Mission to the Indians

In Paraguay the Mennonites organized a mission for the Indians, (translated) called, “Light to the Indians." The objectives were to:
- acquaint them with the Word of God
- provide education
- promote better health
- enable them to become self-sufficient, faithful, useful and skilled citizens

One story that I must tell is of a time when my mom-in-law was serving at this mission where, at the time, they were ministering to a tribe called the Lengua. This happened while she was in her late teens, before she was married. One day she was alone in the mission house when some Chulupi Indians came to the door. These were enemies of the Lengua and they had never shown themselves to the white people before. They wore loin cloths and held spears in their hands.

To say the least, Mom was terrified but, when she saw that they were rubbing their stomachs, she took them across the yard to the kitchen and gave them some bread and beans. Then they left. Later on she found out that the Lengua had been hiding in the bushes and not shown themselves because of their fear of the Chulupi.

To make a long story short, in later years the Chulupi also came to know the Lord and this brings me to the climax to the story! This Fall (2009) while Mom (age 92) was lying in her hospital bed, three Chulupi Indians came to her bedside and serenaded her with hymns and spiritual songs. They had been sponsored to come to Canada to serve at a local fundraiser for another Mission in Paraguay and since they had a big connection to my brother-in-law, they wanted to meet the first lady who had given their tribe bread, back in about 1935. I love this story.

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