Be sure to join us this Sunday, June 13, at the Christian & Missionary Alliance church in San Martin de Porres, Lima, Peru, where I will be speaking at the 8:00 AM, 9:30 AM, and 11:00 AM services. Join us if you're in Lima on Sunday!
www.celebrationchampions.com
www.twitter.com/StephenGuschov
Friday, June 11, 2010
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Yagua Jungle Wedding
We have been invited to officiate at a Yagua tribal wedding this Friday morning at their village located on the banks of one of the tributaries to the Amazon River. What an honor!
Ricardo and Kelly are getting married. They are two of our many friends among the Yaguas and, after several years of living together and then coming to know Christ, they have decided to marry. I will be officiating at the wedding, and our entire mission group, from Celebration Champions Church in Celebration, Florida, and from Fellowship Bible Church in Brentwood, Tennessee, will serve as the wedding party.
We are going to have a blast, that's for sure! Keep following this blog for more Yagua jungle wedding updates!
www.celebrationchampions.com
www.twitter.com/StephenGuschov
Ricardo and Kelly are getting married. They are two of our many friends among the Yaguas and, after several years of living together and then coming to know Christ, they have decided to marry. I will be officiating at the wedding, and our entire mission group, from Celebration Champions Church in Celebration, Florida, and from Fellowship Bible Church in Brentwood, Tennessee, will serve as the wedding party.
We are going to have a blast, that's for sure! Keep following this blog for more Yagua jungle wedding updates!
www.celebrationchampions.com
www.twitter.com/StephenGuschov
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Amazon River Baptism
Earlier today we had our Amazon River baptism. It was a God-drenched time as 3 members of the Yagua native tribe were baptized in the Amazon along with 2 young women from Fellowship Bible Church in Brentwood, Tennessee, USA, who are here with us on our jungle mission trip.
It is always challenging to perform a baptism in the mighty muddy Amazon, and today was no exception. The floor of the river was like quicksand. We had to twist and turn and contort and continually move around in order to keep from sinking in the loose, silty river bottom. Nonetheless, the physical challenges were well worth it as we baptized the 5 people in the river. We have now baptized about 20 people over the course of 2 baptisms in the Amazon.
Revelation 7:9 tells us that there will be people from every nation and tribe in heaven. This includes the 3 Yaguas and the 2 girls from Tennessee who were baptized today in the mighty muddy Amazon. It was an unforgettable time.
www.worldwidepastor.blogspot.com
www.twitter.com/StephenGuschov
It is always challenging to perform a baptism in the mighty muddy Amazon, and today was no exception. The floor of the river was like quicksand. We had to twist and turn and contort and continually move around in order to keep from sinking in the loose, silty river bottom. Nonetheless, the physical challenges were well worth it as we baptized the 5 people in the river. We have now baptized about 20 people over the course of 2 baptisms in the Amazon.
Revelation 7:9 tells us that there will be people from every nation and tribe in heaven. This includes the 3 Yaguas and the 2 girls from Tennessee who were baptized today in the mighty muddy Amazon. It was an unforgettable time.
www.worldwidepastor.blogspot.com
www.twitter.com/StephenGuschov
Monday With The Yaguas
We had a spectacular Monday in the Amazon jungle with the Yagua tribe.
We sailed down the Nanay River, a tributary of the Amazon River, and met the Yaguas in their native community, where we have built and established a church with them. We had a wonderful time together singing and sharing devotional messages and skits, and also watching the Yaguas as they performed their traditional dances and as they showed us their poison dart gun accuracy and prowess.
We also visited the Bora tribe, with whom we may be starting a church in the future, and then we visited a small, family-run zoo located on the banks of the Nanay River, where we were able to see and to hold giant anacondas which were about 10-15 feet long.
Thankfully, the anacondas were doped (with cigar smoke), or else I would not be here blogging about it!
On Tuesday we head down the mighty, muddy Amazon River for our baptism with the Yagua tribe. It will be our second Amazon River baptism in two years.
www.celebrationchampions.com
www.twitter.com/StephenGuschov
We sailed down the Nanay River, a tributary of the Amazon River, and met the Yaguas in their native community, where we have built and established a church with them. We had a wonderful time together singing and sharing devotional messages and skits, and also watching the Yaguas as they performed their traditional dances and as they showed us their poison dart gun accuracy and prowess.
We also visited the Bora tribe, with whom we may be starting a church in the future, and then we visited a small, family-run zoo located on the banks of the Nanay River, where we were able to see and to hold giant anacondas which were about 10-15 feet long.
Thankfully, the anacondas were doped (with cigar smoke), or else I would not be here blogging about it!
On Tuesday we head down the mighty, muddy Amazon River for our baptism with the Yagua tribe. It will be our second Amazon River baptism in two years.
www.celebrationchampions.com
www.twitter.com/StephenGuschov
Monday, June 7, 2010
Sunday In Iquitos
We had a magnificent first day in the Amazon jungle.
We arrived in Iquitos, Peru, early on Sunday morning. One of the most memorable sights in the world is to see the Amazon River stretching out beneath you when you arrive by plane in the jungle. After collecting our bags at the small Iquitos airport and checking in to our 3-star hotel, we immediately set out for Pastor Esteban Silva's church, the largest Christian & Missionary Alliance Church in the jungle, where I spoke to about 1,000 people in the morning services there.
After church we had lunch at Ari's Burger, a well-known joint in Iquitos, where we sampled jungle delicacies such as crocodile nuggets, fried jungle pork, mashed banana balls, fried banana, and homemade jungle sausage. It was all fantastic.
On Sunday night we visited 5 different small groups in the city. The warmth and friendliness of the people was amazing at each place. God's presence was powerfully felt inside each house.
On Monday we will visit the Yagua and Bora tribes, and on Tuesday we will have our baptism, right in the muddy Amazon River.
www.celebrationchampions.com
www.twitter.com/StephenGuschov
We arrived in Iquitos, Peru, early on Sunday morning. One of the most memorable sights in the world is to see the Amazon River stretching out beneath you when you arrive by plane in the jungle. After collecting our bags at the small Iquitos airport and checking in to our 3-star hotel, we immediately set out for Pastor Esteban Silva's church, the largest Christian & Missionary Alliance Church in the jungle, where I spoke to about 1,000 people in the morning services there.
After church we had lunch at Ari's Burger, a well-known joint in Iquitos, where we sampled jungle delicacies such as crocodile nuggets, fried jungle pork, mashed banana balls, fried banana, and homemade jungle sausage. It was all fantastic.
On Sunday night we visited 5 different small groups in the city. The warmth and friendliness of the people was amazing at each place. God's presence was powerfully felt inside each house.
On Monday we will visit the Yagua and Bora tribes, and on Tuesday we will have our baptism, right in the muddy Amazon River.
www.celebrationchampions.com
www.twitter.com/StephenGuschov
Saturday, June 5, 2010
World Cup
Pastors and ministry leaders: how are you leveraging the World Cup to evangelize to others?
Are you even leveraging the World Cup at all?
The World Cup is arguably the biggest sporting event in the world. The World Cup is held every four years and is watched by billions - yes, that's "billions" with a "b" - of people around the world. When a country's national team is playing in a World Cup match, the streets of that nation are empty. Everyone, from the president to a street sweeper, is watching the match. Even here in Peru, which didn't qualify for the World Cup, everyone watches the World Cup.
We have sponsored view parties and youth soccer tournaments as a way to leverage the World Cup in an evangelistic manner. All events were very successful and well attended. Several hundred youth participated in the soccer tournament.
You need to do something, no matter where you are in the world, to leverage the World Cup for evangelistic purposes. This includes the USA. Don't lose this opportunity in the USA by thinking that soccer is less popular than other sports. You have a big opportunity here for evangelistic leverage. Take advantage of it.
In Acts 17:28, Paul talked about his opportunity to use the words of Greek poets to evangelize the citizens of Athens. Today you have the opportunity to use the athletic feats of some of the world's greatest athletes to evangelize your corner of the world.
To quote our athletic friends at Nike, "Just do it!"
www.celebrationchampions.com
www.twitter.com/StephenGuschov
Are you even leveraging the World Cup at all?
The World Cup is arguably the biggest sporting event in the world. The World Cup is held every four years and is watched by billions - yes, that's "billions" with a "b" - of people around the world. When a country's national team is playing in a World Cup match, the streets of that nation are empty. Everyone, from the president to a street sweeper, is watching the match. Even here in Peru, which didn't qualify for the World Cup, everyone watches the World Cup.
We have sponsored view parties and youth soccer tournaments as a way to leverage the World Cup in an evangelistic manner. All events were very successful and well attended. Several hundred youth participated in the soccer tournament.
You need to do something, no matter where you are in the world, to leverage the World Cup for evangelistic purposes. This includes the USA. Don't lose this opportunity in the USA by thinking that soccer is less popular than other sports. You have a big opportunity here for evangelistic leverage. Take advantage of it.
In Acts 17:28, Paul talked about his opportunity to use the words of Greek poets to evangelize the citizens of Athens. Today you have the opportunity to use the athletic feats of some of the world's greatest athletes to evangelize your corner of the world.
To quote our athletic friends at Nike, "Just do it!"
www.celebrationchampions.com
www.twitter.com/StephenGuschov
Friday, June 4, 2010
Lima & Iquitos
We have arrived here in Lima, Peru, and tomorrow night we fly to Iquitos, in the heart of the Amazon jungle.
This is our first trip back to Lima in 3 months after having ministered there for 7 years. It's not quite exactly the same as Jesus returning to Nazareth, but I can relate to that text a little bit better now.
Lima looks to be about the same as it was 3 months ago when we left for Celebration, Florida, USA, to plant a new church there.
We have already received speaking invitions in Iquitos, and we also are excited to learn of the first few members of the Yagua tribe who have stepped forward to be baptized in the Amazon River next Tuesday.
If by any chance you find yourself in the Amazon jungle this Sunday, then join us at the main Christian & Missionary Alliance church in Iquitos, where Esteban Silva is the lead pastor. I will be speaking there at the 9:30 AM and 11:00 AM services.
www.celebrationchampions.com
www.twitter.com/StephenGuschov
This is our first trip back to Lima in 3 months after having ministered there for 7 years. It's not quite exactly the same as Jesus returning to Nazareth, but I can relate to that text a little bit better now.
Lima looks to be about the same as it was 3 months ago when we left for Celebration, Florida, USA, to plant a new church there.
We have already received speaking invitions in Iquitos, and we also are excited to learn of the first few members of the Yagua tribe who have stepped forward to be baptized in the Amazon River next Tuesday.
If by any chance you find yourself in the Amazon jungle this Sunday, then join us at the main Christian & Missionary Alliance church in Iquitos, where Esteban Silva is the lead pastor. I will be speaking there at the 9:30 AM and 11:00 AM services.
www.celebrationchampions.com
www.twitter.com/StephenGuschov
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