Three Month Reflection

Before I get into my three month reflection I just want to let everyone know that I went back to the doctor today and everything is great. Thank you for your prayers.

Wow! That is really all I can say right now. God is so good. He has brought me through three months here in Brazil. Through the many obstacles that I have faced, God has brought me through them and has given me victory. I have spent the last couple of days doing some serious soul searching. I have reflected on my first three months here and all that God has done and has taught me. I have also been scheming and dreaming for the next three months and the time thereafter. I´ll start with the three months that are behind me.

A quick rundown of the events that have taken place since my landing here in Brazil. I landed in this country not knowing or even seeing a picture of any one in this country. I only knew one name and knew that for me to survive I would have to find the man that I knew the name to. I knew only four words in Portuguese and one of them I learned on the flight over. I spent my first week helping Pastor Waldir finalize last minute stuff for the teams that were coming a week after my arrival. To be honest I wasn´t there to help him. He didn´t need my help. The time was designed more for me to see exactly what takes place prior to the teams arrivals. It was a learning experience for me. Then I experienced two amazing weeks with the American teams. The first week evangelizing in schools, homes, and churches. The second week hosting a medical clinic were we saw over 2,ooo patients. Then the reality of my mission started to sink home once the Americans got on the plane to head home and I was still standing in the airport waving to them. This was the first moment that I began to fill butterflies in my stomache due to fear and nerves. I then spent a week of being a tourist. I hiked, climbed, and jumped off plenty of waterfalls. I spent the week after that doing some hard labor that gave us building material to build mutiple homes and buildings for those in the village. Then I faced my first foot injury somewhere around the 13th of July. I recovered quickly and now had a cool story for the people back home. I moved to the village towards the end of July. That is when I finally began to slow life down a little. The days were peaceful and quite. I had tons of time to read and soak in the presence of God. There I also learned most of my Portuguese because no one in the village speaks English, leaving me with no option but to learn the language. About a month had passed and the village had become my home. I loved the people and they loved me. I tried to visit everyone in the village every week. It was a way of getting to know everyone and it also allowed me to practice my Portuguese. My foot had finally healed enough where I gained my confidence back to play a little soccer. BAD IDEA! Within thirty minutes of the first time playing soccer after my first foot injury, I did it again. I popped my toe back out of place and skin back open. This time it was worse. I already had my cool story so this injury wasn´t looked at near as optimistically as the first time. I ended up with surgery and back on my tushy for three more weeks. Not to mention the pain that came along with it all. This minor setback has pulled me away from my home in the village and with the people that I had tried so hard to form relationships with. When I do return I will have some ground to make up, but I look forward to any challenge because I know that God is on my side. Later today I get the privilege of returning to my home in the village for my final three months here in Brazil. Wouldn´t choose to be any other place in the world right now. Honest! These past three months have been awesome with the things above alone. I haven´t even begun to tell about the spiritual things yet.

What has God done in my life. Above are the things that God has done with my life, the following is what has done in my life. He has taught me patience, to wait patiently for him to show up and show up big. Show up anywhere at anytime, just for me to make sure that I am ready. He has taught me that He is not a safe God and calls me to live in the Holy Wild, a place where prosperity is measured by rewards in Heaven and by nothing here on earth. He has taught me to share the Gospel of love through actions. He has taught me this through the language barrier. I was unable to share about Christ my Lord through words, so I had to share through actions. He has given me a small taste of what it means to suffer for His kingdom and given me a thirst for more! Because being beaten up by satan and then having Christ lift you up into victory is the greatest feeling in the world. This is the whole concept of salvation. He has taught me that He always offers refuge for the weary when I was tired and burdened by the feeling of homesickness. He has taught me many things about the love that He has for His church and how that applies in all aspects of a family. From being a brother and what it means to love a very special brother of mine that I can´t wait to hug and take to lunch as soon as I get back. He has first priority because of the lack of biblical actions on my part to be a Christian brother, a brother that disciples, guides, and teaches. And most imprtantly a brother that loves through my actions and not my words. I want you to know that I am sincere about this Allen and I cry as I write this. I love you and can´t wait to see you. He is continuing to teach me what it means to be a leader of the Church one day and how that applies to my future marriage and my future family that is the greatest earthly desire of my heart. Nothing except my salvation is a greater reward then the gift of marriage and a family.

And the list goes on. My God has been good to me and I am thankful for His absolute sovereignty in all things. He has given me a desire to serve Him with my life and to long to be righteous like Him. I am thankful that He has chosen me to be an alien in this place called earth. He has gone before me and is preparing my home with Him in His Kingdom.

Now what lies ahead? Things that I don´t know. But I can only expect as much glory towards God as the past three months if I continue to practice the presence of God. God has opened many doors for the future of my life once I return home, but that is not my focus currently. My focus is my mission at hand and that is how I can be someone who leaves an impact on this place for the Kingdom of God. I will spend the next three months living in Córrego do Ouro. I will continue to learn Portuguese and teach English twice a week in the local school. I will continue to work with two church plants (Igreja Batista da Água da Vida -Water of life Baptist Church and Igreja Batista da Colheita -Harvest Baptist Church). I will continue to help lead two other house churches and countless Bible studies in the home. Most importantly I will serve through love. I expect further attacks and persecution. But I will stand firm in the saving grace of Jesus Christ. But I am not perfect and need relentless prayers from fellow believers. So that is what I ask of you. Prayer! Pray that God would give me strength and rest when I am weary. Pray that He would give me abounding love for the people and His calling on my life. Pray that I would never let up nor give up, but I would press on towards the goal that Christ has set for me! This I thank you. Thank you for the support that you have given me the past three months and the support that you will give me in the future. I say all this in Jesus´s precious and glorious name. Amen

Until He Returns.

Another Three Months

Today I went to the Federal Police to try to get my visa extended for an additional three months. God went ahead of us because we had no problems. In fact the man that was helping us didn´t buy that I am staying here for 6 months only as a tourist. He asked if I was here helping a church. I told him yes and things only got easier. He was curious to what type of mission work I was doing. He even went as far as to give me advice on how I can get a missionary visa eventually in the future that would allow me to stay for a year and then get the visa renewed every year. He was very helpful. On top of that, this guy was a cyclist. He had the cycling t-shirt on, the training watch, the asics running shoes (which is rare here, so I new he had to be a runner), and the cycling water bottle on his desk and the water bottle had grease on it so it meant that that bottle had seen a bike or two. It was definitely a God thing that he was the one that was there when we went. I´m excited about the next three months here in Brazil. I have no clue what they are going to consist of, but the first three months were very eventful (check in the next day or so for a blog were I will reflect on my first 3 months here in Brazil), and I expect the same out the second three months. I will stay out of the hospital this half though. God and I have already had a serious chat about that! I will be heading back to the village this weekend and I will finally get back to my normal routine. I ask that you would pray for my next three months that God would bless the work that my hands do. Thank you for all the prayers and encouragement. They have been a lifesaver for sure.

8.26.08

I figured I would fill you people back home in America about what is going on in my life. I have been in Cuiabá for almost two weeks now. I haven´t blogged much because there hasn´t been too much to blog about. I have been sitting around doing absolutely nothing waiting for my foot to heal. Things are finally starting to pick up around here. I am able to move around more and go places. Here in less than an hour I will be going to the federal building to get my visa stamped for my aditional 90 days here in Brazil. There are chances that they could deny me my aditional 90 days and I will be coming home this week, but they have to have a reason to do that and I have given them no reason. I have actually done their countries some favors. I made quite a few doctors rich off medical bills. They should give me citizenship for that. I ask that you would pray for this meeting and for me to continue to heal fast and with no compications. I will write more tonight and let you know how my meeting with the feds went. Love and miss everyone

I´m Back!

It has been a long time since I have been able to write home. I have been through quite a bit and I´m hopefully at the end of the tragedy. My foot is doing so much better. There is no swelling and no sign of infection. I am going back to the doctor tomorrow just for a check up. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.
I want to thank my sister Amanda for keeping my blog updated on everything that has been going on. Because of her post you have been able to pray specifically for my foot. I thank you also for prayers and for words of encouragement. They were greatly needed. The problems with my foot has slowed my plans down a little, but hasn´t slowed God´s plans down one bit. I am thankful for that. As much as my foot has been attacked through all of this, my spirits have been under worse attack. It is hard to go through something like this being so far away from my family. It is something that God has put me through to only strengthen my faith. He is teaching me things that aren´t exactly fun to learn. Things like patience and discipline in certain areas. He is teaching me to rely on Him through all things. I sadly admit that my reliance on God through all of this has been pretty poor. There were times were I was wanting to abandon my mission here and just go home to be with my family. It seemed like the easy thing to do and no one would blame me for coming home. I have thought of every excuse to go home because going home was the easy thing to do. And it was the thing that satan wanted me to do. He wanted me to abandon my ministry and go home to the comfort of my family and home. I refuse to let him win. No matter what. I have committed my life to this and satan will not get in my way. There is one more thing that he can do to send me home, and that is to get my visa extension denied. I go to the federal building on Monday or Tuesday to get my passport stamped for my additional 90 days here in Brasil. Now there are chances that they will deny this but I have faith that that won´t happen. I put it totally in God´s hands and pray that His will be done in this situation. I am also asking for your prayers on this matter also. Pray that God will continue to assure me that I am where I am supposed to be and for Him to continue to make His presence known in my life and the lives of those around me. Thank you again for everything. I´ll try to write again soon.

Serving Him no matter the cost.

On Jonathan's behalf

Now that I have taken over Jonathan's blog, I want to take this moment to say that if Jonathan ever needed encouragement, now is the time.  I talked with him this afternoon and he is in alot of pain as to be expected the day after surgery.  He is in someone else's home, in another country, and can only get out of bed to go to the restroom.  His foot swells terribly if he even lowers it below his heart at all so his trips to and fro are very limited.  He is going back to the doctor tomorrow and they will be able to tell more but for now, without complications, he will not be able to walk on his foot for AT LEAST 3 weeks.  He did mention that he is able to check email, blogs etc. through his IPOD touch (they have wireless there) however it is very hard to type back because it is so small.  He has lots of time you see because he is stuck in one place for long periods of time. SO...please send him a note of encouragement either on this blog or at his email address jsnason@memphis.edu and let him know that you are thinking and praying for him.  He might not respond but know that he is reading them and will be very encouraged by your words.  Jonathan as you all know is very positive about his mission over there and we all want to keep his spirits high as he is trying to do what God has called him to do.  Pray for a quick recovery, wisdom for the doctors and Jonathan, and pray that God would use even this situation to further His kingdom!

Jonathan's sister Amanda

Out of surgery

This is Amanda again.  Jonathan just called my mom about an hour ago and had just gotten out of surgery and was already at Pastor Waldir's house where he will be staying during his recovery.  He was very "out of it" and groggy and probably won't even remember talking to her but says he is doing ok.  They did put him to sleep and put a pin in his toe right under the toe nail and then cleaned it out really good.  He has to go back in two days for the doctors to look at it.  He didn't mention much else but, with  the help of some pain meds, will hopefully sleep some of it off tonight.  He will have to be off of his feet for a couple of weeks (2-4 maybe) for recovery. Please continue to pray for him as he recovers and tries to get back to "normal" life in Brazil.

Jonathan is in surgery...

This is Jonathan's sister, Amanda, posting on Jonathan's behalf.  I know some of you are eagerly awaiting to hear about his last post about reinjuring his foot.   All weekend he was in quite a bit of pain and was only lowering his foot below his heart 3 times a day and even in those short moments it was swelling pretty badly.  The infection was putting him in alot of pain.  When he went to the doctor this morning, they thought that the infection might be a little better but due to his toe condition (it fell out of place when they unwrapped it...gross I know) they insisted that he go ahead and have surgery to put a pin in it.  They were going to try not to put him to sleep to minimize costs and such but he was not too sure about that as you can imagine.  But if he feels any of it then they would have to.  Please pray for him right now as he is getting prepped or already is in surgery.  He is supposed to call at some point today and as soon as I know something I will update again to let you know how he is doing.  I know Jonathan trusts the Lord and knows that this is all in His plan, however I am certain that he is worried about how this will all play out with his ministry there. Please also pray that the Lord would open doors for him even with an injury.  I know that he will appreciate and covet your prayers.

Amanda

Dejavu!

I did it again. I was playing soccer barefoot and the next thing I knew I was screaming in pain. I looked down and my foot was bleeding really bad. I had reinjured my foot. I got in a car and made the 2 hour drive to the hospital here in Cuiabá. Many of you know what happened after that. I wrote about it about a month ago. I was placed in the same room in the hospital as last time. X-rays, stitches, etc. This time the injury was a little worse. I go back to the hospital on Monday to talk surgery with the doctor. I´m not too fond of this idea. The surgery will consist of taking a metal wire and pushing it through all 3 bones in my toe right through the middle. He will insert the wire at the tip of my toe right under the toe nail. Ouch. He says I won´t feel a thing, but he said that right before he popped my bone back in place and I felt every bit of it. My foot is infected and swollen and the doctor said that if the infection doesn´t go away with the anitbiotics then I will have no choice but to do the surgery. If the swelling goes down then I can choose whether or not to do the surgery. If I have the option I´m turning it down. The surgery will put my off my feet four a month and that is too long. I have limited time here in Brasil and I don´t want to waste it by sitting on my tushy. I need prayers for strength and healing. My body is being attacked but my spirits is only growing stronger. God is at work here and I´ll go through any type of struggles to be able to be apart of the work hat is being done here. My foot is being propped up on the desk as I am typing and it hurts in this position so I am going to go and I will write more later. Please pray for me and the my mission here in Brasil!

His servant.

Anniversário da Minha Mãe

Hello from Brazil. I don't have a lot of time but I wanted to give a shout out to my mom because tomorrow is her birthday. I want to wish you a happy birthday. I miss you very much and love you with all my heart. I am in town only for the day. God has changed a lot of things in my life this week and has given me visions for the future of my ministry. God is good and thankful for the salvation that He has given me. Please continue to pray for me and for continuous miracles in my life.
Life in the village is slow and peaceful. The daily routine is about the same everyday. Coffee and reading in the morning. Visits in the afternoon and then school at night. I enjoy the slow pace lifestyle very much and that is something I do not look forward returning to in America. Maybe I just won't return. Just kidding mom, just a joke.
After praying about it this week, I decided to turn down the basketball offer I mentioned in the previous blog. I didn't want to make such a comittment to something so often and so far away. I need to concentrate on my mission at hand and that is the villages of Sao Vincente, which include Corrego do Ouro (where I live), Matta Matta (don't think that is spelled right), and Fartura. They are building a basketball court at the local school now so I want to be available to hold basketball clinics there, a little closer to my home. I'm excited about my mission at hand.
I miss and love everyone. Thank you for prayers and please continue to pray.

God is Good! Deus é Bom!

I arrived early this morning into Cuiabá around 8 or so. I came into town because I had a meeting for the mission trip that I am going on here in Brasil. While we were driving to the church, Carlos told me that he had a surprise for me today. I had no clue what he was talking about. Him and another man on the team took me to a poorer part of Cuiabá. Not too bad. It is similiar to an area like Binghampton in Memphis. We pulled up at a huge outside basketball court. There were about 4o kids there playing soccer. He then began to tell me about this sports ministry at his church. Every other saturday, they go to this park and teach and play soccer. Then they share the gospel with them. It is a ministry that has been pouring into this part of town for a while. They are there for these kids whenever needed. It is run by two young guys and their wives. One of the guys own a professional soccer team here Cuiabá. So they know soccer. They have been talking for a while with Carlos, with the intents of meeting me and asking me to join there team as the basketball coach. They want me to teach basketball every other saturday. The saturdays that they aren´t teaching soccer. One of the guys wives speaks perfect English. So we got to talking and before long she has informed that she has a really good friend that owns the professional basketball team here in Cuiabá. Some connection. She says she will give him a call and wants me to meet him next saturday when I come back into Cuiabá. I am excited. She said that she has been praying for him because he is not a Christian. She has a special love for basketball ministry because she was saved back in 1994 when a basketball evangelism team came here from America. They shared the gospel with her, which was the first time she had ever heard about Jesus. She was in her teens. I´m excited about the doors that God is opening up. He is good. I also held a conversation in Português with some of the boys there this morning. Short, but it was a conversation nonetheless. Please pray for me next week as I hang out witht these kids. Pray that God will allow me to build bonds with these boys. I´ll let you know how things go. Love yall and miss yall.

Have you talked to God today?

His disciple.