Luke's View

Tell me about Brazil.  Everywhere you turn, there's a mountain or a hill.  We road in buses on dirt roads through the country to get from city to city.  The smaller towns have houses that are pretty much a box with a roof on top.  The big city houses are more like ours just smaller.  

How were the people different from here?  The people were very outgoing.  You could make a friend really easily in Brazil.  

What did they think about you being there?  They were excited because we spoke English.  Brazilians are fascinated by our language.

What was the food like?  The food was much different than American food.  We had rice and beans at every meal, sometimes noodles, meat and potatoes and juice.  The water was not safe to drink, so we had a purifier that someone brought on the trip.

What was a fun, new experience?  I got to be on the radio in Montes Clares!  I invited people to VBS.  One of the kids that came to VBS heard me on the radio.  The guy spoke in Portuguese and told everyone that I looked like Justin Bieber.

What did spend most of your time doing?  I was on the rec team at VBS in Montes Clares, playing with the kids.  We played soccer, baseball, frisbee and tag.  The kids had a lot of fun!

Where did you stay?  We stayed at someone's house and a hotel.  The house was very small.  All the floors were tile, no carpet.  A translator stayed there too so we could communicate with the family that lived there.  The bed was so small that my feet hung off!

Were you ever afraid?  Sometimes I was a little afraid without Dad there. [They were in separate cities for 8 days.]  I'd hear a lot of noises and it was hard to go to sleep.  There were plenty of other adults that took care of me though, so I was fine.

What was the hardest part about this trip?  Towards the end of the trip, we were so exhausted that it was hard to get up at 7am and go again.  [7am there would be 5am here.]  It was hard to remember all the rules about the water, like wear flip flops in the shower, don't drink the water and don't brush your teeth in the water.  I got sick one full day of the trip, maybe from eating homemade chocolate.  

What was your favorite thing about this trip?  Leading the boy to Jesus.

Tell me more about how that happened.  At night worship the pastor said if anyone wants to come down and accept Jesus into your heart, just ask one of the team members in the camo shirts and we'll help you.  So I asked the boy sitting next to me, named Junior, if he wanted to go up there, using hand gestures.  (He only spoke a little English.)   I first asked him if he wanted to know Jesus and he said yes, so MariJo, one of the translators and I led the little boy in the prayer of salvation.  

In what way did God change your heart the most?  I realized we should be grateful for what we have because they don't have as much.


There are more pictures on THIS WEBSITE to see all of Luke & Brad's adventures on mission with God in Brazil.

Good News!

Talked to Brad AND Luke this morning!  They are finally back together and having a day of rest!  Luke is having so much fun and told me HE LED A BOY TO JESUS last night!!!!  My heart is so full.  I'll let him tell the story on a blog when he gets back, but I'm so so very thankful that God gave him that opportunity.  He said he wants to go back every year.

In these past few weeks I have been reminded in a BIG way that GOD ANSWERS PRAYERS!!!

Updates from Brazil

2 PKs ready for a day at VBS:  Luke & Trey (Pastor Sam Dennis' son from ParkwayHills)

Brad & Luke are in 2 different cities for these first 8 days of the trip.  Luke is in a bigger metro area leading VBS for a LOT of kids.  He is on the rec team, so his days consist of playing "futbol" with the kids.  I can just see him high-fiving the little boys as they score a goal!  :)  I miss him so much, but know God has his hand on Luke.  I still pray daily that God will draw him close to His heart.  Will you pray that with me too?

Brad is in a smaller village.  Here is the first text I received from him:

"We r here eating.  It's beautiful.  Miss you"

Then yesterday:

"We're in a very poor area.  Talked with 2 drunks.  Food is weird.  The jungle is around us.  Luke is in a much bigger metro area.  I'm preaching on the radio every day this week.  Preaching big service every night."

This morning I got a forwarded message sent to Brad from Luke:

"Hey dad it's Luke  Bon Gia were having fun.  Yesterday we went to this cool town and they were having a celebration so talk to u later bye Tchau love you"  

(I'm going to have to talk to that boy about punctuation.)  ;)

We send texts for free with an app on our iphones called "Viber".  So thankful for that.  

Brad called today and he's resting this afternoon.  He preached last night to a big crowd and 20 people came forward afterward to give their lives to Christ.  Praise the Lord!  What an amazing blessing!  Brad said he finally feels like he's getting a groove, as the first few days he was just getting used to everything.  I know he's reaching people with his authentic and magnetic personality that I fell in love with.  

I'm so proud of my boys and thankful that God has given them this opportunity!

Brazil Itinerary

Date	Time	Destination
July 14	1:55pm	Arrive at DFW airport 2 hours before departure
July 14	3:55pm	DFW to Miami AA flight 484
July 14	11:15pm	Miami to Belo Horizonte AA flight 991
July 15	8:15am	Arrive in Belo Horizonte
July 15	10:30am	Bus ride from Belo Horizonte to Montes Claros
July 19	10:00am	Bus ride from Montes Claros to Itacarambi
July 23	8:00am	Bus ride from Itacarambi to Montes Claros
July 27	8:00am	Montes Claros to Belo Horizonte
July 27	9:50pm	Belo Horizonte to Miami AA flight 992
July 28	6:50am	Miami to Dallas AA flight 495
July 28	8:55am	Arrive at DFW airport

They're Off!

Brad called from Miami and they will be flying to Brazil all night from there.  Praising God for his provision....the visas & passports came in just in time!  Please pray for safety tonight.

Luke is having a great time!  He was asked to give his testimony at some point on the trip so be praying for that!  Thank you!!!

Portuguese Phrases to Know

Oi!   

Hi!

Olá!   

Hello!

Tudo bem?   

How are you?

Bom dia!   

Good morning!

  

Boa noite!   

Good night! / Good evening!

Qual seu nome?    

What is your name?

Meu nome é Luke.   

My name is Luke.

Quantos anos você tem?  

How old are you?

Tenho 13 anos.  

I’m 13 years old.

Você fala português?

Do you speak Portuguese?
 

Falo inglês.  

I speak English.

Não falo português.  

I don’t speak Portuguese.

De onde você é?

Where are you from?

Você é de aqui?  

Are you from here?

Sou dos Estados Unidos.  

I’m from United States.

Muito prazer!  

Nice to meet you!

Tchau!  (sounds like CHOW)

Bye!

There are more words and phrases here, and you can listen to them spoken to practice your Portuguese!

Pray!

Serious prayers needed.  Visas have not come yet.  We need them.  Please pray with us.

Thank you.