March 6, 2006
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I went to be last night with the sounds of people jumping in the pool and got up hearing them play futebol outside my window. I stumbled into the bathroom and found a lizard having seizures above my sing and decided to wait until later to have my cold shower. Ricardo says that it is summer here so everyone takes cold showers. But at 6 in the morning, I still consider it cruel and unusual punishment.
I love living at the Alcance. It is the hotel turned into seminary and now international school. All the community churches use it for mini-retreats and get togethers. Today Guadalajara church is here, hence the 6am futebol game. I hear the kids playing foosball and Lenuison is playing something on the guitar. The guy is a musical genius. He’s liked me every since I sang with the band and liked his “black” style. For some reason I can understand his English, which he normally uses to make everyone laugh at him. That is Lenusion’s purpose in life—to make others laugh—and he will do it by making up songs in the kitchen or breaking out into song during breakfast.
(Review for those who haven’t been reading my e-mails) The first week I was here we started the international school so I was teaching all day without knowing what I was doing (I am not really sure what I am doing now but that is normal—actually, the English curriculum hasn’t arrived yet. Opps). It was difficult because I didn’t have time to rest up and we were still adjusting how we were teaching. The younger kids didn’t like me because I was speaking English and could not understand them well. They thought I was weird and normally tried to correct my English with the Portuguese word. After school was over, everyone spoke Portuguese and since I understand more now, they don’t stop and translate or slow down for me anymore. I would stand there thinking, “Gosh, I wanna go back to when I was special.” The most valuable thing I learned all week was the Portuguese word for “share.” Which sounds like “DVD.”
The second week was vacation as Brasil readied itself to party and I readied myself to sleep. Ahh, it was nice, and my church from Timbauba (where I lived for 3 months) came for a mini-camp. So I played futebol and games and loved hanging out with my boys, who are just like my kids from the youth center. Now I feel like I am back and fit in again. I love wearing flip-flops and sleeping with a fan on and only needing a sheet. I love the sky, which is so clear you can see three times more stars, the sun that burns my nose, and the wind that rushes through my room when I open the door. I have alittle patio thing off my room that I open every morning and see the fresh sun light up the futebol field, the trees that line the property, the gorgeous house down the road, and then the sugar cane hills until the horizon.
The rest of Brasil? Well, you just gotta come and see for yourself. The invitation is there, ya know.
Sunday night we went to the new church plant. We are the church. The small group started a while ago and now they’ve rented a facility and we meet here. Tele’s family: Tele preaches, Heather plays the piano, Karine sings, David does power point. We brought Gilson and Ivana, and Gilson sings and Ivana is teaching the children. We practiced songs (two of which I knew and the others I tried to learn as we sang…mrrph.) until 20 after seven (we start at 7) and I was thinking “well, since it is just us, maybe we can reuse the message and song service since we practiced already…” when two ladies came in, followed by the invited preacher and a couple of others. Then we began church. That is what it is all about. 13 years ago they did that in the first church, and now 10 churches later, we continue on.
Two years ago I did the same thing in Timbauba. I remember being alittle incredulous when it was just us every Sunday. But now look at it, it is all grown up (I feel like a mom talking about her kid here). I looked at Karine and said “so this is what you’ve been doing all your life.” Hmm. It is so different from what I am used to. I get the feeling sometimes that you go “church shopping” in the US, like people come and think “so what do YOU have to tempt me to go to YOUR church?” I remember being shocked when someone in my youth group told me that they would show up, see who was there, and if “so and so” was there, they’d stay. It wasn’t about God, it was about what it would give them. Even sometimes when I’ve been a worship leader and I see blank eyes staring at me I wonder if they are thinking “How are you going to entertain me today?”
When it is just us at church, it is pretty clear we are there to GIVE, not to get. We all play a part in the evening. We all need each other to make the night special. We all have made the choice to come to a building and make it church instead of staying at home because we want to set aside time to honor God. Even if we are the only ones that show up (which happens too). Someday I am gonna see this church all grown up, but right now, it is new. It is a baby. It is not about people because there aren’t any. God is here. And the evening was a success.
Life is so much MORE than you see. Thank goodness for the invisible. It makes life what it is. But there is a war going on. Prayer is not for the faint of heart. I am learning to open up my eyes. So often I close them again because it is scary. Really really. But come with me. It is an adventure.
Open up your eyes and see these warning signs
Breaking through your heart and all the reason of your mind
Open up to find your action leaves behind
The very hope that’s given for the world to feel alive
Chorus: And the time has come to realize
And see the plan you’ve been designed for
So face the fear of all unknown and see the heart inside
So open up your eyes
So open up your eyes
Throw yourself aside and hear the gentle cry
Of the peace that gave up all to fill the void inside
Give away the fight, release your foolish pride
The very bond is broken down you need to leave behind
Chorus
Can you sense the feeling that there’s more than what you know?
It’s a fire that burns within that only seems to grow
There’s a price that’s given and which only love can pay
And the time is here and now, don’t let it fade away
So open up your eyes… –Jeremy Camp
