We Loved Brazil

We went to Brazil expecting to be a blessing to others.  We probably were a big help, but the people we met in Brazil blessed us more than we could have ever imagined.  Being there in the jungle, playing with the kids, working hard, ministering to others, playing soccer, falling out of hammocks, being bit by bugs, failing at Portuguese, making bricks, being hot and sweaty, swimming across a river, and getting to know people, were all things on this trip that I will remember and cherish for the rest of my life.  Thank you to everyone for your prayers! - Ryan Morrisett

I loved being in Brasil. It was unbelievable how much the Christians there loved us even though they didn't know us. And that made us want to express our love for them so much more. They were so happy and grateful for what God had given them, and they didn't have a lot. So you can imagine their excitement when we would bring them things like clothes and shoes. And especially the kids, they went crazy when they found out we had toys for them. They cherish every little thing. I miss the Brasilian children and I will always remember what God allowed us to do. I'm so thankful that God gave me the opportunity to go to Brasil. And I thank you all for your prayers and support. - Ethan Rehrig

The trip just showed me how blessed I am and that I take so many things for granted. God has blessed me so that I can bless others.This trip just made me realize that I don't have to go to another country to bless others. I can do it right here in OKC. I hope and pray that God allows me to go on yet another mission trip. I want to thank all the people who sponsored me and thank all the team members for the wonderful time I had! God Bless!  - Tate Bullard

God Knew

God knew what He was doing when He brought seventeen seemingly random people together for a two week stint in the heart of Brazil. Fifteen days that I will never forget, sixteen people I will always love, and not one thing I would go back and change. Thank you to all who gave, thank you to all who prayed and thank you Father, most of all, for allowing us to share in your sovereign plan for the Gospel to go forth to all nations. Praising God for the seeds that were planted... - Lacey Hendrickson

I know without a doubt that God orchestrated every detail of our Brazil trip.  From the canceled flights and twelve hour layovers, to the mosquito bites and falling hammocks.  He knew from the beginning what we would experience on this trip, and while we do not know all the reasons behind those experiences, I am confident they were for our good and His glory.  The best thing about this trip, for me, was watching the students as they poured their lives into all that they did for those two short weeks.  I was continually impressed with their dedication and encouraging attitudes as we faced our work.  What an example they were to me!  I know that trips like this can change lives and perspectives.  I pray that God continues to bring the memories of this time back to our minds as He uses it to mold all of us into the person He wants us to be.  - Tara Rehrig

We had a great...sometimes almost overwhelming...time with the team of 17 people from Christian Heritage Academy in Oklahoma City area.  They were with us for 10 days.  God sent with them some really special young people and school staff, one of the boys who just graduated from high school was Jordan Bowen.  He was so incredibly talented with children and getting them to imitate him in action songs.  Mercy, I wanted to keep him forever.  He is planning to enroll in a Baptist seminary and become a pastor like his father. He´ll be a good one.  One of the young single teachers was Glory Yocum.  She attracted kids to her arms like honey does bees. I had never seen anything like that before as she, and several other girls, would go to a new area and within minutes almost be smothered by children obviously wanting love.  Glory!!!  She walked around with tears in her eyes almost constantly and muttering, "I´ll never be the same again!"

We went to one entirely new and different area of town where we had never been before.  Wagner, with his megaphone, went around around through the poor shacks and down the alleys announcing the meeting.  Over 120 kids and adults came to the soccer field where the team did its presentation and I had the opportunity once again to tell the old, old story of Jesus and His death on the Cross for them. 

We spent two nights five hours by boat up the river at a settlement called Pucallpa (like the city in Peru) and the church there was packed both nights and we were busy speaking at local schools during the day.  Yesterday the team left and they are all back in Oklahoma now...and we are still glowing like those glow sticks they brought down for the kids!!  - Duane Howe

More Thoughts

I am continually amazed how God orchestrates events.  He selected 17 people out of 360 or so individuals to go spend 15 days in Brazil.  It was an amazing collection of individuals.  The funnest part for me was to be able to step back a little bit and watch each individual serve the Lord.  They each worked very hard, had great attitudes and loved on the children.  I was blessed to be with the other 16 individuals. 

Greatest memory has to be the 2 nights sleeping in hammocks in the village and the hike along the river.  I still start laughing when I reflect on the many different funny things that happened during each of those times.

Thanks for a wonderful trip.  - Troop Bullard

The two weeks I spent in Brazil were incredible!  It was my first time to go on a mission trip out of the country and it changed my life.  The Brazilian people inspired a passion within me to do mission work, especially with kids, when I graduate from college.  My favorite part was helping with VBS because we got to spend time loving the kids.  Even though there was a language barrier we could see the joy on their smiling faces when we would play and try to talk with them.   Thank you God for planning each step and bringing open-hearted people across our path.  I’m ready to go back! Love, Lauren Winslow The trip was so great, I experienced God in so many different ways. The things we did and the smiles we saw, and the seeds we planted were what we were there to do. God has blessed the home team tremendously. Thanks guys for supporting us.  -Marci Newman

As We Remember

I had 2 thoughts this trip.  First, Isaiah 52:7 - "How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news."  I loved watching the reactions of the Brazilians as the Gospel was preached.  The were truly grateful to have the opportunity to hear about what Christ had done for us.  Second, the song How Great Thou Art.  It is truly a beautiful country, and I just marvel at everything that God has done.  - Tony Merrell

I think one of the biggest things I learned was that the limitations I think I have are not really all that I can do, especially with God. Everything that I thought I couldn't do, everything that I never would have imagined myself doing; only God knows my true limits. Everything from the hundreds... or thousands... of insects, the heat, the food, the restrooms, the shower (or lack thereof), the airplane cancellations, all of those things are things that I never would have overcome without God. I truly began to see what the real meaning was behind: In God all things are possible. It was the most brutal, most wonderful, and most amazing trip of my life, and I will never be the same again.  - Jordan Crosslin

I will remember...tears filling my eyes at the seemingly oddest moments...totally moved by the Spirit of God as I witnessed His working and His incomprehensive, uncontainable love.  God is LOVE...and oh how He loves the little children of the world...all over the world.  To be offered the incredible privilege of sharing His love with those with whom we couldn't even speak the same language was so eye opening and moving to me...truly revealing that God's love reaches beyond all language barriers!

I will remember...the missionaries who have given their lives to move out of all modern-day conveniences in order to minister to tribal people in the jungle; their zeal for the Gospel is life changing.

And oh - the jungle - I will remember the jungle!  God used our Brazilian guide who only spoke Portuguese to speak to me in a profound way on a path I would have never "chosen" to take.  Praise God that His timing is perfect - and that His path in our lives (even when marked with difficulty) is one that will always take us to places we may never have dreamed we would go, and it is He Who gives the grace and strength to do so, and the joy of His presence as He meets us there.  - Glory Yocum

Some of our Thoughts

"The memories are unforgettable and will remain with me as long as I live!  I pray that the seed we planted in the hearts of each child will continue to grow until God's mission is finally accomplished!"  - Kristen Copeland

“People ask what my favorite thing about Brazil was. I simply reply – just being there. Just being in a different culture, seeing different faces, and most of all using that time to do the work of the Lord was great. The next question is so when do you head back? I say as soon as possible! Haha, I’ll never forget when a girl from the orphanage gave me a kiss on the cheek just because I talked to her and gave her a small bracelet and some candy. I also will never forget how amazing it was to hear the worship songs I usually sing in America sung in a totally different language. It is overwhelming how blessed we were with great weather, missionaries, resources, and a great team. A big thanks goes to God, Who provided so perfectly, and also thanks to our five adult sponsors for taking the time to go with us.” - Madison Baste

"My favorite experience was going to all the VBS with the kids. Getting to know them was great and teaching them what we knew about God and the Bible was one of the coolest things about the trip. Trying to communicate with them and teach them games and songs was a challenge, but it was fun to see them try to figure out what we wanted them to do.The soccer games were fun too! I miss all the little guys and girls already and wish we could have spent one more day with them."  - Karch Bullard

       

We're home!

We've made it home!  Thank you friends and family for all your prayers, encouragement and support!  The Lord did amazing work over the last two weeks.  We've had the opportunity to grow closer to Him and His heart.  There have been many lessons learned and many more to come as we reflect on all that has happened.  We thank Him for giving us the endurance to complete His work with excellence.  And we recognize that the glory of all that we accomplished goes to Him and Him alone.  Thank you for being a part of our adventure.  Praise the Lord, from whom all blessings flow!

*Please check back for some additional sharing in the days to come.  : )

Jungle Days

As we clean, pack and prepare to fly out, we want to share with you some pictures of our last three days in the jungle.  Stories will be coming as we spend our layover hours in the airports ahead of us. 

What an adventure this has been!

Before our four and a half hour boat ride to the village.

Jordan preparing to preach through Duane's interpretation.

VBS - We had close to 200 hundred kids for three hours. 

There teachers took the day off when they knew we were coming!

Beautiful faces, precious souls.

Dinner?

We learned four people is too many for a canoe.  Our poor guide!

Hammocks and mosquito nets all around!  We did not get much sleep in these things.

More VBS!

Our jungle souvenir - mosquito bites!

Finishing Strong!

What an eventful day! We began the day early by going to a Christian school here in the city. It was so encouraging to be around adults who valued education - Christian education. We did our usual set up of singing songs and doing a skit. Once again they were shy at the beginning, but comepletely loose by the end. The leaders made rice pudding for our team and were so kind. They couldn't speak any English, but they still gave us hugs and so many smiles.

We ate downtown again and did a little shopping. Work at the mission house still needed work and we completed everything we started with a little extra. It was amazing to look around the property and see all the the Lord allowed us to accomplish. Who would have though 17 people could turn a whole mission house upside down in an organized manner. We are all different ages with different strengths and weaknesses, yet it worked. The Lord blessed us so much by giving us great weather so that we could work all through the afternoon. We had planned on not being able to do outside work during the afternoons since it gets extremely hot, so we were very thankful. The owner of the mission house came in and kept saying "Wow, wow, wow!" That is exactly what we had hoped for.

Our last VBS session in the city was tonight, and it went much better than expected. Our missionary said it would probably be about 15 kids because it was their first time working there. Little did he know that about 150 people would show up! Isn't that amazing? We looked around and people of almost every age were there. It was probably the largest group of teenagers that had shown up to one of the sessions. One of the local pastors is starting to get a weekly teaching session going for that group of people so you can keep them in your prayers.

Afterwords, we went to the missionaries house to eat and socialize for a bit. It was so encouraging. Our missionaries (Duane and Nadine Howe had their two sons and their two wives with them tonight who are all missionaries, too). Too be in the presence of Brazilian missionaries, and Brazilian Christians at the same time is amazing. Some of the people from the church was attended last night showed up and sang worship songs to us. Even though we don't know what they are saying exactly, we understand we are all praising the same Lord. Then, a few of them gave us ride on their motorcycles!! It was so much fun.


Tomorrow we head into the jungle at 9am, so there won't be any posts for the next few days. We will take a four hour boat ride into to our location and will spend time with a tribe there. We are hoping to help a pastor there. Please pray for our safety and that we would get some sleep - we are sleeping in hammocks! We are pumped!! Thank you so much for all of your prayers and support - God is so good and we see His hand in so much here.

Brazilian Hospitality

We woke up to a warm breakfast and began our day with a huge crowd of kids that our missionary usually works with. We sang many songs to them and they sang to us! A man shared a message and the kids paid close attention. We passed out balloons and bracelets; the kids were so excited. They would swarm whoever had the bag of goodies. At one point, one of the students was handing out the bracelets and a child wouldn't let go of the students hand until they were sure the bracelet was theirs. The littlest things delight them. We then ate lunch downtown; there was only one place opened because it was Sunday. It suprised some of us that everything was closed. We weren't expecting the day of rest to be observed here.

We then came home since nothing was open and rested or played outside with some kids from a local church. Tonight was our night to go to a church service. It was incredible! We got to here them sing "I Surrender All" and many other songs in Portuguese. We read a few different passages in Psalms and Acts and ended with our whole team coming to the front of the church to sing. We started out with the Hokie Pokie (yes, our missionary wanted us to sing it), and ended with Amazing Grace and How Great Thou Art. They actually started to sing along in Portuguese on How Great Thou Art - that was amazing. To sing along with other believers in a totally different language is so neat. We thank God for that oppertunity. It was amazing to get a glimps of Philipians 2:10-11 "so that at the name of Jesus EVERY KNEE WILL BOW...and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."

Afterwords, some of the people wanted to greet us. We began shaking hands and saying hello; it turned into hugs and kisses on the cheek! These people barely even know us, but we already have a special place in their hearts because we bow to the same Creator. They weren't afraid to bend over backwards if we needed anything; they wanted to make us feel completely welcome and loved. How is it that a people who seem less fortunate are actually the ones teaching us about loving others? Just to see them smile at us is enough. Then, they bring us things like ice cream! It's amazing how giving they are. They asked if anyone in the group played guitar or drums. Candice, Jordan Bowen, and Ethan gave them a great show! People kept wanting more and more songs to be played. It was so much fun. We went outside and one of the singers rode up in his motorcycle and let Tony drive it around the block!

As we came home tonight, we decided we had much to learn from these people. Tomorrow we plan to a school to visit 300 students, finish work up work around the mission house, host another VBS session, and then will end the day at the missionary's house. Please pray that we are open to whatever God has for us here; may our prayer be "Thy will be done."

Good night friends and family!

Three VBS sessions and a little bit of shopping!

We had a very exciting day! We had three VBS sessions. We visited two new places, and then we went back to our first location - Stilt City. Our first session involved an exciting adventure through a sewage system and then into one of the homes of a Christian man our missionary has worked with for a long time. Kristen Copeland and Jordan Bowen did a great skit describing salvation.

We then had an amazing lunch downtown. A huge covered patio had little kitchens all around it. They make the food right there and it was great! We had rice, chicken or beef, salad, and beans. We did a little bit of shopping and bought mosquito nets and hammocks for the trip we hope to take into the jungle in a few days. A lot of us also bought Brazil shirts. GO YELLOW AND GREEN!

We came home for a bit and then headed out for our next two sessions. Our first session was very encouraging. Two Brazilian women had lessons and songs prepared that talked about Paul and Saul. The kids sang and did motions. They were so happy and delighted to give us a little taste of their world. We then played games and headed out. Our final stop for the day was Stilt City. This time, the children greeted us with many hugs and smiles. They were so happy to see us again.

It's so interesting because some of the kids are sort of open when we first meet them. By the end of the sessions they are climbing in our laps, giving us huge hugs, and even giving us kisses on the cheek. God has really blessed us with a group of open hearts. We just want to share the Gospel and love like Christ loves us.

We are all doing well health wise and have shared many laughs. The freezing cold showers are now becoming somewhat nice due to the hotter weather. We also have learned who not to follow when trying to get around the city. This came about when the whole group almost got lost last night trying to get home, and then a smaller group got lost tonight while running around the city. Thankfully, we don't hold grudges:)

Thank you so much for your prayers!

New people and new food!

We again had great weather! The Lord has definitely blessed us. Because the weather has been so nice, we have been able to work longer than we expected. Some of us visited the orphanage, Jessica and Jordan Bowen attempted to make bricks with Coach Troop and Coach Tony, painting continued, volleyball games against the Brazilians were played, much laundary was done, and we all dined on Brazilian pizza and ice cream!

TIME FOR BED!...not all of us are talented enough to sleep with machetes ;)

The first day of work!

Today was our first day to get our hands a little dirty! We began repair/updates on the house, had our first VBS class, and some people began making bricks!

The house repairs consisted of cleaning the outside of the house (sweeping and sanding the walls), painting the house and the four smaller buildings around it, repairing the laudary house (sawing new posts to hold up the new nets that act as windows), and cleaning the windows.

To get home, ten of us (Duane drove and Madison is next to Glory) piled into a five person car!:

We had a great first day of work. The weather was cool and we got a lot done. Tomorrow, we will finish up the house, start some new painting, visit a seminary, make more bricks, and some will be going to a small orphanage.

WE MADE IT TO CRUZEIRO DE SOL!!

After....

• 17 travelers
• 7 flights
• 1 mistaken identity for Marci
• 1 cancelled flight
• 5 days of travel
• 1 explanation of how to light a match under water from Kristen
• 3 time zones 7 different times
• 17 cancelled tickets
• 1 Brazilian BBQ
•  8 airports
• 2 skipped meals for Jessica
• 1 visit to Sao Paulo
• 6 boys with 6 machetes
• multiple searches for Eathan and Ryan
• 4 missionary hosts
• 5 airport meals
• 1 roll of duct tape used on Tara's suitcase
• 1 missionary house
• 1 early morning shower (2am) for a very confused Karch
• 5 cardboard boxes not marked fragile
• 1 awkward taxi ride for Jordan Bowen
• 22 bags
• 1 visit to Manaus
• 47 hours of flight and layovers
• 28 games of spades
• 2 bouncy balls
• 1 confiscated and popped bouncy ball
• 5 scanty pat downs
• 1 visit to Salt Lake City
• 8 swollen ankles
• 2 showers
• 15 pounds of American snacks
• 4 miles of touring Manaus
• 1 visit to JFK airport
• 2 life-threatening taxis
• 1 Brazilian couple asking where Candice's parents were
• 153 airplane snacks eaten
• 2 missed wake up calls
• 1/2 gallon of water chugged at security

WE FINALLY MADE IT TO CRUZEIRO DE SOL!!

    Thank you so much for all of your prayers. We had a great 5 days of travel but we are excited to get to work here in city. We were welcomed by a home-cooked Brazilian soup (fantastic!) and enjoyed a couple games of volleyball and soccer. We also drank fresh coconut juice! (Sorry for the sideways views):

Thanks again for all of your support and prayers. Tomorrow we start working and will host our first VBS session with some of the kids. We plan on playing games, having a message, and possibly sharing some of our testimonies. Our missionaries told us that they are extremely open to the Gospel right now (amazing!), so we have a great oppertunity at our hands.

"Let the poeples praise You, O God; 

Let all the peoples praise You."

Psalm 67:3

A day in Manaus

Hey family and friends! We have had a terrific day in Manaus. We woke up this morning to a good breakfast at the hotel we stayed at, and then we made our way to the airport so that we could fly from Sao Paulo to Manaus. This is Sao Paulo:

We then went to Manaus and spent the day touring it because our final flight doesn't leave till tomorrow.

Some of us on the flight to Manaus:

The mission house we stayed at in Manaus:

We went touring Manaus and found incredible bananas at the market (the boys also bought machetes that came in hand with some coconuts later):

After the market we have Brazilian BBQ at Rei Do Churrasco, but we had to pile into taxis to get there:

We saw a very famous opera house while we were downtown, too. Then, we ate and went back to the mission house for a comfy nights rests. Thank you for your prayers. Please continue to pray that we make our flight tomorrow and can get to our final destination: Cruzeiro de Sol.

Day 3 Adventures

We arrived in Sao Paulo to find out:


While here, the Lord was used a couple of us to help one of His lost children:


We thank all of you for your prayers. Although this hasn't been the ideal way of getting to our destination, we have had fun! We were able to see and experience new things, and we have also got to be a part of a sinner repenting. God is so good.

The newest plan is that we will fly out of Sao Paulo to Manaus at ten Monday morning. Once we arrive in Manaus, we will have to wait there for our flight to Cruzeiro that is at ten Tuesday morning. Please be praying we get there soon! As of now, we should be in our final destination Tuesday afternoon.

Day 1 cont.

At dinner Coach Troop explained our travel plans! Crazy fun!



We also found ways to occupy our time while in the airport

Travel Days Continued

Travel Days

Success!  We have now all made it out of Oklahoma!  However, we are further from our destination then when we started.  Oh well, small steps.

Group one, consisting of the sponsors (minus Lacey) and the boys (minus Ryan), left OKC this morning at 9:15 and are currently enjoying a twelve hour layover in Salt Lake City.  We've already visited the Temple Square and the Mormon Tabernacle.  People keep asking us why we have our pillows.  : )

We're now relaxing at Starbucks, catching up on some sleep, loading up on caffeine and waiting on group two to arrive.

Group two, consisting of all the girls, Lacey, and Ryan, left OKC at 2:00 this afternoon and will arrive in Salt Lake City at 3:30 (SLC time).  As soon as they arrive, we will join up and spend even more time enjoying the city before our flight leaves tonight.

In a round about kind of way, we will eventually end up in Brazil sometime tomorrow.  Our current flight schedule is as follows:

May 29 - Salt Lake City to NYC Kennedy - DL 1002  11:45 pm - 6:11 am
May 30 - NYC Kennedy to Sao Paulo - JJ 8083  9:25 am - 8:25 pm
May 30 - Sao Paulo to Manaus - G3 1704  9:10 pm - 11:59 pm

From Manaus, we will fly to Cruzeiro.  However, right now we have not been able to reschedule that flight.  We may have to spend a little longer in Manaus than we planned.  But so far nothing has gone as planned, so we're not worried!

*As soon as group two arrives in Salt Lake City, we'll have pictures of their adventures to share here too.