Archive for August, 2018

Value

Wednesday, August 22nd, 2018

One of the most valuable ministries on our YWAM base here is the Brazilian jiu-jitsu program. It’s an amazing opportunity where teens and children learn skills that bring them a sense of accomplishment and a way to build confidence.
At the end of the year, they are awarded belts and have the opportunity to compete further abroad. Most commonly, these are some of the most underprivileged children you could ever meet. The majority live in shacks that have no bathrooms and families of 5 or more people live in broken down make-shift one-bedroom houses with little to call their own. Considered the most forgotten in society, yet we watch these young people stand proudly. They are treated with respect and honor.
I believe Christ speaks into their lives through our actions and our words. I’m so proud of them as they lift their heads, standing up front. They bring a smile to my face and joy to my heart knowing they feel valued by us.

Favelas

Friday, August 17th, 2018

The homicide rate in California (population of 39 million) for 2017 was 1,829 victims, often described as a war-zone.
I’ve done inner-city work there and I can tell you I have felt uncomfortable more than a few times. 17 years volunteering at the Union Gospel Mission in Salem and for 30 years God has allowed me to serve the homeless.
Our daughter Danielle and her husband Thiago teach churches and other missionaries how to evangelize in Brazil. They often go into the most difficult areas in the cities of Rio and Sao Paulo. She tells me stories of how as she enters into the slums (favelas), men with automatic weapons warn them, “If you steal from us, we’ll kill you.” They frequent these places enough that now when they enter, these same men ask them, “Please pray for me.” And they spend time with the women and children, sharing Christ and meeting the great needs there.
The homicide rate in the state of Rio de Janeiro (population of 16 million) for the first 6 months of 2017 reached nearly 4,000 victims . These statistics give you an idea of how violent the places are that we live in.
Many think of Rio as a paradise. But, it was reported earlier this year, that for the first part of the year, more people died in Rio than in the Syrian conflict for that same year.
Christ died for these precious people and I”m grateful for the heart of my daughter and her husband, reaching some of the most difficult places to reach.
Please pray for them as they are presently in São Paulo doing this very thing.