Amazon Trip Update

Wed Aug 5

 

As we awoke, the moon was so bright that we thought it was already sunrise but it was only the shimmer of moonlight reflecting off the water shining into our boat.   Off the side of the boat was a school of large fish jumping out of the water.   One of the crew told us they were Boto, a large fish.   On the shore you could hear thousands of birds telling each other it was time to wake up, it was the beginning of a new day.

 

 

We are half way through our trip as we go into another small village.   Pucusal is on the Lake and has only accepted Christians other than Catholics for about three years.   The pastor, his wife and baby daughter joined us for the next 2 days of our journey and explained to us the history and the hope of the new believers.    They told us that most knew how to be saved but few had accepted Christ into their lives.   Bill, Chip, Wes and Doug walked door to door meeting people in their homes and talked to them about Jesus.   It was no coincidence that Sue struck a conversation with one of the teachers of the school.   They walked to the classroom, and drew pictures on the chalkboard for the students when they returned that afternoon.

 

After our lunch and daily nap, we trudged into the next village with all our supplies up a very steep hill and a long way along the trail.   As we arrived the children emerged from the school house and followed the Bible school team and sat under a big shady tree.   Julie has done an outstanding job of providing quality education with the lack of equipment and all the crafts that we put together for the kids.  (We have not yet gotten our suitcases.)

About 5:00 the pastor invited some of the villagers to come worship with us.   We sang a couple of songs first in Portugese then in English.   David M was the first to give his testimony followed by Kaylaynn before the pastor gave an inspirational message to the people.   We pray that the hearts and lives of the people have been changed.

 

 

The evenings come in early as the sun sets by 6:00.   Our meal, as always, was wonderful but afterwards, we were in for a surprise;  allegator hunting!   I thought we were only going to try and SEE some.   No, we actually caught four of them and brought them back to the boat.   This we can verify because we all took turns holding them while everyone took pictures.   What an awesome, inspiring day.

 

 

In Christ,

 

The Team in Brazil

 

FBC and Prestonwood - City of Parintins Day 2

Tues Aug 4

 

The mornings are special quiet times; some awake to watch the sun rise while others continue to sway gently in their hammocks.   Individually we spend time in prayer and Bible study or trying to spot pink dolphins.   Now, you might ask us for proof of one of these beautiful animals but they are almost impossible to get a picture of.   (They are not pink elephants.)   I assure you they do exist, if you want to see one, well, we welcome you to come with us next year.

 

 

Once again we headed to the Good Samaritan to share with the beautiful children from the poorer side of town.   Today, David S. shared the plan of salvation using soccer balls to over 300 wide eyed students.   The kids are so loving that Kaylaynn and Laurie could hardly be seen because of all the boys and girls surrounding them with hugs.

 

 

One of the many aspects of going on a mission trip is allowing yourself to step out of your comfort zone and do things that you have to rely on God to help you with.   Doug shared with us his victory over fear of sharing his testimony.   He was able to allow God to use his past to help about 30 gang members make better choices for their future.   What a marvelous Lord we have to equip us when we need it and we know Doug will continue to be used to minister to the hearts of young men.

 

 

Although these kids have very little worldly possessions they are rich in joy and love.   "Lay not up for yourselves treasure on earth where theives can steal but lay up for yourselves treasure in heaven."   As we travel to Lake Carara we know that these experience on the Amazon are treasures in our hearts that one day we can lay at the Shepherd's feet.

FBC and Prestonwood - City of Parintins Day 1

Mon Aug 3

 

Before coming on this trip there were three things that concerned me: the bugs, the heat and the hammocks.   I decided that being eaten up with bugs, overwhelmed by heat and lack of sleep was a small price to pay for serving God, so I trusted He would see me through it.   So far we have not had any bugs, well, a couple of tarantulas at the village and these hugh ants at the school, most of us are getting plenty of sleep in the hammocks and . . .  well, two out of three isn't bad.

 

Today we went to the Good Samaritan school in Paritins.   This Christian school is funded by the government and has three separate groups of students, morning, afternoon and evening.   Out of the rows of blue buildings we saw faces standing in the doorways waiting for our arrival.    Soon the auditorium was filled with yellow tshirts and excited children.   Once again, Julie did a fantastic job of organizing the presentation to the elementary students, Ken and Tom were our star performers and Priscila controlled the bunch with children's Bible songs.

 

 

While the little ones were having a great time, Clayton spoke to the teenagers, some who were former gang members, and played ping-pong.   Sue and Nadyr painted the older girls fingernails while talking about Jesus, school, and, of course, boys.   We had a great time and the students asked us lots of questions about the Bible, our families, and things in America.

 

 

After lunch and a nap, always a welcomed repreve, we returned to the school to experience once again the joys of the morning.   One of the interpreters overheard a young boy saying negative things about Jesus, so she and Vi found a salvation bracelet and shared Christ with him.   After they were finished, he turned and gave them a big hug and a smile.   Who knew that planting seeds in a hot and humid land could produce so much fruit! 

 

FBC and Prestonwood - Castanhal and Parintins

Sun Aug 2

 

We awoke to see the river smooth as glass as if sleeping before the excitement of the day.   The stars and the trees used the river as a mirror and hovered over it with anticipation.   The smell of coffee, bacon, and french toast called us to breakfast as we rolled out into the coolness of the morning.   As we ate, worshipped in song and had devotionals, we headed toward Castanhal, our first small village.

 

The big three decker boat signalled to the people that it was time for them to head to town.   It didn't take long and children were everywhere.   Bible School became a major theatrical production of the Good Samaritan and the Healing of the Deaf Man.   The gospel was presented using soccer balls and salvation bracelets.   Most of all there was lots of fun and pampering; with bubbles, animal balloons and combing hair- turning all the little girls into princesses.  The boys could be heard all over town proudly showing off their squawking chickens.

 

 

Over 50 men, women and children had their teeth pulled.   Rita, one of our dentist, and Sue had the "tooth is now pulled" dance, which made everyone watching laugh.   35 people received new glasses and 64 were able to get much needed medication.   Jeraldo, Doug and Wes witnessed with a pocket knife to the men of the village and 5 accepted Christ; afterward they spent time in discipleship.

 

 

That evening we were treated to a Youth Worship Service in the city of Paritins.   The spirit of joy abounded as the kids from youth camp literally jumped up and down into the auditorium.   They danced, clapped, hugged and smiled to a room of about 1,000.   The pastor spoke on how to be saved and used a pciture of a credit card: Mastercard is everywhere!

 

 

To conclude the day we all headed for McDave's (no joke) to experience new flavors of ice cream.   Heather is going to be their new spokes person for Avocado ice cream.   I was not brave enough to try it.   What af fantastic way to begin our week.

 

 

Day 1 Blog Entry - FBC and Prestonwood

Friday, July 31

 

It is said that the most exciting adventures start with the greatest challenges.   If that is the case, we are all expecting our mission to be miraculous.

 

Starting with a call late into Thur night, our group had been divided onto two different planes going at two different times.    Of course it was too late to call anyone so we all met at 8:30 to find out who would be waiting at DFW or who would wait in Atlanta.   It really didn't matter who because the 10:40 flight ended up not taking off until 12:05 from DFW and the second flight was not far behind.   The good news?   Our Atlanta flight wasn't until after 5.   Praise the Lord!

 

 

 

We all made it safely onto our flight and into Manaus only to find to our horror that we had made it but half our luggage had not!   It contained most of our Bible School supplies.   Unfortunately, there is only one flight to Manaus every day and it is at midnight!   The good news?   Hopefully we will see our luggage in 36 hours.

 

Long into the night, we finally made it to what I saw as Cinderella's Coach ; beautifully lit in the dark night as a jewel beaconing for us to come aboard.   The good news?   It didn't take us long to carry only half the intended luggage to the boat.

 

We were all so excited that for several hours as we began to travel down the river, we stood amazed at the awesomeness of the River and the beauty of God's handiwork.   I personally must express a gratitude to the Lord God, King of the Universe for all He has done in His creation and all He will do in our lives and the lives of the people of Brazil.   The good new?   It is a new day and we are headed for Parintins.

 

 

Sat, Aug 1

 

What a difference a day makes.   The river rocked us to sleep as gently as a mother would rock her child, and we awoke to a leisurely day of Sabbath rest.   It was no wonder that those of us who were experiencing Brazil for the first time approached the morning with childish glee.   All along the river we saw amazing sights; children playing on the decks of wooden houses with thatched roofs, fisherman in dug-out boats, bardges loaded with trucks filled with supplies and boats of various kinds, some filled with tourists playing festive songs.   The mighty Amazon embrassed both the old and the new with equal dignity.

 

 

 

 

Aboard the Amor E Esperanca, we were introduced to the coming week.   We met our Dentists, Pharmasist, our crew and Captain, a local pastor and our RULES.   We made friendships with our interpreters and loudly applauded the woman who would do our laundry.   The most flavorful introduction was meeting the Queen of the trip, the cook and her royal court.   I can tell you now that we have all thrown our diets overboard and we will not be losing weight.

 

The Lord must foresee in His glorious wisdom, that we will need our strength for the days to come, so we praise Him for the great food and the first day to just feel His presence and to rest!  

 

Our current GPS coordinates are:  S 002 47.607  W 056 50.643

 

In Christ,

 

 

Your Friends in Brazil