We recently got back from a week and a half long trip to the interior of the amazon jungle. We were quite remote along the Putomayo River visiting 5 different villages.
...Let me explain. We took a flight from Leticia to a city called Tarapaca. It is only a 45 minute flight but by boat it can take 5 days. Then from this location we went by boat to another location, by fast boat it can take 6 hours but by normal boat it can take 12 hours.... imagine, we went in a boat without a roof for a ride of our lives!
In this village it was flooded with water, everywhere we wanted to go we had to take a canoe. Also what welcomed us were the mosquitos and horrible no see-ums. We got eaten alive! This village we enjoyed sharing with the people. This location was one of the hardest for Isabella and I, but we enjoyed it and God was teaching me about patience and joy.
The second village we went to was also covered in water, but it was quite small so they put planks around the village and you get to practice your balancing skills walking across them (who knows how deep that water is below you). A sweet girl in the village was helping cook for us came to ask some questions about modesty and it was nice to be able to explain a bit about that. I also wanted to take the pastors daughter home with us. She asked me a couple times if she could come to our ¨pueblo¨ I told her maybe when we live it Leticia she could come for some time if she was aloud.
The third village was more remote in the fact that is it not right along the main river route so they have less access to many things. But, we had an amazing time there sharing with the church and encouraging the pastor and his wife. In this village we came in contact with a sweet girl that has been having medical problems, she has had pain for over two months and could not keep food down. The people here are poor and were afraid to take her to a far away for medical attention. We encouraged her and her family to go to the hospital and we helped pay for the trip. Over the past couple of weeks she has been getting worse, please pray for her, the name is Nataly.
The pastors in the fourth village we went to were were older in age. The pastor´s wife was sharing with me how she had 9 children! All of them have left this village and it seems like they were lonely and needed encouragement. We also got to minister to the local Peruvian Marines which was an amazing experince, the barracks were closed for public engagement but the commander opened doors for us to come and share lunch with them and then we had a drama about how God is knocking at your hearts door. It was a great time.
The last location, Tarapaca, was nice to come back to the city for a while. We got to take a rest from sleeping in rough conditions and sleep in a more comfortable hotel room. The pastor here is a key person in communicating with the other pastors and has always been a great help to Jonatan and his dad.
I have been challenged so much by the people, they are always smiling and happy, no matter the circumstances... We need to practice this as well in the United States. God has also been showing me the need of helping with childrens ministry. Out of all the churches none of them have an established childrens ministry and I would say half of all the congregations are children! Can you imagine if these children came to know Christ at a young age! I would like to find some good materials for them, find key leaders in the church and train them. We have much work to do for the next visit!
Please continue praying for us. We covet them and have been feeling them!
