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
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