After our time at Camp La Joya finished up we returned to the white city of Arequipa, Peru. My three Paraguayan friends had seen the ocean in Lima and witnessed first-hand that a camp started by foreign missionaries can successfully be handed off to nationals. Not only was this an incredible vision trip for the four of us but it was a major milestone for me (Dan) as it was like coming full circle from my first ever missions trip to the same country. At the time, I was a mono-cultural 21 year-old without a ministry, family or wife; unsure of what God had next for me. Fast-forward to my now 41 year-old self sitting on a tour bus humbly contemplating all the Lord had accomplished in my life over the past 20 years: I now had a wife, six wonderful children and was speaking Spanish and Guarani with my three Paraguayan camp leaders on this vision trip. It had been an incredible trip that was going to end on a high note as we wound up into the Andes Mountains switchbacking our way toward the world's deepest valley: Colca Canyon.
I sat next to Higinio on the bus. We had been riding since 3:30 am and he slept with his cap pulled over his eyes. As I looked past him out the window I saw patches of white speeding by. It was something I hadn't seen in four years and something Higinio had never seen: snow! I nudged him awake and motioned out the window as I poured hot mate. We silently drank watching the local mountain farms with llamas and alpacas stiffly standing in the snow. They were much more comfortable in the cold than my tropical-climate friends would be. The bus pulled to a stop at a look-out along the Patapampa plain with a view of the active Sabancaya volcano. At 16,000 feet it was the highest point along our route and outside there was snow up to our ankles. I bounded off the bus with my Paraguayan friends reluctantly following behind. I packed a snowball and threw it at Carlitos and Pedro- just missing their heads. I turned to find Higinio but he was nowhere in sight. Then I spotted him still by the bus standing like a post in the snow. I waved at him to come join us but he remained motionless except for a barely-noticeable but vigorous shaking of his head. He was frozen in his steps... literally!
Once back on the bus Higinio thawed next to me while I looked out the window. Far below us I saw the town of Chivay in a green valley where we would be having breakfast. As we descended, the snow ended in a horizontal line that wrapped around all the mountain peaks at the same elevation. It was warm again when we exited the bus. We enjoyed a Peruvian breakfast and I was reminded how much I loved the freshly baked bread in this country. We also stopped in Maca where brightly dressed locals were surrounded by equally colorful flora and fauna: beautiful!
After Chivay and Maca we were nearing our destination. We stopped at a vantage point from which we could see the mouth of the Colca Canyon. Past too many rice fields to count we could see where the Colca river cut into the mountainside. At its deepest point the waters rush 3,270 meters (10,730 ft) below the snow-capped peaks of the Andes mountains.
Colca Canyon is not only known for being one of the deepest valleys but also for being home to one of the largest birds in the world: the Andean Condor with a wingspan of (I'm not exaggerating) up to 3.3 meters. That's over 10 feet across! Not every visitor gets to see the Andean Condor when visiting Colca but while I was putting the zoom lens on my camera the bus careened to the curb. Our guide excitedly announced that there were several young condors just outside the bus. We unloaded and I immediately started shooting the giant birds which were flying right over our heads!
Once back on the bus our guide explained that you could tell those were younger birds because their plumage was still brown and they didn't have the tell-tale white collar and crest atop their heads. As we neared the deepest part of the valley I hoped we might get to see a fully grown condor. We got off the bus the and approached the rim of the canyon. Far above our heads mountains loomed and far below the Colca river roared (though it was too far down to hear). At two miles deep it was really too much for our brains to calculate. There was no sky- just mountain- above us and below us and at the bottom a thin line marked where the river cut along the canyon floor.
We looked above us for what we hoped to see- a fully grown Andean Condor but didn't spot any. Then we looked down and saw a large bird with a crest and white collar! There was so much open air below us the condors were actually soaring beneath our feet!
As the day went on we saw many more of the massive birds.
All too soon the time had come to get back on our tour bus. During the return trip we stopped at some hot springs. We drank terere while soaking in the steaming waters. If this was a once in a lifetime experience for me I couldn't imagine how my Paraguayan friends were feeling like Higinio who, before this trip began, had never flown or even ridden on an escalator.
Another thing we got to see a lot of were alpaca, llamas and even the much harder to find Guanaco! I couldn't tell the difference between alpacas and llamas which is funny because the way to say 'What's it called?' in Spanish is, 'Como se llama?' Get it? Ok, maybe I shouldn't attempt bilingual jokes on this blog.
Finally, after a very full day we found ourselves back at the local mission guesthouse in Arequipa. The next morning we packed our bags and began the trip back to Paraguay. My friends and I did several devotionals around the life of Abraham and discussed how God might want us to respond to all that we had seen on this vision trip. When Abraham responded in faith amazing things happened that are still shaping the world today. However when he responded without faith, in his own wisdom or allowing fear to control him, the results were tragic for him and all who would inherit his legacy. My Paraguayan friends expressed their fears about developing a camp that was one of the first of its kind in their country. They wondered how God could use them but hoped that when the time came they would move forward in faith.
Once back in Paraguay Higinio, Carlitos and Pedro did respond in faith. If you'd like to hear the story of our camp and see the results of this vision trip watch our new camp video! But for me the trip back to Peru was much more than an adventure, developing a camp in Paraguay, or even investing in my disciples. For me it was an ebenezer- a milestone in my life marking how far God had taken me. I am humbled to say when I went on my first short-term missions trip in 1999 I never could have dreamed of all that God would do in my life over the next twenty years. Coming full circle reminded me of that: that God is the faithful one doing things immeasurably greater than me.
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