Parkview in the Jungle (or at least the Edge)

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We have been so amazingly busy the  last few months.  I know, everyone says they are busy.  It's the most common mantra, so I hate to say it, but there is just no other way to say it.  School got out on the 5th of June and our church group arrived June 10th.  We weren't sure what to expect from our first group, but I am happy to say we all survived and I might even be bold enough to say more was accomplished than we ever expected.  There are a mountain of amazing pictures and I will share them over the next few posts.  I hope you enjoy

The group of 21 Parkview Baptist youth and adults came down to Shell to work with our Church.  We have been attending a Waroni church for the last year and they have just recently bought some land to (one day) build a church on.  The group worked on the new property building a retaining wall and in the current church building (the 3rd story apartment of a building in Puyo) scraping paint and repainting.  The group was (re)introduced to the Waroni and their role in the lives of Jim Elliot, Nate Saint, Ed McCully, Pete Fleming, and Roger Youderian and where the ministry to this indigenous group is today.  We (Joe and Tracy) do not work directly with the Waroni but feel called to be more involved with this group and are excited to see what else God has in store for us. 

This is the now famous retaining wall most of the group worked on all week alongside Waroni youth.  They put together the cages and then filled them with rocks.  IT was amazing that in a place that receives over 200 inches of rain a year, the sky was bright and cloudless.  Everyone found out that you really are closer to the sun on the equator. 

On the left is Norma who we fortunatly let out of the cage -  She always has this huge smile and a heart for God.  On the right is the mudslide the kids created that lands in the small pond behind property.

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