A Week with the Yukpa Tribe

     Now that I have given you an overview of the Yukpa tribe and the work that is being done there, I wanted to take the time to share my personal experience during my week with them.

     We left Cabimas on Saturday, August 9^th at 10:00pm. The late hour was because of uncertainty that we would even be able to go. There had been some fighting between some Yukpas and another tribe. Interface wanted to be sure that the conflict was resolved before bringing our team in. We were originally supposed to leave at 5pm. For transportation purposes, Interface needed to get us to Maracaibo on Saturday night and then leave from there to travel up to the mountains. Many of us had been spending most of the evening packing up supplies and preparing for the trip, so many of us had not had supper. When the “small” bus arrived we crammed it full of supplies and team members and headed for Maracaibo. We arrived at the church in Maracaibo where we would be staying for the night…a little after 11:30pm. We unloaded our supplies and then had a quick supper of meat and cheese sandwiches and soda. Preparing for bed was interesting. The church only had flimsy mattresses available..which most team members had to sleep on. We were fortunate that we had brought an air mattress…but because of limited space….we decided to use it for all four of us to sleep on. Another misfortune was that the church had a very powerful air conditioner. The place felt like a meat locker. Between the cramped sleeping conditions and the freezing temperature in the church…I probably got 2 hours of sleep before we had to get up at 5am to load up the buses for the continued journey up the mountain.

     On Sunday morning we began our trip up the mountain. After loading our supplies on a truck and loading back into the bus we began our long trip. We traveled about three hours before stopping for breakfast. Most of us used that time of traveling to catch up on some much needed sleep. After our quick breakfast of sweet bread we traveled for approximately another three hours before we reached the military check point near the Yukpas. There they checked our passports and ID’s before allowing us to travel up the mountain to the Yukpa tribe. They sent a military truck of soldiers ahead of us to insure that everything was safe and calm before our group would arrive. This was only the beginning of a very long and difficult day. After we arrived at the base of the mountain…we loaded our supplies onto a different cargo truck. The children and I were fortunate enough to be able to climb in and ride the truck up the mountain. The rest of our team would spend the next three hours hiking up. Even the ride was very rough. The road was full of holes, water and rough terrain and the ride was very rough and bumpy. It took us about an hour by truck to make it up the mountain. Since the rest of the team would not arrive for another couple of hours…those of us who arrived early unloaded the supplies into the “schoolhouse”. Then we walked down to the resident missionaries house, Broughlin and Jacqueline, to prepare lunch for the rest of the team.

      The rest of the team arrived a little after 1pm. After lunch we were told we would be walking from house to house in the community introducing ourselves to the Yukpa. It was a lot of walking for many of us who were already tired and the heat was intense that day. After our introduction to the Yukpa we headed over to the house where we would be staying to clean it. We assumed it would only need minor cleaning before we could move our supplies in… boy were we wrong. The house was a disaster. There was junk piled in many of the rooms…like you would find in an abandoned house that homeless people had lived in. The house was dirty and had piles of trash and water standing in areas. There were bugs and cobwebs everywhere. The sinks and basins were in bad need of scrubbing. The outside of the house was not much better. Many areas of the yard had standing piles of trash….and much of the brush around the house was overgrown. The path leading down to the river was completely overgrown. So we all set to work. It was exhausting work and took most of the rest of the day. The women swept, scrubbed, knocked down webs, took out bags and bags of trash and prepared the house to be lived in. The men carried off the piles of trash, cut the grass and made a path down to the river and began digging our “bathroom”. By around 5pm the house was finished and we moved in our belongings and supplies. Shortly afterward the women of our group were told to prepare for bath time.

     Bath time was an adventure all it’s own. We dressed in clothes that we didn’t mind getting wet, gathered our soap, shampoo and towels, and started down toward the river. The path down to the river was steep and slippery. You had to be very careful to make your way down to the water. One of our team leaders, Ised Portillo, would end up break a bone in her foot at the river, later in the week. The water was freezing cold…and you had to get yourself wet…lather up…and then rinse off in it. After the shock of the first day however the river actually became something we looked forward to each day. By the end of the day you were so hot and dirty…that the river was a welcome sight…even if it was cold. We would even take time to just play and enjoy the water…after we got use to the cold.

    After we returned to the house and changed into dry clothes it was time for supper and devotions. By this time I was physically and emotionally about to my breaking point. I was thrilled when it was time to head back to the cabin for bed. It was only about 9pm but I was ready for bed. I was concerned that the kids and I would have problems sleeping in the hammocks we decided to take….but after we climbed in them….we all fell asleep within minutes and did not awake until morning.

    We awoke Monday morning to pouring rain. Because of the weather we were able to sleep in for a little while. We had a simple breakfast of cereal and then we spent the remaining few hours of the morning getting more settled in to our new home. Because our kitchen was not yet functional we headed down to the missionaries home for lunch. After lunch we spent some time listening as Jacqueline taught us about the Yukpas, their culture, and how the work there was progressing. We then returned to our house and continued to work on making it more livable. By supper we had the outside gas stove working…and we had water that we could use to wash dishes, cook with, and clean the house with. This saved us from having to haul water up from the river. We would go back to the missionary house for supper that night…but by the next day we would be able to prepare our meals at our house. After supper we went to a building in the community that they use for worship, and also as a type of preschool or daycare. We shared with the Yukpas during the worship service. Many shared their testimonies and we sang songs…sometimes in many different languages. It was an awesome time of worship. Then we returned home to prepare for bed…and get ready for another busy day.

   By the time we returned home our “bathroom” was ready. This was defiantly an experience. We had a makeshift seat to sit on over our hole within our tent. You had to shovel dirt and put it in the hole when you came out. Paul seemed to think this was especially fun….and insisted he be able to get his own dirt when he went to the bathroom. You made sure to visit the “outhouse” before bed…because it was dangerous to go out alone at night. We were very close to the border of Columbia….and it was safer to stay locked inside at night….although we never felt any threat. We did have an indoor bathroom…if needed. It was really just an old shower stall with a drain. It really made me appreciate my bathroom back in Cabimas….even if I do have to flush it by pouring water in the bowl!

   Tuesday was our for first full day of ministry. We worked in various areas of the community. Some worked on shelling corn with the Yukpas. This was one of my kids favorite activities. They use this corn to sell for feed and make money for their families. It was also a great way to sit and talk with the Yukpas and build relationships. Another project for that day was painting the schoolhouse. Another area of work was cleaning the house and preparing the meals for the team. I ended up working a lot in this area. My group would get up earlier than the others and prepare breakfast. After the team members had left to do their work in the community, we would wash morning dishes, begin preparations for lunch and clean the house. We would have lunch prepared by the time the team returned back. We would clean lunch dishes when they went back to work…and begin prep for supper. Although I didn’t think I would enjoy this work it ended up being a lot of fun. I also learned a lot of Venezuelan dishes that I will be able to go home and prepare for my friends and family back home. Before supper on Tuesday we offered a carnival for the kids from the tribe. We did face painting, balloons, fingernail polish, and crafts. The children really enjoyed it and it gave us a chance to know them better. After the carnival it was “bath time” again and then we had supper. Unfortunately the day before Ised had injured her foot during bath time. She had to be taken down the mountain Tuesday afternoon to a nearby village to have her foot put in a cast. She did not return until late in the evening. After supper the rest of our team had our devotional time and we had reached the end of another day.

   Wednesday would be our last full day of ministry with the Yukpas. We spent the day helping with corn again, planting some crops, preparing meals at home, and the majority of the team went to pave an area of the road that was is particularly bad shape. We would end our time with the Yukpas with a big farewell carnival…that I will post on in my next blog tomorrow.

An Introduction to the Yukpa

     On Saturday, August 9^th, the children and I left with a Venezuelan team from Salvation Baptist Church to head toward the mountains of Venezuela to work with the Yukpa tribe.    

     The Yukpas are an unreached tribe from the mountains of Venezuela. They are a more primitive culture and are not very receptive to outsiders. They have been hurt by outsiders trying to come in and take their land and invading their way of life, so they are very suspicious of outsiders. They are also not typically a warm and loving people. They do not even hold and hug on their children after the age of four.

     There is a missionary family who is established in this area. Broughlin and Jacqueline moved to this area four years ago. At that time the tribe was totally against outsiders. They were very violent towards them and threatened them repeatedly to try to get them to leave. There was one man, Sengundo, who even threatened Broughlin’s life with a machete and tried to force him to leave. He is now the family’s closest friend in the area and one of the tribe’s strongest Christian believers.

      The family worked diligently for several years just building relationships with their Yukpa neighbors so that they would trust them. One way the Yukpa’s displayed their trust in the missionaries was by allowing them to adopt some children from the tribe. The first was their son. His mother had four children and the father abandoned them. The mother could no longer provide for all the children and she asked Jacqueline to take her son. The second was their daughter, Emily. Jacqueline was good friends with Emily’s mother, who was also the wife of the chief of the tribe. When Emily’s mother died in childbirth…the chief decided he could not take care of Emily on his own. He asked Broughlin and Jacqueline to take her as their daughter.

     After taking the time to build this trust among the tribe…Broughlin and Jacqueline were able to begin to share the Gospel with the tribe. This has still proven to be very difficult, as they still have to compete with many beliefs the tribe already has in place. Such as every element of nature is a god. They believe water, trees, wind…and other forces of nature have special powers. However there have been many powerful steps made in bringing the tribe to Christ. The chief and several of the leaders of the tribe have given their lives to Christ. One of those leaders has also recently began to speak and preach to tribe members. This is a huge step in helping to bring others within the tribe into a personal relationship with Christ.

     Broughlin and Jacqueline have begun to work with a Christian organizational group called Interface to bring teams in year round to work with the tribe. Our team worked alongside the team from Interface during our time there. The tribe is beginning to be more open to outsiders and having teams come in and work within the community has had powerful results. The tribe members are beginning to trust the Christians that are coming in to work alongside them. It is having a huge impact because the tribe members are beginning to see the love of Christ through these teams. They are seeing that we are willing to give up our time and comforts to come and work with them just because we love them and want to share the love of God with them. Interface is praying for many more teams to show a willingness to come and work within this area of Venezuela. I am very excited that I was able to be a part of this ministry and I hope to do more ministry here in the future.

Broughlin and Jacqueline's home

Paul and Emily (Broughlin and Jaqueline's adopted daughter)

Another pic of Emily (she is the female version of Paul, quiet a handful!)

The kids with Broughlin and Jaqueline's adopted son.

Alexandria´s Birthday

         On Sunday, August 3^rd, we celebrated the birthday of Pastor Darwin’s youngest daughter, Alexandria. Birthday parties in Venezuela are a big event and lots of fun. A large group of Alexandria’s friends and family gathered in the courthouse of their home to share in food, music and karaoke, games and laughter. Paul especially enjoyed dancing to the Venezuela music and helping to bust the piñata. The party went on until almost midnight. It was fun to share in this celebration with our host family.

Paul enjoys being the center of attention at the party!

Birthday Cake!!!

Paul waits patiently for cake as everyone sings Happy Birthday!!

Carnival at Stronghold

   We had one day to rest after the team returned home…then we were scheduled to hold a carnival at a church whose name means Stronghold. We are working on building relationships with other Baptist churches in Cabimas so that we can expand the areas in Venezuela where we can minister. The carnival was well attended and it was a good first step in building a relationship with this church.

      I spoke at this church earlier this week during a prayer service. My message was so well received I have been asked to speak at a Women’s Retreat being held there on August 30^th. There will be women from surrounding area churches in attendance…from as far away as Maracaibo. I have been asked to speak on women’s involvement in missions and within ministries of the church.  Please pray that God will give me the words that these women need to hear. Public speaking is the most nerve racking for me, but I have found if I study God’s word before I speak and spend lots of time in prayer…He provides the words for me. I have also been asked to speak to the entire congregation on Sunday morning, August 31^st.  Please continue to pray that God will use me in this way to build up and expand His kingdom in Cabimas.

Paul and I assist some children with their craft at carnival

Hope enjoys painting nails for the girls at carnival

Paul loves to dance 

We had a very long line for ballon animals

The kids swarm Juan for more ballon animals

A Week in Venezuela with the WABC Team

1) The WABC Team arrival

   Our mission team from Western Avenue arrived in Venezuela on Thursday evening, July 24^th. Other than the team arriving an hour late because of weather difficulties…everything went smoothly. We were very excited that all team members and luggage arrived safe and sound. I was especially excited to be rejoined with my husband, Jim. The kids were also very happy to see their Dad! We helped the team members settle in at the hotels…and then we all headed to bed….tomorrow will be a long, hard day of work!

Hope enjoys the bus ride to go to Maricabio and pick up the team!

The Venezuelan team and the kids and I play, UNO, to pass the

                              time until the team arrives

My hubby is finally in Venezuela!!!!

Never any rest!! I take the team´s luggage and label and sort it as they arrive!

2) Friday, July 25^th: WABC Venezuela Team Activities

   Our first day of work began with a carnival at Roberto Licker. We had a good group of children in attendance. Upon our arrival at the location we set up the sound system…that would play the very loud music that would attract the children to our location. Then we would set up our activity centers…face painting, fingernail polish, games, faith bracelet making, balloon animals, hair styling….and my center…hair cutting! I always got the privilege of being right beside the sound system that was blasting the music. We usually only had one source of power at each location so I had little choice. It is a miracle I can still hear (Ha)!

The children would visit each of the different centers as our team members interacted with them. At the end of the carnival, we would offer a drama presentation….and then do a dance…that everyone could participate in. Before we left the location we would invite everyone to return to the location that evening for an evangelistic service.

   While most of the team members worked at the carnival location, some of our team members remained at Salvation Baptist to work on a construction project. This year we were working on helping the complete an expansion of their Sunday School areas.

     After lunch our group traveled to a near by nursing home. There we interacted with the residents by doing small activities: balloon animals, painting wooden crosses, making faith bracelets, and taking and printing out their pictures. We concluded our time by dancing with them, singing for them, and offering a gospel message. The residents there were very loving and open to our visit.

      After supper we returned to Roberto Licker for our evangelism service. For the evangelistic service we would offer music, a testimony, and a drama. Then someone from the Venezuelan church would offer the Gospel message and give an invitation. During this time we would also unload food bags to the house of the leader in that area. Later the leader of that area would distribute those bags to those in the community who were in the most need. During that time they would share the Gospel with them….and give them bibles and tracts about the four spiritual laws. For those who accepted Christ, people from the church would be following up with them and disciple them, to help them grow in their faith.

      At the end of the day we would return to the hotel for a group meeting. We would have a time of sharing, a devotional, review plans for the next day, and end the evening in prayer. Then it was time for the team to head to bed….and for my family to head back to Pastor’s house…except the evening that we stayed a little later to enjoy the luxury of taking a shower in Ised’s room. A nice difference from our bucket baths at Pastor’s house.

Does it really take three people to give a haircut!!

Jeff Spry makes ballon animals for the children at carnival

Malinda and Ed with a baby!!

The Venezuelan children love Ambra!

The WABC youth perform a drama at Carnival!

The residents at the nursing home, loved the crafts we brought!

Team member in a frenzy to create ballon animals for the nursing home residents

Everyone is dancing and having a great time...maybe too good (ha)

Scenes from our powerful adult drama performed by

      WABC team members at Roberto Licker

3) Saturday, July 26^th: WABC Venezuela Team Activities

   Our Saturday began similar to the day before with one addition. During this carnival we were also able to offer a baseball clinic. This gave the kids in the area an opportunity to learn baseball skills and then play in a small baseball game. Afterwards the gospel was offered to all of those who attended.

    We added another new activity after lunch. We offered a Discipleship Study time at the church. We broke up into groups: Men (learning about spiritual leadership in the home and the church) Women (learning about their value in Christ) Youth (learning about how to apply their faith to their daily lives in practical ways) and children (we offered a Bible School with a variety of lesson, games, crafts, and activities, that taught them more about God). Our discipleship time was very fruitful. Many who were already Christians received a stronger foundation in their faith. We even had a couple young people who were just walking by on the street who became curious about what we were doing and came in. One of our team members sat down and shared with them and one gave his life to Christ…and the seed was planted with the other.

    After supper we went to Ebenezer…..our current mission site…where we are trying to establish a new church. We held a carnival in the beginning of the evening…and ended the evening with an evangelistic service. We had the largest attendance at this carnival….probably between 200-250 people attended. After the team returned home,  we had many exciting developments in Ebenezer. We set up a special evening where we invited those who were to pick up food bags to go to the home where we hold the house church…..and another group of us went to another home nearby to hold a small Bible School for children. The evening was very fruitful…of those who came to pick up food bags…seven gave their lives to Christ…and have started coming to weekly services at Ebenezer. The children’s group had 20+ children in attendance. God is really moving in this unreached community. We are currently praying for a church building and a pastor for this growing mission. We give all the praise to God for what He is allowing us to do in this area.

The children enjoy blowing bubles!

Paul gives Liseth a big kiss during carnival!

Our ¨little dancers¨ from Ebenezer

4) Sunday, July 27^th: WABC Venezuela Team Activities

   Sunday morning began with our team leading Sunday School for each age group at Salvation Baptist. We participated during the worship service by providing music and a short message from our team leader, Michael Furr. We returned in the afternoon to Salvation Baptist to offer Discipleship training again. After dinner we held a special event at Salvation Baptist. It was a movie night….that was meant to be used to evangelize to those in the community. Each member of the church was challenged to bring at least one unchurched friend or family member to the event. The movie that was played was “Facing the Giants”. After the movie was finished one of the WABC team members offered their testimony, and then Jeff Spry gave the message and the invitation. It was a very powerful evening.

5) Monday, July 28^th: WABC Venezuela Team Activities

     On Monday we went to Jehovah Jireth to offer a carnival there. We had a very good crowd and we were well received. Our construction group returned to the church during the morning to work further on the Sunday School expansion. After lunch we returned to Salvation for another session of discipleship training. In the evening we returned to Jehovah Jireth to present our evangelistic service. The WABC team presented a powerful drama performance.

This is the family who owns the home where we held the

                         carnival in Jehova Jireth

Pastor Antonio guards the slide...so no kids slide into the crowd!

Ed passes out candy to the kids waiting in line for photos

Malinda fixing hair during carnival

6) Tuesday, July 29^th: WABC Venezuela Team Activities

    On Tuesday morning we offered a baseball clinic and carnival at Zulia University. Although the carnival at this location was small, the baseball clinic was a big success. Some of our youth on the WABC mission team even had an opportunity to share the gospel with some Venezuelan’s who attended the baseball clinic. At the end of the morning we offered another drama and a gospel presentation. After lunch we returned to Salvation for our last day of discipleship training. During discipleship, a small group of our team members went to visit with and pray for a young teen-age boy who had been severely burned in an explosion a few months ago. The boy was already a Christian and part of the church at Salvation. Part of his family however, had never given their lives to God. During their visit…several members of the boy’s family decided to give their lives to Christ. After dinner we went to a new area, Las Casitas. This area is a totally unreached area with no church within miles. We are excited about the opportunity to develop relationships in this area and hopefully develop a mission in this area in the future. We ended the evening by attending a farewell service at Salvation. The service included special music that the members of Salvation had prepared for us. It was hard to believe it was already time to say good-bye to our friends and brothers and sisters in Christ.

Some WABC youth share their faith at baseball clinic

Hank loves playing baseball with the Venezuealn kids!

Jeff Spry says , ¨Hit it right here!¨

Hope wants to be sure no one forgets her name!

7) Wednesday, July 30^th: WABC Venezuela Team Activities

        On the last day of the team’s time in Venezuela, they spent the morning at a nursing home. We provided a small carnival with a variety of activities for the elderly residents. We then did a small evangelistic service before we left to head toward Maracaibo. On the last day before the team flies home…they go to a hotel close to the airport…since their flight departs so early in the morning. After arriving at the hotel….the team members spent fellowship time together at the pool and eating together. During the evening….we had a share service where we reflected on our experiences from the week.

8) Thursday, July 31^st: WABC Venezuela Team Activities

    We departed from the hotel in Maracaibo at 4:30am to head for the airport. The team was scheduled to depart at 7:00am. The team made it through customs and baggage check with no problems. It was then time to say farewell to our team members….and my hubby…until we rejoin them in Statesville in September. The week was very productive and God used our team to bring many new believers into His fellowship.