Posted in A Trip Update by Chad Mustain on 6/29/2009
I have another update from the leaders of the Peru team. The team overall continues to be doing great and is just blown away by all that God is doing. One of the leaders said it's hard to verbalize the things they are seeing and experiencing. Here is just a small picture of how they are seeing God move:
The team saw two men who struggling with homosexuality accept Christ as Lord and Savior and turn from that lifestyle.
In one village the guys from the team did a lot of ministry with men on how to be leaders in their community, how to be the spiritual leaders of their homes, and how to better love their wives. While this was going on the girls from the team did a lot of ministry with the women on helping provide a godly home and raise godly families. In the midst of this there was lot's of discipleship and encouragement that went on.
God placed team members in the right place at the right time to help a man who was choking to death. After performing the heimlich maneuver on the man and making sure he was ok, he gave his life to the Lord as well as his daughter.
The team prayed over a man who was on his death bed and had not walked in over three months. The Lord miraculously healed him and he got up and walked!!
The team is seeing lots of people come to know the Lord for the first time, others re-centering their lives on Christ, the guys are doing a lot of preaching, and the team just continues to be amazed with all that the Lord is doing. On average the team is spending 3-4 days in each village that they are in and what the Lord does in that time is so awesome.
The leaders asked that you pray specifically for the health of the team. It seems the strongest attack Satan is waging on the team is slowing them down due to illness. They ask that you please pray for strength, strong bodies, deep rest when they sleep, and that when they do get sick for very quick healing and recovery.
I wish you could hear the excitement and joy in the leader's voices because of all that the Lord is doing in and through the team!! You should be so proud of your students because the Lord is clearly using them in mighty ways.
Posted in A Trip Update by Chad Mustain on 6/23/2009
I just spoke via satellite phone with the leaders of the Peru team. The team is doing very well and will be headed down river to a new village in the morning. The leaders assured me that they are safe and have not had any problems do to the unrest in Peru.
Earlier in the week the team was in a village that was very challenging. The team experienced a lot of spiritual warfare, challenging ministry, had some minor illness, and really just struggled with keeping positive attitudes about the weather, food etc. However, the team has spent the last few days in a different river village. While in this village the Lord has given them a time of refreshment, rest, fruitful ministry, and a renewed focus and joy, despite food, weather, mosquitoes etc. This is exactly what the team needed as they near the end of month one in the Amazon Jungle of Peru and head in to month two.
The team asks for your continued prayers. They desire to grow deeper in their walks with the Lord, to continue to pursue rich community with the team, and that God would tune their hearts with his and his plans for the people they encounter.
Posted in A Trip Update by 2009 Amazon Jungle May Team Blog Page on 6/16/2009
The internet is always a funny thing over-seas. The team couldn't get their blog posting to go through so they sent it to me to post for them.
Blessings,
Chad M.
Tuesday, June 16
We're in Requena
and leaving for Yanallpa on June 17th. When we first arrived in
Requena, we felt the spiritual and physical darkness. The people were
not welcoming and the weather was dark and gloomy. In spite of all
this, there is no doubt that God is moving in this town. We have seen
God work through healings of both physical and spiritual nature. On
Sunday night we had a church service outside as the inside was too
small to hold all of us. Deacon preached on God's power to salvation,
and then we asked if anyone would like prayer for healing. Three
people came forward and all were healed right there! Then five young
men received Christ and came by the place we're staying today to get a
Bible. Later that night as we were debriefing, we had the chance to
help out a neighbor who had a severe head injury - he also received
Christ today... his name is Angel, please keep him in your prayers.
Yesterday in the morning five members of the team held a
conference for the pastors in the area and each shared something from
God with these servants of God in Requena. Jesse Boldt, Bethany, Jesse
Newton and Isaac shared about grace, unity, a pastor's responsibility
to their family, and shared a good word against religion. At the end
the pastors here were hugging one another and asking for forgiveness...
it was beautiful! We are looking forward to hearing what God does here
after we go! Yesterday was also a hard day emotionally for some
members of the team who met a family who had just lost their 3 month
old baby, but we were brought comfort in the form of a beautiful
rainbow. It started off as only part of the arc, but as the sun shone
through the clouds brighter and brighter, the full rainbow appeared.
The colors were weak at first but they grew stronger as the clouds
parted.
God is breaking our pre-conceptions of what church should look
like, who He is, and who we are in Him - I am grateful for all that He
is doing here, though it seems a bit messy at times, He is without a
doubt in control, and it is such a privilege to be part of His work and
see Him use your sons and daughters in such powerful ways to bring the
truth, light and healing of His kingdom to the hearts and bodies of the
people here in this place. (Crystal, team leader, with help from team)
God is continuing to break us, but through it he strengthens our
team's bond. We have truly become a family. We look out for each
other, and care for one another, to any extent. No matter how small a
problem or situation is, we always turn to the Lord first. I want to
thank you all for your prayers. God is definitely showing off here in
Peru and it is amazing! He is continually breaking my heart
for the people here, and teaching me the compassion He has for all.
Please pray for us as we continue traveling and sharing God's love. I
miss you all very much! Please don't forget to pick me up at Charlotte
at 9:30 on July 29th :) Love Ashley
Mom and Dad
(mom mom, pop pop) I'm alive and doing wonderful! God is good and He is
doing big things! IM iss you, kid! Aaron - I'm praying for you and I
miss you! Amanda Mike and the Gibsons - thanks for the prayers, love
you all! - Ana
Jill and Greg: Everything is great. I smell foul. Haven't stopped
sweating since I got out of the car in Gainesville. Bathing in the
river tomorrow. No toilet seats, but also no holes. Love you and I'm
staying with the team on the 28th so figure something out - Eric
Schneider (son)
Dearest mother and family, (Karen Smith)
I have much to write you, but I do not want to use paper and ink.
Instead I hope to visit you and talk with you face to face, so that our
joy may be complete (2John 12). Love you and miss you...
In Him,
Jason
Hey y'all! :) Thi sounds cheesy, but honestly I can't put in words
what God is doing here and I definitely cannot put it on paper. It's
been difficult but so beautiful at the same time God is alive in Peru!
Mom - I'm still alive :) Dad- you were right, you would love it here.
Grandma - your letter blesses me everyday. To the chirren - I'm
working on your jungle souvenirs! Love and miss all of you and to my prayer warriors - keep fighting! The Lord is hearing and working. Be blessed and see you all soon! - Amanda
Dear Brenna, Mama and Daddy,
I'm not married to a Peruvian man yet, but the prospects are
looking good! Just kidding! :) I'm doing well physically and
emotionally - I still miss you, though. God is definitely working in
this place. The children here have won my heart. Please continue to
pray for me and my team... Speaking of the team, I love them! We are
becoming a real family. Not that I'm replacing you all or anything. I
honestly feel very safe - we girls constantly love on each other and
the guys look out for us. In closing, here are some verses that bring
me comfort: I Corinthians 15:58, Hebrews 11 and James 1:2-4. I LOVE YOU! (Give Missy and Romeo a love for me) - Molly
Liz: I lvoe you. Mom: I love you too. Everyone: I miss you. Having lots of fun! - Isaac
Hi Mom, Dad, Jessica, Tyler and Jordan,
I'm still alive, no worris. Gos is good and see you soon! love, Bethany
Hey Mom, DAd, and Marcus - God is moving in Peru! Can't wait to tell ya all about it! - Chelsea
Hi mom and dad, I am alive and impetigofrec. Christina remember
that rain you talked about. It happened here and it made me happy.
Love, Jon
Howdy family and friends, Peru
is Awesome and God is Amazing! I'm learning so much and experiencing
things I thought only happened in the Bible. Praise to God! Love y'all,
Sharina
Hey everyone, I'm alive and doing great. I'm actually getting pretty tan... who would have thought?! love, Alex
"Hola!" I wish I could tell you how much God has been moving
through this trip! He's amazing! Thank you for all your lvoe and
prayers! Love you all! Josh K. :)
Thank you for all your prayers, God is doing big things down here.
Family, I lvoe you so much and thank you for being so amazing. Bing,
if you get to see this, I miss you a ton, I am praying for yor summer
and I love you! Deacon
God has definitely been showing up in pwoer down here. He has
done too much to try to describe with words. The only thing I can say
is that God is here, and He is at work. I thank you all for your
continued prayers. God has already changed almost everything in me,
praise be to His glorious Name. There is no need to worry as God is
protecting us all. - Chris
Posted in A Trip Update by Chelsea Winn on 6/10/2009
Buenas tardes from Nauta! For all of you concerned mothers...we're all alive! After a long flight from Ft. Lauderdale to Lima, we hopped on a plane to Iquitos, where we stayed for a few short nights. And we have now been residing in the city of Nauta (Crystal's home town) since Friday. Tomorrow we will be heading out on the river to the next village.
The Holy Spirit is moving in mighty way throughout Nauta. Although our time here is short, our team has broken up into different zones all over the city, looking to the Lord to lead us to people who either do not know the Lord, or people who simply need some encouragement and love. Each day, different people come back with amazing stories. On the first day of street ministry, a couple who had lost a baby just three weeks ago came to know the Lord, praise God! Also many people in the city are suffering from illnesses, and we have jumped in to pray for them. It's amazing to see how a simple game of futbol (soccer) can show God's love to the children. We can also see God's presence in that he is breaking the language barrier. Some of us are being stretched outside our comfort zone, speaking a language that we are not completely comfortable speaking, and others are quickly learning bits and pieces of the language. However, there are many places in Nauta that are in desperate need of the Lord's intervention. I am in awe of how you can walk through one neighborhood and feel the love of the children, and then you turn down another road, and there is evident darkness. Please pray for the people of Nauta, as we will be leaving them soon.
The team would also like to tell you all how blessed we are to be here. On one of the first days in Nauta, we led a children's program, and during the program there was a downpour of rain. So what do we do? We grabbed the kids by the hand and played in the rain! However, it didn't stop there. The inner-child in ourselves came out in full force...we got a little muddy---well that's an understatement, we got extremely muddy. And we may have been having more fun than the children at times...but it was a blessing to just "be a kid" an laugh with the children. One of the things that touched us the most was that, after playing in the mud, the little girls followed us to the well so we could clean up, and they were so kind and focused on getting us clean. I will never forget the girls' hands wiping my face and fingers going into my ears to make sure the mud was completely gone. Also, we've had many interesting food experiences: alligator (it's awesome to most of us), chicken, fish, lots of rice and eggs. It's all amazing---although some are ready for a nice American meal. But we will survive. Also, one team member (Eric) celebrated his birthday this week and the cocineras baked a birthday cake, which was very delicious. They are a blessing.
The team continues to draw closer to each other. So many victories were won at training camp, and more occur each day. God has truly brought us together for a reason, and it's not accident that each member is here. We thank you for your continued prayers, and can't wait to share more experiences with you soon.
As some of you may be aware, there is a bit of unrest in Peru at the moment that is making the news headlines. Myself and other AIM staff have been reading up on the news and want to assure you that your students are safe and far from harms way.
According to news reports, most of the unrest is in the western part of Peru, in the surrounding areas/regions of the city Chachapoyas. Our Amazon Peru team is in the northeastern part of Peru near Iquitos. A large mountain range and jungle region separates where the unrest is from the area where the team is located. In general terms, this would be like something going on the west coast of the U.S. and our team being on the east coast.
The safety of our teams is a primary concern of ours. Please be assured that we remove any team from harms way as quickly as possible. We have the support and help of local people who are in tune with what is going on and who are a valuable resource and help to us.
I should be posting an update from the team later today.
With training camp well underway and students chomping at the bit to leave for their countries, I thought I would share a little bit of what God is doing in their lives.
Their daily schedule looks the same, wake up, pray, eat, pray, listen to some great teaching, and then pray. God says that where two or more are gathered He is there, and He is making himself known this week! All though students know what to expect, God seems to have this funny little way of giving them what they need, not what they expect. The difference between this mission and any other is that they come knowing no one, this is not youth group or school friends all going on a trip together, this is exactly where God wants them.
God is taking them from a group of individuals, and forming them into an unstoppable team. Each day they have had "team builders" that are stretching and growing them, forcing them to communicate, and be real with one another. God is bringing them to a place of realness with themselves, their team, and with God. One of the things that this team has expressed as a struggle is communication. I have seen them grow in a few days from not being able to make a decision, to loving each other enough to respect who is talking and being willing to let go of their agenda for the better of the team. This has made for a communicating team that is willing to serve one another.
Another thing that God is doing through all of the great speakers here is removing their masks. Most 18-25 year olds hide behind something. Good looks, great talents, fear, anger, it goes on and on. I have seen God removing these masks in this team all week. I have seen "realness" and a desire to really dive into Jesus with everything they have! I am so excited about what God will continue to do in their lives in Peru and the Amazon Jungle. Please keep them in your prayers!
Hello my amazing brothers and sisters in Christ! So we are supposed to give updates every month and I feel like it has been way more than that with all that's been going on, but either way, here is where i stand......
7 DAYS AND COUNTING!!!
The Lord has just blown me away with all He has done. As far as money goes, the Lord has provided over and above what I need! Thank you to all who gave anything whether that be money or camping gear or your time on your knees in prayer! (that however, i still do ask for) :) All of the logistics of the trip are done and I am hittin the skies in a week!
Right now, my only worry i guess would be how in the world i am supposed to fit all of this stuff in one measly camping backpack. but hey! if God can provide this opportunity and the provisions for it, I'm sure stuffing a backpack is a piece a cake and I got nothing to worry about. Although I do gotta admit when my dad told me i needed to start "practicing" my packing now, I chuckled....(word of advice...dont laugh at your father's instruction..you'll end up looking like an idiot because infact, he's always right.) lets just say i'm glad i used to help my mom with those 1000 piece puzzles or else i wouldnt have the slightest clue what i was doing! it really is a giant puzzle!
anyway, on a more spiritual level, the Lord is already growing me and teaching me alot. Not only about the Peruvian culture, but about how to best reach that culture. Every culture is different and has different ways of doing things. I'm learning alot about how the best way to evangelize is not teaching them "American Christian tradition" but teaching them Jesus through what is familiar to them. I could go into lots of detail, but just know the Lord is already teaching me so much not only about what I am going to be doing and saying, but how I should go about doing that. I AM SO EXCITED!
PRAYER REQUESTS:
- still spanish! i know i'm not going to be fluent when i get there, but i dont want to be lazy in my learning.
- God to prepare the hearts of the people we are going to be talking to and to prepare our hearts!
- unity in my team (about 19 people - leaders are Jesse and Christal)
- protection while there and wisdom in decisions
THANKS SO MUCH! I found out I will not be able to personally write while out in the jungle, but my leader will be able to post updates a couple times. You can read those from this blog website. I will however write as soon as i get back and share ALL of the amazing things the Lord did!
Can you believe that? Here are a few details that you will want to know.
Sleeping:
You will be sleeping in either Cabins or Tents. The Cabins have mattresses but the tents do not. So if you are assigned to a tent you will want to bring a pad to sleep on. If you do not want to take the pad to country, you can leave it at AIM and we will let the next group use it.
Here is how we divided the sleeping arrangements:
For the Girls the breakdown looks like this:
Tents:
·Nicaragua
·Swaziland-One Month
·Kenya-One Month
·Central American Expedition Team
Cabins:
·Amazon Jungle
·India
·Kenya-Two Month
·Swaziland-Two Month
·Philippines
For the Boys you will all be in a cabin together.
Everyone will want to bring a sleeping bag and a great idea is to bring a sheet as it does get hot in GA and for some, it gets hot in country. Most of you will want to sleep on top of your sleeping bag.
Food:
You will not be able to take food in the cabins or the tents. The ants are horrible here in GA and they will get
in your sleeping bags and they will bite. So no Food! There will be a place to put food inside so make sure it is marked well with your name.
Cell Phones:
A friendly reminder that you are not to have cell phones while at Training Camp. You will be able to call your parents upon arrival if you would like to.
Laundry:
This is the largest Training Camp ever! Count on not having your laundry done while at Training Camp.
Extra Luggage:
You can only have one suitcase in the cabin or tent. All your other items will be put inside in one room. Count on not getting to that luggage as your may be on the bottom of the stack.
Items you will DEFINETLY want:
The two most common items that individuals do not bring are a flashlight and a toothbrush holder. It is dark on our property with very limited outside lighting.
Your toothbrush and toothpaste will not be kept in your cabin; you will want to put your toothbrush in something to protect it from germs.
Rain:
It is forecasted to rain most the week. Plan accordingly! The dirt in GA is red clay and will ruin your shoes and clothes to the point that you will want to throw most of the them away at the end of Training Camp.
Your final paperwork is past due! This was expected to be in the office. If your Account Page does not show that all is in; you need to get that done today, NO EXCEPTIONS!
