Changes at CLM

As we prepare to move back to the orphanage on December 8th, we realize there will be much more changing than our address. Last Friday, the 14 missionaries at Entre Rios met for dinner and prayer. After each person shared, we realized that in the next two months, seven will be leaving CLM and another will be taking maternity leave in May. Bethany and Juan are expecting their first baby in June. Rosana is getting married. Rogerio and Vivien are taking on full-time positions at the church in the colony. Vagner and Jacqueline are moving back to Bahia. Edit is returning to Hungary. After receiving the last four children last week, there are 36 children...and soon only 7 missionaries to care for all of their needs!

We are reminded of the story of Gideon's army of 32,000 who were to wage war on the Midianites. God chose to get the job done with only 300. God isn't concerned about the ratios...He will supply all our need, according to His riches. We can be confident of victory when we trust in Him and not ourselves. Thank you for your continued prayers for us, as well as the other missionaries and children.

Early Christmas Present

Last Tuesday night at 1:30am, CLM received a phone call from the Child Protection Agency. Someone had picked up 4 runaway children and dropped them off at the police. They were filthy and smelled so badly that a man who was riding in the back of the van to comfort them had to move to the front! :( They were immediately fed, showered, and dropped off at CLM. The oldest brother, Robson is 10, and has obviously been the one "in charge" of the family. He didn't seem to know how to react to us "gringos" but smiled when we hugged and kissed him. His younger brother, Altair is 9 and is very sweet and affectionate. The twin girls, Caroline and Carolaine are 7 and are little bundles of energy. They had constant smiles on their faces and have easily made friends with the other children.

When I took this picture of the three younger siblings with Patricia, we were told Robson was talking with the director. Later, we found out he had grabbed one of the little girls and became very angry and violent when questioned about his intentions. It is so disheartening to think about what these children have seen and experienced, and even more troubling when they act out on other children. Please pray for a fresh start for these beautiful children, that they would feel the peace of the Holy Spirit and an overwhelming sense of love and acceptance from their Heavenly Father.

Letting Go

We are afraid that we will soon be experiencing our first heartbreak at CLM. Josiane, Mayara, Diana and Diego have had several visits with their father and his wife in the last month. They, along with their extended family, have expressed their interest for the children to come back to live with them. This was scary at first for especially Josiane because she has vivid memories of how alcohol affected her father's behavior. However, two years have passed while they have been at CLM, and he has made many positive changes in his lifestyle. The judge and our director feel very comfortable with allowing the children to return but it is still the children's decision. After this Friday's visit, each one will be asked what they want to do. As you can imagine, this will be a difficult decision for all of them.

Emotionally, we are torn, as well. Obviously, we want them to have their own family but they are already a part of our CLM family! We have to admit that in the flesh, we have fears about them returning to a potentially similar situation that brought them to us in the first place. Since we never truly know how long a child will be with us, we have to see each day as a gift from God, believing that He alone must be their rock and refuge. Please pray for God's direction for each of the children and for us as we face this new challenge.

CLM Turvo

Canaan Land Ministries has two orphanages, one in Entre Rios (where we will be living) and one in Turvo. The orphanage in Entre Rios was started over 30 years ago and currently has 33 children and 12 missionaries. In the past several years, many of the kids that came to CLM were from the city of Turvo, a very small city with extreme poverty...and the highest infant mortality rate in the state. The city officials in Turvo approached CLM about starting another orphanage in their city, about an hour from Entre Rios. A beautiful piece of land on a mountainside above the city was donated and the city built a road just for CLM. Enough funds were raised to complete the exterior and the first floor for its opening in February of 2006. It currently houses 15 children and 3 missionaries. When it is finished, it will be able to house 36 children and 12 missionaries. Finding the children is not the difficult part...unfortunately, there are many who need a safe refuge. However, CLM Turvo is nearing the point that they won't be able to receive any more children until God provides more missionaries. The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few...please pray that God would send more workers.

Letricia

Evelim's prayers were answered when her brother and sister, Jonatas and Letricia, came to CLM Turvo last week. Letricia is 3 years old and weighs 22 pounds. She is extremely weak to the point that even walking is difficult for her. Her stomach was infested with worms and the missionaries were concerned during the first few days that she may have been rescued too late. Praise God that she is doing better and has been able to keep her food down. Jonatas is 9 years old and seems to be healthy. Evelim is very happy to know that they are safe with her. Please keep them in your prayers.

Paulinho and the Ferrari Expo

Paulinho came to CLM when he was 11 months old with his sister Valdecleia. He had a significant developmental delay due to lack of stimulation, depression, and malnutrition. He recently celebrated his 6th birthday and is a precious, creative, and active little boy. When we were getting gas last week, we noticed a sign that advertised for an "Exposição de Ferrari" and immediately thought of his love of keys and cars.

Today, we invited him into the city and gave him a Hot Wheels Ferrari. We then asked him if he had ever seen a real one. His eyes got really big as we pulled into the lot and he saw the Formula One racecar. But when we got out of the car, he seemed nervous and wanted Mike to hold him. Within a few minutes we could tell he was overwhelmed, and soon after he asked if we could leave. We had been so excited about making a special memory with him--we hadn't even thought about how the people, music, and lights would affect him. We were reminded again of how past trauma continues to impact the everyday lives of the children. Please pray Ephesians 1:18 for Paulinho, that he would begin to understand the wonderful future and rich inheritance that God promises to His children.

Missionaries of CLM

This video highlights the missionaries and hired workers who care for the 45 children living at CLM Entre Rios and CLM Turvo. Each day is a battle and takes its toll on the marriages, children, and spiritual life of those who have been sent to sow the seeds and reap the harvest. Please pray specifically for strength, direction, support, and protection for each family. (If you are unable to view the video in the above window, you can access our videos at http://youtube.com/watch?v=coeuOAeeqz4. Please be aware that there are sometimes related videos that are not ours on the same page.)

Birthday in Brazil

Mike celebrated his 38th birthday this past weekend surrounded by children...what a wonderful place to be! The cake was decorated by our resident chef, a short-termer from Sweden named Tommy who decided on a dog for Mike and a frog for Joanna, a fellow missionary who also celebrated her birthday this month. When Gisiele saw the cake she said, "That's Mocha and she's going to eat that frog!"

Mike said that he's never been around this many people who were so excited about his birth. It was a precious time and gave greater insight into how the children feel when we celebrate the day they were born

More Mud!

Dia Das Crianças

The Annual Mudslide for Children's Day was a hit...except a cool rain prevented us from taking as many photos and video as we would have liked. We will try to post some more this week if we can get some good shots off the video. (Mike was covered from head to toe!) The precious girl in this photo is Cristiane. We would love for you to pray for her right now...that God would heal the emotional wounds in her life and fill her with the confidence that she was beautifully and wonderfully created. She is so timid and quiet that she has had a difficult time making friends and adjusting to life at CLM. She has become very attached to me (literally) and will usually be found by my side when we are at CLM. Thank you for praying for her.
Psalm 139:13-14 You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother's womb. Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvelous--how well I know it.

Living From the Heart

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, "Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous?" Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small doesn't serve the world. There's nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We were born to manifest the glory of God that is within us...And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others. (Nelson Mandela)

John Eldredge says in his book, Waking the Dead, "It takes courage to live from your heart. How can you help others to freedom while you remain captive?" Mike and I have known that God has been preparing us for CLM for a long time but in these final weeks, He has spoken over and over about the importance of walking in His freedom. Our children here are bound by their past and by the lies they have heard from the enemy for so long. Their lives have been filled with confusion, discouragement, condemnation, and accusation...and God desires to restore their wounded hearts. Our prayer is that God will use us to model His freedom. This is difficult for me because I've lived somewhere between "fear of disappointing someone" and "guilt that I already have" for most of my life. I have seen glimpses of what His true freedom looks like and desire it for my life and for the children more than ever before. We know this battle will not be easily won...please pray with us as we invite the Holy Spirit to begin this process.

Matthew 5:16 So let your light shine so that others will glorify our Heavenly Father!

Geovane Returns!

Thanks so much for your prayers for our Geovane! We were very happy to find out that he returned to CLM on his own accord. After discovering that his mom was in prison, he spent the next two days roaming the city and begging for food. His aunt saw him in one of the most dangerous areas of the city and asked him what he wanted to do...continue like his mother and wind up in prison, or return to CLM and change his life? Fortunately, he made the right decision and is now back with his CLM family. (He actually told Edit that he saw us twice in the park and once in the supermarket looking for him...guess we need to hone up on our investigative skills!) Thank you for joining us in prayer for his safe return. Please continue to pray that he will be overwhelmed by the unconditional love that he feels at CLM and that God will use this experience to change his life forever.

Please Pray for Geovane

Geovane from Entre Rios ran away again yesterday. He had been doing so well and really seemed to be enjoying his new life at CLM. Edit brought six of the children in to Guarapuava to run in another citywide race. Donei, Lucas, Francielle, Geovane, Josiane, and Maria Joana ran 2.5 km while Edit, Natalia, and Agi ran in the 8km. All finished well and Francielle and Lucas received trophies for 2nd and 3rd place respectively in their age groups. (Pictures are posted on our flickr page.)

Geovane was with us the entire time until right at the end of the 8km race. There were hundreds of people there with all kinds of activities for kids...he seemed to be having so much fun! Obviously though, the desire to see his mom was too great. We searched the entire grounds and the surrounding areas but no Geovane. When Edit filed a report with the police, she discovered that his mother's house had been boarded up and she had been sent to prison in another city. Patricia has taken the news pretty hard since Geovane had promised her along with everyone else at CLM that he would not run away again. Please pray for Geovane's safe return, that he would feel unconditional love from his CLM family, and that all four children would experience God's peace during this time of turmoil.

Welcome to the Family!

Luis, Aninha, and Natalia welcomed four new children to Turvo this past week! Geovane is 5 years old and is a very active, playful little boy. Immediately after his arrival, a sibling group of three came: Ana Paula (8), Zelia (6), and Natanael (2). Their mother died and their alcoholic father was unable to care for them. They were living in filth and have a skin condition common to dogs "bixo-de-pe" (bugs that get under the skin of the foot)that has caused much discomfort because of itching. During our visit on Saturday, all of them were a little wary of us at first but quickly warmed up and were soon wrestling with Mike, sitting on my lap, or holding our hands. We have had the privilege of watching over the past three years as children who have come to CLM filled with fear and distrust have been transformed through the Holy Spirit's love. Join with us as we pray for these four to experience the awesome power of God's love and restoration in their lives. Check out our flickr page to see more photos of these precious children.

Blessed by YOU!

Hope you enjoy our latest video featuring our beautiful children! Please leave us a comment or send us an email to let us know what you think. (If you are unable to view the video, you can access it at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L9sznpPr8Wk. Please be aware that there could be related videos on the page that are not ours.)
"Every morning when I rise, with each breath I realize...that I AM BLESSED BY YOU!"

A Unique Perspective

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. (Jn. 10:10)

As I post pictures to our blog, you are able to see a snapshot of what we experience everyday at CLM. But, unfortunately, you miss out on what happens before and after the shutter closes. Sometimes, it's a smile, a laugh, or a hug that melts your heart...and other times you are breaking up an all out brawl, comforting the victims, and chasing down the offender. Life at CLM is both--we are learning to embrace the extremes. Every day we see God working in their lives...as well as Satan. It's a battle for the very hearts of these precious children.

John Eldredge talks about the scripture above in the book, Waking the Dead. "God intends life for you. But right now that life is opposed. It doesn't just roll in on a tray. There is a thief. He comes to steal and kill and destroy. In other words, yes, the offer is life, but you're going to have to fight for it because there's an Enemy in your life with a different agenda. We are at war."

As you look at each beautiful face, remember the battle that rages beneath each smile...and that your prayers are powerful weapons.

Making Memories

Romulo, Geovane, and Willian spent the afternoon with us last Friday to celebrate their birthdays. Romulo had a very abusive mother who he threatened to kill before he was removed from the home. He has violent tendencies and is having a difficult time controlling his anger. Geovane has spent most of his life taking care of his drug-addicted mother. After being placed at CLM several weeks ago, he ran away twice and was brought back by the police or a social worker. He has one younger sister, Patricia and two younger brothers, Diogo and Lucas, also at CLM. Willian recently terminated visits with his mother who is a prositute, in hopes that his father will pursue obtaining custody of him. It breaks our hearts to see how quickly they have had to grow up and the many disappointments they have already faced. Please pray that the Holy Spirit will penetrate their hearts and they will feel their Heavenly Father's unconditional love.

Mike had a wonderful bonding time with them playing video games (he finally found a way that he could beat them at soccer!) while I prepared popcorn, pizza, chicken fingers, mozzarella sticks, and peanut butter bars. In the evening, we returned together to CLM and within minutes of entering the doors, the boys had literally shared with everyone how much fun they had with us! :) We look forward to creating more special memories with the children in order to gain their trust and share Christ's love with them.

Our Weakness, His Strength

"God purposely chose what the world considers weak in order to shame the powerful."

As I read this scripture in 1 Corinthians 1:27, I was reminded again of God's perspective on weakness. Since His ways are higher than ours, He often does the exact opposite of what we expect. The children at CLM fall into this category! The world has labeled them as damaged and unwanted...and many of them have accepted that as truth. BUT we believe that God is going to use these orphans to change the world! Some of them are going to be pastors, teachers, evangelists, apostles, and prophets...God is going to send them out to tell people all over the world of how Jesus died for them! Their stories of pain, suffering, loneliness, and rejection are going to minister to people that no one else could...how powerful is that!? There will be people rejoicing in heaven that would have died in their sins if it wasn't for one of these little ones and the traumas they've endured. We will not understand why they had to suffer until we hear stories in eternity of people who had turned away from God until they met Maria Joana or Lucas or Cristiane!

In Hebrews 11:32-34 it says, "It would take too long to recount the stories of the faith of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel and all the prophets...their weakness was turned into strength." I would like to add the names of the children of CLM to that list! Will you stand with us in prayer, asking God to transform each one of these precious children into world-changers for Christ?

Shibboleth or Sibboleth?!

"Then said they unto him, Say now Shibboleth: and he said Sibboleth: for he could not frame to pronounce it right. Then they took him, and slew him." – Judges 12:6

This particular scripture was from my dear friend, Andrea who is always able to put things into perspective for me!:) I was overwhelmed this week with emails and conversations from friends and family who wrote and called to encourage us through this difficult time with the language! Thank you so much for standing with us in prayer, believing that when God calls us, He will equip us.

In some churches in China, they welcome new believers by saying, "Jesus now has a new pair of eyes to see with, new ears to listen with, new hands to help with, and a new heart to love others with." What a beautiful reminder of all we can do each day to share the love of Christ with a dying world! We are grateful that He has called us to a place where we can minister with our hearts until we are able to minister with our words.

Feliz Dia Dos Pais e Feliz Aniversario!

Lord, your Word says my light and momentary troubles are achieving for me an eternal glory that far outweighs what I'm experiencing now. So I fix my eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. (2 Cor. 4:17-18)

Today was Father's Day in Brazil...and our 18th anniversary! We celebrated at Turvo with the entire CLM family. Surrounded by so many beautiful children and my wonderful husband, I had so much to be thankful for and yet my focus drifted elsewhere and before I knew it, my "light and momentary troubles" had gotten the best of me. I have been so focused on the end goal of learning the language that I again am missing out on the internal process that God desires for me to apply to my life. (Will I ever learn this lesson, Lord?) I have felt like a failure because I'm constantly comparing myself to others and trying to meet their (perceived) expectations instead of only seeking God's approval. I find myself having to repent daily of my pride--asking God to help me focus on the gifts and talents He's blessed me with instead of coveting the gifts and talents of others. I have needed to ask Him to forgive me for seeking out that which is seen because I wholeheartedly believe that what is unseen is eternal and that is the only thing important to Him!

I am so grateful for all of you who have sent such encouraging emails during this difficult week! Thank you for covering us in prayer and sending so many timely scriptures that have reminded us that in our weakness, we find His strength. We love you!