October

Is quite probably the most beautiful month of the year in Brazil, rivaling September, March and April. For all intents and purposes, it is almost over. I have done a dangerous thing this afternoon and sat down to accomplish this task of a blog post without having a difinitive end in mind. So that means that you'll probably get whatever randomness comes to mind. Hope you like it.

I should be writing a prayer letter today, something that needed to be done much sooner in the month. However, as those who regularly write them will know, when you get over the halfway mark in the month, it is really easy to just let it go and do double duty at the next turn of the calendar. Not that we do not ever underestimate their value, but of the writing of letters there is no end... So, with one more major event to happen in this month's final week, we'll leave it at a blog post for now.

We forgot how quickly the weeks go by... they fly. This was a detail of life in Brazil that has its blessings and cursings. Denielle has bravely taken on the task of starting homeschool with ElliAnna. This has been an added dimension that we are still trying to adjust to. Thankfully, these early days of preschool activitiy are pretty flexible.

Did I ever mention how blessed I am with a strong and beautiful wife? I have met people who can rival her work ethic. It just so happens that most of them are women.

We ran across our two first hiccups in getting settled in. Due to unforseen complications, I was not able to transfer the car we bought on September 11th into my name. This of course is a result of government beauracracies that do not communicate with each other. The transportation department does not recognize that I am here in Brazil legally because my documents to do include the all important foreigner-registry-number. The immigration officials do not see it as important to provide such a document to me while I am still in the process of obtaining permanent residency. Therefore, I will pay a fine when I am finally able to transfer the document into my name.

The transportation official told me that if I had not declared the purchase of the car, I would not be faced with this fine. Hmmm. This problem is confounded by the fact that I already had another car in my name in Brazil when my status was even more temporary than it is now.

Oh well, its only money. Of which $500 disapeared from my banking acount when the ATM machine did not give me the cash I asked for but still withdrew the money from my account. Banco do Brasil promises that the money will be deposited back into my account. We'll see.

There could be so much worse things happening to us that I will not complain. In fact, so much good has happened that I dare not fail to tell about...

...the great blessing to watch the church family come together to put on an event for Children's Day. Everyone had to depend on everyone else to make sure it happened. People from the community actually came and liked it! It was a good and growing experience.

...a dear friend of ours who sat on our bed a couple of nights ago until about 2am and told us the story of how she decided to attend missions training and ask us to walk with her on every step of this journey. She has commited herself to 4 years of study and a lifetime of tribal missions. It was an honor.

...the way the church family came together to give support and encouragement to a couple who lost their 18-day-old daughter. It was an honor to sit in their living room the next day trying to encourage them and comfort them and listen to the way the love and support of the church family had impacted their lives. Pray for their salvation.

I have never attended a more moving funeral.

...the church family who have invested their time and money in reaching this couple who lost their baby. I listened joyfully to the testimony of the husband as he shared about the things that have changed in his life once he came to embrace the gospel. He shared with such vigor and joy and wonder that I felt the emotions welling up within me as he spoke. He wasn't reciting a list of things that he had been coached to say in some evangelism class. He was expressing his own amazement that he had been able to experience such a change in his life without even asking for it or wanting it. But now that he has it, he knows that it is exactly what he was looking for all along. It was beautiful.

This is what the gospel does to people, it changes them.

...a group of guys who are anxious to meet to put together a church constitution and walk with their brothers and sisters through the steps of becoming a church. I am honored to be a part of that.

...the family who have recieved us with open arms, excited to hear the Word of God. "The fact that you guys are willing to drive all this way to my house and share these things with me makes me value what you say even more."

its good to be back...

We leave on Tuesday for BGFM's annual mission's conference. It is about 7 hours of traveling. We are trying to be excited about it.

Thanks for reading!!