The Saga Continues

(This blog was written last week but since we had no internet I couldn’t post it)

Well, this has become almost comical now. If you read our last blog we tried to explain to you some of the difficulties that we were facing last week. If you have no idea what I’m talking about click HERE to gain some perspective on today’s blog: )

Anyway, it’s a new week and the saga continues. Here’s a brief timeline of this week’s daily events as they unfolded:

Saturday Afternoon

I was telling you that we were in a drought, right? It literally hadn’t rained for about a month and temperatures were in the mid 90’s and it was soooo miserable (mainly because we have no a/c in the house or our car), remember? Well things have changed. It started raining on Thursday (2 days ago) and hasn’t stopped since it started! It’s dropped the temperature to the mid 60’s (which is awesome) but the amount of water that has fallen is unbelievable. Me and MJ drove down the mountain this afternoon to get some groceries and the roads were horrible. We made it down and then back up but it was pretty sketchy (i.e., slippery and dangerous) and we knew that things were only gonna get worse if the rain continued- and it did.

Around 4:00pm Kevin (Maryssa’s boyfriend) tried to go home on his motorcycle only to have to turn around because his motorcycle wouldn’t make it. He got to a certain part of the road and it was gone (the road, that is)! It had been replaced by a mighty rushing river. He tried to walk across it but it was at chest level so he decided to come back to our house.

But the weirdest thing about the day was that it was soooo windy the entire day. And I mean the entire day. We don’t have a TV with The Weather Channel to know what was going on but it seemed like we were in the middle of a tropical storm or a hurricane... literally. The winds were at least 40-50mph the entire second half of the day (for about 10 hrs straight) and the rain didn’t stop the entire time. We could hear trees cracking and falling out in the jungle and we were just hoping that all the houses and the pavilion weren’t going to collapse. Even though we haven’t left the safety of the house we know that the camp is probably gonna be in pretty rough shape because of all the branches and trees that are down everywhere. The real concern is that we have a camp scheduled next weekend and we already had a lot of prep work to do, now there’s all this storm damage to deal with too... awesome!

Sunday Morning 

When we awoke this morning, to get ready for church, there was no water. The water has been going out a lot over the last several weeks. So, even though it was very frustrating, it seemed par for the course (for the way our life’s been here lately, that is). So we went up ‘the hill’ to the tank (in the rain because it was still raining) and there was no water in the tank at all! So that meant an early morning trek out into the jungle to find the problem, yippee! 

Upon arrival to the water source we found that the problem was bigger than a broken pipe or a loose fitting this time. At some time during the night (because of the massive amount of rain that had fallen over the last 3 days) there was a huge mudslide on the mountain that took out our water source. For real? Seriously? I couldn’t believe it... well, actually I could. This is like something you’d see in a movie or something- not something that I’d ever think was going to be a part of our lives. Matthew and Alimpo (he’s still here a couple more weeks) went and fixed it though. So now the wait begins (for the water to make it 1/4 mile back down to our water tank and then to our house).

Standing at the top of the hill, looking down, you can see a large tree (probably 50-60' tall) that
 was pushed down about 300' to the bottom of the hill along with all the vegetation that was once a part of the mountain. You can see our water lines that are now suspended in mid air (after they were repaired).
They use to lay on top of the ground but now there's no ground! lol! 

So here I sit. Looking out at the rain that continues to fall. Waiting patiently for the water to be restored at our house so that we can brush teeth, flush toilets, cook, clean- all the stuff we usually take for granted... water is way underrated.

We didn’t make it to church today, because the roads are impassible, so we’re all held prisoner at the house. The wind is blowing and the rain is falling as we’re all huddled inside... it’s crazy.

Monday Morning

Well, at this point, it’s been raining for over 4 days straight. All the kids and our 6 dogs (that’s right 6 dogs!) have been sequestered inside the prison that is our home. Somebody please put me put of my misery.  

Even though it’s raining we (Me and Matthew) decided to go out and take a closer look at the property to see how much work we were gonna have to do to get the camp ready for this weekend (as of right now we still have a camp coming Thursday-Sunday). It was worse than we anticipated...

Our neighbor has a small lake that is adjacent to our driveway as you enter our property. Well, he ‘had’ a small lake that was adjacent to our driveway. At some point  during the night the dam that separated his lake from our driveway broke and all the water rushed out as the dam burst and ran across the main drive of the camp property. There were dead fish and debris all over the lower part of the property and it’s quite the mess. 

As we drove around the property on motorcycles we noticed that not only were there trees down everywhere, we also noticed that the extreme winds the night before had knocked a majority of our caqui (the fruit/trees we have on the property that generate income for us in May-June) off of the trees. Then, as we went to look at the house that my mother-in-law and father-in-law lived in, we saw that there were a couple of  eucalyptus trees down up next to the house. The storm damage is pretty extensive.

One of the large trees that were blown down during the storm at Grandma and Papa's house.

The rain was still falling when all of the sudden the inevitable happened... the electricity went out. Great! This was the one thing that had surprisingly stayed on the last 4 days but now it was gone. Oh well, at this point nothing surprises me. Stranded on the mountain (in the rain) with no electricity, with a house full of kids, dogs, and no groceries... gotta love it.

The new tarps (temporary roofing) that covered the horse stalls were completely shredded during the high winds. 

As the day passed, we realized that somebody was gonna have to try and get to town to get a few necessities. There were a few things that we really needed from the store (toilet paper, bread, etc.) but there was no way that the car was going anywhere. So Matthew and Ike (one of my nephews) went down on a motorcycle to try and get everything we needed. When they got to the part of the road that was gone (and had now become a rushing river) they had to put on backpacks and wade across the river that had swelled and overtaken the road- leaving the motorcycle behind. Way to take one for the team guys: )

Although the rains have stopped the road is still covered with water and can't be driven across.

Around 9:00pm it was still raining hard. The strong winds had subsided at this point but the rain was still falling. Me and MJ decided that we were gonna go out in the dark to check on our ducks that were penned-up down at the lake. We were afraid that the rising water could possible sweep them out of the lake and into the white water rapids that had replaced the gentle stream that usually ran behind our house. When we got down to the lake, we saw that the bridge had been overtaken by water and that what was usually a controlled stream (that’s usually about 6’ wide)- had turned into a giant river 20’ wide! We stood there in awe as we couldn’t believe how much water was rushing through the property. 

Oh, yeah- I forgot to mention. MJ was cooking in the kitchen earlier in the day when out of nowhere some kind of demon possessed wasp/bee/hornet thing bit her on the hand and now I’m stuck with the elephant man (or woman)! She’s been swollen all day. Can it get any worse?!

MJ's hand after she got bit. It was swollen all the way up to her elbow! Can you tell which hand it is? haha.

Tuesday

It’s still raining... 5 days now! We’ve heard of more mudslides on the mountain. We also heard that there’s major flooding down in Terra Boa (at the bottom of the mountain). The electricity is still off and we’re going stir crazy being stuck in such close quarters with all these people and dogs for this long. And all this on the heels of what all happened last week. 

 

MJ sweeping water and mud off the front porch (for the 100th time over the last 5 days).

But, as I sit here, ultimately I know that we’re in a spiritual battle right now. And I know that the enemy hates us and he hates us being here on this mountain. But with the amount of adversity that we’re facing- it’s soooooo over-the-top that it’s obvious. It’s obvious that there are forces at work that are trying to break us down and discourage us so that we’ll leave. So we’re trying to keep things in perspective. It’s difficult nonetheless. But for some reason (even though we should be having a breakdown just about now) I just want to laugh out loud. There are so many things going wrong right now and there’s so much drama that it’s becoming funny. Am I losing my mind? Probably. haha! Please pray for us. I really don’t have any spiritual thoughts or comments to insert here at the end of today’s blog except to say this, “we’re still standing- so bring it devil.” 

“Take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm.”

                                      Ephesians 6:13

Standing,

Jim

Breakthrough or Breakdown

Breakthrough or Breakdown. Sounds like a clever sermon title, I know. But that’s not what it is. The other day Me and MJ were talking and trying to ‘encourage’ each other (and no, that’s not code for ‘we were arguing’...we were literally trying to encourage one another, haha!) and I made the comment to her that we just needed breakthrough (for the particular situation we were facing). And immediately she said, “or we’re gonna breakdown.”

Have you ever felt that way? Have you ever felt like if you didn’t get some relief or find the solution for what you were facing (i.e., breakthrough) you were gonna literally lose it (aka- breakdown)?

Well what do you do? 

There’s only a few choices...

You can quit.

You can find something to temporarily take your mind off of the situation.

You can ignore the situation (which usually isn’t possible).

 Or you can press-in and fight to get closer to God through the situation. 

Those are the only choices. We’re in a very difficult season right now and it’s extremely tough. And we’re needing to make some hard decisions. And on top of the decisions ‘life’ is hitting us square in the face. Here, I’ll give you a glimpse of what’s going on ‘this week’:

• We’re in a drought right now (literally). It’s been in the mid to upper 90’s for over 3 weeks straight with no rain! That may not seem like a big deal to all our friends in Georgia or Oklahoma but keep in mind that we have no A/C in our house or in our car. It’s been miserable to say the least. And you know how it is when everyone’s hot and sweaty, right? Yep... hot= aggravated and agitated. And if it wasn’t hard enough trying to live here as it is- just add suffocating heat to the mix and it’s enough to push any normal human over the edge. If you think it’s not that big of a deal just wait until July then turn your thermostat to the off position (and leave it off) then get back to me: )

• This past week we thought that Robert was going to either die or have to be hospitalized. It was serious. He wasn’t eating (which is an indicator of something being ‘majorly wrong’), he wasn’t drinking and he laid lifeless for almost 5 days straight. We thought he had gotten dehydrated because of the heat. So we had to force him to drink fluids every hour for 5 days (and praying that he would recover) so that we didn’t have to take him to the hospital. Now don’t go judging us because we didn’t immediately take him to the hospital. Because here, the hospital isn’t a good place. To take someone to the hospital here where we live is like rolling the dice on whether or not they’re ever gonna make it out alive. For real. If you’ve ever been to a third world country hospital- you know what I’m talking about. We’ve been there and it’s literally like walking into the corridors of Hell. We’ve had 2 friends die in the hospital just this past year from things that seemed treatable. So we decided to try and treat him on our own at home (as of the posting of this blog, he’s totally recovered).

Robert acting like he's going to kiss a giant slug he just caught.

• Our car broke down again (2nd time this week) and we’re stranded here on the mountain. It’s being repaired and hopefully we’ll get it back in a few days, but not having transportation and being way out in the middle of nowhere isn’t good.

Our car being put onto a tow truck. Just one of the many exciting times we've experienced with our car: )

• Maryssa and Kevin (Maryssa’s boyfriend) wrecked on a motorcycle 2 days ago. They were coming across the highway and hit an oil slick on the road, which caused them to wipeout and they both hit the ground hard. They’re still in a lot of pain because of the road rash but no broken bones. Then, to top it all off, Kevin was in another motorcycle accident this morning! Someone was driving their motorcycle (too fast) up the mountain and collided with Kevin as he was going down the mountain. They were both thrown from their bikes and the other guy went to the hospital for stitches but Kevin is OK.

Maryssa and Kevin

Kevin's leg after the accident

• We’re being attacked by some kind of super-beetle. It’s half beetle- half flea- half demon (I know- you can’t have 3 halves. But you get the point, right?). It looks innocent enough but when it bites you it burns like fire and you immediately get these raised welts on your skin. And of course they usually only bite you at night when you finally get into bed to rest from the hard day you just had! One bit me last night and It literally looked like someone took a hot curling iron and touched it to my skin 3-4 times.

My chest after getting bit by the 'super beetle.' FYI- the picture makes me look fatter and whiter than I actually am. lol!

• We’re having some major behavioral issues with some of our adopted kids. I won’t get too specific or name names but the things that have been happening have seriously made us want to throw in the towel. Because, after almost 6 years (yep, it’ll 6 years in March), we just don’t know if we’re gonna be able to help them. We don’t know if we’re equipped. And that breaks our heart as parents. To invest so much time and energy into someone and see no results is very discouraging.

• Our caretaker (the person who lives here on the property and helps us maintain the camp) basically told me that he wants more money or he’s leaving! We don’t have the money to give him a raise, so long-story-short, he’s leaving at the end of the month. He’s been here on the property for 5 years now and has been a huge asset to us. We’re already overwhelmed with all the work and now, with him leaving, the outlook is bleak.

• Our water is giving us problems. Try living without water... you can’t! I’ve been up and down ‘the hill’ at least 7 times in the last 48 hours trying to fix it too. We get our water from the mountain. It runs through a pipe that lays on top of the ground and goes into a 500 gallon holding tank on ‘the hill’ just above our house. If you’ve ever been here, you know what I’m talking about when I say, “the hill.” Anyway, with the extreme heat we’ve been having, it’s caused all the fittings to loosen on the pipe that runs from the water source to the tank and from the tank to our house. And you don’t know it’s happened until the tank is empty. Then you have to go and find out where it’s disconnected or where there’s air in the pipe and bleed it. And, of course, this usually happens at night! Nothing like trouncing around in the jungle at night...Yippee: )

So that’s just a taste of what our life looks like this week. I could list out more things but those are just the highlights (or lowlights- depending on how you look at it). Now, on the ministry side- things look great. Kids are being ministered to and loved, teenagers are experiencing the power of the Gospel, and adults are being challenged to give their lives to Jesus and truly follow Him. But everything on the other side (i.e., our personal lives and the nuts and bolts side of the ministry) is under tremendous pressure. We’re over-worked, stretched beyond what we can sustain, we haven’t had a real break in over 2 years, we’re constantly feeling like we’re at the end of our rope, we’re very lonely being here and we feel like we’re pretty much by ourselves, ... so it feels like we’re gonna breakdown.

So what do we do? Remember, there’s only a few choices:

-We can quit.

-We can find something to temporarily take our mind off of the situation.

-We can ignore the situation (which isn’t possible).

-Or we can press-in and fight to get closer to God through the situation. 

Here’s the funny thing (funny ironic- not funny haha)... as difficult and crappy as our life is right now, the first three choices aren’t even on the radar. And for me- that’s huge. I can trace back over my walk with Christ and see where quitting, finding an alternate route or just immersing myself in something to take my mind off the uncomfortable situation was usually my first reaction. But not now. Things are different. 

When I was a new believer (and even through some of my years in Bible college) most of the voices that were speaking into my life never talked about how difficult it was to truly follow Jesus. They only talked about how to be blessed and victorious and how to go to the next level and how God had a purpose and destiny for my life and how that I was more than a conquerer and... you get the picture, right? Not that any of those things aren’t true, because they are. The only problem is that there’s also difficulty, struggle, hardship, persecution and trials that are also a part of following Jesus as well. 

The thing that I’ve learned is that where I experience the most pain and where I reach the end of my rope and where I can’t see the light at the end of the tunnel... in those places- that’s where I see the hand of God the most. That’s where I see the greatest victories. That’s where I experience His presence and His help in the greatest measure. Not in the good times. Not in the easy times. Not when everything is going smooth. Because let’s face it, we all tend to ‘not’ depend on God when everything’s just clicking along and everything’s good, right? And we tend to ‘not’ have a mindset of “God, I really need you right now” when everything is comfortable and there are no problems on the horizon. 

So even though it feels like breakdown right now, we know that as we press harder into God and continue to rely on Him and His strength- that’s where we’re gonna find the peace and the joy that we so desperately need. 

What about you? How do you handle difficulty? Which path do you usually take? Do you see that you experience God in a mightier way in difficulty or when everything’s going great? Just something to think about...

“Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have it’s full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.”

                                                           James 1:2-4

Hanging Tough,

Jim and MJ

Christmas and Reconciliation

Well, we made it through our 3rd Christmas here in Brazil. The temperatures were in the mid to upper 90’s and the humidity was worse than in Georgia. For real, it was. So, to say the least, it didn’t feel like Christmas at all (because it was so hot). MJ had all of her Christmas decorations up (which looked awesome) but when it’s 89 degrees ‘inside’ your house and you’re drenched in sweat- it’s hard to make your mind think it’s christmastime. We’re used to cold temps at Christmas or even the occasional snow: ) But there’s no chance for that here on the other side of the equator. Oh well...

But one great thing happened for us this year for Christmas. Our oldest adopted son, Marlon, came home for the first time in over a year and a half! 

If you didn't know he was gone and you don’t know what I’m talking about, here’s a couple of blogs for you HERE and HERE.

MJ, Samanta, Marlon and Me after dinner Christmas Eve.

We hadn’t heard from him since he left home in July of 2012’. We had heard stories about where he was and what he was doing (and they weren’t good ones) and the kids would occasionally see him in town, but none of us had any real contact with him at all. Then, out of nowhere, I got a Facebook message from his girlfriend back in October and they wanted to meet me. I went and met with them and it went really well. He was living in a house on the same property as his girlfriend and her parents. He was also going to school at night and working for his girlfriend’s dad during the day. So, even though he wasn’t home with us, I was happy that he wasn’t out running the streets anymore and that he was trying to finish his education. 

Anyway, after that initial meeting, Me and MJ went the next week and met with them for lunch. It was good getting to get reacquainted with our son. We’ve been praying for a year and a half for Marlon. He’s made some bad choices but we believe that he isn’t beyond God’s reach, no matter what he does. So our prayer is that God will continue to pursue him and save him. 

The week before Christmas we received another message from Marlon’s girlfriend (Samanta) saying that he wanted to spend Christmas with us. We weren’t really sure how to respond because Marlon hasn’t seen any of his siblings up close in such a long time and we didn’t know if the holidays was the best time to do it for the first time. But after thinking about it and talking to all the kids we all decided to invite them over for Christmas Eve dinner. So Marlon and Samanta came and had dinner with the whole family. It was actually very nice having all us together again. We looked at old pictures and videos, we laughed and visited for a few hours... it was good.

Marlon and Samanta with Ana, Robert, Gabriel and Diogo- acting crazy (normal) before they went home.

But more important than Marlon being reconciled to us, his family, we want him to be reconciled to God. That’s our main prayer for all of our kids. Sure it’s great that we’re all together and that we all love each other but our kids making Jesus lord of their lives and following Him is by far the most important thing to us as parents. Just because they’re growing up in a ‘ministry family’ doesn’t mean jack. They’ve all got to make the decision on their own. And we’ve got to continually point them to the cross and pray that the Spirit of God pursues them and that He draws them to God. And we as parents have to keep praying until they give their lives to Him.   

Samanta, Marlon, Kevin (Maryssa's 'friend', haha) and Maryssa at a camp
we just held this past weekend for an orphanage from Curitiuba. 

We’re thankful for all of you who have been praying for Marlon. Please continue to do it and we’ll continue to update you on what’s going on his life: )

Passionately Following Jesus,

Jim

Relationships

To us, one of the most important things that we’re doing (besides spreading the Gospel which is paramount in everything we do) is developing real relationships with the children and teenagers that we minister to. And that can’t be done by just seeing them once and then moving on to the next group of kids. So we strive to be around the same kids numerous times over the course of the year. And we’re starting to see amazing results because of this ministry philosophy. 

One of the relationships we have is with a girl named Stefany. We’ve known Stefany for almost 6 years now. She was in the orphanage that we adopted all our kids from when we adopted back in 08.’ We would see her every year when we came back to the orphanage (usually during Spring break mission trips) and it always broke our hearts to see her there year after year. Our hands were full so there was nothing we could do as a family (adoption), which was very frustrating. But we kept in contact and developed a great relationship with her nonetheless.

Me and Stefany at the orphanage back in 2009.'

MJ and Stefany back in 2011' during a visit to the orphanage in Curitiba.

When we moved to Brazil Stefany was turning 15 and was being moved out of the orphanage and into another facility for girls 15-18 yrs. old in a different part of Curitiba. We still maintained contact with her though and MJ started corresponding almost daily with her via email and Facebook. Over the past 2 years we’ve been able to have her out to the camp, at church with us on Sunday and she’s even come with us to minister at another orphanage (actually she ministered with us last weekend at a camp). She tells us that she wants to work with children when she grows up and that what we’re doing has inspired her to do it. It’s crazy... here’s a girl, that even though we couldn’t adopt her like we wanted to, we didn’t give up and we’re still able to impact her life just like she’s one of our daughters. God is so good.

MJ and Stefany at an outreach we did back in December at an orphanage in Columbo. 

Matthew and I were at an orphanage a few weeks ago (that we had just done an outreach at) talking to the director. I was trying to get some feedback about our last event at his facility. When he began talking he said. “we were different from all the other groups that came to do things there.” He said, “the kids love you guys because you’ve developed relationships with them.” When he said it, it was a huge encouragement to me. It’s one thing to have God give you a vision for ministry but it’s totally different when you see how it’s actually working and you get to see the fruit of it. 

The reason I’m mentioning these 2 stories to you is because I think it’s important that you know exactly what we’re doing here in Brazil. Because ultimately it’s because of you, our faithful supporters, that we’re able to do anything here at all. 

Me and Stefany at a camp we just had for an orphanage from Curitiba.
It's amazing to see what an amazing young lady she's grown up to be.

I know what it’s like to give an offering at a church (or to make a donation to a cause) and you always wonder where/what your money was going to do and if it was actually going to make it to what it was intended for. Well, for us the answer is, “yes!” Over two years later, here in Brazil, our goal and mission is still the same;

“To reach the children and teenagers of Brazil with the Gospel of Jesus Christ.”

Thank you for allowing our family to be here bringing the Gospel to these kids (as well as too many more to mention). We’re excited about what 2014’ is going to bring and we’re thankful for every one of you who’ve partnered with us and who allow us to do what we do: )

Love Ya,

Jim, MJ and the Whole Dunn Gang

The End of an Era

You may or may not know this but MJ was born here in Brazil. She‘s the youngest of 4 kids and her parents were missionaries (to Brazil) with Wycliffe Bible Translators back in the late 60‘s and into the late 70’s. They moved back to the States (NC) when MJ was in the 4th grade where their family continued working stateside for Wycliffe.

When MJ was 15 (FYI- we started dating when she was 16!) her and her family moved to Georgia where her dad served as the SE Regional Director for Wycliffe until he retired a few years ago. My father-in-law and my mother-in-law were great examples to all of us kids (the ones born to them and to all of us who married into the family) of what it looked like to faithfully serve God because they had done it consistently over several decades.

So, in 2009’ when they decided that they were coming out of retirement (not that they actually ever slowed down) to move back to the mission field here in Brazil. We were all blown away and in awe- all at the same time. I mean, here was a couple that had finally reached retirement age and had already lived a full life serving Jesus. In my book they didn’t have to do anything else for the Kingdom. And the way I looked at it,  they deserved to just rest, to go fishing, to visit with friends, to sit on their front porch and enjoy each other. They didn’t have to sell all the stuff they had acquired over their lifetime to move back to the mission field... but they did. 

They moved here to the Camp in January of 2010’ where they lived in what we call “Grandma and Papa’s House.” It’s a little house that sits on the hill overlooking the small lake we use for swimming here at the Camp. The house is small by US standards but the view is amazing. Me and MJ would always look across the small valley that separated our 2 houses and see them early in the mornings sitting on their front porch (in their robes) drinking coffee. It was great seeing them just relaxing in the mornings and enjoying life.

Here's 'Grandma and Papa's house. If you look real close you can see my father-in-law sitting on the porch.

This is the view from 'Grandma and Papa's House.

Even though I had the ideas for the camp, my father-in-law was the brains behind how to take the ‘ideas’ and turn them into realities. Everything from remodeling the Pavilion to how to properly construct  the obstacle course (which is one of the main attractions at the Camp now). And then there’s all the maintenance on the property. This place is a maintenance nightmare. As soon as you build something it immediately starts to deteriorate. None of the wood is pressure treated, the elements are brutal, and most of the building materials that we’re use to using in the States aren’t available here. So his knowledge of construction was invaluable. 

Then there’s the moral support that my father-in-law and my mother-in-law offered. It’s been amazing to have them to talk to, to get advice from, to vent to, to help with the kids, to just be there... But that’s all come to an end: (

Our oldest son, Michael, got married back in July and they went home for the wedding. They had planned on staying for 3 months then coming back at the end of November. But on November 17th we received the email that we all suspected would come but that none of us wanted to come. And, in the email, they explained that it was one of the most difficult decisions that they’ve ever had to make but after much prayer and contemplation- they decided that they weren’t coming back to Brazil.

They had decided to remain in the States. It was a difficult decision, but one that totally made sense to all of us. Let’s face it, bottom line- it’s difficult living here. Nothing is easy. The toll that it takes on you physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually is immense. The toll that it takes on all of us (and we’re all in our 40’s) is crazy-difficult. So to be in your 70’s and enduring this kind of hard living is unfathomable to us all. So the decision made sense. But it was painful nonetheless.

Here they are at our oldest son, Michael, and our new daughter-in-law, Sarah's wedding.

The void that it leaves for the rest of us who are still here is huge. Now, all the things that we depended on them for, are rolled back on to us. It’s been an adjustment, that’s for sure. But it’s done one thing for me that’s even bigger... and that’s the whole reason for this blog.

It’s made me thankful for them. Even though they’re not here anymore it’s made me thankful for them. It’s made me thankful for the example that they’ve been for Me, MJ, and our kids. And I want to take this opportunity to publicly thank them for all the help and support that they’ve given to us over the last 26 years that they’ve been in my life. And I want to especially thank them for all the help that they’ve been to us here in Brazil. We couldn’t have done all the things we’ve done here if it weren’t for the two of them. So, “thank you.”

Getting ready to go see the kids sing in a Christmas musical at a church in Jardim Paulista.

I know that we (all of us here in Brazil) feel a great loss. And this blog even seems like a eulogy- but they’re not dead, they’ve just moved. But who says that you have to wait until someone dies before you tell everyone how awesome they are!? Not me. We love and appreciate them and we just want them (and everyone else) to know it. And even though they live in the States now, the little house on the hill is (and always be) referred to as “Grandma and Papa’s House.” We love and miss you guys!

Jim 

Bringing Hope

His smile says it all.
One of the children that received Christmas presents a few weeks ago during our visit to an orphanage
 in Columbo with the Hope Epidemic and one of the Pastors from Graystone Church in Georgia.

A couple of weeks ago we were in several orphanages promoting something that’s very exciting. I wasn’t able to say anything beforehand because, until the meetings took place, we weren’t really sure what the outcome was going to be. But we were in these orphanages (ones that we already have relationships with) trying to initiate something that’s never happened here before. An orphan hosting program.

My good friend, Jono Long with The Hope Epidemic, was here the entire week trying to find orphanages that were interested in allowing American families to host children (from their orphanages) for 4 weeks in the United States. The program is working in Europe, China and Africa but has yet to be developed here in Brazil. 

The way that it works is like this:

A christian family will be matched with a child that is currently in the orphanage. They (the family) will pay for the child to fly to the US and live with their family for 4 weeks (typically during the Christmas season). The child will not only be able to experience a whole new world, but they will also be able to experience what it’s like to be in a family. But here’s the amazing part... 80% of all the children that come to the US on one of these hosting trips becomes adopted. Either by the family hosting the child or by someone who meets the child during the hosting process! And that’s the main goal.

When we presented the program to the directors of the orphanages, they were excited. It was amazing to see how receptive they were and how anxious they were to get the program started. It’s in the planning stages right now and will need to be approved by the judges here in our state, but the goal is to have the program in place within the next few months so that hosting can begin next December! 

Please pray for this program and that it will be a blessing to the children of Brazil.

The other thing that we were doing was launching a child sponsorship program. The way that this works is that a church is matched-up with an orphanage. Then the members of the church adopt the orphanage as their own for a minimum of 2 years. Families within the church are matched with a child and sponsor the child by giving financially (usually $30-35 per month), corresponding by mail/e-mail and then by taking missions trips to the orphanage to see the sponsored child (if possible for the family sponsoring). 

Although the orphanages here in Brazil are well structured, they lack the funding to meet all of the children’s needs. So the financial support, which is minimal by American standards, goes a long way to improve the lives of each child it’s designated for.

And here’s the cool thing, we (Hope and Life Brazil) are here in Brazil and are partnered with The Hope Epidemic. So we’re able to act as a liaison (and accountability) for the children and the orphanages to make sure that the support does exactly what it’s suppose to do- ‘go to helping the children.’ We’re very excited about being able to be involved in this amazing partnership with The Hope Epidemic.

If you or your church has a heart for orphan ministry but don’t know where to start or if you’ve been afraid to invest in any type of orphan care because you weren’t sure that your support was actually going to make it to the children, then I’d recommend that you contact The Hope Epidemic by clicking HERE to find out how you can get involved!

Passionately Following Jesus,

Jim

Thanksgiving and Remembering all the Manna

The kids helping grade and level the are that we are building an outdoor/open air classroom on.

Robert helping me cut some wood for the forms that were used for the posts (footers).

All the posts were harvested from the jungle. Each one weighs over 250lbs.

All the posts installed and braced.

Alympo installing bracing on one of the posts

The finished project before we put down gravel (as the flooring)

It’s Summertime here in Brazil and that means that everything is growing again at a rapid pace (vegetation, that is). And that also means that,... drumroll please.... “it’s weed-eater time!” Yessss! 

In case you didn’t know, we don’t have lawnmowers here, only weed-eaters. Not just us, but everybody. So that means that whether you’re on a maintenance crew for the government maintaining the grass on the highway roadsides, a grounds crew at a local park maintaining football fields, a homeowner cutting the grass at your house or some dude from America trying to maintain 110 acres in the mountains of Terra Boa... it’s all done with weed-eaters!? It doesn’t make much sense from a efficiency standpoint but it is what it is and I try to not be so critical of something that still baffles me.

Anyway, seeing how cutting acres and acres of grass with a gas powered trimmer is pretty mindless, although necessary, when I’m out there weed-eating I have a lot of time to think. And after I get past all the thoughts like, “why am I doing this” or “man, I’ve got way more important things to do” I take advantage of the time to pray and think about things. 

Today, after I got through all the thoughts that involve me feeling sorry for myself, I started thinking about spiritual stuff. I started thinking about the Israelites. Don’t ask me why, I just did. And I was thinking about how God provided manna (food) for them every single day for 40 years. Every day for f-o-r-t-y years! Have you ever thought about that? God sent food for them every... single... day. And it was something manufactured by God Himself and it couldn’t be bought at any store. It was special. And He provided it.

I know that they had to be super-excited at first. To think that ‘the God of everything’ was providing for them daily had to be something that made them feel like He really cared for them, right? And it had to be a constant reminder of the fact that God was their provider every day. But, at some point, the wow factor wore off and it became commonplace. It became ordinary. They even started to get tired of it. 

To me, when I think about it, that’s crazy! God is sending something to them every day and rather than being thankful- they complain. Rather than realizing the magnitude of what’s happening and appreciating the Father’s provision- they murmur. They wanted something different. It makes no sense.

And as I was thinking about how they reacted to what God was doing in their lives, I started to wonder if that type of attitude was in me as well. I mean, there’s no food appearing on the ground for Me, MJ and the Kids everyday, but He does provide for us every day. We have food, a roof over our heads, clothes on our backs, transportation... I mean, it may not be exactly what we want. Sure, it would be nice having a different house. It would be nice having a different vehicle. But really, we’re OK. 

He’s provided everything we need. Not everything we want- but everything we need. So for me to complain about what He’s provided (by wanting something better all the time) and not being content... well, it’s like saying, “you know what God? I don’t think you’re good enough to me. I don’t think what you’re providing is sufficient and I want more.” 

And, if that’s what I’m thinking (because I would actually never say that out loud), doesn’t that make me a lot like the Israelites?

So standing there (with the weed eater strapped to my back) I just began to thank Him for what He’s provided. I thought about all the things we’ve done over the last 2 years here in Brazil and it made me truly thankful to Him. Because even though things aren’t the way I’d want them (in my perfect little world) they are exactly the way that He’s provided for us. And for that I’m thankful: )

What about you? Do you tend to always want something other than what He’s provided? Are you thankful and content with what you have or do you sense that there’s a little bit of that Israelite way of thinking in you as well? It’s definitely something to think about (and if it’s there, it’s something to repent of).

Love Ya,

Jim, MJ and the Kids

PS- I don’t do all the weed-eating by myself. Matthew and Alimpio (our brazilian caretaker) also help. But it’s still painful nonetheless: (