Victoria

At the last school of the day on Tuesday, my van arrived later than the others, and there were just a few classrooms, so I didn't go in. As I was standing outside looking around, I noticed an older woman looking out her front window, so I waved and smiled. She smiled and waved back, so I walked over and we exchanged names and the fact that neither of us spoke the other's language. By this time, there was quite a gathering of interested people, so we started passing out tracts. The others got done in the school, and had some Bibles left in the boxes, so we started giving them to the people who were standing around. I went over and got one for Victoria and took it over to her. She was very appreciative.

As I walked away, I could see she was already reading her new Bible. I went back and asked for her photo and thanked her.

The Work

At first glance, it might sound like passing out Bibles to a bunch of school kids wouldn't be very exciting. That first impression would be wrong, though. I've spent a lot of time in the last few days with native Portuguese speakers, and since I can't understand the majority of what is being said, I've got to spend a lot of time looking into the kids' faces. It's neat because if you happen to catch their eyes, just a little smile is all it takes to see that face just light up.

Some of the classes will sing for us when we arrive. At one school, the entire school was gathered together to sing. Brother Paul Sr. then teaches them the song "God is so good." Look for the video sometime in the near future when I can get enough bandwidth to upload it.

I've gotten to share my testimony in a couple of the classes, and that

Lunch in Cabo Verde

Grilled chicken, rice, pork and beans, and fries. Coke is coke all around the world. Rachael got hold of my phone for a minute and did a lovely self-portait. The gentleman sitting next to Rachael, Djoca, is one of our taxi drivers. He needs to be saved. Our other driver, Tatino, received Christ yesterday.

Update: Djoca came to the church service on our second Monday night. It was a strong Gospel message, but it appeared that Djoca was going to leave without responding. I asked him if I could show him the picture I had drawn while I was still an atheist, and asked Claudio, one of the Brazilians on the trip, to translate for me. Djoca understood the meaning of the picture right away and said that he was ready to have the darkness taken away from his heart. Claudio talked to him from that point on, and he soon bowed his head and received Christ. Friday night, he brought his son, who also responded to the invitation. More on Djoca later.

Openness

It doesn't seem to matter where we are, people seem eager to receive either Gospel tracts or the Bibles. One girl said this is totally the opposite of Japan where you can hand someone a tract, and they'll take one look and hand it right back to you.

Already Different

A good friend always says, "You'll be the same this time next year except for the people you meet and the books you read. " Today I met Francisca. It's hard to say what impressed me about her. Maybe that my first impression was totally wrong. I first saw her sitting on the rock in front of her house, and then later when she had a very difficult time getting up, I assumed that's all she did was sit on the rock. Later, when I saw her making her way slowly down the street, half bent over and leaning very heavily on her walking stick, I knew I was wrong about her. Lisa told me that she really likes chocolate, and so I slipped her a piece from my bag the next time I saw her. She was really pleased.

I also met Neni (almost sounds like nanny) who is trying to raise three kids alone. She will be doing our laundry while we're here, and it really bothered me that I didn't even know her name before I met her today. I hope I can spend a little more time with her and get to know her as more than just the "laundry woman".

And I met Lu and had coffee at her house. This was one thing I was hoping to have the chance to do while here. It would be a real shame to come all this way, do all the work that will be done, and never touch or be touched by the people who call this home. So I'm both surprised and delighted that these encounters have happened so quickly.

More later.

First Impressions

It's beautiful, but I've never seen so many rocks in my life. The one word that fills my heart as I look across the landscape is hopeless. Sometimes you can see that same hopelessness when you look into someone's eyes.

In The Air

I like flying, but I usually only do it for a couple of hours at a time. Seven hours will be interesting. Got to give a nice young couple who were wondering what all the lime green shirts were about a couple of Get Out of Hell Free cards.

Airport Encounters

Well, we only made it to the curb before we had the first (and hopefully only) sprained ankle. After that, just the usual hanging out at the airport excitement.

After Rachel and I discussed the artistic possibilities, we came up with this ponytail hanging over the back of the chair.

Update: Well, after Mrs. Cynthia's ankle failed to improve, x-rays revealed her to have a fractured ankle. She spent most of the trip confined to bed with her leg elevated directing the curtain sewing and praying for us throughout the day. The local doctor was very nice and did make a house call to check up on her.

And we're off

Orientation

It was great to see Brother Paul today and hear him preach to us from the story of Jericho. It was a long day on two hours sleep, but I'm glad to be here.

Ready or not . . .

It's time to go.

Are You Going To Waste Your Life?

Heard this on the way home from church tonight.

Listen to the radical way Paul puts it in 2 Corinthians 12 . . . You remember the situation. He’s got a thorn in the flesh. We don’t know what it is, but it is causing him pain. He says, “Christ, please take it away.” Three times. And Christ says, “No.” And then Paul says, verse 9 . . .

And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. . . .

There’s more of Christ. Do you see that? Do you want more of Christ? Christ’s grace. Christ’s power. Christ’s fellowship. Do you want more and more and more because he is your treasure? Paul did, and therefore he said . . . Most gladly . . . Don’t miss that amazing counter-intuitive word . . . Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

For the sake of Christ, then, I’m content . . . . I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.

Magnifying Christ by being satisfied in him in pain, in calamity, in suffering, in insult, and weakness was the passion of Paul’s life. His passion was not the American Dream of escaping insult, calamity, pain, suffering. His passion was any life and any death that enables me to know you better, see you more, and magnify your greatness more. Bring it on, Jesus. All I want in my life and in my death is to make your worth more vivid for the world to see.

So, I ask you tonight. Are you going to throw away your life? Are you going to buy into the American Dream, minimize suffering, maximize comfort, maximize ease, maximize security, build bigger barns, work for the bread that perishes, lay up treasure on earth, covet the praise of man, and be happy for 80 years, and PERISH? Is that the way that you’re going to waste your life?

Or are you going to see Christ crucified and risen and reigning and bearing your sins as the infinite treasure in your life that he really is and then make life choices that display to the world his value?

It's Been A Long Time Without A Quiz

My sister found this one somewhere.

Your Power Bird is a Cardinal

You believe that each day is precious, and you spend your times as best as you can. You see the wonder in small things, and you are often content with what you have. You live an interesting, colorful life - and you bring color to those around you. Confident and expressive, you believe you know how to live a good life. You're living it!

What's Your Power Bird?

I think most people looking at my life from the outside might think it's not so interesting except for some major highlights here and there, but I'm having a blast, so I'll go with it. :)

Say Goodbye To The Grandma Car

The original plan was to take the tax refund and get my husband a cheap beater car for work. Well, with the prospect of putting 400 dollars into a 600 car, and with gas prices nearing 3.50 a gallon today, we decided that the only thing that made economic sense was to get a car with exceptional gas mileage and use the van as little as possible. With that approach, the car will very nearly pay for itself. So, say goodbye to the grandma car.

Goals

One more thing that sticks out in my mind from this brief trip. Most of the time I never see the people who clean the hotel room, but this time because I was working my usual schedule I got to speak with "Mary" several times. She seemed to be about my age, but maybe a lot harder life than I've had to deal with. On Sunday, I had a little more chance to talk to her. What she told me in that conversation has lodged in my brain.

The first thing she said was that she knew I would be nice when she saw my Bible in the room. I guess a lot of hotel guests aren't. She told me a couple of stories. But the thing I reallly want to remember about her is what she said next.

She said, "My goal is to learn to read so I can read the Bible." As we talked some more, it was clear that she had placed her faith in Jesus, but now she wanted to be able to read his words for herself. I thought about how saturated we are with Bibles in the churches in this country, and about how little we sometimes value these riches. I thought about how many people there are in the world -- and right here in this country -- who would love to have a Bible to read or who have set themselves the goal of learning how to read so that they can read the words of God for themselves. And I wondered if this was how education became a thing for the common people. I've read somewhere that where the Gospel has come to an illiterate culture, education isn't far behind.

A week from today I'll have the great privilege of taking God's word to people who can read, but don't have the ready access to Bibles that we do. I'm grateful for the opportunity to share my blessings.

What goal have you set for yourself?

And The Winner Is . . .

Who is your paralytic?

Visiting with my husband's youngest daughter this week. Of course any time you leave Ohio to the south or the east you have to cross the mighty Ohio River. One of my favorite road trips of all time was when we were headed home one time, and we followed the river all the way from the southernmost point of Ohio up to around the Youngstown area before cuttting back across the state to home. Lots of neat things to see along the way.


Got to meet Rigsby, who we nearly didn't get to meet because he had a bad go with some Parvo not too many weeks back.



Car shopping. Can't you just see the JOY oozing out of their pores! (NOT! LOL)



Friday night dinner. Neat place. Three guys from New York got to North Carolina and couldn't find a decent pizza. Imagine that! I loved the decor. Lots of old oil cans, gas pumps. An old soap box derby car hanging from the ceiling. Plenty of atmosphere along with a pretty good piece of pizza.




I think the highlight of this trip is going to be the worship service I attended this morning. I always enjoy my visits at other churches when I'm away from home - no matter how silly the reason I have for picking one church over another. One year coming back from mom and dad's I went to the only church that had an early service because I needed to get on the road so I could get the rental car back on time. Today's silly reason? This was the closest church to the hotel we're staying at.


It's always great to meet other believers and see what God is doing outside of my little corner of the world. Today, I got to meet Seb. He sang a couple songs for the Sunday School class, but I really enjoyed the story he told first about 50 years ago in the North Carolina mountains there weren't any phones, so when his friend got saved, he couldn't just picked up the phone and call his mom who had been praying for him all those years. He had to sit down and write a letter. The song was about a mom who had gone on to heaven without knowing that her boy was saved, and asking that his name be called so mom would know he was there (in heaven). Neat.


The Sunday school class was a blessing. I hope I always remember the picture the teacher told of running his first marathon and the struggle to make it to the end and the mental battle to make it all the way to the finish line that was even more of a struggle than the physical battle. He told how upon seeing the finish come into view he started to cry and asked for his wife. I guess that's not an unusual reaction to have. What's that got to do with anything? The topic today was the last 24 hours of Jesus' life. As he talked about all that Jesus had gone through for us and the sheer agony of the physical torture that my sin and yours caused him to have to go through, I could just about hear him saying "It is finished" with the tears of a marathon runner who has just made it to the end of an agonizing race. I told the teacher that if I got nothing else today, that one picture made the entire trip worth it.

Of course, that wasn't the only thing I received from the Lord today. I also got to meet "Squeak" and her husband (who gave up his seat next to his wife for the entire service so I could sit down). It was a real blessing to hear their excitement about the things going on in the church.




And what's a visit to church without some heavenly manna - food for the soul. I think today's sermon was just what I needed to hear before heading off to Africa later this week. The text was Mark 2:1-12, where four friends bring their paralyzed friend to Jesus to be healed. These guys were absolutely determined to get their friend to Jesus, and NOTHING was going to stop them.

"It was the faith of the four friends that brought about the miracle. . . . There was no way they were leaving that day without putting their friend right in front of Jesus. . . . They didn't have another day, and they weren't going to wait for Jesus to get done."

I want to remember those words when I'm away, because I won't have another day, but I want to remember them when I'm back home too. There are lots of paralytics in my life on this side of the pond who need me to bring them to Jesus, and who knows if I'll have another day.

What's really neat about today's message is that the preacher gave me such a picture of Jesus that I felt motivated, not just guilted out. That's one thing I've been blessed by in all my road visits to different churches. No matter how inconsequential my reason for going to a particular church, I've always managed to find a place where Jesus Christ is exalted. That's all I need, and it's really all I want.