Team 1 arrived home safely early Sunday morning but we wanted you to have the opportunity to read about our experiences on Thursday night and Friday! Thanks for your prayers and support. We saw the Lord at work in so many ways this past week!
Oi! Thank you for all your prayers and support. Last night was an unforgettable time for our team. We traveled to the neighborhood where all the kids were from and met at 2nd Baptist Church of Paranoa. It was the end of week celebration and all the kid’s families and people of the church were there. The neighborhood was very poor and it was a very humbling experience. When we arrived, there were people everywhere that greeted us and everyone was excited for us to be there. The sanctuary was on the 2nd floor of the building and we made our way through the crowds of people and up the stairs. I will never forget the moment when I walked into the room. All of the kids were there and the whole place was completely full. The kids were yelling our names and running to hug us. They were overjoyed with excitement and it took probably 10 minutes to get through them to the front of the room. Since there were not enough seats for everyone, we all sat in the front on the ground and there were many people standing throughout the room. We sang songs and shared testimonies. All of the families were so nice and grateful for us to be there. After the celebration, we had to say our goodbyes to the kids and for most of us it was the saddest moment of our lives. Many kids were crying and would not let go of us. It was an overwhelming time and we will never forget these wonderful people.
Today we headed to the church where team 2 will be hosting camp. It is in a town called Sao Sabastion. This town is very poor and most of the kids will be from the town. We did some setting up and prayer walked the church. After this, we drove around 2 hours to a beautiful park. This was in the middle of nowhere and had hiking trails and waterfalls. We hiked about 20 minutes through the forest to the first waterfall. Everyone took a swim in the cold water and it was the first time some of us had ever been to one. After this, we hiked back and had a delicious lunch at the park. We then hiked to a huge waterfall and we couldn’t swim because it was dangerous. It was one of the most beautiful things we had ever seen. It was a wonderful day seeing God’s creation. Many pictures were taken so I am sure you will see these soon.
Please pray for the kids that will be coming to camp next week. Pray for their families and for the situations they are in. Pray that the kids will see the love of God this week and that they will find a heavenly father in God. We thank you for all of the prayers. We are sad that we have to leave this beautiful place and are excited to share what we have seen and learned this week.
Marcus
Today we headed to the church where team 2 will be hosting camp. It is in a town called Sao Sabastion. This town is very poor and most of the kids will be from the town. We did some setting up and prayer walked the church. After this, we drove around 2 hours to a beautiful park. This was in the middle of nowhere and had hiking trails and waterfalls. We hiked about 20 minutes through the forest to the first waterfall. Everyone took a swim in the cold water and it was the first time some of us had ever been to one. After this, we hiked back and had a delicious lunch at the park. We then hiked to a huge waterfall and we couldn’t swim because it was dangerous. It was one of the most beautiful things we had ever seen. It was a wonderful day seeing God’s creation. Many pictures were taken so I am sure you will see these soon.
Please pray for the kids that will be coming to camp next week. Pray for their families and for the situations they are in. Pray that the kids will see the love of God this week and that they will find a heavenly father in God. We thank you for all of the prayers. We are sad that we have to leave this beautiful place and are excited to share what we have seen and learned this week.
Marcus
A word from the team:
Stephanie – Tia Stephanie misses all her sweet meninas and meninos already.
Stephanie – Tia Stephanie misses all her sweet meninas and meninos already.
Maurice – Had a great time with John and Gabe today!
Alison – Thankful for such an incredible week of camp! God definitely showed up and showed off this week! Even greater things are yet to been done in the lives of these campers and volunteers!! Team 2, I’m praying for you!
Juliana – Praises God for allowing her to be a part of His great work in Brazil this past week and is so looking forward to staying another week serving with Team 2. I’m gonna miss you, Team 1!
Adrianne – Has been reminded in many ways this week that our God is the God of many nations, tribes, and tongues…what a joy to serve alongside a people that delights in bringing Him glory!
Adrianne – Has been reminded in many ways this week that our God is the God of many nations, tribes, and tongues…what a joy to serve alongside a people that delights in bringing Him glory!
Whitney – Absolutely loved spending the day in the Lord’s beautiful creation. Seeing waterfalls and hiking was completely in my element.
Jana – This experience will always have a special place in my heart! I am thankful for the laughter and joy of the beautiful children of Brazil! It was such a blessing to be able to see the Lord move in the hearts of His children from America and Brazil.
Melodie – carry the name... JESUS!
Gabe – Being unable to speak the language of the locals was both frightening and freeing all at the same time. Brazil taught me Sabbath in a way that I had never experienced. I may squeeze my family so tightly they pop.
Joey – So much to say! Overwhelmed by the fact that God’s love knows no language. Going to miss this place sooo much. Loved experiencing McDonalds in Brasil, getting my Indian name (Persistent Penguin), and writing Catawba cheers. Bom dia!!
Daniel – Thankful for the way God worked this week. I am especially excited about the hearts of the Brazilian volunteers who have hearts for these children, and that they see how they can continue to do camp even without us.
Kevin – Ask me about mitosis and meiosis. I had a blast hiking to see two waterfalls and getting the chance to swim underneath one of them! I am gonna miss this country!
Stephen – I will never forget this trip. Seeing the joy of the camper’s faces and hearing the stories from the volunteers from the church showed me how much God doesn’t need me but how I need God.
Nate – A piece of my heart will always be in Brazil. So many memories. I can’t wait until I get a chance to come back!
Marcus – These Brazilian people have humbled me in many ways this week. I love Brazil!
Jimmy – These past two weeks have really opened my eyes to how faithful God is. Knowing that He went before us to prepare our way and then allowed us to be apart of His plan was absolutely amazing. Eph. 3:20,21
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