George's Back From The Jungle

10/18/2004

hello everyone,

WOW!!! i dont know where to begin. first of all i want to thank you for your prayers. God definately answered them in awesome ways. He gave us safe travels, health, new believers, and time with growing churches. i spent the first 2 weeks in a community called Shintuya. there jonathan and i met with the only believer, so far, named Mario. he is growing in Jesus daily, and is a great light for the Truth in this community. shintuya is the largest community we visit. they have alot of outside influence which the Devil is using for his benefit. the people had alot of questions for jonathan and i about Jesus and following Him. we were also priviledged to see a man named Chemo give his life to Jesus. something encouraging for me was how Mario handled his temptations. when he is asked by his freinds to drink he simply shares how Jesus has changed his life, and that he no longer desires to get drunk. he also has a desire to see more of his relatives and freinds come to a saving knowledge of Jesus. one night Jonathan and i were invited to eat at the chief's house. we enjoyed fish stew and boiled yuka. the stew was pretty simple. it consisted of the water the fish was cooked in and half of a fish (i got the back half). yuka is a root that is consumed throughout Peru. it is the potato and rice of Peru. boiled it can be bland, but fried it is good. the chief's name is Sergio. he is not yet a follower of Jesus, but God really provided us with alot of time with him to grow our friendship. God is doing great things in this community, but the author of lies (satan) is doing everything he can to disrupt that work. jonathan and i met a man named darryl in shintuya. he is from california and he travels all over the world. he is 34 and has been to over 60 countries worldwide. he was as shocked as we were to see a gringo (white person) in the Amazon Jungle. we talked with him for about ten minutes then went on our way. i didnt really give darryl much more thought after our brief conversation. jonathan and i left shintuya a couple of days later and headed for our next village called Masenawa. the trip usually takes 9 hours. river travel is slow. we left shintuya around 6:00am and our next stop was Manu, a small village 4 hours down river, to buy more gas. God had bigger plans for us that day than to get to Masenawa. it took us nine hours to get to Manu. several times jonathan and i ran the boat onto rocky sections of shallow river which took alot of time and energy to free our thirty foot boat. two times the motor just cut off and wouldnt restart for half an hour. and twice (once each) jonathan and i actually ran the boat onto the bank. we also almost flipped the boat when the current carried our boat into a log coming up out of the water. we finally arrived in Manu just before sunset, and prepared to spend the night there. manu is a tourist town so they actually have tiolets and showers. we made our way to the bath-house and were greeted by darryl who was staying in the nearby hostal. like i said God had bigger plans for jonathan and i this day. i immediatly realized darryl was the reason we had had such a rough day on the river. God put him in our path not once but twice, so there had to be a reason. later as jonathan and i were eating dinner (tuna and crackers) darryl stopped by and we began playing cards. as darryl approached our table jonathan and i quickly prayed that God would open doors for us to share the gospel of Jesus with him. as we played cards God brought to my mind darryl's love for traveling. and as we continued playing cards darryl confessed that he was ready to settle down and start a family. there was the opening God provided. i asked if traveling left him empty and wanting something more. he said yeah. i told him that jonathan and i knew a way that his life could be fulfilling and meaningful. he said he would like to hear about it. jonathan and i were priviledged to lead darryl through the gospel presentation and he surrendered his life to Jesus!!! the next morning i had the great priviledge of baptizing darryl in the madre de dios river in the middle of the Amazon Jungle. i think that i will stop here for today and tell you the rest of my trip tomorrow. this way the letter wont be too long. i do, however, want to share some of the things that God taught me during the first half of my trip. Faith, Faith, Faith, and just a little more Faith. i quickly realized that the "jungle-life" can be difficult, especially for a white boy who has never been past Texas. my faith grew daily as God answered my prayers, as He taught me awesome things while i studied the Bible, the ways He protected us, and how i was comforted in knowing that He is always in control. i also realized, maybe for the first time in my life, that God really desires to have a relationship with the people He created in His image (everybody). God is so good and honest and loving and fulfilling. hopefully it is clear to you in this email that i am nothing and God is everything. God has given me a great opportunity to come here and deliver His message of Truth to indigenous people. you know what is awesome is that God also desires to have a relationship with you and use you to deliver His message to your freinds, family, co-workers, maybe even other countries. put your faith in God, allow Him to change you, and enjoy the full and content life He desires for you to have. i really love you all and am praying for you often. i will write part two tomorrow and hopefully get some pictures to you also.

servant of the Living God,

george _ _ ______________________________________________________ _ _

Keeping the adventure alive and this website running takes more then just my time and effort.
If you find this website interesting or enjoyable, perhaps even useful, please show your support and Donate.