APRIL 2011
INTO THE QUECHUAN VILLAGES During the last days of February through early March, Rhonda and I left for several Quechan villages north of La Paz. We were joined by two other ministries working together to reach these villages with medical and dental aide and the Word of God. Lovely Feet Ministries was leading the evangelism effort with a Bolivian musician and the Helmer Five, five young people from Illinois who had arrived in Bolivia in January to learn Spanish before making this trip. A Cup of Cold Water Ministries, led by Phillip Kittelson arranged the connections and led the way with his Isuzu jeeps, and The Macedonia Project led the medical effort with nurse Julie Dalcheck and her husband Tom. Four Bolivian doctors and two Bolivian dentists gave their time to bring the needed medical and dental aid to the Quechua people.
This was a united effort and the largest that we have undertaken. Our leaving was delayed by two days because the department of health in Bolivia refused to allow the medicines brought by Tom and Julie from the United States into the country and because bus and taxi drivers in La Paz were protesting and blocked the roads of the city preventing anyone from entering or leaving. We used the time to purchase medications here for the trip and we were able to leave on Saturday, February 26th. Our efforts were still slowed by heavy rains that had been falling for more than a month threatening to close roads all around us. Our first day of driving was an indication of what lie ahead of us. High water flowed through muddy mountain roads and put us hours behind. We were surrounded by clouds and rain through the night that limited us to traveling an average of about 8 miles per hour. We arrived at Mollo Grande, a Quechua village with a single evangelical church on the side of the mountain that we hiked up to at about 2:00 a.m. where we were able to sleep in the dirt floor. Sunday, we were well received as I ministered the Word, and Rhonda and the team of young people ministered in drama to the adults and children. Monday we were met early by people of the church and village eager for medical and dental attention.
Almost all of the women of this village spoke only Quechua and so Felix, one of the first adult Christians in this village translated for us. The evangelism team ministered dramas and music in the village school and we were allowed to pray with all the children to receive Jesus. Then, we hiked to a neighboring village where we repeated our ministry and prayers.
The days were a great blessing but we were behind again as we left for the next village only to be met with more rain, more clouds and even snow over a mountain pass at 15,800 feet above sea level. Finally, we were met by a small river washing through our road. After assessing its depth we were able to drive through and into the next village of Huancu. This was not our destination, but it was late, rainy and we were tired so we were able to convince a family to let us stay in their building putting our team of 21 people on the floor. A few of us met the village chief late that night in the ankle deep mud of a storm and he gave us permission to hold a medical clinic in his village.
We met the school director as well and he, too, gave us permission to present our dramas and the Word of God to the entire school, while the medical team administered fluoride for their teeth and medicine to cure parasites. Again, it was a great success, although there was no evangelical church there, many received the word with thanksgiving and prayer. We reached another town named Charizani on our route, the only other town in our plan and experienced success at the schools, even though this town is known for being in the control of three medicine men that practice witchcraft. We were invited to each and every classroom to repeat our presentations and pray with the children and teachers.
We left the following day after staying in a hostel and an actual bed. But again our way was blocked. We dug out the road from a landslide giving us just enough room to pass, and then quickly drove then another as the mud and rocks were sliding off the side of the mountain and into the path but then we were completely stopped. It had taken us an hour and a half to drive 8 miles to where the water was flowing off the mountain so swiftly and in such quantity that it had made a waterfall that washed out the road.
We were forced to return to Charizani and plan another route for the next day. We arrived unexpectedly in the late afternoon at a village called Sayhuani where we asked the leaders to allow us to sleep in the floor of their village school. That night two of the doctors, a nurse and myself were led to the house of a very sick bedridden man to see if we could help. We invited inside the 14 foot by 20 foot mud house that had an open fire inside on the dirt floor. The house consisted of two beds where the family of five slept. By flashlight, the doctors examined the grandfather whose legs were swollen and breathing was shallow. They gave him medications, treating his condition as best as they could and I shared the gospel with him and his family. After praying with me, he accepted the Holy Communion with thanksgiving.
The next day we conducted the medical clinic and our dramas for every classroom in the school, and in the afternoon half of our team left for another village. We were urgently called to return to Sayhuani later that afternoon when some of the doctors found a ten day old baby that was dying. The forty year old mother had no milk and returned to her fields to work leaving the baby to die. But the baby’s sister asked us for help and our doctors believed that the baby could survive if we could get him to La Paz. It was already dark when our team met together to pray and ask God what to do. We were the only transportation available to La Paz. There are no ambulances, no other vehicles.
We all knew that the trip to La Paz through the night could be very dangerous, especially under the conditions that we had. La Paz is twelve hours with good travel and we had continually had rain and clouds. But we know that every life is valuable to God and we believed that God had directed our path to this town for this purpose. So, after asking the mother for the baby, she named him Pedro and gave him to us. Pedro arrived in La Paz on a Saturday morning, malnourished and jaundiced.
His heart failed once and he had three convulsions, but he survived. He is still in the hospital, three weeks after his arrival, now with Meningitis. But he is no longer on the ventilator, he has put on weight and he is no longer jaundiced. We believe that God has saved him, that he will survive, and that God’s hand is on him strongly to be a witness to the entire village, to his people, and to this country. Please continue to pray for Pedro. BACK TO THE VILLAGES Today, we are praying for Sam as he has gone to the Quechan villages for another journey with a team of doctors. He is there as a translator to help this American team of doctors. This is a social mission. Pray for Sam who is due to return April 8th.
THANK YOU Your prayers, your financial support has saved Pedro’s life and given eternal life to many. You are part of this team. We give thanks to God for you and all your prayers, support and encouragement.
