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Forever Reign (Hillsong)
You are good, You are good
When there’s nothing good in me
You are love, You are love
On display for all to see
You are light, You are light
When the darkness closes in
You are hope, You are hope
You have covered all my sin
You are peace, You are peace
When my fear is crippling
You are true, You are true
Even in my wandering
You are joy, You are joy
You’re the reason that I sing
You are life, You are life,
In You death has lost it’s sting
Oh, I’m running to your arms,
I’m running to arms
The riches of your love
Will always be enough
Nothing compares to Your embrace
Light of the world forever reign
You are more, You are more
Than my words will ever say
You are Lord, You are Lord
All creation will proclaim
You are here, You are here
In your presence I’m made whole
You are God, You are God
Of all else I’m letting go
Oh, I’m running to your arms
I’m running to arms
The riches of your love
Will always be enough
Nothing compares to Your embrace
Light of the world forever reign
//My heart will sing
no other name
Jesus, Jesus//
//Oh, I’m running to your arms
I’m running to arms
The riches of your love
Will always be enough
Nothing compares to Your embrace
Light of the world forever reign// -
Spurgeon sermon
“The Grand Doctrines of eternal truth are frequently treated as venerable non-entities, and have no effect whatever upon the conduct of those who profess to receive them, because they do not realize them as matters of fact, or see their solemn bearings. It is shocking to reflect that a change in the weather has more effect on some men’s lives than the dread alternative of heaven or hell. A woman’s glance affects them more than the eye of God. We cannot, however, be content with this; we labor that those around us may savingly believe by putting their trust in the Lord Jesus Christ. This is the grand saving act: The man brings his soul and commits it to Christ for safe keeping, and that entrusting of the soul to Jesus saves him. He makes the Saviour trustee of his spiritual estates, and leaves himself and all his eternal interests in those dear hands which once were nailed to the cross. Oh, how we long to see the Holy Spirit bringing men to this, that they may believe in Jesus Christ by resting in Him and trusting upon Him. For this we live, for this we would be content to die, that many might believe. “ Charles Haddon Spurgeon Preaching at the Metropolitan Tabernacle, London Lord’s Day Morning 5 March 1876
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Memphis Beginnings
So… since I’ve returned from Brazil I’ve found a job, housing, and a car and have been doing my best to settle in Memphis life for the time being! Thank you so much for your faithful prayers for all of these! I can clearly see God’s hand in providing for my needs during this season of life and would love to share with you a little about the ways He has done that:
Jobs~ I am working 12 hours a week with a family from my church homeschooling their third grader. I also am working part time with a tutoring company where I teach reading and comprehension. At this point, I haven’t had many hours with the tutoring company, so I am also babysitting in my spare time. (If you know anyone in the Memphis area who has kids and is looking for a sitter please feel free to pass my name along!) I am enjoying both of my jobs as they give me a chance to work with kids and grow as an educator.
Housing~ In January, I moved into the guest house of the home school family whom I work with. They are godly, gracious people and I have been blessed by their hospitality and walk with the Lord. They are barely charging me anything for my rent, which has take a lot of stress off as I try to manage part time jobs and prepare for future ministry. I am now living in a beautiful neighborhood in a great location, close to my jobs, family, and friends. I love it how the Lord works. Even though I am not in full-time ministry and raising support, He has put me in a position where I am still dependent upon Him and upon the Church Body to meet my needs. And, as always, what He has given me is better than anything I could have provided for myself.
Life~ One huge thing that I was looking forward to as I returned to Memphis was being a part of my home church here. I am attending First Evangelical Church and soaking up the worship, teaching, and fellowship. I am involved in helping with the college group and attend their weekly Bible study of Proverbs. I am enjoying getting to know some of the girls there and hope to learn more from the college leaders about discipleship and Bible study. I’m praying that God will use this time in the U.S. as a time of growth and equipping for His work.
What’s next?~ Right now I am praying about how long to stay in Memphis. I will either leave at the end of this summer (Lord willing for Brazil) or stay an additional school year. If I were to stay for another year I would like to find a full-time job, and if I’m going to pursue a teaching position, now is the time to start on applications. Please pray that I will have wisdom in knowing the Lord’s timing and purpose for this next year.
When I wrote to you last, I mentioned that I was hoping to visit an orphanage before I left the city of Fortaleza. I was able to visit Davis Lar for 2 days before I had to return to the U.S. I really enjoyed my time there and wish I could have stayed longer getting to know the ministry. I currently hold a ten year tourist Visa that allows me to stay in the Brazil for up to 6 months. It is very possible that I will return using this Visa before I try to go through the process of applying for a permanent Visa. When I return I would like to spend some more time at Davis Lar and explore options for possibly working with them long-term. Of course there are still many decisions and details and I will let you know about those as I move forward with plans!
Thanks so much for your partnership and prayers!
Please continue to pray for me as I seek the Lord’s wisdom. Pray that He will use me where I am and with the people that I interact with during my time here! -
Davis Lar- Watch Out for Falling Mangos
Okay so this is the end of my trip- promise. The last place I went on my Fortaleza stop was an orphanage called Davis Lar. I was only able to visit for 2 days because I found out about it right before I had to return to the U.S., but I really wish I could have stayed longer. I really liked what I saw (I loved the community centers I went to on this trip, but I am definitely more drawn to working in an actual orphanage), but it would be hard to make a decision to partner with them long-term after only a couple of days. I would like to maybe take advantage of this 10 year tourist Visa and go back again on a short term trip to Brazil and spend some more time with Davis Lar.
The directors are an American couple, but they don’t live on site, and I visited over a holiday, so I didn’t really get to see them except for meeting Mr. Davis right before I left. There was an American girl (Mandy) who had been there for a couple of months and she was my host. She is back in the U.S. because her Visa ran out, but hopes to return soon. They have Brazilian staff there who stay in the houses with the kids and alternate duty every other week (for example one week of work, and then one week off, as opposed to a night and day staff like Lar Feliz). Mandy lived on site and taught arts and crafts and then there was another American guy who lives there who teaches English and computer classes.
I prayed before I went that the Lord would give me a clear picture of what it would be like working there, because I knew that I would only be there for such a short time. While I was there one of the girls got news that her brother had been shot and killed. He used to be a part of the orphanage and then left and had gotten involved with a bad crowd.
Okay, Lord, I think I’m getting the picture- orphanage work is heartbreaking. Sometimes I wonder if I can handle it, because when I hear things like that, I fall apart. I’m not tough enough for this job. I hate to think of the pain that these children suffer. But the fact that they’re dealing situations like these is all the more reason to be there. Sherry shared with me that when we are struggling with seeing suffering in the world, it’s important to remember that God loves those in pain even more than we do. We have an arrogance that questions God, “How could you let this happen?,” as if our hearts were more compassionate than His. We certainly have to keep the truth of His character into perspective, if we are to keep a view of the world that is true.
Ok, that’s it. That’s the end. Well, for this time at least, but hopefully not for long. I am so thankful for everything the Lord allowed me to experience those 2 months in Brazil. For His protection and mercy guarding every step of my way and for so many people praying for me. Please don’t stop your prayers! I am constantly in need of His wisdom and help!
Grateful with you,
Ruth
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last PRECE photo
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PRECE- Bringing Education to the Middle of Nowhere
While I was in Fortaleza I met an American girl who was involved with an organization called PRECE. It’s a group that started with some students in the rural areas of Ceara who wanted to better prepare themselves for their college entrance exam. So they got a group together and taught each other what they knew best- if a student was good in mathematics for example, he would pass on what he knew to the other students in the group. This model of cooperative learning became an entire movement that is now called PRECE that works to bring education to the rural areas of the state. Basically, students are taught in the program, and then once they go to colleges in the city, they return every weekend to their local communities as teachers of the groups. It’ s a pretty cool format to help bring opportunities through education.
The American girl, Kacy, is teaching English classes both in the city and the rural areas. She invited me to come with her one weekend to the rural areas, “the interior” as they call it in Portuguese. I took her up on it and loved the experience. We went to one community called Bela Vista where she was starting an English class for the first time. I say community because it wasn’t even a town. If you look on a map of the Fortaleza area you’ll see a Bela Vista, but that’s not the Bela Vista where we were. We were in a place that’s not even on the map.
The PRECE bus drove us several hours outside of Fortaleza and then dropped us around midnight a little walk from the place we would spend the night. I have never seen so many stars in my life. We brought our own hammocks and stayed in the schoolroom. When I walked into the bathroom (which consisted of a toilet and a bucket of water, because there was no running water), I was met by a scorpion. I found out later that they aren’t poisonous, but nonetheless it made me thankful that my hammock would keep me high off of the ground and away from them!
The next day (Saturday) the students had a couple of classes in their school building. These families value education so much that even though the kids go to regular school during the week, they will still show up for Saturday school! Then we walked from there to a beautiful new building that was built by the state and had our English class in that location. It was a great turnout for Kacy’s first class!
The day was so hot and dry out there (Fortaleza is right by the equator) that after the class, there wasn’t much to do besides sit around and try to stay cool. We had lunch (I do not envy trying to wash dishes in that heat with no running water! Washing dishes without a dishwasher is bad enough, much worse without a faucet!) with the family who leads the PRECE program there and then later headed to a town nearby for Kacy’s other classes.
Her next classes were in an actual town, but to get from the middle of nowhere back to civilization involved calling a moto taxi (a motorcycle taxi- my parents were less than thrilled) to come out and get us. Apparently, our moto drivers took the back way because I was surprised to find us riding through people’s farms and across their front yards. It was quite comical to see us stop, open someone’s gate, go through, and then make sure that the gate was closed behind us before the cows got out! Definitely a memorable experience!
I don’t think I would end up working with the organization, because they are mostly focused on education rather than ministry, but I think they are doing great things and I enjoyed getting outside the city and seeing a different part of Ceara!
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Fortaleza- Compassion Projects
My last stop during my Brazil travels was the northern coastal city of Fortaleza. I think one of the reasons you didn’t hear from me in Fortaleza is because I was at the beach most of the time… Haha just kidding (I only went twice). Really it was because I was highly encouraged not to go around the city with a purse due to safety reasons. Which means that often I went without a camera, so I didn’t have many pictures to show you. And when it comes to sharing about my trip I would much rather show off pictures than write. I’ll do my best…
I stayed with an American family who used to go to our church in Budapest. They are not missionaries, but are wonderful people who love Jesus and are intentional about reaching out to the poor. Thank you to the Lee’s for making me feel incredibly welcome! This couple definitely has the gift of hospitality and took such good care of me.
Their Brazilian church denomination runs Compassion International projects throughout their state. The state of Ceara is one of the poorest in the country, so there is certainly a lot to do! I was able to visit 3 of the projects. The projects are run like community centers (similar to the one I visited on my first stop in Brazil). Each one is a little different, offering classes such as swimming, dance, art, drama, English, vocational training, therapy, etc. They are run by local believers, but funded by Compassion International. I know many people sponsor children through Compassion, so it was neat to see where some of that money is going. If you are one of those people I can assure you that your money is being used well! These projects provide a place for kids in the neighborhood to go so they won’t be on the streets at risk for getting involved with drugs, gangs, and prostitution. Most importantly it is a place where they get to hear about Jesus.
If I thought that finding out the night before that I was going to teach was last minute, at least it was better than walking into a classroom to visit and being asked to teach! This happened a couple of times while visiting the projects. I did my best to share about my life and testimony in Portuguese and then taught a short improv English lesson which usually ended in singing “Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes.”
It seems like everywhere I went, when I asked about possibility of future partnership, they were eager to have another helping hand join. If I were to return to work with one (or several) of the Compassion projects, I would probably teach English classes. Later as my Portuguese skills improve, I would love to also be able to teach Bible to the kids.
The Compassion projects were the main reason for my stop in Fortaleza, but of course while I was there I found out about other great things that were going on in the area. I will tell you about those outreaches in my next posts!
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Finishing what I started…
Despite how things appear from this blog, my trip did not end at Lar Batista. I spent my last 2 and half weeks in Brazil in an entirely different city with entirely different adventures. And then I returned to North America. In fact I’ve been here in the U.S. for almost 2 months now. I’d really like to tell you about how that’s been going, but first I have to finish what I started.
It seems a little silly to write about my trip once I am months out, but I can’t seem to move on to writing about anything else here until I complete my Brazil stories. Sorry it’s been so long in the coming, but here is the rest of my trip! (stay tuned)
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Last batch of Lar Batista photos.
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More Lar Batista pictures
