Guest Post by Josh Harris

Well, we are home but the work now begins to keep the thoughts, memories and the Lord's will continuing to flow through us. It was such an amazing experience for Ashley and I. We are thankful for our families, our friends, and our church for making it possible for us to go!

Too often we are worried what others will think of us when we do things such as raise our hand while we sing, if we pray out loud while the pastor prays, etc. In Brazil, the people come to worship the Lord and do it without reservation or regard of what others are doing. In America, we are watching the clock each Sunday to make sure that Lyle doesn't go much past 11:30 a.m. whereas in Brazil a service could last 2.5 to 3 hours easily with praise, singing, worship all happening and no one even thinks of looking for a clock. It made me see that I was consumed with my life, my worship style where I was basically going through the motions each Sunday instead of giving my all during my worship to the Lord.

I also have to say it was great getting to know the other team members so much better. We all have so much more in common than I would have ever thought heading into this trip. One thing we all have is a sense of humor which definitely helped at times. For me it was great working with Jake and the girls on the drama team (Sydney, Megan, Emily, Rebecca, Becca, McCall, Allie, Courtney and Callie) as I felt odd at first when we practiced being older than everyone but by the time we got to Brazil it was like we were all brothers and sisters! While Jake and I got to "practice" every day in Brazil doing the drama the girls swapped parts each day but it was like they had done it as much if not more than we had. I am so proud of them all!

Lastly, there are too many moments to pick one as my favorite but doing the Chicken Dance, singing "God is so Good" in both English and Portuguese, and doing the drama in front of a school full of kids was awesome. Ashley and I are blessed to have such a wonderful church but most of all such an Awesome God! Indeed, God is So Good to Me, I just hope I can do my part to return the favor back to him!!

Josh Harris

Check Out Our Videos on YouTube

I have posted about 10 videos from our trip on YouTube. Check them out here. They give a little picture of our trip here this week. Below is an example of the video. We thank you for your prayers and look forward to seeing many of you real soon. We start our trip home tomorrow and should be back in Nashville Monday afternoon.

Guest Post from Steve and Kathy Moore

The abandoned room we used for the eye glasses ministry was long and narrow with a high ceiling.  Three light bulbs hung by wires high above but only two worked.  The roll-up door by the sidewalk would raise to the ceiling, providing light and air into the room, but it also allowed the heat from the sun.  An opening in the side wall went to the room for the dental ministry.  We knew that this ministry room was bathed in prayer by our church family, our host church in Porto Seguro and our mission team.

Pastor John of Calvary Baptist described Ubaldinao as a city with no hope. When our bus rolled into town  early Monday morning, people were already waiting in line for tickets.  Despite the heat, rain, and mud, the lines continued throughout the week.  It had been a long time since hope had come to the city.

Most of the Brazilians who came through the eye glass ministry were adults, and most needed glasses.  Each person's eyes were examined and he/she was able to select a new pair of reading glasses.  They were so excited to be able to see clearly!  We did have some to come who were curious, who needed a hug, or who just wanted to meet someone from the United States.  Whatever the reason, each examiner had the opportunity to sit at a table one-on-one and get to know the person, to pray with them, and to learn whether or not they had a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.  More important than reading glasses, a hug, or meeting a stranger, the gospel was presented and many decisions were made for Christ.  Their eyes and hearts were opened to the love of Jesus.  

Monday through Friday, our ministry room was filled with the sounds of the city--children playing, conversations, laughter from the dental ministry.  Through all of this, there was the continual sounds of the eyeglass team and interpreters proclaiming the gospel.  Quite often there was heard "Praise the Lord" as Brazilians accepted Jesus Christ as their savior for the first time.  

To God alone be the glory!

Guest Post from Kathy Decker

What is it that you need--it makes no difference whether you are in Tennessee or Brazil? Let me ask it another way--do you have all you need? Better yet, do you have JESUS in your heart? After being here in Brazil for several days, I have come to a better understanding that relationships are far more important than shoes and eye glasses! Yes, those are important; however, they will not last forever! Only a relationship with Jesus Christ lasts forever! And that can never be taken away or stolen! By the grace of God, we have had an incredible week--one that I cannot easily find words to describe--experiences that when I close my eyes, I cannot help but say "by the grace of God, there go I"! Over the last few days, I have had the opportunity to wash children's feet and fit them with a new pairs shoes, (one of the most humbling things that I have ever done); on one occasion, it was all I could do to hold back the tears as I looked into the eyes of a child who had nothing; on another, I wept with a mother who was so very grateful for all that we were doing in her community; on another occasion, I prayed over a home where the father was an alcoholic; More importantly, we have had the opportunity to share the gospel of Jesus Christ--and the decisions that have been made are overwhelming! The seeds have been planted; Matthew 9:37-38 is so very true as Jesus said to his disciples, "The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few..." These people are ready to give their lives to Christ! How about you? Take a few moments and think about what Jesus means to you! Bless and be blessed!

First Update

We have had a great couple of days in Porto Seguro, Brazil. Yesterday afternoon we toured the worksite for the first time. The construction guys are working on a site that used to be the trash dump for the city. They will be building a community center - the first community center of its kind in the community of Ubaldinao. The community center will also house a new work of the Calvary Baptist Church here in Porto Seguro.

Last night, we worshiped with Calvary Baptist Church in Porto Seguro. The service lasted for 2 1/2 hours and was definitely an uplifting experience. Our Redeemer team did a great job as they performed the drama for the church.

This morning was filled with preparing for our ministries. Each ministry took time to set up their rooms and prepare for the people. But even in the midst of preparation, Bill Laarz and Barabara Forbis were able to share the Gospel with some children on the street. A few of those children accepted Christ for the first time.

This afternoon, our people began to work for the first time in the ministries. It was exciting for me to see people working in our ministries. I saw people from our church giving out shoes, helping people with glasses, brushing teeth, and entertaining children with drama and songs.

I saw Jake Gaines, Josh Harris, Emily Chambers, Sydney Forbis, and Megan Buttrey singing "God is so good" in both English and Portugese (as well as the Hokey Pokey). I witnessed McCall Decker cleaning a child's teeth and telling her about Jesus. The eyeglass team worked tirelessly sharing Christ and giving glasses. And I was able to see our Happy Feet team put shoes and smiles on the faces of kids from the community.

Our construction team worked hard in extreme heat all day. In fact, when we returned to worksite after our ministries, we were shocked at the progress of the team. They were able to build the building past the windows and had to stop to let the blocks set a little bit before working tomorrow.

The most exciting part of the day for the team was seeing the receptiveness of the people of Ubaldinao. Each ministry team saw people saved today. Even our contruction team had four of the Brazilians working with them accept Christ today.

Tomorrow, we will continue our ministries and construction. Please pray for our team as we continue. One of the biggest obstacles that we are facing is the intense sun. The temperature here is not that bad, but the sun is very intense. We are all tired and looking forward to good night's sleep.

We are expecting great things from God this week while we are attempting great things for God.

Long Overdue Update

Our internet access has not been very good over the last few days. I have just a few moments to try to update you on all that has been happening in Porto Seguro, Brazil. Because of the limited time and the slowness of the internet, I will not be posting any pictures tonight - Maybe Sunday I will have time to post some pictures so you can see our work.

We have been working very hard for the last two and a half days ministering to the people of Porto Seguro. Each night we have had a time in our worship service to talk about the good things that are happening in our midst. Here is a list of a few things that have happened:

1. Our construction team finished their project today (one day early). They build a security wall around the Boys' home that was built two years ago. It is reported that the wall is the second longest wall in the city of Porto Seguro. FBC Orlando had done part of the wall, but our guys finished it today. After they finished the wall, they then built two soccer goals for the boys at the home. Nets that had been donated by Bobby Cain were used to go on the goals and we left the boys playing on their new field. The guys worked very hard and definitely feel they have done a great work for the Kingdom of God. One guy even said "I never thought I would love building a wall." Glory to God for the work of Bo, Craig, Norman, Jerry, Flip, Dalton, Monkey, Paige, and Jeffrey in their work on the wall.
   
2. Our Happy Feet team has seen some amazing things happen as the children of Porto Seguro have been blessed by the new shoes. The shoes that Ripley FBC and others donated are being worn all over the community now. Michael Forsythe (or Monkey as most of you know him) talked tonight of the joy he had in putting shoes on the feet of the children and the children he was able to lead to accept Christ today. His story is echoed by those who have been working so hard. Mrs. Patsy has led the team to put 150 shoes a day on the children. Jessica, Amanda, and others have done a great job in their ministry.
   
3. The eyeglass team has given out over 350 pairs of glasses in the last two and a half days. It is a joy to see those team members working so hard to fit the people in the community. There have been numerous people who have accepted Christ during that time. Elizabeth, Gene, Mae, and Betty (by the way - the last two of those have become our resident comedians - I looked out this morning to see them trying to knock a coconut out of the tree to get a picture) have worked very hard for the glory of God. One of our youth told tonight that he shared Christ with a person for the first time today in eyeglasses and they accepted. It is a moment he will never forget.
4. Our evangelism team has shared Christ a number of different people. Each day Darren, Brantley, and Jennifer have gone out to talk with people in the community around the church in which we are working. There have been people accept Christ on the street, in homes, in schools, and in bars. The teams come back each day with amazing reports of how God is working in their midst.
5. Alongside those moments are other moments when God has used us to communicate his message. Each day we are blessed by devotionals of team members. The Brazilian people have also heard testimonies from Patsy, Brantley, Jennifer, Jessica, and Monkey in a large group setting.

These are just a few of the victories we have seen. We can't wait to tell you everything about the trip. We appreciate your prayers and words of encouragement. We have one more full day of work ahead - so pray for our strength. We will also have some time to shop and eat tomorrow night. On Sunday we will have a worship service here and then have a large celebration at the church in Paraguai where we have been working all week. We are excited about what God is going to do in that time.

Please continue to pray.

Glory be to God for all He has done.

Hurry Up and Wait

The Team

Well, we have finally made it to Porto Seguro, Brazil. We arrived in Porto Seguro around 3:30 a.m. on Wednesday morning. Much of our travel felt like the title above where we had to hurry up and wait. We left Ripley on Monday morning at 8:30 a.m. and arrived two time zones away 41 hours later. The team stayed in remarkably good spirits throughout the trip. As a result of our lengthy travel, we all found interesting places to sleep and filled our time with all kinds of events. Below are some pictures from our lengthy trip.

On our way

Gathering at the airport

Family Bonding on a Concrete Floor

Jessica catches a nap


An intense game of UNO

Apparently the book couldn't keep him awake.

Bo gets comfortable

Last Post from Brazil

This will be our last post from Brazil.

Our work is far from over, but after today we will no longer have access to the internet.

We will spend tomorrow at an Indian reservation about 1 and 1/2 hours away from Porto Seguro. Tomorrow night, we will have a dedication service at Casa de Apoio.

We will start our return trip Thursday and will arrive in Memphis around 1:00 p.m. on Friday. We appreciate your prayers during our trip and ask that you continue to pray. We look forward to seeing all of you in the very near future.

Once we are back in the United States, we will also post some more of our pictures and stories from the week.

Casa de Apoio

Our construction team has worked very hard this week. They have constructed two buildings. They have built a home for the street kids in a very poor area of Porto Seguro. They have also built bathrooms at the soccer field directly across the street. This team has put on two roofs as well as building the buildings. There will be a dedication of the building at Casa de Apoio ("House of Support") on Wednesday night.

Each morning, Gary and his crew have to get ready for the day ahead by doing some exercises. In the picture below, you can see them getting prepared for a long day of work.

They also start the morning with a devotional. Several of the workers are from the surrounding area and are not followers of Jesus. Gary has shared his testimony with the workers this week, and several have accepted Jesus. Praise be to God!

Shout to the Lord

Each night during the trip, we have gathered together as a group to worship. David Grimm along with several singers lead us each night in singing. Upon arriving in Brazil, we discovered that one of our interpreters played the saxophone and another played the guitar. They have joined our group each night and formed our own little praise team.


Each night, we have heard testimonies from people on the team about what God is doing on a daily basis in our project. Pastor Lyle Larson from Ripley First Baptist Church leads us in a time of Bible Study. We talked about asking God to help us to focus daily on what He is doing in our midst. We have also journeyed through the beginning of the book of Acts and discovered how to prepare for and recognize God moving.

Since we did not have obligations at any local churches on Sunday morning, we held our own service at our condo. That morning we had some surprise visitors. A family staying in the condo heard the music and came to join us for worship. Our plans for the morning service quickly altered as we added an interpreter to our time together. We discovered after the worship service that the mother was a believer but the rest of the family was not. We invited them to come again on Monday night.

We did not know whether the family would come again or not. As the time for service approached, we noticed that they had come again along with several other Brazilians. We forged ahead again with the entire service being interpreted. We sang songs in both Portugese and English praising God together. We studied the apostles response to so many people accepting Jesus after Peter's sermon in Acts 2. We also talked about the importance of trusting Jesus as Savior. Following the service, one of the Brazilians that came told our missionary, Tony Gray, that he had asked Jesus to come into his heart. Praise be to God.

Evangelism

Each day during our trip, we have had six teams going out into the community to do evangelism The teams are assigned to an area connected to a local church. Each team consists of two Americans, an interpreter, and members of the local church in the area. Using a tool called the EvangeCube, teams have seen many people come to the Lord through this ministry. The picture above shows a typcial scene from a visit that was made this week. We have visited literally hundreds of home this week and have been excited to see the local churches become involved in evangelism on their own. The stories of God's work in the homes in this area are too numerous to mention, but we will be glad to share them with you when we return to the U.S.

Eyeglass Ministry

Another ministry being performed this week is the eyeglass ministry. We received donations to help purchase eyeglasses as well as donations of eyeglasses prior to the trip. We use reading glasses in varying strengths in the ministry. The people working in the area test each person that comes in to see what strength they need. Once they have determined the strength of the glasses that they need, they them give them a pair of glasses in that strength.

Many of the people who come to the ministry are able to read for the first time in years. Praise be to God.