Friday thoughts

This is a view of the ARCA soccer field. The trees that are really tall on the right are called Parana Pines. They are the state tree. Basically anywhere you go you'll find them!

Just wanted to say thank you again for all the prayer and financial support! We've been so blessed by all of the help you've given us. God is working so much in the ministry here in Brazil. Its been an incredible learning experience to see what Paul and Becky's. There are many things about missions that we still do not know, and they've been wonderful about guiding us.

Please pray for the Bible school and Miriam Infant Home. Right now there are barely enough Bible students to keep the school open. Also there are only two children at the Miriam Infant Home. A new judge came into town and sent all the children back to their families, no matter if it was a detrimental situation or not. Pray that all the children involved will be safe.

Thanks! (Thank you!)

Amanda

Good morning!

We just completed Portuguese lessons with Pastor John Abel! Its been fun getting to learn from him and spend the time studying. Today is cold and rainy ... the first time we've had to wear jackets since arriving here! Premium study time, right? Hopefully the next few hours will be spent in deep concentration.

I encourage all of you to read Hebrews 4:12-13. We studied them for devotions the other day and they especially stuck out to me. The Word is living and powerful, stay in it everyday!

In Christ's Name,
Amanda

A few shots of us painting the English school!

On the way to church...

Pastor Paul has a bus that he uses to bring people to church in Campo Largo. We've had some crazy times with TONS of people packed onto the little bus....There have been lots of friends and memories made!

This is Willian, a very talented musician who is really involved in the church. We're praying that he decideds to come to Bible school this year! The little girl is Amanda (we enjoy sharing a name!). She lives up the hill from the Abel's house and we're able to spend lots of time with her and her sister:)


Bethany and Jon with two children that joined us for the ride. The girl is Graciele, who is Amanda's sister. I don't know who the boy is, but he sure was cute! Its been so fun hanging out with all the local kids!

Tour of Curitiba continued...

The team plus Karen Ballmann. This was the last day of her 6 week mission trip to Brazil! />

This picture is for my sister Emily! There are butterflies that are alot prettier than this one but this is the best picture i got...

That is a coconut! We went to a huge market and got these as a treat. You are just supposed to drink the water out of it...its nice and refreshing!

Our tour of Curitiba!

Everything in Brazil is so colorful! It was cloudy when i took this picture but everything still seems vibrant and bright. The buildings are painted so many different, interesting colors.



Alot of the buildings have a European style architecture. There were times it felt like we were in a historical part of Europe!



The skyline is bigger than ANY in America...it goes much longer than you can see in this picture. I couldn't even believe it at first!


The flowers and plants are all so beautiful and colorful. Absolutely amazing!

Our first Tuesday in Brazil

This is the only day that we'll be able to say that....:)

Well, so far its been a wonderful week! It seems like we're always busy doing something and its been a great time. Yesterday and today we worked on painting the new building at Joanna Abel's English school. So far, the first coat is finished. There's alot of paint on my clothes, but it was definately worth it. The preschool class meets in the building we're painting and I've been able to make lots of adorable new friends:) My computer isn't letting me upload pictures at the moment, but there will be some soon.

A large part of our time has been spent with the local neighborhood boys just hanging out. Its been great to get to know them and build relationships. Most of them come from difficult backgrounds and really need good role models in their lives. Pastor Abel has been doing a daily morning Bible study with a few of them and the impact that has made definately shows. Tonight we did a variety of things: they taught us a few of their Brazilian games, I gave them English lessons in exchange for Potuguese lessons, and after singing some worship songs in Portuguese we taught them the Hippo Song! (a VBS favorite!). Definately a great time!

Right now its sounding like we'll be staying here until the end of next week so we look forward to growing these relationships!
Good night!
Amanda

Bom Dia!

Hopefully you're all having a wonderful sunday! We just returned from church and I thought I'd take the opportunity to drop a quick update on here.
This weekend has been full of excitement! Yesterday Paul took us on a tour of the ARCA camp site. It was so fun to see the camp we learned so much about while still in America. We met two of our most wonderful new friends here in Bateias (I will need to find the real spelling for that...it is the town where Paul and Becky live). Their names are Amanda and Gracieli, 9 and 7 years old. We had a wonderful time going on walks, learning Portuguese, and baking cookies! They live just up the hill so hopefully we'll get to see them often. While Graciele and I went on a walk, the boys we working up a sweat doing yard work down at the local church. We admire their ability to do the hard labor and appreciate that it wasn't us! :)
In the evening, we piled into the bus that the Abels use to bring people to church events and headed into Curitiba for a post-camp gathering. There must have been 25 youth crammed into the relatively tiny bus. It was an amazing time getting to know all the youth! The four of us had out our English Portuguese dictionaries and were doing our best to talk with them. By the end of the night we had many new friends and great memories! Please pray for our friend William as he is praying about possibly coming to Bible School in Campo Mourao. At the gathering it was a huge encouragement to hear the testimonies of student's lives that were changed at camp last week. Keep their growing relationship with the Lord in your prayers as well.
It's just about time for lunch so I'll go for now, but more updates will follow soon.
In Christ,
Amanda

Today...

...we went on a tour of Curitiba! There are many more pictures soon to come, but here is just one of the amazing views we saw. The majesty and glory of His name is so beautifully portrayed in the diversity of creation!

Our first picture in Brasil!

Safely in Brasil!

After a long day of traveling, we've finally arrived in Brasil! Yesterday at 4pm Nathan, Jon, Bethany, and I met the Palmer and Olson families at the airport in Minneapolis for our farewell to America! We had a time of prayer and headed onto a plane for Chicago. That flight went well though we had to RUN to our connecting flight. We were the last passangers on the plane to Sao Paulo! The 10 hour flight went very smoothly and before we knew it, we were landed in Brasil. The Lord was definately watching out for us...we had no problems going through customs! After an extremely short flight from Sao Paulo to Curitiba, we were picked up by Pastor Paul Abel. He took us on a fun drive through the city and then to a service at one of their churches. It was so amazing to finally be with the people! Though our Portuguese skills are incredibly lacking at the moment (please pray that we all pick it up quickly!!), we had some great conversations getting to know everyone. They are all so welcoming and friendly...shining with Christ's love! The night finished off with dinner and fellowship at the Abel's home. The Abel's have been so hospitible, and we appreciate them so much! Right now it sounds like we'll be spending a week or two at their home. We'll keep you updated on what's going on here:)
Jet lag might be setting in so I'll sign off for now....but thanks again for all the prayers for a safe journey!
In Jesus,
Amanda

The Visas have Come!

It turned out that last week, not only Bethany and I, but also Nathan and Jon, recieved our visas! What a miracle. We couldn't have guessed that they would all come at the same time. Now we are all going to be able to travel to Brazil together. Our tickets have been purchased for Wednesday the 17th. This weekend Bethany is driving to Minneapolis, and I will join her there on Tuesday. Prayers for a safe journey are appreciated!

Right now we are all caught up in the hectic schedule of packing and getting everything prepared to spend these next months in a new country. Thank you to everyone who has been supporting, praying for and helping us with so many things!
In Him,
Amanda