We Must Go

2010 trip update.....Wednesday version

Things are going great. Everyone having a great time. I know that I  mentioned more than once that one of my goals for this trip is to push your students out of their comfort zone and to teach them something new about themselves. Well, this group is challenging me in this area. They are all jumping right into every challenge they are being given without hesitation and exceeded my expectations.We are still not having any issues finding people to present testimonies or to share the gospel through some form or another. Every student has shared their story at one point or another (many several times even).

Tuesday we did visit downtown Sao Paulo again and there was some exposure to some pretty dismal conditions. Appreciation for life and what they each have will not be an issue for your students when they return. We walked through one favela that even scares me a little when I walk through it and everyone did great. In another favela we had an interesting event that just kind of happened without plan. We were outside the hut we use for services as there was a woman's Bible study taking place on the inside. Somehow David ended up with a borrowed guitar from one of the residents and we begin to sing in the streets (dirt path) and kids and adults from the community gathered around and next thing we knew there was a concert taking place. I will let the students give you the details of the event and what was taking place around us at the same time! (don't worry, they were safe).

Your students have been exposed to some real world stuff this week. It will be interesting to see how it is all digested. I apologize up front, but I will not be bringing the same people back with me that I left Smyrna with. This group has been as impacted as any group I have ever seen. They are all doing great.

I am going to break mold this time and call out individuals for what I have been most impressed with. The four returning students have done an excellent job of preparing the first time students for the trip. Samantha Scott, Jordan Prewitt, Ryan Tidwell, and Chris Loveless also have developed as individuals exponentially since last week. They all four did an excellent job with testimonies and sharing the gospel. Taylor Thompson and Lizzy Campbell are work horses that have jumped right into the environment and are shining brightly. Callie Mills jumped right in the quickest and is first to volunteer for any and every thing. Jordan Owens is a natural with the kids and has absolutely fallen in love with the people here. I asked her yesterday if she was still scared of the lice situation and she just said "what lice?" Taylor Simpson was the slowest to share her testimony and to talk in front of people, but when she did step up, wow, it was great. She had tears everywhere as she shared what God has done for her (mom be proud). Amy Adkins is probably the quietest of the bunch, but is in the middle of everything as well. She just takes it all in and throws herself into the middle of whatever just to make sure she is making a difference. Randle Alignamath is a young man that does not hesitate to share his believes with anyone and has a passion for Christ that is unmatched for his age. Mariah Suri is another awesome young lady that has embraced Brazil and its people with full force. She is having an awesome time and enjoying every minute of every day. Parents be as proud as I am because this group is exceeding expectations.

The connection is still too slow to upload pictures. I will try every time I can and hopefully one day I can get some pictures posted, but don't worry, each of you will see more than you care to see once your student returns.

2010 trip update.....Monday version

Things are going great still. Service yesterday saw more than 175 people on the property here in Jarinu, and another 120 in Gleba-B. Your students are stilling going strong. I usually have some trouble early in the week finding people who will speak to groups, give testimonies, or just do what is needed; that is not the case with this group. Everyone is so quick to jump in and volunteer, and most every time the hardest part has been determining who "gets" to speak or serve.

We had a reflection time this morning. I just sat and listened as most students shared their favorite part of the trip, shared what touched their hearts the most, or even asked a question or two about something they had saw or witnessed. Sometimes it takes some questions or action by me to get these sessions moving this early in the trip, but not with this group. This is an impressive group.

We also visited a neighborhood this afternoon and just walked the streets talking to people, playing with the kids/adults and sharing testimonies. A couple of students also had the chance to use the Evangeacube to share the gospel. The energy this group has at this point in the trip impresses me.

Tomorrow (Tuesday) we are heading back into Sao Paulo to visit favelas. There are a couple of women's Bible studies planned as well as women's crafts. This is usually a good time for the females in our group to share some intimate time with the local women and build some friendships that will last a last time, even if they never see one another again.

Each morning the students have received a theme for the day, or you could say a quiet time devotional. We have touched on some subject matters that are not unfamiliar to your students, but maybe from a different perspective. The goal for the week is to challenge your students thinking and comfort zone. They all were told that they would be treated as adults because the commitment to this trip showed maturity beyond their years. The students have been challenged about the real reason for the trip, their commitment to service, and what it means to really serve. Like I said not new subject matter, but an attempt to challenge the status quo on their thought process.

Still not connected well enough to upload pics, so another update in a day or two and hopefully pics to go along as well. Be proud of your students, they are exceptional young adults doing you proud.

High School Trip 2010 version

We are safely in Brasil and things are going great. This is a really grounded group and they have grasped the purpose of this trip with arms wide open. Everyone has taken to the Brazilian kids and people quicker than any other student group. We held services/activities to more than 250 kids in two different favelas, and the kids had a blast (both ours and the Brazilians).

Your students have made you proud right out of the gate. Their grasp of the reality of the world changed today, for the better. I wish I could have captured the looks on some of the faces as they were able to walk through the favelas and realize that people really live in the conditions that were experienced today. Without hesitation every student in our group stepped right in and loved on the people/kids. I was proud of them all.

Very tired at the moment so keeping this short. Will blog as often as possible this week so keep checking for updates. There will be some pics on the way soon. I am proud of them all and assure you that you would be too.

 

Here we go Again.....

We are less than 7 weeks away from the departure of the July 2009 team to Brazil. This group has come together nicely and this again will be an exciting experience. We have 5 returning and 8 first timers. A great blend for a group. We will be joining two other Lifepointers that will be in Brazil for the summer in Jared Shingleton and Erica Pope. I have had the privilege of experience this trip with both of these individuals and I am excited for them both as I know how excited each is for this opportunity.

Please keep this group in your prayers and I will post more trip details soon.

July 2009 Team

Amber Johnson

Justin Morton - 1st trip

Chuck Engle - 1st trip

Sherry Engle - 1st trip

Savannah Decker - 1st trip

Eric Richey - 1st trip

Misty Collins - 1st trip

Danny Gambrell - 1st trip (to our partners)

Gina Mitchell

Emily Mitchell

Lauren Hankins - 1st trip

Spencer Johnston

and of course ME!!!! (I am a fortunate individual and am thankful for this opportunity everyday)

God Bless........

Settling back in.......

The first few days back from each trip are difficult days. It's good to get back into the normal routine, but you spend a lot of time thinking about what the Brazil team is doing at every moment. I have learned to use these days to digest the trip so that I remember the important points of the trip. It is important to me that the true point of going on this trip is not lost within the emotions of coming home. Things change for you after making this trip. Your life as a whole may not change much, but the way you digest events and moments does change. It helps make some of lifes choices a little easier to make.

If you are reading this and you were on the trip then you know we spoke many times about your actions after you return home. Now is the time to put those actions into place. The thoughts and ideas you had while you were there are now ripe for picking. What are you going to do about it? Good intentions are great and lead to many great things in life. Good intentions are also a great source for the enemy to attack you. Reason after reason will pop in your head as to why you can't accomplish something or make a difference in the world. Let me remind you that all that confidence you had in Brazil on your ideas still exists here at home, you just have to work through all the "distractions" to see it as clearly here as you did there.

I am planning a meeting for next Wednesday night, 04/08/09 at 6PM before church just to get back together and share thoughts and ideas. Please plan to make it to this meeting if possible. I would like for everyone who does come to do me a favor. Please bring me a disk of your favorite 200-300 picutres that you took on the trip. I hope to get these all in a few weeks and put together some sort of disk(s) for everyone. This is an important event to me after trips as it helps everyone reflect and remember. With a group this size it is a difficult task however, so please help me out and do this ASAP. Look forward to seeing everyone again tonight. GOD BLESS! Here are a few more pics from tirp.

         

       

   

 

Home safely......

We are home! All travels went well on the way home to top off about as perfect a week as possible. I am going to make this post short and sweet as I am tired and mind is not functioning at 100%. I am attaching a group photo below for now. Over the next few days I plan to post some comments and thoughts about the trip. I would be very interested in knowing others thoughts as well so we can make future trips better. Also, I plan to post various other pics this week as well when I have time to review them.

Thanks to everyone I had the privilege to share this trip with and to everyone here at home that played a part in this trip. It was definitely an experience that will never be forgotten!!! Love ya and GOD BLESS YOU ALL!

Coming Home....

Flexibility has been the theme of the week. I did not get pictures posted like I had planned because other opportunities were presented for myself. Pete and I have had some discussions about future trips and pulling this trip to an end this week. This has soaked up most of my extra time. That plus the fact every time I had a moment David or Jared were on the computer!!!!! So, I apologize that pictures were not posted, but in fairness it prevented me from stealing the students thunder when they get home.

We are leaving the property in about 10 hours for the airport. There are two lines that represent these Brazil trips. First, this is the longest week that is the fastest week you will ever experience. Second, when you leave it feels like it will be forever before you can return, but once you step off the plane when you do come back it feels like you never left.

Thursday morning we had our last seminary session. It went well and the students were presented to discipleship from a slightly different viewpoint. It appeared to open some eyes to a new concept. Thursday nights is the local church service. We spent the afternoon cleaning the property and preparing for the people. There was some construction work being done by some. We managed to complete the roof on the new bus shelter. Bret and Arildo both were extremely excited about getting this completed as the panels are heavy and large. Having the extra hands made it much easier to cope with. Many of the young ladies worked on cleaning out the underbrush in a wooded area by the house. Service went well with a slightly smaller crowd than Sunday morning. We served homemade pizzas to everyone after the service.

Friday morning we visited another school and had a repeat of Monday's events. There was a slight difference in that we visited every classroom and got to answer questions from the students and hand out Bibles. That afternoon we had a private English language class visit the property for the opportunity to mix with people who spoke English as a primary language. The Brazilian students were supposed to speak English the entire time they were here. They tried, and did a great job, but didn't quite make the goal. We were able to hand out Bibles to the entire group before they left. Their teacher, Nora, does a great job of investing into the children in the area. This was the 4th time I have had the privilege of inter-acting with her and her students. I enjoy the fact that there are other people around the world willing to invest and believe in younger people and truly believes that the younger generation can change the world for the better.

Friday evening we closed the week with a little different experience. We had a campfire in a field and all (42) sat in a circle around the fire and had one last reflection opportunity. Like I have posted in the past, these students on this trip are amazing. Some of the observations of the week and digestion of the events were absolutely not out of the minds of kids, but out of the minds of young mature adults. There are 20 high school students down here and each and every one of them are future leaders of some sort, even if just in their own homes.

After the reflection time we took the group into downtown Campo Limpo for a true cultural experience. We visited a local "restaurant" (I will let them explain) and everyone had the opportunity to experience the sandwich of their lives! Many were skeptical of trying, but everyone enjoyed the sandwiches A LOT!

I have great things to say about this trip, but prefer to wait until I get home to give my final summary. I will repeat myself now by saying that you should all be proud of this group. Proud of the way they represented your families, our church, and mostly the way GOD was shared with others. Like I have told each of the parents before we left, you will like the person who returns home.

See you all at the airport in about 30 hours!!!!!

GOOD MORNING FROM BRASILIA........

It is hard to believe that it is already Thursday morning and that we leave in about 60 hours. As long as this week is emotionally and physically on a person, it compares nothing to how fast it speeds by. Everyone is still doing great.

Tuesday was a long day with the trip into Sao Paulo. We got back to the property about an hour late because the visit to the last favela went really well so we did not leave in schedule because God kept placing individuals in front of the students for the chance to testify and lead them through the EvangeCube.

Wednesday was the emotional day. In the morning we had seminary with the Brazil team. The Brazilian students shared their life stories with the team. They explained their background and how they came to become part of AMO. It was an awesome experience. Our team had a chance to ask questions and have face to face time to interact and get more personal with the Brazil team. The seminar lasted for 3 hours and was broken into 2 sessions. The first session was supposed to be about the Brazilian testimonies and the second session had been planned for me to continue the series that I have been teaching over the last 2.5 years, but the second session begin with some questions from our students that snowballed into the entire session. It was awesome. Note to Carrie: it got so touchy feely in the first session that Todd skipped the last session because he said he was afraid he would tear up and he did not want to ruin his reputation back home with the students!!!! Actually Todd and Bret worked on loading the bus and van for our trip into Campinas and Gleba-B.

Wednesday afternoon we visited Gleba-B for the last time for this trip. This is where the most relationships exist and most of the children in the embrace-a-child program live. Without going into a lot of details the pattern continued. Many of the students in this trip found their "favorite" kid in Gleba-B this week. We held worship service last night and it went very well again. We packed the house (about 120) and it was a GREAT evening. Then came the hard part.....leaving. Wow, you want to talk about emotional. Watching a group leave Gleba-B for the last time each trip is hard because this is one of those crying, emotional, and touchy feely moments. Well, let's just say this group has been the hardest to watch leave. There were some young ladies in our team that we literally had to walk out of their because they were so emotional. Even most of the young men were showing their emotions. It was awesome to see. Susie worded it to many of the students the best. She told them that she was proud of them for loving the kids and that it showed they had a heart full of love. Susie told them to cry hard and long and remember forever why they were crying. In summary, your children had a life changing moment last night that caused them to lose control of their emotions and not be so tough for a few hours. I like to refer to it as camp on steroids.

This group has impressed me since last September when 90% of the roster was set. This is an unbelievable groups of young adults. It is going to be so much fun to watch them grow up and make changes in the world. I will warn most of the parents of one thing, expect to hear how soon everyone wants to come back down. About 1/3 of the group has asked me what would it take to come down for a summer or even move down here full-time. Just an FYI, I am a strong believer in college and offer the suggestion that maybe they visit Brazil another time or two during college while they are figuring out what they (and God) want they want to do with their lives. 

Pictures: there has been an estimated 6,000 pictures taken so far, and about 100 hours of video, with many just out right being awesome. With 21 students I am not sure I can post any pics that would be fair. Everyone is doing such a great job that I do not want any of them wondering why their picture is not posted. What I will try to do is find some today that could reflect the trip without pointing out anyone particular. I will try to post those tonight so you can get a taste of what is being experienced.

God is amazing! This group has been blessed from the beginning. This is my 8th trip here and every group I have traveled with has been special and unique in its own way. This group is no different. I am not sure everyone in our church understands how strong our foundation of youth is and how bright the future looks. The group has had an amazing time. Sunday and Monday both offered very interesting and contrasting perspectives of life.

Sunday the church service on property had about 120 (a good crowd) and the time we had on property was amazing and I touched on most of the highlights with yesterdays post. Sunday afternoon we went to Gleba-B and Monte Cristo in Campinos and  several of the students had experiences of a lifetime. I was part of a group that went to Gleba-B that did home visits and saw God at work. We got to meet several families that all had life issues and struggles that they shared with the group.`The group was asked 3 times to come into the homes and pray for the families and their home. The students were touched emotionally and spiritually by the experiences. There was more than one tear and hug shared. The service last night was remarkable. I counted 140 in the room and was told that several more were standing outside the doors listening. This is by far the biggest crowd I have ever seen at Gleba-B. The instruments that AMO now has allowed us to actually do a more modern worship arts program that was very well received and enjoyed. Some of the students shared their testimonies and touched many lives with the stories they shared. Many new relationships were formed and the relationship between Gleba-B and Lifepoint grew by leaps and bounds yesterday.

Today the students got to experience another side of the youth they are interacting with down here by visiting one of the schools. We were able to set-up the instruments and perform songs. After the singing we broke into  smaller groups far an opportunity to share stories and experiences. The intent was for us to learn from them and for them to learn from us hoping for both sides to experience another culture of viewpoints and life. What happened was something that you had to be there in person to understand. The Brazilian students just wanted autographs, hugs, and just the opportunity to meet an Americano. I heard several students talk about how their ego had never been as high as it was today. Some said they felt like movie stars. I asked everyone later in the day during a reflection time who they thought got the most out of the day, our group or the students we met? It is an interesting question and the answer is probably both sides would agree that they had the best time. Truth is that God put the two groups together for his purpose and it is my opinion that as always, His plan worked.

We just got back in from having dinner at a pizzaria. This was not your normal back home. About all I can say about this experience is you will enjoy the stories and the pictures when your student returns.

There are 28 people here from Lifepoint and I want to tell stories about each student individually but it would take all night to accomplish that task. Several have stepped up a little quicker with testimonies and some have stepped up with the singing side of things. All I can say is that every single student has shined in some way. There has been ZERO negativity or conflict so far. Everyone has been eager to step in and do whatever they need or are asked to do. If you have a son/daughter here let me just tell you should be proud. I am so proud of every single one of our students and I am not related to any of them. YOUR KIDS ARE AMAZING. Just as I told you before we left, you will like who returns from this trip. Not that you did not like them before, but you should see a little more mature person return with a better appreciation of their life and what they have.

Tuesday is a BIG day with a full schedule. We are going back into Sao Paulo and visiting two of the favelas we went to Saturday adn have two other events scheduled. We are going to clean-up and paint a soccer field/basketball court in a local community. We are also visiting a daycare of kids up to  10 years old and feeding them hot dogs and performing some songs for them. Just another seed planting opportunity for AMO which is one of the reasons we are here; helping AMO grow in Brazil and continue to seek out and serve the unchurched.

Good night and I will keep you as updated as I can.

At last.....an update

We are here and everything and everybody is doing GREAT! Travels went very smooth. We had a great team that checked us at the Nashville airport and went above and beyond for us. They even checked 5 of our carry-on bags that we did not really need during the travel for free (a $1000 deal). We were late leaving Nashville because of the snow in New York that morning, but our lay-over was long enough that we still had 3.5 hours to wait even after arriving an hour late. We landed early in Sao Paulo. In fact, we cleared immigration, got luggage, and cleared customs all before we were scheduled to land originally. One note on luggage is that because of our group size, and our first leg to New York being on a smaller plane, the airline shipped some of our luggage through Atlanta and it actually arrived a few hours before we did. I was nervous about this process, but everything was sitting there waiting on us with nothing missing when we arrived at the airport Saturday morning. In other words some of our luggage took a different route but all of it showed up!!

We managed to visit three different favelas on Saturday. Lunch was an interesting event as we ate sandwiches under a highway bridge on the edge of a favela in a recycle center. It was an event that you can be sure that will be remembered. The group got to see what true poverty was and it had an impact on many of the students. The comments being made by many actually put a smile on my face because I knew this trip was going to be a rewarding experience for them all.

The skit, crafts, singing, and other events have been very smooth. All the hardwork and preparing done by everyone has paid huge dividends. The kids we have worked with have enjoyed what they have been presented.

This morning at the church service there was about 120 people here. The students did a great job with singing and testimonies. David, Jared, and myself all taught the individual classes and it appears that part went well too. We did the usual serving of lunch after the service and then everyone spread out on the the property and enjoyed different events: soccer, swimming, volleyball, basketball, crafts, frisbees, and just hanging out. The group is abuzz about the events of the last 48 hours and all are wired to the max. We are preparing to travel into Campinos tonight to visit two more favelas: Monte Cristo and Gleba B. We should be in around 1030 tonight for a late supper and quick showers and then a few hours sleep

Tomorrow we are visiting two different schools where we will do some singing and have the opportunities to speak to Brazilian high school students. It should be an exciting day.

Susie says hi to everyone and that she is not letting anyone down here leave. She is absolutely having a blast having all her friends around her. She told me that I had to bring this many of her friends down everytime. Her and Bret are doing GREAT and starting to speak the language very well.

One last note for up to date news. The Brazilians challenged the team to a "World Cup" type soccer game today. They even had trophies for 1st place and 2nd place. We will be sure to show the 2nd place trophy when we return. We wont share to fact that there were only two teams. HEY, at least to held them to single digits.

You should be proud of your loved one that is on the trip. The whole group is doing GREAT, being positive, and making impact in the lives of others. I will try as hard as I can to get another update by tomorrow night or Tuesday afternoon.

Also, be sure to check out Jared's blog at www.jaredshingleton.wordpress.com 

He will be blogging through this trip as well