Cole Eberwein-Huaticocha

We are back from the jungle and safe in Quito. Huaticocha was a emotional roller coaster for me. it was one of the coolest service trips for me yet. I am going to share a few amazing adventures we had in huaticocha.

Last night was one of the most amazing nights in the jungle. We went to a village located on the top of a mountain. We had to hike straight up a muddy and rocky trail to get there. Our group performed our last VBS of the week to the village children. After VBS, we trekked down the mountain, (which was very tedious because it was steep), and bathed in the river below. Then at 4:00 PM, we hiked back up the mountain yet again. This time for a church service in the village. As soon as we got to the top, it started pouring. So we piled in the church and started praising the Lord. I was asked to give my testimony to the people of the church and my fellow classmates. With the help of Priscilla Auer, I threw my testimony together. I was blessed to have the opportunity to speak to the church. (It was also cool because I had a translator). I felt God spoke through me that night and it actually made me grow in my faith and be more bold. After that, the fun began. During the service while it was raining, we all had the nagging in the back of our head that we would have to sludge through the mud back down the thick mud. To add to the adventure, it was very dark. We finally got down all in one piece and praised the Lord. We assumed that was the end of our adventure. We got to the bus and found it had slid off the road and tilted 45 degrees. They had already tried to pull it out with a dump truck but the bus didn't budge. We sat down in the dark and waited for intrsuction. We began to sing worship song after worship song. An hour later, at 10:00 PM, two small dump trucks came to pick us up. We were relieved. We loaded up and began to drive back to camp. On the way back, our truck got stuck and started to slide backwards. The adventures never seemed to end. We were basically stranded in the middle of the rain forest. We unloaded off the trucks so it would be lighter and easier to get up. The trucks finally got past the steep part and we hopped back on and once again headed off. Well we drove for another five minutes until we reached another obstacle. A huge bus, coming to pick us up as well blocked the small dirt path. We ended up offroading a little bit and allowing the bus to pass. It was a crazy adventurous night in the Jungle. Praise the Lord.

-Cole Eberwein
 Ps: hi mom