Day 32: Rejoicing and Weeping

Romans 12:15 says, “Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep” (NKJV). Today was one of those days when I saw both themes in action. It began with much rejoicing, and most of the day was that way, but it ended in sadness.

Danae and I practiced our trumpet/violin duets sometime after 7:30, and they sounded good! We quick ate breakfast altogether, and I cannot remember what we ate. I know we had papaya, but I don’t remember what else we had. Oh well… Read Full Post

Day 31: The Privilege of Ministry

1:30am- The guys are sleeping outside in our hammocks and it starts sprinkling on us. The sky had harbored storm clouds all day long on Friday, but they did nothing more than float overhead. Well, now they were slowly falling on us.

It was a light enough rain that I wouldn’t have minded to just keep laying there huddled in my blanket, but pretty soon we were taking down our hammocks and carrying them to the porch after all. Within a few minutes we were laying down again. Read Full Post

Brazil, Day 30: Adolescent Retreat

So today’s the big day. We had scheduled the adolescent camp-out for two weeks earlier, but because of some circumstances we had to reschedule it for this weekend. But now all the plans were in place and it was go time!

After a breakfast of French toast, papaya, and hot milk, we spent the morning cleaning the house, clearing the porches, and getting everything else ready. For lunch we had rice, beans, fried fish, and bananas for dessert, and the next couple hours I was able to relax a little, do my devotions in Acts 16, and finish preparing the devotional I was going to give around the campfire in the evening. Read Full Post

Brazil, Day 29: Sad Day…

There isn’t too much to say about this day. There wasn’t a lot that happened, but it was kind of a significant day anyway. Okay, well, it’s not really that significant, but it was a sad day for many of us.

Today was the day that Stephen, Sarah, and Olivia left. I just met Olivia last week, and it’s obvious why Stephen really likes her. She’s such a great person, and it was really enjoyable to get to know her and play in the orchestra together with her. She also has a good sense of humor and loved to laugh along with us when we were having fun. Read Full Post

Brazil, Day 26: Recharging

We all need rest, especially when we’re doing ministry. You know you’ve done ministry well when you’re extremely worn out and joyful at the same time. If you have no joy, or if you’re not tired, you probably didn’t do a good job.

Well, we were all very tired after the Semana de Musica Sacra, so we slept in on Monday until after 9:00. We finally got up and had brunch, consisting of baked oatmeal, papaya, and milk. Read Full Post