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Tuesday, July 10, 2012
Monday, July 2, 2012
It all comes crashing down - Sunday, May 13
I believe I have been dragging my feet on updatin my blog of this day. I'm not a touchy feely sort of person. "Feelings" are not my strong point.....but this day, I felt more emotion in my life than I had in a really long time. Hopefully, I can convey them in a way that will be understood.
Here we go......
We left Caribi during breakfast this morning. We had to get an early start so we could get to both unscheduled villages today. It took about an hour to get there, but we had to go slow – you could definitely tell we were getting into the narrow parts of the river. The tree tops that were underwater were very close to the boat. We took it easy, but still got to Monte das Oliveras there in plenty of time.
We could not pull all the way into the village - the shore was pretty shallow so the hull would get stuck, so we pulled up as close as we could. The Brazilian workers got out ( I mean jumped into the Amazon and swam) to attach the boat to some trees and to make a sort of "plank" that the people could board the ship on.
The people here were different. The village was different. Right off the bat I noticed a huge difference. Look at the picture above - do you see anything missing? Livestock – all the other villages we had been to at this point had animals running around – goats, chickens, roosters, dogs, baby chicks. This village had nothing – well, they had one very malnourished dog. It had a very erie feeling....almost a feeling of constant dred among these people. NO ONE smiled, they made very little eye contact. They were hopeless - there was no other way to say or describe this.
Earl had told us about this little boy they met the first time they went to this village that was 6 months old and weighed 4 pounds. Can you imagine??? 4 pounds at 6 months old! We ended up seeing him and he was now 2 years old and weighed 14 pounds. He has a little brother we is 9 months old and weighs 18!
Earl and Ruth Ann gave his mother and father formula for him for a year. Ruth Ann said this is the best she has seen him look. The BEST? This is the BEST???? How can this be? His little brother was a little chunker. This little boy was miserable. My heart broke for him. All I wanted to do was help him - but I could do nothing.
All of the villages had their share of couples who varied wildly in age, but this village had one that was still a bit shocking to me. Dad was 47, mom was 26 and they had 8 children! I wonder how old she was when she had her first?
The last family of the day broke my heart. The mom had a three year old and then 16 month boy-girl twins. Ruth Ann told me a story about this lady. Last year, she watched this family arrive by boat. Mom had a 2 year and 8 month old twins. The father left them in the boat and expected Mom to get them all out and onto the medical boat. I thought....ok, how did she do that? Anyway, as she was collecting her medicine from the pharmacy, she tol Ruth Ann she might be pregnant. I offered to hold her son since another lady, Barbara, was already holding the little girl. She passed him through the pharmacy window. His name was Luiz. He was beautiful. He was super sweet, and surprisingly calm. He had noproblems with me holding him. I felt all warm inside. After a moment, he put his head on my shoulder and cuddled up in my neck. Do you remember holding a newborn and they just happen to find the right place where they can put their head where it is under your chin, yet still on your neck? That is where is laid. I think I fell in love with this sweet thing! I had to stop what I was doing. I rubbed his back and he continued to lay there and I continued to rub his back and sing gently in his ear. We did this until Mom came back. Mom was not pregnant - just extremly malnourished. Wow, that was an eye opener. Earl said she was asking to trade fruit for milk. Apparently a couple of the villagers were asking to trade. Earl said they can’t start doing that – it will lead to a slipperly slope. I felt myself instantly get angry. I was thinking, "You know this woman and her family AND the village are starving but you refuse to do anything!" Then, I realized.....he was right. Remember, this was the village that "heard" we were around and radioed - did I really think we could trade with them and it wouldn't turn out that allt he villages would want to do this? Reality #1 - this really sucks! The feeling I absolutely abhore feeling is - helplessness! There was NOTHING I could do. NOTHING, and that is a horrible feeling. I am a do-er by nature. There is no such thing as no - you just have to find a way to YES!
The mom had her hands full, so I carried the little boy out for her. I didn’t want to let him go! He was so comfortable in my arms and I was comfortable with him in my arms. I followed her very slowly to the end of the plank. She turned around and held out her arms. He did not lean to her like I would have thought, so I had to lean for the both of us to get him back to her. When I walked back up the plank, Sharon said, "Oh, that was the mom who told me I could keep him and take him back to the states with me." Of course, I started crying. I was hoping that she was joking, but by some of the other comments, I'm not too sure.
We did not get out and have a service at this village. And again, I got very angry. As I was trying to hold back my tears, I was thinking, why not get out and share Christ with these people? Of ALL the villages, they needed him the most! This was a bad call......bad, bad call. Although, it was probably a good thing because I would have really wanted to take him home after spending an hour or two with him in my arms!
Here we go......
We left Caribi during breakfast this morning. We had to get an early start so we could get to both unscheduled villages today. It took about an hour to get there, but we had to go slow – you could definitely tell we were getting into the narrow parts of the river. The tree tops that were underwater were very close to the boat. We took it easy, but still got to Monte das Oliveras there in plenty of time.
This is one of the first homes in the village - I think there might be 6 or 7 total.
We could not pull all the way into the village - the shore was pretty shallow so the hull would get stuck, so we pulled up as close as we could. The Brazilian workers got out ( I mean jumped into the Amazon and swam) to attach the boat to some trees and to make a sort of "plank" that the people could board the ship on.
The people here were different. The village was different. Right off the bat I noticed a huge difference. Look at the picture above - do you see anything missing? Livestock – all the other villages we had been to at this point had animals running around – goats, chickens, roosters, dogs, baby chicks. This village had nothing – well, they had one very malnourished dog. It had a very erie feeling....almost a feeling of constant dred among these people. NO ONE smiled, they made very little eye contact. They were hopeless - there was no other way to say or describe this.
Earl had told us about this little boy they met the first time they went to this village that was 6 months old and weighed 4 pounds. Can you imagine??? 4 pounds at 6 months old! We ended up seeing him and he was now 2 years old and weighed 14 pounds. He has a little brother we is 9 months old and weighs 18!
This is the him - the 2 year old who weighs 14 pounds.
Earl and Ruth Ann gave his mother and father formula for him for a year. Ruth Ann said this is the best she has seen him look. The BEST? This is the BEST???? How can this be? His little brother was a little chunker. This little boy was miserable. My heart broke for him. All I wanted to do was help him - but I could do nothing.
All of the villages had their share of couples who varied wildly in age, but this village had one that was still a bit shocking to me. Dad was 47, mom was 26 and they had 8 children! I wonder how old she was when she had her first?
The last family of the day broke my heart. The mom had a three year old and then 16 month boy-girl twins. Ruth Ann told me a story about this lady. Last year, she watched this family arrive by boat. Mom had a 2 year and 8 month old twins. The father left them in the boat and expected Mom to get them all out and onto the medical boat. I thought....ok, how did she do that? Anyway, as she was collecting her medicine from the pharmacy, she tol Ruth Ann she might be pregnant. I offered to hold her son since another lady, Barbara, was already holding the little girl. She passed him through the pharmacy window. His name was Luiz. He was beautiful. He was super sweet, and surprisingly calm. He had noproblems with me holding him. I felt all warm inside. After a moment, he put his head on my shoulder and cuddled up in my neck. Do you remember holding a newborn and they just happen to find the right place where they can put their head where it is under your chin, yet still on your neck? That is where is laid. I think I fell in love with this sweet thing! I had to stop what I was doing. I rubbed his back and he continued to lay there and I continued to rub his back and sing gently in his ear. We did this until Mom came back. Mom was not pregnant - just extremly malnourished. Wow, that was an eye opener. Earl said she was asking to trade fruit for milk. Apparently a couple of the villagers were asking to trade. Earl said they can’t start doing that – it will lead to a slipperly slope. I felt myself instantly get angry. I was thinking, "You know this woman and her family AND the village are starving but you refuse to do anything!" Then, I realized.....he was right. Remember, this was the village that "heard" we were around and radioed - did I really think we could trade with them and it wouldn't turn out that allt he villages would want to do this? Reality #1 - this really sucks! The feeling I absolutely abhore feeling is - helplessness! There was NOTHING I could do. NOTHING, and that is a horrible feeling. I am a do-er by nature. There is no such thing as no - you just have to find a way to YES!
The mom had her hands full, so I carried the little boy out for her. I didn’t want to let him go! He was so comfortable in my arms and I was comfortable with him in my arms. I followed her very slowly to the end of the plank. She turned around and held out her arms. He did not lean to her like I would have thought, so I had to lean for the both of us to get him back to her. When I walked back up the plank, Sharon said, "Oh, that was the mom who told me I could keep him and take him back to the states with me." Of course, I started crying. I was hoping that she was joking, but by some of the other comments, I'm not too sure.
We did not get out and have a service at this village. And again, I got very angry. As I was trying to hold back my tears, I was thinking, why not get out and share Christ with these people? Of ALL the villages, they needed him the most! This was a bad call......bad, bad call. Although, it was probably a good thing because I would have really wanted to take him home after spending an hour or two with him in my arms!
This is Luiz.
This little boy - gorgeous and sweet - is the vehicle that God used to break my heart for what breaks his. I went back to the cabin and cried for an hour. I was finally able to dry my eyes long enough to write a prayer:
"Lord, you have used this little boy to touch me in a way that I truly feel my heart is broken. I want to help him, I want to take him home with me. Why, Lord? Why all of this? How do you want me to proceed with this new information? I need your spirit and your strength to do and proceed in your will moving forward. My job, my money, my stress, my house, my car, my clothes...nothing compares to his fight for food and for life. Where do you want me to go? Where do you want me to proceed? What does this look like in our life?"
ADOPTION.
Saturday, May 12th
We woke up in the same village as yesterday and had breakfast, devotions and another clinic. It was pretty busy, but we were done pretty quickly.
We left about 10:30 and arrived at Caribi about 11:45. We ate lunch and then opened the clinic about 1:30. We all thought that we wouldn’t be at this village very long because there was NO ONE there. Well, that all changed in about 20 minutes. This was by far the busiest we have been. The people from the neighboring village, Cesareia, came over as well as the people in the village where we actually pulled in at. These people were very sick and we handed out a lot of antibiotics. It seemed like we kept treating and treating and treating. The doctor that was supposed to come on this trip fell and either hurt his knee or broke soemthing, I can't remember. We have an RN and an OT - so, it has been rather difficult to diagnos some of the issues. The nurse was great - but she was an ICU nurse, not a family practice nurse! In the end we all pulled together and helped as many people as we could.
EXCITING! A village farther up river, where we had not planned to go, radioed down because they “heard” the medical boat was close. They asked us to come saying they were very sick and needed us. This is an awesome testament about how valuable the work Earl and Ruth Ann have done here. The people “hear” even though there are no telephones! Another village radioed as well and asked us to come there. Two villages that were not on the list needed us. How cool!
The church service tonight was a small one, but it was a lot of fun. I am beginning to get the picture – cater to the children and the parents will come. The service was a bit different, Flavia told the same story, but in a different way, so it still held our attention. Flavia had everyone sing Happy Birthday to Cathy in Portuguese. It was very cool. I think she wanted to cry….
We had Brazilian "Pizza" for dinner tonight. And it was very....interesting! It was a pizza crust with spam like meat, polka keilbosa, peas, corn, cheese, onions and olives. I chocked it down, but it wasn't as bad as I had originially thought. The Brazilians put ketchup and mayo on as a topping as well.
In some ways I feel like I have been here forever and in others it still feels like I have just arrived!
We left about 10:30 and arrived at Caribi about 11:45. We ate lunch and then opened the clinic about 1:30. We all thought that we wouldn’t be at this village very long because there was NO ONE there. Well, that all changed in about 20 minutes. This was by far the busiest we have been. The people from the neighboring village, Cesareia, came over as well as the people in the village where we actually pulled in at. These people were very sick and we handed out a lot of antibiotics. It seemed like we kept treating and treating and treating. The doctor that was supposed to come on this trip fell and either hurt his knee or broke soemthing, I can't remember. We have an RN and an OT - so, it has been rather difficult to diagnos some of the issues. The nurse was great - but she was an ICU nurse, not a family practice nurse! In the end we all pulled together and helped as many people as we could.
EXCITING! A village farther up river, where we had not planned to go, radioed down because they “heard” the medical boat was close. They asked us to come saying they were very sick and needed us. This is an awesome testament about how valuable the work Earl and Ruth Ann have done here. The people “hear” even though there are no telephones! Another village radioed as well and asked us to come there. Two villages that were not on the list needed us. How cool!
The church service tonight was a small one, but it was a lot of fun. I am beginning to get the picture – cater to the children and the parents will come. The service was a bit different, Flavia told the same story, but in a different way, so it still held our attention. Flavia had everyone sing Happy Birthday to Cathy in Portuguese. It was very cool. I think she wanted to cry….
We had Brazilian "Pizza" for dinner tonight. And it was very....interesting! It was a pizza crust with spam like meat, polka keilbosa, peas, corn, cheese, onions and olives. I chocked it down, but it wasn't as bad as I had originially thought. The Brazilians put ketchup and mayo on as a topping as well.
In some ways I feel like I have been here forever and in others it still feels like I have just arrived!
Friday, June 29, 2012
Friday, May 11th
We opened clinic pretty early – 8:45. This was also the quickest clinic. Seemed everyone was there and waiting to be seen. We had a little service in the school and it seemed that every child was there. Some adults came too. We sang our songs in Portugese and the villagers sang some songs in English. I held this adorable baby boy. So sweet!
I am amazed at how content these children are! He let out just a little cry towards the end and his mama knew he was hungry.
Here is the portch with a couple of their animals
After service we left and ate an early lunch. We traveled to the next village Jacarequara. They tried to go to this village the last trip but no one was there. It seems they had all gone to the city for their monthly trip to pick up supplies and the little bit they get from the government. We pulled in and this was the WORST village by far that we had been to!
Trash was strewn about everywhere and the stench of urine was overwhelming at times. No one waved to us like they did at previous villages. It was an erie feeling – especially seeing how large the village was. We definitely did not feel welcome. The green house in the above pictures actually shut all of their windows and the door when we pulled up.....very creepy feeling. We opened the clinic up at 2, but didn’t get anyone in until 2:30. Apparently, they had to clean the church so the people filling out the medical cards could sit down and register the people. It was bad! Once the clinic started rolling it was VERY BUSY! The amount of people that came was probably double what we had done so far. Clinic was over about 5 and Ruth Ann and I had to stocked the pharmacy because it was depleted in a big way. Earl said we were having church at 7. Kathy and I went exploring – just a bit off the boat. This one little girl walked by me and grabbed my hand and kissed it. She was so cute! This village was not like the others – these people didn’t seem “happy”. You could see the hard life on their faces. The kids seemed very happy in church. I think it is Earl’s way with the kids – he makes them feel loved and gives them hope. Hardly any parents came – I think 3 and there was probably 25 – 30 kids.
Earl & Ruth Ann have not been coming to this village for very long and they do not have a pastor here. You can most definitely tell! No hope in their faces. Flavia told the story about Noah and the ark – of course it was all in Portugese, but you could tell what she was talking about.
Over dinner, Earl tried to trick everyone that she was really talking about Jonah and the whale. I think he actually got one of the few guys that came on the medical part. It was pretty funny! Earl did warn us to lock our doors this night, but compared with how I felt when we arrived at the village, I was pleasantly surprised by how much fun I had there and at the service. It was a good day!
Should I review the shower again?
Cold, Colder or Coldest.....take your pick!
Isn't he a cutie pie????
I am amazed at how content these children are! He let out just a little cry towards the end and his mama knew he was hungry.
Thatched Home - with covered portch
Here is the portch with a couple of their animals
After service we left and ate an early lunch. We traveled to the next village Jacarequara. They tried to go to this village the last trip but no one was there. It seems they had all gone to the city for their monthly trip to pick up supplies and the little bit they get from the government. We pulled in and this was the WORST village by far that we had been to!
See how flooded this village is? The river is almost to the homes!
The boat with the tarps is a home.
Notice the satellite dish? How does that even WORK? Those are NOT power lines like we have in America - they are generator lines. They get generator power a couple of hours a day - usually when it is dark.
This boy is brushing his teeth so he can come in and get his teeth checked by the dentist! Notice the water.....later, many kids were taking their bath at this same spot!
Trash was strewn about everywhere and the stench of urine was overwhelming at times. No one waved to us like they did at previous villages. It was an erie feeling – especially seeing how large the village was. We definitely did not feel welcome. The green house in the above pictures actually shut all of their windows and the door when we pulled up.....very creepy feeling. We opened the clinic up at 2, but didn’t get anyone in until 2:30. Apparently, they had to clean the church so the people filling out the medical cards could sit down and register the people. It was bad! Once the clinic started rolling it was VERY BUSY! The amount of people that came was probably double what we had done so far. Clinic was over about 5 and Ruth Ann and I had to stocked the pharmacy because it was depleted in a big way. Earl said we were having church at 7. Kathy and I went exploring – just a bit off the boat. This one little girl walked by me and grabbed my hand and kissed it. She was so cute! This village was not like the others – these people didn’t seem “happy”. You could see the hard life on their faces. The kids seemed very happy in church. I think it is Earl’s way with the kids – he makes them feel loved and gives them hope. Hardly any parents came – I think 3 and there was probably 25 – 30 kids.
This man and his wife were two of the only adults at the church service. He is one of the only people who profess to be Christians at this village.
Earl & Ruth Ann have not been coming to this village for very long and they do not have a pastor here. You can most definitely tell! No hope in their faces. Flavia told the story about Noah and the ark – of course it was all in Portugese, but you could tell what she was talking about.
Over dinner, Earl tried to trick everyone that she was really talking about Jonah and the whale. I think he actually got one of the few guys that came on the medical part. It was pretty funny! Earl did warn us to lock our doors this night, but compared with how I felt when we arrived at the village, I was pleasantly surprised by how much fun I had there and at the service. It was a good day!
Should I review the shower again?
Thursday, June 28, 2012
Thursday, May 10th
We ate breakfast again around 7am and had our devotionals. We are studying Galatians 1 and 5. After breakfast and devotionals, we left the construction crew at the village (with no interpreter!) and began traveling to the next village – Bom Jesus.
This village was very nice – it was clean, the people were very friendly and the homes were painted. It had a sort of appeal to it. The homes will still "shacks" by American standards, but they were much nicer. The village had some grass This village also had a rudimentary system of running water and even a water purifying system. The water purfying system was not cost effective, so they have been unable to take soemthing like that it other villages.
After we toured the village we opened the clinic. We gave out a lot of pain relievers, antacids and vitamins. Everyone looked relatively well here. We did give out some baby aspirin. They only way the boat treats high blood pressure is with baby aspirin because they can not guarantee when they will be back and you don’t want people to have a prescription for something like that and then all of a sudden stop it. We did see way too many young girls with babies – it wasn’t any easier at this village than it was at the last!
We left this village later than we expected. On our way to the next village, I was told a story about a mother who had alot of children. Apparently, she was "done" taking care of her 12 year old daughter - just couldn't handle it anymore, so she found her a man. I don't even need to tell you what happened becasue you already know......
We had wanted to get to the next village in time to have an afternoon clinic, but, it didn’t turn out that we could. We arrived in Caiaue close to dusk, so we got out of the boat and went exploring. This village was pretty nice as well. Apparently it is a growing village because they are making more houses. Some houses here had thatched roofs and others had the common tin. I couldn’t believe it, but one home had a TV! The school building here looked like a school – it had artwork up and around the walls, it had desks and chairs and a dry erase board. Brazil has 3 school sessions per day – morning, afternoon and evening. Everyone was so infatuated with us that we made them late for school. Earl finally ushered them off with promises that we would see them in the morning.
We got back on the boat and ate dinner. Earl also made us come up to the top deck so we could practice our singing!!! Yeah! I love to sing in English, better yet in Portugese! I braved the cold shower....it still is not any easier....
No wildlife today....the pink Amazon dolphin eludes me. I think I am the only one who has not seen it! Seriously!!
This village was very nice – it was clean, the people were very friendly and the homes were painted. It had a sort of appeal to it. The homes will still "shacks" by American standards, but they were much nicer. The village had some grass This village also had a rudimentary system of running water and even a water purifying system. The water purfying system was not cost effective, so they have been unable to take soemthing like that it other villages.
After we toured the village we opened the clinic. We gave out a lot of pain relievers, antacids and vitamins. Everyone looked relatively well here. We did give out some baby aspirin. They only way the boat treats high blood pressure is with baby aspirin because they can not guarantee when they will be back and you don’t want people to have a prescription for something like that and then all of a sudden stop it. We did see way too many young girls with babies – it wasn’t any easier at this village than it was at the last!
We left this village later than we expected. On our way to the next village, I was told a story about a mother who had alot of children. Apparently, she was "done" taking care of her 12 year old daughter - just couldn't handle it anymore, so she found her a man. I don't even need to tell you what happened becasue you already know......
We had wanted to get to the next village in time to have an afternoon clinic, but, it didn’t turn out that we could. We arrived in Caiaue close to dusk, so we got out of the boat and went exploring. This village was pretty nice as well. Apparently it is a growing village because they are making more houses. Some houses here had thatched roofs and others had the common tin. I couldn’t believe it, but one home had a TV! The school building here looked like a school – it had artwork up and around the walls, it had desks and chairs and a dry erase board. Brazil has 3 school sessions per day – morning, afternoon and evening. Everyone was so infatuated with us that we made them late for school. Earl finally ushered them off with promises that we would see them in the morning.
We got back on the boat and ate dinner. Earl also made us come up to the top deck so we could practice our singing!!! Yeah! I love to sing in English, better yet in Portugese! I braved the cold shower....it still is not any easier....
No wildlife today....the pink Amazon dolphin eludes me. I think I am the only one who has not seen it! Seriously!!
Monday, June 25, 2012
Wednesday, May 9th
We stopped at Sao Sebastian around 3 in the morning to pick up the dentist, his dental assistant and two nurses that the hospital was providing for this trip. The nurses were providing the flu vaccine for the elderly and the very young.
When I awoke around 6:30, we were still traveling to the first village. Breakfast is always promptly at 7am. There were so many people on this boat that a lot of us had to eat up on the top deck. While we were eating, we heard this aweful noise. It sounded like a wild boar. I could not believe how loud it was – I was almost frightened. We were all searching the jungle to see what it was – finally we spotted it! It was a red howler monkey. I didn’t think a monkey could make all that noise and at that volume! We also saw multiple parrots and McCaws. Pretty cool!
Around mid morning we pulled into our first village - Araras.
This village seemed small. We opened the clinic up about 10:30. Everyone gets vitamins and de-wormer. My first real eye-opener was the 12 year old girl who came up by herself. She was beautiful! Her card indicated that she needed pre-natal vitamins. I looked at Ruth Ann while she was talking to the girl and she confirmed that she was pregnant. I was shocked. I had already seen other girls 16, 17, 18 that were pregnant, but I could not get over the fact that she was 12. I just could not get over it the rest of the day. I mourned for her - I wish I could explain what it was like - she hung out with the children during the day. She still "played" with the other girls her age. I just couldn't get over it. I kept coming back to her. 12 years old!
When we were done with the clinic we got off the boat and explored the village. The kids flock to you and start talking to you in Portugese and you begin to feel really confused. You want to talk to them, but they can’t understand you.
A couple of us played soccer with some little girls. Of course the village had a soccer field! We are in Brazil after all! The other thing that struck me was that the people in this village looked happy. The kids seemed content and people didn’t look miserable – which is what I was expecting. I think about my boys and how they would not know what to do with themselves. Sharon was a big hit because she was talking pictures of the kids and showing them their pictures.
Some of the construction crew left when we got there to go pick up the wood for the church. When they got back, we all helped unload it. I didn’t think we were going to be able to do it, but finally, we got all the boards off that little boat!
Not long after, we had a church service with the villagers. To see the way Earl interacted with the kids was amazing! They all loved him! We also had to sing the song that Earl had, taught us in Portuguese to the villagers.
Little did I know we would be singing more and more and more in the days to come!
After church, we headed back to the boat for a late dinner. I think it was 9pm...As I reflect on this day, it amazes me at how happy these people are with nothing. The kids in the village share 2 soccer balls. They live in shacks - crowded shacks! Sometimes up to three generations in one shack! We were all talking about how this must be a hard life for them. We were so happy to be there and to help these people. It was a wonderful start to the trip!
Some more pictures from the village:
When I awoke around 6:30, we were still traveling to the first village. Breakfast is always promptly at 7am. There were so many people on this boat that a lot of us had to eat up on the top deck. While we were eating, we heard this aweful noise. It sounded like a wild boar. I could not believe how loud it was – I was almost frightened. We were all searching the jungle to see what it was – finally we spotted it! It was a red howler monkey. I didn’t think a monkey could make all that noise and at that volume! We also saw multiple parrots and McCaws. Pretty cool!
Around mid morning we pulled into our first village - Araras.
This village seemed small. We opened the clinic up about 10:30. Everyone gets vitamins and de-wormer. My first real eye-opener was the 12 year old girl who came up by herself. She was beautiful! Her card indicated that she needed pre-natal vitamins. I looked at Ruth Ann while she was talking to the girl and she confirmed that she was pregnant. I was shocked. I had already seen other girls 16, 17, 18 that were pregnant, but I could not get over the fact that she was 12. I just could not get over it the rest of the day. I mourned for her - I wish I could explain what it was like - she hung out with the children during the day. She still "played" with the other girls her age. I just couldn't get over it. I kept coming back to her. 12 years old!
When we were done with the clinic we got off the boat and explored the village. The kids flock to you and start talking to you in Portugese and you begin to feel really confused. You want to talk to them, but they can’t understand you.
Little girls we played soccer with
A couple of us played soccer with some little girls. Of course the village had a soccer field! We are in Brazil after all! The other thing that struck me was that the people in this village looked happy. The kids seemed content and people didn’t look miserable – which is what I was expecting. I think about my boys and how they would not know what to do with themselves. Sharon was a big hit because she was talking pictures of the kids and showing them their pictures.
Some of the construction crew left when we got there to go pick up the wood for the church. When they got back, we all helped unload it. I didn’t think we were going to be able to do it, but finally, we got all the boards off that little boat!
This may not look like alot of wood, but let me tell you - the shortest board was 8 feet and the longest was 12. It was work to get them out of the boat!
Not long after, we had a church service with the villagers. To see the way Earl interacted with the kids was amazing! They all loved him! We also had to sing the song that Earl had, taught us in Portuguese to the villagers.
Little did I know we would be singing more and more and more in the days to come!
After church, we headed back to the boat for a late dinner. I think it was 9pm...As I reflect on this day, it amazes me at how happy these people are with nothing. The kids in the village share 2 soccer balls. They live in shacks - crowded shacks! Sometimes up to three generations in one shack! We were all talking about how this must be a hard life for them. We were so happy to be there and to help these people. It was a wonderful start to the trip!
Some more pictures from the village:
The birds just hang out.....
Girls getting fitted for pillowcase dresses.
The first and biggest house in the village.
Tuesday, May 8th
I got up around 6:20 feeling very refreshed! I went straight to the kitchen for coffee! I didn’t realize that they make their coffee kind of like sweet tea – they make the coffee in a pot, drain the hot coffee and then they had sugar. That was a surprise since I don’t usually use sugar for my coffee, but, I’m being flexible and drinking it anyway!
This morning we spent a lot of time organizing medicines and separating them into smaller portions. We had 500 pills of vitamins in each bottle, but they only give them 60 tablets – enough for 2 months. So, we separated and separated. It was actually fun because everyone was beginning to get antsy to “do” something. I didn’t realize how much preparation went into something like this.
This is also the day the boat started really rocking. Multiple people got sick, but no one that I know of actually threw up because of it – but we sure were taking the medicine! Ruth Ann says that it doesn’t usually rock like this, but the wind and the other boats were making a lot of waves. One of the ladies in my room had Dramamine and the other had the patch. I took both!
Earl arrived on the boat and we immediately set out for the village the construction crew would be staying to build a church. While traveling, Earl brought maps up to the top deck and showed us all the places we were going to go. Wow! Nothing like seeing this all on a map to put things into perspective! We also assigned/picked jobs for the medical part of the trip. I was going to be in the pharmacy with Ruth Ann. I was seriously disappointed at first because I wanted to be on the “front line” – but I tell you what, God knew what he was doing when he put me in the pharmacy! (Since I am typing this later, I can look back with some perspective). I was able to pick her brain about missionary life, how they started in Brazil and what the future may hold for them. It was a wonderful experience getting to know her and Earl on a more personal level.
We ate a wonderful dinner! The cooks on this boat are wonderful. I was so surprised by how much food they provided and how wonderful it tasted. I was expecting something very basic – rice and beans, but we were served so much more! Here are some pictures:
Sorting medicine...see how Dane's shirt is a weird grey-ish color? Yeah - that's becasue the heat was atrocious!
It was so incredibly hot! I was scared to death that I wasn't going to make it another week and a half! The sweat was dripping off of me! GROSS!!!
I am already missing my husband. It seems so strange that I am going through all of this without him. I just read my son, Dillan's, letter. It was so sweet! I love that boy. He has such a good heart. He will be a great man, husband and father when grows up. That fact touches my heart in ways I can not even describe! Here are some pictures of my accomodations:
That is my bunk - the bottom pink one. Looks comfy, huh?
Here is the shower. Notice the ONE handle - on or off is the only choice! Pay special attention to the white blur in the lower right corner......
Here is the white blur! Yes, it is all together. Very interesting. The floor is somewhat sloped so the water runs down from the shower to the right to a drain thing.
After dinner, it is time to shower - ugghh! Here are my choices for water temperature - cold or colder. I whine like a child, but I suck it up and take a cold shower! Tomorrow - we get down to buisness!
This morning we spent a lot of time organizing medicines and separating them into smaller portions. We had 500 pills of vitamins in each bottle, but they only give them 60 tablets – enough for 2 months. So, we separated and separated. It was actually fun because everyone was beginning to get antsy to “do” something. I didn’t realize how much preparation went into something like this.
This is also the day the boat started really rocking. Multiple people got sick, but no one that I know of actually threw up because of it – but we sure were taking the medicine! Ruth Ann says that it doesn’t usually rock like this, but the wind and the other boats were making a lot of waves. One of the ladies in my room had Dramamine and the other had the patch. I took both!
Earl arrived on the boat and we immediately set out for the village the construction crew would be staying to build a church. While traveling, Earl brought maps up to the top deck and showed us all the places we were going to go. Wow! Nothing like seeing this all on a map to put things into perspective! We also assigned/picked jobs for the medical part of the trip. I was going to be in the pharmacy with Ruth Ann. I was seriously disappointed at first because I wanted to be on the “front line” – but I tell you what, God knew what he was doing when he put me in the pharmacy! (Since I am typing this later, I can look back with some perspective). I was able to pick her brain about missionary life, how they started in Brazil and what the future may hold for them. It was a wonderful experience getting to know her and Earl on a more personal level.
We ate a wonderful dinner! The cooks on this boat are wonderful. I was so surprised by how much food they provided and how wonderful it tasted. I was expecting something very basic – rice and beans, but we were served so much more! Here are some pictures:
Sorting medicine...see how Dane's shirt is a weird grey-ish color? Yeah - that's becasue the heat was atrocious!
I am already missing my husband. It seems so strange that I am going through all of this without him. I just read my son, Dillan's, letter. It was so sweet! I love that boy. He has such a good heart. He will be a great man, husband and father when grows up. That fact touches my heart in ways I can not even describe! Here are some pictures of my accomodations:
After dinner, it is time to shower - ugghh! Here are my choices for water temperature - cold or colder. I whine like a child, but I suck it up and take a cold shower! Tomorrow - we get down to buisness!
Tuesday, June 5, 2012
Day 2 - Monday, May 7th
Trying to sleep on the floor of the airport was horrible. I tried really hard to go to sleep, but I couldn't get over the freezing cold!
The TAM counter was supposed to open at 3:45am, but it was more like 5am when we finally were able to start getting checked in. We are finally off to security around 5:30 and I am really needing some Starbucks at this point - and Starbucks isn't my favorite coffee!
The TSA agent who "pre-checks" your boarding pass and passport was super nice! I thought, wow, this guy was nice, especially at 5:30 in the morning! I make my way to put my shoes on the conveyor belt and remember to put my money and ALL the contents of ALL pockets into the bin they give you. Would you BELIEVE that I received the "special" pat down AGAIN???? Seriously? I'm trying really hard to be patient here. But again, really? Ok.
We get to the gate and meet members from the church in Florida that will be going with us. One gentleman, 82 years old, had to go home. Somehow between northern Florida and Miami he had lost his passport! Can you imagine? Losing your passport? Poor guy....
I took this opportunity to call Rob and my boys. I spoke to everyone and gave kisses and encouragement. The last thing I said to my husband was, "Honey, I want you to pray about this. I think we are supposed to adopt." SILENCE and then, "Okkkkkaayyy." I say, "Honey, I love you. All I'm asking is that you pray about it. Really pray about it. That's all I'm asking."
After what seems like forever, we board the plane. Something kinda strange happened. When the flight attendants were coming down the aisle, they were all speaking Portuguese. Interesting. I thought, we are in Miami folks and I speak English, I have no idea what you are saying! LOL
The flight to Manaus, Brazil is 5 hours. That's a pretty long flight, seeing my only other long flights have been to California. I started to get antsy. Five hours is a long time to be confined to the seat. 4 hours into the flight I had already taken 2 naps, read some of the Bible, journal some and read some of my book. It seemed like I was the only one NOT sleeping!
We arrived into Manauas. Let me tell you - this place had an airplane grave site! Not the picture of comfort when you know you will be leaving this place on a 767 in about 12 days! We deplaned. Customs was a joke and infuriating all at the same time! Of course, they separated us by foreigner and national. It took us over an hour to get through! All they did was look at my passport for the visa, ask how many days I planned on staying and that was it! Me, being so informed about international travel, thought this was "it". Oh no....it took at least another 40 minutes to get the luggage. Then we had to get in line for the "real" customs. Oh, how I hate to stand around! I am a "do-er" and people who like to do, do not like to stand around! LOL
We finally made it past customs:
Here is another first:
We made it! I felt so relieved that we made it!
We got to the boat - I have no idea what time. I didn't bring my phone and I didn't bring a watch. Didn't think I would really need one! I have some pictures of the boat that I will post tomorrow. Can't wait to show you!
We ate lunch - interesting, but very good! They had alot more than I had envisioned! It was not just rice and beans. There are some pics of the food that I will load as well! I took a nap while some others went to some shoppes up the hill. I had NO INTEREST in shopping! I just wanted to sleep! That was the best nap ever!
We hung out for awhile and when everyone was back, we got to work sorting out all the different medications. We had to put all the like meds with the like meds as they all were jumbled around during travel. I was relieved to finally be doing something! I felt like I got to Brazil and it was like, ok, WAIT, we are on Brazil time now!
We were all beat. We needed to rest. After a very simple dinner of sandwiches, our pastor, Keith, pictured with me above, de-briefed with us and gave us some encouragement for the days to come.
I am journaling while waiting for the shower so I can go to bed! 3 hours of sleep in over 24 hours was more than I could handle!
Night!
The TAM counter was supposed to open at 3:45am, but it was more like 5am when we finally were able to start getting checked in. We are finally off to security around 5:30 and I am really needing some Starbucks at this point - and Starbucks isn't my favorite coffee!
The TSA agent who "pre-checks" your boarding pass and passport was super nice! I thought, wow, this guy was nice, especially at 5:30 in the morning! I make my way to put my shoes on the conveyor belt and remember to put my money and ALL the contents of ALL pockets into the bin they give you. Would you BELIEVE that I received the "special" pat down AGAIN???? Seriously? I'm trying really hard to be patient here. But again, really? Ok.
We get to the gate and meet members from the church in Florida that will be going with us. One gentleman, 82 years old, had to go home. Somehow between northern Florida and Miami he had lost his passport! Can you imagine? Losing your passport? Poor guy....
I took this opportunity to call Rob and my boys. I spoke to everyone and gave kisses and encouragement. The last thing I said to my husband was, "Honey, I want you to pray about this. I think we are supposed to adopt." SILENCE and then, "Okkkkkaayyy." I say, "Honey, I love you. All I'm asking is that you pray about it. Really pray about it. That's all I'm asking."
After what seems like forever, we board the plane. Something kinda strange happened. When the flight attendants were coming down the aisle, they were all speaking Portuguese. Interesting. I thought, we are in Miami folks and I speak English, I have no idea what you are saying! LOL
The flight to Manaus, Brazil is 5 hours. That's a pretty long flight, seeing my only other long flights have been to California. I started to get antsy. Five hours is a long time to be confined to the seat. 4 hours into the flight I had already taken 2 naps, read some of the Bible, journal some and read some of my book. It seemed like I was the only one NOT sleeping!
We arrived into Manauas. Let me tell you - this place had an airplane grave site! Not the picture of comfort when you know you will be leaving this place on a 767 in about 12 days! We deplaned. Customs was a joke and infuriating all at the same time! Of course, they separated us by foreigner and national. It took us over an hour to get through! All they did was look at my passport for the visa, ask how many days I planned on staying and that was it! Me, being so informed about international travel, thought this was "it". Oh no....it took at least another 40 minutes to get the luggage. Then we had to get in line for the "real" customs. Oh, how I hate to stand around! I am a "do-er" and people who like to do, do not like to stand around! LOL
We finally made it past customs:
Here is another first:
We got to the boat - I have no idea what time. I didn't bring my phone and I didn't bring a watch. Didn't think I would really need one! I have some pictures of the boat that I will post tomorrow. Can't wait to show you!
We ate lunch - interesting, but very good! They had alot more than I had envisioned! It was not just rice and beans. There are some pics of the food that I will load as well! I took a nap while some others went to some shoppes up the hill. I had NO INTEREST in shopping! I just wanted to sleep! That was the best nap ever!
We hung out for awhile and when everyone was back, we got to work sorting out all the different medications. We had to put all the like meds with the like meds as they all were jumbled around during travel. I was relieved to finally be doing something! I felt like I got to Brazil and it was like, ok, WAIT, we are on Brazil time now!
We were all beat. We needed to rest. After a very simple dinner of sandwiches, our pastor, Keith, pictured with me above, de-briefed with us and gave us some encouragement for the days to come.
I am journaling while waiting for the shower so I can go to bed! 3 hours of sleep in over 24 hours was more than I could handle!
Night!
Sunday, June 3, 2012
About Time!
I know alot of you have been waiting to hear about the trip. I am finally ready to start sharing my experiences and feelings.
I think I have been waiting until I could sort it all out in my head and have "answers". I wanted to be able to say, "God sent me to Brazil on this mission trip because......fill in the blank." I'm not sure what answers I have, but I have been encouraged to write, so, I'm gonna write!
I've decided to update daily as I experienced my trip. I might put a little commentary in at certain spots, but, we shall see how it goes.
Sunday, May 6th
I said goodbye to my family at the airport. Most members of the group were there and we checked our bags. We were carrying 9 "bins" with us to Brazil. 9 bins full of vitamins, Tylenol, Motrin and the like - all weighing approximately 70 pounds. It was amazing how heavy and how full these things were. It cost over $750 in addition to our baggage, just to check these things to Miami. Whoa.....That is alot of money.
We made our way towards security so we could get to the gate. It has been awhile since i have flown anywhere, so I was kinda surprised by this new x-ray type thing you had to step in and put your arms over your head. Kinda weird....but, ok, I stepped in, put my hands of my head and stepped out. I was told to wait on the black mat with the standard yellow footprints. "Ma'am, do you have anything in your back right pocket?" Oh, yes, I have my cash and my credit card. "Ma'am, when we say take everything out of your pockets, we mean everything." Whoops, sorry. "Please turn around ma'am and empty the contents of your back pocket." I removed my cash and credit card. At this point I was still just like, whoops, and I kinda thought it was funny. Well, maybe it wasn't funny - I'm just one of those people who laugh at inappropriate times and in inappropriate places. Well, about 10 seconds later, I met the nice TSA woman who would give me the "special" search. I didn't think too much of it, she was nice enough. Then she started the pat down and by "pat down" I mean "rub down". Talk about embarrassing! OMG! It was by no means one of those horror stories you hear about, but goodness. Once they were assured I was not carrying anything illegal onto the plane, I had to get my hands wiped down and analyzed for explosives. I'm thinking, really? Really? Me? But then I remembered I would do this everyday if it means we don't have another 911.
Finally, I am off to the gate. Sweating and nervous chattering every one's ear off. Not only am I nervous laugher, but also and nervous chatter. HA!
We make it safely into Fort Lauderdale a bit early. Our luggage is off the plane rather promptly. Our shuttle to Miami is already waiting. We pack up and drive to Miami and get in the doors and in front of TAM Airlines at 10:20 pm. Oh boy. 10:20? We weren't expecting to be there so early. Our check in time was 5am. Have you ever seen 9 people with 20 pieces of rather large luggage just standing around? Someone has a picture, I'll find it. We took up so much room it was really funny! What was really funny was when these 9 people and these 20 pieces of luggage had to sleep on the floor in the airport. Did I say sleep? HAHAHAHAHA! The Miami airport has this announcement every 15 minutes that says, "The time is now 12:45 am." "The time is now "2:15 am" "The time is now 2:30 am". Sleep? No, we did most definitely did NOT sleep. Here is an excerpt from my journal:
"We have arrived in Miami. I didn't really feel like writing but I want to remember this. We re-arranged the bins because some were slightly over the 70 pound weight limit.
I've brought the book "RADICAL" for the plane rides. I'm not sure how you can read that book and not want to adopt a child. The numbers are so staggering it is overwhelming. I hope God makes it clear to Rob and I what he wants us to do.
I'm sitting here on the floor of Miami International VERY TIRED. I'm not sure how this is going to work out because I am not very good without sleep! I'm just going to have to trust God that he will help me feel rested and rejuvenated. I pray for strength and for quality sleep on the plane to Brazil"
"The time is now 10:30" and I am tired. Can't wait to post pictures and get into the meat of the trip.
Night!
I think I have been waiting until I could sort it all out in my head and have "answers". I wanted to be able to say, "God sent me to Brazil on this mission trip because......fill in the blank." I'm not sure what answers I have, but I have been encouraged to write, so, I'm gonna write!
I've decided to update daily as I experienced my trip. I might put a little commentary in at certain spots, but, we shall see how it goes.
Sunday, May 6th
I said goodbye to my family at the airport. Most members of the group were there and we checked our bags. We were carrying 9 "bins" with us to Brazil. 9 bins full of vitamins, Tylenol, Motrin and the like - all weighing approximately 70 pounds. It was amazing how heavy and how full these things were. It cost over $750 in addition to our baggage, just to check these things to Miami. Whoa.....That is alot of money.
We made our way towards security so we could get to the gate. It has been awhile since i have flown anywhere, so I was kinda surprised by this new x-ray type thing you had to step in and put your arms over your head. Kinda weird....but, ok, I stepped in, put my hands of my head and stepped out. I was told to wait on the black mat with the standard yellow footprints. "Ma'am, do you have anything in your back right pocket?" Oh, yes, I have my cash and my credit card. "Ma'am, when we say take everything out of your pockets, we mean everything." Whoops, sorry. "Please turn around ma'am and empty the contents of your back pocket." I removed my cash and credit card. At this point I was still just like, whoops, and I kinda thought it was funny. Well, maybe it wasn't funny - I'm just one of those people who laugh at inappropriate times and in inappropriate places. Well, about 10 seconds later, I met the nice TSA woman who would give me the "special" search. I didn't think too much of it, she was nice enough. Then she started the pat down and by "pat down" I mean "rub down". Talk about embarrassing! OMG! It was by no means one of those horror stories you hear about, but goodness. Once they were assured I was not carrying anything illegal onto the plane, I had to get my hands wiped down and analyzed for explosives. I'm thinking, really? Really? Me? But then I remembered I would do this everyday if it means we don't have another 911.
Finally, I am off to the gate. Sweating and nervous chattering every one's ear off. Not only am I nervous laugher, but also and nervous chatter. HA!
We make it safely into Fort Lauderdale a bit early. Our luggage is off the plane rather promptly. Our shuttle to Miami is already waiting. We pack up and drive to Miami and get in the doors and in front of TAM Airlines at 10:20 pm. Oh boy. 10:20? We weren't expecting to be there so early. Our check in time was 5am. Have you ever seen 9 people with 20 pieces of rather large luggage just standing around? Someone has a picture, I'll find it. We took up so much room it was really funny! What was really funny was when these 9 people and these 20 pieces of luggage had to sleep on the floor in the airport. Did I say sleep? HAHAHAHAHA! The Miami airport has this announcement every 15 minutes that says, "The time is now 12:45 am." "The time is now "2:15 am" "The time is now 2:30 am". Sleep? No, we did most definitely did NOT sleep. Here is an excerpt from my journal:
"We have arrived in Miami. I didn't really feel like writing but I want to remember this. We re-arranged the bins because some were slightly over the 70 pound weight limit.
I've brought the book "RADICAL" for the plane rides. I'm not sure how you can read that book and not want to adopt a child. The numbers are so staggering it is overwhelming. I hope God makes it clear to Rob and I what he wants us to do.
I'm sitting here on the floor of Miami International VERY TIRED. I'm not sure how this is going to work out because I am not very good without sleep! I'm just going to have to trust God that he will help me feel rested and rejuvenated. I pray for strength and for quality sleep on the plane to Brazil"
"The time is now 10:30" and I am tired. Can't wait to post pictures and get into the meat of the trip.
Night!
Sunday, May 6, 2012
Today is the DAY!
Today is the big day! I am sitting here at the computer 30 minutes before I leave for the airport. I'm pretty anxious, excited and fearful all at the same time. It feels very weird to know that tomorrow around noon, I will be in South America! So cool! It is always exciting to go to places you've never been before! I'm excited to see the wildlife, the culture and the people. I know this will be amazing!
I found out that I will not have any access to Internet and probably not to a phone either. I will be without any technology until I get home on the 18th. That is crazy in itself!
I've been thinking alot about this verse today:
Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
The heavenly Father KNOWS I need some of that peace right now!
God has done some AMAZING things leading up to today! I wish I could tell everything and if I had not been so consumed with other things over the last couple of days, I would have been able to tell alot of them.
Everything for this trip has just lined up so perfectly, I know the hand of God was on this from the moment I said yes. Things that have taken others months to do God has done in weeks. It is truly amazing and I have a new found trust in God that I did not have before.
As I get ready to walk out the door, I pray that I will keep my eyes, my ears and my heart open to God and to what he wants from me and for me on this trip. I never would have chosen to go to the Amazon jungle, so I know there is a specific reason what he wants me to go. I pray I don't miss it.
I am so very thankful to all of my friends who have donated. The financial obligation was lightened so tremendously that we have room to breath. I can not tell you how much it means to me that you have made a sacrifice to help me go to Brazil. Thank you, Thank you, Thank you! It has been extremely overwhelming.
Please pray for Rob and the boys - it has been a rough couple of days for us. I hope that it is just all of the tension that has led to me leaving and that once I am gone, it will even out as much as it can.
17 days until my return. I can't wait to share with you everything that will happen and the pictures of what I have seen.
God Bless!
Christy
I found out that I will not have any access to Internet and probably not to a phone either. I will be without any technology until I get home on the 18th. That is crazy in itself!
I've been thinking alot about this verse today:
Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
The heavenly Father KNOWS I need some of that peace right now!
God has done some AMAZING things leading up to today! I wish I could tell everything and if I had not been so consumed with other things over the last couple of days, I would have been able to tell alot of them.
Everything for this trip has just lined up so perfectly, I know the hand of God was on this from the moment I said yes. Things that have taken others months to do God has done in weeks. It is truly amazing and I have a new found trust in God that I did not have before.
As I get ready to walk out the door, I pray that I will keep my eyes, my ears and my heart open to God and to what he wants from me and for me on this trip. I never would have chosen to go to the Amazon jungle, so I know there is a specific reason what he wants me to go. I pray I don't miss it.
I am so very thankful to all of my friends who have donated. The financial obligation was lightened so tremendously that we have room to breath. I can not tell you how much it means to me that you have made a sacrifice to help me go to Brazil. Thank you, Thank you, Thank you! It has been extremely overwhelming.
Please pray for Rob and the boys - it has been a rough couple of days for us. I hope that it is just all of the tension that has led to me leaving and that once I am gone, it will even out as much as it can.
17 days until my return. I can't wait to share with you everything that will happen and the pictures of what I have seen.
God Bless!
Christy
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
Coming together
It is amazing to me how much things can change in just a week! I think it has alot to do with perspective as well.This Experiencing God has been really really stretching me. It is so hard to talk with God and not just at Him. I've been doing alot of talking at Him. I have also been trying to do everything I can to make sure this all works out....including...wait for it....worrying!
Yesterday, during the study, I came across something very simple - What God has purposed to do, he will complete. It was like a light bulb went off! Duh! I know this - why am I freaking out? After I thought over this for awhile, all of my worry has been lifted. I am so much more relaxed than I thought I would be. One example - I have been checking the Brazilian consulate website everyday - they received my visa application at 10:49 am last Wednesday. It was showing as "received". I had started to think - wow, this is going to take awhile! So, yesterday afternoon it went from "received" to "ready for pickup"! Ok, no "in process" - "approved", just straight from received to ready for pickup! Pretty cool!
I have an official meeting for the trip tonight, which I am really excited about because I will get to meet the other people going on this trip. I am also excited to get some more details.
Donation status - Last Friday, a friend at work, who is 8 months pregnant, handed me a check. I was floored! I struggled with taking it because I know she wants to stay home for awhile after the baby and I know they have been saving money for this time and I felt guilty that she thought I was worth such a large donation! Then I remember something that I learned in my class - Don't deny someone an opportunity to participate in God's work. Ughhh....so, I took the money. Another girl at work gave me a donation towards my trip on Friday as well. Rob's mom also sent a check - which I received on Friday! I turned in all the money that I had on Sunday. Another shocker - a gentleman that i work with walked into my office yesterday and said, I would like to donate towards your trip and handed me a $20 bill. That was really sweet of him. I have been surprised by the donations I have received from the people at my work. Pleasantly surprised, and humbled, but surprised none the less. I still don't know if I have received any donations sent directly to the church. I'm trying to relax about it. I really feel like God was telling me, "Relax. I got this." AFTER I stopped talking at him and stopped to listen for Him.
Things are coming together. The nanny is set to be home on Saturday the 5th from JMU. She is going to be helping Rob and my mom while I am away. It worked out perfectly. All the paperwork is done, all the travel arrangements are done. The only thing I have not done is pack and go see my PCP. I got anti-malaria medicine from Patient First, but I am thinking I want to take something else after reading the side effects. Other than that, it is just time to wait.
For those who know me, you know how I LOVE to wait.....
11 DAYS!
Yesterday, during the study, I came across something very simple - What God has purposed to do, he will complete. It was like a light bulb went off! Duh! I know this - why am I freaking out? After I thought over this for awhile, all of my worry has been lifted. I am so much more relaxed than I thought I would be. One example - I have been checking the Brazilian consulate website everyday - they received my visa application at 10:49 am last Wednesday. It was showing as "received". I had started to think - wow, this is going to take awhile! So, yesterday afternoon it went from "received" to "ready for pickup"! Ok, no "in process" - "approved", just straight from received to ready for pickup! Pretty cool!
I have an official meeting for the trip tonight, which I am really excited about because I will get to meet the other people going on this trip. I am also excited to get some more details.
Donation status - Last Friday, a friend at work, who is 8 months pregnant, handed me a check. I was floored! I struggled with taking it because I know she wants to stay home for awhile after the baby and I know they have been saving money for this time and I felt guilty that she thought I was worth such a large donation! Then I remember something that I learned in my class - Don't deny someone an opportunity to participate in God's work. Ughhh....so, I took the money. Another girl at work gave me a donation towards my trip on Friday as well. Rob's mom also sent a check - which I received on Friday! I turned in all the money that I had on Sunday. Another shocker - a gentleman that i work with walked into my office yesterday and said, I would like to donate towards your trip and handed me a $20 bill. That was really sweet of him. I have been surprised by the donations I have received from the people at my work. Pleasantly surprised, and humbled, but surprised none the less. I still don't know if I have received any donations sent directly to the church. I'm trying to relax about it. I really feel like God was telling me, "Relax. I got this." AFTER I stopped talking at him and stopped to listen for Him.
Things are coming together. The nanny is set to be home on Saturday the 5th from JMU. She is going to be helping Rob and my mom while I am away. It worked out perfectly. All the paperwork is done, all the travel arrangements are done. The only thing I have not done is pack and go see my PCP. I got anti-malaria medicine from Patient First, but I am thinking I want to take something else after reading the side effects. Other than that, it is just time to wait.
For those who know me, you know how I LOVE to wait.....
11 DAYS!
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
Updates
Over the past week I have been getting more and more
frightened. Not of the trip itself, per
se, but I couldn’t quite put my finger on what was scarring me so badly. I mean, my anxiety has been through the roof
and I have no idea why.
No, I’m not afraid of the mosquitoes that could carry me off.
No, I’m not afraid of the mosquitoes that could carry me off.
No, I’m not scared of the anacondas.
No, I’m not scared of leaving the kids with Rob for two
weeks.
I just couldn’t put my finger on what was scarring me to
my core. Seriously, as the days were
progressing, I was becoming more and more frightened, freaked out and overwhelmed. You would think that I would be getting more
and more excited, but the opposite was happening.
Last night it became clear – I have already been trying
to figure what I was going to “do” when I got back. I’ve been expending all this energy and
mental capacity on trying to figure out what was going to happen when I got
back from Brazil. I haven’t even left
yet! I’m not even ready to GO, much less
worry about what is going to happen when I get back. I realized that I have been trying to deal
with the feelings that my trip is going to invoke internally and what to do
with them when I haven’t even gotten there yet!
How in the world am I supposed to deal with feelings that I haven’t even
FELT yet? No wonder I feel like I’m
frantic! Not sure why I put myself
through all of this – oh, wait, I do know.
I’m a control freak! Everything
for this trip is out of my control and I have no say. Kind of a different feeling for me that I
think I have skipped over the trip part and am already trying to control the
after part. (Yes, it gets tiring being
in my brain!)
Anyway, I am feeling much more relaxed today, so I
thought I would give some updates!
First things first!
I know how we will be getting to Miami!
By plane, on May 6th.
We will be getting to Miami late and will need to be there super early,
so, we are going to stay at the airport. (hmmm, this should be interesting. I’ve seen people sleeping in airports, but
never thought I would be one of them!)
Second – I went to Patient First and got all of my shots
this past Sunday. Yellow Fever – check,
Typhoid – check, Tetanus – check, Hep A – check. The only one that did not hurt was the only
REQUIRED one – Yellow Fever. I also received
the little international traveler certificate thingy to prove I have had all of
these immunizations.
Third – My visa application is now at the Brazilian
consulate in Washington DC. It will take
anywhere from 8 to 10 business days to process.
They are saying it will be shipped to me on May 2. Wow….that’s really close. The document services company said it should
not be a problem because it is “quiet” in Brazil right now. In February it might have been a problem because
of Carnivale, but I should have no problems.
A lot of people have been asking me about donations I
have received. I haven’t wanted to post
anything about it because – I don’t know – just seems – weird – to broadcast
something like that. But, I decided that
I would. I have personally received 2
donations. One from Rob’s co-worker - he
was telling her about my trip and the next day she came back and gave him some
cash to give to me. The other one is
from Ben’s preschool – again, another source Rob told (is there a theme
here?). I was so incredibly touched and
humbled that Ben’s preschool would want to donate to me. They have been the biggest blessing to our
family over the last 5 years. James went
there and then we loved everyone so much that even though it was out of our way
once we moved, we kept Ben there. This
is Ben’s last two months. I’m so touched
that the place that has provided stability and love to two of our children
decided to bless me on this trip. It is
incredible and I am so deeply appreciative that I can’t even find the right
words to express it.
Thank you for taking the time to read my update!
17 Days.....
Thursday, April 12, 2012
Officially Official!
Well, now it is really official! I have a plane ticket from Miami to
Brazil! There is no turning back
now! In 24 days, I will be on my way! Only thing is that I still don’t know how I
am getting to Miami. I guess I’ll be
finding out at some point.
Yesterday, I was researching the website of the mission
where I will be going and found a journal from a lady who went in the same trip
in January. It was very informative and
exciting! I know there was plenty that
she left out, but I am getting excited instead of uneasy. So, that is a good sign!
Today I must fill out the Brazilian Visa form and get it
ready to Fed Ex to the document processing company that will expedite my
visa. Apparently, it is not so easy to
get a Brazilian visa quickly without one, so I will bite the bullet and pay the
fee.
Next on my list will be the immunizations. There is a Patient First in my area that
stocks shots for international travelers, so I will go there and get them all
knocked out at one time. Then I will
have to go to my PCP to get the malaria pills and a prescription for
cipro. Why go to two different
places? Well, my PCP doesn’t stock
yellow fever or typhoid so I would have to go to a specialty pharmacy with a prescription,
get them filled, and then take them back to my PCP for administration. AND my insurance company covers them only
under medical – not prescription. So, I
will be jumping through some hoops, but I would rather do that than play ring
around the rosy!
The interesting thing is that it seems each day for the
past week, someone from my job has asked me about “going into the jungle on a
boat” and “Am I crazy?”! I can’t tell if
it is making me excited or making me more nervous about the whole thing. Everyone always asks about the anacondas,
spiders and mosquitoes the size of monkeys.
It is very interesting to hear all these different perspectives about a
country that none of us have been to!
24 days…..
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
And it begins....
Was it wishful thinking that I would actually not have any doubt about this trip? Yes, yes it was....
Since last Wednesday I have been waiting for my TAM number so that I could begin filling out the Brazilian visa forms. I received my TAM number yesterday evening - on Sunday, my pastor told me that another pastor would send me the information since he would be in Haiti this week and I needed to proceed.
So, I received the TAM number. I sent an e-mail to the other guy at church, saying, hey, I got my TAM number, but I don't speak Portuguese so I don't understand the website. Is there an English conversion or something?? I'd like to get the itinerary. He sends me back an e-mail saying the TAM number is not an itinerary number and that he is still waiting on flight information. Oh...ok. I ask him what is this TAM number then because I was told it was very important and that I needed to keep a copy of it in my passport for reference. No response....
One hour.....
Two hours.....
I get a forwarded e-mail saying here is your flight. You will want to do the expedited visa. I have included his information at the bottom. You should really pay by credit card by April 12th or the flight will be cancelled. I scroll down, down, down.....
The flight is Miami to Manuas, Brazil - round trip. Great. Whoa.....that is alot of money!
Now, I didn't ask how this was going to work, but I had assumed from the way my pastor I spoke last week and again on Sunday, that I was going to pay the church right before the trip. Well, apparently not. I have to pay for this ticket, right now. Hmmmmm........I can feel the anxiety creeping in.
Then I realize - wait - this is from Miami round trip. I e-mail him, and ask How are we getting to Miami? Do you want to know what his response was?
"We will worry about how to get to Miami later."
Um, excuse me? Later? Like when? Seeing that today is April 10th and I am leaving May7th - or possibly late May 6th!!! Seriously....when is later? Is this a man thing? Or am I just freaking out for no reason? I think this man thing...
So, now I am in a bit of a position:
1. I can send him back an e-mail that says - what do you mean later? You never answered my question - what is a TAM number and why is it so important? And then have him think - Wow, this girl needs to relax. I'm glad I'm not going on that trip - she is really uptight and a control freak!
2. I can pause and try to trust that God is in control.
Hmmm, my way would be number 1 for sure. No doubt. I had actually thought of e-mailing the lead pastor of the entire church to tell him about how I was feeling like no one was giving me any information - about anything! I was going to tell him maybe he needed to hire a woman to come in there and get this sort of stuff organized.....(you can hear the anxiety can't you???).....but then....
I determined NOT to do that. I kept telling myself this whole last week that God has this, God will see this through, God called - I said yes and that means he is going to work this out.
So why am I freaking out????
CONTROL!
This is not going like I thought it would go - already. Rob keeps saying, "This is not YOUR plan, it is God's plan. HE will work it out". Immediately in my head, I thought....easy for you to say! And right after that - I know!
I really wanted to not have any doubt through this process. I'm actually disappointed that it has only been a week before I allowed doubt to consume - even for a short bit.
Thankfully, I know - without a shadow of a doubt - this trip was his plan and not mine. He will work this out. I don't know how - but he will. There was a verse that was said tonight at our class that I know was for me:
"For I know the plans I have for you", declares the Lord
Just the beginning made me feel a bit better. Some of my classmates laughed with (at) me because they know how hard it is for me to release control.
Bright spot - My insurance company pays for travel immunizations! Saves me $393!!! Whoop Whoop! So excited about that!
It is hard to remember that his ways are not my ways. His timing is not my timing. Ugghhh.....
Still stressed, asking for forgiveness for my doubt, and emotionally drained after a long day at work....27 days left.
Since last Wednesday I have been waiting for my TAM number so that I could begin filling out the Brazilian visa forms. I received my TAM number yesterday evening - on Sunday, my pastor told me that another pastor would send me the information since he would be in Haiti this week and I needed to proceed.
So, I received the TAM number. I sent an e-mail to the other guy at church, saying, hey, I got my TAM number, but I don't speak Portuguese so I don't understand the website. Is there an English conversion or something?? I'd like to get the itinerary. He sends me back an e-mail saying the TAM number is not an itinerary number and that he is still waiting on flight information. Oh...ok. I ask him what is this TAM number then because I was told it was very important and that I needed to keep a copy of it in my passport for reference. No response....
One hour.....
Two hours.....
I get a forwarded e-mail saying here is your flight. You will want to do the expedited visa. I have included his information at the bottom. You should really pay by credit card by April 12th or the flight will be cancelled. I scroll down, down, down.....
The flight is Miami to Manuas, Brazil - round trip. Great. Whoa.....that is alot of money!
Now, I didn't ask how this was going to work, but I had assumed from the way my pastor I spoke last week and again on Sunday, that I was going to pay the church right before the trip. Well, apparently not. I have to pay for this ticket, right now. Hmmmmm........I can feel the anxiety creeping in.
Then I realize - wait - this is from Miami round trip. I e-mail him, and ask How are we getting to Miami? Do you want to know what his response was?
"We will worry about how to get to Miami later."
Um, excuse me? Later? Like when? Seeing that today is April 10th and I am leaving May7th - or possibly late May 6th!!! Seriously....when is later? Is this a man thing? Or am I just freaking out for no reason? I think this man thing...
So, now I am in a bit of a position:
1. I can send him back an e-mail that says - what do you mean later? You never answered my question - what is a TAM number and why is it so important? And then have him think - Wow, this girl needs to relax. I'm glad I'm not going on that trip - she is really uptight and a control freak!
2. I can pause and try to trust that God is in control.
Hmmm, my way would be number 1 for sure. No doubt. I had actually thought of e-mailing the lead pastor of the entire church to tell him about how I was feeling like no one was giving me any information - about anything! I was going to tell him maybe he needed to hire a woman to come in there and get this sort of stuff organized.....(you can hear the anxiety can't you???).....but then....
I determined NOT to do that. I kept telling myself this whole last week that God has this, God will see this through, God called - I said yes and that means he is going to work this out.
So why am I freaking out????
CONTROL!
This is not going like I thought it would go - already. Rob keeps saying, "This is not YOUR plan, it is God's plan. HE will work it out". Immediately in my head, I thought....easy for you to say! And right after that - I know!
I really wanted to not have any doubt through this process. I'm actually disappointed that it has only been a week before I allowed doubt to consume - even for a short bit.
Thankfully, I know - without a shadow of a doubt - this trip was his plan and not mine. He will work this out. I don't know how - but he will. There was a verse that was said tonight at our class that I know was for me:
"For I know the plans I have for you", declares the Lord
Just the beginning made me feel a bit better. Some of my classmates laughed with (at) me because they know how hard it is for me to release control.
Bright spot - My insurance company pays for travel immunizations! Saves me $393!!! Whoop Whoop! So excited about that!
It is hard to remember that his ways are not my ways. His timing is not my timing. Ugghhh.....
Still stressed, asking for forgiveness for my doubt, and emotionally drained after a long day at work....27 days left.
Monday, April 9, 2012
Incredible Easter!
What an incredible day yesterday was!
I'll start at the end - Our son James accepted Christ! He told us he wanted to do it, so we had a long talk, then we all held hands (all 5 of us) as Rob walked him through the sinner's prayer! It was so cool! I couldn't be more proud! I also underestimated how emotional it would be. He wants to get baptized - right now.
The sad part - he ended up getting really sick in the middle of the night. I mean really, really sick. I won't post the gory details, so just take my word for it - SICK! During one of the episodes he said, "Why is this happening to me? This is bad! But I said the sinner's prayer! I thought good things were supposed to happen!" Poor thing!
So, now I will back up a bit. I took a walk after dinner as I was trying to sort out somethings in my head. I was walking and talking with God and thanking him for Jesus' sacrifice. And then I began to wonder......
Who would I sacrifice my life for? My children of course! I would take their pain and suffering and a bullet for them at any point if my abilities allowed it. And if they didn't, I would try harder. Would I give my life for my husband? hmmmm, that is where it starts to get tricky. I think I would....I think. Then, unfortunately, my answers turn to NO. I'm sorry, I just don't think I could do it, knowing what I would be leaving behind.
Yet...Jesus willingly laid his life down for me. Willingly. He knew every sin I would ever commit, yet he still chose to bear the cross. Wow.
That got me thinking - What would I do if someone in the here and now gave their life for me? What would I do? I would make their family my family. I would make sure that everyone knew how grateful and thankful I was for the gift they bestowed upon me. I would do anything for that person's spouse, their children, their parents. I would make sure that they knew the price paid was not a waste.
So, how is that any different from what I am willing to give to Jesus? The difference is, Jesus knows my deepest, darkest secrets and he still chose the cross. What is left for me to do? How can I not give Jesus everything for what he has done? Not only do I get a better life now, but I will have life everlasting!
He is Risen and He is Alive!
He called me to Brazil, how can I say no?
I'll start at the end - Our son James accepted Christ! He told us he wanted to do it, so we had a long talk, then we all held hands (all 5 of us) as Rob walked him through the sinner's prayer! It was so cool! I couldn't be more proud! I also underestimated how emotional it would be. He wants to get baptized - right now.
The sad part - he ended up getting really sick in the middle of the night. I mean really, really sick. I won't post the gory details, so just take my word for it - SICK! During one of the episodes he said, "Why is this happening to me? This is bad! But I said the sinner's prayer! I thought good things were supposed to happen!" Poor thing!
So, now I will back up a bit. I took a walk after dinner as I was trying to sort out somethings in my head. I was walking and talking with God and thanking him for Jesus' sacrifice. And then I began to wonder......
Who would I sacrifice my life for? My children of course! I would take their pain and suffering and a bullet for them at any point if my abilities allowed it. And if they didn't, I would try harder. Would I give my life for my husband? hmmmm, that is where it starts to get tricky. I think I would....I think. Then, unfortunately, my answers turn to NO. I'm sorry, I just don't think I could do it, knowing what I would be leaving behind.
Yet...Jesus willingly laid his life down for me. Willingly. He knew every sin I would ever commit, yet he still chose to bear the cross. Wow.
That got me thinking - What would I do if someone in the here and now gave their life for me? What would I do? I would make their family my family. I would make sure that everyone knew how grateful and thankful I was for the gift they bestowed upon me. I would do anything for that person's spouse, their children, their parents. I would make sure that they knew the price paid was not a waste.
So, how is that any different from what I am willing to give to Jesus? The difference is, Jesus knows my deepest, darkest secrets and he still chose the cross. What is left for me to do? How can I not give Jesus everything for what he has done? Not only do I get a better life now, but I will have life everlasting!
He is Risen and He is Alive!
He called me to Brazil, how can I say no?
Saturday, April 7, 2012
CRAZY????
So these past couple of days have had some awesome moments and some pretty awkward moments! I know that some people have read this blog and thought - "Whoa this is crazy! There is no way!"
I would be lying if I said that I did not have moments of doubt myself. But, I am extremely thankful that they have been fleeting moments and not all consuming doubt. I have been blessed in that when doubt creeps in, I tell it to "GO AWAY!".
I got up early this morning to do my bible study and have comforted beyond measure! My study was about believing God and some examples. I think the examples that were provided were so relevant to my situation that I wanted to share two of them:
1. Jericho - God told Joshua that he would give him and the people Jericho. God told Joshua to have the people walk around the city walls blowing trumpets once a day for 6 days. (Ok, really?) Then, on the seventh day, walk around the walls 7 times blowing the trumpets and give a loud cry. So, you know the story, when they gave the loud cry, the wall fell.
2. When the tax collector came to collect taxes, Jesus sent Peter to the lake to go fishing. He told Peter to look in the mouth of the first fish he caught and there would be a 4 drachma coin - the taxes required for Jesus and Peter.
THOSE ARE CRAZY!
In both of those stories, Joshua and Peter and to believe that God was going to provide. They didn't have to believe because those are some pretty crazy ways to get to the end result, right? Maybe if Joshua had done it his way he still would have won Jericho, maybe not. Can you imagine what Peter was thinking? Ok, you want me to go fishing and you are going to put a coin in the mouth of the fish? Come on! Both of those stories are crazy - and you might even be thinking - weird. The point I am trying to make is that God's way is crazy at times. If it were not, then there would be no reason for faith.
Going to Brazil in 30 days is not nearly as crazy as either one of those stories in my mind. I mean really, what is so crazy about that? Yes, it is last minute. Yes, it is a shock. But, really, what is so crazy? The fact that He wants me to go or the fact that I said yes? God will finish what He has started. I've made the most important first step - believing it.
God is going to ask us to do crazy things. And in those crazy things you will come to know God better because if you believe that He can do what He says in the middle of crazy, then everyone will know that YOU did not accomplish this task! We can either do them or not. It is all up to you! (and me!)
I would be lying if I said that I did not have moments of doubt myself. But, I am extremely thankful that they have been fleeting moments and not all consuming doubt. I have been blessed in that when doubt creeps in, I tell it to "GO AWAY!".
I got up early this morning to do my bible study and have comforted beyond measure! My study was about believing God and some examples. I think the examples that were provided were so relevant to my situation that I wanted to share two of them:
1. Jericho - God told Joshua that he would give him and the people Jericho. God told Joshua to have the people walk around the city walls blowing trumpets once a day for 6 days. (Ok, really?) Then, on the seventh day, walk around the walls 7 times blowing the trumpets and give a loud cry. So, you know the story, when they gave the loud cry, the wall fell.
2. When the tax collector came to collect taxes, Jesus sent Peter to the lake to go fishing. He told Peter to look in the mouth of the first fish he caught and there would be a 4 drachma coin - the taxes required for Jesus and Peter.
THOSE ARE CRAZY!
In both of those stories, Joshua and Peter and to believe that God was going to provide. They didn't have to believe because those are some pretty crazy ways to get to the end result, right? Maybe if Joshua had done it his way he still would have won Jericho, maybe not. Can you imagine what Peter was thinking? Ok, you want me to go fishing and you are going to put a coin in the mouth of the fish? Come on! Both of those stories are crazy - and you might even be thinking - weird. The point I am trying to make is that God's way is crazy at times. If it were not, then there would be no reason for faith.
Going to Brazil in 30 days is not nearly as crazy as either one of those stories in my mind. I mean really, what is so crazy about that? Yes, it is last minute. Yes, it is a shock. But, really, what is so crazy? The fact that He wants me to go or the fact that I said yes? God will finish what He has started. I've made the most important first step - believing it.
God is going to ask us to do crazy things. And in those crazy things you will come to know God better because if you believe that He can do what He says in the middle of crazy, then everyone will know that YOU did not accomplish this task! We can either do them or not. It is all up to you! (and me!)
Thursday, April 5, 2012
Overwhelmed!
I am so overwhelmed by the outpouring of support, both privately and publicly! It has been such a comfort! Rob said yesterday morning morning, "Now people know your thoughts!" And I cringed thinking - What are people going to think of me? Am I a whackadoodle? (Thanks to my pastor for that term! Love it!) Then, I just felt calm and thought, this is me. I can't apologize for what is going on! This is amazing! If I'm weird, then I'm weird, but at least I said yes!
I was so scared going to talk to my boss yesterday. She was tense. It probably didn't help that I mistakenly set it up as if I was going to tell her I was quiting. Although...I didn't really ask her permission to go. I said I was going and that I could not say no to it. I wonder if that made her mad? I didn't realize I had done that until just now...but anyway, she loosened up tremendously by the end of our conversation and she even looked up one of the recommended shots for me. I was really grateful for that!
Then, I learned so much in the next 3 hours my head was spinning......VISA, TAM, Yellow Fever, Typhoid, Hep A, Hep B, don't even think about sticking to a diet while there! So many things! So little time! At this point, I am waiting until the flight is booked so I can apply for a Brazilian visa. I think for peace of mind I will go ahead and pay a document services company to handle the visa for me.
I did make a mistake at work yesterday. We have a no solicitation policy - which means, you can not "solicit" donations or ask anyone directly about fundraisers and the like. Well, I didn't even think about it - I sent an e-mail to my three physicians telling them about the trip and telling them they could donate. I was scared to death by the way because I hate asking for help. I think this is a weakness God is going to stretch in the next 30 days. I was very thankful that my boss, very gently, reminded me of the policy. I did send this e-mail back to them that said, "OOpps, I forgot about the policy. I'm sorry!" It is embarrassing though, seeing that I am the Office Manager and hold 25 people accountable for the policy manual! At this point, the damage was done. All I could do was apologize.
I'm undecided about whether I will hang something up telling everyone at work what I am doing. If I don't, what does that say? I've put it on Facebook but I'm afraid to put it up at work? Hmmmm.....I will have to ponder this one today.
I was so scared going to talk to my boss yesterday. She was tense. It probably didn't help that I mistakenly set it up as if I was going to tell her I was quiting. Although...I didn't really ask her permission to go. I said I was going and that I could not say no to it. I wonder if that made her mad? I didn't realize I had done that until just now...but anyway, she loosened up tremendously by the end of our conversation and she even looked up one of the recommended shots for me. I was really grateful for that!
Then, I learned so much in the next 3 hours my head was spinning......VISA, TAM, Yellow Fever, Typhoid, Hep A, Hep B, don't even think about sticking to a diet while there! So many things! So little time! At this point, I am waiting until the flight is booked so I can apply for a Brazilian visa. I think for peace of mind I will go ahead and pay a document services company to handle the visa for me.
I did make a mistake at work yesterday. We have a no solicitation policy - which means, you can not "solicit" donations or ask anyone directly about fundraisers and the like. Well, I didn't even think about it - I sent an e-mail to my three physicians telling them about the trip and telling them they could donate. I was scared to death by the way because I hate asking for help. I think this is a weakness God is going to stretch in the next 30 days. I was very thankful that my boss, very gently, reminded me of the policy. I did send this e-mail back to them that said, "OOpps, I forgot about the policy. I'm sorry!" It is embarrassing though, seeing that I am the Office Manager and hold 25 people accountable for the policy manual! At this point, the damage was done. All I could do was apologize.
I'm undecided about whether I will hang something up telling everyone at work what I am doing. If I don't, what does that say? I've put it on Facebook but I'm afraid to put it up at work? Hmmmm.....I will have to ponder this one today.
Tuesday, April 3, 2012
Richmond to Brazil in 33 days....
Today, I said yes to God.
Yes, Lord, I will go to Brazil on this missions trip. Yes, I know it is only 33 days away. Yes, I know it is 2 weeks long! Yes, I know it is expensive. If I say no now, when I have heard you the clearest in all my life, when will I be able to say yes?
If you have the time and are even the slightest bit interested, please read how I got here. I am new to bloging, so I only have three other posts besides this one - so, not too long.
This trip is two weeks long and it is in 33 days from today. In 35 days, I will be on a boat in the Amazon jungle - for real! No joking. On a boat, on a river, in the Amazon jungle, in Brazil. That takes my breath away....I would never have the courage to do this on my own.
I will be getting ready for this trip in a really really short amount of time. I didn't realize how much preparation goes along with planning a missions trip. These folks have been planning for months and I will do it in days. I will not be able to do this without help. Please help me through your prayers and financial support as this trip will cost $2,500. Will you say a little prayer for me? For my sanity? For my sweet sweet husband?
This is where I will be going:
http://www.cbm.org.br/new/index.php
If you go on this website, you will get a little taste of what I will be enjoying. Apparently, I will not be seeing anacondas while there...
I will be a part of the health minitries team that will travel up and down the river to different villages with a group of doctors and nurses helping to meet the medical needs of the people. The other part of the group will be building a church.
I can't believe I am going to go. I really can't. Since I have not had the luxury of planning this for months, I have not had the opportunity to save nor plan for this expense. This trip will cost $2,500. Should you read this story and feel led to help in some small way, please send a check to:
Journey Christian Church
3505 Old Hundred Road
Midlothian, VA 23112
Please put my name - Christy Whitver in the memo line along with Brazil missions trip. Your contribution is tax deductible.
I can't tell you enough how much your support, in any capacity, means to me. I cherish the thought that one of my friends or family members may want to support me as I take this huge step in faith. Thank you so much!
I plan to share my journey getting to Brazil, ministering in Brazil and coming home.
Stay tuned!
Yes, Lord, I will go to Brazil on this missions trip. Yes, I know it is only 33 days away. Yes, I know it is 2 weeks long! Yes, I know it is expensive. If I say no now, when I have heard you the clearest in all my life, when will I be able to say yes?
If you have the time and are even the slightest bit interested, please read how I got here. I am new to bloging, so I only have three other posts besides this one - so, not too long.
This trip is two weeks long and it is in 33 days from today. In 35 days, I will be on a boat in the Amazon jungle - for real! No joking. On a boat, on a river, in the Amazon jungle, in Brazil. That takes my breath away....I would never have the courage to do this on my own.
I will be getting ready for this trip in a really really short amount of time. I didn't realize how much preparation goes along with planning a missions trip. These folks have been planning for months and I will do it in days. I will not be able to do this without help. Please help me through your prayers and financial support as this trip will cost $2,500. Will you say a little prayer for me? For my sanity? For my sweet sweet husband?
This is where I will be going:
http://www.cbm.org.br/new/index.php
If you go on this website, you will get a little taste of what I will be enjoying. Apparently, I will not be seeing anacondas while there...
I will be a part of the health minitries team that will travel up and down the river to different villages with a group of doctors and nurses helping to meet the medical needs of the people. The other part of the group will be building a church.
I can't believe I am going to go. I really can't. Since I have not had the luxury of planning this for months, I have not had the opportunity to save nor plan for this expense. This trip will cost $2,500. Should you read this story and feel led to help in some small way, please send a check to:
Journey Christian Church
3505 Old Hundred Road
Midlothian, VA 23112
Please put my name - Christy Whitver in the memo line along with Brazil missions trip. Your contribution is tax deductible.
I can't tell you enough how much your support, in any capacity, means to me. I cherish the thought that one of my friends or family members may want to support me as I take this huge step in faith. Thank you so much!
I plan to share my journey getting to Brazil, ministering in Brazil and coming home.
Stay tuned!
Something has arrived!
I can't believe it has been a week since I posted. I should have posted something each day as I have gone through this journey (yes, in one week I have been on a journey!). It has been truly amazing! I can't even find the right words to describe it!
Before I began this study, I would always ask "How do you know it was God?" "No, seriously, what made you know without a doubt that what you heard was God? Did you hear "the voice'"? I was at a loss - truly. This study has taught me more in 6 weeks then I ever dreamed was possible. First - you CAN have a love relationship with God that is real and personal. I've always heard that - well maybe not in those words - exactly. MY church does a fantastic job of preaching a relationship with Christ. I just didn't get it until now. Maybe it takes me longer to understand things - I don't know. I truly don't, but what I do know is that over the last 6 weeks I know that God loves me more than I ever dreamed possible. Why? I don't think we will ever know why God chose us specifically, but he did and that is all that matters.
I am going to try really hard to convey my journey for you as I have experienced it over the last week - it may be long, but it is amazing!
Over the last couple of weeks, I have had this overwhelming sensation that God was telling me - Come to me, Learn who I really am, Learn that you can trust me, just come...At the end of one of the previous weeks I felt God tell me - Get Ready! I knew something was up because I would never ever in a million years tell my self to "Get Ready". I am EXTREMELY impatient. I am type A and I need to know right now! As my boss says - Instant gratification takes too long. Get ready? Seriously? Come on!
Rob and I share the same workbook and we both get up at 5 am. We were supposed to alternate - excise, study. Well....that was the plan anyway. You know how that goes! So, anyway, it was his turn to do the study and God had already impressed upon me, "Just because he is doing the study it doesn't mean you can't spend time in my Word." Ok, so I started reading 2 Corinthians....and these verses seared into my being like nothing before them:
"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sin against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us..." 2 Corinthians 5:17-20 (emphasis mine)
When I read that - WHOA! If I am saved, which I am, then the God of the universe has committed to me personally his message. Christ resides in me so that I may share it with others. I am an ambassador for Christ. WHOA AGAIN! I never ever got this. NEVER. It still affects me the same way as it did last week....It's like these verses have affected my soul...
Yesterday everything started to come together. I was home sick from work so I decided to catch up on the study from what I did not do over the weekend. The study brought up Jeremiah 1:5:
"Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations."
I read this verse and I was like, huh - interesting. I picked up the book I am ready, Crazy Love by Francis Chan, and what do I read? Francis Chan going into the woods for a 4 day retreat - what does he open his Bible to? Jeremiah 1! SAME VERSE!!!! At this point I am freaking out! Ok, God what are telling me? (Lots of freaking out and wondering and reading past journal "stuff" and applying it to now) I thought, ok, he is confirming my desire to go to Honduras on a mission trip in September. GREAT! Rob gets home....we start talking while the kids are outside. At this point, I am thinking, maybe God is calling me for something bigger than this one mission trip - well, I know it really. Rob and I are talking about it and us being missionaries (??????) and he says - I think you need to go to Brazil. Brazil? That trip is only one month away! I'm going to Honduras, not Brazil. Brazil is expensive - like - expensive. He said, I think you should at least pray about it. Ok, honey...I'll do that.
This morning, I am praying and writing in my journal as I have found that is a good way to focus my mind and not wander....I'm thinking in my head, Lord do you want me to go to Brazil because...and then I hear it (not "the voice") clearly - What about both? WHAT???? Both? How is that possible? BOTH? REALLY?
I sent an e-mail to our pastor - would you believe it? Someone backed out and there is room for me on this trip? I'm FREAKING OUT! (Can you see and hear the type A through this post? LOL)
I shared with my Experiencing God class after my hour long talk with my pastor....so, I am going to BRAZIL! On May 7th.....33 days from now.
Before I began this study, I would always ask "How do you know it was God?" "No, seriously, what made you know without a doubt that what you heard was God? Did you hear "the voice'"? I was at a loss - truly. This study has taught me more in 6 weeks then I ever dreamed was possible. First - you CAN have a love relationship with God that is real and personal. I've always heard that - well maybe not in those words - exactly. MY church does a fantastic job of preaching a relationship with Christ. I just didn't get it until now. Maybe it takes me longer to understand things - I don't know. I truly don't, but what I do know is that over the last 6 weeks I know that God loves me more than I ever dreamed possible. Why? I don't think we will ever know why God chose us specifically, but he did and that is all that matters.
I am going to try really hard to convey my journey for you as I have experienced it over the last week - it may be long, but it is amazing!
Over the last couple of weeks, I have had this overwhelming sensation that God was telling me - Come to me, Learn who I really am, Learn that you can trust me, just come...At the end of one of the previous weeks I felt God tell me - Get Ready! I knew something was up because I would never ever in a million years tell my self to "Get Ready". I am EXTREMELY impatient. I am type A and I need to know right now! As my boss says - Instant gratification takes too long. Get ready? Seriously? Come on!
Rob and I share the same workbook and we both get up at 5 am. We were supposed to alternate - excise, study. Well....that was the plan anyway. You know how that goes! So, anyway, it was his turn to do the study and God had already impressed upon me, "Just because he is doing the study it doesn't mean you can't spend time in my Word." Ok, so I started reading 2 Corinthians....and these verses seared into my being like nothing before them:
"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sin against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us..." 2 Corinthians 5:17-20 (emphasis mine)
When I read that - WHOA! If I am saved, which I am, then the God of the universe has committed to me personally his message. Christ resides in me so that I may share it with others. I am an ambassador for Christ. WHOA AGAIN! I never ever got this. NEVER. It still affects me the same way as it did last week....It's like these verses have affected my soul...
Yesterday everything started to come together. I was home sick from work so I decided to catch up on the study from what I did not do over the weekend. The study brought up Jeremiah 1:5:
"Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations."
I read this verse and I was like, huh - interesting. I picked up the book I am ready, Crazy Love by Francis Chan, and what do I read? Francis Chan going into the woods for a 4 day retreat - what does he open his Bible to? Jeremiah 1! SAME VERSE!!!! At this point I am freaking out! Ok, God what are telling me? (Lots of freaking out and wondering and reading past journal "stuff" and applying it to now) I thought, ok, he is confirming my desire to go to Honduras on a mission trip in September. GREAT! Rob gets home....we start talking while the kids are outside. At this point, I am thinking, maybe God is calling me for something bigger than this one mission trip - well, I know it really. Rob and I are talking about it and us being missionaries (??????) and he says - I think you need to go to Brazil. Brazil? That trip is only one month away! I'm going to Honduras, not Brazil. Brazil is expensive - like - expensive. He said, I think you should at least pray about it. Ok, honey...I'll do that.
This morning, I am praying and writing in my journal as I have found that is a good way to focus my mind and not wander....I'm thinking in my head, Lord do you want me to go to Brazil because...and then I hear it (not "the voice") clearly - What about both? WHAT???? Both? How is that possible? BOTH? REALLY?
I sent an e-mail to our pastor - would you believe it? Someone backed out and there is room for me on this trip? I'm FREAKING OUT! (Can you see and hear the type A through this post? LOL)
I shared with my Experiencing God class after my hour long talk with my pastor....so, I am going to BRAZIL! On May 7th.....33 days from now.
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