Stories from Brazil #3 - Dedicated to Phil and Eva Bone and their sweet family.

 I was lying flat on the bed in the hotel room in Brazil with tears streaming down my face.

 This wasn't how our trip was supposed to go.

 I had dreamed for years of taking my teens on a mission trip, and here we all were stuck in two small rooms with just each other. 

This wasn't how it was supposed to be.

 If anyone knows me, I don't miss out on any adventure or experience if I can help it. And yet, here I was, missing out on the biggest, greatest kind of adventure...and not just me, my family too. The tears came frequent and heavy. 

I've put off writing about the rest of our Brazil trip because most of what happened for me after we were quarantined happened in my heart, and a mission trip is supposed to be about others, right? 

Yet here I was, with my heart running down my face. 

Sometimes God seems so silent.

And sometimes, we know He's speaking. 

In the middle of my sadness, my pity party if you will, God's soft voice spoke to me. 

He said,

What if I brought you 5,000 miles to tell one person what I did for them? Is it worth it? 

What about the thousands of dollars that were spent? If one person believed the gospel, is that worth it? 

What if you spend the rest of this trip in this room, and you only got to see one person get saved. Is it worth it?  

Is it worth one? 

Honestly, I wasn't sure. And there were more tears, lots of tears. 

Then I remembered.....

God, HIMESLF, left the greatest place, traveled an incomprehensible distance, gave up everything, and became the worst thing (sin), so that 

I. 

MIGHT. 

BE.

SAVED.

"God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God." 2 Cor. 5:21

Meet the Bone family - Phil, Eva, Alana, Thomas, and Ryanne. 

Eva and I have been friends for almost 25 years. We met while doing mission work together in Tennessee. Sometimes bonds don't give. That's the friendship bond we've had that's kept us in touch and visiting over the last 25 years. I love her family. I value her friendship more than she knows. I love it that our kids are friends. 

Eva and her family are flying out of the USA today and moving to the Czech Republic. 

TODAY. 

God has called them to a city of 90,000 people. A city where there is only ONE evangelical church with NINE members. Most of those 90,000 people have never even heard the name of Jesus. They have no idea who He is, and what He has done for them. 

But the Bone family is going. They are going to tell them. Today.

We don't live close in proximity - they are from Georgia, and I'm still in Arkansas....but I have watched their journey this past year on Facebook. 

I have watched them literally give up EVERYTHING. 

They not only sold their home, but they also sold everything in it. 

And I cried silent tears.... all the way from Arkansas 

Tears that said, "My heart is aching for the bikes, books, games, and toys your kids had to let go. For the car and clothes and yard and schoolbooks and piano Eva had to let go. For all the things that said, 'This is our life in the USA,' that they no longer have."

They let it all go. 

But then the hardest part - 

I've watched them say goodbye to the people they love the most - parents, grandparents, brother, church family, friends.......

More tears. Lots of tears. 

Because I know! I KNOW the people they are leaving behind. I love them too. And it's hard. This goodbye is excruciating. 

Is it worth it? 

They have said, "Yes." They have listened to the command to "Go and tell all nations the Gospel of Jesus Christ." They have given up everything they know and own. They have packed up what's left of their whole lives in 15 suitcases and will get on a plane today to go and live out the call of the Gospel in the Czech Republic. 

Is all this worth the Gospel? 

Is Jesus worth......sacrifice? 

There are people there in Ceske Budejovice that have an aching in their heart to hear about Jesus and to know Him. God's plan is that we tell them. 

The Bone family is going. 

Will you pray for them? 

Perspective - The Gospel is worth whatever sacrifice we make. Whether it's a trip to Brazil that didn't go as planned or giving up all to go live across the ocean, OR an uncomfortable conversation with your neighbor. 

If you know Jesus, you have to know that He is worth sharing. 

What will you do? 

"Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Matthew 28:19-20

Stories from Brazil - 2

 Rylie woke up Sunday morning with a little fever. The missionary had warned us about the intense sun and the very real possibility of quick dehydration. Rylie is not very good about drinking fluids at home, and I knew she hadn't been drinking much on Saturday. I was supposed to teach children's Sunday school, so we decided Dan would stay with her and then if she was still feeling badly later, we would switch for the second service. 

Sunday school went well, and we headed back towards Campina Grande. Dan said Rylie was feeling better and they would meet up with us for lunch. I was really happy to hear that she was doing better and was hopeful she just needed the extra rest. We met up for a wonderful lunch at a traditional Brazilian steakhouse. It was amazing. 

We went back for the main church service in Remigio. It was delightful! I think every Christian should experience getting to worship with believers in another culture and language. The worship of God is the same, no matter the language, place, or people. It's a beautiful picture of what the Church is about. 

On Monday Rylie woke up feeling a little under the weather, but not too badly. We all headed out to Remigio and our first "round table" meeting with the members of the church there. We were there to discuss a partnership with this church, to see what we can do to work together and to encourage each other. 

I went into this with the thought that we would be doing most of the encouraging, as Covid has been extremely hard on the churches in Brazil. They feel isolated and alone. 

After lunch, I received news from my sister that Elijah had tested positive for Covid. I admit, I lost it a bit. When your kid is sick and you are literally thousands of miles away, it's hard on a momma's heart. I don't love to leave my kids in the first place and have never left them for this amount of time before. 

Rick (the missionary) thought it wise that we all go get tested just to make sure we didn't have it as well. We loaded up in the bus and went to the local testing site. After having our brains scraped, we anxiously awaited our results. 

All negative....but Rylie. The way she had been feeling now made sense. She instantly burst into tears. All the thoughts went through my mind....

Two years of Dan working with Covid patients and we didn't get it. We're a long way from home to be sick.  What if the rest of us come down with it? What permeated my thoughts the most was, "What will this sweet church think?" I for sure didn't want to make anyone else sick. I didn't want to be the one who brings Covid to a community already struggling from the pandemic. 

It was a lot to take in. 

We went back to the hotel and put Rylie to bed, which was where she needed to be. And.....I worried. We had already fallen in love with the precious Brazilian people in Remigio and I hated to hurt them in any way. 

Then a message came. A message from a new friend - a friend who doesn't even speak English, a friend we had just met two days ago. We hadn't even been back at the hotel for an hour. 

This is what it said - 

"Come to our home. Leave Rylie here and we will take care of her. Count on us for whatever you need." Tears fill my eyes even now as I read these words again.

The church that I thought I was traveling across the globe to encourage was now reaching out to me. The church and community already hit hard by Covid, and that I definitely didn't want to bring Covid to, was now saying, "Bring your Covid positive child to us, and we will care for her in our home." 

Who does that? 

Who asks a displaced stranger to stay with them? 

Who cares for the sick with a contagious sickness? 

Who takes a risk for the sake of living out the Gospel?

Someone who truly has a heart like Christ's. 

I cried lots and lots of tears when I hugged my daughter and husband goodbye and headed across the ocean as they stayed behind in Brazil. My daughter was clinging to me saying, "Please don't leave me." That's an excruciating moment for a mama. I didn't want to leave her, but we had weighed the facts and thought it best that Zack and I fly home, and Rylie and Dan stay behind. 

So many unknowns - 

Would Dan get sick, and I wouldn't be there? What if he got really sick? Would Rylie continue to test positive, even though she was feeling much better? Would there even be a flight available for them as the flights were extremely full due to the holidays? Neither speaks Portuguese (or traveled outside the country before) - and the missionary in charge of our trip was flying out as well, leaving them to rely on our new Brazilian friends for everything - would that go ok? 

There is a reason the Bible says not to worry about tomorrow. Worry about tomorrow is always based on "what if's" instead of "what is."  There is no way to know for sure the "what is" but there is definitely a way to know the One who does know for sure all of the "what is." And my job is to trust in Him. 

So, I flew home. 

As I looked around the very full plane and realized the only empty seats on that ten-hour flight were Dan and Rylie's, the tears started to flow again. They were supposed to be there. We were supposed to do this adventure all together. But they were back in Brazil, and I was flying home. 

The next part of this story was this - 

Dan and Rylie left quarantining in the hotel room and moved in with the family that had so graciously opened their home to them for whatever indefinite time it would take before they could fly home. (This family had recently had Covid and felt that it was safe for them to come.) In the name of Jesus, they fed them, housed them, entertained them, and shared their beautiful culture with them. 

I don't know if I've ever been more grateful in my entire life. 

Dan didn't get Covid. Rylie tested negative within four days. Flights out of the country were found. The pastor at the church in that small community speaks English fluently, (an unusual circumstance for a town that size) and came every day to help translate and take care of my family. He also took his time to drive them the several hour trip to the airport. 

The Body of Christ was to us, what we went to be to them. 

My takeaway? 

“When a stranger sojourns with you in your land, you shall not do him wrong. You shall treat the stranger who sojourns with you as the native among you, and you shall love him as yourself, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God." Lev. 19:33-34

"Show hospitality one to another without grumbling." 1 Peter 4:9

"Therefore welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God." Rom. 15:7

And always - 

"Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow...." Mat. 6:34

"Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." Phil. 4:6-7

We will be forever grateful to this precious family and the church in Remigio, Brazil.

Stories from Brazil - 1

 Her name is Jessica. I didn't know her before that day, but God did. The Bible tells us that God has engraved us on the palms of His hands. (Isa. 49:16) He was already writing her story long before we ever arrived in Brazil. But, sometimes.....sometimes......God lets us be a part of His story......and it's beautiful. 

We knocked on her door on a sunny, Brazilian Saturday afternoon. She came out into the courtyard with a small girl and a baby. We introduced ourselves, and she told us her name was Jessica. We said we had come to share with her a message from God. (Isn't the story of salvation truly the BEST message from God ever??) We barely had the words out of our mouths when Jessica burst into tears. There were 6 or 7 of us standing there, and she's sobbing. The wonderful pastor we were with was interpreting for me, as she said, 

"I've had the worst week of my entire life, and I've been crying out to God every night, and I really, really need to hear from Him." 

She couldn't believe we were there - that we had come at this exact time! She told us that she had had the worst week of her life and was so discouraged. Her husband had left a couple of days ago and she didn't know where he was, or if he would come home. She had been in a bad car accident and is having some serious health problems. Her world is falling apart. She didn't know what to do, but she had been crying out every night to the One who she thought might help her. 

Coincidence that we show up at her door this week? Happenstance that this is when we chose to go to Brazil? 

Could God have spoken to Jessica through other circumstances? Of course, He could have! But, when we choose to live in obedience - to step out and do hard, uncomfortable things, we get to be a part of His wonderful, perfect story! And here we were.

We stopped right then, and I shared with her about a really hard time I had gone through, and how I read in my Bible that God will fight our battles for us when we trust Him, and that God would be there for her too.  I asked if I could pray for her. We prayed and hugged right there in that courtyard in a beautiful little town in a place far, far away.

Her crying calmed down after that, and we asked if we could share with her this message from God - how to be close to God, so she could take her problems to Him. She said, "Yes." We took the Evangecube and went through the pictures and told her the beautiful Gospel story. At the end we asked if she wanted to pray to receive Christ as her Savior. She is desperate. She has no hope. Christ is hope. She immediately wanted to ask God to be in her life. She prayed to receive Jesus right then. There was no hesitation. She had been asking God for an answer, and her heart was desperately ready for Him.

Jessica showed up at church the next evening. It is difficult for her to walk because of the car accident, but she had met Jesus yesterday and came anyway. She even brought a friend. We visited after the service, and she told me she now has peace. She wants to learn more about God, and before I had left Brazil had asked the church to start a Bible study in her home.....and they had. She had a smile on her face, and Jesus in her eyes.

Jessica's short story brought conviction into my life -

Are we desperate for God? Are we crying out to Him to be a part of our lives every day? Do we come to church even when it's difficult - do we know Jesus enough that He is worth a little sacrifice for us to show up? When's the last time we invited a friend to church? Do we make Bible study and getting to know God better a priority?

This visit to Jessica's home is a highlight of my trip to Brazil. And it was truly amazing. But, you know what? The rest of the trip didn't go like I wanted or envisioned. (Does life ever??) In fact, it turned out to be some of the toughest times I've been through. But....

That's a story for another day.......