SIMPLE LIFE....

We just came home from our little get away. We had a great family time and walked, fished, ping ponged, ate and laughed togehter. Even though the hotel was very simple; there was not even a signal for our mobile phones, it was still very nice.
We just came back home and heard that even the schools of Elisa and Jeremy will not open for another week because of the flu. Please keep praying for that as well.
right now all 4 of us are sitting in an internet cafe, because for over 10 days we have had no internet at home. Wow, that is hard. We should get a new service during the next week.

A GOOD DAY....

Today is a good day!! As a family we will be sneaking out for 2 nights to a little hotel in the middle of nature. Waterfalls, fishing lake, pool etc. So it should be great. As I wrote in some of the blogs before, here there is a lot of talk about the mexican flue. Some of the schools are not opening their doors until the middle of august. Others that have openened after the “winter break”, are keeping a close eye on all the kids and keep telling that if they feel anything to not come to school.

prayers needed....

Today one of our teen-age girls V, had a terrible fight with one of our other girls. We would appreciate your prayers for V. It seems that lately she is not able to controle her feelings and ends up beating up kids often.
I would also like to ask for a preventative prayers. The infamous flue is starting to spread more and more in Brazil. In some towns nearby they have decided to extend the school vacation a bit longer because of it. Here in Jaguariuna they met about it, but decided to go back to school normally. I would like to start praying in order for this flue to stay away from here.

SUNDAY

This morning we received a group of young people from our church. They came in the morning and together with the kids of Lar Feliz we had a wonderful service. The worship time was so nice and then we had one of our board members share a message about Moses.
Moses ended up in the dessert taking care of sheep. The dessert in dry and lifeless. Sometimes that can be the same in our own life. We are in a dessert and have lost our dreams. Only our Heavenly Father can take us to a better place!!

MY COFFEE MAKER BIT THE DUST....

Today my old little coffee make bit the dust. It was my favorite one, the coffee tasted so nice. Why do I share this? I don't know, I just felt like it.
Tonight the teen-agers are going the praise and worship concert in a town nearby. They are all excited. So are we!!
Elisa and Jeremy made it back from camp and had a great time. The first couple of days they were not sure about it at all, but in the middle of the week things changed and they made lots of friends.
This week a one page article was written about us in the local newspaper. Here is the link for you to see it, even though it is in Portuguese, at least you can look at our picture!!
http://www.jcholambra.com.br/Ed753/Principal.htm

AN OUTING TO THE ZOO AND ANOTHER BLESSING

Today the children of Lar Feliz went to a big Safari zoo in São Paulo. We planned for that outing to be today because our 5 american friends are leaving plus one of the Dutch volunteers as well. So the kids left early and the goodbye was quick and sweet.
Yesterday our friends from America fixed all the swings of the playground, so another blessing they are leaving behind.

We have had such a busy last couple of days. Last Monday night we held a talent show and all the kids performed all kind of different songs, skits and Dances. Also Jill danced a dance on a Brazilian worship song. The song talks about that we are going through battles, but that God is a God of miracles and He will give us the victory.
Yesterday one of the dutch volunteers left, and tomorrow one more Dutch volunteers and our little group of 5 from America will leave. We had a wonderful time with all of them. It is always such an encouragement to receive visitors from all over the world. They have been doing all kind of activities with the children and boy do the children love it!!
Yesterday another boy came to live at Lar Feliz. He is 12 years old and was beaten up by his mother. Think and pray for him!! Jill has a terrible flue as well, so pray for her as well?

GOODBYE TO CAMP AND GOODBYE TO FRIENDS….

Yesterday both Elisa and Jeremy left for 6 days to a Christian Camp. For both of them this was the first time in Brazil to do this. The house is so quiet (and clean), and we already missed them 5 minutes after they were gone. We pray that they will have a wonderful time.
This week will be a week say goodbye to our wonderful friends from America as well as to 2 of our Dutch volunteers. Apart from them being a blessing to the children of the project, they are also such a great encouragement to us as a family. Sometimes it is not easy to be in a country without any of your family, and these people are like family. Thanks God!!

GOING TO THE TOP OF THE MOUNTAIN TO SEE JESUS

Yesterday, I went to Serra Negra with the American and Dutch teams. It was just a wonderful day with great weather, and at the end of our time, we climbed stairs and a mountain to see a Jesus statue at the top. Once you get there, maybe breathless, but one is also speechless because of the breathtaking view at the top. It is like that in our lives, we sometimes have to climb a steep mountain to get closer to the Lord, but once we get there, it is an amazing view, and to look back sometimes from where we started is encouraging to know that it was all worth it.

SPECIAL AND UNIQUE

The days are just flying by so fast. In the past couple of day you read that we have 11 volunteers with us right now. All of these people are just so wonderful. They all bring their special gifts to the project. This morning they had a little worship/music time with the children of the baby house. Then this afternoon they organized all kinds of water games. The kids are having a wonderful time. It is just running amazing to realize that God has created us special and unique. Yes that is what YOU are; SPECIAL AND UNIQUE

SMALL GROUPS....

Yesterday and this morning, we had small groups organized with Miranda, a volunteer psychologist from Holland. In these groups the teens are asked to keep a journal answering different specific questions about themselves and their families. Most of the boys and girls are very open during these times, and it seems to be a wonderful tool in helping the teens to heal, grow as well as understand themselves. After the groups finish, they will be able to keep the journals, and hopefully it will be something that they can look back on as a turning point in their lives.

PRECIOUS TIME WITH THE BABIES!!!!

This morning, we had a precious worship time with the babies. We sang lots of different songs, and towards the end, Jade and Ronaldo, and a little Brazilian song that said, "if I were a fish in the sea, I would love (name of child) as deep as the sea." They sang the song and then sang it to each one of the babies. It was such a nice moment, and I thought to myself how all of these babies had been forgotten by their parents, but how God loves them deeper than the ocean and higher than the heavens.

I OPENED MY DRAWERS AND WAS BLESSED....

The other day, I was cleaning out my drawers and found this poem. I hope it is a blessing to you.

If God brings you to it (Anonymous)

If God brings you to it,
He will bring you through it.

happy moments,
praise God.

Difficult moments,
seek God.

Quiet moments,
worship God.

Painful moments,
trust God.

Every moment,
thank God.

HIGH TEA, BOWLING AND ARTS....

Yesterday because of the weather, the Americans and Dutch did an arts and crafts day with the children. They made little things with clay and painted different kids of pictures. It was a nice sunny day, but very cool. In the evening, we had a women's tea while the men went out bowling. I think some of the men were a little jealous and would have preferred staying in with our nice little sandwiches and cakes and watching movies!

The Lord is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear?

Psalm 27:1 says, “The Lord is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life—of whom shall I be afraid?” This is one of the memory verses that the children of the project will be asked to memorize. The Dutch and American volunteers created a scripture memory contest, and for the children who have really tried hard to memorize all verses, there will be an outing on the 23rd of July to a safari park in Sao Paulo. Last Friday, the Americans held a sidewalk drawing contest, and we had some very beautiful results. Unfortunately, the rain that evening washed away all of the hard work put into it by the children of the project. Today, if the weather stays sunny and dry, the Dutch are holding a water balloon contest together with the Americans.

A COUPLE OF JOKES....

The American and Dutch volunteers are having a wonderful time telling jokes and pulling pranks on each other. Everything is done in a good spirit. Here are some jokes that we heard. We hope it will make you laugh and enjoy your day.
American joke: Why do Dutch people have such big nostrils? To breath more, because the air is for free.
Dutch joke: What do you call a person who speaks three languages? Trilingual
What do you call a person who speaks two languages? Bilingual
What do you call a person who speaks only one language? An American

MANY LANGUAGES, 1 SAVIOR

Last night, with our Dutch and American friends, we had an amazing service at Evangelho Pleno, our home church here in Brazil. Without any planning whatsoever, it turned into a real international missions service, complete with the Matt 28:11 Great Commission challenge. Also invited to participate in the service were friends of Pastor Leo, a Swiss woman with her Brazilian husband and their daughters. The service was done in English, Portuguese, French and Dutch. Pastor Dave preached, Patrick gave his testimony, and Alisa and Elisa sang. The same theme was woven throughout, that being reaching out to others and sharing with them the gospel.

LOTS OF ACTIVITIES

Yesterday was a full day with the volunteers. In the morning, lots of plans were made and a schedule put in place filled with many fun activities for children. We will have a sports day, times of worship with music, memory verses with some nice prices. In the evening, we had a wonderful American, Dutch, Brazilian barbecue with great food and a time of singing and prayer afterwards.

MY MOTHER HAS REALLY CHANGED THIS TIME....

Today a little girl E, who has lived with us for two years, came back for a visit. What a sweet girl, and how has she changed. My mother has really changed this time she said. God is a God of miracles and can really change lives if we let Him. When we looked at the mother of this little girl, we thought; she will never change. Then we saw it happen. The mother slowly but surely started changing her life. She started attending church, stopped drinking and using drugs. She just really wanted her kids back. It happened. They have been back for 6 months. Thanks God!!

SMALL ACT OF KINDNESS CAN LEAD TO BIG RESULT

Ephesians 2:20 We are His making, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time that we should walk in them. God sets a path before us to do good works, big or small things. Sometimes the smallest acts of kindness can have a big result, like when someone throws a pebble in a pond. Through this action, infinite rings continue to form in the water, ever reaching. At Lar Feliz, one only has to be a willing servant for God to use in many ways with these children, and the rewards are endless like God’s love, reaching beyond the heavens.

MORE VOLUNTEERS.....

Yesterday, we had a group of volunteers come from the United States who will be spending 3 weeks working at the project. They will be living together with the Dutch volunteers at the guest house. This is an exciting time for us all, and God gives us much joy during these days. Please pray for God's protection for them and for a very special bonding time among the two different cultures, American and Dutch that everyone can work well together.

WALKING WITH JESUS.....

Yesterday night the Dutch Volunteers organized a wonderful service for the teens 12 and up. One of them Patrick shared his testimony of how the Lord picked him up out of the darkness and literally saved him from the death. Then they showed a little drama showing that God wants to bless us and be our Father and friend, but that we have to accept Him to do that first. Then Stefan shared about walking with God on a daily basis. A friendship cannot exist if only one person communicates. That is the same way with Jesus, if we do not seek Him, talk to him etc, a friendship is impossible. Afterwards several teens wanted prayer. What a blessing!!!

EVERY DAY A NEW CHANCE....

Peace has returned to Lar Feliz. After last week being such a hard and difficult week, this week has been very peaceful. The Dutch volunteers, together with some of our staff, have been painting houses among other things. Things are really starting to look nice again. Jill bought some starters today of lattice, cabbage and herbs and together with the toddlers has planted them in pots. Today makes me realize again that God gives us new days, every day. Each time again He give us a chance to make today a better day then yesterday!!

SWEET TEA AND A SWEET TIME

This morning was very special because my daughter Elisa came with me to work. We went to the baby house and met the other Dutch volunteers there, and we did painting with the babies. We separated them into groups of four, and they set out to paint pictures and mix colors. Two of the little girls that Elisa was helping loved making the color brown after mixing 3-4 colors together. At the end of the morning, after the babies ate their soup, one of the Brazilian workers gave us all a nice cup of tea, very sweet, like the time that we had together.