The Jungle Book (2/17/09 - 3/7/09)

The LORD is great and greatly to be praised:

The only illness I had during my time of training was a 24-hour fever that cleared up with some Tylenol and ibuprofen. God was so faithful that, even in the midst of mosquitoes and unclean water, He kept us healthy. Praise Him!

Prayer Necessities for the Skimmers:

While Leah and I both remained healthy, that was not necessarily the case for one of our young team members. Misty got a bad case of strep throat that has potentially developed into rheumatic fever, a disease which can cause permanent heart damage. Please pray that the Great Physician would lay His mighty right hand upon her and heal her completely.

Inquiring Minds Wanna Know (Bonus for the Readers):

We arrived in Lima, Peru, the night of February 17 and spent the next few days there learning some basic things before going into the jungle on February 21.

Our time was spent in the jungle just outside Puerto Maldonado, a town on the western border of Peru near Brazil. In total, there were ten of us: The five mentioned in the last post, two other women who were there just to participate in training and not continue with overseas mission field service at the time, plus three trainers.

We stayed in a house (pictured above and left) that would more resemble a barn to most people in the States. We suspended mosquito nets over our sleeping bags and mats on the wooden floor, and the space was shared with a variety of living creatures (including, but not limited to, spiders, bats, and even a kitten).

We also had a kitchen but, once again, it was dramatically different from the US version. The stove (pictured below with Lori cooking) was a mound of mud with bars lying across it so that we could build a fire for cooking.

Speaking of fire, it was my greatest nemesis in the jungle. We had several days of rain during our time there, so the wood was often wet. And, if you've ever tried to start a fire with wet wood, you'll understand my frustration. Just trying to get it started takes everything you have - lighters, paper, plastic, anything that will burn, a load of patience and, most importantly, LOTS of prayer.

I'll be honest and tell you that I struggled during my time in the jungle. For the first couple of days, all I could think was, "Why am I here? I could be at home in Virginia. I had a great job with co-workers and patients I loved. I miss teaching Sunday School and being with my brothers and sisters at church. I could be kicked back in my recliner playing on my laptop and watching TV. Instead, I'm here in this miserable place, dirty, hot, covered with bug bites, and surrounded by people I barely know. LORD, why did You bring me here?"

Though I never voiced any of that out loud to anyone else, the LORD spoke to me very clearly about my attitude. During that time, I was reading about the Israelites' complaints about not having any food in Exodus 16 and, as I usually do when I read that particular section of Scripture, I thought, "These idiots. God just brought them through the Red Sea, and they're already whining and complaining about not having any food." And, very clearly, the LORD asked me, "What do you have to complain about? You're just an Israelite yourself."

Wow, talk about humbling. Though I hadn't actually voiced my complaints aloud, they came through clearly in my attitude. That had been a time of great discouragement for me and others there with me. We all had a time of confession of our grumbling and complaining, and it made a world of difference in the remainder of our time in the jungle.

Scriptures says, with good reason, that we are to be like this:

"Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe as you hold out the word of life" (Phil. 2:14-16).

If my team and I are to be effective in holding out this word of life, we must first learn to do everything without complaining or arguing. A painful but most necessary lesson. Oh, and there were some good parts... like the hammock! :) Check it out: