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missionary_lady
Senior Member
Username: missionary_lady
Post Number: 1778
Registered: 9-2005
Posted From: 200.147.13.137
| | Posted on Tuesday, January 23, 2007 - 12:33 pm: | 
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I haven't posted in the last few days...thought some might want to know where I have been so here is a copy of my letter to a friend.
How can I find words to tell you what a wonderful youth retreat we had of our local Maceio church. We thought we would have around 125 present (that was the number that enrolled) but averaged well over 200 every day. It was tough and challenging because of the location but at the same time It was just fantastic so unique, exciting, and fulfilling.
We were in the “middle of the woods” in an area with no electricity no generators or suchlike…just us, God and some of His animals which included fuzzy spiders crawling around, snakes, frogs, iguanas, ticks and even a wolf. Other inhabitants of the camp included beautiful birds, swarms of mice, bats, mosquitoes, and the ants that seemed to think I was delicious! They say that there are bigger animals around but I didn’t see any. One little boy told me he saw a monkey. Of course there were fish in the stream and I caught one! That was fun. It was a truly beautiful and exciting experience for our people.
Nature and its different sounds always fascinate me. The croaking of the frogs at night the singing of the birds in the early morning hours speaks to me of the greatness of God.
There was plenty of water in the stream so we had cooking water, drinking water and bath water! All from the same stream! We shared the stream with it’s owners: the fish, little shrimp like creatures that I don’t even know what they were but the kids caught them and boiled them…tasted good…I wasn’t two fond of the snake they brought to show me over 3 feet long that they got out of the water or even the green snake. I didn’t even see the third snake I was too busy eating mocoto! (a kind of soup made with a bull's leg)
I backed away from a humongous spider and gladly gave him his space. I had wanted the spot he seemed to be guarding… “It’s poisonous, missionary” one of the people called out to me…
At night we had lots of torches that we had made ahead of time, a couple cabins made from thatch, and lots of black and yellow plastic make shift tents we built.
The first group went on Thursday to prepare for the group that would arrive on Friday…
Groups gathered firewood for cooking, brothers and sisters hauled water in buckets from the stream to our make shift “kitchen”.
It was very primitive to say the least but that did not bother our people for most live in dire poverty anyhow… |
missionary_lady
Senior Member
Username: missionary_lady
Post Number: 1779
Registered: 9-2005
Posted From: 200.147.13.137
| | Posted on Tuesday, January 23, 2007 - 12:36 pm: |
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I really lost count how many services they conducted but at least 3 a day and Saturday was an all night prayer meeting. Sunday was almost one entire meeting. It was a very full schedule.
I looked and those that had no where to sleep they just laid down on the big flat rocks and went to sleep while others hung their hammocks from the trees. I was blessed to have a little pump tent that my son gave me and the rest were in the little “tents” we had made from plastic.
I was not feeling well one day and one of the brothers climbed the coconut tree and got me a fresh coconut so I could drink the milk from it. Here they think coconut mile is a cure all.
One of the nights they prayed over 4 hours straight right there in the open air. Several new young people repented of their sins and were filled with God’s precious spirit.
They brought their guitars, drums, horns, tambourines and several other Brazilian instruments and sang almost around the clock!
We had several people from other denominations present and people that had never been around Christians. They were so amazed to see how happy we were even though we had practically no camping equipment and very limited food supply.
Pastor Hugo and “Sister Rosanna were our guests and special speakers and my what a good job they did! Lives were changed! Young people were renewed and restored.
I saw one father that his daughter came to the Lord literally fall into the dirt weeping for joy.
And next month we will go back and camp for 4 days during the Brazilian carnival season.
We are excited all over Brazil as youth camps are being conducted, seminars are being taught, and new churches are being built.
At this time we want to express our endless gratitude to all of you who stand behind us and carry us in your prayers... We praise our Lord daily for the privilege to serve Him on the frontlines of Brazil.
Thank you for your prayers. Sister Alvear |
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