Rescued from the Throes of Depression

Amazonian Wednesdays 🌴

Today’s jungle story is from just a month ago:

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It all started during the pandemic. Naya’s son Oscar was completely alone in Lima for those initial, terrifying months. Peru was the country at the top of the list worldwide for covid deaths. The nation was completely shut down for half a year. The military made sure no one left their homes except for the briefest of windows before dawn for getting groceries and medicine.

And Oscar was all alone. During those months of isolation and terror, he went into a dark depression. He fell on the coping mechanism of overeating and began to pack on alarming amounts of excess weight.

Even when the worst of the pandemic had passed, the damage was done. Desperate for connection, he fell into a bad crowd of friends. He began smoking and drinking, the downward spiral worsening day by day. He had lost all motivation to take care of himself.

Naya has come to know the power of God very personally. She knows firsthand that He answers prayers. Armed with this knowledge, she once again turned to prayer and fasting. As only a mother can, she began to cry out to God for Oscar’s salvation.

The moment came when Oscar visited his parents in Iquitos. Naya coaxed him to come out to the Missions School with her for an all night prayer meeting that our church was holding. “It’s so beautiful out there in the jungle, you’ll love it!” she promised him. He begrudgingly agreed to go along with her.

When they arrived, he would not come with her to the meeting where the brothers and sisters were praying together. He stayed back at the cabin, refusing to budge. However, before long, darkness fell. Oscar was not accustomed to the nighttime sounds of the rainforest.

He had spent much of his life in the capital city of Lima, far away from our rustic setting. He didn’t want to be alone with those noises. He quietly made his way to the meeting, sheerly out of jungle nerves. Even though he really didn’t want to be in church, at least he felt safer with people around.

Once in our gathering, though, something began to happen to him. The presence of God was powerfully manifesting there. As the night when on, his heart began to respond. He found himself in tears. Naya came and wrapped her arms around him. She prayed over him and ministered to him. He clung to her, unable to stop weeping.

Today, Oscar is thriving. He found a new job, new church, and new friends. He shared with Naya recently, “Mom, I don’t know what happened that night. My heart was overcome with sadness. I cried out to God to help me get out of that lifestyle that was killing me.”

Naya’s face radiated joy as she shared this testimony with us. “I am so grateful to have found a church like this!” she expressed. Her heart overflows with thankfulness for a place where she can meet with others and experience God’s dramatic interventions. “How I love my church!” she exclaims.