The Brazil Blog: October 2011

I'm going to try and post again to sum up everything that happened during my trip but I need to share a little update on some answered prayer. In my last post, I asked for some financial help to buy some clothes for a family that is in the church I attend here in Gravatai. Very soon afterwards, my prayers were answered with just the right amount of money to supply this family with a haircut, clothes and a load of groceries. Praise God for what He has done!
I'll tell you a little bit about their haircuts. During my stay here, I've needed a few haircuts. So the place that I chose was a salon in Wal-mart. I ended up meeting the owner of the salon due to my lack of language skills. She was the only staff member that could speak English. We ended up talking for a really long time at the store and I found out she had just moved back to Brazil from South Carolina. She gave me her card and invited me back before I departed Brazil. When I realized that the boys needed haircuts, I knew where I would be going! Our first stop in our big day of shopping was in the hair salon. They got their haircuts done pretty quick. I brought them up to the counter to pay, and the employee told me, "No pay". What?! That was so cool to receive that kind of generosity from people that I barely know! With the money that we saved we were able to buy socks. Little did I know that they had been sharing socks with their mom for the entire winter without having any of their own. After the haircut we headed over to McDonald's for an ice cream treat. I don't know how often they get to go to McDonald's because in Brazil, McDonald's is where you go if you HAVE money. A Big Mac meal runs you about 15 dollars. So I'm sure that was fun for them :) After the treat we went shopping and I was able to get them two nice shirts for church, and a pair of new shorts. That may not seem like a lot but Brazil is very expensive. It is unbelievable. A pair of Nike running shoes costs about $300! I had some extra money so I decided to head to the grocery store and fill their refridgerator. It was so awesome to see Nelci's (the mom) face when I saw her. She had tears of joy! God's grace is so humbling! It's crazy how He uses undeserving sinners like us to carry out His purposes. What an amazing privilege to be able to serve God!
It was an amazing day! One of the many highlights of my stay in Brazil! I have already started my "farewell tour". It has been really tough saying goodbye to people that I have grown to love for the last time. Lord-willing I will see them again on this earth. I have so many other thoughts in my mind about Brazil, missions and God I could type forever! I will try to get a few more of these written before I leave!

Oh! One last update! I will be preaching on Sunday for the first time in my life! It will be on my favorite chapter of the Bible; John 9. Please pray for God to speak through me to the thirsty souls of whoever comes to hear. Thanks!

Outside Wal-Mart before haircuts. Gabriel on the left, Mateus on the right.

Fitting rooms

McDonald's

The family outside their house. They look mad, but it is customary to not smile in pictures in Brazil. They're happy I promise!

My time is running out in Brazil. I now feel so comfortable here that it doesn't seem like I will be leaving in three weeks. I have fallen in love with the people. It will be one of the toughest times of my life to say good-bye. I am currently on my way back from Argentina where I accompanied other Baptist church in Porto Alegre on a mini missions trip. This weekend has been the highlight of my stay here for sure. I'll tell you a bit about it :)

I didn't really have an idea about how it would go. All I knew was that I was going to be teaching basketball to some little kids. Little did I know was that there was much more God had for me and the team that I was with. On Saturday, I got to meet everyone on the team that came. There was around 40 people in all. We spend the early morning inviting kids and their parents to an afternoon of fun in the park. The kids had many little games for them to play and the parents could receive free hair-cuts, manicures pedicures, and free legal advice from a lawyer. The turnout was amazing! I'm not sure how many kids were there but it must have been around 100. We shuffled the kids to each activity station, let them play the game, and for the last five minutes, we shared part of the salvation story with them through the salvation bracelets we gave them at the beginning. It was a great experience to share the gospel to the little ones.

After the game day, we went to a praise rally in the park where some of the team members lead worship music and we listened to a pastor share the gospel again. Many people attended. I'm not totally sure what was said. Even with my interpreter friends helping me. But from what I know, it was a great message of salvation. After the message, a famous soccer player named Lucio shared his testimony and gave out a ton of soccer memorabilia that was used on World Cup games and professional league soccer in Brazil. I was lucky enough to catch a soccer ball that was used in an Internacional (Brazilian pro team) game! Crazy! God blessed me with enough height to catch it over the crowd :)

Since I don't speak Portuguese, I never know what our schedule is. So I have to expect the unexpected. This morning, we had a choice of many different ministries. The choices were: helping with clothing donations, painting, yardwork, soccer and going to a prison. As soon as I heard about the prison, I knew that was where I needed to be. God led a new freind of mine named Martin to come with me to interpret and translate for me. I didn't know what to expect, but it turned into the most powerful evangelism I have ever been a part of. I looked through a dollar sized crack in a door and told prison inmates about true freedom in Christ. I looked in there eyes and saw grown men with hearts that longed for hope. I pray that God gave them hope through the words that He gave me. One group of inmates asked if I would read Romans to them in English after I shared. I have there names somewhere and I will try to get those on the blog soon so you can pray for them. I also had the opportunity to pray with a lady named Debra. She is the only Christian that works at the prison. She is responsible for bringing us there. I prayed for strength and comfort for her. She is in a really tough position to be a light in her workplace. Just imagine!

I expected to look at the inmates with pity something similar to that. To my surprise, by the grace of God, I saw them no different than I was before God opened my eyes to his beauty. They are created in God's image and in need of a savior! Praise God for sending His Son to humble broken sinners!

God also sent many people on the trip with me that speak fluent English. It was great making some good friends and hearing some of their testimonies. I pray that I will see them again someday. In the United States, Brazil, or in Heaven. I have been so encouraged my them and how they have found Jesus to be the treasure of their hearts.

On a different note concerning my health. One or two times a day, I have been having a difficult time breathing. It feels kind of like I am breathing through a straw or there is a weight on my chest. I went in to the doctor, they did a bunch of tests and they couldn't find a thing wrong. They said maybe allergies or the pollution in the city ( there is so much pollution in the air!). If you could pray for healing, I would love for this little bug to fly away!

And last but not least, God has placed on my heart to help a family in my city of Gravatai. There is a single mother named Nelci' and two sons named Mateus and Gabriel. They go to Tom and Penny's church. They are poor beyond belief. They live in a little shack with dirt floor. They barely get by each month. Both of the boys are in need of some summer clothes and new shoes. If you feel led to help someone, I know that this family is in need of it. Personally, I do not have the funds to help them. I wish I could just pick them up and take them shopping but unfortunately I cannot. If you would like to help, email me at erik.aleckson@gmail.com. Thank you!