Missionary update from Ecuador

Time in Quito

TUESDAY, MARCH 22, 2011

After getting back at 1:00am to Quito on Saturday night, we spent Sunday and Monday recovering from our time in the jungle and got to play a little in Quito.

We spent Sunday morning at church with Tim Anderson (our missionary host) and his Teen Challenge ministry. Tim works with young men who have been involved with drug and alcohol addition throughout Quito. It was a really neat experience for our team to worship with these guys and see the power of redemption only found through Jesus. Two of our guy got to share their testimony as well.

After church, the guys played a little basketball....Ecuadorian style. Our team found out really quickly that there are no rules or fouls on this court.

After leaving Teen Challenge, we grabbed a quick burger and headed to the Indian Market for the guys to buy some souvenirs from the trip. Later that evening, we took two gondolas up to the top of the volcano Pichinchia. We couldn't see the lights of Quito because of the fog, but it was still a great memory for the guys.

On Monday, we headed to the equator. We just happened to be there on March 21st which is the spring equinox. So, at noon the sun was directly above us with no shadows. The guys got to watch water spin both ways, balance eggs, walk the equator, and enjoy other fun science tricks.

For lunch, we were able to finally enjoy the Ecuadorian delicacy of Qui...or guinea pig as we know it. The guys were a little skeptical at first, but soon devoured the entire thing.

We finished our final day with a great dinner at Tim Anderson's house with his family and other missionaries from Quito. We also spent some time talking about what the Lord did in our lives this week. It was really neat to see the impact that this trip had on each team member. The Lord's hand of blessing and protection was so evident the entire week!

The Jungle

The Jungle

MONDAY, MARCH 21, 2011

After four incredible days in the jungle of Ecuador, we have finally made it back to Quito. I'm sorry there have not been more updates as the internet has been very hard to find where we are staying.

There are way too many stories from our time in the jungle, but here are a few highlights...

On Wednesday, we left Quito early for our 5 bus ride to Shell where we hoped on several bush planes that took us on a short 25 minute plane ride to the jungle village of Kutsuka. It was incredible to see the vast beauty of the jungle and hundreds of rivers from above.

Once we got unpacked and situated in our very basic guest hut, the guys found themselves playing soccer and throwing wild grapefruit with the village kids.

Of course, after a long day of travel and a few sweaty games of jungle soccer, it was time to clean up in the river. Who thought it would be so fun to bathe in the river!

On our first full day in the jungle, we made a 3 hour hike through the jungle to the village of Timias with our packs full of medicine and new boots for the kids there. To say that it was an average hike would be an understatement. We found out very quickly how challenging it is to travel through the jungle. With our packs on, we hiked our way through pouring rain, lots of mud, across several rivers and streams, up several steep climbs, and even over a cable car. Not to mention our 3 hour hike back.

It was a long hard day for all of us, but our time in Timias was very special. We had to chance to wash all of the village kids feet and put new boots on them. It will be a moment that we or they will never forget.

Our second day in the jungle was spent doing some service projects. Half of the group went to another village nearby to help build a platform and repair their church while the other half of the group stayed in Kutsuka to help with a landscaping project. It was a hot day full of hard work, but really fun to see our projects come to completion.

With this being our last full day in the jungle, we got some really fun playtime with the kids before we left.

The next morning (Saturday), we were up and packed at 5:00pm to start our 8 hour hike out of the jungle. Words will not be able to describe what a feat this was as we walked through tons of muddy swamps, flowing rivers, up cliffs, and over bridges to reach the nearest bus. All of this in rubber boots. Once we reached our bus...we were exhausted, dirty, and ready for a good meal. Fortunately, several of the native Shwar indians in the village carried our packs out of the jungle for us. It was such a blessing. I'm not sure what we would have done without them.

We are back in Quito now and recovering from our time in the jungle. There are so many memories and friendships that we will never forget. There was not alot of comfort in the jungle, but it was so fun to see the Gospel going forth even in the most remote parts of the world. We will never be the same after experiencing life with the Kutsuka people!

first update from Ecuador

Hello all, we just received this email from Collin's wife. She was able to speak to him briefly last night. It is not much of an update but it is so good to hear all safely made it out of the jungle and back to the capital Quito. As soon as we get another update I will post it here. Thank you for continuing to pray for this team of missionaries until all arive safely home tomorrow. Parker has truly been missed this week. Jamie and I can not wait to wrap our arms around him tomorrow evening at the St Louis, MO airport. For HIS glory!

Hello from Branson,

I just wanted to send you guys a quick update with a little bit of information about our guys in Ecuador. I haven’t gotten to many details, but I do know that they made it out of the jungle safely. They actually spent all day Saturday hiking to get back to Quito. They started hiking at 5:30 am and finished up around 8:00pm at night. Then they had a bus ride back into the city. They got back to Quito around 1:00am and were quite exhausted, but from the small amount I have heard, they all did great on the hike. I only talked to Collin for a moment last night and then we got cut off. I think they must be having problems with the internet because I know Collin was working hard last night to get a post on www.Barn13.com but there isn’t anything new posted as of today.

Since there was not a new blog post, I thought you would appreciate knowing your boys were out of the jungle. Please feel free to call me if you have any questions, or if I can do anything for you!

I can’t wait to hear about all the adventures this trip has held!

Grace and Peace,

Rachel Sparks
(Collin’s Wife)

8 hour hike out of jungle

We haven't heard from Parker or his team since the bush plane took them into the jungle. Today they should have conquered the 8 hour hike out of the jungle. Thank you for partnering with us in prayer over this team. We are very proud of Parker's desire to serve others and share the gospel all over the world. Prayerfully we will post an update and pictures tomorrow.

Little Dudes

It's no fun being in trouble with the Auntie! These are for you Aunt Wendy, sorry it's been a while since I have posted pictures of the fellas.

It was a beautiful day here today, sunny and 70 degrees. Perfect day to play at the park. Phelix went down the slide.
Swinging is still a Phelix favorite! He has such a terrific smile but wouldn't show it for my camera today :>(
Phisher loves to be outside so today was his kind of day. He is so strong and can climb and play like a big kid!
First time climbing up this kind of climber. Did it like a professional!

Happy St Patrick's Day 2011, happy birthday to cousins Brook and Cassie!

Missionaries in Ecuador

Parker is out of the country! He is in Ecuador again this spring to serve and share the gospel. Here is the update we received last night. Please partner with us in prayer for this team. Prayer for safety, health, strength, that they would have HIS eyes, be HIS hands and feet while sharing the love of Christ.

TUESDAY, MARCH 15, 2011

One of my highlights each year is taking old K-Kountry kids on a mission trip somewhere in the world to help expand their vision for the Kingdom and love for God´s people. It is always so fun to watch the Lord impact and change these guys lives each year.

This week, there are 10 of us in Ecuador, South America serving the native Shuar Indians. After several plane trips, and a night in Miami...we have arrived in Quito and settled into our hotel for the night. At dinner tonight, we were able to connect with K-1 staff and Kanakuk legend, Caleb Freeman, who is studying here in Ecuador for the semester.

lunch at the Miami airport

waiting on the shuttle in Miami

The fellas

Tomorrow, we are up early and on the bus for a 5 hour drive over the Andes Mountains as we head into the jungle. We will get dropped of in Shell and then Missionary Avaiation Fellowship will fly us into the jungle village of Kutshka on a bush plane! I think all the guys are really excited for the adventure ahead.

In the jungle, we will be delievering medical supplies to these remote villages and helping build a platform for a school playground. I´m sure we will fit in a soccer game or two while we are there.

Obviously, there are no computers or internet in the jungle...so this will be our last update until Sunday. We are scheduled to hike out of the jungle (8 hour hike...yikes) and then another long bus ride back to Quito...so it will be a long day. We are scheduled to visit the Indian Market, the equator, and the volcano on Sunday and Monday. We will post video and updates once we get back to Quito.

Please pray for our time in the jungle as we litterally take the gospel to the ends of the earth.

"Children Of God" - Official Music Video

Love this group, love this song. Profound words in these lyrics. So blessed to be His child. So very thankful for the blessing of adoption. So very thankful to have been adopted by Him.