Spring 2010 Mission Trip

Poured Out

Friday morning began the final stretch of our time in Brazil. After breakfast and a great time of worship in song, Brandon encouraged us all to finish strong and leave every once of energy behind at Kid's Place. We boarded the bus and headed over to spend the day with our new friends.
At Kid's Place Friday's begin with singing and a short time of sharing. Singing with the children is an awesome experience. The children sing with full expression emotionally and physically. Dancing and praising at the top of their voices the children taught us songs like the crooked man who became straight. All of our gang enjoyed the worship and the exercise!
We all then went to our classrooms to have our final round of American Curiosity time with the children. After serving the children lunch we all said goodbye to children. Their were tears on both American and Brazilian faces. These children will own a piece of our hearts for eternity.
When the children had gone we sat down for lunch with our translators, pastors and Brazilian team members. We presented the translators with gifts and words of appreciation. These friends were a gift from the Father. Our frail words were reproduce in beautiful Portuguese to children and their families all week. We learned so many lessons of God's love in their service and friendship to us.
After lunch we began to prepare for hosting a special dinner for all of the couples we had whom we had visited in the Favelas during week. We cooked, cleaned, set up and sweated in the unusually hot Brazilian summer. We hosted a Texas style meal with potato salad, black-eyed peas, pico de gallo and grilled meats. Our new friends arrived. Their bright eyes and loving hearts make us feel like old friends. We sang together and worshiped the Father. Some of the new friends are also new members of God's family this week. We ate and then had a fun time making ice cream using two zip lock bags, rock salt, ice and the inner bag full of ice cream mix. This takes about five minutes of exuberant shaking(aka dancing) which was lots of fun for our Brazilian friends. As with anything, they participated with gusto.
Our late night finished with goodbyes and hope to meet again someday soon, but promises to see each other in heaven.
Our team returned to the hotel, packed and crashed for a few hours of sleep before a morning wake up to catch our flight. Our long travel day yesterday was full of sharing with other the memories of our trip. The day was uneventful until we arrived at DFW at 11:30pm and had to wait over an hour for our bags to be offloaded.
What a shock to us to leave a 90 degree Brazilian morning and arrive to 29 degrees and snowing in Texas.
Thanks to each fo you for praying for us as we served. Your prayers and support were foundational to our time in Brazil.
We love you-

“Deus é tão bom…” (God is so good)

Each day we are here, our team grows closer together and our love for the Brazilians gets stronger. The children continue to get more comfortable with us. Their enthusiasm is contagious. And, they have each found their buddies among the Americans. We play, we laugh, we sing, and we expend so much energy together. Through their time in class learning about American traditions (curiosities) they have grown fond of Dr. Pepper, Easter candy and Christmas bells. Along the way they have also heard much about our Savior and why we celebrate His birth, His resurrection and how that impacts our everyday family lives.
The time with the classes in the mornings is so much fun. The children have bright, shining faces. They are beautiful and smart. To our American eyes, it’s hard to see how can be so bright, clean and happy when they’re living in a pieced-together home. It seems that these families work so hard to provide for basic needs.
Today, we visited a new set of families in the favela. We went to a poorer part of the community called “cardboard village.” It was heart-breaking on so many levels. Most of us saw families struggling to get food on the table each day. Just as we are when we have guests in our home, they are nervous for us to be there. One family has struggles so complicated the mother has no hope. Another family had to build their home on stilts over a sewage drain, because they had no other place to go. While their circumstances are in many ways so different from ours, their hearts are the same. They love their children and want more for them. They need Jesus as their Savior.
Sadly, tomorrow is our last day at Kids Place and in the favela. The time has been far too short. We will follow the same schedule tomorrow, with one addition. The US team will be hosting all the families we’ve met with this week for dinner at Kids Place tomorrow night. It will be an American meal – hamburgers, potato salad and such.
Please pray for our time with the families tomorrow. Pray God would give us wisdom in serving and encouraging these families. Pray for the seeds planted. Pray that the new believers would be encouraged and built up.
Laugh out loud moment: We were entertained by the kids on the team tonight when they serenaded our sweet bus driver, Flavio. The girls made up a song; the boys had an elaborate rap. Flavio loved it and tried to take Cole Miltenberger home with him.

Lots of rain, but no dampened spirits

Today was another great day at Kids Place. Once again, we started the day with a great devotion by Randy and Emily Elston. Randy also shared his testimony, which blessed all of us. Mary Ann Miltenberger commented on what a blessing the trip has been. She couldn’t be more right. And, a rain shower during our devotion cooled things off for a few minutes!
The kids were full of energy when we arrived this morning. The children in the families we visited seem to be particularly enjoying their time with us. They were excited to see us again today. It is so much fun to walk into a place and be smothered with affection.
We were all a little more prepared for our time with the kids. One highlight was when Waska, an interpreter, brought his guitar into a classroom. The kids were so excited. They danced and sang with enthusiasm. It was infectious. Being with these kids just makes you smile.
Again, the dads were called on to swing, jump, tote, and even dance with the kids during playground time. John Reding was such a good sport as child after child wanted him to “jump” them up into the air.
After lunch, we prepared to go visit the families again. Today, we repaired the roof of the woman (Luciene) who accepted Jesus as her Savior yesterday. She told us before we went to her house that her husband also wanted to pray and receive Jesus as his Savior. But, he works long hours every day, and we weren’t sure when we could visit with him. So, we prayed for an opportunity on the way to their home. In God’s usual way, He surprised us. Claudio was home when we arrived. He and the men worked together to repair his roof. It was a great time of fellowship. As we were leaving, he prayed with us and asked Jesus to be His Savior.
The Reding family also had the privilege of leading the two girls in the family they visited to Christ. It’s so neat to see God working in such awesome ways.
The home the Baileys and Rizenbergs visited enjoyed an extreme home makeover, courtesy of Sonya. From what we hear, it looks great!
Please pray as we visit new families tomorrow. These two days have been full of significant time with the families. We are looking forward to what God has in store with the other women. Please also pray for stamina. We are definitely tired at the end of each day! And, please be praying for the dinner on Friday night. All of the families we have met with will (hopefully!) come to Kids Place for an “American” dinner.
Laugh out loud moment: When the Dodds met with Luciene and Claudio’s family, Claudio’s mother also stopped by. She enjoyed visiting with us. But, she suggested to Brian that he needed to eat a little less and exercise a little more! You have to love someone who speaks their mind!

Christmas, Birthday Parties, Texas and Easter

What do these things have in common? They are the themes that each family team is using during our teaching times with the kids. Each morning this week, we’re responsible for teaching a group of about 20 kids a Bible verse, telling them about one of the above “American curiosities,” and leading a playground game.
The day started with a great devotion and singing time. Rick and Chad Rizenbergs challenged us to think about what a servant really is. It was a great way to start our day of service.
The kids are delightful and so eager to be with us. The playground time is especially fun. The Miltenberger men proved themselves to be great playground equipment. Lew toted at least a dozen kids around on his back, while Cole was dogpiled by several kiddos. So many of these children don’t have dads at home for one reason or another; they loved the attention from all the dads on our team.
After the morning classes, we had the opportunity to serve the kids lunch. I think I speak for the team when I say that serving these children has been more of a blessing for us than them.
We enjoyed another delightful – and delicious lunch – laughing with the Brazilian translators. They are a wonderful group of men and women.
I’m not sure whether the morning or the afternoon was more fun. Today was our first day to spend time in the homes of four of the families in the favela.
The mothers picked us up at Kid's Place and took us to their homes. With the help of the translators, we evaluated their needs and fixed what we could. The Miltenbergers and and Elstons repaired a roof for a precious widow. They saw the Lord provide in a big way when the woman’s skilled neighbor arrived to help make the roof repairs. (The roofs are easy to fall through, so we had to be careful not to cause more harm than good.)
The Reding family surveyed a home and realized they wouldn’t be able to make all the repairs needed. So, Sarah entertained the beautiful twin girls. Everyone had a chance to get to know the family.
The Dodds also encountered a roof that was beyond our level of expertise. But, it was an amazing afternoon nonetheless. When we first arrived, the visit seemed very “official,” not relaxed for any of us. But, as the afternoon went on, it began to feel like we were just visiting with friends. Lucienne’s delightful mother-in-law dropped in, full of personality. Then the Lord turned our conversation to Him. Lucienne told the translator she was afraid of what her family would say if she asked Jesus to be her Savior. As we talked, her heart truly opened to Him. It was a privilege to be present as she became a daughter of the King.
The Baileys and the Risenbergs spent hours with the family they were paired with learning and sharing their respective lives. Rick said he feels like the people in the Favela saw them as Christ's representatives and one neighbor took the opportunity to come and ask for the group to pray for four of her family members who are currently in prison and need our Lord's grace.
Sonya Bailey continues to be a behind-the-scenes wonder. I’m not sure how she does it, but she always seems to be helping everywhere.
Thank you for praying for us. The Lord’s presence was definitely felt today as we went into the favela.
Please pray for the children to feel Christ’s love through us. Please pray for open hearts for the women/families we are spending time with. Please pray for our submission to the Lord’s direction as we go through our days. `
Laugh out loud moment: After a great lunch and full stomachs the men were asked to unload large and heavy roofing tiles from a van parked out back into the Kid's Place play area. Within in minutes of feeling satisfied of a job well done, a decision was made to deliver the just unloaded tiles directly to the homes in the Favela. So immediately back they went much to the dismay of our sweaty and tired selves.

Boa Noite! (Goodnight from Recife)

Those words come at the end of a very full 36 hour day. All our families are on their way to bed in beautiful Brazil. We began the trek back at DFW early Sunday and arrived safely in Recife to the warm greeting of Pastor Lecio and many others at the airport. After a brief stop to drop our bags and change clothes we headed straight over to Kid’s Place.
When we arrived, Cole, Paul, Chad, Nathan and the dads put their back into lifting and hauling the 24 giant duffels we brought with supplies and gifts for the ministry here. Our group began to mingle with the children who were just finishing up their lunches. What wonderful smiles and joyful voices!

Boyd, Davis, Abby, Naomi and Stacy started right in with games in the play area with the Brazilian children. It is amazing how little speaking a common language matters to children as they play. There were Futbol, Ring Around the Rosie and many other impromptu activities.

Soon Pastor Lecio gathered the Kid’s Place staff, the interpreters who serve us this week and all of our team together for introductions and lunch. What a lunch we had! Brazilians say that if you have not had beans then you have not eaten lunch. We had one of their staple bean dishes called Fagole(slow cooked beans with pork), rice, stewed beef steak and a tomato cucumber salad. Our team enjoyed the food and fellowship as we met our new and old friends.
After lunch all the family groups began to unload the bags of supplies. Hannah, Sarah, Tallia and Emily worked on colorful namebadges for the children. Mary Ann, Stacy, Sonya, Christe and Cindy lead the organization of all the multitudes of items into planned piles we will use throughout the week as we teach the children about American culture, help repair and spruce up the specially chosen families in the Coque Favela and play.
After the mess was cleaned up, our family groups began t decorate the four classrooms we will be in tomorrow teaching the children about Easter, Christmas, Texas and Birthday celebrations American style. Each of the four classes will rotate through each family’s presentation during the mornings this week. In the afternoon we will head out into the Favela to be the guest of the several women and their families. We met these beautiful women and a few of their children late this afternoon and shared some time getting to know one another and sharing prayers. Our team is excited to be used in these family’s lives as the hands and feet of Jesus.
Shortly after six we boarded our bus back to the hotel exhausted. We received our room keys and enjoyed a quick shower before gathering to hear a heartfelt devotion lead by the Reddings encouraging us to keep moving up the staircase of our spiritual life and trusting God to provide us strength. We will have the privilege each evening to hear from a different family in our group as they lead our devotion and share a short testimony.
Lastly, we had a quick trip to enjoy some pizza and an ice cream bar. Now let sleep come quickly to our tired families.
Pray for us tomorrow as we begin the programming we have planned. Pray that we will see those we serve as our Savior does. Pray that He would keep our eyes off ourselves and on the children and families of Brazil.
Thank you for following us on this adventure. We appreciate your prayers and love.
Boa Noite!
Your family in the southern hemisphere

Today’s Laugh out loud: In Portuguese an “R” is pronounced as an “H”. When our families were introduced by Pastor Lecio to the women we will be serving, Randy was introduced as “Handy” only to be followed moments later by Rick, or as he will forever forward be known by our team, “Hick”.

The bags are packed...

Our group gathered last night for our final preparation meeting before leaving for Brazil on Sunday. We are all so excited to meet the children and families we will be serving next week. What a privilege! Imagine that there are 24 bags like these filled with supplies for our week at Kid's Place in Recife. As Brandon shared with us last night, "All you need for the week is your passport and these bags for VFC. If your clothes and other things don't show up, you will be fine."
Thanks for following us on the blog.
Please pray now for God to continue to prepare our hearts for service.
Please pray for the families and children we will serve.

The team is assembled...

Family Mission Trip / We will be in Brazil soon!

It’s about one week until our Spring Break group leaves for Brazil. This time, there are 12 adults and 12 kids. It’s a great group! We have seen God working in so many big and small ways as we’ve prepared for the trip. As we’ve all sent letters to our friends and families asking for support, we have been so blessed by the words of encouragement and generous gifts. We are excited to have such a wonderful team at home supporting us through prayer.
We are praying God will be preparing and softening the hearts of the children and families we will meet. Will you join us in praying for them? Please also pray for God to prepare our hearts for the work He has for us to do.
In addition to working at Kids Place, each family will have the opportunity to visit one-on-one with a family in the favela. Will you please pray for the Lord to work out the details of these visits? Pray for good conversation and that we would see opportunities to share Christ’s love and the gospel message with them.
Again, thank you to everyone who has teamed with us on this trip. You are a blessing! Check back with us on March 15 to begin following our daily posts!

CCBC Women's Ministry Trip 2010

Home Sweet Home!

Well everyone we are home. Our trip home yesterday was pretty uneventful other than several uncomfortable wand body searches and bag invasions through security in Recife Airport and a run through the halls of Miami Airport when the screen said one gate and the attendants telling us another. But, everyone made it home on time at 11 pm last evening. It was a wonderful reunion with husbands, boyfriends, parents and of course Pam's dogs and Krystal's dog. It was great to meet those we had been hearing about and to hug and say good bye. When I left Marianna and Megan couldn't find their bags, I am praying they are safe and sound!

To everyone that prayed for us and sent comments we are eternally grateful. We have come back on fire spiritually, changed internally for His work and with much growth of heart. We love you so much and could not have survived some of the sights and smells of poverty without you going before us. We love these women, their children, their families, the missionaries and the interpreters. Praise God for the body of Christ working together to add a little bit of joy to a hard, simple existence. No woman had ever had a pedicure or manicure before that I spoke with. Many had never heard about a relationship with Christ, few new of hope for tomorrow and finding joy in their hard way of living. They could see the joy that we carry and feel the love that God offers. Praise God that we had the honor of sharing His name to these people.

We would appreciate continued prayers for the people; open eyes, softened hearts and transformation of the village and fovela not only spiritually but physically and emotionally as well. Pray for financial support for the mission teams and for the missions. Pray for the growth of the ministy and more volunteers and mission groups. Pray for an additional 1.5 million dollars plus for the building of a campground that can be used for years to come. Pray for your own possible involvement in this ministry whether it just be lifting people up in prayer, providing a monthly contribution or traveling their yourself to see what God is doing! I will be going again.

We thank our God for you and we Praise our God for our journey. We know he will continue our work. We will be honestly searching our souls over what we saw and what we did and what we can do about it; so pray for God's thoughts to infiltrate our spirits and show us the way.

In Christ,

2010 Women's Brazil Team!

The final day

Well let me first apologize to you about not posting anything yesterday. I was overtaken with exhaustion and was unable to make myself go back down to the computer. So, we do really want to share with you about our truly emotional and spiritual day at Kids Place.

We started our day with an in depth prayer for the hearts of the women to be opened, their eyes to see, their ears to hear and that we could love them and share Christ effectively. We also prayed for security and strength as we headed into more homes.

The morning was so amazing. Sonya and Emilys small group took them upstairs so that they could focus closer attention on Brenda, who is a 16 year old girl who has a baby. They moved her because she said she couldnt talk with them because she didnt want others to hear. They spent 3 hours with her. She said that she doesnt know how to pray. Emily shared her personal testimony with her and that softened her spirit. She admitted she had been abused, that she didnt think she deserved to be loved. They promised her God loved her and shared with her that prayers can be anywhere and then gave her ideas about how to focus on God.

Sonya,Emily and Pams trip to their womens homes was tough. The environment was extreme poverty that they had never seen. People are living in 100 sq foot partical board homes built on sticks over the river. You cant walk in the home because of its instability. The conditions were devestating. They prayed deeply for this woman and everyone living as they were. Sharing the story and the pictures is difficult, but, it truly gives us a picture of why we are here.

Mariannas group also went into a home in the hardest part of the Fovela. They prayed for a womans uncle who was literally dying in the home. His body had deteriorated and they prayed with the family about how to prepare for his death. The smell was unexplainable: not being taken care of by modern medicine it was another tough thing for the team to witness.

In my small group, including Barbara, Jenni and Megan, had Valaria as our interpreter. Megan shared the Evangecube with the ladies and then we asked them to do it. DJanine took the cube and shared the gospel. The three women present said they knew Christ already. However, 2 girls came and joined the group at this moment. We asked DJanine to stand and share the Evangecube with them and she did. Then DJanine asked if she could share another story and she told them about the Prodigal Son. Valaria was amazed, she knew it word for word. The other ladies said they did not want to receive Christ. But, Valaria chose to continue teaching them from the Bible. The two homes God chose for us to visit were these two women. We prayed over their homes. One woman was 9 mos pregnant, and it was a high risk pregnancy. She has diabetes and high blood pressure: both without medication. The other woman asked us ot pray for her family, but, her mother came and we went to her house to, where we found out her daughters husband was a violent alcoholic. We prayed for both families. She was very closed to Christ, but, we are praying for her eyes to be opened and her heart to be softened. Roberta, however, spoke with Valaria about praying the prayer and speaking with the Pastors. She made the necklace and put a pure white heart in the middle(coincidence you think) and then during worship Kieria said she felt God tell her to bless the baby so I witnessed her place her hand on the womens belly and pray. She had never spoken to us. Is God good!!!

Djanine prayed with the Pastors and they consecrated her baby to God, she had a black witchcraft bracelet on the babies arm and they shared with her she cant be in both worlds, serve God or the world. She threw the bracelet away. Valarie, Megan and I gave her the Evangecube and told her she was a light in a very dark place and she needed to share her stories and the story of Christ with everyone.

Pastor Lesu spoke with the people, we sang and laughed together. Sonya gave her testimony again and we ended in a big prayer with Molly sharing humble and loving last words to the women.

God never ceases to amaze us. What a beautiful time with these women. We cried and hugged and kissed and did it again. Leave is tough but we know God was there and the seeds are being cultivated.

The evening ended with Pizza that doesnt match any pizza we have ever tasted: completely yummy!!! An ice cream bar by the ocean and the 2nd chapter of Valarias testimony. A beautiful reminder of our redemption and transformation in Christ.

Day of rememberance and sharing time with each other. Telling and sharing stories while we walked through the Cultural district. Lesu shared his testimony over dinner and empowered us to give and become a part of the ministry in Brazil and Volunteers for Christ. He walked us through an very, very old Catholic Church and then we walked the shops. We also visited an old prison that is now a big shopping market. It was great fun and we found lots of goodies to take home to our family!!!! Arent you happy. We ended our evening at a dinner very similar to Texas De Brazil and everyone is upstairs packing and preparing our hearts for our return to you. Please pray for safe travels, good health and yes, our bags. We would really like them to arrive on time!

We love you so very much and could not have done this without any of you! Keep praying for Gods love is on the move and those seeds need to be cultivated, watered and taught how to continue to grow!

Blessing fellow brothers and sisters in Christ,

Womens Brazil Team 2010

2nd Day at Kids Place

We woke this morning ready to go. Our morning devotional was phenominal. We had decided that the devil was trying to get us down, and we were not having it. Megan and Julie were feeling fantastic and refreshed from a good nights rest. We talked and prayed over the team, our friends and family at home, our missing comrades still in Texas, Kelly and Kathy, Jennis mother in law, the women of the Favela and the Kids Place. It was such a time of empowerment and strengthening. We boarded the bus truly excited.

When we arrived the women had already begun to arrive. We started out with our first small group, with a shortage of interpreters we combined groups and began to get to know the ladies. We had about 25. We learned about home and their lives and what scares. Jenni told of us of a woman who feared the dark. When they went to pray for her home she gave her a flashlight with a scripture about Christ being her light. I love that, she will never forget that.

We set up our activities and the ladies did manicures and pedicures while Molly and Marianna helped them with the necklaces. It went smoother being the 2nd time doing the activities. The women were pampered and you could really see on their faces the joy of being loved. I did a pedicure on a woman and she has asked only me to do her feet tomorrow. They never have the opportunity to feel like a princess and believe me every woman wants that! How awesome that through the gifting of some of you out their reading this that you could make all of these women feel so cherished. They were ecstatic that they could keep the nail files, especially the orange ones because it is a color they do not have it here. The women washing their feet praised whomever donated the knee pads. YOu have saved their knees from hard ground, thank you thank you thank you.

I gave my testimony this afternoon and sang the song again. I am amazed how God has lifted my nervousness and truly given me a vision of what to share. He is so good.

We help the mothers serve their children lunch and then shared a lunch with the Brazilians. The food here is delicious. Lecu gave us a taste of the mango from his mango tree, it was juicy and slighty sweeter than Texas Mangos!

Finally we brokeup in groups and visited the homes of some of the women. We will visit more tomorrow. Emily shared a story after they had visited the home of one woman her grandmother came and asked them to come and bless her home. So they went and were so blessed. She said that she had visited the worship service the night before and felt so happy. She said "when that lady Molly hugged her it felt so good!" The homes were small but they were so happy to be allowed to share them with us and allow us to pray for them. God is moving here!

We headed back to hear Valerias testimony. She spoke only in Brazilian this time, and it is such a beautiful language. Her story is so important for the ladies to hear and her gentle passion for Christ is so awesome! So glad God led her here with us.

Finally the band came back, sang some get up and move for Jesus songs and we made ice cream. It was a huge hit among everyone: women, children; interpreters and the band. We even made some for ourselves and enjoyed it with them.

Pray tomorrow for their hearts to be open to accepting Christ, for our safety, our strength through the final stretch and for our children who miss us and fear for us. We are all doing amazing and lives are being changed! Thank you for giving us up for a week to bless others.

In Christ,

Susanne and the 2010 Womens Brazil Team

Ok Back again!

I am at the new hotel in Recife. The city is much different than the village:busy and crazy with activity. The Carnival is still going on and it is a little dangerous. We must keep our purses in front of us at all times and stay together just to void the drunks(like Mardi Gras). We arrived her this afternoon. Settled into the hotel and were blessed with a visit to Kids place for their service. About 24 women and many, many children from the Fovella(slums) attended and praised God. Julie shared graciously about the Samaritan women and then we shared refreshments and asked them to return tomorrow from 9 am to 5 pm. We are nervous and anxious to love on them and have the opportunity to pray and walk through the Fovella. We must not take anything with us and wear no outer jewelry. Please be praying all day long for God to move, for a dome of protection fully encompassing us and reassure our young loved ones who read this we are find and God is sovereign! We have 2 days to share. We found out many of our interrpreters are coming to help us tomorrow and we are excited to see them again!

Thank you so much for praying for us. Megan has a cold and stayed at the hotel today and feels rested. Julie was sickly this evening, pray for rest. Jennis mother in law in the states is in the hospital. Satan will not get us down, just pray for preseverence.

We love you much, God is with us and you!

Susanne and Womens Brazil Team 2010

Greetings from Recife

We have left the village with much joy in our hearts. We apologize for the late blogging: flexibility, flexibility, flexibility. Our new term.

Yesterday we felt and watched God show His Amazing face and Amazing grace! Since we received our bags we were able to bless the people of the village with much fun, examples of Christ`s love for them. Each woman was able to decorate a journal with decopage, the place a heart at the center, Hands and Feet, and then cut outs for each of their children. They were encouraged to use the journal to pray for their families:husbands, children and others specifically and their homes and life in the village. We saw women actually begin to journal after they had finised all of their activities.

Many of the volunteers sat on bended knee washing and rubbing the feet of these beautiful people.

Marianna and Molly led them in creating their own necklace, that was specifically designed to reflect their beautiful tranformed heart with the cross in the middle. They proudly wore them at the final service that evening. Pastor Josue and the mission provided lunch for all the women, their children and of course all the volunteers. Then Waka and Kiera shared their truly amazing testimonies. Waska is the music leader with a beautiful spirit for Christ and the people. Kiera led all the womens services and has a passion that truly gave me what I call "spirit chills". The children came and shared a song that put joy in our hearts and then the children and leaders of the mission shared a drama. The heart they put into these dramas is moving.

We held our small groups and shared the Evangecube with the women. They talked about how they are loved or not loved and if they knew God or not. Many did not know him and many did not feel love. Jenni`s group and a few others had women make decisions for Christ. We also had many on the fence, afraid because of the abuse of their husbands. Megan shared of a womans home she went to and later we had her in our group, she had bruise all down her arm, scratches on her back, black eyes and her earrings had all been ripped form her hears. Her husband was a crazy man when he was drunk. Pray heavily for these people.

Finally, we rushed back to the hotel for literally a 30 minutes freshen up and eat and then we returned for their normal church service and our final goodbye. When we arrived the chairs were filled and they were still coming. It was a beautiful sight. They had to go find more chairs to fit them in. The music rocked the house and the village I imagine, as we praised God.

Sonya spoke of her journey to Christ and the amazing transformation of Gods love upon her. Her tender spirit and sweet voice carried with the wind to the ears of the people. The house was moving folks, the Spirit was truly encompassing the mission. Prior to our testimonies I had 5 different women come and personally pray for me. I had prayed for the nervousness to go away and for me to truly share the love of Christ and the importance of being new. I can only say that God spoke the words form my mouth and the song in portuguese from my lips and it was amazing. I was not nervous and according to my translators the pronunciation was perfect too. God is truly an Awesome God. Pastor Josue gave an altar call and we had many, many make decisions for Christ.

Saying goodbye was difficult. Our love for each woman and their families was heart felt. must get off more later.

Blessings,

Susanne and team.

Day 2 Gloria De Deus

We stand in awe of You Lord Jesus! What an exhausting, yet empowering Day in Christ. We began our morning with a devotional; singing and praising God for always being here for us. Pastor Josue joined us and shared a word about the home life situations of the women attending today. He shared of their poverty,abuse and promiscuity, children as young as 12. This set our hearts on God's plan for each woman and our role as we headed out the village.

When we arrived we enjoyed the amazing music from Waska and the worship band. They truly move you with their love for Christ and passion for their own people. It is humbling to see such community.

We broke up into small groups and shared with each woman about our homes and our biggest fear and then they shared their own. It is unanimous that women are completely universal, suffering and fearing the same things in our lives even thousands of miles apart. They feared violence and for their children. Can you relate?

We gathered for Jenny's testimony and were touched by her honesty and faith. We then took a break for lunch.

When we returned the women from a few of the small groups allowed us to visit their homes and bless them and their families. They opened their hearts to us and we felt warmly welcomed and blessed to be allowed into their place of rest. Most of the husbands were home and we were able to pray with them present. One woman Julie had prayed for last year for a new addition to their home, because their entire family was sharing a bed. This hear Julie remembered and noticed the wonderful new addition. What an amazing testimony to God's answer to our prayers. We will visit the other women tomorrow and we know we will be blessed and humbled again.

Our bags had arrived at the hotel, praise God, so we headed back to prepare for our evening, excited that we can do some of what we planned. When we arrived back they were worshipping. Such joy filled their hearts, a joy I wish we saw more often in America. They performed a dramatization of the washing of the feet of Jesus, while they sang a song. Truly spirit filled.

We broke up in small groups and created mirrors; our activity we would have done the day before; that shows their reflection of the Gloria De Deus, the glory of God. They enjoyed is so very much; each showing their amazing creativity and the diversity of each person. They also made ice scream and that was a complete scream. They were shaking in every which way and laughing.

Barbara shared her life changing testimony. What an amazing transformation story; showing God's love affair with His people.

We thank you for your prayers for our bags, and for our safety and health. Keep praying as we end our time in the village tomorrow for heart change and pray that each of us plants Christ in their hearts for others to cultivate.

Abregado! (Thank You) The Glory of God was seen here today!

Brazil Team 2010

Day 1 Overcomers

Greetings from PauauAzul Hotel Brazil. It has been a bittersweet beginning to what we know will be a testiment of God's faithfulness. We are saddened to share with you that Kelly Breedlove, our dear and sweet sister in Christ was unable to make it on this journey with us. We began our department at DFW airport with tears and hugs as we promised her we would carry her work to the people here.

Our flight to Miami was uneventful, however, due to a flight delay when we arrived in Miami we had about 20 minutes to make our flight to Brazil. 13 women ran top speed through over 40 terminals and sat breathless on the tiniest 757 plane you have ever seen. We had a short layover in Salvador and then continued the flight into Recife. Emily shared a story about a young man on her flight who was a new christian that had been working at Disney World in a college program. I too had a young medical student who did the same and she was also a christian. Our other seatmate was a woman Methodist minister and they allowed me to share my Portuguese track and practice my Evangecube.

Upon arrival we discovered another roadblock.....no bags. They assume that when we were rushing from the Miami plane that our luggage did not have time for transfer. So, we are now sitting with very little supplies, a few folks without clothes and shoes and a whole lot of sharing and laughing. We are being "Flexable" as Julie and Cindy kept telling us we would have to be! Exciting times my friends, keeps us smiling.

We were greeted by Pastor Josue, our translators, Valeria who arrived on a plane to also help us and Lucia and his family. They took us to dinner, then to our hotel where we freshened up for the evening. Finally, what we had been praying for arrived and we boarded a bus for the fishing village. We were greeted by a beautiful chorus of young girls and boys who had a welcome sign. They sang some worship songs, shared their hearts and performed a drama of the typical family life they or others experience in their city. It was a dramatization of a mother cleaning, the children not respecting her and the father coming home drunk. Then the pastor prayed and Julie, barefeet and all shared a heart warming tale of the Samaritan women and how we all need a new heart and we want all of them to experience it.

We finally headed back to the hotel and ate dinner. While we were eating a woman approached Valeria, and shared with us that her and her family had noticed that we were different, and they felt that we had the spirit of Jesus with us. They shared their faith and testimony with us. It was so beautiful to see the joy of Christ penetrating a very joyful people. How easy is it for you to approach some random stranger from another country and tell them they've got the spirit! Completely amazing.

Everyone is exhausted and have headed to bed to rest for an exciting day tomorrow. Pray that we find other activities to fill our days while we wait for our luggage. Pray for many to choose a new heart and pray for endurance, faith and love to penetrate us all as we share Christ with others one conversation at a time.

Blessings,

2010 Women's Team

Brazil Women's Ministry Mission Trip 2010

Love is on the move. One week from today we will depart to Recife, Brazil and spread God's love to the people there. It has been our hope for God to expose our usefulness to His work that He is already doing in Recife. We are so excited and humbled as we have watched God already show His face in our preparations. So many folks have joined us on this journey in providing medical supplies, crafts, clothing, prayer cards, financial support and much more. Each of you are part of our team and we want you to join us on this life altering voyage. We will continue to update the blog daily so you can be right there with us and Lord willing we will post pictures...

Until we go please pray that all the legalities are finalized. Each person is preparing their personal testimony and practicing the use of our Evangecubes. Pray specifically for the testimonies to be clear, understood and transforming for the ears that will hear. We know in our weakness that is when God is truly moving. Each person has a role that will play interlockingling together to deliver Christ's message effectively. God will open unopenable doors and cause the blind to see!

We cannot wait to report back to you. Thank you, thank you, thank you for coming along. Please check back on Wednesday, February 17th.

Blessings,

2010 Women's Ministry Team

Revival.

We apologise for the lack of posts this trip, we've had very little internet connection. Time has also been short with our tight schedule. We are very greatful for your prayers. It is truely amazing how God works through our friends and family.
Tonight (Thursday) was the last full day of camp. Although it is heartbreaking, it is comforting knowing that 167 kids were loved, fed, encouraged, and safe this week. Their heavy, hard hearts were softened and color truely started to come back to their faces. 2/3 of the population of the kids at camp came to know Christ as their Lord and Savior tonight. Many were on their faces, crying, or singing to the loudest of the their ability. It was truely a beautiful sight. This trip has not only changed these kids lives, but has transformed ours. No matter how many times we go on this trip, the outcome always varies, and the discipline God has in store for us is always unique and different.
Again, thank you for your prayers. We cannot wait to post pictures, videos, and testimonies once we have found the time. I hope everyone is well, and again, continue to pray for us. Tomorrow (Friday) is the last day of camp. We pray that God leaves His mark on those childrens hearts. Not only a mark, but a sincere transformation.

First Day at Camp!

Hello everyone,

After getting a good nights rest, we headed out to our first day of camp today. It was amazing to see the joy in the children's faces as they arrived. We have 167 kids, that's the most that have ever been to this camp! The kids are so sweet, and get really excited about everything. At lunch, they ate, and ate, and ate. They rarely get to eat until they are full. It was emotional and humbling to see such urgancy for food.
We had three awesome worship services with them today. We danced, screamed, sang, went "crazy" together, and it was incredible! Althouh Lecio (the pastor) spoke in portuguese during the entire service, the message didn't lose it's impact on us. It just proves that God's unity goes passed language barriers.
We were involved in various other activities such as a balloon party, dress up, hide and go seek in the jungle, and "throw-the-American's-in-the-pool." The children had a blast and we can tell that they are very excited and greatful to be here at the camp. Our prayers have been answered, for the children are not only kind, but soft hearted. Please continue to pray that many children will come to Christ and spread His love to their family and friends. Every soul counts :) We are very confident in God's plan and it is going great. Pray for our health and faith. We love everyone!

Thank you very much for your prayers! We will update tomorrow and hopefully post some pictures!