This has been our second month
here, and we have started to undergo some trials. We mainly noticed the distance from home when
things happened in the family. First, we
received news that Kim’s dad was diagnosed with prostate cancer. The next day Kim’s uncle was hospitalized
with liver problems, and was in critical condition. Then we received a call
from the Sanchez family to let us know that the pastor in Jobo had committed suicide.
After all the news of Kim’s family, there was no stopping her from heading home
to be with her family. As badly as I
wanted to go, I could not because of how much money it would cost, and we had
12 potential interns for the school coming in a few days. So Kim, the girls, and I headed to the
airport to see if we could find a last minute flight. (We nearly escaped a collision that caused
Carlos’s heart to stop I am sure!) Thank God that they found one. However, they did have a 12 hour layover in
Miami. It was an adventure we will mark
as an exciting memory! They made it home safe and sound to spend time with
family and friends. Kim and the girls
were fortunate enough to be able to spend over a week in Iowa with her cousins
and uncle, being able to provide some company for her uncle while others had to
work! It is a time that she will be
forever grateful for. Thank you to all
of you who were praying for this situation.
I stayed back and prepared for a
week out in the jungle with our potential interns. The night after sending off
my family I woke up at 5:00 am with a horrible pain in my back around my
kidneys. I assumed it was kidney stones
and made my way to the bathroom. I began
sweating and the pain continued to increase to the point it was almost
unbearable. So I did what I think any
man does when feeling sick I took a shower about every 30 min. however the pain
persisted. I could not lie down, because
it was even more uncomfortable. I decided
maybe it was gas and took some gasx pills, and I took yet another shower. This time I got sick in the shower and felt as
though I would never stop puking. I came
to the conclusion this was a spiritual attack and began praying for
healing. I prayed unceasingly until 8:00
am in the morning. Upon waking, I felt
perfectly fine with no problem. As I was telling Matt, our intern, he said
about 8:00 he was getting up and felt the need to pray for me. It was none other than the healing power and
grace of God that I was healed. I have
no clue as to what I was suffering from, but thank God for his provision.
One March
14, the team of twelve arrived, and we picked them up at 7:30 pm from the
airport. Since it was late we just ate
together and did our introductions and gave instruction for the next day. The next day had a lot of surprises of its
own. We started with a wonderful
breakfast and gave our ministry introductions.
As a representative of Feed The Crave, I didn’t want the students to
just come for an experience but search themselves to find what God was saying
to them. So I asked three questions 1.
Why are you here? 2. What is God telling
you? 3. What are you going to do about
it? These are questions that I often ask
myself so that I keep myself on task for God.
I challenged them to think about these questions every day and to try to
answer them by the end of the week. In
the afternoon we began work around the Sanchez’s. They had a number of chores to be done. Anywhere from lacquering wood, to cutting
grass with a machete, and digging a hole about 9 ft. long and 6ft wide and
about 3 ft. deep. Others made a new door
frame and hung a door for a house that houses teams. Needless to say we all got the chance to talk
and work alongside one another in hard labor.
Everyone was looking forward to the next day when we would be
slaughtering 28 chickens. Most everyone
got the chance to kill, pluck, skin and gut a chicken. You may wonder why we would be doing this on
a mission trip or what this may be teaching.
This is meant to help us cut costs on food for groups that come and it
is used to show our interns how they can become self-sufficient. I will spare you the pictures of this part of
our ministry. After the chicken stuff
they had a bible study for the ladies of the community, and we served them food
and played with their children. It was
important for the men to serve them because some have never been served by men
before.
On Sunday morning we
headed out to La Barra. It is a long exhausting trip that takes nearly all day
to complete. The trip includes a 5hr car ride then another hour in a boat to
arrive at our new resting place. On our boat ride, we ran into one of the
animals that people most anticipate seeing here and that is monkeys. 
When we arrived everyone pitched in, and we had camp set up
in no time. Then we got to kick back, relax, and join in a devotion and good
food. It was a well deserved break,
because the next day we were hiking into Jobo. It always proves to be difficult with all the
mud and materials and food that must be packed in. As we were on our way, I had questions of if this team realized what
they were about to go do. One being the
hard work, but most of all the spiritual war that was going on in this
place. They have had 3 ministers in a
matter of 1.5 years and it has been difficult to find someone to lead. So I wondered if they were in the right mind
to walk into such a spiritually dark place.
But as we traveled through the jungle, I heard songs of praise, people
encouraging one another, and smiles on everyone’s face.
We arrived at Don Jose’s house worn out, so Jon P one of the
men that led us through the jungle cut open some coconuts and let us drink the
milk. Man was it refreshing. After a short rest, we continued to the
church in Jobo where we would be staying for 2 nights. Upon our arrival, we went across the river,
to the house of the previous pastor that had recently passed. We were able to play with his children and
pray with his wife and try to encourage them as much as we could.
Later that night, we stayed up singing praises until early
morning. You could feel the spirit
moving in these young men. The following
day, we started work on gathering sand out of the river for a school
house. It was going to be built next to
the church and used for many different ministries. One of which is used to tell young girls that
they do not have to go off with older men to be there wives or partners for a
period of time. I know this may sound
dumb but in CR it is common for a young girl who is 12 or older to leave her
family with a man that is much older. She
may stay a few months or weeks at a time and then return to her family. So the ministry that will be happening there
is going to change people’s lives in ways that only God can.
This week was one
that I will always remember. There was
so much that was learned. For me and as
for my question of whether or not these men were prepared for the spiritual warfare
we were about to embark on, God asked me a question for how long are you going
to question my ways. For how long are
you going to doubt that I am at work. God had clearly prepared them for what we
were about to do. Even if they had no clue
of what impact just walking into this area could do in a spiritual aspect, God did and he prepared his army for
battle. Praise to the King of all Kings
and the Lord of all Lords for his ways are true. Praise God for His Spirit for the convictions
that are put upon our heart, because we can do no good apart from him and only
good comes through Him. He continues to
work in my life asking me to trust and obey.
Because unless we truly surrender our lives to him, our whole selves
trusting that his way is better than ours, we will never get to see Ephesians
3:20-21 in action. Now to him who is
able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power
that is at work within us. To him be the
glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever
and ever! Amen. I want to see him do
more than I could ever imagine or ask for, but I must trust in his ways for
they are better than mine. Praise him
for his provision.
PLEASE PRAY: for Jeff Schrock, Max Mullikin, Levi Schrock for they have all had
convictions of the Spirit about their lives: where they are going, what they
are doing, and for Levi and Max to attend our internship program. So be praying for them. For the Splechters, please pray for us to
continue building relationships in CR and for our language to continue to
progress. For Kim’s family, as of a few
days ago her uncle passed. For her
father and the decisions he is going to have to make. And that God would show himself to us
daily. I thank you for your continued
support and if you would like to give to us or this ministry go to www.feedthecrave.com and click the
support tab click on our name or mail a check to Feed The Crave 2511 S Veterans Dr. Effingham, Illinois 62401
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