Today was our last full day of work here in Brazil. We met the children of Sao Camilo early this morning in the church building.  We had a fun time of eating breakfast with the children and entertaining them. 

The Bible story was about Jesus. The people here have done most of the work in teaching the kids and have done an incredible job. We got into groups and talked about Jesus with the children.  Some of them prayed to receive Christ! We also gave them the prayer bears that the children of North Side made for them. They really enjoyed that.

We came back to the church building that night and had our worship service. Many of us got to help lead in worship and Randy preached.  Several children from Sao Camilo came back tonight and a few even brought their families to worship.

We had to say goodbye to a lot of people tonight - even though we will see most of them tomorrow. These people have been extremely gracious and hospitable to us. I am constantly overwhelmed when I think about all they have done for us and taught us.  I do pray that we will be able to communicate what we've learned when we return home to Weatherford.

House Churches and Slums

Wow. It was quite an eventful day in Jundiai. We got up earlier than normal and met the kids from Sao Camilo for breakfast. We talked through the story of creation, did crafts, played ball, and hung out with the children.

When it was over we took the children back to their homes in Sao Camilo. From there we invited kids to come back tomorrow, and we invited their parents to come to the church service we're having tomorrow night. It was great going in the second time, people seemed more friendly and comfortable with us being there. However, we were told that going in 3 days in a row would wear out our welcome.

After a full day of VBS with kids and walking around Sao Camilo we went to various house churches of the church. The one we went to was really amazing. There were about 30 people packed in there of all ages and backgrounds. One family brought their 9 year old disabled adopted son. At first I thought he had cerebral palsy, as he didn't seem to have any functioning motor skills. But I later learned he was beaten so badly as a baby that he had had brain damage. It was amazing to see how much the church loved on Lucas. His mom brought him, but different people in the church took turns picking him up and putting him in their laps or holding him. They all loved on him because he belonged to all of them. And today they celebrated his recent birthday - the 6 or 7 children that were in the house church meeting all circled around him and prayed for him - out loud. It was an incredible sight to see how comfortable these kids were praying for their friend.

Tomorrow we go back to the church building to work with the children of Sao Camilo. Please pray for strength and wisdom as we share the Gospel with them. Pray that their parents would come to the worship service on Sunday night and hear the Word of God.

I hope you know that we all appreciate your prayers! Keep going!

Let's Go to Sao Camilo!

It's difficult to find words to describe what we did today. I'll do my best here.

Most of the morning was prayer and instruction. We prayed for Sao Camilo and prayed for our team. After lunch we were prepared to go. We packed up our pockets with New Testaments and soccer ball keychains, we separated into our teams, and we started walking up the hill to the slum. As we approached the entrance to Sao Camilo we saw three police cars with all their lights on. We were advised by all the Brazilians to turn back and avoid the neighborhood. This was disappointing news for us all. For many of us the highlight of the trip last year was going into this slum, and this year we may not be able to.

We turned around and went back to the church building. We found ourselves on our knees once again praying for Sao Camilo. This time it was more heart-felt, more intense. We prayed for the neighborhood, we prayed for our team and safety, we prayed for the Brazilians as they continue the work there even after we leave.

The minute we got up from praying Dairson walked in the building and said, "Let's go to Sao Camilo!" Everything was then clear for us to go. Why the wait? Maybe God wanted to make sure we were totally dependent on Him.

We carefully walked the streets of Sao Camilo going to houses of the children who are part of the program the church has every Saturday. We got to talk to many children and some adults. Some of us were able to go in homes and others walked up and down the street inviting them to come.

For the next two days we will be working with these children. On Sunday we'll give them the prayer bears Tamra and the preschoolers at North Side made for us. We'll also get to go back with them to their homes and tell the family members about Jesus.

Tonight we had a worship service with the senior pastor of the church. He challenged us to think about the mystery of Christ which is the Church (Eph 3:4). We continue to be challenged and touched here by the kindness and hospitality they show us. I can't really say enough about what they have done for us, and how they've been Jesus to all of us.

Please pray tomorrow as we do VBS with the children of Sao Camilo. Let us be the hands and feet of Christ. Let us love on the children and show them the love that is shown us.

Today we spent the majority of the day in Sao Camilo.  I know for the past year we've talked about Sao Camilo as a drug infested place that was not safe to enter.  You can imagine how we felt when we were told we would be going door to door there. But when we got there we realized there was a safer part of the neighborhood.

Our seven groups walked the streets telling people about Jesus. We had several people pray to accept Christ, many of them children. We did a program in a park late in the afternoon and afterwards were able to share Christ with many around us.

Tonight we split up and had dinner in people's houses. People from the church here invited their friends to dinner and we were there to share our testimonies about what God had done in our lives.  Our group met with a group of house church pastors and it was a great time of sharing and encouragement.

Please continue to pray for us. After 3 days of work we've become tired and even distracted. Please pray that God would give us new strength. Pray for us tomorrow that we will be able to talk to people in the slums of Sao Camilo. Pray that people in that community would come to know Him.

Day 3

Today started out with much uncertainty. Since we've been here they've had storms in Brazil that they usually don't see in July and August. It was pouring all night last night and into the morning and we were praying that the rain would stop. 

By the time our crowded bus pulled up to the house church in Novo Horizonte the rain stopped. We were able to go out into the neighborhood and share Christ.  The Americans got into groups and went down the street talking to all who would listen to us.  We had several people accept Christ, were able to pray with some, and made many contacts for the house church.

The Brazilians went out looking for kids and invited them to an event we had for children at the house church. There were close to 40 kids packed on the patio of the house. We teamed up with the Brazilians and did VBS type activities. I believe we really planted some seeds there with children and their parents.

Tonight we went back to the church building and had a worship service with the young people from the church. It was a very powerful time of worship. We heard from a guy who is an American and a pastor of a Brazilian church. He spoke to all of us about this generation must love God more than the pleasures of this world. The prayer time afterwards was truly amazing and hopefully prepared us for tomorrow. 

The pastor of the church here has invited us to fast tomorrow morning. If you are reading this I would like to encourage you to do the same. Tomorrow after lunch we are going to Sao Camilo. This slum has been on the hearts of the church here for 3 years now and has been a very difficult place to reach.  We're praying that God would break the chains that bind this place. That they would see the light of Christ through us and others who go there to share of His salvation.

This was a great day in Brazil! We did some prayer walking this morning. Some of us walked by Sao Camilo - the slum area where we will go on Friday-Sunday. The church has a real burden for this place plagued by poverty, drugs and crime. We are praying their hearts would be open to the Gospel and that the church could make a lasting impact on this community.

This afternoon we went door to door in Novo Horizonte telling people of the good news of Jesus Christ. There were several who began to trust Christ as their Savior today! The purpose of being in this neighborhood is so we can share Christ and point them to a place where they can go to study the Bible. The church members who host this Bible study were saved about the time we came here last year.  This year they are inviting everyone around them to come to their house where they are leading the Bible study. It's amazing to see them passionate about reaching their neighborhood for Jesus.

Tonight we did our program with some music and drama. It rained a little bit, but that didn't stop the right people from coming. After the program we dispersed to share with people in the crowd. From this several people came to know Christ, and many others heard the Good News.

Tomorrow we go back to Novo Horizonte to work with children. Please pray for us as we prepare for this work and that children and families would come to know Christ through what we do here.

Sharing

Sitting here with Randy, Matt, and Ruan the translator drinking tea and eating....again. This place is amazing.

We met tonight with our team and the Brazilian team to talk about what we are doing this week.  The next two days we will be working in Novo Horizonte. Tomorrow night we'll be focusing on ministering to adults and families, doing some door to door witnessing and some Gospel presentations in the streets.  On Wednesday we'll focus on activities for children. Please pray that God would give us wisdom as we share with the people of Brazil.  Pray that God would constantly remind us that we are here to further His kingdom through sharing of His grace and forgiveness through Jesus Christ.