All Aboard!!

Boa Noite! (Good Evening)

Well the team had a nice day today in Manaus. Today was considered a free day so they spent the day resting, did some shopping, held a team devotional and went to church this evening at the church that is partnering with them this week in the jungle.

They are currently on a bus headed down to the river where they'll board the JJ Mesquita, their mobile living quarters this coming week. Above is a picture of the boat. The bottom deck contains a pharmacy, rooms for the medical & dental teams to treat patients, a kitchen where all the meals are prepared and boarding for boat crew.

The second deck contains boarding for the team, a common area for dining and fellowship and the captain's seat. The top deck will be used for evening devotionals or just a place to seek solitude. It's amazingly beautiful, if a clear evening, because you can see many more stars than in Texas. One trip we were blessed to see the Milky Way...that was neat!

The team is in great shape and are excited to get on the boat. They will travel all night and arrive at their first village to serve in the morning.

Here's how you can pray for the team tonight:

- Safe travel down the river

- Comfort in the rooms as they are very small, tight quarters

- That they would all feel comfortable working with the translators. Let's also not forget to thank the Lord for the provision of translators because they are the means to which the team is able to communicate with the locals in the village.

- That the Lord would prepare the hearts and minds of the people the team will serve. That they would be receptive to hearing the gospel and their hearts would be moved to learn more about Jesus if they don't know him.

- Confidence in sharing the gospel. That no one on the team would feel insecure or ill-equipped to share Christ. Pray that the Holy Spirit would guide their words and lead them in that conversation.

- Team health & energy. The food is going to be different on the boat so it's not uncommom to have upset stomachs. And energy because it is very hot and very humid. It doesn't take much moving around to feel exhausted by the heat.

- Team unity and a servant's heart.

- Praise the Lord for uniting such a great group of young adults and for choosing them to be vessels to share His love and grace. I thank Him for their obediance to step out of their comfort zone to enter an unknown territory for Him.

The ministry items made it through security, praise God for an answered prayer! Customs didn't like the bags with medication and thoroughly questioned the team, but in the end they didn't confiscate anything.

Thank you for your prayers.

Blessings,

Kelli Coblentz