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Safe back in the US! I thank you so much for your daily prayers and encouragement on behalf of this team and trip. I am so excited to report what the Lord did and share just a few of the more adventurous moments. It’s overwhelming to capture 3 weeks on paper however here is my best attempt. I bolded the main parts of the story so if you don’t have time to read the whole thing you can know mainly what happened. Please ask Lauren and I you have any more questions about the Yagua people and work that the Lord is doing in their hearts. Thank you so much for every prayer on their behalf. I cannot wait for you to meet them, if not in this life than by His grace and glory most certainly the next!!

Setting off the first morning for the Yagua village we traveled along the winding Amazon, parts of which looked surprisingly similar to the Low country with green dense marshes interspersed with graceful white Egrets. Men fished and traveled in small dugout canoes and women washed clothes and bathed along the shore. Most responded by a friendly smile and wave. However, as we progressed further into the jungle people became increasingly sparse and more often gave us a blank or perplexed stare. We finally dead ended at the village of Catalan Urco, Jeremy got out to ask the chief for permission to enter the village. He was gone for what seemed like ages until we heard, “Climb out guys- we’re in the jungle!” We set up camp and prepared to meet with the village leaders that night to discuss the nature and purpose of our visit. Several hours later the village men and women one by one emerged from the darkness and sat around in circle- shooting us indifferent and reserved glances as they swatted themselves with cloths to keep away the occasional mosquito that pestered them (the mosquitoes had been eating us gringos alive for nearly an hour by that time, demanding that we keep moving constantly while wearing layers of clothes and several applications of 100% DEET). Jeremy explained our mission there: a group of young people from many miles away desiring to live here and learn their way of life, to help them with their daily work, get to know them and their families, and share with them stories from a true book called the Bible which we believed in with our hearts and lives. An awkward silence insured until it was broken by a deep voice, “Por ejemplo.” We froze as we realized the story telling would begin that night! I listened to my friend jump straight into the story of Creation and watched as curious expressions occasionally alighted on their faces. Looking up at the night sky my breath was taken away by thousands upon thousands of stars that dusted the black sky. Surely these people have witnessed marvels of natural creation which we only see in pictures. My mind grasped anew how full the earth is of His glory and how desperately I wanted these people to see and know that- to know Him!

The following week was intermingled with disappointments, encouragements and spontaneous adventures. We did not get the opportunity to work alongside the people as much as hoped for the sheer reality of the physical differences between our bodies and theirs. The second day we worked to gather and shuck Yuka with machetes. After only an hour we were drenched in sweat and bugs and quite the entertainment to the skilled Yagua working beside us. We were also having fewer and fewer attendants during the evening story times. One man however continued to come faithfully and one night inquired when we were going to talk about repentance. Obviously this man had heard something of Christianity before and we set out on a completely different plan of action. We spent the entire next day dividing up stories from the Bible and working to memorize them. It was overwhelming but amazing to get such a comprehensive view of God’s plan of salvation from Adam to Abraham to Joseph to Jesus and SO MUCH in between! Sunday morning Johnny and his family agreed to give us the day to tell our stories. He sat, hour after hour, story after story, attentive but with an unchanging firm expression. We shared with him some of our food in between (he seemed to really enjoy the Cliff Bars and Beef Jerky). By four o’clock we were only at the birth of Jesus and obviously in need of a break. We asked him to come back that night and hear the rest. After hours went by it seemed he was not coming back but finally his face appeared from the darkness, carrying a battery operated light swarming with insects. Taking turns sharing the rest of the gospel we spoke of Jesus’ life, His miraculous healings, insightful parables, and the story of His death and resurrection. When it got to the crucifixion Jeremy stepped forward to explain the nature of such a death and we held up a nail that was found to aid in further demonstration. Having no idea of what to expect we all watched as Jeremy explained the glorious purpose behind every stories heard that day. With a quiet but steady voice Johnny said he wanted to give His life to Jesus Christ! Listening to his prayer in Spanish I could not understand all of what was said but the sincerity of His tone was undeniable. For the first time a large smile broke over his face as we welcomed him as a new brother!

telling stories at Johnny's house, he is in the middle beside the missionary Jeremy who lead our team

During the remainder of our time there we took time prayer walking the village and mapping out the community for future teams. We often were invited in, providing the opportunity to visit and pray for families out loud. Some of these home visits afforded us the most memorable moments. Some included meeting a family pet Spider monkey, owl, and Capybara, making a palm thatch roof by learning how to weave palm leaves on a pole, and being serenaded by a family who owned a small flute, drum, and maracas. After demonstrating their tribal dance they asked us to teach them an American one. Swing dancing and doing the Electric Slide to a jungle rhythm wasn’t easy but very fun and apparently quite entertaining. We also had the chance to make their most popular drink: Yuka masato. Made from crushed up Yuka (the Peruvian Potato), members of the household take turns swirling a purple liquid in their mouths then spitting it into a large canoe of mashed up Yuka. This mixture of spit and Yuka ferments until it becomes alcoholic and then bottoms up! The drink is usually offered with such enthusiasm it is hard to turn down and why would you want to?

The Amazon receded so that we were in danger of getting stuck in Catalan Urco if we stayed there. Therefore, the last week was spent in upstream communities of Vanilla and Orellana. Both much less isolated, we received warm welcomes and worked with existing churches there. In Vanilla we spent much time encouraging the Pastor and telling our stories at the nightly church service at 7:00 (aka 7:30ish Peruvian time . Desiring to encourage personal study, we broken the congregation into small groups after the stories and ask them questions trying to get them to think about the passage, recognize questions about what they heard, apply it to their lives, and walk away with a better understanding of who God is. It impressed all of us with how often we open the Bible without reading and praying through it in such a way that changes our understanding and our lives. I usually walked away every night with more questions than answers but it gave me, and God-willing the people, a desire to dig so much deeper into the word. I’m excited about wading more through the rich history of the Old Testament and learning how the gospel of salvation is weaved through every book. We also enjoyed running a VBS for the children two days and working with the jovenes (teenagers and singles by teaching them dramas and a few Christian songs in English. We were an endless source of laugher for the energetic children who were constantly underfoot. One of their favorite past times became watching us bath in the Amazon. They loved to catch live fish with their bare hands and hurl them at our heads with incredible aim. Already squeamish about the Piranha caught nearby, we got a lot of exercise dodging the fish that flew through the air and the fish that nipped in the water.

It was difficult to leave yet encouraging that churches in the US have recently adopted these people groups and have committed to sending teams three to four times each year. There will soon be believers visiting these villages again to meet physical needs and encourage new believers there. I am so thankful to very small part of the amazing work that God is doing in the hearts and lives of these people of the jungle. How awesome it is for the opportunity to plough, plant, and water but it is God that causes all growth! Please continue to pray for the Johnny and his family, that his faith in Christ will grow and his life will change in ways that testifies of Christ to the Yagua community. Pray for the Pastors and church in Vanilla and Orellana!

Thank you so much for being a part of what God is doing there. He has and will continue to use every prayer to further His kingdom there. To Him be the glory!

“Cristo, puede mover montes
Solo Dios puede Salvar
Mi Dios puede salvar!
Por siempre, autor de Salvación
Jesús la muerte venció
El la muerte venció!”

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