Imagine with me… Its 6:45am and a delicious breakfast of luscious Brazilian fruits, chocolate, cheese bread, and juices has already come and gone. We have already loaded the bus and are now on our way to see the church where we will be working for the first time. Upon arrival, we immediately begin to set up for our first day of camp. There to greet us at the church was a family of monkeys that lived in the church tree.
It is 8:30am and the campers have arrived! 46 campers eagerly got off the bus, unsure of what to expect on this first session of camp. With big smiles, high fives, and the love of Christ we welcomed them and made them feel at home. Each camper is put on a team of either blue, green, or yellow depending on their age. Next, with Stephanie taking the lead, we began to teach them a “crazy American dance” (Hands Up), which they loved! As an introduction to the theme, Steven, Stephanie, and Juliana performed a skit that showed the love of Christ.
9:00am and the campers move to “Grande Groupo” (Big Group), where the heard The Bible story of Paul and Silas praising the Lord. Melodie, Whitney, Daniel and Joey tackled singing praise and worship songs in Portuguese followed by a delicious snack provided for the campers by our amazing Brazilian volunteers.
At 10:20am, we begin our rotations, or “Oficinas.” Arts and crafts, Recreation, Man’s Land and Gurl World brought fun and excitement to the day for the campers where they participated in many activities that they had never experienced before. Meanwhile, all of the American’s were so excited to finally meet these campers that they had been praying for for so long and loved being able to begin building relationships with them.
It is now 12:00pm and time for the campers to go home. We stand on the curb, waving goodbye, speaking our carefully learned Portuguese words for “see you tomorrow.” With the children now gone, we have a moment to rest, but not for too long. In just a few hours, it will be time to do it all over again, this time with different campers. There is no doubt that we are a bit tired, but the joy of serving the Lord is our strength.
The morning seemed to pass so quickly and, praise God, so smoothly. We thank you all for your prayers for us as we can definitely see God at work. Our Brazilian friends are doing an amazing job at leading and the campers that we had this morning seem so receptive to us and open to hearing God’s Word. It is our hope and prayer that their lives would be greatly changed!
News from the Team:
Jimmy: Was excited to see campers willingly become octopi.
Melodie: Is so glad that the campers are finally here!
Juliana (me): Was excited to find out that she does not have an American accent when she speaks Portuguese.
Alison: Enjoyed showing off her gymnastic “skillz” by flipping over a bar and crashing into a chair! Yay me!
Whitney: Andre is becoming my new best friend… POWER! Haley, it’s forming. J
Gabe: Overwhelmed by the sound of a child praying to Abba in Portuguese (and by Ally’s daily letters).
Adrianne: Gabe has caught malaria… or it may have just been a disgusting drink. J
John: Tonic water is good for the stomach. Gabe thinks it will give you malaria!
Maurice: Enjoying the great weather of Brazil.
Nate: CHIME AMARELLO!
Kevin: Enjoying playing Polvo (octopus) with the Brazilian meninos (boys).
Stephen: I have been a little confused so far… I thought it was the custom to kiss on each cheek upon greeting, and do it to a male. Whoops…
Marcus: Had a great time playing with the Brazilian kids and could eat Brazilian lasagna, rice, and Guarana everyday.
Stephanie: Brazilian food is so good. She thinks she’s gained 10 pounds today.
Daniel: Being in Brazil with Stephen makes me realize how jealous of Hope (his fiancé) I am.
Jana: Is thinking that I should change my major to psychology.
Marney: Session 1 went smoothly… praise the Lord!
Joey: Loves eating rice and beans and wants to be Creek. Salute Also enjoyed sharing testimonies with other teammates.
2 comments:
Praying for you guys and wish I was there. Brent fixed some pao de quejio this morning for breakfast and it made me think of you guys. Eat plenty of rice and beans for me...brazil is the best place in the world for rice and beans. (Angela F)
Thank you for the great report of your first day. I know God is going to work in and through each of you as you serve Him. I will pray for open receptive hearts to the Word of God and His love.
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