Chapter 53: Elio's Ministry Among the Shawi - Part 1
AS TOLD BY GRO AGERSTEN
Elio’s conversion in Tigre Playa
We had already started the Thursday night service in Tigre Playa when some young boys entered the church and took seats in the back. A couple of them had been there before, but we didn’t know the others. John and Rudolf were visiting villages in the district. Eva and I were in charge at Tigre Playa, which we were occasionally. I was the one who was leading the Bible study that evening, and Eva led the song service on her guitar. They followed along with the songs, although they laughed and occasionally acted up. As the service continued, they quieted down. After the Bible study, the service concluded as usual with a song and an invitation for salvation and prayer. A couple of the youths left, but the rest remained. While we were praying, one of the boys suddenly fell to his knees by the bench and began to cry, begging out loud for forgiveness for his sins. We went to the back and prayed over him there by the bench. After a while, the crying stopped, and he sat up, thanking Jesus for his forgiveness and salvation. He wanted a Bible. We didn’t have one with us, but he promised to come back for one.
That evening was the start of a very different life for Elio Solis. He was originally from a mountain town further south in Peru, where he was called up for military service after high school. He had just completed his military service at one of the camps in the jungle border area with Ecuador. He had gotten to know a family in Tigre Playa and came to stay with them after his military service. There were several young people his age there, and Elio enjoyed partying with some of them. However, a couple of these young people regularly attended church services. They had invited Elio to the service. None of them had probably imagined what would happen to him that evening. He stopped partying and drinking, and on Sunday, he came back, bought a Bible, and read it hungrily. He had many questions and came often to talk to John in the weeks following his conversion. He also attended the services faithfully.
Elio works as a lumberjack in Sillay.
After some time, Elio took a job as a lumberjack for a “patron” who cut down timber in Sillay, a small tributary to the Cahuapanas River, which flows into the Marañon just downriver from Tigre Playa. We prayed for him a lot, that he would be protected and keep his faith in the rough lumberjack camps. We had visited a couple of such camps in the past, and they were unfortunately not good experiences.
We had not heard from Elio in a long time, but finally, one day, we received a letter from him. He wrote that he was doing well and that he would soon return to Tigre Playa to learn more. The letter was also full of Bible verses and questions he had regarding them. He also wrote that he wanted to live among the Shawi tribe and witness in the villages in that area. We were able to send a response to the same people who had brought his letter, as they were returning to Sillay. We invited him to a Bible study week we would be hosting soon, and also invited him to stay in Tigre Playa for a while and work with us.
We had already started the Thursday night service in Tigre Playa when some young boys entered the church and took seats in the back. A couple of them had been there before, but we didn’t know the others. John and Rudolf were visiting villages in the district. Eva and I were in charge at Tigre Playa, which we were occasionally. I was the one who was leading the Bible study that evening, and Eva led the song service on her guitar. They followed along with the songs, although they laughed and occasionally acted up. As the service continued, they quieted down. After the Bible study, the service concluded as usual with a song and an invitation for salvation and prayer. A couple of the youths left, but the rest remained. While we were praying, one of the boys suddenly fell to his knees by the bench and began to cry, begging out loud for forgiveness for his sins. We went to the back and prayed over him there by the bench. After a while, the crying stopped, and he sat up, thanking Jesus for his forgiveness and salvation. He wanted a Bible. We didn’t have one with us, but he promised to come back for one.
That evening was the start of a very different life for Elio Solis. He was originally from a mountain town further south in Peru, where he was called up for military service after high school. He had just completed his military service at one of the camps in the jungle border area with Ecuador. He had gotten to know a family in Tigre Playa and came to stay with them after his military service. There were several young people his age there, and Elio enjoyed partying with some of them. However, a couple of these young people regularly attended church services. They had invited Elio to the service. None of them had probably imagined what would happen to him that evening. He stopped partying and drinking, and on Sunday, he came back, bought a Bible, and read it hungrily. He had many questions and came often to talk to John in the weeks following his conversion. He also attended the services faithfully.
Elio works as a lumberjack in Sillay.
After some time, Elio took a job as a lumberjack for a “patron” who cut down timber in Sillay, a small tributary to the Cahuapanas River, which flows into the Marañon just downriver from Tigre Playa. We prayed for him a lot, that he would be protected and keep his faith in the rough lumberjack camps. We had visited a couple of such camps in the past, and they were unfortunately not good experiences.
We had not heard from Elio in a long time, but finally, one day, we received a letter from him. He wrote that he was doing well and that he would soon return to Tigre Playa to learn more. The letter was also full of Bible verses and questions he had regarding them. He also wrote that he wanted to live among the Shawi tribe and witness in the villages in that area. We were able to send a response to the same people who had brought his letter, as they were returning to Sillay. We invited him to a Bible study week we would be hosting soon, and also invited him to stay in Tigre Playa for a while and work with us.
Back to Tigre Playa in 1975.
Elio came to attend the Bible study week and paid close attention to the teaching. In May 1975, he was baptized in the river and experienced the baptism in the Holy Spirit. Now he was even more eager to spread the Gospel. He was a great help as we traveled to villages along the Marañon, and he was also a big help with practical tasks in Tigre Playa. Not least, he helped us greatly during the most significant flood we have ever experienced in the jungle. The flood lasted for 14 days in mid-June. The water reached the windows of our house and Wilhelm's. We had to move into the church at that time. It stood on high stilts like most houses in the village. We will write more about that time in another chapter on the blog.
At the end of June, Elio joined John on an evangelistic trip up the Morona River. The houseboat “Alli Shungo” had problems with the starter motor, among other issues, so they traveled in an open wooden boat with a half-roof of palm leaves over the back of the boat. They visited most of the villages and small towns along the Morona during the 25-day trip. They were met with joy in the villages, and it was encouraging to meet those who had accepted the gospel on previous trips. Elio was a great help, both with driving the boat and in preaching and teaching. He witnessed enthusiastically and reached the people in a special way. It was clear that he had a good rapport with the indigenous people. Physically, the trip was uncomfortable. It was unusually cold for the tropics for a week, accompanied by heavy rainfall. They got soaked several times. Both John and Elio dried their clothes and warmed themselves by the fireplace wherever they entered a house, but they were still very cold for large portions of the trip. However, upon returning home, they said that everything they experienced in the villages, where many had given their lives to Jesus and begged them to come again, made up for the negative experiences they had had.
Elio returns to Sillay
When they returned to Tigre Playa from the trip, Elio wanted to go back to Sillay. He felt that the Lord was calling him to share the Gospel about salvation in Jesus, and God as both Creator and Father. He took a new Bible with him since his old one was worn out. He was also equipped with new shoes and a new change of clothes as he left full of joy. He had already learned some of the Shawi language, and we didn’t doubt that he would soon learn more and be a blessing to these people. With all the work we already had, and the large area we were traveling in, it was not possible for us to take up work in Sillay. Elio became a sent worker that God used among the Shawi people.
We heard from Elio sporadically, and sometimes we would hear stories about him from other travelers who had been in his area for logging or other work. We understood that he had encountered strong opposition to the Gospel, particularly among the elders. In one village, they had basically chased him out because of the influence of the medicine man(shaman) in the village, who was strongly opposed to Elio’s message. The villagers feared the shaman as they believed that he could cast curses and even death on them. Other villages were open to the Gospel, and many were saved, accepting Jesus as their Lord and Savior. Elio found himself a wife in one of these villages, in a family that had accepted Christ. While he was ministering there and in other places along the Sillay, something amazing happened in the village where he had been chased out.
Send for Elio
A young man in that village fell ill with pneumonia. After a few days with a high fever, he died. This happened early in the morning. As is the custom in the jungle, they laid the body on a table and covered it with some cloth. The family, of course, was mourning deeply. They gathered around the table and lit candles in each of the four corners. It was customary for the mother and siblings to express their grief by crying loudly, and little by little, the house would fill up with neighbors who came in quietly to show their sympathy. By the afternoon, the house was filled with people sharing in their sorrow, and the women's keening increased in volume. To everyone’s shock, the dead boy started to move, and the crying and keening stopped instantly when the boy sat up on the table! It had now been many hours since he had been declared dead by the medicine man and the family.
Everyone was completely quiet as the boy began to speak. He started telling them about his experience: He had risen out of his body, and seen and heard those who cried around him on the table. Leaving his body behind, he had left the house and continued down the path between the small fields belonging to the village. But then he entered a path he had never seen before. He said he walked for a long time until he came to an unknown river. While he was looking for a way to cross it, a shining being came toward him. This beautiful being told him he could not cross this river yet. He had to go home and ask his people to send for Elio Solis. “He will tell you about Jesus, the way to life”. The shining messenger disappeared, and the young man returned the same way he had come. He walked into the house and lay down on the table. “Then I felt a strong power lift me up,” he said.
The young man sat there healed and completely restored, and the crowd had been listening to him as if in a daze. Now they came to life! His mother threw herself around his neck, and people were shouting, “Someone better go find Elio right away!”. A couple of men were sent to Elio’s village to ask him to come to them. A couple of days later, when he arrived, most of the village gathered to hear the young man’s testimony again as he retold it to Elio and to hear what Elio would say. Elio was, of course, very moved and excited about what he heard. He preached to them full of the Holy Spirit. Almost everyone accepted salvation through Jesus that day. Elio stayed for a couple of weeks teaching the new believers, and the Lord confirmed His Word with several signs and miracles. This led to a great victory for the Gospel among the Shawi.
Elio came to attend the Bible study week and paid close attention to the teaching. In May 1975, he was baptized in the river and experienced the baptism in the Holy Spirit. Now he was even more eager to spread the Gospel. He was a great help as we traveled to villages along the Marañon, and he was also a big help with practical tasks in Tigre Playa. Not least, he helped us greatly during the most significant flood we have ever experienced in the jungle. The flood lasted for 14 days in mid-June. The water reached the windows of our house and Wilhelm's. We had to move into the church at that time. It stood on high stilts like most houses in the village. We will write more about that time in another chapter on the blog.
At the end of June, Elio joined John on an evangelistic trip up the Morona River. The houseboat “Alli Shungo” had problems with the starter motor, among other issues, so they traveled in an open wooden boat with a half-roof of palm leaves over the back of the boat. They visited most of the villages and small towns along the Morona during the 25-day trip. They were met with joy in the villages, and it was encouraging to meet those who had accepted the gospel on previous trips. Elio was a great help, both with driving the boat and in preaching and teaching. He witnessed enthusiastically and reached the people in a special way. It was clear that he had a good rapport with the indigenous people. Physically, the trip was uncomfortable. It was unusually cold for the tropics for a week, accompanied by heavy rainfall. They got soaked several times. Both John and Elio dried their clothes and warmed themselves by the fireplace wherever they entered a house, but they were still very cold for large portions of the trip. However, upon returning home, they said that everything they experienced in the villages, where many had given their lives to Jesus and begged them to come again, made up for the negative experiences they had had.
Elio returns to Sillay
When they returned to Tigre Playa from the trip, Elio wanted to go back to Sillay. He felt that the Lord was calling him to share the Gospel about salvation in Jesus, and God as both Creator and Father. He took a new Bible with him since his old one was worn out. He was also equipped with new shoes and a new change of clothes as he left full of joy. He had already learned some of the Shawi language, and we didn’t doubt that he would soon learn more and be a blessing to these people. With all the work we already had, and the large area we were traveling in, it was not possible for us to take up work in Sillay. Elio became a sent worker that God used among the Shawi people.
We heard from Elio sporadically, and sometimes we would hear stories about him from other travelers who had been in his area for logging or other work. We understood that he had encountered strong opposition to the Gospel, particularly among the elders. In one village, they had basically chased him out because of the influence of the medicine man(shaman) in the village, who was strongly opposed to Elio’s message. The villagers feared the shaman as they believed that he could cast curses and even death on them. Other villages were open to the Gospel, and many were saved, accepting Jesus as their Lord and Savior. Elio found himself a wife in one of these villages, in a family that had accepted Christ. While he was ministering there and in other places along the Sillay, something amazing happened in the village where he had been chased out.
Send for Elio
A young man in that village fell ill with pneumonia. After a few days with a high fever, he died. This happened early in the morning. As is the custom in the jungle, they laid the body on a table and covered it with some cloth. The family, of course, was mourning deeply. They gathered around the table and lit candles in each of the four corners. It was customary for the mother and siblings to express their grief by crying loudly, and little by little, the house would fill up with neighbors who came in quietly to show their sympathy. By the afternoon, the house was filled with people sharing in their sorrow, and the women's keening increased in volume. To everyone’s shock, the dead boy started to move, and the crying and keening stopped instantly when the boy sat up on the table! It had now been many hours since he had been declared dead by the medicine man and the family.
Everyone was completely quiet as the boy began to speak. He started telling them about his experience: He had risen out of his body, and seen and heard those who cried around him on the table. Leaving his body behind, he had left the house and continued down the path between the small fields belonging to the village. But then he entered a path he had never seen before. He said he walked for a long time until he came to an unknown river. While he was looking for a way to cross it, a shining being came toward him. This beautiful being told him he could not cross this river yet. He had to go home and ask his people to send for Elio Solis. “He will tell you about Jesus, the way to life”. The shining messenger disappeared, and the young man returned the same way he had come. He walked into the house and lay down on the table. “Then I felt a strong power lift me up,” he said.
The young man sat there healed and completely restored, and the crowd had been listening to him as if in a daze. Now they came to life! His mother threw herself around his neck, and people were shouting, “Someone better go find Elio right away!”. A couple of men were sent to Elio’s village to ask him to come to them. A couple of days later, when he arrived, most of the village gathered to hear the young man’s testimony again as he retold it to Elio and to hear what Elio would say. Elio was, of course, very moved and excited about what he heard. He preached to them full of the Holy Spirit. Almost everyone accepted salvation through Jesus that day. Elio stayed for a couple of weeks teaching the new believers, and the Lord confirmed His Word with several signs and miracles. This led to a great victory for the Gospel among the Shawi.