Reflections from Wayumi
Dear Crossway,
As most of you know, I had the opportunity to go to a tribal missions camp, put on New Tribes Missions, called Wayumi. They teach you about culture, language, teamwork, evangelism and many other things related to missions. Many of their examples and stories focus mainly around two tribes (the Yanamomo and Joti tribe) located in South America, where mostly all of the staff has gone and shared the gospel. Wayumi is a word in the Yanamomo language that means to go to a specific place, for a specific time, for a specific purpose. Wayumi’s goal is for students to get excited about God’s heart for a lost world, and they do a great job!
While I was there I experienced many different and exciting things! First of all, this was my first time ever being at a camp. That a big adventure in itself, but it was lots of fun! Some things we did were expected like sleeping in hammocks, learning about missions, doing different activities, and listening to missionaries talk. Some things were not expected as in very cold showers, lots of spiders in outhouses, 50 degree and stormy nights, trying to communicate with “tribal people” on your own, and experiencing the “joys” of going through customs and traveling to a different country (where several passports were lost, two people arrested, things getting stolen from you, and no one speaks English).
The sessions, Bible studies, and activities were very fun, but most of all they were all very eye opening and encouraging! I learned about different languages, cultures and how they affect every part of our lives, teamwork and how it plays a big role in missions. I learned that there are still 2000+ tribes that have never heard a single verse of the bible in their language, and that many tribes don’t even have a word for grace or love. Before going to Wayumi I thought I knew a lot about missions, but the more I learned the more I realized that I knew very little!
My week at Wayumi is beyond description, but I hope that this gave you a glimpse of what it was like! I’m very grateful for all of you who were praying for me; many prayers were answered that week! It was amazing to see God work!
Some of my favorite quotes from the week:
“If what you are doing now is not worth dying for, then it may not be worth living for” ~Greg
“The sweetest thing of all time is knowing God and making Him known!” ~Christiana
“He is no fool, who gives what he cannot keep, to gain what he cannot lose” ~Steve
You never know what God will do when you are willing to obey Him and do His will, but I truly believe that it will be something indescribable!
~Jennifer
“If you have heard the gospel and you believe it’s true, then you are more than capable of sharing it with someone else.” ~Pastor John
