Dear Friends,
Phileena and I want to thank you for all that you've done for us this past month.
As some of you already know, while I was at Belhaven College in Jackson , Mississippi , our home was broken into and robbed. Thankfully, Phileena wasn't there at the time and so she's safe and unharmed. But of course, it was extremely difficult for us to be apart during that time.
It's a little frightening when something like this happens. We're glad for God's grace that pries our fingers off of the things that we can't hold on to. Things like this will happen, and in fact, will keep happening (especially to many of us in WMF who chose to live among the poor), I'm just glad that Phileena's okay.
We were humbled and blessed by the number of calls and e-mails we received from many of you the days following this event. Thank you for continuing to keep us in your prayers as we try to put the pieces back together.
Though that was traumatic to say the least, we have had a great start to 2005.
From the tsunami affected villages and beaches of India and Sri Lanka, to the seedy brothels of Bolivia, to the violent streets of Rio, January was one of the most interesting months I can remember.
Two weeks after Asia 's tsunami, Christian Gray (WMF US Field Director) and I traveled to Chennai and Colombo to assess in what ways WMF could respond. Hearing the stories of loss and the immensity of the disaster, we were overwhelmed by the tragedy.
Thirty hours after returning from Asia , Phileena and I boarded a plane headed to South America . Andy and Andrea Baker have spent the last 4 years pouring their lives out for the women of El Alto , Bolivia . El Alto is a sprawling shantytown on the fringe of La Paz .
The Bakers started by visiting the brothels late at night, introducing themselves, and getting to know the women who worked there. A few years later, they opened a community center for the women. The Casa de Esperanza is now a safe place in the center of El Alto where the commercial sex workers can come for a hot meal, childcare, counseling, and job-placement alternatives as other means of employment.
Late one night while we were there, we went out with Heather Coaster (WMF Bolivia Field Staff) and Andrea to visit the brothels. From room to room, brothel to brothel, we entered the dark and dirty places of torment these women work in. Heather and Andrea's presence was a welcome distraction from the normalcy of these women's painful lives. Andrea's radiance, compassion, and love for the women and their families were obvious. It was as if we were actually following Christ into the darkest corners of Bolivia . It was as if we were watching Jesus touch and love these women like the children He knows them to be-His daughters and beloved princesses.
From the dark nights of Bolivia to the sunny streets of Brazil , we moved on to Rio where a WMF community of four is making solid, yet difficult decisions to impact their neighborhoods.
All four of the WMF staff in Rio have moved into favelas. Favelas are an alternative to a slum, but not much different. Rather than thatched-roofed huts, the favelas are brick squatter communities that scale the hills around Rio de Janeiro . They are the hotbed for Rio 's lucrative drug activity, and often marked by gangland wars and street battles.
The second night in Rio , we went out to one of the samba schools that puts on a parade for Carnaval. On the way, we jumped into one of those white VW vans (informal public transportation), passed a police checkpoint and were pulled over.
The six of us gringos were the only ones in the van. The police asked where we were coming from and Ben (WMF Rio Servant Team Coordinator) told him. The cops looked at us as if we were crazy. They asked where we lived and Ben and Rich told them the names of their favelas… we were quickly pulled out of the van, Rich was soundly frisked, and one of the cops asked me if I had drugs.
It was kinda funny. It was like, “Hey, check out these gringos. Hey gringos, where are you from? What? No way! You can't possibly live there. You must be high, get out of the van!”
That same night, on our way home, we got off the bus and we were trying to figure out what to do about the following day, when I looked down Rich and Rebecca's (WMF Rio Field Directors) street and saw a young man running at us with an M-16 assault riffle. People were running in every direction and I noticed I was the only one in our group who had seen him so I said, “Hey, does that dude really have a gun?”
Suddenly the Nichols, Jenna (WMF Field Staff), and Ben backed against the wall and tried getting out the way. The man crossed the street in front of us and aimed his gun at a car that almost hit him. He then took off and ran down Ben's street.
Later that same week we went out with Jenna, Ben, and the Nichols to the place where they meet the street kids. We sat on the pavement with a bunch of runaways and homeless young people who were high on paint thinner. As I looked around I was surprised at how many of them were girls, and especially how many of them were young mothers.
Precious 1-3 year old were learning to take their first steps on pavement. The emaciated bodies of 15-17 year old girls dying before my eyes with AIDS was almost too much to bear.
I remembered Dr. Mullens (one of our US Board Members) who on his Discovery Team to Rio several years ago, slept on the streets as an act of intercession for the poor of the city and was reminded that God is at work because of the prayers of the saints.
Today, as I reflect on January 2005, I'm encouraged about what WMF is doing in the world.
As a community, we are picking up the pieces and restoring hope to the hopeless in south Asia , bringing healing and love to the women used up and discarded in Bolivia , and bringing peace to the violent streets of Rio .
WMF is truly the prophetic presence of the God in the world today.
February hasn't slowed down much for us. Since our return from South America , I've spoken at Grace University ( Omaha ), Liberty Elementary School ( Omaha ), Belhaven College ( Jackson , MS ), St. John's Catholic Church ( Omaha ), Creighton University ( Omaha ), Wesley Chapel ( New Albany , IN ), and Asbury Theological Seminary ( Wilmore , KY ).
It's been a privilege to share what God is doing in the world and my prayer is that these opportunities plant seeds for God's compassion for the world to transform the Church here in the West so that the world can feel the impact of this transformation.
From March 7-29, Phileena and I will finally slow down and take a few weeks vacation. We would appreciate your prayers as we're gone, that our time would be an investment in our marriage and that God would be in control of that time.
As I close, I'd encourage you to open the Scriptures to Isaiah 65:17-25 and read that passage as a prayer for the WMF community in the world.
Again, we are humbled by your love for us. Thank you for believing in us and giving us the chance to serve Jesus among the poor.
Peace,
Chris Heuertz