tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12691678525475670182024-02-22T03:43:30.473-04:00powell...party of fiveRebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07784809615146915922noreply@blogger.comBlogger171125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1269167852547567018.post-3485661156566018032012-04-26T16:30:00.003-03:002012-04-26T18:35:19.155-03:00Clean Drinking Water<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
My friend Arilton has started a Brazilian NGO called Missão Água Viva. The
Quilombola people of Maranhão need clean drinking water. His mission works to
provide clean water to communities by giving a ceramic water filter to
each family. This act of love is bridging relationships to share Jesus
through Bible stories. The mission is
going strong and we are amazed at all God is doing amongst these peoples. </div>
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In March we found a family factory that makes ceramic water filters in the nearby
town. Below are some pictures of the filters, the factory and the first delivery to Penalva, Maranhão.</div>
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So far we’ve been able to deliver water filters to four
different villages. Most of these
villages are only accessible by boat. The
logistics can be a challenge but God has always provided a WAY.</div>
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The word is spreading into other Quilombos. Village leaders are now requesting that
we visit their community and share with them how they, too, can have access to clean drinking water. </div>
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Opportunities have opened for sharing Bible stories to the villages through showing the love of Jesus.</div>
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Richie Allen with <a href="http://www.linc-upmissions.blogspot.com.br/2012/01/project-living-water_18.html" style="color: blue;">LINC-UP
Missions</a><span style="color: blue;"> </span>in the USA has partnered with Arilton to help make it all
possible. LINC-UP enables individuals,
churches or businesses to give financially to support Missão Água Viva by
adopting Quilombola families. </div>
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<br /></div>Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11434964919104697992noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1269167852547567018.post-7286098922988021002012-03-07T13:42:00.017-04:002017-05-04T13:23:26.896-03:00"let us be a generation that seeks YOUR face"<div>
It's been a rough week for me on several fronts. On Monday, I spent some time working with the really impoverished children here in our city. </div>
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(<span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.296875); color: black;">Some friends of ours have started a ministry called CASA. They are working with these poor communities targeting the children between the ages of 4-12. They already have two separate groups, one in the morning and one in the afternoon, on Monday and Wednesday. I will be helping with the morning group.)</span></div>
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I felt I was up to the challenge but apparently it left me feeling pretty overwhelmed and inadequate. I came home and wanted to scream! Granted, it's hard walking through the sewage and realizing the enormous amount of unmet needs but the problem I was having wasn't the lingering smells that wouldn't escape my nose. It wasn't the way my head felt itchy after watching these lil' ones constantly scratching theirs. I was simply grieved again at the unfairness of life. My children sleep each night in their cozy beds with their bellies full and just a short drive away there are toddlers sleeping under a bridge with empty bellies. </div>
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When I say these children are poor, I feel that in itself is an understatement. Granted, I've seen a lot of poverty over the years and especially in the Q. villages where we work. I saw poverty in India and the rural areas of China but when you see it in the backdrop of where you live, just a couple miles from your house, it seems so much harsher. </div>
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Please pray that God would show us how he wants us to "be" Jesus to these children.</div>
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I've also seen a lot of upsetting things happening in our world online lately. It has really caused me to step back and evaluate all the things I hold dear and believe to be true. </div>
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Life on this planet involves deadly and destructive tornados, tsunamis, hurricanes and earthquakes. There are children all over the world suffering, in Africa and on every other continent as well. There are evil men that will never stop torturing and killing innocent people. Money rules the heart of the wicked and the majority of this world is extremely wicked. Leaders no longer look to God for guidance which is expected because the "majority" that elects them into office scoff at God and His Word as well.</div>
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But as for me...</div>
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I remind myself, again, this world is not my home. Sin is a powerful thing and seems to control almost everything in our existence. Good news though...it won't be like this forever. </div>
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I am not a Republican or a Democrat. In fact, my national patriotism is kind of weak lately. I simply desire to be a faithful Christ-follower. His allegiance is to the Father in heaven. I want my allegiance to be the same. </div>
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There are some things I hate...</div>
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I hate murder and I believe abortion IS murder in it's ugliest form.</div>
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Drug addiction is destroying someone I love dearly. I hate those DRUGS! </div>
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I am in constant prayer for my brother fighting a war in which killing is a daily force to reckon with. I hate war and believe fully that Christ is the Prince of Peace. </div>
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I would normally just ask you to keep praying right now but I really feel it's time for ACTION. As much as God wants us to pray, I believe He wants us to begin doing something....ANYTHING! </div>
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Let's stop being silent as Christ followers. Let's begin putting all our deep felt beliefs and convictions into action. We know of Whom will end all of this suffering and pain. We know of WHOM comes out victorious. </div>
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Let's get busy LOVING, above all else, in order to give others the same hope we have. Let's stop chasing after causes and denominational divisions. Let's not be afraid to offend with TRUTH as we know that true love is this, that man should lay down his life for another as Christ did for us. The Bible says in the end, Christ followers will not be the majority. Don't find yourself surprised at this but know that if we are silent we have been unfaithful. </div>
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Find the hurting and hungry near you. Find the orphans and widows. They're everywhere on every continent. Love them, feed them and don't be afraid to get your hands dirty. Be Jesus to them and share the hope found in HIM!</div>
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"<i>So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin." James 4:17</i></div>
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This world is hard and unfair but God is good and grace-filled.<span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.296875); color: rgba(77,128,180,0.230469);"> </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.296875); color: black;">THIS WORLD IS NOT MY HOME.</span></div>
Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07784809615146915922noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1269167852547567018.post-71147634692858715062012-03-03T11:02:00.002-04:002017-05-04T13:24:22.447-03:0014 candles<br />
Today was JohnMark's 14th Birthday. We surprised him with a trip to Raposa (small nearby fishing town) for the day. We took a boat tour through the bay and ended up on the sandy dunes. It had rained all night before we left and began to pour as we headed home. Our time on the boat, however, was gorgeous. It was really nice to squeeze in a few perfect hours during this rainy season.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_nStNsZsuEaKL-tVZ5WxDVBklMyJv9q4GnOVAy1km9grRUTmj0cv0VGA5M0yBdnz3qfV_yMaGLHd27yUUaImZxPEWPpcgVV7eXgtsItJXmqv5KU7jHF5ZEmFBqBZALYmosJM42IY0VHk/s1600/Photo+Mar+03%252C+4+16+09+AM.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5716822555057112754" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_nStNsZsuEaKL-tVZ5WxDVBklMyJv9q4GnOVAy1km9grRUTmj0cv0VGA5M0yBdnz3qfV_yMaGLHd27yUUaImZxPEWPpcgVV7eXgtsItJXmqv5KU7jHF5ZEmFBqBZALYmosJM42IY0VHk/s400/Photo+Mar+03%252C+4+16+09+AM.jpg" style="cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 400px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 326px;" /></a><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrg8jUX0_sQ25YC5bm-Dg1hiRMZbNSQhJ061Px2wbQ282JMtVlX376pI5yT8qGwi8hehevhIGGmWxydI_SPqRfq6tiZYZDgeA2rYFwVJ88IwJhSjbuPKZ0mjhIOHqs_O1GI169TzBd_SQ/s1600/Photo+Mar+03%252C+3+08+35+AM.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5716822544212145842" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrg8jUX0_sQ25YC5bm-Dg1hiRMZbNSQhJ061Px2wbQ282JMtVlX376pI5yT8qGwi8hehevhIGGmWxydI_SPqRfq6tiZYZDgeA2rYFwVJ88IwJhSjbuPKZ0mjhIOHqs_O1GI169TzBd_SQ/s400/Photo+Mar+03%252C+3+08+35+AM.jpg" style="cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 300px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 400px;" /></a><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEh_4GjfxAU4t8QgUCl8-GSG5EVKufEycKcT07M_Okvmw9_7k17rFdnifGsB9sxi3nB47PQ2D-Oduu9WsFYR9uOmyzROMsIa_drmNKTA-a1UrbCWuNQBSHIQaQuqtPiM4FWFtAqf6R8uc/s1600/Photo+Mar+03%252C+3+56+56+AM.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5716822530143263634" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEh_4GjfxAU4t8QgUCl8-GSG5EVKufEycKcT07M_Okvmw9_7k17rFdnifGsB9sxi3nB47PQ2D-Oduu9WsFYR9uOmyzROMsIa_drmNKTA-a1UrbCWuNQBSHIQaQuqtPiM4FWFtAqf6R8uc/s400/Photo+Mar+03%252C+3+56+56+AM.jpg" style="cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 300px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 400px;" /></a><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4F6Ip3kUcADafs1wZ7qzGSLPhdgKsFqSt0vaHRk7WInGditAXo1j2vUR1LSZoeKvj-_huweE06YhiZLi9KHKilT9hGWwTVkQb2Sm4CLAjPCpSw0bN1MVgV7i5Y4o-3_9j-wc_SYnBerA/s1600/Photo+Mar+03%252C+3+03+38+AM.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5716822521845188594" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4F6Ip3kUcADafs1wZ7qzGSLPhdgKsFqSt0vaHRk7WInGditAXo1j2vUR1LSZoeKvj-_huweE06YhiZLi9KHKilT9hGWwTVkQb2Sm4CLAjPCpSw0bN1MVgV7i5Y4o-3_9j-wc_SYnBerA/s400/Photo+Mar+03%252C+3+03+38+AM.jpg" style="cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 300px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 400px;" /></a><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi62j17DKt0V5aacnFCZ79zZmKm-9u_sTqVPDjUTh1mj61luIR3S4qqeLHHwhJmGd3xm9TNkKtcPqlpJquhbIphilAcFhVSONJiwWIPD7zxAGBIn5Mn-YteklakFVd5p1lyT0YA-y38BE/s1600/Photo+Mar+03%252C+3+56+33+AM.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5716826751331364466" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi62j17DKt0V5aacnFCZ79zZmKm-9u_sTqVPDjUTh1mj61luIR3S4qqeLHHwhJmGd3xm9TNkKtcPqlpJquhbIphilAcFhVSONJiwWIPD7zxAGBIn5Mn-YteklakFVd5p1lyT0YA-y38BE/s400/Photo+Mar+03%252C+3+56+33+AM.jpg" style="cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 300px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 400px;" /></a><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAPeAoRQtpY4A59r3JFYH0Tfho-TTR7MR3Yt7LSgZMATjnGnkbif_LUPNCJh9RrfsMPV_zVz16IMTK4RuemW-4ZriEXSH8WL3u4RBa_aakdWdxsHW2cJULAZ5slcL3urf3FNAvD6Edk6o/s1600/Photo+Mar+03%252C+2+21+22+AM.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5716800918853546674" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAPeAoRQtpY4A59r3JFYH0Tfho-TTR7MR3Yt7LSgZMATjnGnkbif_LUPNCJh9RrfsMPV_zVz16IMTK4RuemW-4ZriEXSH8WL3u4RBa_aakdWdxsHW2cJULAZ5slcL3urf3FNAvD6Edk6o/s400/Photo+Mar+03%252C+2+21+22+AM.jpg" style="cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 300px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 400px;" /></a>The boat captain stopped to serve everyone some oysters.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoojs6qpuX6oKH-W5cSnLIheo82S9PAZZi0M4eaOz9sCu_WPAsC4xov2_2DPzOBOTrjLF27QR5k1XIz7FyS1yMV7aa302yGchCRaiHA_FyJC5zuwagVnUTtq25zI9slB_9nd3JAExAn2I/s1600/Photo+Mar+03%252C+2+02+11+AM.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5716800914262799010" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoojs6qpuX6oKH-W5cSnLIheo82S9PAZZi0M4eaOz9sCu_WPAsC4xov2_2DPzOBOTrjLF27QR5k1XIz7FyS1yMV7aa302yGchCRaiHA_FyJC5zuwagVnUTtq25zI9slB_9nd3JAExAn2I/s400/Photo+Mar+03%252C+2+02+11+AM.jpg" style="cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 300px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 400px;" /></a><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPNYceuFsxJWF8fWfZP_kf4Ufl6IO77T8wCqTUqHRSQ7vsDddP_U0cFfgdQ1PnUSiHyU1NtrYZAeVswrT9oePdoVIMyug6xxbqchX1QlRhLoTgK0oCn32WtcecwUVXIoBDNWQThigAQ78/s1600/Photo+Mar+03%252C+1+20+55+AM.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5716800884829974002" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPNYceuFsxJWF8fWfZP_kf4Ufl6IO77T8wCqTUqHRSQ7vsDddP_U0cFfgdQ1PnUSiHyU1NtrYZAeVswrT9oePdoVIMyug6xxbqchX1QlRhLoTgK0oCn32WtcecwUVXIoBDNWQThigAQ78/s400/Photo+Mar+03%252C+1+20+55+AM.jpg" style="cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 300px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 400px;" /></a><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCROK74xIuz67cqlEey541OC94gYIYuUXAFrO08HWVU3TRcRtZWceijezn4UZm6Qhd3iiHBJoG1VdWHC3qGavNAOAlKlr2V1JenYdDzD8Kbh_zUw5hINnuIpKhIwPyBnT5Xr76XU1B99w/s1600/Photo+Mar+03%252C+1+21+41+AM.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5716800880210635506" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCROK74xIuz67cqlEey541OC94gYIYuUXAFrO08HWVU3TRcRtZWceijezn4UZm6Qhd3iiHBJoG1VdWHC3qGavNAOAlKlr2V1JenYdDzD8Kbh_zUw5hINnuIpKhIwPyBnT5Xr76XU1B99w/s400/Photo+Mar+03%252C+1+21+41+AM.jpg" style="cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 300px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 400px;" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKejQRsedqPYCLQpfQd2WnDijqcgp6tJcqnEGaOQFbK2gT8YISah4kzy17aBzsusmOI3voxwyHy6al4Iy1dIg3YtyQhNtZczVWPN2E3lXIsJqjOif10qxL023V3GIs3w2IRdZQ7auje4o/s1600/Photo+Mar+03%252C+4+05+17+AM.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5716823728475113266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKejQRsedqPYCLQpfQd2WnDijqcgp6tJcqnEGaOQFbK2gT8YISah4kzy17aBzsusmOI3voxwyHy6al4Iy1dIg3YtyQhNtZczVWPN2E3lXIsJqjOif10qxL023V3GIs3w2IRdZQ7auje4o/s400/Photo+Mar+03%252C+4+05+17+AM.jpg" style="cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 300px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 400px;" /></a><br />
We gave JohnMark airline tickets to visit some friends that live on the Amazon. He leaves Tuesday morning and will return in 2 weeks. His time there will be an adventure for sure. Their home floats on the river and will give him many opportunities for fishing and swimming. He's promised to take lots of pictures and when he returns, we'll make sure to share them all.Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07784809615146915922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1269167852547567018.post-43340188551057989402012-02-29T13:23:00.010-04:002012-02-29T14:40:40.512-04:00it's not a grass hut<div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span style="text-decoration: underline;"></span>During our time in the states over Christmas, several people asked about our home and our living conditions. I was surprised to hear folks thinking we lived a very primitive lifestyle. While we don't have hot water from our sinks, a clothes dryer, dish washer, or central air, we are a long way from living in a mud hut. We are extremely blessed with a beautiful apartment here in the city. There is a guard downstairs so we also feel very safe. </span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="">The future might have other housing</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""> arrangements for us if we move into the interior but for now this is where we call home...<br /><br /></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjytOZne34n7YTba5btMDQdRK3UlCzklllj-QRR78lDULdN-PdB3sVkzK-Ptk9m-Lt591-8i8tWdsE3gdTU_QBK0kHhUfiPU-J9I38TjlaT10RThdwV_Cqk-ktsGl0qkDUUAM2gmarzkEU/s1600/Photo+Feb+29%252C+10+23+25+AM.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjytOZne34n7YTba5btMDQdRK3UlCzklllj-QRR78lDULdN-PdB3sVkzK-Ptk9m-Lt591-8i8tWdsE3gdTU_QBK0kHhUfiPU-J9I38TjlaT10RThdwV_Cqk-ktsGl0qkDUUAM2gmarzkEU/s400/Photo+Feb+29%252C+10+23+25+AM.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5714623418889636242" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8uzSt4Kjx4bT7Xic1thlSOyhadqM0_-MZyG1tmcZFd-E1DYgFppzHwUaC6dWcvFUqz3kJQbhVELkd09zpzGq_A89l5UjHPVQYowRJFbG1IKaZfkbAlUD0YtYD6kchmkF9avW7gbOEQjs/s1600/Photo+Feb+29%252C+10+21+12+AM.jpg"><img style="display: block; 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margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnPXfEzAX2PMIIPgpbqoFxB3hsZhTC4HUJzraL0B79RwZvpylGCGNbSWey1DzNAnRMz9rWaEa3d6r-C32UI3pB1TD0C2QSL5toG1eioFbcI_Q_XdbB-EzjAE5VUviX4R6YRrAf1mjRsyk/s400/Photo+Feb+29%252C+10+45+40+AM.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5714625146842850770" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhr8Lj7hdlOoS1RECKm5Z2onBkqDX6tPUrX5bmyquElZrCaxAde70U9dt8pPP5fOudUW4P9K2_zOgHqgDYAUrqirCiZX6P9s_Oy4HdigyuAFZhbPSh2LuoOUm6qObPeo-nPye65E2fo2AY/s1600/Photo+Feb+29%252C+10+18+49+AM.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhr8Lj7hdlOoS1RECKm5Z2onBkqDX6tPUrX5bmyquElZrCaxAde70U9dt8pPP5fOudUW4P9K2_zOgHqgDYAUrqirCiZX6P9s_Oy4HdigyuAFZhbPSh2LuoOUm6qObPeo-nPye65E2fo2AY/s400/Photo+Feb+29%252C+10+18+49+AM.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5714625708483836002" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_ua-OkBpI-ICplbFM6fD6Iv6TVLXXC4Ozma8pVPj9WdrlermBeJ2_OghiooonMWyt6wwZzJ2HtFB7Ulyq8n9pGtS0c0hgP_xU7vnW6lWvpAkDfWriJsKFU1Y1GC9VQU8j78iyMry2pss/s1600/Photo+Feb+29%252C+10+18+20+AM.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_ua-OkBpI-ICplbFM6fD6Iv6TVLXXC4Ozma8pVPj9WdrlermBeJ2_OghiooonMWyt6wwZzJ2HtFB7Ulyq8n9pGtS0c0hgP_xU7vnW6lWvpAkDfWriJsKFU1Y1GC9VQU8j78iyMry2pss/s400/Photo+Feb+29%252C+10+18+20+AM.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5714625701038906994" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmr2Jcpvd5ewp_flevZ6hd6An4yw741eCw8rvRwwNdFIr1bWvtT4G6cDUz9ChFSBnP_guOFogKpRSfVzG98Ruw7UNTsS2tHP34tM9JP_Kg646RwvFgwkym6CKvcKDs0Zto4UBKQE_pTsQ/s1600/Photo+Feb+29%252C+10+15+22+AM.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmr2Jcpvd5ewp_flevZ6hd6An4yw741eCw8rvRwwNdFIr1bWvtT4G6cDUz9ChFSBnP_guOFogKpRSfVzG98Ruw7UNTsS2tHP34tM9JP_Kg646RwvFgwkym6CKvcKDs0Zto4UBKQE_pTsQ/s400/Photo+Feb+29%252C+10+15+22+AM.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5714625699819548482" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYroAn5myS7Mu6NxEy83xUbJeVguN2vfneA1380Lg4qnm_WcCJ0_717y11iBpG2krchfw68ChmCSpMlwk3NRqdpDQXytUuSqkgInyzx0Ely0qNoWHP9KVPeETs1hyphenhyphenWxiZ-56hlTpl9mFI/s1600/Photo+Feb+29%252C+10+51+06+AM.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYroAn5myS7Mu6NxEy83xUbJeVguN2vfneA1380Lg4qnm_WcCJ0_717y11iBpG2krchfw68ChmCSpMlwk3NRqdpDQXytUuSqkgInyzx0Ely0qNoWHP9KVPeETs1hyphenhyphenWxiZ-56hlTpl9mFI/s400/Photo+Feb+29%252C+10+51+06+AM.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5714625689611596322" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">If you're ever in our neck of the woods, come by and see us!<br /></div>Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07784809615146915922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1269167852547567018.post-33487389173157815052012-02-11T16:25:00.023-04:002012-02-13T14:48:15.665-04:00catching our breathOkay...I really apologize for my lack of communication on here. Time has once again gotten away from me. The fact that it is already February makes my head spin. <div><br /></div><div><br />As most of you already know, we spent several weeks in the states over Christmas. We had an amazing time catching up with friends and family. Days filled with kissing my nieces' cheeks a million times, laughing hysterically with old friends and EATING at just about every restaurant we had missed for two years made the 3 1/2 weeks FLY by.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ-xXFP7uv-2oFJyeYZHf7Rtd0_InnHWUDDD8zdrQ95ddiMlRWNTXq9ry5NKp6UpQIep1tPlz_uepW0j1XFqbySbbCxeV-U7GINuA8kt4u_9PmD0R5ishIlDahyaP7jcEM2L6qizeUF5k/s1600/IMG_0518.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ-xXFP7uv-2oFJyeYZHf7Rtd0_InnHWUDDD8zdrQ95ddiMlRWNTXq9ry5NKp6UpQIep1tPlz_uepW0j1XFqbySbbCxeV-U7GINuA8kt4u_9PmD0R5ishIlDahyaP7jcEM2L6qizeUF5k/s400/IMG_0518.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708381122310585858" border="0" /></a><br />These beauties are my "growing way too fast" nieces, Ana and Micah. Micah (below) was a tiny baby when we left two years ago. It didn't take me long to have her cuddled in my arms. I'm so thankful that the time and distance that kept us apart was completely forgotten.<br /><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiW5ZpMcF3exOdnDCnkxX3SZjj6HU6sKj9i5myq49oA8ziS1bLH-HKPspoafG-5ozQYLfpmwPcf-q3KecHVssDVXkPyJqA8l9FFMwJL4sfaWLQicoPE3BOP4Ge48_PXwPn5zSJo95azGj0/s1600/IMG_0542.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiW5ZpMcF3exOdnDCnkxX3SZjj6HU6sKj9i5myq49oA8ziS1bLH-HKPspoafG-5ozQYLfpmwPcf-q3KecHVssDVXkPyJqA8l9FFMwJL4sfaWLQicoPE3BOP4Ge48_PXwPn5zSJo95azGj0/s400/IMG_0542.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708381127930735106" border="0" /></a><br />We were blessed to have such quality time with all our family. Mike's brother and sister-in-law graciously allowed us to borrow their suv while we were stateside. This allowed us to get up to Central Kentucky to visit all our old friends.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOSWY7JiZwWlVRpysMrVGXJTwvg9P7jKnoe-7JVtHE01_xDgtiSzYFyxrZDBDljRQVWNgPC5xnDwc_R1fCNsOBf7AVY7QH7uG66x3iOb7i_5VJ4wPxBSFfEChvbbgTk5Jd4Tw93foPyJc/s1600/DSCN1574.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOSWY7JiZwWlVRpysMrVGXJTwvg9P7jKnoe-7JVtHE01_xDgtiSzYFyxrZDBDljRQVWNgPC5xnDwc_R1fCNsOBf7AVY7QH7uG66x3iOb7i_5VJ4wPxBSFfEChvbbgTk5Jd4Tw93foPyJc/s400/DSCN1574.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708594028233500946" border="0" /></a><br />We stayed at several different friends' houses.<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Thanks to the Millers and the Staffords for putting us up during our time in Lexington.<br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCpPgWMPgoOsZh8J6GQKUhXmDJPYjbuUi2-g1yqEIqgprsTcUxtDSDEpbhLcYgHK5G2JL3EGqVMbQ3pUayGkWCJWhyphenhyphenPSxZY58fjPff6mBKKMndo7sldgAOAhHIoj9uLTEYwslN1_WCtgA/s1600/DSCN1570.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 299px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCpPgWMPgoOsZh8J6GQKUhXmDJPYjbuUi2-g1yqEIqgprsTcUxtDSDEpbhLcYgHK5G2JL3EGqVMbQ3pUayGkWCJWhyphenhyphenPSxZY58fjPff6mBKKMndo7sldgAOAhHIoj9uLTEYwslN1_WCtgA/s400/DSCN1570.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708594019854748274" border="0" /></a>We rushed and rushed to see and visit with as many people as possible. I think at last count, we ate with 18 separate families during our time there, not counting the New Year's Eve party with lots of our CPC family.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1HNsj8g63hat_l63Gm_HX8ONZ3T9y9MhDooWzzT8jtwGYM-0DenM8d5iqDek-p9-j_Mnn0cm6C7V2s-o4C7t5pmMkchxxaf4qiNq-zufdM6YN8XaqopEnF7ln2VId28Ccc0Sgnu-QHoQ/s1600/DSCN1569.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1HNsj8g63hat_l63Gm_HX8ONZ3T9y9MhDooWzzT8jtwGYM-0DenM8d5iqDek-p9-j_Mnn0cm6C7V2s-o4C7t5pmMkchxxaf4qiNq-zufdM6YN8XaqopEnF7ln2VId28Ccc0Sgnu-QHoQ/s400/DSCN1569.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708630460212424818" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQDMR75At5CrTueoWXdAzxzArXSoaqFocEpTFVNYFwC1YcY0uLcWeMRUF_oTvQUeC1GbQGAnq8JaebjTXef66legPceArW2GelVw_o4WC-ftAb8Hh77-M-mstzE5-VdHNWqvXcgx8kIEQ/s1600/DSCN1568.JPG"><br /></a>We enjoyed Bd's with this special couple.<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">We've known Ranjit for a very long time and were so excited to meet his new wife, Raeka.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvMcGWdP3Y1xDofsTdOyHbgDkEWF109v1A6poot1Rwj9ZKgpRrATv7uIQlkLujKUOhJkcIRsO8OJAbVUkN68Wmg6_0qEZHkKfOnrrgIRVxfj_m-LvUkz8WaYHQjS0CC841A2yLwrXu8KI/s1600/DSCN1567.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvMcGWdP3Y1xDofsTdOyHbgDkEWF109v1A6poot1Rwj9ZKgpRrATv7uIQlkLujKUOhJkcIRsO8OJAbVUkN68Wmg6_0qEZHkKfOnrrgIRVxfj_m-LvUkz8WaYHQjS0CC841A2yLwrXu8KI/s400/DSCN1567.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708593973193013826" border="0" /></a></div></div><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOrYQQ06VpVObxpgyxxbGhUho2cd129T6FBXZOo2KQqPQP32cSnq50Wmd6UeSvmLNs-gdAdmd2WC6GHciu2YQwXtgjKn_tCnasuwaOl5ehoFCRYEXHxzElRqL1jPJk27Q6Q-FTvp_e2SI/s1600/IMG_6124.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOrYQQ06VpVObxpgyxxbGhUho2cd129T6FBXZOo2KQqPQP32cSnq50Wmd6UeSvmLNs-gdAdmd2WC6GHciu2YQwXtgjKn_tCnasuwaOl5ehoFCRYEXHxzElRqL1jPJk27Q6Q-FTvp_e2SI/s400/IMG_6124.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708384240685197826" border="0" /></a><br />These ladies (my very best friends in the whole universe) stole me away for about 24 hours. We even got a hotel room so we could stay up all night catching up, dancing like 12 year olds and soaking up every moment possible before I had to take off again. Man oh man, I really love these girls.<br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr_lszdVPJV2dwnmpJoISW7te5pQA6s1_x_fNyfuiZDO2ZJZ3NkNxmy8e7BEzh1nZqp9dC8154_WGDv8lM2UFUCd2ya4TZZ_5X65o7LnitSD_g5TChNwWAupiqZjZG2ae-B3gJu8DBV2s/s1600/IMG_6240.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 348px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr_lszdVPJV2dwnmpJoISW7te5pQA6s1_x_fNyfuiZDO2ZJZ3NkNxmy8e7BEzh1nZqp9dC8154_WGDv8lM2UFUCd2ya4TZZ_5X65o7LnitSD_g5TChNwWAupiqZjZG2ae-B3gJu8DBV2s/s400/IMG_6240.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708378057837290450" border="0" /></a><br />All the kids were reunited again as well. It was as if they hadn't skipped a beat. They were a bit taller this go around and a few had deeper voices but that's not to say they didn't run around the house playing just like they used to!<br />I loved it.<br /><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-iGEEjkxGnlSqBlkmw4inLXWNhJiORR9i8WsLvgCW0fVt7gyRk7wNINj7Mio89apDSiNr7-L4Ro5E9Sqdw91T0d-Wd_vFuCxqdRIoPpCU5o8eRPVNvov_ORncO7n98C9oT0KhfM1oQzI/s1600/IMG_6233.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-iGEEjkxGnlSqBlkmw4inLXWNhJiORR9i8WsLvgCW0fVt7gyRk7wNINj7Mio89apDSiNr7-L4Ro5E9Sqdw91T0d-Wd_vFuCxqdRIoPpCU5o8eRPVNvov_ORncO7n98C9oT0KhfM1oQzI/s400/IMG_6233.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708378047298640722" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">We got back to Brazil on the 12th of January and have been going full force again<br />with school and trips to the interior.<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;">Mike is working with several guys to start a water project.<br />They will be working to get clean water to those that are living without it.<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;">This is where we sleep (in hanging hammocks)<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">when we spend time in Q. Santa Maria<br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6hOgNbyNOLFiDnB62agMKvWmKI6Sylf075iPhGvKL7cDNu6tQSH6GENdCF1tsK4n5gR9VblgdJ5eldjCw5RrXpOmMmdtnq6Nu6cfnRCuh9ifzSR8XFr9Sr7bpxgn5aXkRrrrq1iWgZvE/s1600/DSCN1619.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6hOgNbyNOLFiDnB62agMKvWmKI6Sylf075iPhGvKL7cDNu6tQSH6GENdCF1tsK4n5gR9VblgdJ5eldjCw5RrXpOmMmdtnq6Nu6cfnRCuh9ifzSR8XFr9Sr7bpxgn5aXkRrrrq1iWgZvE/s400/DSCN1619.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708598287877633282" border="0" /></a><br />This is how we bathe as there is no running water currently.<br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8-HJJla_bieZ0Qb1_QWivGHypWYTJDBxCKo5PS7RidFn2xh2MoLiXcqouX8n9sM-HWFve5Q9sYKeKH3A6cRJi0KNZdd-MHXJEN-c49gnp-0Tc4gi86Nwnmrs43Vk04m_OMtjko6azsqo/s1600/DSCN1618.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8-HJJla_bieZ0Qb1_QWivGHypWYTJDBxCKo5PS7RidFn2xh2MoLiXcqouX8n9sM-HWFve5Q9sYKeKH3A6cRJi0KNZdd-MHXJEN-c49gnp-0Tc4gi86Nwnmrs43Vk04m_OMtjko6azsqo/s400/DSCN1618.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708598300435419762" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOpOwpfrAJfOIhIzoeyF8FIOZ3Mf5ysUm_-pqvGjGg13psmC1T-IBIC6vqpzQ4KiKWCdm5umu0a-R248ojhi5DzwJf9kPXQ38iXsgG_DAswxOf6_AQowEF2o7Sm6V8ZmnP-OMQRTfppEw/s1600/DSCN1626.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOpOwpfrAJfOIhIzoeyF8FIOZ3Mf5ysUm_-pqvGjGg13psmC1T-IBIC6vqpzQ4KiKWCdm5umu0a-R248ojhi5DzwJf9kPXQ38iXsgG_DAswxOf6_AQowEF2o7Sm6V8ZmnP-OMQRTfppEw/s400/DSCN1626.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708598307998563026" border="0" /></a><br />Grandma...they love all the caps you sent down with us.<br />They didn't want to take them off.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7slVo1k0mihK4nXUlvsTSWFpY8OP7HP_0Ng_5Qv3Pyb9hYHTIbmkd3xOSgwb9hxNgrDOTrsCSBUklKwmHvkAsfOkWv_6AeexaHeXqFU86bWI4r2kfZ4fEnLMCQAmSE_CmwQq2UTBPits/s1600/DSCN1616.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7slVo1k0mihK4nXUlvsTSWFpY8OP7HP_0Ng_5Qv3Pyb9hYHTIbmkd3xOSgwb9hxNgrDOTrsCSBUklKwmHvkAsfOkWv_6AeexaHeXqFU86bWI4r2kfZ4fEnLMCQAmSE_CmwQq2UTBPits/s400/DSCN1616.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708598261492684642" border="0" /></a><br />The kids are beginning to trust us as we call them by name and continue making relationships with each of them. They love playing soccer with our boys.<br />JohnMark, Jackson, and Jayden are teaching them American baseball too.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNmim-L-v7BxvB2wc9Ec6x9rDfVsoqGdNt5k4Z5JC8dbwyW7NyY31pRxpQU4fgm8EY42liSHeyLE0SgUwZ2-eLvhS8ONKgLHhTQAPxAyZ8dQJy5UEarnxQEKJ_8qh03Qjy7c-kdK2aFeY/s1600/DSCN1604.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNmim-L-v7BxvB2wc9Ec6x9rDfVsoqGdNt5k4Z5JC8dbwyW7NyY31pRxpQU4fgm8EY42liSHeyLE0SgUwZ2-eLvhS8ONKgLHhTQAPxAyZ8dQJy5UEarnxQEKJ_8qh03Qjy7c-kdK2aFeY/s400/DSCN1604.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708598250255745842" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHuu-TGDjzac4y-DA9WlX6nUCgWCj0_I4kF4F8yCSMy2Zy_wjS01BnnViCdHD4Kz_bBKTNobI32Xkv0ze_zheTLWKanLRzZ1qqLB1FoA4cZBQcXqiyPGo_EN9nkqWjhAvozLXd8sTFDn0/s1600/DSCN1627.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 292px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHuu-TGDjzac4y-DA9WlX6nUCgWCj0_I4kF4F8yCSMy2Zy_wjS01BnnViCdHD4Kz_bBKTNobI32Xkv0ze_zheTLWKanLRzZ1qqLB1FoA4cZBQcXqiyPGo_EN9nkqWjhAvozLXd8sTFDn0/s400/DSCN1627.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708599904594135090" border="0" /></a><br /></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx3FFyOlejNy5kibn66HVZiFxcgVcLumSTw0ElfFm-8vWQzdhe8H77TeajpDyIQUnRwf0YjOImgAmv2bNlnTE012-8RVchjlxABQkWXSu2gnbGR6WevNrl5xHM1SK9OOGD9dsse1Gi8PQ/s1600/DSCN1635.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 294px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx3FFyOlejNy5kibn66HVZiFxcgVcLumSTw0ElfFm-8vWQzdhe8H77TeajpDyIQUnRwf0YjOImgAmv2bNlnTE012-8RVchjlxABQkWXSu2gnbGR6WevNrl5xHM1SK9OOGD9dsse1Gi8PQ/s400/DSCN1635.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708599959223842274" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQQ_k9uU1DvjF_I7iqOQXnpkzK8svXzZmGRXCt9VcQNhKY_eE1oGt-T5jAJJv_xGHHrrTRforWHuoSZ09q-_BHi_7oSz-I1bZjVg6yOGJCUfgQ5yOUqcF8cyfO28Zk3ykXaBrGzxscpio/s1600/DSCN1637.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQQ_k9uU1DvjF_I7iqOQXnpkzK8svXzZmGRXCt9VcQNhKY_eE1oGt-T5jAJJv_xGHHrrTRforWHuoSZ09q-_BHi_7oSz-I1bZjVg6yOGJCUfgQ5yOUqcF8cyfO28Zk3ykXaBrGzxscpio/s400/DSCN1637.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708599964920259138" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">I love this picture below. A Brazilian friend had really wanted some fresh milk and by FRESH, I mean right from the cow. He really likes it with manioc flour to where it's almost the consistency of oatmeal. This man is checking the manioc flour for bugs.<br />He wanted to make sure it was just perfect before he served it.<br /><br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4UlaShNg2vk1DKgiIBuVYlkgYBsj2DPilsR6AoujVX23-0fFSAoSayuQ6UYpGFudLFc9x3PiIF5EnCVjCpQeMk5YHLkJeokTmx42agyCLGxU2mL6IZ6Uv1Ki05y9DqVor0B6ScTh7_nY/s1600/Photo+Feb+11%252C+10+50+55+AM.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4UlaShNg2vk1DKgiIBuVYlkgYBsj2DPilsR6AoujVX23-0fFSAoSayuQ6UYpGFudLFc9x3PiIF5EnCVjCpQeMk5YHLkJeokTmx42agyCLGxU2mL6IZ6Uv1Ki05y9DqVor0B6ScTh7_nY/s400/Photo+Feb+11%252C+10+50+55+AM.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708378026209080002" border="0" /></a><br />Several small groups gather together to hear Mike share stories from the Bible.<br /><br /><br /></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDPvMDKTY3ClYlTNB8Pv6QDiCuUTl829Tv3jkRH7TCsWaW5_qS62tdS16u8L5NL0jC4TvF-uFmWtucqZ9oXRNt7UYd79RVAaFjWAahxAIJNB_VMHuY21XXMp5rN7TwFfcleiJXPeQEe64/s1600/DSCN1631.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 282px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDPvMDKTY3ClYlTNB8Pv6QDiCuUTl829Tv3jkRH7TCsWaW5_qS62tdS16u8L5NL0jC4TvF-uFmWtucqZ9oXRNt7UYd79RVAaFjWAahxAIJNB_VMHuY21XXMp5rN7TwFfcleiJXPeQEe64/s400/DSCN1631.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708599936867331122" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjUGcVj_Xd9JLf0tPo-ValbWi_zHxSqdvPVhn8nQLOnqID5TmZONELydQGvyGOJP1XZs11FfTsp44xEZGm9yxz02T-B59H8LoQ3mqJFnrSGrA0ZPpIzxOFTSew60Dzf2NavXrnVJlla-g/s1600/Photo+Feb+10%252C+4+39+59+PM.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjUGcVj_Xd9JLf0tPo-ValbWi_zHxSqdvPVhn8nQLOnqID5TmZONELydQGvyGOJP1XZs11FfTsp44xEZGm9yxz02T-B59H8LoQ3mqJFnrSGrA0ZPpIzxOFTSew60Dzf2NavXrnVJlla-g/s400/Photo+Feb+10%252C+4+39+59+PM.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708378018324988306" border="0" /></a><br />These men are digging a well paid for by the government. Not all Q's have this luxury.<br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtGaK_mHUXcSyQAyITPtcwQaeQlPKgfiUzQ0IqA52aP73AtXBBUsqj3Eg7Qm2A_Ao5Vpv-fDGkw8zZc4ZMY3EfPGMItJmcHYeF7tHiihqwPuZNThDe2YrRYraM3zLEkYdjmW2Ij1BMbbA/s1600/Photo+Jan+29%252C+11+52+19+AM.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtGaK_mHUXcSyQAyITPtcwQaeQlPKgfiUzQ0IqA52aP73AtXBBUsqj3Eg7Qm2A_Ao5Vpv-fDGkw8zZc4ZMY3EfPGMItJmcHYeF7tHiihqwPuZNThDe2YrRYraM3zLEkYdjmW2Ij1BMbbA/s400/Photo+Jan+29%252C+11+52+19+AM.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708378034818241570" border="0" /></a>I'm going to sum it up there for now. We travel this weekend (all five of us) back to our friends in QSM. It will be Carnival so we thought getting out of the city would be wonderful.<br /><br />fyi...I HATE Carnival.<br /><br />I know you're not supposed to say it but it's dreadful...REALLY LOUD music all hours of the day and night. Ear plugs have been coming in handy as to get some rest. People are living it up in every way possible. The motto: do ANYTHING you want and ask forgiveness from God later. It's kinda sad cause all sin has consequences, ya know?!?<br /><br />So all that to say,<br />Dear Carnival, please go away.<br /></div>Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07784809615146915922noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1269167852547567018.post-78506121911412644232011-12-11T08:25:00.005-04:002011-12-11T09:02:04.049-04:00Baseball/Beisebol<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size:180%;">Then</span><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;font-size:180%;" ><br /></span></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHJGVCqdLqFxBESRtHROklEoQ-o5e1vg9-KM8AfJHaHQzTrs2erxjS_9AOmkLbxf28d2R2RrH7PbHAAgf4z7TYUMZP2AqA2LckT4Njqax8RhSMoe5ao8EPupZ3y4I-iYInk-qhr1M0c_Wd/s1600/100_2583.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHJGVCqdLqFxBESRtHROklEoQ-o5e1vg9-KM8AfJHaHQzTrs2erxjS_9AOmkLbxf28d2R2RrH7PbHAAgf4z7TYUMZP2AqA2LckT4Njqax8RhSMoe5ao8EPupZ3y4I-iYInk-qhr1M0c_Wd/s400/100_2583.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5684853118472401298" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-family: georgia;font-size:180%;" ><br /></span><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;font-size:180%;" >Now<br /><br /></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKQ9ubkpZjEyY246Ny148EXfUSKCkA7PrYfRayeJs9Nnhp7hmNDQWQZx788DZkdRmRrT7cCGAVIhUt0txn_3v0NRo6c4J4Q1OdE9HTDFehqHujcSAgg2h39xy0shn2M43E-SiuqZlYWP2I/s1600/DSCN1488.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKQ9ubkpZjEyY246Ny148EXfUSKCkA7PrYfRayeJs9Nnhp7hmNDQWQZx788DZkdRmRrT7cCGAVIhUt0txn_3v0NRo6c4J4Q1OdE9HTDFehqHujcSAgg2h39xy0shn2M43E-SiuqZlYWP2I/s400/DSCN1488.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5684853161474679538" border="0" /></a><br /></div>Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07784809615146915922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1269167852547567018.post-71203492059439766832011-12-05T14:46:00.006-04:002011-12-05T16:19:17.573-04:00jungle fun<div style="text-align: center;">Jackson, Jayden and I (Mike) recently visited quilombo Santa Maria. JohnMark had been sick so Rebecca stayed back with him. This is the same place where I helped to build the health clinic back in June. The purpose of our trip was to continue building relationships and to encourage the 12 local believers there. We traveled about 3 1/2 hours into the interior with a local missionary (Markinho) and his son (Marcos). Markinho has been working to reach them for about seven years now. We hope this village will be a central point in reaching many other surrounding quilombos for Christ!<br /></div><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVCQ1D6zQb_IA2W9LNYfGdj3td8Ln8RIKUpWtry1tdnAKpiHz9w9Sg_s2PE-rA2S1i3IuuKMEitLq9FEsmvS6S9eZC4-f7gKc9q1Ws7hyphenhypheniKrlUulUNY19t-ZgGqs9JqDfjRsm_co-eoxn_/s1600/IMG_2449.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVCQ1D6zQb_IA2W9LNYfGdj3td8Ln8RIKUpWtry1tdnAKpiHz9w9Sg_s2PE-rA2S1i3IuuKMEitLq9FEsmvS6S9eZC4-f7gKc9q1Ws7hyphenhypheniKrlUulUNY19t-ZgGqs9JqDfjRsm_co-eoxn_/s400/IMG_2449.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5682696706919753874" border="0" /></a>We stopped by a local market on the way to pick-up some freshly butchered beef for dinner. Jayden thought it was interesting that the meat wasn't in the refrigerator!<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigpaYQx9gM-6hEmwbA7ksNkeCF6U4PxYM3hwGUK2ZLruFiCKD3Pw95sq4VYmaniwP72ttlLplRC4RU1HIOF5LR8J_ph5i_iNEk5Pwh-F-1TdZkfHjZVcDjO3Hf0bL8B5QnXbAoExw5-rf4/s1600/IMG_2450.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigpaYQx9gM-6hEmwbA7ksNkeCF6U4PxYM3hwGUK2ZLruFiCKD3Pw95sq4VYmaniwP72ttlLplRC4RU1HIOF5LR8J_ph5i_iNEk5Pwh-F-1TdZkfHjZVcDjO3Hf0bL8B5QnXbAoExw5-rf4/s400/IMG_2450.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5682696558038352322" border="0" /></a>The boys were also impressed with the fresh chicken hanging nearby!<br /></div><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjY_0Ho2HrHzfDvCqf91MM-kvTt6No_wnyYunoM5OOV9zDs6G5Uof4W_XqVahErRr_dwY-LvzoXsVAco4dP4Mvd1684DVXqtO-7JYSegsERdMCSilfVON7b6VTP2FIKMLhtHD2W3lRT3-Di/s1600/IMG_2455.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjY_0Ho2HrHzfDvCqf91MM-kvTt6No_wnyYunoM5OOV9zDs6G5Uof4W_XqVahErRr_dwY-LvzoXsVAco4dP4Mvd1684DVXqtO-7JYSegsERdMCSilfVON7b6VTP2FIKMLhtHD2W3lRT3-Di/s400/IMG_2455.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5682696152882600130" border="0" /></a>This is the market next to the meat store.<br /></div><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6kefOmNcC1JLwifrW7hWqn8YO2F2HtWwUidd1B_iJEfDtW-Fw8DbGLvDsKMeCLZRY-1sIO5sPZDWg9YEIYrgBFYKGzxnJENs_9pwtu42tm8ORPGodr8C2QYTrgJmHmJFnuiWDogyxv_7m/s1600/IMG_2456.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6kefOmNcC1JLwifrW7hWqn8YO2F2HtWwUidd1B_iJEfDtW-Fw8DbGLvDsKMeCLZRY-1sIO5sPZDWg9YEIYrgBFYKGzxnJENs_9pwtu42tm8ORPGodr8C2QYTrgJmHmJFnuiWDogyxv_7m/s400/IMG_2456.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5682696141555898994" border="0" /></a>The fish being cleaned for lunch.<br /><br /></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx_icyNMNm4GibQKHEknNrZk4UgrU9DCLyi9pmYbU1OTKsisFSa_AtodKYRXi24w2ix3ZnQ_ZpbJyi8sfkLBo_gqvxkv_xiM2MB92Dras_Do2jX1iGs8Pws9OsFDVGgfKVKAi7CIupYamq/s1600/IMG_2466.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx_icyNMNm4GibQKHEknNrZk4UgrU9DCLyi9pmYbU1OTKsisFSa_AtodKYRXi24w2ix3ZnQ_ZpbJyi8sfkLBo_gqvxkv_xiM2MB92Dras_Do2jX1iGs8Pws9OsFDVGgfKVKAi7CIupYamq/s400/IMG_2466.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5682696132371031442" border="0" /></a>Later that afternoon some local boys took us out to fish for piranha.<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Jackson shared with Neto (our 12 year old guide) about Jesus along the way.<br /></div><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl8VrshKbX7aGWJCntouFfcqiEAa-URT2FziqQZx-b61fb1SjHlSUlqKZ4jabO6QGUCvOaeJ019I3uOfSL-LFx1ib50YGZ9LCSdhFa8VLosTu0XijZJXg-Ci1U2ZaJQC7Uz7wV1fwJ_qyX/s1600/IMG_2473.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl8VrshKbX7aGWJCntouFfcqiEAa-URT2FziqQZx-b61fb1SjHlSUlqKZ4jabO6QGUCvOaeJ019I3uOfSL-LFx1ib50YGZ9LCSdhFa8VLosTu0XijZJXg-Ci1U2ZaJQC7Uz7wV1fwJ_qyX/s400/IMG_2473.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5682695426151507378" border="0" /></a>Our small canoe was about two inches from the water surface and taking on water.<br />Jackson thought it'd be a good idea to start bailing!<br /></div><br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZqiwHKhn6n7OgAEZ84E4_q6T_h9kojzw9KEq-PKPBwHtG_kTpyBMlmJft1aMqCVhOJ7oKzzQ-vhGm35clwkqboIS3EG9chdWLt3yxVn2AHegD1U5zhPfZuilbplvllrQwb3G4uX_AT8pI/s1600/IMG_2477.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZqiwHKhn6n7OgAEZ84E4_q6T_h9kojzw9KEq-PKPBwHtG_kTpyBMlmJft1aMqCVhOJ7oKzzQ-vhGm35clwkqboIS3EG9chdWLt3yxVn2AHegD1U5zhPfZuilbplvllrQwb3G4uX_AT8pI/s400/IMG_2477.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5682695410205831282" border="0" /></a>This is Neto. Please pray for him to understand his need for Christ.<br /></div><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMp54iALGD0gTs9ZpD3SyPoZGGllEdVpczPvy_NZpWjxYF2arV_MSuhi1jZyFprOpeUUGy7uQUX3P7BGSYbPx0G2zqq9IxuR9tunmlonC47eKraEkG1zNvHy2clnS3v7y4uM69aQKA9jtV/s1600/IMG_2478.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMp54iALGD0gTs9ZpD3SyPoZGGllEdVpczPvy_NZpWjxYF2arV_MSuhi1jZyFprOpeUUGy7uQUX3P7BGSYbPx0G2zqq9IxuR9tunmlonC47eKraEkG1zNvHy2clnS3v7y4uM69aQKA9jtV/s400/IMG_2478.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5682695409664839650" border="0" /></a>Jackson's first piranha.<br /></div><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI1zmFYBbEy5KywvOc5Ip67FNoxHA-cIsJz1Sv7gSCJMPVIMt_AjdMus0xgB347kqSNmgF3N_lbFsgxHpjYWRYu0B5AonqYbTBUQxzviKtQApxOHIDsGEK_v1vyvc7NjlV46sCfU-_7Rb9/s1600/IMG_2487.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI1zmFYBbEy5KywvOc5Ip67FNoxHA-cIsJz1Sv7gSCJMPVIMt_AjdMus0xgB347kqSNmgF3N_lbFsgxHpjYWRYu0B5AonqYbTBUQxzviKtQApxOHIDsGEK_v1vyvc7NjlV46sCfU-_7Rb9/s400/IMG_2487.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5682695393549392882" border="0" /></a>Jayden's first piranha.<br /></div><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdJtaTZt4h9DcIFGeFG9AamAyqSLJiL0lCS7BfguBSbFCFn57BZX9O0GN4D54KuHEr7GuC7-S8J3be0rQQARR5wYHP3xUpPc3p_qv1Y5HtJnWUNvCZjlAHZ3YxlNMbcbtL8uXrrqR8MCGZ/s1600/IMG_2488.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdJtaTZt4h9DcIFGeFG9AamAyqSLJiL0lCS7BfguBSbFCFn57BZX9O0GN4D54KuHEr7GuC7-S8J3be0rQQARR5wYHP3xUpPc3p_qv1Y5HtJnWUNvCZjlAHZ3YxlNMbcbtL8uXrrqR8MCGZ/s400/IMG_2488.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5682695391621661634" border="0" /></a>Jayden fishing next to his new friends.<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjT8Bou_6QObb0mwlh_EKIr2lqG0X-ZR9AoN18fjPvlkFBR-Rye4iVTFaCB5wl8I2UB6xosn5RIbUsmDkDEhhBcGKUA4Qppj4xP1voDljmSuV0tl_Jcy94gAlXzrjnM3rQyFc7RMsvZGQB6/s1600/IMG_2497.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjT8Bou_6QObb0mwlh_EKIr2lqG0X-ZR9AoN18fjPvlkFBR-Rye4iVTFaCB5wl8I2UB6xosn5RIbUsmDkDEhhBcGKUA4Qppj4xP1voDljmSuV0tl_Jcy94gAlXzrjnM3rQyFc7RMsvZGQB6/s400/IMG_2497.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5682694319695448530" border="0" /></a>I caught this fish without a pole using only a spool of line, hook, weight, and bobber.<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"> This is a common way of fishing in the interior.<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLacr7HjEWAfQiD8FCkaoG_BPPpm6ymuC3Q_cbROAOwIvWOUFNdUMUxDpsti3Q1q2K4VRnMOkX2AeTk3WD7ro6w-Uxn08IAfCA-IDf6qZEmWROlEjmuqrPfd5OuMGSQ3b9oueqZNAUo8TT/s1600/IMG_2498.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLacr7HjEWAfQiD8FCkaoG_BPPpm6ymuC3Q_cbROAOwIvWOUFNdUMUxDpsti3Q1q2K4VRnMOkX2AeTk3WD7ro6w-Uxn08IAfCA-IDf6qZEmWROlEjmuqrPfd5OuMGSQ3b9oueqZNAUo8TT/s400/IMG_2498.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5682694303165809442" border="0" /></a>Jackson and Jayden fishing off the back of the canoe.<br /></div><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYLI09sThbb1lLcPbQYl6Bs7D2KKrcw6cacEOJHWEl-E2VD-AFpyNyf5Qe-v3wmKXjMOAh0jh-UxCuf3YpIcIR82eVgBItciJ1zD2sdB7Kq_4Lfs9jmZZZ1ekxNDyhW6wzzQybf5-4lhy6/s1600/IMG_2509.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYLI09sThbb1lLcPbQYl6Bs7D2KKrcw6cacEOJHWEl-E2VD-AFpyNyf5Qe-v3wmKXjMOAh0jh-UxCuf3YpIcIR82eVgBItciJ1zD2sdB7Kq_4Lfs9jmZZZ1ekxNDyhW6wzzQybf5-4lhy6/s400/IMG_2509.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5682694297058778354" border="0" /></a>Jackson, Jayden and Marcos playing with some local boys. They were just returning from a short jungle trip. Marcos called Jayden Moses because he carried around this big stick everywhere. Jayden said that he hid it so that he could play with it next time too.<br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqtEBIw8TLjMnj2WigTuXm-2rGKX0ijek3thSGlx-NufUjzOY_sC2RQSFOf6GkFtqThyJxsbBwvY23wybDVt4A6RE54F28WjGkhqW9EapmT5DZlhBtY-OCb0xTVT75SU4NwId5OWXuNaN6/s1600/IMG_2461.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqtEBIw8TLjMnj2WigTuXm-2rGKX0ijek3thSGlx-NufUjzOY_sC2RQSFOf6GkFtqThyJxsbBwvY23wybDVt4A6RE54F28WjGkhqW9EapmT5DZlhBtY-OCb0xTVT75SU4NwId5OWXuNaN6/s400/IMG_2461.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5682696137976135362" border="0" /></a>A little girl was riding her bike and lost control when a chicken ran out in front of her. Her big toe got was caught in the spokes and cut to the bone removing most of the skin! Her father was working and her mother had recently abandoned her and her nine brothers and sisters. I was the only one in the village with a vehicle. So, me and a neighbor took her to a nearby community for help (the local heath clinic is not ready yet). This was an experience that I will never forget!<br /></div><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLANcbyXG3rBtwQw7pkNNMv3Kknsy7w2tnL2fKyAYyeux2OpbK2XWivsMDnONuEHewVad47GlTJiBBppaGT7Q9la_9DBi8DZAThzlihbw6zfNQGGTZX4lprNyFCWEYzUNveJw60U4kjXGW/s1600/IMG_2519.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLANcbyXG3rBtwQw7pkNNMv3Kknsy7w2tnL2fKyAYyeux2OpbK2XWivsMDnONuEHewVad47GlTJiBBppaGT7Q9la_9DBi8DZAThzlihbw6zfNQGGTZX4lprNyFCWEYzUNveJw60U4kjXGW/s400/IMG_2519.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5682694282424844226" border="0" /></a>Jackson and Jayden with Pedro, the village leader. Pray for Pedro. He believes in God but doesn't enjoy a personal saving relationship with Jesus. He is a great friend and person of peace.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgRGuDEq1PLgVx_Q4w-bqf_yp-Ilk5kAOnBgFFfQv46ofJNpPt3ORIJ59s2UxQDLhgOfRCoaUgw1maoiIqRDYnHzeQNj2OfSJ1PndJoMXLOevS4A13vKaFnG7cYn62OW5vn97E6RRFr2ik/s1600/IMG_2528.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgRGuDEq1PLgVx_Q4w-bqf_yp-Ilk5kAOnBgFFfQv46ofJNpPt3ORIJ59s2UxQDLhgOfRCoaUgw1maoiIqRDYnHzeQNj2OfSJ1PndJoMXLOevS4A13vKaFnG7cYn62OW5vn97E6RRFr2ik/s400/IMG_2528.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5682694279347969730" border="0" /></a>This is the whole group with Pedro.<br /></div>Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11434964919104697992noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1269167852547567018.post-49481451326478195122011-11-26T17:41:00.007-04:002011-11-26T19:30:57.382-04:00an open door<div style="text-align: center;">We spent the day with Valdilene and Maria Zilinha. We were able to story with them and enjoy a couple of hours in their home. We also met Valdilene's mother and father. They were so welcoming and we feel that through this family we will be able to have many contacts to the rest of their community. Her husband takes a bike each day into a nearby town and works as a youth counselor. They have 3 other children as well and we ask that you join us in praying for all of them and the opportunity to continue taking the Gospel into their Quilombo.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXhquMbj9qVjhRdQrq5oyS6xvjZx-yk-wm1kftlPWwaBHdI7_-T1_uCQQkrmuRop6wfA3_1JDAuMLyUvn2Csz14WOnWAVsuznBXdRiUVgHIaq_-8L4tbLQu8WpJnDV1FShNHpnZJ4eInn3/s1600/IMG_0440.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXhquMbj9qVjhRdQrq5oyS6xvjZx-yk-wm1kftlPWwaBHdI7_-T1_uCQQkrmuRop6wfA3_1JDAuMLyUvn2Csz14WOnWAVsuznBXdRiUVgHIaq_-8L4tbLQu8WpJnDV1FShNHpnZJ4eInn3/s400/IMG_0440.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679423907309616066" border="0" /></a><br />Below are several photos of the homes that the Quilombola people live in. The floors are typically dirt as well but they keep their homes very clean.<br /><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1VjIrs1bu1A-XxrfyVRaOOVSzk-TdfrA60c0rOQHNhT_PzfqBq-4Fp9YG5p_zJzQ-_pmGjCEOhOvhk83wrYrSa9Ciecr6IWIpor7M98sVPuzzVYCcjZvwQKaytFp4YJCN5-1TFL4pZe54/s1600/IMG_0422.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1VjIrs1bu1A-XxrfyVRaOOVSzk-TdfrA60c0rOQHNhT_PzfqBq-4Fp9YG5p_zJzQ-_pmGjCEOhOvhk83wrYrSa9Ciecr6IWIpor7M98sVPuzzVYCcjZvwQKaytFp4YJCN5-1TFL4pZe54/s400/IMG_0422.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679424986941135042" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO4WHqSu0XpWKpPGlcXzjiufyOVwfvPwbOoaQ6TsTFvgDPQOGKGcTieofpIatZEkht0ZaoDrHOku0_11PwOrBK60uO0XHR-ZcQ-HUATTjAytM0duuxUeZ7tbKPfF05ulduClUsaihsQiME/s1600/IMG_0419.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO4WHqSu0XpWKpPGlcXzjiufyOVwfvPwbOoaQ6TsTFvgDPQOGKGcTieofpIatZEkht0ZaoDrHOku0_11PwOrBK60uO0XHR-ZcQ-HUATTjAytM0duuxUeZ7tbKPfF05ulduClUsaihsQiME/s400/IMG_0419.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679424973209819778" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRMruPKJwTjw3z-KNLj-V-RGRGvfGhhvXIZEY-5G8k9KcOeYl8DQSeWaWVKDQPdwWuDbgjPhbHHITnsF2HbsmTRcHBOblYAoWMt1Ddc8don5U_dZDR9wpqEP4DuKiWHVT865rKDOMLlfK9/s1600/IMG_0406.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 301px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRMruPKJwTjw3z-KNLj-V-RGRGvfGhhvXIZEY-5G8k9KcOeYl8DQSeWaWVKDQPdwWuDbgjPhbHHITnsF2HbsmTRcHBOblYAoWMt1Ddc8don5U_dZDR9wpqEP4DuKiWHVT865rKDOMLlfK9/s400/IMG_0406.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679424968487278978" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzerx1TxWjkRTyfrdZ4gy9r2mPu1B55MAMw20_b9g1FAV6RIeQUlAjBxEzHFguJG_KABpjzFQ1HsBKWB4wwIXdIBeqqVEzu9kqTR2Cu844-yA7-bkub7WqLIjGZRI9J_5czvX_m8W90ypH/s1600/IMG_0391.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 299px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzerx1TxWjkRTyfrdZ4gy9r2mPu1B55MAMw20_b9g1FAV6RIeQUlAjBxEzHFguJG_KABpjzFQ1HsBKWB4wwIXdIBeqqVEzu9kqTR2Cu844-yA7-bkub7WqLIjGZRI9J_5czvX_m8W90ypH/s400/IMG_0391.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679424962464332322" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUPSNboju_gWbMtOumneEsDOxS6SOzdl4FN_XsJhduqVQRnmzMOs4pXW1DkvF2NggARlUw-1m3ASiBgJ97jziIz79WyyyaRFvTZu-1PEngcn02oefsD82rC317_ABEzndU0vygOrCoUtTR/s1600/IMG_0396.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUPSNboju_gWbMtOumneEsDOxS6SOzdl4FN_XsJhduqVQRnmzMOs4pXW1DkvF2NggARlUw-1m3ASiBgJ97jziIz79WyyyaRFvTZu-1PEngcn02oefsD82rC317_ABEzndU0vygOrCoUtTR/s400/IMG_0396.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679423946198205330" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEich3Dd7KYuV5PbGTe9WVu2bSSJ5lNoWLrLYdFFjbXC1D7I9dkVX_xhlXGHNoJHzcD7VDW5zkLO2sdyyev2sOSSGdmZ607wbLJvtVtJvy9fClPQQ-WuHLXwB8t8gJXW8XXS8UXpGt9wtTiJ/s1600/IMG_0435.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEich3Dd7KYuV5PbGTe9WVu2bSSJ5lNoWLrLYdFFjbXC1D7I9dkVX_xhlXGHNoJHzcD7VDW5zkLO2sdyyev2sOSSGdmZ607wbLJvtVtJvy9fClPQQ-WuHLXwB8t8gJXW8XXS8UXpGt9wtTiJ/s400/IMG_0435.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679425798992354770" border="0" /></a>The HUGE beehives that are on almost every tree.<br />I HATE <a href="http://powellpartyoffive.blogspot.com/2011/06/praiamelanciamiseria.html">BEES</a><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw_HFOAXQAmvqCmJLMTWO-aXSK9dIrj3RROP9d_L0ceaPzOim1cZgx1wzY3js_fBnBJOcKt42XD7J-QVR8XtRCFA05hyphenhyphenkbOx-bvlsN_9_xtoBqvRgKBorfZtyO-ks-uK6QE3Vb7_vsoCb1/s1600/IMG_0442.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw_HFOAXQAmvqCmJLMTWO-aXSK9dIrj3RROP9d_L0ceaPzOim1cZgx1wzY3js_fBnBJOcKt42XD7J-QVR8XtRCFA05hyphenhyphenkbOx-bvlsN_9_xtoBqvRgKBorfZtyO-ks-uK6QE3Vb7_vsoCb1/s400/IMG_0442.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679423929004272786" border="0" /></a>The bridge that thankfully withstood our BIG TRUCK<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6PBVWSFXbEo7fUWOKvjmPQD8DYNw6pCsCeKdnGXifGxdwexG9AyRJD55E7AGI-1uTw54LPGfgX0fmTsDKggKrxt1XsHqRZYZ1w9ywq55vm90fhTGFrmCAv97SRxc8oFQPzw9dKcrj0a92/s1600/IMG_0403.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 299px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6PBVWSFXbEo7fUWOKvjmPQD8DYNw6pCsCeKdnGXifGxdwexG9AyRJD55E7AGI-1uTw54LPGfgX0fmTsDKggKrxt1XsHqRZYZ1w9ywq55vm90fhTGFrmCAv97SRxc8oFQPzw9dKcrj0a92/s400/IMG_0403.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679423939782737826" border="0" /></a>The fruit hanging off this tree is called Jaca or, in English, Jack Fruit. They are in season right now and you see them everywhere in the interior. We are not big fans of the taste but supposedly this is the largest fruit to grow on trees in the world.<br /><br /></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOnOQpivsbaMPaWOjutjo_AL8hHNU9y_PMSzWimQ0m6UZc1wR9er5JqAbM_TtiMkjQpHipNvv4T5fvA9dzxemxFz1AvrZETajlkfIFaT7mCTs5_9hyNClbFbnr-YD6afKkZofQBqxEccBw/s1600/IMG_0454.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOnOQpivsbaMPaWOjutjo_AL8hHNU9y_PMSzWimQ0m6UZc1wR9er5JqAbM_TtiMkjQpHipNvv4T5fvA9dzxemxFz1AvrZETajlkfIFaT7mCTs5_9hyNClbFbnr-YD6afKkZofQBqxEccBw/s400/IMG_0454.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679423910374330994" border="0" /></a>We ARE huge fans of bananas and coconut water so when offered these treats<br />we never pass them up. I think I'll be making banana bread for awhile.<br /></div>Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07784809615146915922noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1269167852547567018.post-53635216022081330022011-11-25T09:03:00.001-04:002011-11-25T09:07:07.028-04:00Jayden's Blog Updates<div style="text-align: center;">Click <a href="http://misadventuresofjayden.blogspot.com/">here</a> to see what's been going on in Jayden's world.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH8dveArdQLn2hc7pvlsoDPFY0kRf8nGtlr77QEiNXpN9Qh_h0azePHlJ73drexebEFYbpMGu3A9lN4XxbHw2hcs4kI0meJ0w-dLLgVk03sr3tRImBvVFrAm41NFeZ9-XqaLOnjbDHZ1Xy/s1600/IMG_2400.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH8dveArdQLn2hc7pvlsoDPFY0kRf8nGtlr77QEiNXpN9Qh_h0azePHlJ73drexebEFYbpMGu3A9lN4XxbHw2hcs4kI0meJ0w-dLLgVk03sr3tRImBvVFrAm41NFeZ9-XqaLOnjbDHZ1Xy/s400/IMG_2400.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5678918680953301778" border="0" /></a><br /></div>Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07784809615146915922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1269167852547567018.post-59641874818380231612011-11-24T23:09:00.006-04:002011-11-24T23:48:01.660-04:00new friends and pumpkin pieToday we celebrated Thanksgiving with the Nichols' Family, the Konings, the Gills and David Henson. We were once again reminded of God's sufficiency as he gave us great people to fill in the void left while being away from family in the states. The food was as American as it gets with pumpkin pies, sweet potato casserole, dressing, corn pudding and all the typical Thanksgiving treats!!! The boys swam with friends and wrote on their table all that they were thankful for. Each family shared some of our holiday family traditions. It was a spectacular day and we have made some amazing new friends. Here are some photos from the day. I seem to have one of everyone except myself and Julie, the wonderful hostess. Oh well...maybe next time!<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiczWFqv1gnuG874VSMcXz3MRwGVR-Ta6rEwRY0TnxNaXVBm7rA5mWoZBQD9FDQpQW2I-SxoBw7gqdzQV5fMwLwqXY981OuwkMq5L4KXxl3yaiR1aJ5y2YvTohrnglXipHnDWegKld1eE5K/s1600/IMG_0337.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiczWFqv1gnuG874VSMcXz3MRwGVR-Ta6rEwRY0TnxNaXVBm7rA5mWoZBQD9FDQpQW2I-SxoBw7gqdzQV5fMwLwqXY981OuwkMq5L4KXxl3yaiR1aJ5y2YvTohrnglXipHnDWegKld1eE5K/s400/IMG_0337.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5678767693293068066" border="0" /></a>The Nichols' Family (our hosts) made a <span style="font-family:georgia;">pin</span><span class="st" style="font-family:georgia;"><em></em></span><span style="font-family:georgia;">ata </span>from scratch and the kids all took a whack. The boys have decided this is a great new tradition.<br /><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOJyzLNIEkgaZ1y-GApn70V-G4PCutZ-nJYy9clEVI1-HR68O44e6-L-_hfBcSzWo62l0VjQ8UIt7dyZhTNQ3bLZj9T8nnqWRky2QwVqHiFJ9sCgWrILjXspifDfvIUTZv1yQo5TKq5Mlu/s1600/IMG_0340.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOJyzLNIEkgaZ1y-GApn70V-G4PCutZ-nJYy9clEVI1-HR68O44e6-L-_hfBcSzWo62l0VjQ8UIt7dyZhTNQ3bLZj9T8nnqWRky2QwVqHiFJ9sCgWrILjXspifDfvIUTZv1yQo5TKq5Mlu/s400/IMG_0340.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5678767682150895778" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">Jesse getting ready for her turn<br /><br /></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJEIB0a85SFsUroiAhhrWY9u4VePbBSv49ZHNInBkxm_3cpbFKvl5KhqIOAkGyeK7tZSWdXdXKw1nojUwBPa8pjJUnsq10IRlNqEymMfOexiSAcuMr5XcU3SuWd11u356IFMGaKCBNlMm2/s1600/IMG_0334.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJEIB0a85SFsUroiAhhrWY9u4VePbBSv49ZHNInBkxm_3cpbFKvl5KhqIOAkGyeK7tZSWdXdXKw1nojUwBPa8pjJUnsq10IRlNqEymMfOexiSAcuMr5XcU3SuWd11u356IFMGaKCBNlMm2/s400/IMG_0334.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5678768063795456898" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv8PsNZMfU054Vi_heXxME4P0mMzZjcpEgkXiVJcHYCsyBpBpCcbw0FlA6VDJ9YasNGioBcvMATLAPnVrlgTgIsq7At_uRM0PtHhhdMWU1fJ7AiF0SRN6Pk8cFR_3LUEoKVlvpaYMSJOxx/s1600/IMG_0357.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 301px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv8PsNZMfU054Vi_heXxME4P0mMzZjcpEgkXiVJcHYCsyBpBpCcbw0FlA6VDJ9YasNGioBcvMATLAPnVrlgTgIsq7At_uRM0PtHhhdMWU1fJ7AiF0SRN6Pk8cFR_3LUEoKVlvpaYMSJOxx/s400/IMG_0357.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5678767675858053922" border="0" /></a>the Konings sharing what they are most thankful for<br /><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdlxVbhe3AbJoaYkDFk4c4HTiB02SCs6evRmi-9dRc9PngWcbYOqPALkFzbo2JBaImLl4w6B2yJDxRG-F38OYoUx-mtA8LsYUsZh1MrwYoLx5-c4ce-OcOcQJxoMW4dNs6GIi6FJiG7DIw/s1600/IMG_0360.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdlxVbhe3AbJoaYkDFk4c4HTiB02SCs6evRmi-9dRc9PngWcbYOqPALkFzbo2JBaImLl4w6B2yJDxRG-F38OYoUx-mtA8LsYUsZh1MrwYoLx5-c4ce-OcOcQJxoMW4dNs6GIi6FJiG7DIw/s400/IMG_0360.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5678767662041710546" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw8PYgE5kCeVq1auMYj8KwmqEn4UiJHf3ZoWbMsCa1_qCY7JkBRV8o-WuZfdiBMi2Srkrlw-Yecy9R21HZPBU6rqdcIxMUYiTXY73MqssrjXM7MbGl0eb4ZB5aD8pRX22vZWA0SQkl_q_g/s1600/IMG_0361.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw8PYgE5kCeVq1auMYj8KwmqEn4UiJHf3ZoWbMsCa1_qCY7JkBRV8o-WuZfdiBMi2Srkrlw-Yecy9R21HZPBU6rqdcIxMUYiTXY73MqssrjXM7MbGl0eb4ZB5aD8pRX22vZWA0SQkl_q_g/s400/IMG_0361.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5678767658115714386" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">David and Mike<br /></div><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7cs7nFblF2JWoJ0EIgAP0HYGz_BtQSWK2qbBIHp9e0lMbfBA_E2_1CpUPL3D9SVjGQRtWblmeqFxeaROxs8PcU-eeTiDze0g5zhtKXXSXstFgiwJoxxitjzpQCQl7_UwMiSFFw8Nhyphenhyphen5cg/s1600/IMG_0362.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 298px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7cs7nFblF2JWoJ0EIgAP0HYGz_BtQSWK2qbBIHp9e0lMbfBA_E2_1CpUPL3D9SVjGQRtWblmeqFxeaROxs8PcU-eeTiDze0g5zhtKXXSXstFgiwJoxxitjzpQCQl7_UwMiSFFw8Nhyphenhyphen5cg/s400/IMG_0362.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5678766592054695314" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_9EuhxZJummr7CFv-xH-2xoO1OB7z2xnRRN2ZxKDdI7nTFq9I7AYVRLi6do28C6G2sVOFNaus2nn2Nxf9yVXYmks72zuL57vIpf8j9yHI8DG4KjNOjertU3Y02fO7PNbJ8xvtu_N5wb8C/s1600/IMG_0371.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_9EuhxZJummr7CFv-xH-2xoO1OB7z2xnRRN2ZxKDdI7nTFq9I7AYVRLi6do28C6G2sVOFNaus2nn2Nxf9yVXYmks72zuL57vIpf8j9yHI8DG4KjNOjertU3Y02fO7PNbJ8xvtu_N5wb8C/s400/IMG_0371.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5678774306385545490" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii3iSx1CH19QWkfRM8ZgjmACRQ00ia6_LE1y2VH-mPMpDFFqA_FiWoD5XS9bcs5EMz_LjhrFSPOdctWAOGdurkBAqhhjbhHoq4sismFzqM6xpqoRwdOtukfgXYFFd9SILsqQmgyh6G-wEV/s1600/IMG_0365.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii3iSx1CH19QWkfRM8ZgjmACRQ00ia6_LE1y2VH-mPMpDFFqA_FiWoD5XS9bcs5EMz_LjhrFSPOdctWAOGdurkBAqhhjbhHoq4sismFzqM6xpqoRwdOtukfgXYFFd9SILsqQmgyh6G-wEV/s400/IMG_0365.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5678766580190831954" border="0" /></a>The Gills<br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmMYpCJJYEgqqUstwkSkMnwIR084CPhXL-EC-1YUbYMiy2vsWDnWBUQtFy93927gyCCwUjxkuTO1j_V1o_aNkrsFQbGIfilyPb7LI027k-7JuAB8r-x26b7p_GYf3hHQ6KUqcC6562qIFv/s1600/IMG_0366.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmMYpCJJYEgqqUstwkSkMnwIR084CPhXL-EC-1YUbYMiy2vsWDnWBUQtFy93927gyCCwUjxkuTO1j_V1o_aNkrsFQbGIfilyPb7LI027k-7JuAB8r-x26b7p_GYf3hHQ6KUqcC6562qIFv/s400/IMG_0366.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5678766576586425490" border="0" /></a>Pumpkin pie<br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiZ_bjHqiPnAxTDPOZFi5Oi0tQOZ-mdUn94kntL_aly31-V3Ap7o1E6GNa_cgXR8lv0Tr_9qrVlhODwZ7aX29eZVFr9oiLkVV_nnLHpI0o8ZBdO0Wszmx2wsGLq9AJOWn2glEPvGIr0_ak/s1600/IMG_0367.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiZ_bjHqiPnAxTDPOZFi5Oi0tQOZ-mdUn94kntL_aly31-V3Ap7o1E6GNa_cgXR8lv0Tr_9qrVlhODwZ7aX29eZVFr9oiLkVV_nnLHpI0o8ZBdO0Wszmx2wsGLq9AJOWn2glEPvGIr0_ak/s400/IMG_0367.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5678766560006513842" border="0" /></a>pumpkin muffins with cream cheese icing<br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXVlFAp_eT0h1VvwITHJ31DnDyU6GOrmMv-6u8IDX8CVXiFSTeBE7ciXks5lOEwXEMcFxYrfTWY7MY6QRZbGjlfjrLn7NWQoOajytYuNmQX0yd5rEHNFyaklTs5qkAkStegaAU8gC0aS_o/s1600/IMG_0375.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 301px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXVlFAp_eT0h1VvwITHJ31DnDyU6GOrmMv-6u8IDX8CVXiFSTeBE7ciXks5lOEwXEMcFxYrfTWY7MY6QRZbGjlfjrLn7NWQoOajytYuNmQX0yd5rEHNFyaklTs5qkAkStegaAU8gC0aS_o/s400/IMG_0375.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5678766557824100946" border="0" /></a>Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07784809615146915922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1269167852547567018.post-70639749483048554982011-11-23T08:21:00.010-04:002011-11-23T11:21:26.786-04:00life among the Maranhense<span style="font-family:times new roman;">I'm embarrassed at how long it has been since I've blogged! I'm going to try and catch everyone up with what all that has been going on in our lives since we arrived in<span style="font-style: italic;"> </span></span><strong style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family:times new roman;">São Luís. Homeschooling along with learning how to live in a new city has kept me swamped. I went through a rough patch with my health as well but I'm doing so much better now. I thank you for your prayers as my energy has returned and I'm feeling like my old self again.<br /><br /></span></strong><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmQlRofPjF926dG9JEfXM8AnYgLo0rnthv7lm3U-Gj3pt1_6aHFyQmVU_TkTZWiKxuynr2uh8HJ_VekRZEgBKcVSP_7pSsVAlXs0ZLxpCkR3Nu5EA5SrNcBiLEmdiJfN_ta8SP1vG9vRO-/s1600/IMG_0266.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 367px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmQlRofPjF926dG9JEfXM8AnYgLo0rnthv7lm3U-Gj3pt1_6aHFyQmVU_TkTZWiKxuynr2uh8HJ_VekRZEgBKcVSP_7pSsVAlXs0ZLxpCkR3Nu5EA5SrNcBiLEmdiJfN_ta8SP1vG9vRO-/s400/IMG_0266.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5678192853426483586" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;">I drink one of these almost every day now. It took awhile to love them but I'm there now. I'm REALLY there...maybe even kinda addicted but hey they are so good for my belly.<br /><br /><br /></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnvLH2cylYY4wqaxO9A_APWal-RTroYvWjf7sFdI_I6H8WBeDsGHHImhzL9rUp1YF3QEHqbPO_lrYxEeLWyhLoegTPRLiPGcjZxLhk66kV6Il-H7sN5YYgvxvWsAjQgd9U2f1OsxU5xr6K/s1600/IMG_0272.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnvLH2cylYY4wqaxO9A_APWal-RTroYvWjf7sFdI_I6H8WBeDsGHHImhzL9rUp1YF3QEHqbPO_lrYxEeLWyhLoegTPRLiPGcjZxLhk66kV6Il-H7sN5YYgvxvWsAjQgd9U2f1OsxU5xr6K/s400/IMG_0272.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5678192862475824418" border="0" /></a><br /></div><strong style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family:times new roman;"> </span></strong><strong style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family:times new roman;"> </span></strong><strong style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family:times new roman;">São Luís (Saint Louis) is an island in the S</span></strong><strong style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family:times new roman;">ão Marcos bay an</span></strong><strong style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family:times new roman;">d it's </span></strong><strong style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family:times new roman;">as wonderful as it sounds. </span></strong><strong style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family:times new roman;">We have amazing breezes to keep us cool and there are days you'd never know we're living at the equator. We are in the dry season now so the rain isn't making life too difficult. This means our clothes can dry very quickly which always make me enormously HAPPY! (It's the small things, right!) The dry season will end around January when mold and mildew become our adversaries.<br /><br /></span></strong><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM1Sfuv2de_l7shXFvtRjxXKSNbOZ4UpT7d8ZSRDVqdwr4I2PKrLJUYKvj5JDwZKE3UjmL6Hu-Pko_2J-J8Xqw00-x6T6GSaTH8Oyq_DX4kvOhUR1cPaotrlu5HDOop4aA3vy8Hs1f5WX-/s1600/IMG_0274.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM1Sfuv2de_l7shXFvtRjxXKSNbOZ4UpT7d8ZSRDVqdwr4I2PKrLJUYKvj5JDwZKE3UjmL6Hu-Pko_2J-J8Xqw00-x6T6GSaTH8Oyq_DX4kvOhUR1cPaotrlu5HDOop4aA3vy8Hs1f5WX-/s400/IMG_0274.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5678192869568482642" border="0" /></a><strong style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family:times new roman;"><br />I recently put several photos of the historic part of </span></strong><span style="font-family:times new roman;"><span style="font-style: italic;"> </span></span><strong style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family:times new roman;">São Luís on facebook. </span></strong> <strong style="font-weight: normal;"> <span style="font-family:times new roman;">I'll share some of them again on here. </span></strong><strong style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family:times new roman;">This area is only a few miles from our <span style="font-size:100%;">home and is absolutely beautiful. All the original buildings are still there from when the city was settled back in</span></span></strong><span style="font-size:100%;"> 1615<span style="font-size:85%;"> by the French.</span></span> <strong style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family:times new roman;"> The old buildings make for some great photo ops.<br /><br /></span></strong><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi-ccQead8T1927YwdO5G1hZVimpZs97rlkm0PovtRCXVHu0GkWv2uVd1-YRvYQ7SIZEp68vkODAL_RFLiJ6auyf0Lxdjb5F3GT2Kjj317nxGDkdq_9Lg_yN0JvJGbzge8yvoWZ_xyfERl/s1600/IMG_0245.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi-ccQead8T1927YwdO5G1hZVimpZs97rlkm0PovtRCXVHu0GkWv2uVd1-YRvYQ7SIZEp68vkODAL_RFLiJ6auyf0Lxdjb5F3GT2Kjj317nxGDkdq_9Lg_yN0JvJGbzge8yvoWZ_xyfERl/s400/IMG_0245.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5678196167316111170" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwauscWV1mPQkYUPNquHsTU1GBR2TU2_mwbkldnrNLxsmRO7F2e_fdLvBNt-uxXB0Aurp2oYYvj7E1IfAB4PAwUQYifYPORnNP0QMT-E4ZeUmKxMJ4sqUWnw8MoWzfq0F7m71-iWYQCLAR/s1600/IMG_0256.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwauscWV1mPQkYUPNquHsTU1GBR2TU2_mwbkldnrNLxsmRO7F2e_fdLvBNt-uxXB0Aurp2oYYvj7E1IfAB4PAwUQYifYPORnNP0QMT-E4ZeUmKxMJ4sqUWnw8MoWzfq0F7m71-iWYQCLAR/s400/IMG_0256.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5678196159063118050" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjJ1j54WGa5USF45XzaViGzduCca0KXlAR8wKbXoayGE_vFszCOPGrXHBCUXbernsrL4ms3t7LW3O6FCLlzqxKZdmGzmF7s2BrgYsdGGgqnZsNwaLvL9Z1TqnF19zk4n16YwsfbaUkRaIg/s1600/IMG_0228.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjJ1j54WGa5USF45XzaViGzduCca0KXlAR8wKbXoayGE_vFszCOPGrXHBCUXbernsrL4ms3t7LW3O6FCLlzqxKZdmGzmF7s2BrgYsdGGgqnZsNwaLvL9Z1TqnF19zk4n16YwsfbaUkRaIg/s400/IMG_0228.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5678196149120809810" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRhiEARWhAWBe_NSYIp8W_u1BNUHvcT1HnANMxaK5m1ggnVsXI53bEnWx7SiTDp9xq8bwNIWokGtkCqblWlPHu3asFdXe1XkVMf61yN98T2nhQIIXW75oOK128IHuBz7V9m3FLXiWtvrFn/s1600/IMG_0234.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRhiEARWhAWBe_NSYIp8W_u1BNUHvcT1HnANMxaK5m1ggnVsXI53bEnWx7SiTDp9xq8bwNIWokGtkCqblWlPHu3asFdXe1XkVMf61yN98T2nhQIIXW75oOK128IHuBz7V9m3FLXiWtvrFn/s400/IMG_0234.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5678197098094768050" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjLV8jT6KcMA9_fmci3g4fq0xGte3M2HvKoHPOk0xDreF9FuvuCplQ6ggqupq31tLV1j0_AT7aT2P-W0SGk0GPiQzCwyDuEN82YnXo8ZmLsM4Hm_eolBXU1Cyzns8c8yGGC81vmiaOyBgY/s1600/IMG_0215.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjLV8jT6KcMA9_fmci3g4fq0xGte3M2HvKoHPOk0xDreF9FuvuCplQ6ggqupq31tLV1j0_AT7aT2P-W0SGk0GPiQzCwyDuEN82YnXo8ZmLsM4Hm_eolBXU1Cyzns8c8yGGC81vmiaOyBgY/s400/IMG_0215.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5678196133462895426" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEio0yRBRyGXlpyCcOiHX2UTCHbrY5EcDEBYtgInfTLuUS6Fx6GXEHYVcKtfyWszdMBi84ahGef7RDA-iPgFH86KzKpx8_xV60nyo4WmPfMQ0SZlWv_iI9yIe4YmkdFVliGrABBiSlLmeQXJ/s1600/IMG_0220.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEio0yRBRyGXlpyCcOiHX2UTCHbrY5EcDEBYtgInfTLuUS6Fx6GXEHYVcKtfyWszdMBi84ahGef7RDA-iPgFH86KzKpx8_xV60nyo4WmPfMQ0SZlWv_iI9yIe4YmkdFVliGrABBiSlLmeQXJ/s400/IMG_0220.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5678196138897460354" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRvnVp_BZgFhMNxkgwHHAKUcg-FyVnT0hdrej1ZspnSLgnhgUpraRi8F5zLEA2vJdE0aL3CWm2VR69m3BSTSQ9LLkiNPs86K-H7LQFLGXyXmY0BV5xJ44L08i_NR2pRlp9RbWFWvitBaE_/s1600/IMG_0244.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRvnVp_BZgFhMNxkgwHHAKUcg-FyVnT0hdrej1ZspnSLgnhgUpraRi8F5zLEA2vJdE0aL3CWm2VR69m3BSTSQ9LLkiNPs86K-H7LQFLGXyXmY0BV5xJ44L08i_NR2pRlp9RbWFWvitBaE_/s400/IMG_0244.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5678197089120169090" border="0" /></a><strong style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family:times new roman;"><br /></span></strong><strong style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family:times new roman;">The area we live in looks quite different from the rest of the city. Every time we get further and further from our home we are astonished at the poverty all around us. We've seen poverty but just not to the extent we're seeing it here. In the short walk (less than a block) from our apartment to the beach, we will usually come upon 3-4 homeless people.<br /><br /></span></strong><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivb7RtPAIy5AbzcP_Hfw1dKzON45c0ppFNLHA814N3dSwcdJDzZ8lFJzg50rVLXyzPHOEgJaxmmY-XJwZI5PtuwV7_YAMWtfi-ELT81ZzbGzrBxRBoie6sBLGpFBiDpipnMcY58jSRS7uu/s1600/IMG_0268.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 348px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivb7RtPAIy5AbzcP_Hfw1dKzON45c0ppFNLHA814N3dSwcdJDzZ8lFJzg50rVLXyzPHOEgJaxmmY-XJwZI5PtuwV7_YAMWtfi-ELT81ZzbGzrBxRBoie6sBLGpFBiDpipnMcY58jSRS7uu/s400/IMG_0268.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5678192844989477538" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;">an example of the homeless living on the sidewalks next to our apartment<br /><br /><br /></span></div><strong style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family:times new roman;">One area is truly remarkable where a type of shanty town has built up over the actual water. It's amazing to see the tiny wooden shacks balancing on stilts. I'll get a picture of this soon for you to see.<br /><br /></span></strong><strong style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family:times new roman;">Beside us, the rocky beach is home to several folks that hang their hammocks next to the stone wall that lies between the sand and the road. Here, almost everyday we see signs of the many idols linked to the practice of umbanda and candomble. We see beautiful red roses (the BIG DARK red ones that cost a fortune in the states) thrown out into the ocean and trampled by the waves on the sand. They do this as an offering to the <a href="http://www.thaliatook.com/AMGG/yemaya.html">goddess of the sea</a>. The other day we came upon a small black statue of a little boy with candles all around him. I still need to research the significance of this particular idol and what it symbolizes.<br /><br />Needless to say, we are seeing up close and personal many hindrances to the Gospel. The scariest part is how most people will combine these practices with Catholicism or even any version of Christianity they've heard of. They want to make sure they cover all their bases, so to speak. We know that Jesus is the Way, Truth and Life and yet having them understand that Christ cannot be put on the shelf with these idols is quite difficult.<br /><br />Mike is traveling today to work with some young believers that are working with Q's. His desire is to train them on how to share with the illiterate through the "storying" method. In these instances, we have to deliver the Word of God to people through short Bible stories, one at a time. What a challenge and yet great responsibility! Pray we overcome all the obstacles in our way and tell the stories from the Bible accurately in another language. At this point, Mike is memorizing the stories in Portuguese. He's doing great but pray that God would continue giving us the words that we need. Our language always seems to be the biggest hurdle in life here.<br /><br /></span></strong><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnixqclJ1UYE_g4FnlwcnxLs8ZxJe8zDMWuzqtBGNcit_YNmVNb1S3Lo-Vzb9COkOo1AVgstSIofj-cJPUuGApUxFWuqDggHollwNDDyli3lGJQBrkiH4hLVhIAANexgD_gUO1t_CuQMlT/s1600/IMG_0275.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnixqclJ1UYE_g4FnlwcnxLs8ZxJe8zDMWuzqtBGNcit_YNmVNb1S3Lo-Vzb9COkOo1AVgstSIofj-cJPUuGApUxFWuqDggHollwNDDyli3lGJQBrkiH4hLVhIAANexgD_gUO1t_CuQMlT/s400/IMG_0275.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5678192881046075474" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;">my kitchen</span><br /></div><strong style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family:times new roman;"><br />Tomorrow we will celebrate Thanksgiving with 2 other American families that live here along with a new friend (David) that is working with an international company doing a project. We will also be with other missionaries from The Netherlands. They are getting to enjoy Turkey Day for the 2nd time. We look forward to all the "fixins" and the belly ache that we know will follow. Our bodies have adjusted to a diet of fresh fruits, beans, rice, and all things NOT-PROCESSED. On days like Thanksgiving we are reminded how heavy our American diets were! I kinda can't wait!! he<br /><br />On Saturday we will go into the interior and meet some new Q's and if I remember my camera I will post some photos on here.<br /><br />Last bit of news...we are going to Kentucky for Christmas. We leave in 3 weeks and we are counting down the minutes...literally!!! We should have a little furry creature, we have not seen in 2 years, waiting on us at the airport! I get teary-eyed just thinking about it!!!<br /><br />Thanks for reading this overly long post and continuing to pray for us even when we're bad at communicating our needs to you! I hope you all have a blessed Thanksgiving.<br /></span></strong><span class="st"><em></em></span>Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07784809615146915922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1269167852547567018.post-25607880119739577662011-10-21T12:36:00.001-03:002011-11-23T08:20:11.600-04:00angelicaA few weeks ago we spent the day with some Brazilian friends. They feel called to reach the same people group that we are working with. He and Mike are sharing lots of information and have taken several trips together to the interior. He is a great resource for us and we are so blessed to work alongside them.<br /><br />They also have one of the sweetest little girls on the planet. Her name is Angelica and I thoroughly enjoyed having her in our home for the day. She was absolutely precious. Here are some of the photos we took that day of her and her mommy.<br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVKtseH85qYQJkW0IsEuIlLj0I4_io1lGZUxXZ4GyarHU4tuEMdcV2yUh0EvCFZZvU9TfC-mMHT_pd6M36h3I8oK4Smf1vnxhxC5xdLMQg-FAb04QnjEltAEgnACNLBJNNJ_Rl5qJwNvmk/s1600/IMG_0123.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVKtseH85qYQJkW0IsEuIlLj0I4_io1lGZUxXZ4GyarHU4tuEMdcV2yUh0EvCFZZvU9TfC-mMHT_pd6M36h3I8oK4Smf1vnxhxC5xdLMQg-FAb04QnjEltAEgnACNLBJNNJ_Rl5qJwNvmk/s400/IMG_0123.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5665786567529488834" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0hyphenhyphenDYmMGPNQH_gpr6dWqyVMs5MsVZgFz4HDs3LR13i4l066FHytsFTWIauTyHPeSn71pb3Gr_OkCxCtUUgIxiNzdY6UtZ2pthcAwxHEemDcg3r8Rx4rX0OGsbVno6S4_wH5UN-bJ-dwZv/s1600/IMG_0133.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0hyphenhyphenDYmMGPNQH_gpr6dWqyVMs5MsVZgFz4HDs3LR13i4l066FHytsFTWIauTyHPeSn71pb3Gr_OkCxCtUUgIxiNzdY6UtZ2pthcAwxHEemDcg3r8Rx4rX0OGsbVno6S4_wH5UN-bJ-dwZv/s400/IMG_0133.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5665786580646147250" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyvPoSED0pv2W8g3KhCrtUfw_8TJbqxttwYkVC0ONENqCWSaXQN2F-R7ebvhvlHZlickfeRvARug0kThQj1QSYK5KTDtSdW52naVopldc0wPpvKvXnIU4W4A-gs8KaBlAVqZL0dcB6TvmN/s1600/IMG_0125.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyvPoSED0pv2W8g3KhCrtUfw_8TJbqxttwYkVC0ONENqCWSaXQN2F-R7ebvhvlHZlickfeRvARug0kThQj1QSYK5KTDtSdW52naVopldc0wPpvKvXnIU4W4A-gs8KaBlAVqZL0dcB6TvmN/s400/IMG_0125.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5665786573529505058" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBCPyaYgtz0P7KaII9V43S8gxvTANQ1XE8Pw2uHCzYZz1_XX0Bs6H6YyW4c-M_pjZL-6SN6DnNhCYDQtydOOeD2zoBXQ-V9mdVFqm8uCr-hkntlV5nCyO28nsdb99GFXHIFI6ZJc1EAHjG/s1600/IMG_0167.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBCPyaYgtz0P7KaII9V43S8gxvTANQ1XE8Pw2uHCzYZz1_XX0Bs6H6YyW4c-M_pjZL-6SN6DnNhCYDQtydOOeD2zoBXQ-V9mdVFqm8uCr-hkntlV5nCyO28nsdb99GFXHIFI6ZJc1EAHjG/s400/IMG_0167.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5665786594947648626" border="0" /></a>Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07784809615146915922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1269167852547567018.post-42084996555516703092011-10-15T02:23:00.008-03:002011-10-15T17:06:39.113-03:00paved, gravel, dirt, sand, and moon-crateredWe've been here in Sao Luis now for about a week and what a week it's been. I can finally say all boxes are unpacked. NOT that everything is exactly where I want it but we have pulled off an extraordinary amount of tasks in one week along with beginning a new school year with the kids. We were crazy enough to start things up on Monday in order to keep them from getting behind. Our boxes and furniture arrived on Friday which was just a few hours after we had gotten here, thanks to our little set back.<br /><br />I won't go into much detail about the 34 hour trip that was supposed to take only 12 hours. I'll only skim over the highlights. Granted, several of those hours involved us passed out in a hotel room weary and stubbornly giving in to the realization of exhaustion. Or, at least some of us were with the comforts of a mattress and a/c window unit. Mike's night went down a bit different as he was reclined in the driver's seat of our extended cab truck. He got a few hours of sleep outside in order to keep a watchful eye on all of our belongings.<br /><br />Maybe I should back up just a bit. On DAY ONE of our travels things started beautifully. We had made some great time on the roads, stopped and had a bite to eat for lunch, and all three of our "growing bigger by the minute" boys were sharing their tight space in the backseat of our truck nicely. (Kudos to the boys really quick...cause they were pretty much perfect the whole trip with only a few moments of chaos.) I guess kids know when they better hold it all together.<br /><br />Anyway...Mike's idea was to ENTER in each city on the GPS as we passed through the prior city in order to not have any funny things happen with our little mapping device. The night before we had left, the neighbors that lived above us had come to say goodbye and the older gentleman had shared with Mike about all the state roads versus the federal roads. State roads, typically, are in much better shape than the federal roads because of the funding. SO he and Mike talked over the best route to get about halfway to Maranhao.<br /><br />I guess that's where the problems started, about half-way there. We were in a small town and Mike decided to stop putting in the "next" city into the GPS and instead skip ahead a couple of cities because, afterall, what would it hurt.<br /><br />Extremely LONG story short...in one of the cities Raquel, as Mike likes (liked) to fondly call the Portuguese voice in our GPS, took us down a road we really had no business being on. It went from pavement to stone to gravel to dirt and finally to sand. After seeing some gentlemen looking rather concerned about us being in their "parts" of the world, we turned the truck around and unfortunately had to drive past these said men again in order to leave this miserable town. On the way back past the men, they decided to line both sides of the roads with guns in hand and stare us down. What did we do? What any good gringo does. We smiled really big, waved, acted completely oblivious, and Mike pushed the pedal a tad bit harder.<br /><br />After finally getting on the road that RAQUEL wanted us to be on, A STATE ROAD, we drove one hour going about 10 mph. The road had potholes so large that a Volkswagon could have literally been swallowed up. Literally, in all Mike's trips to the interior...he'd never seen a road this bad. Everyone in the car began missing the dirt paths we had been on only hours before. We all kept our cool and just prayed we would eventually come out to a better surface but after an hour and the sun setting and everything looking pretty glim, Raquel (GPS) decided to go haywire. We appeared to be completely on the wrong side of the city that we were trying to leave. It ended up being just a glitch in the GPS (probably a GOD glitch)because we were on the "right" road but we decided the "right" road for us would be one in which we could go over 20 mph. SO, we turned the truck around, backtracked the hour, drove about 3 hours south, out of the way but on GREAT roads, and found a place to crash.<br /><br />The next morning which is where you see us on the train bridge in the video, everything went so much better. Literally PERFECT day with PERFECT roads. I took lots of photos of those beautiful roads so you could see them. Our new motto will always be GO OUT OF THE WAY AND DRIVE EXTRA MILES FOR THE GOOD ROADS. I love smooth roads. I will never take the road department in the USA for granted ever again, EVER. EVER.<br /><br />So we're here. We love it...potholes in the road and all! It is beautiful in every way and we feel God's presence around us completely. It feels so good to be HOME, or at least what will serve as our home for this next season of our life. We celebrated Jayden's 9th birthday last Wednesday and the boys are all adjusting so wonderfully. Keep praying. I beg you. We have seen what prayer can do and we know and feel when you are all interceding on our behalf.<br /><br />Enjoy the video. Make sure you watch the last few seconds so you can get a taste of what Raquel considers a perfectly good ROUTE. ha<br /><br /><iframe src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/30581457?byline=0&portrait=0" webkitallowfullscreen="" allowfullscreen="" width="398" frameborder="0" height="299"></iframe>Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07784809615146915922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1269167852547567018.post-51346499645516580452011-10-12T17:18:00.004-03:002011-10-14T16:12:37.625-03:00quick noteWe're all well and celebrating Jayden's 9th birthday today. Our boxes arrived and we are getting settled. We are still waiting on internet. I promise to update everyone as soon as I can get on here for more than a couple of seconds at a time.Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07784809615146915922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1269167852547567018.post-55308749431636998952011-10-04T20:55:00.011-03:002011-10-04T22:23:51.234-03:00São Luís Bound...FINALLYWe're all packed up and ready to head out BRIGHT and EARLY tomorrow morning. The movers put the last box on the truck around 5:00. It felt great to be DONE with things on this side. This being our 8th move in 3 years, 2nd time THIS year...I really am beginning to feel like an old pro at this transitioning thing...REALLY I AM. <span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-family:arial;">(she's lying. she hates to move)<br /><br /></span></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSDpjLK5x713kN3KjcM7KqtZorlMJt4pLDzttVvRmCt-BE7H0Ujs9DxRVtj96tE96slfHPKP9fLf0LioooKb887su9N4z4SW1D7HaFUSVjqZyKUe-56lJQQSga7q5gZJ1h45WNvV2ND2vv/s1600/IMG_8004.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSDpjLK5x713kN3KjcM7KqtZorlMJt4pLDzttVvRmCt-BE7H0Ujs9DxRVtj96tE96slfHPKP9fLf0LioooKb887su9N4z4SW1D7HaFUSVjqZyKUe-56lJQQSga7q5gZJ1h45WNvV2ND2vv/s400/IMG_8004.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5659793812397654418" border="0" /></a>We need to hit the road by 5:00 a.m. in order to get every second of sunlight possible. Interior Brazilian roads aren't very fun in the dark. Praying the truck gets us there safely and our furniture arrives shortly thereafter...we're hoping for Friday. That would be miraculous!<br /><br /><span style="font-size:180%;">Also today...</span><br />I caught Jackson and Jayden sweeping their newly emptied bedroom and snapped some photos. I couldn't, for the life of me, understand why they were so concerned with getting the floor cleaned NOW. I planned on sweeping all the scraps from the boxes up later but was tickled to see them tackling this one chore for me.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhknHWsljmcGe2qh72xPx4iXisCCX2O6QC-S0GnCKkI8-dEJbzxhFqkObdVSZF2T4nnm88uyRbQmsZ-bh15SsFYSAtae395tEoo1p4KpQX_BOQa3w3MSffWY0DTHMb1QNhlFI3TgITa8aK4/s1600/IMG_8008.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhknHWsljmcGe2qh72xPx4iXisCCX2O6QC-S0GnCKkI8-dEJbzxhFqkObdVSZF2T4nnm88uyRbQmsZ-bh15SsFYSAtae395tEoo1p4KpQX_BOQa3w3MSffWY0DTHMb1QNhlFI3TgITa8aK4/s400/IMG_8008.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5659796622793543938" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjd6A0tgfrL_Cu5-Mptxnzxn_L6rTCAcA57FabMyDdjnxIe6sO0H2i5RPVcjA4AbhnqbZUWIQdJEoLrIzsXfSJKdw7CRl9KxPgxU5eHArnJRq7kmTr5bjk-QZ4ANHZM6vaK6PBEUQ1YIt_/s1600/IMG_8009.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjd6A0tgfrL_Cu5-Mptxnzxn_L6rTCAcA57FabMyDdjnxIe6sO0H2i5RPVcjA4AbhnqbZUWIQdJEoLrIzsXfSJKdw7CRl9KxPgxU5eHArnJRq7kmTr5bjk-QZ4ANHZM6vaK6PBEUQ1YIt_/s400/IMG_8009.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5659796627067617426" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz3-WtK2zeFoygDb71hHV625ePTMc0yL3Kj5R0H_03zSiCsEwKBtWEE-yUQ2C7vmw4UF0Wc1nDLbouRFO2ggyoNSMIVMuFmNWZamZeJ3axvSX98jgyedwcPkZ1BS20H9LeDHY7h1FFY84Z/s1600/IMG_8011.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 291px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz3-WtK2zeFoygDb71hHV625ePTMc0yL3Kj5R0H_03zSiCsEwKBtWEE-yUQ2C7vmw4UF0Wc1nDLbouRFO2ggyoNSMIVMuFmNWZamZeJ3axvSX98jgyedwcPkZ1BS20H9LeDHY7h1FFY84Z/s400/IMG_8011.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5659796632321670706" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmYPWpriBenALIijpxxEr3jkKLdkNYhmT4JdSc6Gt-dTIM3DyQLpwGnUTbXP-5PlTSwUJll9ga2YRAcNSpq7Ue1VoEXx5sKi12qaYkN1hqBpyoYrejDw_hWzUW6fJ7AR4FQ8XeQQUE7f9P/s1600/IMG_8014.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmYPWpriBenALIijpxxEr3jkKLdkNYhmT4JdSc6Gt-dTIM3DyQLpwGnUTbXP-5PlTSwUJll9ga2YRAcNSpq7Ue1VoEXx5sKi12qaYkN1hqBpyoYrejDw_hWzUW6fJ7AR4FQ8XeQQUE7f9P/s400/IMG_8014.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5659796636776069762" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:180%;">And then I came back and saw this.<br />OF COURSE~</span><br /><br /></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEickdQ0ijFyhI_h14gPBAVzhjH6X1bXUwBDVIiB-vnXAIG1PAvKxaAxB0_QYun8_u_qSuvDTngy1Xf3KJ1glFpaI0ANF-8Absp5lvPdriHQNHtqdiGusFMjt3fMoQ7MrNOXiv2dl3UdSG79/s1600/IMG_8020.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEickdQ0ijFyhI_h14gPBAVzhjH6X1bXUwBDVIiB-vnXAIG1PAvKxaAxB0_QYun8_u_qSuvDTngy1Xf3KJ1glFpaI0ANF-8Absp5lvPdriHQNHtqdiGusFMjt3fMoQ7MrNOXiv2dl3UdSG79/s400/IMG_8020.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5659796639785698018" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_pa80L6RRk4Rwdw7ChQFon74CHJ8UfApA9QQx83FOrRr6EwA6L-8Pxs9ToJhAQUfIT9QhfTmkinE_VtFT0ayI333spiVCwRNhYhWLsAYngvo0JGcFjzKuumQDHwJ0mZLtyZQE2M0-jP-U/s1600/IMG_8022.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_pa80L6RRk4Rwdw7ChQFon74CHJ8UfApA9QQx83FOrRr6EwA6L-8Pxs9ToJhAQUfIT9QhfTmkinE_VtFT0ayI333spiVCwRNhYhWLsAYngvo0JGcFjzKuumQDHwJ0mZLtyZQE2M0-jP-U/s400/IMG_8022.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5659797736480371458" border="0" /></a><br />We're all sleeping in hammocks tonight, as our beds are gone. This is what is going on in the other room as I type this around 9:30 our time. Everyone should be fast asleep but instead folks are enjoying their last night in Fortaleza with a movie.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTazautXRfOk5piSO4FjaUFbl3abQ3cwqf92wA6kfPAza-9QDMrFYGPWM4vRbfXUbERJ18mlexgGy3YdqYzXo7AS9R03q0RTrdJdcryzy7lBGYcHsKiXAzBj_CsfOS3CBEe3CCINX3jgEa/s1600/IMG_8026.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTazautXRfOk5piSO4FjaUFbl3abQ3cwqf92wA6kfPAza-9QDMrFYGPWM4vRbfXUbERJ18mlexgGy3YdqYzXo7AS9R03q0RTrdJdcryzy7lBGYcHsKiXAzBj_CsfOS3CBEe3CCINX3jgEa/s400/IMG_8026.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5659803656964142082" border="0" /></a>I'm not waiting up with them tonight. Mom's tired and headed to bed (or should I say hammock?!?)<br /><span style="font-size:180%;">These two tired grown-ups are DONE!</span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheA_m5ZqUPDBSKxK4SH9C_u5oU3TdlZy2qnluSl7j-kAHPsSevYDjRJ8celSU0_vH61oIE52QvFo4giaz-wC5y0rAYyJg9_vuUj4UUs_BZtTLL94v54rbTeDu7mTh_xRwRBArCQE52q6xB/s1600/IMG_8036.JPG"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 286px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheA_m5ZqUPDBSKxK4SH9C_u5oU3TdlZy2qnluSl7j-kAHPsSevYDjRJ8celSU0_vH61oIE52QvFo4giaz-wC5y0rAYyJg9_vuUj4UUs_BZtTLL94v54rbTeDu7mTh_xRwRBArCQE52q6xB/s320/IMG_8036.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5659807104734378690" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI23Y6gFxMr8J0Iec4cBi_anmIQ3HYiuXXx5L395mRQnBm7-ps8Agp78IUp17KpHgAMamFdNdEeBWqK4fY9CTI7lFF1PaLSU-Nr3Yav65xK8DG-RS6fEaLRsyxt0tXIbvIjte6QEk0rLbo/s1600/IMG_8062.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI23Y6gFxMr8J0Iec4cBi_anmIQ3HYiuXXx5L395mRQnBm7-ps8Agp78IUp17KpHgAMamFdNdEeBWqK4fY9CTI7lFF1PaLSU-Nr3Yav65xK8DG-RS6fEaLRsyxt0tXIbvIjte6QEk0rLbo/s320/IMG_8062.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5659807658927547506" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />And for the sake of keeping it real...Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07784809615146915922noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1269167852547567018.post-81728234501758556102011-09-17T16:35:00.010-03:002011-09-17T18:25:46.340-03:00LoWdOwN on the guysI called my mom today and as I was sharing a story about life in our house, I found myself calling our dwelling place a frat house. It seemed a fitting title for this home since I live here with 4 guys. As these young men grow and get bigger and louder, at times I find myself feeling like an outsider. It's funny because the opposite is true for Michael. He seems to have an almost permanent grin of pride plastered on his face as they tell their weird jokes and continually find ways to make noises with their bodies that are completely unpleasant. Eww. Such a camaraderie they have at times. sigh.<br /><br />To totally change the subject...<br /><br />This week Mike will be joining another team from the states to work in a community about 2 hours from here. They asked him to bring one of our boys with him so Jackson will be joining him this time. He is SO excited. He worked ahead in his school work and got his teacher's permission. ha<br /><br />They are meeting the team at the airport today and will head out on Monday morning to join up with them. Pray that all goes well for all involved as they work really hard this week in the town of Cascavel. On Friday, JohnMark, Jayden and I are hoping to be able to join up with everyone for a short time. I'll try to keep you posted and will ask Mike to get some photos for me so we can post them on here.<br /><br />I'm about 2 weeks out on the move and trying to tie up all the loose ends here in the house and with the boys school year. So far...so good.<br /><br />JohnMark is doing really well and will begin 8th grade as soon as we get to Sao Luis. He is enrolled in an online school with many other kids that live overseas. He's been given the opportunity to co-lead a Bible Study amongst the kids online. He's writing it and setting it all up. I am so proud of all the hard work he's been putting into it. Kids from all over the world will be connecting via skype to study God's Word together! How cool is that!!!<br /><br />All of Jayden's blonde hair has reappeared, thanks to this strong Fortaleza sun! He turns heads everywhere we go. He is growing tall and eating us out of the house. WAIT...all three of them are doing that. Seriously, our grocery bill is frightening. I can go buy 20-30 tangerines in the morning and attempt to go into the kitchen to partake of "said" tangerines that same afternoon and ALL, I repeat ALL tangerines ARE GONE!!!! FOR REAL! I haven't resorted to hiding food for myself yet but I won't say it will never happen. (I'm recalling life with Matt Lovelace right now....hmmmm.)<br /><br />Anyhow, the boys are healthy and geared up to move again! They are beyond excited about our Christmas plans. We have tickets to a beautiful destination on December 13 and we foresee some pretty special time with some pretty special people. Granted...the time there will be short BUT we plan on enjoying every single second!<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style=";font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:85%;" >In the photo below the boys are holding some of the goodies that came in with the team!<br />THANK you so much Ronnie and Carl! The boys will feast on s'mores very soon!</span><br /></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjULVee6SV7MjrBb_O_9ClpWab2Tz_PwpnOKcg5379IS4bsKcu4dpCS4cD7ozwwc2t9SitAS0aE2SuRDE7fn8sMYpEF-RqxtbwYRn0zFE4p_HguSn-o8RuwA-KDAY4p5ITZpG2j5CJThGe3/s1600/IMG_7977.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 318px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjULVee6SV7MjrBb_O_9ClpWab2Tz_PwpnOKcg5379IS4bsKcu4dpCS4cD7ozwwc2t9SitAS0aE2SuRDE7fn8sMYpEF-RqxtbwYRn0zFE4p_HguSn-o8RuwA-KDAY4p5ITZpG2j5CJThGe3/s400/IMG_7977.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5653438374293155714" border="0" /></a>Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07784809615146915922noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1269167852547567018.post-38221766489659026332011-09-06T18:24:00.007-03:002011-09-10T09:19:46.313-03:00next leg of the journey<span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">So many of you have emailed, called or facebooked (not sure if that can be used as a verb or not) recently to inquire on our whereabouts and happenings. I apologize profusely for my absence on here and with our correspondence to all our prayer partners. I'd love to tell you that we've been swamped with ministry opportunities and that has kept me unable to find the needed time to sit down on here and share my heart.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">But yeah...that's not really the truth.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">Granted things have been busy and slightly different for us. We're moving again in a few weeks. We've been doing home school non-stop. We are living life in a foreign country eating beans and rice every single day for lunch. We constantly search for opportunities to expand our really "crappy" language skills because apparently even after almost two years in another country, one can get by on extremely POOR Portuguese. I know this well. On top of all this "feel goodness" the mosquitoes are out and about in droves.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">We do still laugh at ourselves and continually wake up each morning knowing that we are called to do exactly what we are doing. We consistently ask God to make us small so that we in turn can make HIM known in large ways. He complies with this regularly! ha</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">Truth is, some days are really hard and trying to be tough can be exhausting! I am learning, thanks to some really smart friends, how to give myself a break and realize how far we've come. We have come a long way! WE HAVE! We aren't living amongst our people just yet. We aren't speaking like the Brazilians just yet and we aren't all the things I strive to be. My guess is you aren't either. Living on a different continent doesn't make that happen faster. Well, maybe it does a little because my growing pains have been on steroids lately!</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">I was hoping to understand better the "whys" of our time here in this city by now and praying God would show us some profound reason for bringing us here for such a short time. Unfortunately, I can't say I know exactly why we had to come and stay here for this period. It was a time where I felt God removed almost all friendships from our lives. We struggled making anything other than superficial relationships with people because of our small amount of time here and even the few people we did meet, God seemed to keep at an arms distance away.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">Simply put, life was peculiarly strange and lonely here. I have learned that sometimes God puts us in situations we don't understand. He removes distractions from our lives so that we draw nearer to Him learning how to sustain only on HIM.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">We leave this city on the 3rd of October. We will then be where we are "supposed" to be...at least for now. Until He says, "Go" again. That's how this life of ours looks for now. Just keep moving with HIM, trusting Him as He carries us. We do look forward to the people and friendships that are waiting for us in </span><span class="st" style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><em>São</em></span><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"> </span><span style="font-style: italic;font-family:trebuchet ms;" ></span><span class="st" style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><em></em><em> </em></span><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"> Luis. We already have several contacts there and it's exciting to know that God is preparing the way for us.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">We do ask that you begin to pray for the spiritual attacks that are and will begin to come our way. We are heading into a battle zone and the enemy does not like it. I will try to begin and post some more information regarding our people and the things we will encounter with them. I will start with this video focusing on an African/Brazilian religion called Umbanda. It is a mixture of spiritism and catholicism.</span><br /><br /><embed src="http://images.nationalgeographic.com/wpf/sites/video/swf/ngplayer_syndicated.swf" flashvars="slug=brazil_umbandareligion&img=http://video.nationalgeographic.com/video/player/media/brazil_umbandareligion/brazil_umbandareligion_480x360.jpg&vtitle=Umbanda%20Religion&caption=In%20Brazil,%20requests%20to%20kill%20a%20husband%20and%20remove%20a%20curse%20are%20all%20part%20of%20a%20unique%20religion.&permalink=http://video.nationalgeographic.com/video/player/places/culture-places/beliefs-and-traditions/brazil_umbandareligion.html&share=true" name="flashObj" seamlesstabbing="false" allowfullscreen="true" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/shockwave/download/index.cgi?P1_Prod_Version=ShockwaveFlash" width="460" height="321"></embed>Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07784809615146915922noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1269167852547567018.post-23889597579566107412011-08-25T09:52:00.006-03:002011-11-25T10:10:16.535-04:00Beach Football in Fortaleza<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUnhkNXO0uXMGT6c6zA0HvUcAl65giGscWgNwIYwkyv5iJzwKtF71hBhKB1Thk4-iKP-VLYnM-hcOiujw6w-fYVqQNIefoSsckpw0jJvLCk6LPnYatopBNMhXuP6YBQ1u9Eu1Cu9w7XoUv/s1600/IMG_2036.JPG"><img style="display: block; 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margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4fgEK9LmHbSZlkIHbtouNTQqN99vjKVajtspN3FAsiLeYJiF1e07Uhu9VRKLvEzysSZWRSPiPHg1hrsTO7oW2-MIgb1SgOQPDZkl-wzu_fGbwp3mNnvDES3HM-J1joov8-606F0sdVWRf/s400/IMG_1952.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5678934956667058290" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjli4pOOWuGxz09L1qjzSNjcdnrQtkQijX8EcsJgVFiwEOAdR0MF4Dy2BT1qoXlHtFpECB_xb55-KwJcutjZMT752RUkE_9tczEEpU8dTXJFrch3KaFqdxW9yhSFgh25KICDKjpdBkqBCqp/s1600/IMG_2003.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjli4pOOWuGxz09L1qjzSNjcdnrQtkQijX8EcsJgVFiwEOAdR0MF4Dy2BT1qoXlHtFpECB_xb55-KwJcutjZMT752RUkE_9tczEEpU8dTXJFrch3KaFqdxW9yhSFgh25KICDKjpdBkqBCqp/s400/IMG_2003.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5678934959615900018" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiotG72ZiynTIqO7D3g-4r1QOAEY4TYjjYbGdge_DNgB304cj8PbiciTuEvCDGFJ_p7F4oqVlytpDqDp9fw6GRfvviu787rNpYBk6y_RvyzE76IkjL5GHsQ5UYLGyhBSMKvRQVE3WnZW8bz/s1600/IMG_1982.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiotG72ZiynTIqO7D3g-4r1QOAEY4TYjjYbGdge_DNgB304cj8PbiciTuEvCDGFJ_p7F4oqVlytpDqDp9fw6GRfvviu787rNpYBk6y_RvyzE76IkjL5GHsQ5UYLGyhBSMKvRQVE3WnZW8bz/s400/IMG_1982.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5678935066220791746" border="0" /></a>Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07784809615146915922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1269167852547567018.post-84286329085400007722011-08-03T19:22:00.008-03:002011-08-15T20:49:38.509-03:00South Brazil<div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: center;">Mission Meeting
<br /></div>Atibaia, Sao Paulo
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<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwxIQi6hcJNi_aAEneasgaObdpI-cHPMh6IGnUM3Z0DCkUG4LVblBgbH8otYwSgO-B2IazRsbDOyFeYsosqun-1X00ywBUJJ-_DrDB9iDPdgOO0-9FTT5L5Wrz78V2aOD4n_Qgds_BepqS/s1600/cic+ogm.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwxIQi6hcJNi_aAEneasgaObdpI-cHPMh6IGnUM3Z0DCkUG4LVblBgbH8otYwSgO-B2IazRsbDOyFeYsosqun-1X00ywBUJJ-_DrDB9iDPdgOO0-9FTT5L5Wrz78V2aOD4n_Qgds_BepqS/s400/cic+ogm.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641213864720396226" border="0" /></a>The photo above is of the group that lived and trained with us in Richmond back in 2009. We also went through language school together.
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<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUuGRVtFDaF7sT_4oEha3xirKb-enIg5KV3sEGhG1JRgtMXu9uMPiPZRqOfW-z7UBNolwjUbTpcj_DGZbyd81lh8FA2kE_AklOjicOoPCU8dAVQREz_XCy1A56kO8Rce_RKGzJJ4NUXQoU/s1600/IMG_7794.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUuGRVtFDaF7sT_4oEha3xirKb-enIg5KV3sEGhG1JRgtMXu9uMPiPZRqOfW-z7UBNolwjUbTpcj_DGZbyd81lh8FA2kE_AklOjicOoPCU8dAVQREz_XCy1A56kO8Rce_RKGzJJ4NUXQoU/s400/IMG_7794.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641213863429971922" border="0" /></a>Jayden doing some praisin' with fellow MK's
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<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7fFGZUHNRpJYJPfutGM8atzdKbhyphenhyphenArrM0IPHrmLCIuPdH9vrpYwz6gfaJ3ZM7o44ah1o8A5jesb-mVW1VZcpeuzSG7altMG5EUuSGZDJUtTmahG5hRZ6hSVQJ3_w-ftrJtpJtGFuq_PFu/s1600/281210_1820620446840_1580048026_31428044_5862155_n.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7fFGZUHNRpJYJPfutGM8atzdKbhyphenhyphenArrM0IPHrmLCIuPdH9vrpYwz6gfaJ3ZM7o44ah1o8A5jesb-mVW1VZcpeuzSG7altMG5EUuSGZDJUtTmahG5hRZ6hSVQJ3_w-ftrJtpJtGFuq_PFu/s400/281210_1820620446840_1580048026_31428044_5862155_n.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641222515685026290" border="0" /></a>
<br />Jayden with Bianca. She came down with the team from Florida that worked with our children all week. They were amazing and gave our kiddos lots of love while we had all our meetings.
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<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmV2rRuqiP9aVmkW_8gGu9SXYTqooOg5dkZqlwi7Gww16x8Um8R-EEYa46uixPgNivnWR_3zB5cLmQ0QcQ_uZjWPCqErln-IgAzZcxOjl3tscpPeViPTnQUjdzi4BGKz1H47zzzlsz2YFV/s1600/198668_2319534468253_1246269168_32868617_2755870_n.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmV2rRuqiP9aVmkW_8gGu9SXYTqooOg5dkZqlwi7Gww16x8Um8R-EEYa46uixPgNivnWR_3zB5cLmQ0QcQ_uZjWPCqErln-IgAzZcxOjl3tscpPeViPTnQUjdzi4BGKz1H47zzzlsz2YFV/s400/198668_2319534468253_1246269168_32868617_2755870_n.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641222512213182770" border="0" /></a>
<br />JohnMark got lots of great time with the youth this year.
<br />We didn't see him much.
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<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-AFv0V7vHNsNOzfi8Q7FF8OmK1dEFDWgdJ4o_D0x-sBOzQSYl5naamNkusP-k69AVyNfcJxJrLe1kF8L0qzWfJUJrnZI6ctEicJTjEUfx2LOdJyU4QmM5ifrteQfv8OR_1IcE-n_oby5Z/s1600/JohnMark+ogm.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 267px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-AFv0V7vHNsNOzfi8Q7FF8OmK1dEFDWgdJ4o_D0x-sBOzQSYl5naamNkusP-k69AVyNfcJxJrLe1kF8L0qzWfJUJrnZI6ctEicJTjEUfx2LOdJyU4QmM5ifrteQfv8OR_1IcE-n_oby5Z/s400/JohnMark+ogm.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641213874919940610" border="0" /></a>
<br />The following week we met up with a group from our home church in Lexington, Ky. They worked in Jacarei with children at the Haven of Hope Children's Home and did several projects throughout the city. It was great to get to spend time with the ones we knew well and meet many folks for the very first time.
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<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHjdwEz__mS-mJiT8YLcnJZSau3DvW1JdhMr9PStGfpZOKbQDdHmhvtd5bySNT5cClTVGYbLhlNrJYYCzoSkur6PLyCii8BayI1e7Sggc_OpeKRrnEr09Qd6VXNI8qAXDCDIuyz67dWild/s1600/281363_545245921250_60901568_31323650_7068079_n.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHjdwEz__mS-mJiT8YLcnJZSau3DvW1JdhMr9PStGfpZOKbQDdHmhvtd5bySNT5cClTVGYbLhlNrJYYCzoSkur6PLyCii8BayI1e7Sggc_OpeKRrnEr09Qd6VXNI8qAXDCDIuyz67dWild/s400/281363_545245921250_60901568_31323650_7068079_n.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641215485577230066" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtAN3mkSC6o6elUmuM0NG5IJQAUaGOmrD1Y1IVs2YaP6M5KesbWsVpFF3rc_svsv5HZY6UV-_jQAmCxSJ6HSENG-sJOy0P5WvGDWLoKTteTWdqUmDQoxFJ8Ox1QRNS2lR5TKnOlIEOq_kz/s1600/IMG_7812.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtAN3mkSC6o6elUmuM0NG5IJQAUaGOmrD1Y1IVs2YaP6M5KesbWsVpFF3rc_svsv5HZY6UV-_jQAmCxSJ6HSENG-sJOy0P5WvGDWLoKTteTWdqUmDQoxFJ8Ox1QRNS2lR5TKnOlIEOq_kz/s400/IMG_7812.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641216451857731186" border="0" /></a></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkSxtTs_cuqfkB-_Zgkb9TwkzTNouKvYq1vfVxVLA9nvYU4J3AvYsyM3X05gIp42BSZ_andtWbSbM8TTpVlks2Hs82cvWPuOkFGmEHaGn9nFhMkyHJfyr9yCDNQIebsVZsdPh4Urd7rptu/s1600/285189_545237947230_60901568_31323370_7643968_n.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkSxtTs_cuqfkB-_Zgkb9TwkzTNouKvYq1vfVxVLA9nvYU4J3AvYsyM3X05gIp42BSZ_andtWbSbM8TTpVlks2Hs82cvWPuOkFGmEHaGn9nFhMkyHJfyr9yCDNQIebsVZsdPh4Urd7rptu/s400/285189_545237947230_60901568_31323370_7643968_n.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641216449887183810" border="0" /></a>
<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSucLAL2qU0H08uPhD1gZeytOyk-0-i1CjYWTitQR-wrYDugC1Jgo8ICtwZIS_ZcF47ItS1aP2EL-EtAIW6BdzpEEmKDN1yVYP-_mY7uoY0ix8PMtIU6a8FUJSSiXNovFIpVxLfkR6yB69/s1600/S%2526S+cpc.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 312px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSucLAL2qU0H08uPhD1gZeytOyk-0-i1CjYWTitQR-wrYDugC1Jgo8ICtwZIS_ZcF47ItS1aP2EL-EtAIW6BdzpEEmKDN1yVYP-_mY7uoY0ix8PMtIU6a8FUJSSiXNovFIpVxLfkR6yB69/s400/S%2526S+cpc.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641216444884028866" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoJaiHFiQEvihwPFDoNG1_T6EFUnO03UvdqDAWVsrHp9yA_xVXTh8t6HxlXd-pisyN03AueBhk71iBI-YdXxkX7gYKwvgN1vZFI19asOFyYBNJOSKHpWco4NLmr-0kNTCcrE1nXA94QaIF/s1600/IMG_7815.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoJaiHFiQEvihwPFDoNG1_T6EFUnO03UvdqDAWVsrHp9yA_xVXTh8t6HxlXd-pisyN03AueBhk71iBI-YdXxkX7gYKwvgN1vZFI19asOFyYBNJOSKHpWco4NLmr-0kNTCcrE1nXA94QaIF/s400/IMG_7815.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641217219030737762" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimHq4jZ8GwyncdntfN-A1A-dotAsLULjplh0NBvq9LvjKlaFNER87JUBImhT52dMuO4DBv4RcKs3tYynx0O_OMxJdj4qSY1w7Q4Gv2CHBfmLmywla1WMNC9WXtS57X1fFR2k81urGSoLG5/s1600/262860_679329842031_164005399_34440399_4131773_n.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 313px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimHq4jZ8GwyncdntfN-A1A-dotAsLULjplh0NBvq9LvjKlaFNER87JUBImhT52dMuO4DBv4RcKs3tYynx0O_OMxJdj4qSY1w7Q4Gv2CHBfmLmywla1WMNC9WXtS57X1fFR2k81urGSoLG5/s400/262860_679329842031_164005399_34440399_4131773_n.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641215483431796962" border="0" /></a>
<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqCv3fJW5bc_oED_afSTyinAl3G1LRZDf37pHBsdipGgtmbid9EqMZleAUmuMVE4S0rHAU2y78bps91SQbZIIqwrWJMFNFAkNBkzfS585n_iH2xS95O9u4igAHSGKrHk3Xd_a3Pr8kHE73/s1600/251562_545238645830_60901568_31323390_2096700_n.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 328px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqCv3fJW5bc_oED_afSTyinAl3G1LRZDf37pHBsdipGgtmbid9EqMZleAUmuMVE4S0rHAU2y78bps91SQbZIIqwrWJMFNFAkNBkzfS585n_iH2xS95O9u4igAHSGKrHk3Xd_a3Pr8kHE73/s400/251562_545238645830_60901568_31323390_2096700_n.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641215482931257266" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7NfP4FTeNxwsO29ETdCGkdjD7Au0tffO1aVDJszNcO47JPvdzbJkRAPxBphblAxQPkN5rPkhT9KEj01oYwIWSwZNxNLV_CCMGzXIGlLuYCzNuJZbSJiq75pi60q5pnm5kv5kdEYrR0-ai/s1600/226062_679330645421_164005399_34440412_4188435_n.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 239px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7NfP4FTeNxwsO29ETdCGkdjD7Au0tffO1aVDJszNcO47JPvdzbJkRAPxBphblAxQPkN5rPkhT9KEj01oYwIWSwZNxNLV_CCMGzXIGlLuYCzNuJZbSJiq75pi60q5pnm5kv5kdEYrR0-ai/s400/226062_679330645421_164005399_34440412_4188435_n.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641222511238469346" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0HH1reTlR0eGWUR0ffnX927hwoD_4L6qOwzNMGLgiEXL0E4wu-LEd_7RcaoIee2hgomumQd9EW98OeTzpv7DniKkhUcRsl3Lk6rzZihWRLSbiVTWw5iAboC_BTYwzOVGMT2RWYQVcUQG1/s1600/250262_545238206710_60901568_31323377_977862_n.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0HH1reTlR0eGWUR0ffnX927hwoD_4L6qOwzNMGLgiEXL0E4wu-LEd_7RcaoIee2hgomumQd9EW98OeTzpv7DniKkhUcRsl3Lk6rzZihWRLSbiVTWw5iAboC_BTYwzOVGMT2RWYQVcUQG1/s400/250262_545238206710_60901568_31323377_977862_n.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641215475531818114" border="0" /></a>
<br /><span style="font-size:78%;"><span style="font-family: verdana;">Photos by: Joan Callaham, Serah Thomas, Lisa Morrison, Angela Templeton & me</span>
<br /></span></div>Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07784809615146915922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1269167852547567018.post-77371239115586114842011-07-22T22:45:00.007-03:002011-07-23T07:22:00.039-03:00Houston TeamThank you for your prayers last week. The thirteen member team from Friendship Community Bible Church in Houston did a wonderful job. Sunday we visited a small village. There are four new Christians there (including the community leader). The village was waiting for us to arrive and greeted us with warmness. We sang, played games, and shared Bible stories.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir07A3-qnCNgT-igV2TnADzFohenXDD85kAFoE2exV9Xj_PlfyCmz5fZnRFmJjV4bsCwX6u9chEkZGm8tokKg-zmqyp_NsPsesidZyL7pglghslN4vkD0irYci7yriaQsooGmkNQ_xKcOA/s1600/FCBC+team.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir07A3-qnCNgT-igV2TnADzFohenXDD85kAFoE2exV9Xj_PlfyCmz5fZnRFmJjV4bsCwX6u9chEkZGm8tokKg-zmqyp_NsPsesidZyL7pglghslN4vkD0irYci7yriaQsooGmkNQ_xKcOA/s400/FCBC+team.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5632367181661667346" border="0" /></a><br />Monday we traveled five hours to quilombo Santa Maria (where we built the medical clinic with the last team). They worked there until Wednesday. Each day we visited people in homes to pray and tell Bible stories. In the afternoon we played soccer and told more stories to children. A few members of the team stayed the night in the village with me. They got up early and went fishing for Piranha. The team ate lunch at the house of the village leader which included the morning catch. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB1sosLPvBAFF10PprtOHzRjVVm9OwYBSlVELn-iaQ0X6kkV5rJq7_TijPDN0-q9Wy4fFNQEFaImaP4InZr42ATwa3Q6QpjARuADGuTcC6OhF5EXd4QuYq5KKNokQTjLkCBnaJtifSaKD3/s1600/piranha+lunch.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB1sosLPvBAFF10PprtOHzRjVVm9OwYBSlVELn-iaQ0X6kkV5rJq7_TijPDN0-q9Wy4fFNQEFaImaP4InZr42ATwa3Q6QpjARuADGuTcC6OhF5EXd4QuYq5KKNokQTjLkCBnaJtifSaKD3/s400/piranha+lunch.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5632368595022422898" border="0" /></a>The team also brought pillow case dresses for all the little girls of the village. The last day, the team passed out dental supplies and hygiene products. They also brought two large sacks full of medical supplies. This was such a blessing because they will be used to help stock the new clinic.<br /><br />Thursday morning we made our way up to quilombo Miranda outside of the city Rosario. This was a large community of about 150 families. We visited in homes to pray and share the Gospel. That night I preached to a large crowd that gathered in the park. The next morning a young lady on our team lead a dance clinic for all the girls in the community. We passed out dental supplies and parted ways at lunch.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2KCnUoNWa5EpEgiovBrYzhszk5WUsLPDUFtEv_mueJ3PEs3S-k36DrfOMBho2XYE1gPMkAgUgHdj1YbS6R1OXJxxhtopTNsCMHp4zgTCNXLd4P-2VZPIDsHcFpZfOpcPnsBCI320ToWyj/s1600/girls+dancing.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2KCnUoNWa5EpEgiovBrYzhszk5WUsLPDUFtEv_mueJ3PEs3S-k36DrfOMBho2XYE1gPMkAgUgHdj1YbS6R1OXJxxhtopTNsCMHp4zgTCNXLd4P-2VZPIDsHcFpZfOpcPnsBCI320ToWyj/s400/girls+dancing.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5632367188527501346" border="0" /></a><br />After lunch we visited a nearby quilombo called Nambuaçú de Baixo and visited more families. While the team was making visits, I had a long conversation with pastor Arilton. He is a young man (23) that is working hard to reach Maranhao with the Gospel. He has already finished seminary (started at 17) and has a vision to reach quilombos for Jesus. Friday night we lead a service at his church in a neighboring quilombo.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhF6xaSMIyp_1IkBE7YG88rRQNvzsVDs252iOAr6hFu3ecIoHJGvWk5yl66z3NGHTagtU3rCesM_SRAsS1jV2ifSQuoUmIr5uFeinI2SsfPoUDQkknC20BpEGh45zPXPZw7fKuQ5FkcG5E5/s1600/sharing.jpg"><br /></a><br />Thanks again for all your prayers. God is working and people are hearing the Good News...some for the very first time. We will travel this week to the southern part of Brazil for our annual "company" meeting. Afterward, we will meet up with some pretty special people in Jacarei. We look forward to sharing about our travels when we return.Mikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11434964919104697992noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1269167852547567018.post-13225162175360592142011-07-07T12:24:00.005-03:002011-07-07T18:28:45.905-03:00Santa Maria Trip<iframe src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/26111950?title=0&byline=0&portrait=0" width="400" frameborder="0" height="300"></iframe><br /><br />The team from SC (Carl, Ronnie, Glenn and Jody) along with some local men of the community were able to install the roof and finish most of the medical clinic in Quilombo Santa Maria outside of Victoria, Maranhão. The local men will finish all the work next week. This has opened many doors for future ministry.<br /><br />Sunday morning I was able to encourage a new congregation of believers (12 people). Then Sunday night most of the village (about 120) came to hear our message. We sang, shared personal testimonies and then I preached. It was a great night in the Lord. Tuesday night the team held another service in the local Catholic church building that’s never used while me and another missionary from the Netherlands shared at a church about 30 minutes away. Every morning one of the team members shared a devotion with the local workers. On the last day one of the men stepped forward in our circle to surrender his life to Christ! Of course it was the one that we would have least expected to do so. Isn’t that the way God works!<br /><br />Wednesday the local leaders of Santa Maria took me to visit nine other Quilombo communities by boat. We left at 8 AM and returned late that night. They introduced me to all of the other village leaders and I was able to understand many of their community needs. They were all very grateful for our work and welcomed me to visit often in the future. This was an indescribable experience for me! Two village leaders even traveled four hours to see our work and pay me a visit on Friday morning.<br /><br />There will be another team arriving from Houston on Saturday, July 9th. Their primary focus will be children’s ministry and Evangelism. We will visit several Quilombo communities around São Luis. On July 12th we will return to Santa Maria once again for two days. Plus we will take the boat-taxi to minister in some of the surrounding villages on July 14th. Please continue to pray for Quilombo Santa Maria and the surrounding villages. In addition, please begin to pray for this upcoming trip.<br /><br />MikeRebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07784809615146915922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1269167852547567018.post-91077882600004929492011-06-28T20:54:00.007-03:002011-06-28T22:55:12.809-03:00praia+melancia=misériaMike is traveling with a team this week to the interior of Maranhao. Many of you have been praying for him so I wanted to update you on the little I've heard. He has been able to call us a couple of times and report in. The team is building a medical clinic and they've been getting a lot accomplished. Mike will be traveling with a national tomorrow on the river by canoe in order to get to 8 of the people groups that we will be working with. He is really excited to get to know and start a friendship with folks we thought we would have to wait another year to meet.<br /><br />As I talked with Mike today for a few moments, I heard giggling in the background. He explained that there were local children playing next to him and as he was talking he laughed and said that one of the 3 year-olds was about six inches from his white face and looking at him quite curiously. I hate that I am not there to see all that God is doing but so thankful that He is working through each of the men on the team. I know Mike will be able to share so much more when he returns so I'll leave it at that.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq_ljGSZg6783eW0jlqiSvkG3yiCcD75FHjFkxCtBNVMB_VEn53FOhTObrhPL0euG3H7vVULQi_uTWmCdFFu-OEZDXW-vE9oOAwuSUSH8xssBRR_XGRRcQ8ySDdTd6t3E4p05PFBdCTA2o/s1600/DSCN1130.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq_ljGSZg6783eW0jlqiSvkG3yiCcD75FHjFkxCtBNVMB_VEn53FOhTObrhPL0euG3H7vVULQi_uTWmCdFFu-OEZDXW-vE9oOAwuSUSH8xssBRR_XGRRcQ8ySDdTd6t3E4p05PFBdCTA2o/s400/DSCN1130.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623443202243702370" border="0" /></a><br />Back here in the city, we are having our own adventures. I conjured up the nerve to take the boys to the beach on Saturday. I say this because it is quite an ordeal to get to the more secluded/quiet area we like to go. It's worth it once there but you have to drive through the traffic of the city in our big ol' truck and then once you make it out to "no man's land" you have to kick the truck into 4-wheel drive and trudge over the sand dunes. I was very proud of myself for even having the nerve to pull off such a feat. As I sat there and watched the kids play, I began to finally feel like I was capable of making it here for a few days without ol' Mike. The kids are all fed, safe and in one piece and here we are in this beautiful setting.<br /><br />This feeling was very fleeting because only a few moments later I opened up the cooler I had packed and handed a piece of watermelon to Jayden. We sat there and enjoyed our "melancia" as they call it here. Jayden ran off, WATERMELON IN HAND, to play with JohnMark and Jackson who were a bit further down the beach. After a few minutes, I started noticing something buzzing around me. I looked up and there were, seriously, around 50-100 bees/wasps/flying insects with BIG stingers all over me. I had already put the watermelon back in the cooler so I decided to walk really SLOWLY down to the ocean and prayed they would not follow me. Unfortunately, they continued with their awful aggression towards me and whatever ill-willed thing they felt I had done. I tried not to freak out which was honestly REALLY hard not to do. I submerged myself under the water completely but every time I'd look up there would only be more and they were relentless.<br /><br />THEN IT HIT ME! Jayden had walked off with the watermelon in his hand and at that point, watermelon seemed to be the only culprit! I began to lose it. I tried to stay calm and walk through the water towards the end of the beach where they were playing. I felt at least then I'd be able to yell at him to throw the watermelon down and get in the water. After finally making it to them, feeling pretty awful at that point because part of me was thinking that I was just taking all the bees to them! But I had to get to Jayden. After several moments of screaming at them they finally realized what was going on and all 3 boys got in the water a bit terrified. I honestly cannot explain in words how truly scared we all were. The bees literally were drowning in the waves next to us.<br /><br />Eventually, my EXTREMELY brave 13 year-old told me he was gonna head to the car with everything because he felt like there were more on me and they weren't after him. He told the younger two boys that he would get them a beach towel and they could cover their heads and run to the car while he was grabbing everything up. He also left me a towel and told me to run for it as well. THANK GOD for JohnMark and his calmness because I was not doing a very good job of being calm. As I got out of the water, I put the towel over my head. I didn't dare look up but from the shadow on the sand, there appeared to be more than a dozen flying around. I ran, threw up, ran, threw up some more, and then jumped in the car. (Pretty sure I got sick from swallowing all the salt water!) UGh!!!<br /><br />I share all this because we were in awe as we drove home. We killed the few that had made it into the car on me but none of us were feeling any burning sensations from stings. We made it home in one piece. It wasn't until about 30 HOURS later that we began to notice our marks and whelps beginning to show up and burn a bit. I've never seen anything like it. Nothing for almost a day and a half and then all of a sudden we began having painful red spots on our ears, shoulders, and backs. SO COMPLETELY STRANGE! We have found out since that many people here have died from bee swarm attacks so all four of us feel completely thankful that nothing worse happened. Our sores are getting better today and we've decided that we're gonna wait and let Mike get home before we make any more adventurous excursions!!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMjeudndWicekLF1ae8tNKyfBRnWTDu91WAjkU6T7X34Z2eP2Ddrsy8XUaFRlMMO3S64BobTkq-4H93TxkntNQ4sEec73ScZ0w5KJYDNtJM2MMTrdJ4WD7J1UOcFgIP-4tuNzSh4reywJU/s1600/DSCN1119.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMjeudndWicekLF1ae8tNKyfBRnWTDu91WAjkU6T7X34Z2eP2Ddrsy8XUaFRlMMO3S64BobTkq-4H93TxkntNQ4sEec73ScZ0w5KJYDNtJM2MMTrdJ4WD7J1UOcFgIP-4tuNzSh4reywJU/s400/DSCN1119.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623443198752626530" border="0" /></a>Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07784809615146915922noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1269167852547567018.post-67340799280371466902011-06-04T00:37:00.009-03:002011-06-05T19:30:48.687-03:00white plastic chairs lined up in a rowOn Friday night, we drove out to the little community where our friends live. They had shared with Mike about their church service they have there and really wanted us to come some time. Michael called one of the guys and informed him we would be coming and he asked for directions. Everton told Mike to call when we reached the small town and he'd talk us in "so to speak" over the cell phone since it's a really really small community.<br /><br />When we got to the edge of town (the part where the road turns into sand) Mike called Everton and he literally waved us down after talking us past the first two landmarks. When we got there we were late. Getting out of the city had taken us about 45 minutes rather than the normal 15 because of traffic being extremely awful.<br /><br />As we started up to this little building we noticed all these people sitting outside. At first I was thinking that they either hadn't started yet or it was already over because so many people were sitting around the building but then as I looked up ahead I realized that these were some of the people from their community hanging out. There were at least 50 people spread into different groups of tens and they were staring at us with the utmost interest.<br /><br />We were hoping to slip in or stand towards the back but of course there were 5 empty white plastic chairs right on the front row waiting for us. UGGGH!!! I hate that. So much for not being rude and disrupting. Since we were on the front row and there was only a handful of people there it felt awkward not to turn around and at least try and make eye contact with the women and smile as big as possible. They seemed to like that. As a couple of guys shared, I couldn't help but be distracted a bit. Why are they set up like this? Why, when there are only a few people in this room, do they feel the need to put the chairs in a row facing forward? Why are they trying to be so formal when there are a million ants under my chair eating a dead fly?<br /><br />It all goes back to what they've been taught. Someone along the way came and shared Christ with them and I am so glad they did because that is obviously the most important thing but then something else happened. Someone also told them that they needed a building. Someone clearly informed them they needed their chairs lined up just so. They would need to sing about 3 to 4 songs and then someone will need to share a message. It was kinda funny to see someone's hand prints all over this place. I guess why I'm saying this is because it didn't fit them. It didn't fit at all. It felt awkward. Out in the streets, in people's homes, in the barraca down the street, no one was sitting or acting like this. Why here? Why change the culture when we put God into the mixture? After all, is God not out in the streets, in people's homes, or in the barraca with the people.<br /><br />What if instead of sitting inside this building on this beautiful night, we took these chairs outside. Remember how many people I said were right outside. Some just by chance but I guarantee others are trying to hear what's being said. Granted some probably came to see the gringos but regardless, imagine the audacity of packing those chairs outside and maybe even forming them in a circle or some other crazy shape like that where we can see each others faces. Imagine instead of the typical ORDER of service, someone shares what God did in their life that week or even crazier someone has a question. Can you even imagine! Why do we put things like the body of Christ in such a box? I just don't get it. And then, God forgive us, why do we teach others to do the same thing!<br /><br />Forgive me for getting on a soapbox for a moment but where in the Bible are these things taught?!? What was interesting is that this church is struggling right now because they don't have an "official" pastor. "Official" pastor being defined as someone that has been to seminary. This causes them to not feel like they are a true church. The irony is that they are doing so much on their own. The group, made up mostly of men, is very unusual for this culture. Most churches in Brazil or Latin America have many women and children that come without the men. Instead, in this group, there are about 10 really strong Christian men that are considered leaders in the community and they want to make a difference. WOW!<br /><br />Obviously, there is a lot more to learn and Mike hopes to be able to help in any way he can but please join us in praying for this small group of believers. Pray that churches will let go of the traditions and rules that are gripping them and search for TRUTH as new churches are being planted and existing churches continue to grow. My heart aches for the burden that is on each of these churches as they try to fit a mold that simply isn't necessary!!Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07784809615146915922noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1269167852547567018.post-78852785597570088432011-05-14T19:16:00.008-03:002011-05-14T21:43:54.543-03:00blindedMany of you have heard Mike share about his experience meeting the friends in the car one day. After pulling over, he met one particular man, who later, introduced him to many contacts in the school where he is now working. One day while Everton (one of these guys) was in the truck, Mike was blasting a Chris Tomlin CD. He heard the word Jesus on the music and asked if it was Christian music. He loved it and Mike promised to try and get him a CD.<br /><br />Well long story short....they all work in what is called a Barraca or what we would consider in the states to be the equivalent of a lil' bar on the beach. Mike had taken me and the boys there once before to introduce us to all his new friends and we had some snacks while the kids swam in the ocean. It was/is quite lovely.<br /><br />Today we drove back there again, to have lunch and take a CD to Everton. Usually the only down side of being there is that there are dozens of beggars and venders that walk up and down the beach trying to either sell something to you or just look at you and beg for money. This was something that, before coming to Brazil, we knew we would have to deal with but quite honestly it's been a struggle. You really have to use discernment to know when to give and when to not build an even bigger dependency. Some of the people have become like professional beggars and they see our white faces coming a mile away. All that to say, our hearts have gotten a bit hardened to some of the needs around us at times. After about the 8th person, you stop looking up at them and try to ignore them so you can chew your food.<br /><br />Today something different happened. A blind man came by with his son and immediately I knew his need was real and authentic. He and his son were in plain view to me and the boys but Mike had his back to them. I leaned over and mentioned to Mike to give him some change and I could tell quickly that Mike was not feeling it. He was giving me the "ignore them and they will go away look"! I don't say this to make you think less of Michael because he has a heart of gold and the cons are around us daily but Mike had not seen their faces. We finished eating and got in the car to go home and that was that...or so I thought.<br /><br />On the way home, one of the boys asked Michael why he had ignored the blind man. He explained how he was really frustrated and how people really need to learn to work for their money instead of begging others. I leaned in to Mike and kind of agreed with the boys that I had felt there was a need. At first, like most men, ;) Mike was annoyed but he could tell we were all pretty sincere with our confrontations to him. And this is when the incredible thing happened.<br /><br />Michael turned the car around. The kids and I just sat there quiet and in a bit of shock. He went to the barraca and he walked straight up to one of the young guys he knew and asked where the blind man lived. Surprisingly, the man not only knew where the blind man lived, he really wanted to take us to him. The next thing I know, other than the fact that the bar in Brazil is now playing Chris Tomlin over their speakers, Gabriele is in the car directing Mike where to turn and we are headed up a hill we'd never been. After putting the truck into 4x4 mode and almost killing about a dozen chickens and goats we made it to the lil' home where the blind man, his wife and their seven children lived.<br /><br />Mike and Gabriele got out of the car and they were gone for about half an hour. I got out of the car and smiled trying to act as if I'd been there a thousand times before. Women were looking outside their windows as Jayden chased their roosters through the streets. Eventually Mike came back with a big smile on his face. He seemed different on the way home as he told me the story about the man and his family. I think we all agree it's better to open our eyes to the needs around us cause the truth is, usually we're the ones that get blessed!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKzx5MbO6UcgeIAOroEXoK-LZbMSjxgJzJ8f8I4HoLRQeF0dKjZlstFWazyt5di0jZWooQ6_IMY2gWCrFFAr1BGYeL1LZbv06Rlhp3sI-7aVNkdWt2BPFbp2ctPQkZWxVhqrunC0fac1DB/s1600/DSCN1047.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKzx5MbO6UcgeIAOroEXoK-LZbMSjxgJzJ8f8I4HoLRQeF0dKjZlstFWazyt5di0jZWooQ6_IMY2gWCrFFAr1BGYeL1LZbv06Rlhp3sI-7aVNkdWt2BPFbp2ctPQkZWxVhqrunC0fac1DB/s400/DSCN1047.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5606699451202180034" border="0" /></a>Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07784809615146915922noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1269167852547567018.post-23539524652612373402011-05-14T00:19:00.017-03:002011-05-14T02:25:09.195-03:00we delight<div style="text-align: center;">Here are some things God has been up to in our lives<br /></div><br /><ul><li>Our home is pneumonia-free!! All coughing has ceased.</li><li>Michael is learning many new things amongst his new students out in the Quilombo. They are showing him all the funny gestures that he does and what they "REALLY" mean in the context of their culture. (He is working hard at keeping his hands still in front of the classroom in order to keep the laughter at a minimum.)<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJKM7KyraA_ujAszSYfi7GiMfpwDn4Qg_toZSrqtIaRW7x-Y2W9vqUAnBRZ8L63i_LVB_Ue5ArnEGEQvvtb9k2Bqi2BPKkxZ5MVeWMNx_jpTcYmPpemljoNap6xLnfzG5YXrn4-ffusZJb/s1600/IMG_7637.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJKM7KyraA_ujAszSYfi7GiMfpwDn4Qg_toZSrqtIaRW7x-Y2W9vqUAnBRZ8L63i_LVB_Ue5ArnEGEQvvtb9k2Bqi2BPKkxZ5MVeWMNx_jpTcYmPpemljoNap6xLnfzG5YXrn4-ffusZJb/s400/IMG_7637.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5606424666660541874" border="0" /></a></li><li>Our precious puppy, Charlie, has found a new loving owner. Only 8 hours after listing him online, a young single guy came over to our apartment and took away our sweet little bellowing baby! We miss him but hallelujah, we can leave the house again without worry of a dog screaming non-stop. We're even getting smiles from our neighbors.</li><li>The flood wall in Paducah, Kentucky (the town where Mike and I grew up) held throughout all the flooding along the Ohio River Valley. Although much farmland and many small towns nearby were completely devastated, the town we know and love was spared.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIxPNRChYrw-fks1Z0V_FZgGVvjKwQni-OHOiOTs0Xw7UkHMEzR4iOrJhtK5KNxfV0Jbu86p5KtWQn_5rroPBHrP3VK8bIF1UELoxVnp0ErxoZXj0FudBzhG-elsi1TYWUaev9gB0vuOuq/s1600/227187_2043967665803_1442711119_32405975_2160956_n.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 430px; height: 239px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIxPNRChYrw-fks1Z0V_FZgGVvjKwQni-OHOiOTs0Xw7UkHMEzR4iOrJhtK5KNxfV0Jbu86p5KtWQn_5rroPBHrP3VK8bIF1UELoxVnp0ErxoZXj0FudBzhG-elsi1TYWUaev9gB0vuOuq/s400/227187_2043967665803_1442711119_32405975_2160956_n.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5606413631989234642" border="0" /></a></li><li>The protests on our street are OVER!!! No more yelling all morning! You can hear a pin drop first thing in the morning around our house and I LOVE IT!<br /></li><li>The worst of the rainy season is over and the sun has been showing itself quite frequently. I am feeling a smile on my face during HUGE portions of my day, even while washing dishes. I have missed that feeling.<br /></li><li>The bees in this beehive right outside our apartment have stayed a safe distance away from our windows.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDpZ_dShLBas400E6lIuVsbxgUt59y2qIeDwaOJsmOruN4jBQhMAr0HMK8WhjDbLuFfQ3LStS9P7ITVlTq9jlrIxdB5mK49pAbQFVZuNd3FT77gVngaaI9TgBlJnMM5Ck94fgFz3EKOhYH/s1600/IMG_7655.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDpZ_dShLBas400E6lIuVsbxgUt59y2qIeDwaOJsmOruN4jBQhMAr0HMK8WhjDbLuFfQ3LStS9P7ITVlTq9jlrIxdB5mK49pAbQFVZuNd3FT77gVngaaI9TgBlJnMM5Ck94fgFz3EKOhYH/s400/IMG_7655.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5606424053353989362" border="0" /></a></li><li>We have a new washing machine and it is just wonDERful. I've only been caught cleaning it and wiping it down like a new car about a dozen times. Mike says I have issues.<br /></li><li>Mike did not get bit by the bat that flew around his head as he was preaching last Sunday night. It was quite humorous watching him try and not be distracted as it buzzed his ears.</li><li>God has given us a little piece of paradise to enjoy on sunny Saturdays.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM8jLyisGXHfKdTh32e6AVng3PvjcK22reKr7qDPtCiNN1-YHYFg5fZB1nwijP8Xh8FbCihAYbBEm0BxmC6UpB7f8vg1dz5tU59HCdpvgX2CwBDP51pqPY9c_TIkSJ7kRoozWHquGcLy7Y/s1600/DSCN1019.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM8jLyisGXHfKdTh32e6AVng3PvjcK22reKr7qDPtCiNN1-YHYFg5fZB1nwijP8Xh8FbCihAYbBEm0BxmC6UpB7f8vg1dz5tU59HCdpvgX2CwBDP51pqPY9c_TIkSJ7kRoozWHquGcLy7Y/s400/DSCN1019.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5606429535162506658" border="0" /></a></li></ul>Rebeccahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07784809615146915922noreply@blogger.com0