FBC Awesome Blog

Sifting sand to make cement for mortar

2010-08-30T21:18:00.000-07:00

I know it seems from these pictures that we spent alot of time doing touristy things. In actuality, we worked during daylight hours and at night we did all the other things. With the exception of Saturday in Piernopolis and Sunday at church. Pictures of digging, carry and sifting dirt and laying bricks get rather boring. But here's another one anyway.

2010-08-30T21:14:00.000-07:00

More friends from Brazil. Center is Luciano- chief construction engineer for the house. The boy on the right is his son, Luciano Lucas, then Raegan. The other to are the wife of a pastor friend and her son. This was at the ice cream shop where you buy ice cream by the kg. Not the traditional flavors either. Rather ironic that Raegan earned most of her money from the trip at an ice cream shop here in Douglas and then ended up in an ice cream shop half way around the world.

2010-08-30T21:01:00.000-07:00

Eating at Pahmona Pura e Caldos

In this picture are Brazilians from a town north of Anapolis. Also Marcello who is the pastor to pastors for the Oasis. Alyssa is at the end of the table.The evangelical Christians seem to be a tightly knit group- almost a family.

2010-08-24T21:01:00.000-07:00

The famous corn soup restaurant. Had at least 8 varieties of corn soup (caldos) which was really quite tasty.

Pamonhas are like a sticky and slightly sweet cornbread wrapped in a corn husk. You can see a picture of one on this menu.

2010-08-24T20:18:00.000-07:00

Notice the house in the background. This belongs to a fellow missionary for SIM, I think. The same person sold the property for the Oasis and MAEB for about half the price it was worth a few years ago.

2010-08-24T20:16:00.001-07:00

2010-08-24T20:11:00.000-07:00

Since we were all admiring the horses that stay at Oasis, Luciano saddled one of them for the girls to ride. They were impressed with our riding skills. These horses look pretty good but many horses in the area have ribs showing through. It is pretty sad. Many of the cattle we saw were also very thin. They were Brahmas mostly too. We were told that the cowboys rode horses that looked more like donkeys. They are not the romantic cowboys that they see on movies. Even though they do like John Wayne pretty well, we are told.

Taking a break from Brazil to "Live Offensivly"

2010-08-24T14:04:00.000-07:00

Alyssa here, I'm about to write something on here that could potentially be frowned upon, but my goal here is to be a bit offensive to a secular world while still showing Gods love.

http://www.liveoffensively.com/

I found these guys at Hills Alive this year and they struck a couple nerves. After I got over the initial shock and awe of people actually being bold enough to print, wear and share these shirts, I had a thought.

Why not wear these shirts??

They slam a message down, then bring on a salve of Gods truth and love.
There's a couple of them that I found to really strike home..

"God is not a conservative republican...
(back) But he DEFENATLY isn't a liberal democrat!"
God doesn't vote for either party, we would like him too, but, he just doesn't. God stand for what he stands for, and the most we can do is the same.

"Don't go to church..."
(back)"Be the church!"
That fits into our grow win serve... If we are the church outside of church, we will grow win and serve ten fold... In my reasoning...

"Jesus loves Homosexuals"
(back)"Jesus has compassion for all types who are looking for love in all the wrong places."

there are just a couple that really smacked me in the face, check out the rest of the shirts on the website. Maybe buy a couple, I would most definately wear them to school. Mostly because I'm the kind of person who doesn't mind offending people as Lon as it gets them thinking.

~<3TaniMay-Luv

2010-08-17T17:00:00.000-07:00

For a word about fellow believers in Brasil. (They spell Brazil with an s.)
Nelson Martinsen is a twenty- something man who helped us ALOT with being able to communicate in Portuguese. He is trying to learn English well so he can go to Pakistan as a missionary. He knows just about every American movie and can recite parts of them. He always has a smile and is willing to help out in any way. He knows a little about everything. He is the kind of guy you can go crying to and he will make you feel better. He willingly went with 4 teenage girls into to town to go shopping- not just once but 2 or 3 times. He stayed up late to watch old movies in English and Portuguese. He joined in on our singing and told many stories. ("As an example...") Over all, he was very instrumental in making our trip enjoyable and profitable. He has a very interesting story also, which I hope will be added at another blog.
Luciano is probably in his forties and has a wife and 2 children. He has been a pastor but is wondering what God has in store for him now. Meanwhile,he is the mastermind behind our building project. Somehow he gets his point across to us with very little English. Always there and ready to work. He took time out to listen to our devotions and interact with us at the restaurant, the waterfalls and in Pieronopolis. Somehow, he can dig a straight trench at just the right depth without any measuring tools. His son was about the age of the girls on the team and was very eager to interact with them and to use his little bit of English to help us learn Portuguese. I didn't get to know the rest of the family very well. The last morning we were there, Luciano challenged us to walk with Christ even more.
Marcello and his wife ,Denise (Deneesee), and their daughter, Talita, and son ,Bruno, live on the second floor of the Oasis house. Marcello helped out several days with the building. Bruno also helped out when he wasn't in school. Denise did a little of everything around the place. She helped to clean, cook, and wash dishes. Her soft spoken words always made us feel at home. Bruno is probably 14 or so and joined in on all the work and fun. Talita plays the guitar and sings. I think she is about 16. The first night after dinner, she played her guitar while we all sang Casting Crowns songs in English and in Portuguese. Beautiful. Marcello had been raised in a Christian home but got kinda wild in his later teens and early 20s. He started drinking and partying. His mother prayed for him daily. Denise met him while he was in the phase and they wanted to get married. She was not a Christian at this time and he witnessed to her even though his own life was not close to God. She asked all kinds of questions about what the difference between a religion and a relationship with Jesus was. One night, Marcello was drag racing while under the influence and wrecked her father's car. While he was being rushed off by the police, Denise heard God speaking to her and fell on her knees to ask Jesus to help her. After that, she started pullling Marcello back to Christ. He was the head of a street mission for about 16 years and now he has felt God telling him that he needs to be a pastor to pastors. This is his job at the Oasis.
Ju (zhu) (I don't know the Portuguese spelling) is the cook and housekeeper. Each morning she greeted us with Bem Dia! (Bohn jeea) and a smile. She made the most awesome food. I will tell more about this in another blog. Mostly, she just made the whole trip worthwhile just to see the care she put into her job.
The gardener (whose name I don't know) was always there raking leaves, hoeing, etc. He had a bird one day that was having trouble flying and he helped it to fly.
There is another couple that lives on the grounds, but we didn't get to meet them. They have a very small house in the back yard. They are the head of the groundskeeping etc for the Oasis, I believe.
And, of course, there is Bill, Kathy and Joy Bacheller who will have to be another time.

2010-08-14T20:44:00.000-07:00

This is the end of our 4th day of our trip. 2 days travelling so far and 2 days working. Raegan is enamored with the people and language of Brasil. Sara loves the floriculture and went out one night to pet the horse which scared Hootchie Mama to death almost. Alyssa is loving the fruit and wishing she could pick some off the trees. She was seen once picking up some lemons off the ground. She found a round green fruit about the size of a softball which Nelson says it used to make a preserve- something like marmalade. Very bitter. Tirzah is already making friends with Talita and Bruno. She uses some of her Spanish to get her point across. She is using all those muscles she got from lifting weights in carrying and pushing wheelbarrows and pounding rocks.
Robert is probably our best worker so far and he always has a little joke just when things get tense. Susan Adams has a sweet quiet way of encouraging others. She is always trying to give cups of water to everyone to keep them hydrated. Dick is a real go-getter. There is no language barrier for him as he can use his hands to get his point across to anyone. He is seen doing every type job there is to do. Susan W. is always pointing out the beauty of the place while doing the most menial of tasks. She must have carried a hundred pounds of rocks a few at a time only to find out they were too big and had to be taken back to be replaced by smaller, flatter rocks. As for me, Ruth (Hootchie), I am trying to record all this and keep everything organized. The girls are all pretty much glad that I am only the mother of Alyssa as my alarm clock and subsequent wake up calls are very annoying to them. I will add more about the Brazilians at a later time. Each one has his/her own story and are a testimony to the goodness of our Lord.

2010-08-14T20:33:00.000-07:00

2010-08-14T20:31:00.000-07:00

Taking a well-deserved break. Robert, Bruno, Marcello, Nelson.

Marcello used to run a house for homeless in the city and is now the pastor of pastors with the Oasis. Bruno is his and Denise's son.

2010-08-14T20:29:00.000-07:00

Joy, Bruno, Sara, Tirzah loading bricks. Sara's turn to wheel them.

2010-08-14T20:27:00.001-07:00

More unloading of bricks.

2010-08-14T20:26:00.001-07:00

Unloading bricks for later use.

2010-08-14T20:25:00.000-07:00

Everyone kept busy with something. Girls would often help Ju with the dishes after lunch.

2010-08-14T20:23:00.000-07:00

Tirzah haulling clay bricks to Marcello (Pastor at Oasis) who laid them out to be used by Luciano and Robert Adams who would actually lay the bricks in the trenches.v

2010-08-14T20:21:00.000-07:00

Bill Bacheller digging trenches. Fist we would dig trenches using a string as a guide. Then Luciano would come behind us and make them level and the right width and depth. Then someone would bring rocks and place them in the trench and someone else would pound the rocks into the ground. Always present was the watergirl(guy) who would put water on the ground so we could dig and pound.

2010-08-14T20:15:00.001-07:00

Nelson pounding rocks to make a firm foundation. He was there almost every day- translating, working at any job given him, singing, and lifting spirits. And he never stopped smiling. One of our greatest blessings.

2010-08-14T20:12:00.001-07:00

More Ninja Destruction

2010-08-14T20:10:00.001-07:00

Think quick, Tirzah, Alyssa and Sara

2010-08-14T20:09:00.000-07:00

Teenage mutant ninjas Raegan and Nelson

2010-08-14T20:08:00.000-07:00

Ninja Destruction Brazilian style

2010-08-14T20:05:00.001-07:00

Checking the plans for the house.

2010-08-14T20:04:00.001-07:00

Pile of sand to be sifted through before making cement.

2010-08-14T20:03:00.000-07:00

Tree in back yard of Oasis.

2010-08-14T20:00:00.000-07:00

Part of the landscaping.

2010-08-14T19:57:00.000-07:00

Raegan Pierce, Joy Bacheller and Alyssa Penn taking a break after noon meal. Raegan is practicing her Portuguese.

2010-08-14T19:55:00.001-07:00

Sara York and Nelson Martinsen taking a break after noon meal.

2010-08-14T19:53:00.001-07:00

Alyssa Penn and Joy Bacheller taking a break after noon meal.

2010-08-14T19:52:00.000-07:00

Praying and dedicating the project to God's glory. Then getting our assignments.

2010-08-14T19:49:00.000-07:00

Only smaller flatter rocks will do. Later we decided it was easier to fill the wheelbarrow and take it to the pounders.

2010-08-14T19:47:00.000-07:00

Finding rocks for putting under the foundation.

2010-08-10T15:09:00.000-07:00

First we need to dig trenches for the foundation. Later we will put rocks into the bottom and pound them into the ground. Robert Adams, Tirzah Cole, Nelson Martinsen(Brazilian student) in the background.

2010-08-10T15:06:00.000-07:00

First view of the house we are to build. Next morning after arriving.

All the holes have been dug for electricity etc but no foundation yet.

2010-08-10T15:03:00.000-07:00

Finally in Brazil --25 hours later
Raegan Pierce, Tirzah Cole, Alyssa Penn, Susan Wortham, Susan and Robert Adams

2010-08-10T15:00:00.001-07:00

Sunset over the clouds enroute to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Waiting for our connecting flight

2010-08-10T14:59:00.000-07:00

Waiting for a connecting flight Tirzah Cole and Alyssa Penn
Robert and Susan Adams in background

Brazil trip 2010

2010-08-10T14:39:00.000-07:00

Here's a few pictures of the trip.

Arriving at DIA airport- 4 hours into the trip

Tirzah Cole and Raegan Pierce

Welcome!!

2010-08-10T12:13:00.000-07:00

Hey guys! This is your very own Ms. Alyssa telling you that this is a open blog to anyone who attends First Baptist Church in Douglas Wyoming! If you're anything like me, checking the website can be a little trying sometimes (not all the time but some people just don't have time to!) So I'm opting to have this blog open for announcements, events, and any other type of note of intrest anyone wants to post!

I'm going to request to connect this blog to the churches facebook so you all can see your updates right on your wall. I'm also releasing the log in information to any who want it. Just drop me an email or message on FB and I'll hand it right over.

If there are any questions or other such things, just go ahead and ask!
I'm hoping that all who attended the Brazil Missons Trip will post a little tid bit about their experiance and what they learned and accomplished.

Thanks!
Alyssa <3