We're flying out!! See you all soon, and pray for safe travels!!

Oi!

Although this is late, please read about our progress. We've been all over without internet, so we wrote about what's been goin on down here:

Oi!

It is Saturday morning and we are finishing up here at “A Sombra.” Here is what’s been going on since our last post:

Tuesday night we went on a late night expedition to the grocery filled with sheer bliss and happiness and food. Needless to say we haven’t been sleeping much. Bill bought vanilla cream ice cream and nutella, his new favorite spread.
The remainder of the week we’ve separated into possums and jaguars. The possums dug trenches for the sewage and the jaguars continued construction at Robert’s house. Robert is from Scotland and is hilarious. Robert runs a children’s evangelism program that prevents kids in the favela from running away to the streets. Anywhere from 12 to around 50 kids can come at one time. Because Robert has served there for many years, he has gained the trust of the parents to take the kids in everyday and even to kids camps for one week. Robert serves along with his wife and 2.5 kids (one is on the way) in this new children’s home. It was purchased in February and is placed right outside the favelas. By Friday, the jaguars had constructed several walls and places for windows.

One day, Bobby spent the whole day on scaffolding laying brick. The jaguars were beastly in their efforts this week. Much destruction was needed before erecting walls and laying floor. They hauled rubble and stone up two flights of stairs to help lay new flooring for their church room. The ladies sanded then painted the lower level section near one of the classrooms. At Robert’s, Megan, Lauren, Carol and one of the interns led craft time for the kids while Whitney busted a move in honor of Michael Jackson. The kids were stoked out of their minds in awe of Whitney’s mad skills. Jake hopped in his construction boots -- see pics for more!
Possums have been on ditch digging duties for the week and concluded by laying most of the pipe needed for the septic system. We’ve had some trials along the way like pipes from the past that have been left underground, rain the last couple days, as well as lack of quality supplies/tools. Through God’s strength we’ve overcome a lot. It has been very enjoyable, however, to work outdoors and get to see the results of our work. Both the possum and jaguar teams have been able to meet some wonderful people here. Luis, the foreman for the possums, has been a pleasure to work with, as well as the interns at Robert’s house.

It has been an incredible journey as we’ve wrapped up our week of serving at the different places. Now this weekend we have host home experiences, church, and the beach. Each student will be off with a Brazilian host family from a local church. As we conclude the week with nightly sessions, it has been incredible to see the Lord work in each person’s life, both students and adults. We’ve discussed community, the church, gifts and roles within the body of Christ, and enjoyed encouraging each other while seeing how God has worked in each other’s lives.

Personally (Jake) it has been truly encouraging and refreshing to be a part of something where God’s people are involved, interacting, serving and challenging one another. The last couple years have been a spiritual uphill battle, and joining up with the ABC team is a joy, and I am thankful God has used such a tremendous group of brothers and sisters to remind me how sweet it is to be a part of the body of Christ.
Thanks for your continued prayers, thoughts, posts, and support to us while we’ve been here. We can’t wait to see ya’ll in a few days. We will be leaving for the beach Sunday night, for a time of debriefing and relaxing. Continue to pray for those working with ABBA that they would be refreshed this weekend. We will be leaving on Tuesday, and while our time here has been incredible, it will be hard to say goodbye.

In Christ,
Rae, Whitney, and Jake for the ABC team

Trabalhamos (We're working)...

Sunday was Father’s Day in the U.S. (however not in Brazil). The group attended an English speaking church called Calvary International Church where Bill Fawcett is the pastor. Pastor Fawcett is connected to the church through his son Nate, who taught at BCA. The church service proved to be a very enlightening experience for us all. After church we left for one of the few, but very beautiful parks in Sao Paulo. The park is called Ibirapuera where there is a lake in the middle of the park with riding/walking trails all around amidst the busyness of the city and huge skyscrapers (check out the picture). The park also has bike rentals and some of us rented some bikes and rode them around with the kids. We played soccer and frisbee with many of the boys from ABBA. It was a great time of fellowship and Bobby Brown even rode a skateboard on the trails! ABBA does a wonderful job incorporating the boys into community and family type opportunities and the boys play together like brothers. It is very fun to be a part of their ministry.

Along with serving with ABBA, we've been able to help with Thomas' family. He has 5 kids, three of which are with him now (all girls). The other two kids, along with their mom, are stateside, and the girls on our team have been playing with them, Esther, Maggie, and Violet, allowing Thomas to be able to do other things. The girls were able to climb a huge rubber tree. We all have enjoyed getting to know Thomas' little girls!

A high point for us has been having daily devotionals and “sessions”. We were blessed to attend Sunday’s session at Thomas Smoak’s house, director of ABBA. He served waffles to us, and talked about what the church means and what our responsibility is as believers. Also, it was awesome because Thomas has a Vonage phone line that we used. Many of us were able to call our fathers for Father's Day.

Monday we were divided into two teams: the Possums and Jaguars (thanks to Neil Anderson’s creative thinking). The Possums dug holes and ditches on the residence which Tim has planned out for the boy’s new home. They dug ditches for new sewage pipes, while the Jaguars’ many tasks consisted of tearing down walls, sand-papering, and drinking coffee. (The Possums are slightly envious. Guess which team I’m on?)

We are very excited about what God is doing in our group. We are praying that He reveals Himself to us even more in the coming week. Tim has a detailed schedule planned for us. Later today, some of us will go to downtown to play hockey with street kids. Others will play soccer tonight at Casa Elohim with the boys who live there. Please keep us in your prayers and know that we are very thankful for all of your support as we continue on our Brazilian journey.

Also, please comment on the blog and say hi to friends or family here. We will show the notes to the different team members, and it'd be fun to hear from you! Blessings!

Megan McGill, for the ABC Brasil Team

PS - Some of us are wearing the same work clothes every day!

PPS - We've got some good internet, so enjoy the pics and make comments!

Joann and Megan finish up their ditch taking final 50cm depth measurement


At Thomas' house, we were waiting around to use the phone...


Some of us staying awake better than others...


Bobby shows off his skateboarding skills!


The girls "hang out" with Esther Smoak in a rubber tree at the park


Here's a view of a small portion of Sao Paulo from the park looking across the lake


Some park activities on Sunday included biking and soccer



Time together back at our retreat center "A Sombra"

Ate a proxima vez (until next time)...

Estamos Aqui! (We're Here!)

Greetings from Brasil! We made it safe and sound yesterday (Friday), and arrived with all of our luggage in hand! For some, the plane trip here was their first time on a plane. We were welcomed by Tim Anderson, Joann's son, and he set us up in "Sombra" (meaning 'shade') Retreat Center set up for teams to serve in the community and rejuvinate at the center.

After we gathered our luggage, we loaded up into a few VW vans and a truck and went to the center of Sao Paulo. There we exchanged money and were able to view the whole city from the top of a bank tower. Leaving the center of town and heading to Sombra Retreat Center we experienced authentic Brasilian driving. We also saw the different areas of Sao Paulo from the slums ("Favela") to the towering buildings amidst the mountains. It is a beautiful city where we learned a large portion of the people are living in poverty.

The organization we are with ABBA works with rescuing at risk kids from the streets and favelas. They try to place the kids back in loving family homes while doing it in a Christ-centered community. Tim serves at ABBA and is our liaison between the ministry we are doing with ABBA.

Today, Saturday, we toured the community where ABBA has its various houses and office buildings. We began working on one house that needs plumbing work. We broke off into teams and did everything from diggin ditches to breaking up a seepage tank. It was laborous work that will continue on Monday. We will be installing new underground piping that will allow the house bathrooms and drains to be pumped out to the city's sewage line.

God has given us strength as we worked all day today. We are excited to begin our ministry with ABBA, and look forward to seeing what God will do in our time here. It is most amazing to see what God has done in and through ABBA and the people that serve here. Please continue to pray for safety as we work and travel throughout Sao Paulo. Also pray for strength for the workers at ABBA. Although we are friends and come as a breath of fresh air, it is also an extra job to set up stuff for us to do, plan out transportation, etc. So pray for Tim, Thomas, and Robert (another guy that serves here from Scotland).

We miss you all and are very thankful for your prayers. Please view the pictures and feel free to post comments on the blogs as well!!!

~Brazil Team

PS - Tonight we were able to play a few pickup games of soccer USA vs. Brazil style, then we joined up and played random pickup games together.




In this picture is Thomas (director of ABBA) laying out the plans for our work day

Bem Vindos!! (Welcome)

Welcome to Alliance Bible Church's Brazil Trip Blog!!

Please check back frequently throughout our trip for updates, praises and prayer requests, pictures and other info on the whereabouts of our team!

We appreciate your support and feel free to pass along this blog to anyone else!

~Brasil Team