Semi-Annual Report October 2014 - March 2015

Ministry

October

I went to several doctors (in Lima) because of a tumor in the back of my mouth. The doctor ordered a biopsy and told me that if I travelled again to the jungle it would probably be my last trip. My pastor learned of my problem and organized a special prayer for me by the pastoral team. God answered that same night healing me! I remained in Lima recovering my strength and working in the Segadores office. When the doctor examined me again, he exclaimed: “This is a miracle!” 

A team of my helpers went to the jungle and gave a teacher-training workshop to native Sunday School teachers, and it went well without me.  

November

I travelled to visit the children of our missionaries in Atalaya. Matias (5 years old) received me with a song and marched around in his house (expressing his happiness). I also visited the native village where the Salazar and Acatrine families teach the native children the Word of God. 

After being away a couple of months, I returned to the village where I work. The people received me with joy, glad to see me again. When I told them about the sickness that I had had, they asked where was the last place that I had eaten (before beginning to have a tumor), to try to figure out who could have bewitched me. I told them simply: “God has healed me.”  

December

When I returned to Aoti (the main village where I work), the village authorities received me for the Christmas program. In the program, adolescents from the church dramatized the Christmas story. They did the drama according to how they had understood the true Christmas (based on the chronological Bible teaching that we had been giving). About 300 children and adolescents, plus 80 adults and 12 old people enjoyed the chocolate-milk drink and gifts. Then we went to the nearby town of Pampa Mercado taking the adolescents that did the Christmas drama and we had a Christmas program there. 

We then moved on to the town of Chontakiari. A horn was blown for the people to come. We saw a child far away and went to his house but he hid under a bed. Even though we talked to him in his language, he would not come out. The village chief arrived from his farm along with other people that had heard the horn. He received us well because he had heard that Segadores had been working in Aoti. Now 8 children gathered, as well as a few adults. We prepared the chocolate drink and distributed the gifts to the few children. (See photo) The leader of the Aoti church helped us by asking the children questions about their concepts of God. (Later he said to me: “Sister, they do not know who is God.”) The chief of Chontakiari asked us to visit their village more often to tell them about God (because they do not have a church). 

January and February

With my team of teachers, I attended a teacher-training workshop in Lima. 

The last few years there have been several changes in Segadores and now there is a greater load of work for several of us. Pray that the Lord help me as I serve now as Treasurer, that this may not make me neglect my ministry in the jungle to native children and women. My work as Treasurer has begun and I have also been training a new secretary. I realize that as a secretary she knows how to do that kind of work but she still has to learn how all of that relates to our work with the tribes of the jungle.  

March

I took a vacation of 15 days to visit my father. I spent some very enjoyable times with him. We would read the Bible together and he would teach me some things that God had taught him from His Word. He encouraged me to continue in my ministry to tribes. He said: “Don’t abandon your call to native people because natives shall be washed by the blood of the Lamb.” 

Upon returning to the tribe, I and my companion arrived to the village at night. We thank God that Mili (a girl) received us and brought candles and matches.  This way, we were able to enter our house. Much mud had entered our house (due to flooding). We are grateful that our friends had helped clean the house. The next day, when our friends saw us they said: “Now you have finally arrived?”  We went to the church building and we found more than 70 children gathered. That day we taught the children and adolescents. We thank God for our interpreters that are always ready to help us when we teach.  

We distributed notebooks and other school supplies to the 70 children and adolescents. I thank God that the Christian school of the church that I attend (in Lima) extended their hands in mercy to help these needy children (providing a school pad for each of them). Afterwards we went to a neighboring village to see the children and gave them t-shirts and sandals that were donated to us for them. One of the villagers asked us to return again to talk to them about God because they do not have anyone to tell them about God. That village is difficult to reach because there isn’t regular transportation to there. (We rented a private car to take us.)  

Our friends do not abandon us. They walk with us till the end. We share our food with them and they help us by clearing away the weeds in front of our house so that snakes do not enter our house. They also help us in preparing teaching materials for teaching the children. (See photo) I take advantage of these opportunities to disciple Zila for teaching the small children in her class.  

Personal 

When I (and my companion) visited the village in December, the people received us with indifference because there was a problem among them that involved us. Thinking that the problem had to do with our helping the children of the church, when (according to their culture) every help should be shared with everyone in the village, we feared that we would be thrown out of the village. At Christmas time we invited our neighbors for a Christmas meal. This included a lady that practiced witchcraft. After she left, we began hearing strange noises in our house. We prayed to God and these sounds disappeared. This experience led us to believe that Satan is trying in several ways to get us thrown out of the village because we are teaching the Bible chronologically and the children are getting to know God. We know God and this is why nothing scares us because we know that God is backing us.  

Prayer Requests

1) That the Lord raise up a missionary family to work with me in the tribe
2) That the Holy Spirit bring changes in the lives of the children and adults that we are teaching 
3) That the Lord continue to give me the necessary health for working in the jungle
4) That God provide us a solar panel for electricity because it is difficult to read at night with a candle

Thank you very much for your prayers and for the financial help that you send without knowing me. May the Lord bless you. 

Yours in making Christ known, 

Antonia