We're Here!!

Just wanted to catch you up on our travel status. We stayed in Miami overnight (courtesy of American). Our new flight was scheduled for 11:30 PM Sunday night. God had a reason for us being delayed. We were sitting in the terminal when a man asked if he could sit in the chair next to us. We started talking to him and it turns out he is a "completed Jew". He had been having a very rough walk with the Lord lately. He was filled with guilt. We were able to encourage him and talked about 1 or so. To hear him talk about his Messiah was so uplifting for us too.

We boarded the plane on time and even left the gate on time, however, as we readied to take off the pilot came on and said we were going to have to return to the gate and add more fuel because we might have to land at an alternative airport in Peru. We finally got off 1 1/2 hours late. We arrived around 7 AM in Lima w/o incident. When we got to customs there was virtually no wait and our luggage (Praise God) was sitting waiting for us. We even got a green light and by 745 we are in the hotel and now I'm taking a nap. So thank you all for praying!

Have Ticket WON'T Travel

Saturday we were picked up at 5 AM by Barry Gammel (Bless his heart). He was a great chauffer and we arrived at DIA early and got checked in without incident. We arrived in Dallas with a 5 hour layover. It went downhill from there. Just an hour before our flight was due to leave there was a gate change. We had to move from C concourse to D which is on the complete opposite side of the airport. We were told that the airplane was already at the gate so there (in our minds) should be no problem proceeding. However, at 5 PM (when we were due to leave) that maintenance hadn't released the plane to fly yet (obviously not a good sign). We were told that at 5:40 there would be an update on the situation. To fill in the spaces here, we had a scheduled 3 hour layover at Miami, so we figured that even if we left an hour or so late we'd still have plenty of time to make the flight. How naive we were. There were no available replacement planes until one in route from LA arrived and that would be at 8PM. Well, there went our 3 hours. We thought that maybe the plane would wait for us (there were 30 of us trying to catch that plane), but when we finally arrived at Miami at 1AM it had already left.

So, writing this update, we are "stuck" at Miami until 11:30 tonight. American Airlines did put us up in a hotel and provide vouchers for lunch and dinner (that's a whole story in itself). We hope to be in Lima tomorrow morning and get life back on track. Please pray for everything to go as planned tonight and that our luggage will arrive with us since we have nothing but the clothes on our backs.

Finally!

We wish you all a very Merry Christmas.

We also thank you for your continued partnership with us and the Chayahuita. You are all very vital to this ministry. Without you we would not be able to do what we do.

Please keep us in prayer as we finally head back to Peru on December 27th. While you enjoy the snow of winter we will once again be thawing out in the Amazon jungle. The Chayahuita annual conference will be held January 5th to the 12th. Pray for safety for all that will be attending.

We will update you once we get out of the jungle and into Tarapoto. May you have a blessed New Year!

Counting down the days

We apologize for not posting anything in over a month. We are still alive!

The date is fast approaching to return back to the jungle that we love so much. The Chayahuita annual conference is scheduled for January 5-13, so we leave on December 27. This time is one of our favorites since people from many villages converge on the host one allowing us to see lots of people without having to travel so much.

Please pray for the Chayahuita leadership as they prepare all the details of the teaching time coordinating with all the teachers involved. This year things will be done a bit differently. The decision was made to have the women have their own time all week for teaching as well as the new believers and of course the kids will have their own teaching as well. These are very exciting times and there is so much growth happening; both spiritually and in business development. (more on that at a later date)

Pray for the team from Grace that will be teaching:Ron Dalton, Brent Ward, Liz Hanson and Suzi Herbka as well as us. There will also be a couple from the Swiss Mission attending.

Thank you for your constant prayers and care for us and for the Chayahuita. Your partnership is crucial!

Partnering with Chayahuita Pastors

WOW! We have been blown away with the response to the "Parnering with A Chayahuita Pastor" success. The small groups at Grace Church have been such an encouragement as we have met with and explained the program. We thank you all for opening your homes and your hearts to be the encouragement to our brothers in the Amazon Basin.

For those who have not had the opportunity to hear what we are doing here is a synopsis of what we are presenting to the groups.

11 years ago, 3 pastors from Grace Church went to Peru with Paul Johnson, president of Amazon Focus, to visit the Chayahuita Indians. When it became evident that God was leading our pastors to develop a partnership with the Chayahuita Church, they sat down with the Spiritual leaders of the tribe. As Paul led the discussions, he asked the leadership of Grace Church, “What could they do for the Chayahuita?”
They responded:
We will faithfully pray for you.
We will be involved in projects which benefit the tribe.
We will provide education for the pastors.
And each one of us will personally visit you again.

Paul then turned to the Indian leadership and asked them, “What could they do for Grace Church?”

There was silence for a few minutes, and then one of the Indians asked our pastors, “What do you need?” The answer: We need prayer. We spend most of our time counseling. We need wisdom in how to effectively counsel in a variety of difficulties. The Chayahuita promised to pray for Grace Church daily. And they have.

Church to Church is a partnership, an interdependence, between churches. So, what is empowerment? It is defined as “giving someone the authority to do something.”

Many times, we as North Americans, when we go to 3rd World Nations, we are deeply moved when we see the impoverished situations of others. We can easily lose sight of the spiritual needs, because of the overwhelming dire physical & economic conditions. I don’t have words to adequately describe the physical poverty that exists among the Chayahuita and other tribes in the Amazon Basin. At times, it is indescribable. And so quite naturally missionaries and non-profit organizations have looked for ways to ease the pains of the tribal people by giving money, medicine, equipment – you name it. We have given the Indians everything but, “… the authority to do something.”

Listen, I don’t question the compassion and motivation of these people who have given so generously & graciously, but what has been the long term affect? What happens over the course of time when giving is only a one way street? In a nutshell, it creates dependency.
We have had the advantage of looking back and seeing the effect of this type of charity based missions endeavor on the Chayahuita, over a 30-40 year time span.

2 Things have occurred in the case of the Chayahuita.

1. They have come to expect handouts. Instead of trying to look for ways that they can resolve their issues, they quite naturally look to the outside world for solutions. They have become dependent on the foreigner. When giving is a one way street, there is never a sense of equality, partnership, or even ownership. The giver, whether intentionally or unintentionally, is creating a dependency that the recipient cannot get out of. They become trapped like a caged animal.

That leads to a 2nd problem.

2. The natural conclusion of the recipient is that he/she must be inferior to the giver, because after all they believe that they cannot provide for themselves or for their families, neither can they think through their problems in order to resolve them on their own.

Empowerment for us began by treating the Chayahuita as our equals. We started teaching them how to take care of their own needs. And, we believed in them, that they are capable of learning and doing. The final element of empowerment was not to cave in to their constant financial requests.

Because of empowerment, there is a goal on the horizon that we believe is fully attainable in our lifetime – that every Chayahuita has the opportunity to hear the Gospel in their own heart language. That goal has been the dream of every missionary, but it hasn’t been accomplished, in part, because the missionaries have been doing the work, not the Indians. 3 young men have been trained by the Extreme Team. Jesus, Enoc & Maximo are taking the Gospel to remote areas where no Gringo missionary has ever ventured. I’m no prophet, but I don’t have any doubt in my mind that God is going to raise up more young men like these 3, to go and take the Gospel to every village, so that everyone will hear the Good News and many Chayahuita will become believers and followers of Jesus Christ.

However, at this moment there are approximately 60 Chayahuita pastors, many who are discouraged because they live in isolation and very few people care that they exist. As Terri and I became aware of the plight of these Indigenous pastors, we became concerned and started to think of ways that we could encourage them. We brought Church to Church into the equation. We have approximately 60 small groups at Grace Church & approximately 60 Chayahuita pastors. What would it take to team up these 2 entities? What would be the prospect of getting each to pray for one another? How could there be communication between the 2? After prayer and brainstorming, the idea of Partner with a Pastor was conceived. PWP is not going to be a steady stream of dollars going down to the jungle. We don’t want you sending a lot of money, nor do we want the pastors thinking that they are going to be getting money from you. That would be creating dependency all over again.

PWP is simply exchanging photos, letters of encouragement, & prayer requests. Please don’t get the idea that Small Group involvement is insignificant or trivial. On the contrary, y’all are crucial, extremely vital to the success of the Chayahuita pastors and God’s moving in the Amazon Jungle.

As I’ve said at other times, this is a team effort.
Some of us are the hands, who give generously.
Some of are the knees, who pray diligently.
And some of us are the feet, who go obediently.
All these components are of equal value to God.
All 3 are essential in empowering the Chayahuita nation.

Interviews with Chayahuita Leaders in Maranatha

These are interviews (in Chayahuita language) from July 2008 of four Chayahuita leaders: Pancho Tangoa, who has been a pastor, president of the Chayahuita Association and boat pilot; Juan Lancha, pastor in Maranatha; Augosto Tello, pastor in Maranatha and Jesus Pua, a missionary that goes into the most isolated region of Chayahuita villages and has now had contact with another tribe that doesn't have the Gospel. They have invited him to come share with them. Please keep all of these leaders in prayer.

The subtitles didn't turn out very well so here is a synopsis of what was said.

Pancho thanked us for coming and visiting Maranatha and that the visit was a very big encouragement to them. He sends greetings to families, friends and our churches and asking God to continue blessing us all.

Juan thanked us for coming to visit and that he really enjoyed fellowshipping with us. He invited us all to return for another visit.

Augosto thanked us all for taking the time to come and was thankful that we arrived safely. He asked that we continue to uphold the church in prayer. They want to rebuild a building that fell down. He sends greetings to those in the US

Jesus said that he hoped that our time together had been fruitful and been a mutual blessing. He shared that he travels to Jeberos which is very remote and asked prayer for those there as well as for all of his tribe as the Gospel continues to advance. He asked that God keep us safe in our journey and bless us.

Get Involved

Since we have been in the US many have asked "How can we be involved?" There are some very simple things that you can do. Here are some examples.

1. Partner with a Chayahuita pastor (Steve Martinez has info on how to do this)

2. Have your small group collect medicines to send down to the Chayahuita health workers. (tylenol, ibuprofen, benadryl, pepto bismol, cold meds)

3. Are you skilled in a trade? Teachers are needed to train the Chayahuita.

4. Do you love teaching the Word of God? The Chayahuita pastors are hungry for more teaching. 5. Are you an encourager? There are many opportunities to go to a Chayahuita village and help them with tourism.

6. If nothing else you can always pray for them and for us as we partner with the Chayahuita and Grace Church.

You may even have other ideas that you'd like to share with us. Please send us an email.

In The USA

We are back in Colorado now until the end of the year. We will be traveling back for the annual conference in Balsapuerto. Please pray as God directs those that should be involved. The Chayahuita leadership has given specific subjects to be taught. This year they are also having classes for the women apart from the men as well as new believers discipling. It is exciting to see them grow and lead!

Church in Balsapuerto

Pray for the pastor in Balsapuerto and his congregation as they prepare to welcome this group of people (usually anywhere from 400-1000). Pray also for the Chayahuita leadership board for wisdom and protection. Pray that the hearts of those that will be attending will be prepared not only to listen but to apply what they learn.

Trip to San Antonio

Boat to San Antonio

Praise the Lord! We did finally get to go upriver to San Antonio with Key Zu and Carly. Carly had been there 5 years ago and wanted to reconnect with the people and introduce them to Key Zu. The river ride was not overly easy, there were times the boat had to be pushed over sand or rocks, but we made it without too many problems. The first night we stopped at Maranatha and slept. On day 2 we headed up the Yanayacu River. Once we reached the rapids on the approach to San Antonio we had to get out and walk. It was just too dangerous for us to be in the boat over the rocks.

During these days, Ken and I were invited to go meet the authorities of a nearby village, San Lorenzo. It is only about a 20 minute walk from San Antonio (if it's not muddy). We were able to spend time with them and then we were taken to a cascading waterfall nearby by dugout canoe and walking. It was really beautiful. They are interested in taking tourists there. Well worth the trip.

People from San Lorenzo (above) Waterfall (below)

We got back to Yurimaguas tired, but happy to have been in the jungle as always.

Strike is Over

Sandra, Bastiluz, Tarsila, and Dorcas (bottom) (top) Key Zu and Carly in Tarapoto

It has been an interesting week. After seeing the Grace team off, we returned to Yurimaguas with the 2 women from New Tribes and started working on getting on the river to one of the Chayahuita villages. We then found out that Pancho (our boat pilot) had to help drill a well in a nearby community and that Yurimaguas would have a 3 day strike. Not a whole lot we could do until both of those were resolved. We have had a good time getting to know Carly and her friend Key Zu. Even though the plan was to be in a village longer the interlude has given them time to get to know and play with Pancho’s kids and others that are in town. They wouldn’t have had this time otherwise. God has His plans and of course always has a way a reminding us to be FLEXIBLE and that He is in control.

The strike is over and Pancho should be on his way back. We hope to be able to leave on Monday, Lord willing. Pray that the river will have enough water so we won’t have issues on our way. Pray for safety on the river and in San Antonio. We hope to be in Maranatha on Monday night and San Antonio on Tuesday. We plan on staying gone a week and then we return to get packed to return to the US.

Balsapuerto Continued

Playing "Ni'ni ni'ni mayo" (Duck, Duck, Goose)

This team was an amazing one. Even with the language barrier they made themselves understood. Everyone understands the language of love. Not only was there love shown to the many Chayahuita all around, but also to each other. I'd like to share some of the many experiences of the week with you.

See how the Chayahuita live to know better how to minister to them and experience the everyday obstacles (boat travel, hiking in mud) etc. to know how to pray for them.

The team saw first hand how the people in the village lived. Even though Balsapuerto is different than most villages, they saw their reality. One of the coolest things we got to do was go house to house to visit and see the different crafts the women make step by step. This had been prepared ahead of time to have, for example, the pottery in various stages of completion so we could see the whole process without waiting for 4 days. It gave opportunity to see what they make, visit many people in a short time and it let them see the value of their crafts.

Weaving a skirt

There were many things that we got to experience apart from everyday life. The boat ride was an eye opener, even though it was a big boat, it was comfortable to sit for hours on end. They also so the concern they men have for the level of the river, the dangers of rocks and fallen trees.

We all went on a hike together with the intention of reaching archeological find. We were told it would take 3 hours to get there. Ken and I knew that they had told us what it takes them to arrive so we figured 4 hours or so. We had walked for 3 hours and we were nowhere close to where we were headed, so I asked how much longer should it take and we were told 2 more hours. In a 1 1/2 hours I asked how much farther and we were told 1 1/2 hours.

At this point we decided to stop only at a waterfall close by and eat lunch and rest. The whole problem was that there was so much mud on the path that it was difficult at best to walk, the bridges (usually logs) were also badly decayed and the terrain was hilly and rocky. We still had to return back to the village and that would take the same amount of time. Most of us are not seasoned hikers and by the end of the trip of walking 10 hours we were exhausted and our feet were sore.

After the walk we talked about how this is the main source of transportation for the Chayahuita. They walk for hours and days to get to their destinations. During the annual conference in January many walk for several days just to hear the Word of God and to have fellowship. Their feet and legs are incredibly strong!

And the most important: Get to know the Chayahuita and form friendships to be an encouragement

Pastor Rosendo and family

All of the members of the team: Scott Fischle, Liz Hanson, Suzi Herbka, Pete Malouff, Pam and Ariane McQuain, Mike Russell, Kim Schweitzer and Jeremy Simpson had no problems in forming friendships. From day one they enjoyed getting to know the Chayahuita. They were all a very big encouragement to them. Men and women smiled as they saw them playing games with their children. They encouraged them in the time of worship together, by asking about their culture but most importantly just by being willing to spend the time and effort to be with them. They also took time to share Bible stories and the Gospel with them.

This is a remarkable and diverse group and each will be remembered by these people for many years to come. Take time to ask each of them about the experience. I know they would love to share with you! See the slides below. There are many funny moments, but you'll have to ask about them to hear them!

Arriving in Balsapuerto

Pancho Poling

Day 2 on the boat went well. There were areas that were low and concerns, however, it was never low enough for us to have to get out and push. Praise God! After 9 hours on the river the second day, out of the blue appeared a bridge that looked like a miniature Golden Gate Bridge. We had finally arrived in Balsapuerto. Kids were hanging on the bridge and sitting on the steps waiting for boats to come in.

The Chayahuita that knew we were coming took our bags and started the trek to our accommodations for the week. The surprise was awaiting around the corner. We had all expected to pitch tents, bathe in the river and use latrines. We stood in awe as we entered the hostal that had been built for visitors. It had 2 bedrooms each with 4 bunk beds, a bathroom (with flush toilet), a shower and 3 hours a night it even had electricity! Luxurious by jungle standards.

What did the team do?

That was a question the team had even before they arrived in Peru; what are we going to do? Sometimes we have to think outside of the traditional missions' box and not DO anything. This team's main mission was to:

1. See how the Chayahuita live to know better how to minister to them

2. Experience the everyday obstacles (boat travel, hiking in mud) etc. to know how to pray

3. And the most important: Get to know the Chayahuita and form friendships to be an encouragement

This team accomplished all of the above and so much more. There were some surprises along the way. On the first day of the boat trip we had bought some tamales to eat on the boat for lunch. While we were waiting for the boat to pick us up somebody stole the whole bag of food and then took off. Fortunately we did have some tuna fish and bread along with peanut butter and honey. Another surprise we had was the boat that Pancho had rented. It was sooo big. We all had lots of room and we were able to get up and walk around. Luxury!

We got off to a late start and we didn't want to be on the river after dark. The plan was to get to Fray Martin to spend the night. We had already been on the river about 6 hours and still an hour out when we lost part of the motor so we stayed in Fortaleza until morning. Scott decided to make friends with a cow. Moo!

Teams Arrival in Peru

This is the beginning photo as the team arrived in Lima, Peru. We will start telling you more about the trip soon. Keep watching here!!

PRAYER REQUEST

Yesterday, the president of the Chayahuita Association had an accident. Accidents happen frequently on the river. Oscar and Jesus were on their way to Maranatha to teach in a Bible Conference for 2 weeks and the river was extremely low. He stopped to take the motor off the boat so it wouldn't be hurt in the low water. When it was being taken off the motor propellor struck his buttocks and it severly cut him. We were called to see if we could get the hospital to send out a plane to pick him up since blood was gushing everywhere. The doctor was unable to find a plane to send. All of the health workers were out either here or on other jobs for the day and so there was nobody to help. We stopped and prayed in the house with 2 other members of the board. In less than an hour we received another call saying that one of the health workers on his way back to his village saw them and stopped. PTL!! Oscar would have bled out otherwise. He received stitches and they were transported back to Nueva Vida. Today he is resting well. Please pray for this to heal. From what we understand it really mangled his skin. Pray that there will be no infection. Pray for the others that are taking his place teaching, too.

Pray for June Team

The river is quickly getting lower as we head into the “summer” non rainy season. It has been hot with several days reaching well above 110. Fortunately we have still had some nice rainy nights. Pray that there will be sufficient water in the river to be able to ride in the canoe the whole time and not have to push and pull all the way to Balsapuerto.

Remember to pray for the safety of the team on all parts of the trip: air travel to and from Lima, air travel to Tarapoto and back to Lima, the trip over the mountains to Yurimaguas, the boat trip and the Cessna out of Balsapuerto. Please pray for all to stay healthy during this time and for those they will be in contact with. Pray that God will be honored in all we say and do.

Also a few days ago, once again somebody poisoned a lake full of fish. As if this isn’t bad enough, the poison also reaches the Huallaga River where most of our fish come from. It killed big and small fish alike and will take a couple of years to recuperate from this devastation. Needless to say we won’t be eating fish from here anytime soon. This happened in 2005 also and the river was finally getting back to normal.

Drop us a line or two when you have a chance. Just like you enjoy hearing what we are up to, we enjoy news from friends back in the US. It would really be a big encouragement. Thank you.

Thank you for caring about these people that are so dear to our hearts. They care about you, too.

Back in Yurimaguas

Baptism in Bella Vista

We have settled back into the routine of Yurimaguas with the house constantly full of people. We have had lots of visitors (we which love). The leadership has been in town working on the Native House at the end of the block. They are putting up a metal gate in front since everytime a wooden one is built somebody steals the wood. This will keep the property much more secure.

Also, we have been visited by Enrique Pua, one of the Chayahuita missionaries. He shared about his trips recently to share the Gospel and encourage the believers in various villages. He and his family have only been home for a week or so since January. When they did get home they had to attend to their farm. While working out there Clementina, Enrique’s wife, cut herself quite deeply with a machete. Please pray for healing as it seems to have gotten infected. We are sending antibiotics home with him.

Enrique and Clementina Pua and family

Jesus Pua and his wife, Hilda and son, Alex also came for a visit. Jesus arrived with all the symptoms of malaria, but praise the Lord it was just a bad flu and he is doing much better. Jesus and his family have been traveling throughout the Jeberos district (the most isolated of all the Chayahuita districts with no rivers to arrive by boat). He has seen many make decisions for the Lord and be baptized as well as the discouraged believers be encouraged again. He and his team are very committed to go wherever God would have them go. Please pray for their safety and health. They have put many miles on their feet. Jesus and Hilda Pua

We are getting ready for the team from Grace to arrive in June. We will, Lord willing, be heading by boat to Balsapuerto. The rainy season is over and the rivers are once again becoming low. Pray for sufficient water to travel. We have also been informed of several strikes that are in the works for both June and July. One indefinite strike (one w/o a fixed end date) could take place in July or August. Typically those last from 2 weeks to 2 months. We have a couple of women from New Tribes planning on being here in July so please pray for all those plans and for flexibility.

Drop us a line or two when you have time. We'd love to hear from you.

Reflection of out trip

Many things happened during this almost month long trip. There were many learning experiences and many blessings. Here are a few of those.

In Bella Vista the community had been greatly encouraged by the frequent visits of Jesus Pua and his team. They are very hungry for God’s Word and Jesus and his team will continue to make regular visits. He feels called to be in that area where so few have come to share. They have received the Gospel and many have believed. As a result of that there were 9 new believers baptized. The community seems very united, which is not very common. They work together and enjoy being together. We learned many things from them this time about them, their surroundings and their dreams for the future. They had taken our advice about marketing their crafts and provided a great market for the team to buy from.

Leaving Bella Vista took 3 flights because it had rained and both airstrips were muddy. Jim Huff and I were on the last flight out of Bella Vista and the field had been totally dug up by the previous 2 flights. The pilot decided to head out the opposite direction and when he got to the end of the runway, he hit mud and we sunk. The tires went down about 12 inches into the muck. We had to get off the plane and push it out. All the men standing around wanted to help, however, at first with men on both sides it was a push me pull you situation. Once they received instruction from the pilot we were easily push out and turned around. Finally we were in the air. The same problem existed in San Antonio so we had to come in on the opposite side. It felt like I could reach out and touch the mountain we were so close to it. Thankfully, we had one of the best pilots flying.

In San Antonio it rained most of the time and undercurrent of the river was dangerous. This limited what we could do for a few days. We had planned a trip about 2 hours walk away to a fishing lake, but even the natives said it was just too dangerous to go. Oscar Pua (Chayahuita Association President) and Gregorio Yume (Secretary) joined us in San Antonio. Oscar was given a couple of nights to share God’s Word as was Ken. We enjoyed the worship with them on Sunday morning and evening. After the morning service 5 new believers were baptized. While we were there a team of medics came to give the Hepatitis vaccine. It was great to see that many complied and were vaccinated.

This village has suffered much in this last year. They have had several tornadoes destroy houses and part of their new church as well as several unexplained deaths. They need lots of encouragement. We were able to spend a morning in the jungle with them and ended up in an area that is one of my favorites; the big rocks that surround a swimming area. We all sat on one of the big rocks and chatted for a couple of hours. Part of this time was used to debug us. We had gotten into some little bugs they call “pee key” that bury themselves under the skin to lay their eggs. We had hundreds of them on us. We also spent time in a couple of the families’ houses just chatting and talking about the future. This village really wants to have tourists come. They are so excited about the possibilities. Are you ready?

We left on the 23rd for Yurimaguas by boat. Because of the rain we had to walk about 2 miles through another village to meet Pancho and the men on the other side of the rapids. It’s not that they are really big rapids, but it’s a wooden canoe not a river raft. After falling and trudging through the muddy path we all made it to wait at the river’s edge. It was a beautiful trip down the Yanayacu River to the Paranapura River. We made one stop in Maranatha where we were graciously served a bowl of soup for lunch. They thanked us for eating with them. That’s how little it takes to be encouragers, just sharing a simple meal. Wow!

We arrived in Yurimaguas about 8:30 and we all were looking forward to getting cleaned up in the shower. That all changed as we had no water in the house. We left early (4:30 AM) the next morning to head to Tarapoto. We were stopped about 40 minutes outside of town by a group of men with guns. It was an uneasy moment. They stopped us to warn us that there had been some assaults earlier and not to pick anyone up off the street. Within 10 more minutes there was another group of armed men. I thought this must be the ones that we were warned about, but fortunately they were just checking cars for the assaulters. Once we arrived in Tarapoto the team had time to get clean, rest and explore.

We arrived in Lima to almost perfect weather, which by the way; we had almost the whole trip. The hotel where we were staying is quite often full of people on missions’ trips. On the way in we met a group from a church in Denver that was there training leaders in the area. On the way out, a Chinese man (James) started talking to me and he shared his testimony and a little about why they were there. They have started a ministry to the Chinese restaurants. There are 5000 in Lima alone. He said they feel that if they can reach the Chinese they can reach the world! He was a real blessing as was the rest of their team.

Remember to pray for James!

It is so obvious that God is working here in Peru and even more evident in the Amazon Basin. Please continue to pray for those here. The Chayahuita have a desire to reach their own people, but also a desire to go to other tribes.

Pray -
For their safety both physically and spiritual. It is a spiritual battle.

For others from the outside to have a burden to help them be trained to do this important task.

For the health workers: for training, for understanding of the AIDS situation that they are now facing. We were told that one village near Balsapuerto has 200 cases of AIDS. It is running wild. There is much promiscuity. Pray for this to change.

For the team coming in June that they will be prepared spiritually and physically.

Thank you all for your prayers and encouragement. You are partners in the many blessings that the Chayahuita have received.

Arriving in San Antonio

We arrived in San Antonio just before a big rainstorm. The airstrip became spongey after that, so we were thankful that we arrived when we did. The river was running very high and the current was strong. It made for interesting morning photos with the fog.

The team worked hard everyday with lots of sick showing up for the clinics and about 17 health workers showing up for clases that were taught. It was a very profitable time. The health workers were taught on how to diagnose children's diseases, HIV/AIDS, how to put in an IV, First Aid just to name a few things. Some of the men walked for a day or two just to be able to receive the teaching.

There were many new experiences for the team in San Antonio; drinking coconut milk, getting their faces painted with huito (a nut with a liquid that goes on light but turns black), climbing a mountain to a waterfall, playing in a Amazon Basin river just to name a few.




The week went by very quickly once again. We spent time visiting people and getting to know them. There was even a new baby named after Ken.

Two Kens

Jumping of the rock

A jungle shower

On Sunday, 5 people were baptized at the end of the service. Ken and Oscar baptized together since the current was so strong. Please pray for these believers as they continue on a path to maturity spiritually.

We readied the boat to head off to Yurimaguas. Pancho Tangoa had come to pick us up. The problem was that with all the rain the rapids were hard to manuever. He asked us to walk 2 miles to another beach past the rapids. That wouldn't have been hard under normal circumstances, but it had rained very hard the night before and the path was a muddy, yucky mess. We started walking following our guide and we came to a small puddle of water. My feet were so muddy and I thought it would be a great place to get them clean! WRONG! As soon as my left foot hit the water I ended up falling and doing the splits. No a pretty sight. So, now muddy and wet all over, we kept on walking. The path was muddy everywhere and we had to cross over several small creeks on logs. In the end we did make it to the river once again and had even beat the boat. The rapids were worse that Pancho had thought. Once we got into the boat it was mostly smooth sailing.

The river ride is always a highlight. There are so many things to see: people, boats, birds, etc. We made it into Yurimaguas around 8:30 or so. We had planned on taking showers and then sleeping a few hours to head over the mountain to Tarapoto, however, we had no water at the house. We aren't sure why at this point.

We are very thankful that nobody got sick until we hit Tarapoto. It probably was some bug that was passed around since several got it. It was just the headache, body ache and sometimes vomiting bug. Fortunately they had time to rest up and comfortably.

Lima seemed like a world away from the jungle experience. It was hard, as usual, to leave the jungle behind. Lima had some surprises of its own to share. More about that next time.

Bella Vista Part 3

Ok. This is the last part of Bella Vista. I will get on to the other parts of the trip. I promise.

In Bella Vista we were shown how to make fans out of a palm fronds and brooms out of a reed. We were also shown a plant that is used for soap. It’s amazing how many things God has provided for our use!

Of course, no trip would be complete if the men couldn’t buy their weapons. So a man in Bella Vista had work hard to get some blow guns finished for this team. Here is what happens, though, when they are put into the hands of “gringos” that are not experienced.

The week went by so quickly! Everyone had a wonderful time of learning and teaching. The villagers seemed truly encouraged and rejoicing in the Lord. Jesus and his team were off to other surrounding villages as we flew off to San Antonio. God is doing something wonderful in the Amazon Basin and it’s a privilege to be a part of it.

We left on the only non rainy day to San Antonio. On the next post we will tell you about that part of the trip!