I have come to the conclusion that the Amazon trip was equally a time to share God’s grace and the Gospel as well as a time of growth for me.   Maybe I had to be away from everything to learn, this is where I saw God working the most.

Much of the time I felt I was completely inadequate and not accomplishing anything.   But in my time spent in prayer I came to realize this was a lesson in patience for me and that 1 Corinthians 5:7 was just as true here as it is at home when I am facing a problem.   I had to walk by faith and trust that God would use whatever small things I could do for His glory, regardless of what I saw, or more accurately,  didn’t see. I had to rely on the wisdom of others to guide me and had to relinquish control.

John 4:48 Jesus asked, “Will you never believe in me unless you see miraculous signs and wonders?”

I also realized John 4:48 was as true in the middle of nowhere along the Amazon as it is back home. I would sow and leave the watering and reaping to the river ministers and whomever else God chooses. This is different from other Amazon mission trips where we have the opportunity to share the Gospel and pray with the villagers, and we see confessions of faith right there and then.

So it was all about me, and yet not at all about me.

This was definitely a “relationship” trip, as I spent time with the rest of the Team, and due to the nature of the trip, was able to talk more personally with the translators.