Panama

I say unto you, lift up your eyes, and look on the fields A pastor in New York prophesied that 2013 would be a year of divine appointments and connections. This past trip to El Salvador and a 23 hour layover in Panama, for me, has proven this prophesy to be true.
dream conception

In January of 2006, I was in Nicaragua on a short term missions trip with my home church Lambs Christian Center. From there I had to make my way back to Bolivia, so I took a bus to Costa Rica and then to Panama. I spent four days in Panama City before flying back to Bolivia. Im not sure what it was about that city, but I knew I would go back some day. Seven years later, January of 2013, when choosing a flight to El Salvador I had a couple options, but in order to meet my brother and Travis in the airport and leave around the same time, one option was better than the others. The only catch was that this flight included a 23 hour layover in Panama City. I really didnt like the idea but after praying about it, I felt peace in choosing this route. A week or two later I couldnt sleep one night and as I lay in my bed thoughts about those 23 hours in Panama started to provoke curiosity. So I got up and started searching for things to do during my stay. I ended up reserving a bed at a hostel in Old Panama.
im just a tourist

After 9 days of ministering in El Salvador, I was expecting to relax and maybe try being a tourist while in Panama. I took a taxi to the hostel. Wow! Ive stayed in hostels before but this one topped them all on the freaky chart. The decorations and paintings on the wall communicated weirdness. I was actually asking myself if I really wanted to stay here, then a thought came to mind, Im going to minister to somebody here. Ok, but until that happens, how do I get to the nearest tourist spot?

Ceiling in the reception area

After checking in, I took a taxi to Mi Pueblito hoping to muse myself a little. Frustrated, I didnt stay long because practically everything was closed. So I thought I would take advantage of the daylight and walk back to the hostel. I hadnt walked an entire block when suddenly I was surrounded by four or five dogs barking at me. This is common in Bolivia so I just kept walking; until I felt the teeth of one dog brush my left hand. Thank God, some kids playing outside came to my rescue, shouting and throwing a flat soccer ball at the dogs. I thanked them and told them, God bless you. Amen! they responded. I stopped and asked, Do you know Jesus Christ? Yes one of them responded. How did you meet Him? I saw Him this little boy replied. How did you see Him? In a dream.

There were probably ten kids hanging around this spot, ages 2 to 11, some poorly dressed and others just barely. Across the street I saw their mothers, sitting with their babies in what seemed to be like a crawl space of a building, their home. I saw an opportunity and jumped on it, I started talking to them about Jesus Christ. I then asked them if they wanted me to pray for them. So most of them stuck around and I prayed and prophesied over about seven of them. Feeling I had nothing left to do for them, I walked back to the avenue to get a cab back to the hostel. From there I thought I would take a walk to see the beautiful colonial buildings, houses and squares of Old Panama. By then the sun had set, and being so full of touristy bars and fancy restaurants, I didnt see any danger. However I turned a corner and a tall, young, Afro-Panamanian man came up beside me and told me he had everything: cocaine, marijuana, etc. I told him I had something better, God. I asked to pray a blessing over him. He accepted. He seemed impacted by the prayer and I asked him if he needed prayer for anything specific. Healing maybe? He said yeah, that he needed healing but didnt know what for. He led me to a step to sit on and as we sat down I received a word of knowledge. I think God is telling me you lack a father in your life. He nodded and asked What else is God telling you? I continued to talk to him about the love of his heavenly Father and his identity as a son of God and how He wants to heal the wounds in his heart. When I was done, I asked him if he wanted me to pray again for God to invade his life and make some major changes. He agreed. After the prayer he bought me a bag of pickled chicken feet from a friend. I ended up giving my chicken feet to a young lady working the streets, she gladly accepted it. I continued my sightseeing adventure to a square where I met another group of kids. I got into a conversation with them, learned their names, and talked to them about Jesus. I was wondering what these kids were doing in the streets at this time of night. Then one of them pointed to the street corner and said that the lady over there was her mom who was working. Oh, I see. After hanging out for a while, they decided to go home, or somewhere else, and so I thought I would head back to the hostel. Yet there was one more interruption awaiting me. I looked up at a small balcony and caught eyes with another Afro-Panamanian. He told me that whatever I wanted, he had it. I dont think I ever said anything, but before I knew it he was on his way down to make a deal. It ended up being a pretty good deal. I told him I didnt want any drugs but I did want to bless him. He let me pray for him and then we continued talking some more. He really didnt like having to deal drugs but it was the only way to sustain his family. I told him I wanted to pray again that God would put angels around him to protect him. He agreed that he needed that protection and let me pray for him one last time.

divine appointments

Walking to the hostel I was thinking about how cool it would be to come back to Panama with a team, hit the streets, squares, malls and declare that the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand; but we would need a local church to send the thirsty souls to. Now back at the hostel, I laid down in a hammock to catch the breeze coming from the balcony. Silently praising the Lord to myself, I hear an American voice singing, Set a fire down in my soul that I cant contain, that I cant control. I jumped out of the hammock and saw this blond surfer looking kid sitting on the couch playing a miniature guitar. To his surprise I knew the song. We spent the next few hours talking about God, missions and getting to know each other. Zack and his friend James were on a four month backpack missions trip which started in Nicaragua and will end in Argentina. Zack told me several amazing stories from their month and a half of traveling and ministering so far. At some point in the conversation he asked me what plans I had for the morning. He and his friend had met some Panamanian pastors earlier that day and asked me if I wanted to go to their church in the morning. Sure, lets do it. The small congregation met in a conference room of a hotel. The pastors were very excited to see the two Americans they met Saturday morning; they were also glad I spoke Spanish and could interpret. After a few minutes of chatting and explaining how I met Zack and James, the meeting began. This eight month old church made use of the few resources they had, one microphone and a laptop for praise and worship. I interpreted the meeting for my Californian surfer friends. The sermon had a lively Afro, Central American, Pentecostal flavor. Pastor Pablo highlighted some interesting points about Jesus and the woman at the well (Didnt my brother just drill a well in El Salvador and living water the theme of the trip?). During announcements we were informed of an evangelistic event they will be hosting in April with about 25 brothers coming from Venezuela. As the pastor spoke I said to the Lord, Im so tired of traveling and I miss my family, I hope they dont invite me to this event. We had some refreshments after service and I got to talk with the people and the pastors. Pastor Oriel told me about a sermon he gave at the beginning of the year about divine appointments in the Bible. I told him I would like to hear that. Later in the conversation my fear became reality. They invited me to come to the conference theyll hold on April 5th and 6th. I told them Id talk to my wife about it and pray. If God wants me there, Ill go. The pastors offered to take me to the airport, which saved me about $20. We also dropped Zack and James off at the fish market so they could continue to look for a boat ride to Colombia. Eventually they did find one and the last I heard from them, they were in Ecuador. On the flight back to Bolivia, I was so tired from traveling yet overwhelmed with excitement for all that God did in Panama and El Salvador. Yet there was an important question on my mind, God do you really want me to go to this conference?
wet fleece dry fleece

Ive now been in the process of seeking Gods will on this issue. I finally made it back home in Cochabamba Monday evening. Tuesday morning I spent some time with God and I told Him that I would give Him until next Monday to confirm that it was His will for me to go on this trip and that I wouldnt talk to anyone about Panama until then. I wanted to see and hear Panama everywhere. That very night my wife was reading a history book and it mentioned Panama. Wednesday morning I opened my Skype account and a contact had post with the Panamanian flag. That night at prayer a friend, who knew nothing of my layover, welcomed me back and asked how my trip went. You were in Panama right? How did you know I was in Panama? And Im still asking myself, How do you confuse El Salvador and Panama? Friday night we went to visit a friend who happened to have some music on, Set a fire down in my soul That night I also received an e-mail about someone who is taking a missions trip the first week of April. Then the Lord topped it off at the Sunday morning service where I met a missionary lady from Panama. And I think the biggest confirmation yet is that my wife feels peace about it.

so whats the plan?

Entering into 2013 my main prayer has been, God, I want to be obedient, help me to be obedient. With this kind of confirmation within a week and other words that God has spoken to us both past and present, it is hard to deny His instructions. So I plan to be at this conference. I asked God why I should go; two thoughts immediately came to mind, more divine connections and, the more diverse the unity, greater the impact. Ive been asked to speak on evangelism at the conference. However my intention is to form relationships with the hope of returning with teams for short term missions trips. I long to see the Church as the worldwide body of Christ, each congregation and individual fulfilling their purpose, providing mutual help one to another. On January 1st, 2012 a woman of God, by order of the Holy Spirit, told us that it was time to walk on water. So we are doing are best to keep our eyes on Jesus. My family and I need your prayers and support. Thank you for taking the time to read these testimonies and get informed about what God is doing. May our heavenly Father bless you and prosper you according to His will and plan for your life. Luke Vandergriff
My sending church is: Lambs Christian Center, 4519 Laurel Hills Rd, Raleigh, NC 27612, USA If the Lord puts it on your heart, you can make checks out to the church for a tax write-off or you can send your offering via Paypal.com using this email: vandercielo@gmail.com