Greetings from the Ulot Team!We've had a day off for rest because our team has been riddled with sickness--congestion, fevers, achiness, nausea, fatigue.... Our namby-pamby American immune systems seem ready to throw in the towel but we are not. And we could not be under the care of a sweeter couple than the local pastor and his wife, who host (read: royally spoil) us when we come downriver each week. Tomorrow we'll head out for our last week of ministry in one last barangay! I can't even believe I just wrote that sentence.
The barangay we were in last week was site of the local high school, which meant we got to see some of the youth we met earlier in the summer, further upriver. It also meant that each day began at 4:37 a.m. with pounding drums and xylophones as the high school dance team practiced their routine for an upcoming fiesta right outside our windows.. what can you do about that but laugh? :) We spent several days there and then hiked a good hour or so through fields and jungle to a much smaller barangay for a few more days, where we had the luxury of staying in the home of some local believers. We spent one happy afternoon there scaling rocks to a gorgeous waterfall, where our hosts--husband and wife--were baptized. B-e-a-utiful.
God is at work in hearts, and people continue to eat up the Bible like the Living Book that it is. It's exciting to be a part of the Great Commission in these remote parts and pass on the torch to new brothers and sisters as we leave each barangay. Actually, that is an understatement--it is the single most exhilarating, most humbling, most satisfying thing I can think of doing.
PLEASE PRAY
-with thanksgiving to our God who is always good, for all that He's done and continues to do
-for the new believers along the Ulot River to grow strong in the faith
-for strength & sustenance during this final stretch
-for restored health & strength for our team
grace & peace
-Ruth