Mike and Beverly Creiglow have served the Lord in Cruzeiro do Sul, Acre, Brazil together for 40 years. In addition to pastoring First Baptist of Cruzeiro do Sul, Mike builds his own boats and frequently travels up and down rivers to share the Gospel with those who have never heard.

Dear Brethren,

Our medical missions team just arrived from a long trip up the Juruá River. Hudson and I went up
river 5 days before the rest of the team.

Last year I had ordered lumber to build pews for our work in Tipisca, Peru. They only had a couple
of benches. The lumber I ordered was being used as improvised benches for the services. We
loaded up a bunch of my power tools and a generator and headed the 500km up stream. It rained for 2 days which brought the river way up. They only have lights for a few hours in the evening at Tipisca and it is 220volts. That is why I had to take the generator and all the power tools.

Bro. Mike Creiglow with his 9 year-old helper Carlos sitting on some of the pews they built at Tipisca, Peru.

Our missionary at Tipisca is Brother José Maia. He has a couple of Ashaninka Indian boys that do odd jobs for him. He had the younger brother, 9 year old Carlos, to help me. This kid is amazing! He is a hard worker and sharp as a tack. He watched me closely and would have tools, screws, glue, nails or whatever ready at each step of the process. I don’t speak much Spanish, but we got along just fine. We even had some good laughs. He was with me for at least 10 hours every day for 4 days. At the end of each day we would clean up the building; sweeping and mopping (on hands and knees). After all that he would still ask in Spanish, of course, “Quieres ayuda, Pastor?”
“Do you need help with anything else, pastor?” Wow! What a worker. We made 10 mahogany pews in 4 days. They are sanded and ready for varnish. Each night we had a few more seats for the services.

Our team arrived on day 6. This was the first time that we have had a medical team in a foreign country. We had 15 members. The great thing was that this was the first time after 17 years and over 40 clinics that all the members were just from our home church. We had 1 doctor, 2 dentists and 3 nurses on this team. We still have other nurses, 1 more doctor and 1 more dentist in our church. There are a doctor and 2 nurses in Tipisca. We included them in the project. They were amazed at the kindness and care our team gives. They were also astonished at the amount and variety of medicine that we have for the people.

The medical missions team

We cared for the folks and held services there for 3 days. Then we went back down river to Foz do Breu, on the Brazilian side for 2 more days. After that it was on to the village of Caipora for 2 more days of clinic before returning to Cruzeiro do Sul. No one was saved on this trip, but we cared for hundreds of bodies and shared the Gospel with many more. These projects cost a minimum of $10,000.00 each. Our folks here foot the bill. You’re allowed to help, too, if you like.

Dr. Suiane listening to a mom and her child at Caipora

We suffered through some extreme heat. One night was the hottest ever in my 52 years of life in the jungle. We were at Caipora. Camp was set up under a covered area, but no walls. At 3:00AM the generator was still running. The guys were playing games and telling jokes. It was too hot to sleep. Late that night I went out into the field to call Beverly on my satellite phone. There was a bright full moon, but it was just crazy hot! Sweat was dripping off my chin and rolling down my body. What I didn’t tell her at the time was that I was wearing only my underwear. Didn’t mean to spoil your day with that last line, but it REALLY was HOT! We are back in Cruzeiro and cold water never tasted so good. I’m already looking for an ice maker that I can hook up to my little generator.

Their nurse, Vieira, sorting medicine as the last day of the clinic began

Thanks for all of your prayers and support. God bless you as much as He has us.

In Christ,
Mike and Beverly Creiglow
Caixa Postal 24
Cruzeiro do Sul, Acre, Brazil 69980
mdcreig [at] hotmail.com

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