Friday, October 21, 2011

La Palabra de Dios - The Word of God

God is working in the jungle!  I just arrived back from another trip to the jungle here in Bolivia and we saw how  God’s Word is impacting the people there. 
On the internet we found an audio version of Bible stories in the native Chimane language.  There are pictures that accompany the stories.  It is a summary of key stories from the Bible, starting with Genesis and going to Christ’s resurrection.  This was the first trip we  used it in the jungle.  The people were in awe of hearing God’s Word in their OWN language!  We played it several times in the village of Ushwe and it always drew a crowd.  The villagers sit in silence and study the pictures as they listen to the stories.  On certain pictures, the people get very animated and begin talking rapidly to each other and pointing at the pictures.  One is of Jesus, after he had been beaten and they were taking him to the cross, another is a picture depicting the two paths we have to choose from- to accept Christ and go to Heaven or reject Him and go to Hell.

One night, in the dark, a father brought his baby and wife to us (they were accompanied by about 20 other people).  He was concerned because his baby was very sick.  We treated her as best we could and said there was nothing else we could do.  He listened and then said to me, “La Palabra de Dios?” (“The Word of God?”)  They wanted to hear the Bible stories!  We grabbed the speakers and the pictures and that night, by flashlight, the village sat in silence and listened again to God’s Word.  It was a miracle. 
I know that His Word is impacting that village and the others up and down river.  Please pray that we can continue to share with the people there and that they will come to know and understand who Christ is and His great love for them.  Pray that we will receive funds to continue this ministry.  It is a great work and we cannot do it alone, we need the prayers and support of each and every one of you.

Also, many of you heard I took medical class for missionaries.  I was able to use many of the skills learned in the class while I was in the jungle.  This is another way to reach the people, by meeting their personal needs of health, etc., we can then meet their spiritual needs.