 By
Jennifer Boyd
That’s the name of our boat… Jungle Crews.
On January 28th I made a decision to participate in one of the
most challenging things I’ve ever done. I
joined crew! The captain asked me to join the four-member crew team of
Jungle Crews—a 20 foot-long canoe, “cayuco” in Spanish, made of mahogany.
This is the 47th year for this annual race that takes place
the middle of April. The event crosses from the Atlantic to Pacific Ocean through
the Panama Canal.
I really didn’t know what I was getting myself into.
Jungle Crews finished first last year, so the pressure’s really on.
We practice six days a week, at least 2 hours each day.
I’m the rookie and that’s not easy.
It means I have to work twice as hard to catch up and still get yelled
at.
 About
three weeks after we started the other three girls informed me that they were
going to try another girl out, someone with more experience.
I tried not to show it, but the news was hard on me.
It made me feel like a failure. My
parents were in Mexico for a Bible school conference and my closest friends were
out of town for the weekend. I
didn’t have a shoulder to cry on, except one—the most important one of all!
I knew that even when no one was around there was always One I could turn
to… God. I prayed for about two
hours asking God for help. Then I turned to Scripture.
I wasn’t looking for anything in particular, just comfort.
But something kept popping out at me.
I must keep God number one in my life.
Cayuco had been controlling my life, not allowing time for God.
I knew that the commitment would get even more intense as we prepared for
the race so I decided to follow God’s Word.
 I
called Katie (the captain) and told her that I understood and that she should
take the other girl. I told her I
needed to get my priorities straight. She
was very surprised but thanked me for my honesty and asked me not to quit yet.
The next day I prayed again telling God that He was number one.
And if that meant giving up cayuco that’s what would happen.
Katie called me that night. When
I picked up the phone I thought for sure I was out.
Then she told me the team had talked and they decided to not even try out
another girl, that they wanted me! I
continued to pray and felt that God had showed me what He wanted me to see.
There’s no other place but first place for God.
 We
have been practicing hard since then. There
are up’s and down’s but I know that God is always there, and that I can turn
to Him no matter what. The race is
just two weeks away! We are very
excited. But I’m a little
nervous. If you think about it,
please pray for us during the next couple of weeks.
Please pray for our safety… and success!  | 
