pray for them

so...

an organization called mãos dadas which means 'hands together' has a world wide prayer task force to focus on vulnerable and exploited children. france, my roommate and partner in ministry at the CADI formerly worked with mãos dadas and has a real heart for social injustice...boy is she in the right place, right?!



as a way to focus our attention this week, we watched a portion of the film All The Invisible Children during our staff devotion time. the movie is an anthology of 7 short stories of children in vulnerable situations around the world. the characters in the brazilian story have uncanny similarities to children i know in frei; they play the exact same roles in front of me day after day. in fact, if i'm honest, i'm almost used to the reality of life in this favela.



with the amount of children suffering in frei (not to mention around the world) there is no way i can make a dent in the damage that is being done; but i was reminded this week of when Jesus rebuked the disciples for shooing away the children in mark chapter 10, he took them in his arms and blessed them. that tiny group of children mattered to Jesus that day, just like every single child on the planet matters to him now. they may be invisible to you, and even to me, but they are not invisible to Jesus.



i have way too many stories of malnourished, uncared for, and abused children and i ask that you very earnestly take some time today to pray for them.

pray for their physical, emotional, and spiritual development. pray for the adults in their lives to protect and cherish them. pray for their salvation!

a new year

so brazil is essentially on a different calendar than the rest of the world, well than the US, anyway! january is "vacation month" for quite literally, everyone. including my hair dresser and the university food court that sustains me. it was a rough time. but its march and carnaval has come and gone and life has returned to normal...as normal as my life ever is...

with my remaining 5 months in mind, i put a lot of thought and prayer in the my 2011 plans for CADI. in addition to 2 bible clubs, i've started an art class for 9-12 year olds and i'm really excited about that! its a little more like VBS 'craft time' than saturday mornings with bob ross...but i am all about some pipe cleaner and glitter treasures! my bible club is the same as last year, but i thought offering it to younger children would be more successful...what did not occur to me was the possibility of ten 7-8 year old boys in one club; which is exactly what i have. yeah...whoa. the first week turned into "soccer club" as soon as the story was over, they had fun, though! if you remember, please pray for me on wednesday afternoons! and most definitely pray for those little boys, that they'll be able to hear how much God loves them in the midst of wrestle mania!

in addition to my classes, CADI is offering sports, guitar, and recreation (for little tiny friends), so you can also pray for the the kids in those activities and especially the volunteers who come to teach them!

oh yeah, before i was saying that i thought very specifically about my plans for this year, because i only have 5ish months left. i only have 5 months left! when that occurs to me i get panicky because this phase is completely defined and boxed in and i have no idea what the next phase will be...and then i get excited because i love starting new things...and then i get sad because a new phase means i'm leaving and i really love CADI and my friends and the ministry here, well, and all of brazil...and then i get excited again because i haven't seen any of my favorite people (american people, that is) for a really long time...and so clearly, i'm quite in touch with my emotions these days. all of them. its good, the Lord is showing and teaching and so on and so forth and i'm really grateful for this time of seeing and learning and so on and so forth!

thanks for your prayers!

i'm alive!

dear faithful blog checkers,

i am, in fact, alive and well in brazil! december turned out to be much more of a whirlwind than i anticipated and january with back to back volunteer teams was here before i knew it! i appreciate so much your faithfulness in prayer even without an update during these two months!

december...

brought so many blessings along with the super intense heat! all along i expected that dreaded bout of homesickness to hit at christmas...what i didn't expect was how little it would seem like christmas around here! if i were in a cold, snowy place that decorates the town as we do at home i would have been consistently homesick. my brazilian friends kept me busy from christmas eve right through my birthday week with their traditions and of course...beach trips! it seemed like a totally different kind of experience rather than 'christmas without my family' and for that, i was really, really grateful!


new years eve with my friends!

january...

brought two volunteer teams of college students...in other words: one busy month! a team from union university arrived on the 5th with an old friend from jackson, 2 of my west jackson girls, and CHUCKY! we were able to sleep at my church, which made for a whole bunch of really late but really fun nights that i had been needing! during their 2 weeks here they painted some rooms at CADI and did a VBS at CADI and a VBS for my church...we kept busy! this team, though, was awesome-every single one of the college students and leader had such a great servant attitude and an immediate love for the kids, especially in frei damião; which of course, blessed me so much! and the kids loved them! while i haven't been homesick and i really love it here, being with them was refreshing...good for my soul! it was hard for me to see them go!


finally, the union team got a beach day and it was enjoyed by all!

the second team was from impact360 and they were also really great! i stayed with them at the camp as well and had a really great time getting to know them and hanging out with the ministries they were supporting and getting involved with! i really love having teams-its fun to jump into ministry with another group of people and see how God works in snap shots-and then i get to return to regular life!

which is exactly what i'm doing right now! i am now looking at how to best organize my last 6 months here in brazil so that i can be as effective as possible with that time...yes only 6 more months! i can hardly believe it, myself!

if you can be in prayer for these next few weeks to start off with energy and motivation and of course, purposeful organization! also, i've renewed my visa and am waiting to hear that it was approved (given my luck with the visa process, lets go ahead and pray a little for that, too!)

if you're reading this, then i appreciate your consistency in trying to keep up with my life here, which, i'm sure leads to prayers! you're a huge part of what the Lord is doing in brazil at the moment! thank you for that!

God bless you, today!
beijos!

thankful

happy thanksgiving week!

i LOVE thanksgiving!

turkey, dressing, etc is, hands down my favorite meal...i LOVE hanging out with my family...i LOVE the approach of winter weather...i've always been a big fan of breaks from school/work...i LOVE parades...i LOVE that my jackson radio station changes to the 'christmas star' on thanksgiving day...i could make a much longer list, but you get the point...

all things thanksgiving = awesome.

obviously, this year will be quite a different thanksgiving, with hardly of the above mentioned items to note the holiday. BUT nonetheless, (only to the credit of God's proactive intervention in my thought life) over the past month i've been overwhelmed with things that i am really thankful for.

such as:

-so many great US churches that partner with our ministries here--financially, through prayer support, and by sending teams.
-the openness and warmth of brazilian culture, 95% of the time i feel welcome in any situation i'm in with brazilians
-a really stand up, quality team of IMB colleagues here, in florianópolis
-seriously committed friends at home who pull more than their weight in an inter-continental friendship
-pão de queijo...its like a ball full of cheese, without which i would most definitely starve around here (and probably be a few pounds lighter) ;)
-the beauty of the internet which keeps me in touch with friends and family but also the important goings on around the world, such as can be found on E!.com
-just this stage in general, which is hard somedays, but overall a pretty awesome experience!

so, while i will most certainly enjoy thanksgiving on the beach (with a group of colleagues from around the country) i will most definitely be missing the presence of cranberry sauce and my mom's dressing...so enjoy it a little extra for me, this year!

love in any language...

how do you get little brazilian girls to let loose and be themselves? bring them american music, of course!



i mean, this is the true definition of an international sensation.

i vote moses most likely to succeed

Dear Journal,

My thrill for life here is quite cyclical, meaning, I can have a pity party for 1 in about 5 seconds after a full day of being corrected (grammatically) or treated more or less incompetent because i'm foreign (and wouldn't really know how to do what they need done, anyway) or the electricity is out for 20 minutes and every store and bakery in a 3 mile radius has decided to call it a day before I can get a loaf of bread. (all yesterday) BUT the Lord has continuously been showing me how poisonous my lazy and self involved tendencies are. I mean when that kind of stuff all happens on the same day it is a bit discouraging, but really, I'm not discouraged with life here. If anything, I'm encouraged by the excitement some of the kids have to hear a new bible story and the willingness of families to open their homes to an impromptu bible study. The gospel is not fully understood here, and they're anxious to understand it!

One of the most encouraging things for me right now is the Old Testament. No, really. I've skimmed through the history books of the bible before but lately Leviticus and Deuteronomy have had major insight into the life of Sara.

I am the Lord your God...I broke the bars of your yoke and enabled you to walk with heads held high.
Leviticus 26:13

God rescued me from the slavery of sin, but He won't force me to walk in obedience. I've been enabled to do so, but if I choose to dwell in discouragement and cater to my pride...well, thats just it...I can choose that. And sometimes, I do. I always regret it and try to find my way back to how the Lord wants me to handle myself. And, of course...

But if from there (in my case, selfishness/rebellion/etc) you seek the Lord your God, you will find Him if you look with all your heart and with all your soul. When you are in distress and all these thins have happened to you, then in later days you will return to the Lord your God and obey him. For the Lord your God is a merciful God; he will not abandon or destroy you or forget the covenant with your forefathers, which he confirmed to them by oath.
Deuteronomy 4:29-31

I just can't settle with the camp that the christian life = suffering. Every life has suffering and valleys, etc. But I'm so good with the idea that God rescued me from my sin, from myself for a glorious, eternal reward...but also to be a part of His kingdom on earth; which is a really fun thing to be a part of! It's hard some days, but I love it...I really do.

But He brought us out from there (slavery in Egypt) to bring us in and give us the land that He promised on oath to our forefathers.
Deuteronomy 6:23

...when september ends

As it turns out September is my favorite month. Not for any huge, significant reason, really. I just like it. This September went exceptionally well...and way too fast!

A highlight (of my year, really) was having Becca here for little bit. We did Rio in a day, literally...Spent a few (very) lazy days at my two favorite beaches in Floripa...visited with some friends in Frei...I think she got a good variety of what we have to offer, here! Lately, my days have seemed to have more 'downs' than 'ups' and as Bec is one of the most encouraging people in my life, the Lord used her to challenge and motivate me (in person...which is always better!) The Lord really has blessed me with some great friends!



In other news...Thursday afternoon visits with Jan and Alana (IMB colleagues) have morphed into home bible studies with some women in Frei, which is really exciting! I'm praying it can become more of a discipleship situation where the women learn to take the reigns themselves and lead their friends, neighbors, families!

In the interest of being transparent 'Clube da Biblia' is my favorite and least favorite part of the ministry at CADI. Favorite because it's an hour and a half of bible stories, games, and crafts with third graders! Those are like 4 of my top 10 favorite things of all time. BUT on the other hand...it's an hour and a half of trying to tell a bible story in portuguese (with third grade input), trying to referee games that always end with some sort of injury and trying to keep glue only on the intended items. I have a morning and afternoon club and I'm discouraged about 30 times during each; but God is so good and somehow on the way home (almost every Monday) all sorts of positive highlights come to mind. I'm continually amazed at how personalized God is with blessings!

beauty parlor introspection

It turns out I'm not so much who I thought I was.

Laid back; Confident; Embracer of the moment, however awkward it may be...these were definitely my opinions not too long ago.

As it turns out, compared to Brazilians, I'm a bit uptight.

I find that when there is noone to turn to and say "I mean does that make sense to you?!" I'm prone to be what can only be described as a follower. I've tried hard not to be a follower for as long as I can remember.

I shrink from more opportunities than I embrace these days. The thing is, there are so many things I HAVE to do ie: go to work and all that entails, grocery shop, pay bills, find the yarn store by bus...that when it comes to an option like eating dinner with a stranger at the food court or getting my hair cut, I put it off until tomorrow.

I've needed a haircut for about two months. It's in that mangy growing out phase and...ugh. There is a cabeleireira (hair salon) down the street from me. I've mentally prepared and chickened out...for two months. Seriously?

So a few days ago while reading Psalm 78 a graceful summary of the Israelies screw up...God forgives cycle, I was struck by verses like

"I will remember the deeds of the Lord, yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago" and
"time after time...He remembered that they were but flesh, a passing breeze that does not return"

Over and over I was reminded how often "He guided" ... "He led" ... "He gave". The same Almighty God who used the Red Sea as a short cut is the same Almighty God who sent me here. I mean he made dinner fall from the heavens, He can certainly get me through one more errand in portuguese.

So today I got my hair cut. Ayliana was super patient with my pantomiming and attempted explanation that I'm trying to grow my hair out and yadda yadda yadda. Now, I realize that for almost everyone else on the planet a hair cut is just that. A hair cut. Why the stress? Well, back to the "Sara I'm discovering"...

I'm much more affected by people's response to and treatment of me than I was in my previous life. I take many things more personally than I know I should. Simply because I'm trying so hard. Trying to speak their language, trying to understand what they mean, trying to be their friend, trying to find their needs and minister to them-and you just can't do all that. Which is exactly what I'm struggling with I can't do all that. Well thats the pretty part of hard times, its when I see (again, for the 100th time) that God can do all that and much, much more.

So while I'm watching Ayliana do exactly what I meant (but surely did not explain correctly) I had a come to Jesus meeting with, well, Jesus...

This is hard. It takes a lot of effort to do a really small thing and I'm not doing it very well. But that's OK-I know and have seen His power. I know that He can open the hearts of the Brazilians to make Himself known. I know that He can turn my stress into something of use for the Kingdom. And He knows that I'm only flesh and therefore, not all that dependable. He knows flailing is what I do best. And He knows my breaking point...and those are the times I end up with a successful trip to the cabeleireira.

Turns out I'm not fearless or laid back or über confident or really all that great at communicating the gospel...its a pain to learn, but I don't have to be. God will handle it. He is much more self-aware than I am, and when He says He's the all powerful, all knowing caretaker. He's right.

cribs: brasil

So I've been in Floripa for a little over 2 months and I'm just now getting my apartment set up to feel "lived in". Here is (to the best of my limited photographic ability) an idea of what it looks like!



This is a view of my building (green), the pizza place I frequent, and Pedra Branca (the white rock). Not too bad of a view, huh?!



View of the living room/balcony/laundry nook/kitchen-ish from front door.



View from the balcony of living room/eating space.



Kitchen.

whats happening

Several things are going on at the CADI (the community type center in the favela where I work, in case you're feeling a little behind)

My actual work there is starting to pick up which has been a real encouragement! I've renovated my objectives a little bit to focus more on the spiritual aspect of things and the possibilities are exciting! At the end of July, 'Clube da Biblia' (Bible Club) will be starting for third graders. The plan is to walk through all the stories in the Bible (in portuguese...pray for me!) Today we began the (not so tiny) job of preparing a multifunctional, but just for kids room.

This is phase 1 of the 'Sala das Brinquedos' (Toy Room)



Cleaning went so much faster with my little helper, Katelin!



Now, in other news...the nursery/kindergarden in Frei Damião has a couple hundred little ones they take care of and educate every day. One of the biggest benefits for the kids in this nursery are three meals a day, which they likely wouldn't get at home. This past week someone broke into their school and stole most of the month's allotment of food, so the kids have been eating noodle soup for lunch and dinner! The Chenk's (the family who pretty much runs the CADI) found out today and are working to gather funds to replenish their food supply for the rest of July. I normally play outside with the 3-5 year olds and I'm hoping to start having a bible story time with them once a week-so I'm hurt over these precious little friends being hungry!



Please pray for the people of Frei Damião and CADI's efforts to help them find salvation!

Let me know if you're looking for a way to help out from where you are!

jorge!

by having several volunteer teams back to back, i've had a chance to get to know jorge. it is definitely not a coincidence that he is the driver we've received 3 weeks in a row. jorge lost his wife to cancer not too long ago, and he is embittered towards the religion she embraced (and also encouraged her not to seek treatment). through several of the teams conversations with him, his struggle with grief has been heartbreakingly apparent.





as different people from the teams have reached out to him, really just through friendly interest in his life, we've seen him open up a little more with each group. this past week, it barely took an invitation for him to join us for a church service rather than nap in the van or run errands. it's really neat to watch the work of the Holy Spirit softening his heart! please pray with me, for he and his children as they deal with the loss of their mother, and most importantly, for their salvation.

just the facts, ma'am

assuming you're checking this blog for specific ways to pray, here are the details of some of the needs on my heart at the moment (something new hits my heart everywhere i look, so these are just a few!)




a new friend, miriam (middle) is a new believer and we have plans to start hanging out to learn together. pray for her, especially as she learns what it is to follow Christ as a 14 year old in not the easiest life.



maria eduarda and camila prayed to receive Christ this past week as the team from collierville introduced their neighborhood to the church that is starting there. pray with me that they respond to discipleship and investment through this new church! they are 10 years old, such a great age to start living for Christ!



third graders at the public school in frei damião, after completing a craft with the team from little rock. clube biblia da sara (sara's bible club) will be starting this week, for this age group. pray for attentive hearts!



the team from louisiana had an opportunity to hang out with the girls at casa lar (an orphanage for teenage girls). alana spends time with them every wednesday and i'm planning to add that to my weekly agenda. only two of the girls are believers at the moment. pray for all of them as they deal with all the things that come their way and also for the hearts to continue to soften towards the Holy Spirit!

my first visitor!

speaking of needing friends...last week katie used her vacation time to spend a week in (freezing) florianópolis! it was so great to have family here with me, even for just a few days! it was my first chance to try to explore some of floripa, which, fortunately was a success! we had so much fun-and i'm so grateful for her! it was a hassle to get the visa and flight and everything she needed to come here with little notice! God has been faithful to give me great friends in my life and i'm confident He'll deliver, here, too!



it was a little too windy on this hill to get a clear shot!



this is a really cool monastery...which runs like normal, but even allows visitors and weekend retreats and stuff. it might be fun to stay there for a day or two...but only for a little while...



i would love to tell you the name of this particular beach, but i can't remember. pretty, though, isn't it?



downtown floripa, aren't the colorful buildings neat?!

it's the little things

please pray that i will make friends. friends to talk to about the gospel. friends to help out at CADI. friends to go to the movies with.

GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAL!

i thought people in the US had potential to be obsessed with sports (i mean i am from tennessee)...but brasil...takes it to a whole new level during the world cup. a whole new level. note this house in frei damião that is normally a very subtle yellow...



on tuesday when brasil played (and beat) north korea, i'm pretty sure everyone in this city did a victory dance...in the street...all day long. even i got into the spirit, wearing all green and yellow and ridiculously tacky brasil themed ear rings! i mean, why not? it's fun to dress in theme, and i like to be excited about things! reality, sunk in, though when i checked in on this kindergarten class i like to hang out with (mostly because they all call me "tia" and i feel popular). they were totally decked out...painted faces, waving the brasil flags they had just made...i mean this commitment to futebol is virtually from the womb!



i love it because i've never been THIS into anything...not saved by the bell...not ZTA...probably, no definitely not anything relating to the goodness of the Lord. i have so much more reason to be over the top, people stop and stare kind of passionate about what the Lord has done in my life, about who He is; than anyone could have for a group of sweaty guys they've never met! because my mind is always in a million places, the Lord points out the obvious for me in random situations-it's how we keep it real, me and God! my prayer lately is to latch onto "viva brasil! world up '10" kind of passion in my every moment with the Lord.

request of the day!

so the aforementioned bicycle is SUCH a blessing...and a curse when you're not totally in shape. if you don't mind say a prayer for me when you pass wobbly bikers on the side of the highway...that i master the art of looking behind me without turning the whole bike AND that my not 17 year old body doesn't completely revolt this new lifestyle!

i'm aware this is a totally self centered request...by all means continue praying for CADI, too!

:)

simple errands are rarely simple

This morning dawned bright and warm, which was a welcome contrast to the more or less constant rain we've been having for the past few weeks and I was thrilled to have a whole day to lazily do what I wanted!

After a cup of coffee or 3 I had the bright idea to break in my new bike with a quick trip to the grocery store...it seemed pretty close. See the j-man who was here before graciously left the combination bike lock he used, so 'Nelly' (as in whoa) my hot pink ride would now be safe while I went inside stores.

Well, it turns out that I'm not as smart as I think I am or maybe I used up all the available brainpower for that time of the morning trying to choose a type of juice...because I forgot the combination. I remembered the 4 #s...just obviously in the wrong order. After 30 minutes or so I started walking home to re-get the # from my email. AN HOUR LATER on my way home again I pondered how this could have panned out differently if I were in Jackson...

-well I probably would have called someone to check my email for me

-or I would have called someone to give me a ride home

-or maybe I would have driven to the grocery store like a normal 27 year old

Well that is just the reality these days! God is great at providing just enough irritation to keep life laughable! I mean I love the way my life works here, even though nothing about is what I would have called normal just last year!

Boa Noite!

florianópolis! FINALLY!

Soooooooooooooo 15 months after I selected the "women's health education position at the CADI in Florianópolis, Santa Catarina, Brasil"...I'm here!

Just in case the details of my life aren't in the forefront of your mind...

I'm here to help the CADI develop a roster of classes which can double as bible studies or discipleship groups. I'll target both moms and children in the area.

(one of my new friends: Adalaine)

There were horrible storms everyday of my first week so I wasn't able to really get out and meet any of the families. BUT THIS week has been great! There is a team of college age missionaries at the CADI for a month of volunteering, and they have been really fun to get to know! Also, this week there is a team of college students here to do bible club type things with the neighborhood kids. Those girls have been awesome!

They have been super flexible and willing to do whatever comes up! They even participated in the "acrobatic" presentation the other group put on for the kids...talk about getting out of your comfort zone for ministry!

Of course, I've been taking pictures of some of my new friends around the neighborhood!

(siblings Alexandro and Alexandra....they do smile, but not when asked!)

(clearly having a rough day...)

I'm working on a video to explain CADI, favela life, and ways that you guys can specifically pray and help from right where you are!

tchau, ribeirão preto!

it's hard to believe, but 3 months of language school has flown by! in the morning i fly to florianopolis...finally! for those who have been lost in the shuffle of all the waiting and plan changing, i selected this job LAST MARCH! it's been quite the journey! i'm really excited to see what the Lord has in store for the work, there! i'll let ya know what the city is like, ASAP!

while i'm so ready and super excited to head to florianópolis, i'm sad to leave ribeirão preto! language school has been a really great experience and i've

made some great friends, here! the Lord is so faithful to provide what we need...and in my case that is often good friends and dessert around every corner!

literally, the last 5 minutes with some of my favorite TCK's

most of the CIC staff and students for my despedida (going away deal)

two of my favorite teachers, sylvia and leda

dictionary.com

The verb esperar in português means "to wait" and also, "to hope". So i can espero for my ride to the movies OR i can espero that my ride remembers they promised to pick me up. Many concepts in the blessed language of português have a confusing quality to them, so ya get used to it after awhile.

Then while I actually was waiting for my ride to arrive one day, I decided it makes sense for the two words to be the same. They can be the same. They are the same.

Right? To wait and to hope are the same thing, aren't they? Hebrews says that faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. in which case, we have assurance that what we're hoping for is going to come to fruition. We're waiting to see it. Waiting for God reveal himself.

I like português.