One More Week - Now with Aaron!

(Our latest event - A service promoting a Special Youth Retreat - Wahoo - So much happening!)

General:

Wow, looking back, this last week was as intense as all the other ones, even though it was supposed to be a relief from all the work I had been doing the past two weeks. It started on Friday with the homeless ministry. We went in two because the small group responsible for that night could not make it. However little the group of two was, the benefits of going out that night was great. First of all we met this guy from 2000 km away from our city. He is 18 years old and came to work but could not find anything (I will explain in the testimony). Then we met this Catholic group and I was amazed by their willingness to come out and give these homeless some food.

After that, Saturday was really busy too because of the special service we held where a Missionary friend of mine came over to speak! The message was amazingly incredible – He spoke on Jesus and his life going through it and explaining about revival. May God hear his prayers for revival of this generation. Then, Sunday came along, morning service and lunch with my new friend Marcos (the guy we found on the street Friday). Sunday night, another service. But this time, I did not really enjoy the message as much as I would like to. He preached on Joshua and Jericho and how God told Joshua that he would have the city and kill all the people inside. I have a real hard time reading such passages and this service was just hardening my heart to the church. O, the church, with all its faults and things I disagree with. However, we cannot let go of it, but become the church we want to see. And that I hope may the outcome of this time here in Brazil.

I then travelled to São Paulo, getting ready for Aaron to come. It was good to just relax and sit around for a day or two and show Aaron the city of São Paulo. It was also a personal spiritual recharge. I could read my book and the Bible and get deeper and deeper in the word. Now, we are back and Aaron is still introducing himself around the church. It will be a while until he gets the groove of all that is happening here. Like he says, “Hakuna Matata!” haha! He will be a cup of fresh water during these months in Brazil!

Specific Testimony:

Of course I need to talk about Marcos. Marcos was found by my friend and I lying in the streets, trying to warm himself on a cold night in Brazil. At first we were simply going to give him something to eat, pray and go. But we decided to invite him for some more “spiritual food” at the house of the Lord. He was prompt in answering YES! And we planned a way to get him to come to the youth service the next day. He came, took a shower, participated in the service and also ate some hot dogs with us. After that, I dropped him off at this hotel (it was more like a brothel, with all these prostitutes coming in and out) but it was all I could afford.

The next day he came to church again, we hung out and kept talking as if discipling. At first we wanted to take him back to his city (2000 km away), but then we found out he did not have any documents on him, we went after it, but it was more complicated than usual. So we decided to try to find him a job. However, he does not have many skills, is only 18 years old and no documents. Finally, a brother from the church has this buffet business where he sets up parties and puts them down. Marcos then, became a party set-uper! He worked all of last night and will be with us one more weekend on our services! I pray and hope that he may come to the realization that God alone can bring him peace and settle him down. May he also understand the importance of working hard to get better and also achieve success in whatever it is he chooses to do!

Some Wisdom for today:

“No kingdom of this world is the Kingdom of God, the total condition of mankind’s salvation.” P. 43-44 ("Jesus of Nazareth" - by Pope Benedict XVI)

May 15th – May 22nd

General:

So second week rolled along very well, but still without Aaron. Much happened this week. Starting with the Homeless Ministry Friday night – great fun, great meeting new people and seeing how things work out in the street in preparation for the one week we will be living with them on the street. The following day we had the youth service (my first one to participate since I have been back), and that was a little saddening. The youth pastor did not seem to have prepared something really meaningful to say, people do not even care about what he says and everybody is disperse. I tried to bring the focus back, only to find out that it seemed like I was preaching one message and the youth pastor preaching another. Also. After the service, we usually go out together, but this time people were going to different places, disunited. Sad. But thank God that I got a really cool friend of mine to come and speak to us on “Fruits of Revival” for next week. Revival is a word spoken much down here and though there is very little understanding of that actually mean, it does something to people. So yeah, I pray that next Saturday things may be looking much better as with the youth service.

Here is the Advertising for that Special Service:

               Then came Sunday service where I was able to tell people about my experiences in Egypt as well as present all these projects to the church. It was great! People were really interested and are willing to change and help people through these things!

                Then Monday rolled in and my first assignment was to put together an Agenda for the youth program and organize all the events we will be planning! That was not hard, however, I started to feel a little overwhelmed with all the stuff we will be doing! But by the grace of God everything will be alright! Then after that I went to Bethesda (the Soccer Project from our Church) and there I led devos for the older kids who are now playing a really important championship where they play on TV and everything and also the really small kids (7-8 years old)…wow, everytime I go there I feel so realized, so good with myself…there is something about being there with those kids and being able to say: “I have been there where you are today” and be able to share the change that happened in my life going abroad and everything, which for most is a big dream!

                The Tuesday and Wednesday were Small group days. I went to the teenager one and the youth one. Both really powerful in message and inshaallah people will actually hear what was said! After these small groups though I went to different BBQs and meetings because social life in Brazil never ends.

                Finally Thursday was a day of much planning trying to figure out the best place for an event called “Radical Praise” which should be in a skate park. We finally found this really cool place up in this guetto and we are gonna come over with sound and everything and see what happens! After that there was the Theological Coffee with friends and once again I loved it in spite of the fact that I could not stay long because I had a “soccer commitment” to go to! And so life goes…

Specific Testimony:

                Two things really touched my heart this week, though they might be simple. First of all, it was the fact that the kids from the Bethesda project all remembered who I was and even some things we had given them! It was great to feel that love that sometimes I did not show back and once again you start to figure out the purity and trueness when Jesus said that the Kingdom of God was revealed to these children. I hope my faith becomes childlike more and more as I interact with them more and more.

The second testimony comes from one of the small groups. Larissa, this girl that has been coming to our Church for some time now but has never fully committed her life to Christ was given the task of leading the Small Group that day. At first she was freaking out about it and how everything would not work out cuz she had never done anything like that and all…However, she really pushed herself to do it in spite of an exam she was going to have the next day. The Small Group meeting  was amazing! She preached on judging others, a reality in our church, and used various Bible verses as examples but all coming from Jesus’ life himself. So, again, one does not have to be a master in theology to really understand the reality of God’s love and Jesus’ teaching. 

First Week Summary!

Kids at Bethesda Soccer Project

General:

                First week at home! Too much has happened and there is a lot to figure out about this whole summer! This week was of many meetings and conversation with the leaders of the church, presenting my projects and finding out the real situation at the church.

                As for the projects, the pastors as well as the youth seem to be very excited as to the opportunities ahead! Great excitement is being built with the promotion of inter faith dialogue with Catholics, the monastic retreat and most of all “Altos Papos” which is a Q&A with pastors about the situation of the church in this post modern era we live in.

                What is sad though is coming back to a group divided. The youth group, th

ese last four months suffered a lot through separation of its members. Many have gone astray because of quarrels, others because of leaders being bad examples, in some cases going as far as fornicating. This is simply sad. However, Jesus came for those, to save those, and I believe this summer is now much more meaningful for me and Aaron as we seek to BE the difference we want to SEE at the church.

                In spite of finding out this horrible situation, I feel strengthened by the support of the leaders in starting over, in finding out what should come ahead, and giving some hope to the youth.  While I was leading a small group on Tuesday night, I sensed just that, that even though people are not interested in the things of God, they WANT to be interested and are only waiting for someone to lead them towards Him. May Aaron and I be these lights as we serve here in Brazil. 

Specific Testimony:

There are two. First of all, one of the homeless from last year’s ministry came to church on Sunday (mother’s day) to give his testimony of how this last year had changed in his life. His testimony brought me to tears and saw the great hope found in Jesus that these homeless are longing for. His life was made anew and his mother could not have asked for a better gift in mother’s day then having her son back to her house. It was a great modern day illustration of the prodigal son story.

Secondly, yesterday we met for the first time with a group willing to talk theology and philosophy on life and Godly matters. At first, only Zac (an American friend living in Brazil) and I were going to meet; however, an agnostic friend of ours took interest and came along. We had a long talk with him, (from 7:30 til 12:30) five hours of talking of the church, the role of sex, why marry and so on. I felt like I had learned much about people’s impression of people from church and how I am included in these stereotypes. However, the greatest thing is that when one is presented with the real Jesus, not the Jesus we have learned from church, or we have grown up talking about, there is no getting away from Him, He is irresistible. And that is the beauty of the Gospel!

Inspiration for the week ahead:

“The struggle for freedom of the Church, the struggle to avoid identifying Jesus’ Kingdom with any political structure, is one that has to be fought century after century. For the fusion of faith and political power always comes at a price: faith becomes servant of power and must bend to its criteria.” Pope Benedict XVI, "Jesus of Nazareth"

Have a great week!

Hey everyone!

so I have gotten to Brazil and already been doing some crazy stuff with missions, like helping in a radio show my friend has! however, it has been mostly socializing, cuz that is big in Brazil!

I would like you to pray, because it seems like things have falling apart with the youth at my church, more than I had expected. People driking real hard, fornicating, and other things not worthy sharing. Aaron and I will have much to do to try to change this reality, but the bigger the challenge, the more God will have to act and not us and for that I am happy!

Please keep us in your prayers as Aaron hasnt made it down yet, and as we prepare for four months of Craziness! 

Talking of Engaging the Empire - man, one of the first people I met, was the guy who used to play the shofar (goat's horn) at church and who is REALLY prophetically pro-Israel. Talking my opinions here is very delicate - with my parents and all. So yeah, pray for a better transition and that my actions show more than my words.

This is a video talking a little about the challenges we have as "Children of Empire" who have grown up free riding on all the killing that have been done for us. 

E aí galera? What is up everyone?

I made my way through to Brazil - Il Hamdu li lLah! (Praise be to God!) - Now, it is time to wait and prepare the way for that which is to come after me - Aaron! - and Jesus! 

So yeah, it has been great to be back, even though I am still in São Paulo and not in my home city (Presidente Prudente). It has been a time to meditate and keep on learning about and from God!

Here is another thing to meditate upon from this new book I started reading - Jesus of Nazareth by Pope Benedict XVI:

“The question that every reader of the New Testament must ask – where Jesus’ teaching came from, how his appearance in history is to be explained – can really be answered only from this perspective. The reaction of his hearers was clear: This teaching does not come from any school." 

What has been your reaction to his teachings? Have you considered them banal, common, out of a "school" of thought? Or Are we willing to consider it Divine Revelation?

May your life know and fully grasp his life so that the abundance promised to us may be truly viable in our midst and that others may be abounded by this overflow of life!

God bless

Samuel Pirondi 

Hello Everyone!

So, this will be the place Aaron and I will be posting news and other happenings while our travel in Brazil! 

Also, if there are any sweet thoughts and comments we think could add to you we shall be putting them up too! 

How about we start with some wisdom from our Desert Fathers I read in Anafora, as you can see on the side (A retreat center/monastery in Egypt run by the Coptic Christians):

“Once some bandits came to the hermitage of an old man, and said: We have come to take away everything in your cell. And he said: Whatever you see, my sons. Then they took whatever they found in the cell and went waay. But they left behind a little bag which was out of sight. But the old man picked it up, and ran after them, shouting: My sons, take this! You forgot it! They were indeed amazed by the endurance of the old man, and brought everything back into the cell. And all of them repented and said to each other: He really is a man of God.” 

Oh wow! This desert father really has something to teach us as of what our priorities really are!

Hope this is a good way to start this blog as we look into serving people as best as we can! God bless you all! 

Please leave your comments!