August 8
       We are back!!!!  It was a great mission trip and God worked.  Though he continues to work in the area we have returned to our home here in Weatherford.  We are glad to be back and excited to get to see all of you again!!
                                                                 August 5    
       We wrapped up our last day of work here in Brazil today.  We spent all day going to different schools and performing skits, singing songs and sharing the gospel.  in some schools we were more free to share the gospel as we wished and even the ones that were more strict had the message of Christ brought to them. After the schools we were surprised by our Brazilian friends with a going away party we all shared with one another what we had seen God do over the past few days.  One f the sentiments we all shared was that we felt like we had all become one family.  It seemed as if we had found a family we didn't know we had.  Please pray for us to continue to have the energy we need to complete the trip.  Please also pray for the church that will continue to grow here.                                                     
                                                                 August 4

This morning we took some much needed rest.  We went shopping, jogging, and some people just got to sleep.
 
After lunch we went to to another favela in a community called Jardim Tomoio. This favela is much safer than the one we went to in São Camilo, but it is not without it´s problems. We split up into groups and went house to house preaching the Good News.  Many people came to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ! Afterwards we did a presentation with dramas and preaching at the bottom of the hill in the favela. We set up in what some would call a valley.  Looking forward there was a steep incline with houses all the way up.  Behind us was a narrow dirt path, also very steep with houses all the way up.  Many people came to see us on the street, but it was also very cool to see people on all sides of us coming out of their houses, standing on their roofs, and looking through their windows to see what we were doing.
 
Several people gave their lives to Christ there. And much of the time was spent just standing around witnessing, talking, sharing, and laughing with the children and adults who came to see what was going on. We gave away New Testaments to new believers along with soccer ball keychains and other small gifts.  As we were there in Tamoio we saw a great need as well as a great openess.  This place needs laborers because the harvest is plentiful.
 
So pray for Tamoio. Our work for this trip is done there, but pray that God would send many Brazilians to this place to reach people for Jesus. Continue to pray for all of us on the teams - both Brazilian and American.  We´ve been at this about a week now and we are tired.  School has started back up after the winter break and we have less translators.  Pray that God would work beyond the language barrier. And please pray for us tomorrow as we go into the schools. We will be ministering to 3 different large groups and many different small groups. Pray that the children and the teachers will be open to the Gospel.

August 3

 

Sunday morning we split up and met with several of the Home Churches that have been established.  Some as far as an hour away.  Most of us took Communion with these groups.  There way of celebrating this is a little different than ours.  They break a large piece of bread and walk around in a celebrating manner feeding one another and celebrating Christ.  Some with an embrace and some with a kiss on the cheek.  A very joyful time for sure.  Christ's blood is celebrated very similar to our tradition.  With a cup of something to represent Christ's Blood and drink it to remember what he did for us.  Afterwards we worshipped together in song and message.  Following the Worship we ate lunch at each of our Worship locations (some at homes and some in small meeting rooms).

The evening Worship was something to be remembered for sure.  They shared two dance programs during the Worship.  We played praise and worship songs which our group sang in English and they would sing in Portuguese.  We shared Testimony's and Encouragement.  We also shared a Drama of Jesus always there for us no matter where we are in our lives.  God used Cody to deliver a message that brought the Holy Spirit alive in this building.  Many gave their lives to Christ tonight and it was Awesome to feel Gods presence.

The night did not end there.  Our group came forward and we sang over their Church and then their Church sang over us.  It was a very emotional, moving time.  These are moments that will never be forgotten.  

Then came the Youthful Exuberance!!!  

We danced with them for over an hour maybe two.  It was an unforgettable time.  This was a great way to close our night of Fellowship together.

God is So Good........................................He's so Good to Me (All of Us)..............Amen, Amen and Amen again!!


August 2

Pray for São Camilo. 
 
The slums in Brazil are known as favelas.  The kids from the São Camilo favela came to the church this morning and we divided up into groups and shared Christ with them. Many of them asked Jesus into their hearts! After we shared we played soccer and taught them dances.  Around noon we ate with them at the church - rice, beans, fettuccini alfredo, spaghetti, and salad all piled on top of each other. It was probably the most interesting meal we´ve had since we´ve been here. But it was very good.
 
The day got interesting when we paired up with a translator and children from the favela. They told us we could go in groups of only three adults and we absolutely had to have a child with us at all times. The drug lords run this place. Walking in the favela some of us saw men on motorcycles with guns, others overheard men with walkie talkies having conversations about the Americans from the church. We had to leave all our cameras and our backpacks behind. But this danger was nothing compared to what God did in that place today.
 
Many of us saw people come to know Jesus.  There is so much pain there, so many broken hearts searching for real Truth to believe in. And when the Truth presented itself many were eager to accept. After we visited in the homes of the children we took them to a public school where we performed dramas and preached to some of their parents, teachers, and other relatives. We praise God for leading us to into an offensive position against the enemy and allowing us to see what He is doing in São Camilo. We returned to the church building to pray and had a very powerful time of crying out to God for the people there. So please pray along with us for São Camilo that the cycle of sin would be broken in that community and it will be unmistakable that the power of God has changed that place.

August 1


July 31


Our first full day in Brazil was busy and eventful.  We started off hearing from a missionary who had served in Latin America for years spreading the Gospel to indigenous people. He was teaching us about the people of Brazil and told us some things we needed to know before going into the streets to preach the Gospel. Brazil is very synchronistic in their religious beliefs.  Many people will say they believe in God and say they are evangelical Christians, yet many also practice witchcraft with the hopes that there earthly problems will be alleviated. Many say they believe in Jesus but believe He is a god, as is the Holy Spirit and a number of other deities.
 
With all this knowledge we set out in the afternoon to go door to door in the community of Parque Centenario. This neighborhood is more middle class than the places we will be going later this week. We got in 6 groups of 3 team members and an interpreter and rang lots of doorbells to talk to people. In Brazil if there is no doorbell you don´t knock - you clap your hands loud to see if anyone is home. For some groups the response was somewhat discouraging.  The wealthier the neighborhood the less likely they are to listen or accept.  But, praise the Lord, many groups saw people come to know Christ! And for the rest of us it was a good lesson in knowing that when we are obedient to share the Gospel, God doesn´t let it fall on deaf ears. Most of the people we came in contact with let us share and I know that at this moment they are processing in their minds and hearts the Gospel that was shared with them today by the people from the USA.
 
Tomorrow we go back to Parque Centenario.  We need your prayers!  Pray for God to soften the hearts of the people there that they would realize their need for a Savior. Pray that the Holy Spirit speak through us in such a way that the Gospel we be clear to those who hear. Pray that God would set up divine appointments for us tomorrow and that Mattew 10:11 families would be found - people who are worthy to recieve the Gospel in their house and share it with their community.
 
Please pray also for our team that God would keep us healthy, mentally alert, well rested, and always ready to share the Good News of Jesus Christ.

July 30

 

We´ve made it to Brazil!  And I can´t think of any complications except for Tim Hasty forgetting his wallet.  All of our flights left and arrived on time, and all of our luggage came the whole way with us.  Dairson met us at the airport in São Paulo and had the bus ready for us to take to Jundiaí.  During the hour long trip we passed slums and high rise apartments and river a sewage that seemed to run through the whole city of São Paolo.
 
So now we are in Brazil recovering from our almost 10 hour plane ride and very little sleep.  Today is a day of rest and tonight we will all meet together in the church building to meet everyone from the Brazilian team.  Tomorrow will be a full work day so please keep us in your prayers.  And also please forgive the very simply done video at the top.  Due to time we cannot edit much.