Seeing beneath the surface
The night sounds of donkeys braying and loud mariachi music blaring have grown to become sounds that lull Peter and Liesl Hypki to sleep. They are settling into life in Mexico among the Nahuatl people.
Peter and Liesl share that their tribal house is now livable. A work team who visited recently made it possible for the Hypkis to cook in their own home, plug computers in to charge while working on language sessions with Nahuatl friends, and have lights to read and study at night. They also have the new luxury of a flushing toilet so they no longer have to walk across the yard to an outhouse at night.
Peter and Liesl feel that they are well on their way in culture and language studies, and they are developing relationships in the community where they live and minister.
Liesl was recently able to invite some Nahuatl friends to their home to learn to make cornbread. She adjusted the recipe to ingredients that are readily available locally and enjoyed the fun of teaching them to crack an egg and stir the cornbread batter with a large wooden spoon. Liesl’s Nahuatl friends left smiling, carrying something special home to their families for dinner.
“Yet as we learn more about the community, we also begin to see beneath the surface …. We have learned more about the animistic rituals the people perform, the spirits they worship, even the darkness of their history—abuse, adultery, murder,” Peter and Liesl write.
“And yet, in the face of that, we have a peace. Who needs the Gospel more than they? Jesus Himself said in Mark 2 that it is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick.”
Peter and Liesl feel strongly assured of God’s leading them to this ministry with the Nahuatl people. They share, “As we continue adjusting and settling in, even if we are tired at times, we are certain we are where God has led us. We are grateful to all of you for your support and prayers as we continue to seek to reach the Nahuatl with the hope of the Gospel.”
Pray for Peter and Liesl Hypki and their ministry. Pray for God’s continued help in learning culture and language. Pray for friendships to continue to grow and for open opportunities for the Gospel. Pray for ongoing encouragement, strength and blessing in the Hypki’s ministry to the Nahuatl people.