Wow, back when my David was just a wee little fella with his wispy blonde hair, I never thought I'd be reporting on his mission adventures in the Amazon jungle. God's plans are surely more than we can ever imagine.
I wanted to share with you the reports that his leaders have posted over the last several days.
The first word we rec'd once the team arrived at Nauta, Peru, included a message from David that said, "I am fine. And I see God moving in diferent ways."
Then the team leader, Glenalyn Hunt, posted this:
After a couple of long travel days, we arrived on Tuesday to Nauta. We are very close to one of the headwaters to the Amazon. It is so beautiful here. We have been blessed with amazing contacts who are taking good care of us. There are tons of little ninos who come over and play with your children every day. This is one of our ministry. We have also have taught English to local youth, taught our drama to the same group of youth as a ministry, and done door-to-door evangelism and kids programs. We have also been honing our musical talents to worship God and sing His praises.
I am blown away by the growth in your kids. They are rolling with whatever we give them, stepping up to serve, lead, challenge and change. They have such soft hearts and are so willing to share and care for each other. Honestly it is one of the greatest groups of youth I´ve ever been able to spend time with. As a leader I feel blessed to serve your children--your young men and women who are growing so much!
All your students are healthy, hydrated and happy. If you could be sending up a few extra `prayers on behalf of their leaders´health, that would be fabulous. (We are fine, just need a little extra TLC via prayer :) )
Please be praying for continued health and safe travels, a continuous attitude of service, an abundance of grace and love, and for God to keep showing up and keep moving, because God is moving and things are happening and it is awesome!!
Next week we will be visiting villages along the Amazon, doing Vacation Bible School outreach, door'to-door sharing and encouragement, and probably music ministry. Please be praying for open doors and open hearts. As leaders we are excited to see our team grow and be challenged in new situations. They all have amazing attitudes, so please be praying that continues.
Your students are learning gratitude, patience, flexibility, and so much about God and themselves. As leaders we are so proud of them and excited to see where they go and grow in the next 2 weeks or so.
Thank you for your prayers, support and encouragement. We are so blessed!
Then, this morning, team leader Alana posted this:
Well we are closing out our first week here in Nauta Peru. Our team
has done everything from teaching english to students who hope to some
day be translators, to spontaneous worship services in peoples homes.
They have increased their skills in Pato pato gonzo,or as we know it
the States, duck duck goose. They recently enjoyed a local culunary
delight of sweaty fish which they all actually really enjoyed! As a
leader it has been a blessing to watch them step up and step out of
their comfort zone. The other day we did door to door ministy. I had
the pleasure of going with Lauren, Kayt, and David. We sat in this
tiny room with children, chickens, and a pastor and his wife and were
able to worship with them and pray for them. David, Lauren, and Kayt,
despite the language barrier asked them questions about their families
and such and in doing so brought tears to the people´s eyes as they
encountered a new depth of our Father´s love through those three.
Brittany, Jamie, and Trey are usually found with kids surrounding
them. They love to play games and they know their names as if it were
their favorite song. Trey, Jamie, and Brittany are so good about
playing soccer even in the rain, letting the kids play with their hair
and simply just loving on them in a way these kids have not really
encountered before.
Dillion, Hattie, Emily, and Louisa have really stepped into worship
ministry well and have lead a lot of the spontaneous singing. They
also have really impacted the adults here with their genuine joy and
care of their teammates and in really everyone around them.
All of our students have really blown us away this week with how much
they are growing and really stepping into all that God has prepared
for them here in Peru.
Tomorrow we leave our "comfortable" living in Nauta and will spend six
days up river at two different villages doing life and ministry with
the small churches there. Everyone is really excited about taking a
boat, sleeping in hammocks, eating more local culunary delights, using
primitive bathrooms, and above all bringng more Kingdom together as a
unified body in Christ. Please pray for our health and our safety, and
a multitude of blessings over our contacts and translators who so
graciously bless us with all they have! We will do our absolute best
to post a blog upon returning from our adventures out on the river!
oh and to the parents of our amazon warriors,thanks for sharing them
with Glenalyn, Rich, and me. They are an immense blessing! so thank
you for giving up your time with them and sharing them with us!
Desiring to live dangerously close to God,
Alana
I like Alana's closing --- "desiring to live dangerously close to God". And I pray, that more than comfort or success, that this will be David's desire, too. If he comes back from Peru with a reckless passion for loving God and serving the least and the lost, then this mission trip and all the work and effort that it has taken will be well worth it.
No comments:
Post a Comment