Along the Amazon

We set out on an eight hour ride on the Amazon River to reach a different communities along the way. The sights were more than I could take in. The lush green jungle bordering the murky waters of the Amazon. It was incredible, to this day I still can't believe that I was actually there, we were actually on the Amazon River... crazy stuff...



PUERTO RICO, COLOMBIA was our first stop. We did some sunday school activities with the kids of the community, and I helped some of the people in the community paint the church, and decorate with some of the girls on my team to "innagaurate" the church and for a wedding. I've only been to weddings of people that I know, and I've known it to be a touching experience. But even witnessing these people who were strangers to me get married caused tears to roll down my face. There is something about two people making a public display of their decision to become one, is just so beautiful.



SANTA CECILIA, PERU was our next stop. This was the community of one of the YWAM staff, Ingrid. She and her husband Jose are presently doing their DTS. While there I was overcome with an intense feeling of worthlessness. i had no idea what I was doing in the Amazon, felt like I wasn't contributing in any way, and made myself sick thinking about it. I had a migrane and just wanted to go to bed, and avoid everybody. But, i had to stay with my team. I shared my frustrations with God during a time of worship, and before I went to bed that night I felt Him so near "my mercies are new every day" I knew that my time there was precious and each day, and that this feeling of worthlessness was just the enemy trying to make my time in the Amazon ineffective.



A woman making Farinia, something eaten with every meal.


VISTA ALEGRE, PERU
With a renewed peace of mind, I was looking forward to the day. We said good bye to everyone in Santa Cecilia, and headed to Vista Alegre. I immediately fell in love with the people of this community, and was determined to give my all for them.


I spent some time in the Pastor's house, helping the women cook. Being a girl who is used to cooking on stove top, the women were amused watching me prepare food for the open fire.




I spent most of my time in Vista Alegre with the kids of this community, and learned so much from them. They were so proud to be the ones to show me around their community. Because they all wanted to feel like a part of this, I held two kids hands in each of mine, along with one who sat utop my shoulders. They showed me all the best sights to see, places to play, things to climb on, and fruit to eat. Then for some reason they found it quite amusing to stick some sort of fruit and smash it in my hair, but it didn't matter, I was laughing so much and havign way too much fun.

Tag games were quite interesting. It was a game of who could tag Tasha without getting cought. I think I spent most of my time in this community running after these little kids. I don't even know what more I can say about it, other than this was my favorite day from all of outreach.



While there I also came across a group of kids who were "reading" a children's Bible. One of the older girls had the attention of all of the younger kids, making up stories to go along with each of the pictures. I asked them if they would want me to read to them and they were excited to take me up on my offer.

Crazy Story

Another team arrived from at the Leticia base, they are coming from Hawaii. They are an amazing team, and it's been fun sharing our room with a few more girls.

So one of the guys is from Minnesota. I find out that he went to a private school here in the twin cities. I have friends who also went to this school and so naturally I ask if he knew them, which he did. I share that I know them from my church, his response: wait, what church? .... Yeah he totally goes to Open Door, but we had never met because our church is pretty big, and he went to a different service than I. But still meeting someon in the amazon who goes to your church, pretty darn cool story.

Tabatinga, Brazil

The next two weeks we spent in the city of Tabatinga, a town that borders Leticia. Motorcycles and moto-taxis zoom by. For them, this is more than a form of transportation, it is also a source of entertainment. In the U.S. we may go out to a movie or to grab a bite to eat, there they drive there motorcycles around the main street of town. It's quite amusing to sit and pick out one motorcycle and watch it pass by some seven times, making the couple mile loop around the median.





While there, we worked with a church and stayed in the sunday school classrooms. Every day we went and did some sort of creative evangelism. Some days we would be clowns in the park with kids, other days we would write verses with chalk on the sidewalks around the park. We would stop and talk with anyone who was curious. It was so cool to see people so receptive, and so willing to receive Christ as their Lord and Savior.



During our time at this church, I gave the message in a youth service (i don't know why they call it a youth service when people of all ages attend) I spoke about masks, and challenged people to take their masks off and accept who God says that they are, as opposed to living by who the world says that they are. To drive this home everyone recieved a paper mask (the type you would see at a masquerade) and at the end of the service, we all ripped them in half.

I also spoke to the youth about evangelism, what it is, and that we are all called to do it wherever we are, that it is our responsiblity as Christians.

This time in Tabatinga was difficult, but with God's strength and grace, we overcame the challenges placed before us as a group, and in our relationships with each other as they arose.

Leticia, Colombia

During our time in Leticia, we did various work projects around the base and in the community. Some of these activities included using machetes to mow lawns and picking up garbage in the streets.

We had the opportunity to serve in a nursing home, cleaning, helping in the kitchen, and visiting with residents.

My first day there I was so excited because I was given the opportunity to work in the infermery. I thought that I would be finding residents and bringing them to the nurses, which I did, but I was also able to treat some wounds. The nurse explained the process to me, and I cared for open sores on an old man's feet. I saw more things than most people want to see in a lifetime, but for me this was a definig moment. It was one of those things that confirmed what I plan on doing with my life, heath care in missions.




Sometimes we sit and wonder, "God, what do you want me to do with my life" It's a very good question but sometimes we fail to actively seek the answer. I think that we need to go out and experience different things whether that means mentoring children of the inner city, landscaping yards, knitting blankets, whatever it is that we have a passion to do. And in that, through that, God can speak. He can confirm that question we ask by saying, this is where I want you or even expand from there. This experience in the nursing home was one of those experiences for me.

Remain In Me

This was the focus of my week, and a begining of a deeper journey in my relationship with God. Through the dificult time in Benjamin constant, I learned that I can't do it in my own strength. I need that time alone with God, to foster first and foremost that relatioship.


"I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes[a] so that it will be even more fruitful. 3You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. 4Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.
5"I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.

John 15:1-5