Well, it's our final day here. The plane leaves in less than 9 hours. It has been a great 10 days here in Rio. Here is a little longer recap of the last several days...
Friday - On Friday half of our team finished work projects and the others went to an orphanage. After finishing the projects, our whole team was together at the orphanage. We painted a number of rooms and spent time playing with the kids at the home. It was awesome watching the team members interact with the children. Those little ones surely touched the hearts of all of us. When dinnertime came, we were joined by teenagers from another home. The pizza party was a chance to interact more with the youth. It was a truly incredible day to meet Jesus among the poorest of Rio's citizens.
Saturday - The English day was incredible as well. There were over 100 Brazilians who came for this special Saturday event. According to Dan and Kirsty, the vast majority were visitors and over half had never visited the church before. Those who came were able to practice their English, play some fun games, and enjoy a hamburger. It was a great chance to help the church make some new relationships.
Sunday - I always enjoy worshiping with the Brazilians. Their worship is passionate and uplifting. Words can not describe how amazing it is to worship in another language. It helps cement the fact that we serve a God bigger than any one nation, language, or people. There is nothing like it!
Monday and today have given us a chance to visit with a few of the Brazilians and visit Dan and Kirsty's home. Some of us even had a chance today to meet an eight-year-old Brazilian boy who lives in Dan's neighborhood.
I was so impressed with our team again this year. God always seems to bring together the right mixture of people for the task at hand. They all worked hard without complaint. They accomplished so much for God here in Rio. God's light was shining through all of them!
I have been touched once again by Rio and it's people. It is a place that has much less than us in material possessions, but they are rich in many of the things that God values. Joy. Passion. Friendliness. Valuing children. These are the things that Brazilians possess. While I am looking forward to home, I will miss Brazil a lot. There is a part of my heart that will always be Brazilian.
shine!
Jason (Michelle & Matthew)
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This trip has been amazing. Its hard to believe that we accomplished so much in such a little time. Every day has been full of hard work and a lot of fun. The work with the children's home was my favorite part of the trip. The kids were so eager to love us and hug us. They were so sweet, and it was very hard to leave them there. I will be staying in Rio for another week, and I am very sad that the rest of the team can not stay with me because I have grown so close with them. I hope that anyone reading this gets an opportunity to participate in a campaign like this one. It is a life changing experience.
Becky
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