spirit that lives on the hill in the middle of the village and rules the community].  If you left a few pesos there, everything will go more quickly, no one will be hurt, the equipment will not break down, and you would find water!”

Another person told us, “It’s not going well for you because you don’t believe like we do!”

Today is also the first of 3 consecutive holy days that the people here “keep” by not working among other things.  We are obviously, and loudly, from the noise of the drilling machine, not “keeping” the days, going against their customs.

The drilling continues

From the people’s perspective, drilling a well is more than just a drilling machine grinding through rock.  It is about the spiritual world, and success is dependent on your allegiance to those powers. The community is watching but expecting failure.

The people are a little shy, but are excited to see the well process is we accompany them.

Our allegiance is not to some territorial spirit or a plastic idol paraded around town during these “holy days”.  Our allegiance is to the CREATOR of ALL the earth, the rocks, the ground, the water, and the spirits.  He is the ALMIGHTY GOD, the ONE TRUE GOD.

We are praying that He would glorify Himself and magnify Himself here in our small village.  We are praying that the well rig will burst through the rock and that there would be LOTS of water.  We are praying that God would show Himself POWERFUL, and that ALL the people here would see and know that our God is greater than their gods.

Will you pray with us?

The Nahuatl have a story about how the world ended.  In their version there was just water everywhere.  All the people had died and all the trees were gone.  There was just one man and his little dog in a canoe.  All the people in the world come from that man and his dog.

As I checked through the accuracy of my transcription of this story with my language helper, Leyo, she wondered aloud if it was really true.  I grabbed my Spanish Bible and showed her the story of the flood.  “These are God’s Words.  They are true words from Him to all people.  He tells what really happened when water covered the whole earth, but his story is a little different than your story.”

I told her that when I speak the language better, I want to write God’s Word so that all the Nahuatl can know God.  Leyo interrupted me, “We, none of us, know about God.  No one knows God.  You guys will teach us so that we will know?”

I assured her that I was going to do just that when I was able and she commented, “You don’t speak very well right now, do you?”

I agreed with her, but said that one day I would be able to teach her the Truth.

“That’s why you’re here,” she said.  “That’s good.” 

Leyo with her 3 youngest boys & her granddaughter. She washes my clothes every week and helps me learn Nahuat.l

Although I would love to be telling them of the hope we have in Christ, even Leyo knows that we don’t speak well enough yet.  Would you pray for Pete & Liesl, Katie, and me as we continue to study the Nahuatl culture and language?

Please pray for:

-Diligence in study, daily motivation, & energy

-Profitable study times with our language helpers

-Understanding of how the Nahuatl language works

-Ability to understand and speak accurately

Learn more about getting missionary training like Rachel received

7:00 am – I woke up, got out of bed & got myself ready for the day.  I slept in this morning.  It was so nice to have the extra hour of sleep.  I feel refreshed and ready for the day.

7:15 – As I was putting in my contacts at the bathroom sink, I remember a plumbing problem we’ve been having with the bathroom drains.  So, I grab some tools and fix it.

7:40 – I had dishes from the night before.  So, while I washed dishes, Katie made breakfast.  We decide to head out the door to visit some Nahuatl friends about 9am.

8:00 – We sit down for breakfast – an egg, toast with sugar-free guava jam that Katie made, and chai tea.  Yum!

8:15 – Jasmine arrives and asks for diapers for her neighbor’s newborn.  We are surprised at the birth of the new baby.  We knew the mother was pregnant, but suspected her due date around April because of her size.  We sell our visitor a few cloth diapers for her neighbor and offer her coffee because it’s cold.

9:15 – Francine arrives, a 13 year old who has a few days off school because the teacher is at a teachers’ workshop.  She’s bored and wants me to make bread for her.  I tell her I really don’t have time to make bread.

9:23 – Jasmine leaves.  The solar panels have charged the batteries enough for us to turn on the inverter to use the internet.  Katie checks her email.

9:40 – Katie comes outside to visit with Francine so I can check email quick and get ready to go visiting. Francine wants to buy clothes, but she doesn’t have any money on her.  But, she wants to see all that we have to sell so if she wants anything she can come back with the money later and buy it.  We have some second-hand clothing and blankets that we make available to the people for very cheap.

Heading out to visit the family in these houses and their neighbors

9:58 – We’re finally on our way out the door to visit.  We stop off at Katie’s language helpers’ house on an errand.  Then, we head next door to see the mom with the new baby, taking a present of crunchy tostada shells for the mother and a baby bundle, a gift we give to all newborn babies. (a fleece blanket, cloth diapers, a change of clothes, socks and a hat)  Many times, women have NOTHING for the baby when it is born.

A mom and her 2 day old baby

11:30 – We finish visiting and start to head home, stopping by the store to buy a few things we need – powder milk for coffee and some ramen noodles.

Our town store - if you want a Coke or chips, they always have it. If you want tortilla flour, wheat flour, or beans, you might be out of luck.

11:35 – The store is closed.  Owners aren’t home.  They’re probably working in their fields as it’s nearing harvest time. I’ll have to go back later in the afternoon.

11:45 – We get home.  I check email again and load new recordings on my MP3 player to listen to while I make lunch.

12:00 – I start getting lunch ready, listening to Nahuatl recordings at the same time to continue studying language while I work in the kitchen.  Sweet Potato & Carrot Curry with Canned Chicken!

12:35 – My Tuesday afternoon language helper arrives early.  Lunch is not ready.  I ask Katie if she’s okay eating whatever she can find.  I’ll finish the lunch later for supper.

12:40-1:30 – Leyo helps me with language questions that I’ve accumulated in the last few days, and we talk about culture – personal property and community property

1:30-2:00 – Leyo hangs around for some visiting.  We talk about what’s happening in the village and when I’m traveling to town next….

Leyo and her youngest sons and her granddaughter. The boys can be super goofy when they're all together!

2:00 – Leyo leaves, so I finish making lunch which will be supper.  I made extra so we can eat it several times this week, storing it in our solar powered refrigerator.  I cleaned up the kitchen, washed dishes & listened to some praise music instead of Nahuatl recordings because I was TIRED.

3:30 – I’m re-energized and ready to study.  I sit at my desk and transcribe two texts that I recorded a little bit ago about what is a good person and what is a bad person in the Nahuatl’s perspective.

4:15 – I finished transcribing, so I check my time sheet that I fill out every day.  What do I need to focus on with my time that’s left for today?  I have 6 hours on my time sheet already with 2 hours left to my goal.  I need to work on analyzing grammar and writing up what we’ve found in grammar.  And, I need to process more recordings so that I can listen to the speech patterns & write down the cultural information to pass to my teammates.  I’ll see what I can get done yet…

4:17 – I went to Katie’s office to ask her a question and ended up listening to the Nahuatl story she’s working on…. A bear grabs a girl while she’s out pasturing the cows and drags her to the edge of the cliff.  But, then he grabs her little pocket mirror to admire himself.  As he’s looking at himself, she kicks him in the back and he rolls over the cliff.  Nice story!  We end up exchanging language info, talking about new words we’re learning.

4:40 – I grab a blanket to wrap up with on the couch as it’s getting chilly now.  I’ll work on grammar for a little bit.

Trying to figure out the complexities of the Nahuatl grammar

5:00 – Katie´s laundry lady returns from washing her clothes.  Katie invites her in to warm up with a coffee.  I greet her and add to the conversation here and there in Nahuatl as I type out Nahuatl grammar rules in English on my computer.

5:15 – Other visitors arrive; I quickly save my work and put away my computer so I can help Katie host people in our house.  Since it is chilly, I offer the new arrivals coffee.  I heat water for them, make coffee, and visit with them until the coffee is drunk.

5:50 – All the visitors leave.  I sit down again to get a little more grammar work done.

6:30 – Our co-workers, Pete & Liesl, arrive for some prayer time together.  I heat up supper for Katie and I and we eat while we catch up.  How is Milo understanding the Bible teaching?   Have you heard anything new about when the well drillers are coming?  Did you know there’s a new baby in town?  Then, we pray.

8:00 – Prayer time over; Pete & Liesl head back to their house.

8:15 – Katie and I watch a show on our little 9in portable DVD player.

9:00 – I’m reading through the Bible, and right now I’m in Jeremiah, reading his prophecies to Judah after the first Babylonian invasion.

Blessed are those who trust in the Lord, and have made the their hope and confidence.
They are like trees planted along a riverbank, with roots that reach deep into the water.
Such trees are not bothered by the heat or worried by long months of drought.
Their leaves stay green, and they never stop producing fruit. Jeremiah 17.7-8

9:40 I turn the lights out and hope to sleep soundly, because there’s no sleeping in tomorrow!  I’ll be up before 6 to go running with Liesl.  And, I’ll do a day like this all over again!

I recently read “We can make our plans, but the Lord determines our steps”  as I was reading through Proverbs on my way through the Bible.  I think God is especially teaching us that He is in control and that His timing and His plans are best.  I’ve written several times about our well project – about how excited we were when God provided over $20,000 in the space of a few months.  We figured clean water was right around the corner.

Then, after plans with two drillers fell through, we realized that God’s timing and His plan was not ours.  We ran out of time in the spring of 2012 to drill before rainy season.  We got in touch with another driller and looked forward to winter of 2012 when they committed to drill our well.  The final date was set for January.

At the last minute, January re-scheduled to February.  Now, the February date has been cancelled, and we haven’t gotten word yet about March.

In faith, Pete Hypki and Ben finish the water storage holes necessary for the drilling process.

Please pray with us for God’s timing.  We’re completely and totally dependent on God, for the right drillers at the right time and for there to be water within drilling depth in our area.  Please pray for us, also, for peace and patience as we wait, that we might model godly testimonies before the Nahuatl who watch our every move.

A visit from Trinity Bible Church

We just enjoyed a week-long visit from four guys from Trinity Bible Church.  They were a huge blessing to us, helping out with some random projects around the house we haven’t had time or the know-how to do.

They put in metal gates, restrung our fence, installed doors, met many of our Nahuatl friends, learned a few survival phrases, played a few intense Scrabble games, and goofed around.

Posing next to their handiwork on their way to bathe in the creek

Thanks, TBC, for sending people down to bless us!

We’re on our way to becoming Nahuatl.  In some ways, we’ll never become.  Our skin is much lighter.  We have more resources.  We have a broader life perspective.

However, as much as we can, we want to become like them.  We want to be able to speak Nahuatl fluently.  We want to be able to understand their culture so that we know what and how they think.  That way, when we teach the Bible, we will know what they are thinking when we say, “God” or “spirit” or “rain.”

In light of that, we are diligently studying the Nahuatl language.  We are about one-third to half-way to fluency.

Our church-planting consultant visits every few months and tests us on our Nahuatl progress. He gives us homework and helps guide our study so we can achieve fluency faster.

We take part in community activities as much as we can.

School graduation is a BIG thing. Everybody dresses in their finest and the kindergarten graduates and elementary graduates are honored with a special meal

We learn from the people about their lives.

My friend taught me all about the local edible plants. We picked mushrooms and she taught me how to prepare them! Yummy!

We spend time just hanging out at their houses or working alongside them.

Hanging out at a friend's house with her 3 kids

We travel to meet other Nahuatl in the surrounding areas.

Crossing the river at the bottom of the canyon to meet the Nahuatl who live there

As we are investing ourselves in their lives, they are letting us “in” more and more.  We recently witnessed their harvest dance to in which they feed their dead ancestors in payment for watering their corn fields during the summer.

All-night dance for the ancestors in payment for the rains

Please pray for us as we are becoming Nahuatl.  Pray that we would learn the language here well.  Please pray for understanding of the Nahuatl culture and worldview.  Please pray for us that even before we can communicate God’s Truth, we would be communicating His Love for all people.