Since March was “Manistry Month” the ladies from my team combined with another group of ladies and were sent to Rurrenabaque, Bolivia to partner with Casa de los Niño’s. We had a great time pouring into the kids and putting a fresh coat of paint on the facility to make it a more inviting place for them to learn and grow.
We even got to celebrate a South American Father’s Day with these families but in true World Race fashion, just as we were getting comfortable with our schedule and our time at the daycare, we received word that we would be leaving for 4 days to do ministry outside of the town aka in the jungle. The details were rather vague (another World Race trend), so we packed up our tents and a few supplies and waited for a boat that would take us 3 hours up the river to a remote village. The boat ride was inundated with unanswered questions and anticipation of what God was leading us into. Where are you sending us? Will the jungle bugs eat us alive? What will we be doing when we get there? Will the natives understand any English at all? What will they think when a boat full of white people shows up in their small village? And how can we make a difference in just a few days? The list goes on but let’s be honest, having the answers to any of these questions would have created unrealistic expectations. All I needed to know in the moment is that the Lord had gone before us and had prepared a way.
Arriving at the first village after sunset, we trudged through the dark, muddy jungle with all of our gear for about 15 minutes until we saw the campsite where we set up our tents, cooked some spam over the fire, prayed for our time in the village, and went to sleep under the stars. The next day we were surprised to find out that the majority of the community would be at a meeting all day, fortunately we would still be able to visit a few homes to pass out bibles, offer basic medical supplies, and invite the kids who were home to come to church the next day. We did as much as we could, given the absence of many villagers, until our ministry was interrupted yet again…this time not by the meeting but by a huge afternoon thunderstorm! Typical for a tropical rainforest, I know, but I still felt so helpless seeking shelter in our individual tents. Didn’t God know we only had one day with these people who desperately need to know that they are not forgotten but that the creator of the universe sees them and loves them?!?
Well of course He does, but when the rains subsided we came out only to realize the community meeting was still not over! While they carried on well into the evening, we cleared up some debris from the storm and used machetes to cut down limbs that were falling on their huts. Most of this work was completed without seeing a single person from the village. But God saw us. He prepared this work for us and is pleased by our obedience. He didn’t send us there to save the entire village but to be a part of their story for just a brief moment. As we packed up our belongings the following afternoon, one of the community leaders told us that our presence alone made a difference to these people. He proceeded to by say that, “It’s as if Jesus himself was here in our village.”
Knowing that we able to share the love of Jesus with this village by just being there is a great reminder that people are always watching us. Even when we think they are preoccupied by another task, they are looking to Christians to see what we are doing and how we are different because we personally know Jesus. How are you exemplifying the love of Jesus in your day to day life? Think about it, because someone who desperately wants to be known and loved is watching you!
