Mission Trip to the Amazon 2025

I’m writing this on the plane returning from a week of serving with our Rolling Hills Mission Team in the Amazon jungle. Wow - what an incredible week of ministry - praise God! We had a team of 33 from our church combined with 25 Brazilian dentists, nurses, translators, cooks, boat crew and Justice & Mercy Amazon staff. We slept in hammocks on the JMI Boat, the Splendor, and would wake up in a new village each day. We started in Manaus and then went 20 hours up the Amazon River to some very indigenous villages. God moved and I feel so blessed.

Every day in the village we set up medical and dental clinics, ran a kid’s camp, gave out clothes and food, did home visits and then attended church services. It is amazing to see the entire village being loved and served in the Name of Jesus. Everyone is so grateful and gives us so many hugs. We work through the local pastor and invite everyone to church. It is incredible how much ministry you can do and how much love you can receive in one day.

On one home visit, we had the opportunity to meet and talk with Evangelica. A missionary had been doing a Bible Study in her village, and she heard about the love of Jesus. As we talked, she said she wanted to be a Christ-follower and wanted to be baptized. She’s the mom of five children. That afternoon she came to the church service to make her profession of faith in Jesus public. We then went down and baptized her in the Amazon River (Jamie, our Jungle Guide, had to clear out the sting rays before we got in). So many in the village stood on the bank of the River to watch. It was a powerful testimony to her faith and the impact of Jesus on every person.

In another village, the local pastor took us to the home of a couple - Maria and Rehmoundo. They have two children and Maria had recently been taken to the hospital (which was far away). The entire church and village prayed for her and God healed her. They gave their lives to Jesus. They used to run the largest bar in town and now they are only selling food and popsicles. Their joy in the Lord was evident, and they were impacting their entire village for Christ.

Camilla. When Camilla was born she had epilepsy. She couldn’t stay in school. At 10 years old, the doctor told the family that she needed to be put into a special school for children because she would never be able to speak. Hearing this, her family started to pray. They went to church and the pastor was talking about the healing of Lazarus. Camilla ran down to the front and said, “God, if you can heal Lazarus then you can heal me.” And, He did. She began to speak. Today she is a full-time minister. And, her entire family became Christians.

One day, we picked up a missionary. She is ministering in four different villages that have never heard the Gospel and do not have a local church. She goes there and starts a Bible Study in someone’s home with the goal of it becoming a church. One family invited her in and today they have a church meeting at their house. They are also starting construction on a building. It reminded me of Acts and Paul starting the church at Philippi (to whom the book of Philippians is addressed) in Lydia’s home.

There are so many other stories, such as Pastor Esraus who came and spoke to our team. He attended our Amazon Pastor’s Conference three years ago and was about to quit. He was a professional musician in Manaus when God called him to be a missionary to the indigenous tribes of the Amazon. The ministry was so hard. His family did not have much to eat and he was ready to move back to Manaus. He was invited to the Pastor’s Conference and there a man came up to him and said that his village did not have a pastor. They had been praying for 21 days for someone to come. God gave them a name - Esraus. He said, “I believe that this is you.” Pastor Esraus was floored. He told the man he would come to visit. Then, Pastor Esraus moved his family to this new village; and today, the church is booming. There are more people outside on Sundays than on the inside, and he is mobilizing the church to do missions. They just completed their 15th mission trip to indigenous tribes and have a goal to reach 52 unreached villages in the next five years. Only God!

Let me encourage you to go on a mission trip at some point in your life. I promise it will impact you in a very deep way. You are able to see God do miracles. You will hear stories, encourage other Christ-followers, and use your spiritual gifts in ways you never dreamed of. Your faith in Jesus will grow stronger, and you will make an eternal impact for Christ in others. And, the amazing part is that most of the time you are blessed more than even the people you go to serve. 

And, if you have children (at some point) go serve on a mission trip with them. I was so blessed to serve with my entire family on this trip. Watching my three daughters serve people in the Name of Jesus was such a gift. I am so proud of each of them. They are gaining a greater worldview and learning to live out what Jesus said, “I came not to be served, but to serve.” Plus, Jesus said, “It is better to give than to receive.” Growing up in the United States it is easy to become narcissistic - to think that everything and everyone exists just to serve you. To think only about how much more money you can make and how much stuff you can acquire. But, Jesus’ way is countercultural, and when you see your kids get it and live it - it is awe-inspiring. 

I’m so thankful for our church believing in missions and taking the Gospel to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8). I could have never dreamed what God would do when He called us to start Justice & Mercy International 15 years ago. Who could have dreamed we would now be serving Jesus in the Amazon Jungle. God is good, and I am so thankful! Pray for the work God is doing. You can also sponsor a child or a pastor through JMI. In addition, keep tithing and go on a mission trip one day. Together we can truly change this world for Jesus.