This is our very first performance of the "Everything" drama at a small church in Porto Alegre.
Jesus: Josh
Girl: Corinne
Romance: Zak
Money: Tiffany
Drugs/Drinking: Tim (one of our interpreters)
Image: Catherine
Death: Bekah
Friday, February 13, 2009
"We are the Impact"
A video from our last days in Brazil...just goofin' off, having fun with our interpreters! We were singing any song you could think of, from Christmas music to Disney tunes!
Brazilian Church Service
This was the very first Brazilian church we went to. They sang a lot of songs in Portuguese that we knew in English too. Here is a video of them singing "Come, Now is the Time to Worship" in Portuguese...
Singing at Train Station Video
This was part of our ministry in Porto Alegre. We would hand out tracts and invitations to the evangelism night that weekend, as well as performing wordless skits and singing worship songs. We had many opportunities to have conversations with those passing by, and a few of us were able to share out testimonies too.
Pictures from Brazil at Aqua Viva
#1. My first mango in Brazil, but definitely NOT my last#2. Little bananas
#3. Typical Brazilian meal
#4. Aloe plant
Pictures from Brazil in Brasilia
#1. Jack Bauer is EVERYWHERE!!! Even in Brazil (this picture is only funny to those of you who know my obsession with 24)#2. Our crazy van rides everyone we went in Brazil
#3. Many fruit juices we drank (L-R: passion fruit, pineapple, watermelon, strawberry)
#4. Statue in Brasilia (this was taken on our tour of the city)
#5. The delicious pizza we ate down there (this one is banana and chocolate)
#6. My face after just drinking very strong and extremely sweet Brazilian coffee (I had accidentally put WAY to much liquid sweetener in it)
#7. The Temple of Goodwill: syncretism at its finest
#8. The I360 team in front of the presidential palace in Brasilia
Pictures from Brazil at Palavra da Vida Camp
#1. When the campers arrived at the camp, each member of our team was split into different cabins to stay with the campers and assist the counselors. This picture is my cabin at breakfast the first morning
#2. Singing worship songs with the camp staff (Day 1 of our 17 days with them)
#3. A trip to South America would not be complete with a tarantula sighting
#4. Drinking chimarroo! (Brazilian tea)
#5. Praying during one of our team meetings
#6. One of the ways we got to know the Brazilian counselors more was by singing songs with them (they knew everything by Hillsong)
#7. After an intense mudhike
#8. We had various jobs around the camp, including doing dishes after meals
#9. Playing tug-a-war
#10. Brazilian cook-out
#11. During the mudhike
#12. Us girls at the waterfall at the camp
#13. We had the chance to give the morning messages to the campers. Here is me giving the first one...the message is posted below
#14. Picture of our team, taken at the camp, being silly (something we're very good at)
Pictures from Brazil in Porto Alegre
#1. Giving my testimony at a church in Porto Alegre (this was just one of many speaking opportunities we each had)
#2. The team with our interpreters by a train station in Porto Alegre
#3. One of our ministry projects-painting the inside of a church
#4. Home visits
#5. One of the many wordless skits we performed-this one called Sinchair
#6. Street Evangelism
#7. Performing the "Everything" skit (see video above)
#8. Outside a shopping mall in Porto Alegre
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Pictures from Brazil in Sao Paulo
#1. Famous Brazilian flip-flops: Havaianas (my foot is top left, toenails painted pink)#2. The view of Sao Paulo outside of my hotel room
#3. A charascuria that we went to in Sao Paulo (they shave the meat off the stick right at your table)
#4. Hanging at a church, playing a game with our interpreters, before leaving for Aracaiba
#5. On the bus going to Aracaiba
Pictures from Brazil in Aracaiba
#1. A street in Aracaiba: a poor area of Brazil
#2. Our team in Aracaiba
#3. A home in Aracaiba
#4. Walking in Aracaiba
#5. My roommate Morgan and I at a waterfall
#6. A woman we led to Christ in Aracaiba
#7. The I360 girls at a waterfall
#8. Eating Chick-fil-A breakfast sandwiches upon arriving back in the US
Sunday, February 8, 2009
Back in the US
After over a total of 12 hours of traveling, the I360 team and myself have arrived safely back in the US! First of all, thank you for all your prayers and support in that area. The Lord did mighty work in Brazil, and He deserves all the glory. If it was not for Him, we would be nothing! I wish I would've had more options to post on my blog while in Brazil, but now that I'm back in the states, I have lots of time to update my blog. I'm going to pick up where I left off at the last post and write about everything up until the end! Pictures will be coming in a separate post as soon as I get them all organized!
So, as I look back on my previous blog entry, it looks like I left off around mid-January. I see I have a lot of catching up to do. From Wednesday, January 14th until Sunday, January 19th, we were at Palavra da Vida camp in Porto Alegre participating in the staff training with the Brazilian staff and counselors. Monday and Tuesday we headed to a local Baptist church during the day to do some painting on the interior of their church as well as some home visits with the pastor's wife. Tuesday night we put on a service for the Brazilian's living in that area. This service consisted of worship, in English and Portuguese, as well as a message, testimonies, and some wordless skits. After each day, we would commute back to the camp.
From Wednesday, January 21st to Sunday, January 25th, we went into the city of Porto Alegre to work with another church, this one was Lutheran. These days were filled with street evangelism as well as talking to those outside their homes about an evangelism night that our team was doing that Saturday. Us I360 students were completely responsible for the entire night. Again, this night consisted of music in both languages, a message, testimonies, and wordless skits. The unique thing about this night was that our team was able to learn and perform the skit to the Lifehouse song "Everything." We were able to perform this drama two other times during our time in Brazil, once for the camp and again at another evangelistic service. The Lord worked through this drama in incredible ways, ways that we could never have seen! Even in the little ways like allowing us to learn it in a matter of hours and also in providing props and costumes that added to the effect. As well as putting together the evangelistic service for Saturday, we were also responsible for doing their church service on Sunday, the next day. It looked very similar to the evangelistic night, and I was amazed that they had such trust in allowing a group of young adults to give their Sunday service. I gave my testimony that Sunday morning. That was the first time I gave my full testimony in Brazil, but it certainly would not be the last.
After the 5 days of working with this church, we headed back to Palavra da Vida Sunday night. Monday the 25th was a time for us to sleep-in and recuperate and also help the counselors clean the camp and get it ready for the teen campers that arrive the next day. Here's where the fun starts. We worked alongside the staff, counselors, and campers for the rest of the week. We stayed in the cabins with them, ate with them, attended sessions with them, and also did various activities throughout the day with them. The majority of those activities were sports related, more specifically futbol (US soccer). The Brazilians are amazing at soccer. I didn't meet a single on that wasn't. And I have to say that I'm proud to have played right beside them, and they actually kept asking me to play, even though I felt I was terrible. I did get some good plays in, mostly in defense. My eye-foot coordination is not up to par! And I've never played soccer before. There was one day when we played Brazilians vs. Americans. There were about 5 of us Americans and 2 Brazilians on one team as we played a few games against 7 Brazilians. We won only one game, but we did have a little help from the "experts."
One of the main reasons for us being at the camp that week was to be the speakers for their morning sessions. 6 of us I360 students were able to give a 30-50 minute talk, plus we all were able to share our testimony. I didn't know we were going to having this many speaking opportunities, but I enjoyed it! Through these speaking times, I felt the Lord confirming to me that I am to be a teacher! I was the first one to speak on Wednesday morning. I was able to incorporate a lot of my personal story as well as the Word to speak about running, one of my favorite topics! I compared running/athletic activities to the Christian walk (the compete talk is posted also). The focus was on not just saying that you're a Christian but really living it out in order that others may be won to the Lord. Kind of like "walk the walk."
The other talks were really great too! Everyone who spoke was able to talk about something that was in close to their heart. Katlynne spoke Thursday morning about honoring your parents. Friday morning, Mark spoke to the guys about the heart of a man, and Corinne spoke to the girls about true beauty. Tiffany and Josh split the Saturday morning message that was about being a generation that seeks the Lord and what the characteristics of that generation look like. One of my favorite aspects of the camp was the worship during each session. The lyrics were all in Portuguese of course, but most of the of the songs were all songs that we new in English too. So the praises that were lifted to the Lord were in multiple tongues. I'm so thankful we serve a God not limited by language.
Sunday morning, February 1st, we left the camp and headed to the airport to fly to Sao Paulo. The other team took a bus from Bauru and met us at a hotel later that afternoon in downtown. We had dinner together and then went to the church where our interpreters for the ministry in Aracaiba that week were from. The next night, after sleeping in and regaining our strength and energy, we left around mid-night to drive the 6 hour drive through the night to the very poor area in Brazil. Even though we arrived in Aracaiba at 6 in the morning, we were quickly out in the streets doing home visits and evangelism. The same thing was done the next day in a poorer town about an hour away. Both nights a service was put on by us, as well as a program for the children earlier in the afternoon.
During the 4 different times that we went out to do home visits, I learned that I had to rely on God to give me words to speak and the strength I needed. Tuesday morning, Katlynne and I were able to pray for a woman who was suffering from depression and compulsive overeating. Both of us were able to share portions of our testimonies because they were so like hers. That afternoon, we had the special privilege of praying with a woman to receive Christ. Our interpreter did most of the sharing, but Alex was able to give his testimony. The joy on her face after receiving Christ was precious. She couldn't stop smiling!
Wednesday morning, the weather that was once beautiful and sunny, turned to cold and rainy. I had to fight against and attitude of complaining. We found ponchos and went anyways! It cleared up around mid-morning, but what happened that afternoon made getting wet all worth while! The last house Mark, Katlynne, our interpreters and I went to was the home of an 18 year old boy. He could go to work on the farm that morning because of the rain, and his bike broke so he just had to stay home, that's the Lord working! If I'm honest, I have to say that I was very worn out by this time. I felt emotionally and mentally tired and very spiritually dry. I told my team that I would be praying, but I didn't know if I had anything to give in the area of talking. However, I soon learned that God uses my weakness to manifest his strength. The boy was Catholic, and he had attended church all his life, even played guitar on Sunday mornings. Mark started right in on sharing the gospel with him and after about 15 minutes or so, I felt very impressed to share the Ephesians 8 verse that says we're saved by grace and not works. I had him read this verse out loud and after he read it I asked him if he had ever read this verse; his answer was no. He had never been presented the clear gospel before either. After talking with him for about an hour, he said he wanted to receive Christ. Here's the cool part, I don't remember much of what I shared, but I do know that it wasn't me talking. It was completely the Lord using me. It was ALL God speaking! I learned a big lesson that day in relying on God.
We headed back to Sao Paulo the afternoon of the 5th, after spending that morning hiking through the "jungle" to see a very beautiful waterfall. That night was spent at a hotel and our flight left at 11pm the night of the 6th. We arrived in Atlanta around 5:30am the next morning and were met by the I360 staff and Chick-fil-A sandwiches for breakfast!
If I could summarized my 4-week experience in Brazil, I would say that it was complete reliance on God. In was tested in many aspects, but I would trade those experiences and lessons that I learned for anything! I enjoyed being totally submersed in a different culture for a month, but I am glad to be back home. Thank you to everyone who supported me financially and in constant prayer. Thank you for allowing God to use you in that way.
So, as I look back on my previous blog entry, it looks like I left off around mid-January. I see I have a lot of catching up to do. From Wednesday, January 14th until Sunday, January 19th, we were at Palavra da Vida camp in Porto Alegre participating in the staff training with the Brazilian staff and counselors. Monday and Tuesday we headed to a local Baptist church during the day to do some painting on the interior of their church as well as some home visits with the pastor's wife. Tuesday night we put on a service for the Brazilian's living in that area. This service consisted of worship, in English and Portuguese, as well as a message, testimonies, and some wordless skits. After each day, we would commute back to the camp.
From Wednesday, January 21st to Sunday, January 25th, we went into the city of Porto Alegre to work with another church, this one was Lutheran. These days were filled with street evangelism as well as talking to those outside their homes about an evangelism night that our team was doing that Saturday. Us I360 students were completely responsible for the entire night. Again, this night consisted of music in both languages, a message, testimonies, and wordless skits. The unique thing about this night was that our team was able to learn and perform the skit to the Lifehouse song "Everything." We were able to perform this drama two other times during our time in Brazil, once for the camp and again at another evangelistic service. The Lord worked through this drama in incredible ways, ways that we could never have seen! Even in the little ways like allowing us to learn it in a matter of hours and also in providing props and costumes that added to the effect. As well as putting together the evangelistic service for Saturday, we were also responsible for doing their church service on Sunday, the next day. It looked very similar to the evangelistic night, and I was amazed that they had such trust in allowing a group of young adults to give their Sunday service. I gave my testimony that Sunday morning. That was the first time I gave my full testimony in Brazil, but it certainly would not be the last.
After the 5 days of working with this church, we headed back to Palavra da Vida Sunday night. Monday the 25th was a time for us to sleep-in and recuperate and also help the counselors clean the camp and get it ready for the teen campers that arrive the next day. Here's where the fun starts. We worked alongside the staff, counselors, and campers for the rest of the week. We stayed in the cabins with them, ate with them, attended sessions with them, and also did various activities throughout the day with them. The majority of those activities were sports related, more specifically futbol (US soccer). The Brazilians are amazing at soccer. I didn't meet a single on that wasn't. And I have to say that I'm proud to have played right beside them, and they actually kept asking me to play, even though I felt I was terrible. I did get some good plays in, mostly in defense. My eye-foot coordination is not up to par! And I've never played soccer before. There was one day when we played Brazilians vs. Americans. There were about 5 of us Americans and 2 Brazilians on one team as we played a few games against 7 Brazilians. We won only one game, but we did have a little help from the "experts."
One of the main reasons for us being at the camp that week was to be the speakers for their morning sessions. 6 of us I360 students were able to give a 30-50 minute talk, plus we all were able to share our testimony. I didn't know we were going to having this many speaking opportunities, but I enjoyed it! Through these speaking times, I felt the Lord confirming to me that I am to be a teacher! I was the first one to speak on Wednesday morning. I was able to incorporate a lot of my personal story as well as the Word to speak about running, one of my favorite topics! I compared running/athletic activities to the Christian walk (the compete talk is posted also). The focus was on not just saying that you're a Christian but really living it out in order that others may be won to the Lord. Kind of like "walk the walk."
The other talks were really great too! Everyone who spoke was able to talk about something that was in close to their heart. Katlynne spoke Thursday morning about honoring your parents. Friday morning, Mark spoke to the guys about the heart of a man, and Corinne spoke to the girls about true beauty. Tiffany and Josh split the Saturday morning message that was about being a generation that seeks the Lord and what the characteristics of that generation look like. One of my favorite aspects of the camp was the worship during each session. The lyrics were all in Portuguese of course, but most of the of the songs were all songs that we new in English too. So the praises that were lifted to the Lord were in multiple tongues. I'm so thankful we serve a God not limited by language.
Sunday morning, February 1st, we left the camp and headed to the airport to fly to Sao Paulo. The other team took a bus from Bauru and met us at a hotel later that afternoon in downtown. We had dinner together and then went to the church where our interpreters for the ministry in Aracaiba that week were from. The next night, after sleeping in and regaining our strength and energy, we left around mid-night to drive the 6 hour drive through the night to the very poor area in Brazil. Even though we arrived in Aracaiba at 6 in the morning, we were quickly out in the streets doing home visits and evangelism. The same thing was done the next day in a poorer town about an hour away. Both nights a service was put on by us, as well as a program for the children earlier in the afternoon.
During the 4 different times that we went out to do home visits, I learned that I had to rely on God to give me words to speak and the strength I needed. Tuesday morning, Katlynne and I were able to pray for a woman who was suffering from depression and compulsive overeating. Both of us were able to share portions of our testimonies because they were so like hers. That afternoon, we had the special privilege of praying with a woman to receive Christ. Our interpreter did most of the sharing, but Alex was able to give his testimony. The joy on her face after receiving Christ was precious. She couldn't stop smiling!
Wednesday morning, the weather that was once beautiful and sunny, turned to cold and rainy. I had to fight against and attitude of complaining. We found ponchos and went anyways! It cleared up around mid-morning, but what happened that afternoon made getting wet all worth while! The last house Mark, Katlynne, our interpreters and I went to was the home of an 18 year old boy. He could go to work on the farm that morning because of the rain, and his bike broke so he just had to stay home, that's the Lord working! If I'm honest, I have to say that I was very worn out by this time. I felt emotionally and mentally tired and very spiritually dry. I told my team that I would be praying, but I didn't know if I had anything to give in the area of talking. However, I soon learned that God uses my weakness to manifest his strength. The boy was Catholic, and he had attended church all his life, even played guitar on Sunday mornings. Mark started right in on sharing the gospel with him and after about 15 minutes or so, I felt very impressed to share the Ephesians 8 verse that says we're saved by grace and not works. I had him read this verse out loud and after he read it I asked him if he had ever read this verse; his answer was no. He had never been presented the clear gospel before either. After talking with him for about an hour, he said he wanted to receive Christ. Here's the cool part, I don't remember much of what I shared, but I do know that it wasn't me talking. It was completely the Lord using me. It was ALL God speaking! I learned a big lesson that day in relying on God.
We headed back to Sao Paulo the afternoon of the 5th, after spending that morning hiking through the "jungle" to see a very beautiful waterfall. That night was spent at a hotel and our flight left at 11pm the night of the 6th. We arrived in Atlanta around 5:30am the next morning and were met by the I360 staff and Chick-fil-A sandwiches for breakfast!
If I could summarized my 4-week experience in Brazil, I would say that it was complete reliance on God. In was tested in many aspects, but I would trade those experiences and lessons that I learned for anything! I enjoyed being totally submersed in a different culture for a month, but I am glad to be back home. Thank you to everyone who supported me financially and in constant prayer. Thank you for allowing God to use you in that way.
Teen Camp Talk
Run for Jesus: Comparing running with the Christian life
Good evening! My name is Catherine, and I am 18 years old. Before I begin, I want to know how many of you are involved in sports??? Oh good, because tonight I am going to be comparing my favorite sport of running with the Christian life. But really, any sport or athletic competition can apply to this talk. I am really hoping that this challenges you to not only say you are a Christian, but to really live it so others can see it.
Before I start talking about what I want to say to you tonight, I want to give you a little background about how I became so enthusiastic about running! A few years ago, I struggled with an eating disorder. You will hear more about this when I give my testimony on Thursday night. Running was a main way for me to lose weight.
However, as I ran more and started liking it more, I found that I had such a desire to be the best runner I could ever be. Running was a way for me to overcome my eating disorder. Instead of being totally consumed with how skinny I was, all I wanted was to be a better runner.
I have been running for 4 years. I have completed many races and even ran on my team in high school. Since I love running so much, I decided to see what the Bible had to say about it. I found that the word “run” or “running” or “race” is used over 130 times throughout the whole Bible. I am convinced that God really likes running!
Tonight, I am going to be using 4 different passages of scripture that talk about running in likeness of the life of a Christian. The first passage is 1 Corinthians 9:24-27. This is my favorite Bible verse, and I have claimed it as my “life verse.” It says…
“Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Every athlete that competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it to get an eternal prize. So I run with purpose in every step; I am not just beating the air. I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I myself will be disqualified.”
Okay, I know this is a long passage, so I want to break it down section by section. The first part I want to look at is verse 24 where Paul says, “run in such a way as to get the prize.” The prize for a runner, or any athlete, is a medal or a trophy. The prize in the Christian life is Jesus Christ. Just as an athlete runs his fastest and hardest for the first place prize, so we as Christians should be seeking after Christ with all that we have.
The second part of this passage talks about a prize that will last forever. For an athlete, the prize that you win will soon waste away. The medal will rust, the trophy will be put into storage, and the writing on a certificate will eventually not be readable. But as Christians, our eternal prize is heaven, which is something that never goes away.
The third part of this passage says to run with purpose in every step. I believe that our purpose in the race of our Christian faith is to glorify Christ. Every step that a runner takes gets him one step closer to the finish line. Every day that we live on earth should be another day to give glory to God.
Finally, verse 27 talks about training your body so that you will not be disqualified for the prize. This part of the passage was a little bit harder for me to think about a comparison. But I think that it could be compared to how we live our life as an example for others. Paul says that if he did not train his body, after preaching he would be disqualified. If a runner does not train for his race in the right way, he will not be able to finish the race, thus not able to win the prize. If we as Christians are speaking the message of Christ and telling others about him, but not living like we are Christians, then we will not be effective in trying to win others to Christ. How we live our life is just as important as the words we use when trying to help others become a Christian.
The next verse that I want to look at talks about getting rid of these things that can lead others away from Christ. Hebrews 12:1 says…
“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us.”
The part of this verse that I want to focus on is where is says “strip off every weight that slows us down.” In the Christian faith, this “weight” is different for every person. Every individual person has their own set of temptations. In order to run this race of faith, what I have to overcome might be totally different than what Thomas has to resist: and what Thomas has to deal with might be something that is never a problem for me. But they are still struggles and they are still hard.
Something I want to do right now is give examples from running or any other sport to show how the disciplines that you do when in training or in competition are similar to the Christian life. First of all, whenever I am training for a race, sometimes I have to wake up an hour earlier in order to get my workout in for the day. The Psalms talk a lot about praising and spending time with God in the morning. If you know you are going to have a busy day, get up 30 minutes earlier in order to spend time with God. And, if you are too busy to spend time with Him, then you are busier than you should be.
Another part of proper athletic training is taking care of your body. In order to keep your physical body is the best shape, there are some foods that you just cannot eat. Giving up ice cream, cookies, candy, and soda and eating lots of good carbohydrates, meats, fruits and vegetables helps your body to perform at its very best. Also, when in training, your body is going to need extra rest. For some people, this might mean coming home early from a bonfire with friends or not going to that sleepover because you have an athletic event later that day. As Christians, we are called to be “in the world but of the world.” This means abstaining from any and all activities that will cause us to be ineffective in sharing the gospel. Things like swearing, drugs, sex, and drinking can not only be harmful to our physical body, but can also keep us from leading others to Christ. Another part of resting in your Christian life is taking time to be with God. Reading the Bible, praying, and listening to what the Lord has to say are great ways to get a rest from the world. All this goes back to the main purpose of this talk: to not just say that you are a Christian, but to really live it so others will know!
Finally, the harder you work your body, the higher the chance is that you are going to get injured. I started running the summer after my 1st year in high school. Since then, I have had three times when my foot has been fractured. This causes enormous pain, and usually I am not able to run or do any kind of physical activity for at least 2 months. For a Christian, the more you seek after Christ and the more you tell others about him, the more the devil is going to attack you. Satan attacks in many different ways. I have seen this multiple times in my own life. Sometimes it is negative thoughts that are in my head that I know are not true, like “you are not good enough; you will never be worth anything; no body loves you; no body wants to hear what you have to say.” Or sometimes it is physical, like getting sick or always feeling tired. Now, sickness is not always Satan’s fault, but he can use it to keep you from being effective in sharing the gospel. Just like resting will heal a broken bone, in order to defeat the attacks of the devil, you need to be with Christ and surrounding yourself with prayer.
The third verse I want to look at is Isaiah 40:31. It says…
“Even youths will become weak and tired, and young men will fall in stumble and fall. But those who trust in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings of eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not be faint.”
I am not going to talk about this passage too much because I already mentioned resting in the Lord. But when you compare this to running or any sport, usually a runner does not run every day of the week. I know for me, I always take one day off to let my body rest and my muscles heal. For a Christian, our one day to rest was given to us back in the Old Testament. The fourth commandment in Exodus tells us to “honor the Sabbath day by keeping it holy.” This is the Lord’s day. It is a day for us to take extended time to think about Him and get more strength for the rest of the week from Him.
The verse that I want to end with is found in 2nd Timothy 4:7. This verse is part of Paul’s final words when he is writing to Timothy. Paul says…
“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, and I have kept the faith.”
This verse is what I long to say before I die. I want to be just about to breath my last breath and know that I remained faithful to the Lord in everything that I did. I want to finish this race of life with excellence. I hope that is something that you also long for.
The challenge I want to leave you with this morning is the very purpose of this talk: to not just say that you’re a Christian, but to really live it in every area of your life. Christ should be so evident in your life that people can see you faith and you don’t even have to open your mouth. Let you actions truly speak louder than words.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)