Semana das Crianças

Another week has flown right by. Shocking. For 5 days this week, we spent our afternoons at the Espaço running a VBS week for the kids in Massama. Each day we had anywhere from 16 to 20 kids, ages 3 to 13 in attendance. These kids do not have their parents telling them that it's 3:00 and that they should head over to the church for VBS. Nope, these kids are hanging out in the streets until our van pulls up at the church and they all come running. It was neat to see these kids be so excited about coming to VBS.

The theme of the week was: "God has a plan for you". We walked through the lives of 5 different people who had their "life plans" altered beyond what they ever imagined by God. Each of these unique characters, Abraham, Esther, David, Jonah and Jesus, experienced more of the fullness of God is, as they learned to obey the plans God had set out for them.

This week of VBS was definitely a highlight for all of us so far. We have no idea how this week impacted each individual child - we never will. What I do know is that God is planting and growing seeds in each of these kids' hearts and I am resting in the promise that He has an incredible plan - a plan beyond what any of us could ever dream of or imagine - for each of these kids.
My heart is full.

Baptisms

This past weekend we, as an Action team, had the privilege of witnessing some baptisms happening in the churches here in Portugal. The day could not have been more perfect. The weather was gorgeous, the pool water was frigid and the people were and are absolutely lovely. It was a full day spending time together as a church family.

I love these kids!

Sofia and Kristen

After some time spent by the pool and enjoying good BBQ food, all 4 churches gathered together for a time of worship and baptism. 

One of the baptism candidates, Carla, wanted to surprise her parents by getting baptized. Her parents did not know anything about it until she was getting in the water. It was a beautiful moment. Carla is a beautiful woman and it was so neat to be able to see her take this step in her faith.

 It was a full day witnessing God's goodness in the churches here in Portugal and in people's lives. 

a taste of ministry

A full week has come and gone as of tomorrow morning. As time continues to fly by, I am trying my very hardest to soak up each day, each moment and each conversation that I have here in Portugal.
It's been a good week. I think it is safe to say that we are officially over jet lag and find ourselves feeling much more energetic today in comparison to the beginning of the week. Praise the Lord!

This week we have spent the majority of our time at the Espaço (the church here in Massama) doing various cleaning and organizing and gearing up for our VBS week, which starts next Tuesday. Our first day working, we were greeted at the church by 2 of the neighbourhood boys..João Pedro and Martim. They hung around with us for the morning, so two of us would continue to work and two of us would play with the boys. By mid afternoon we had 11 kids in the church playing and dancing with us. Our organizational work was put on hold and we declared that kids week would start immediately.
I have thoroughly enjoyed reconnecting with these kids, they have grown up so much in the last year. Between their broken english and my very broken Portuguese, by the grace of God we have managed to have successful conversations. My heart remains full!

Martim

getting posters ready for VBS

Fatimata & I

Ludmila & I

Sara & Kristen

João Pedro, Martim & Pedro

Raiza

Prior to arriving here, I felt like I really wanted to spend time praying through the streets of Portugal. I feel as though God has been pressing on my heart, this idea of intercession. Seeing as we are working and living in the Massama area, I thought this would be a good place to focus in on. I love prayer walks and I love the community of Massama. Today I invited the rest of the team to join me in walking through the streets and asking for God's heart and eyes for the streets and buildings which surround the Espaço. I love how God has so much to say to us when we take the time to listen. I'm in the process of working on a prayer map assignment, which will be completed by the end of our time here. Stay tuned. The plan is to walk the streets of Massama a day or two every week and listen for what God might be saying to us and being attentive to what he is doing in the neighbourhood.
After our time of prayer this afternoon, I find myself once again with a broken heart for these people, the community of Massama and the country of Portugal as a whole. There are a variety of emotions that are pumping through me at the moment, but I feel a little like what I would imagine Nehemiah felt like as he prayed and pleaded to God on behalf of Israel. As I walked and prayed and listened, I found myself being drawn back to Isaiah 43 and 44. These were verses that God laid on my heart last year and has continued to be my prayer for Portugal ever since - that God would make streams in the deserts and wastelands, that water would be poured out on this dry and thirsty land, and that this would be country and a people who would proclaim the Almighty God as Lord. But in these verses also lays a promise that God is doing a new thing in this land - in these people. I am choosing to take a posture of being on my knees - repentant and yet hopeful and excited for what is yet to come in this place.

The first few days.

We are almost done day 4 of our time in Portugal. Crazy. Where does time go? It has been a full 4 days, but they have been oh so good. We tried to take it easy on our first day, but the smells, the sounds, the surroundings became all too intriguing for our team and so we found ourselves wandering the streets of Massama enjoying meia da leites and pastries and getting to know our neighbourhood. I must admit, I felt proud to be showing my girls this neighbourhood and the places that became so familiar to me last year. We went by my old apartment and memories came flooding back. Oh what I would have done to walk through that building again!

Sunday was a day of churches and reconnecting with people - lots of kisses were given. Seeing people again made a year seem not so long ago. Some things are always the same :) Getting back to concentrating, understanding and speaking in Portuguese left me exhausted by the end of the day. I crashed hard that night!

Monday was a day to explore the city. We had our fantastic tour guide and host family, Joe, give us a fabulous tour of Lisbon. Although most of the sites were familiar to myself, it was neat watching the other girls experience the city with fresh eyes. Walking the downtown streets of Lisbon with a camera in hand never gets old.

The best pastalaria in Lisbon

Enjoying Pasteis de Belem

We were reminded of the rich history that Portugal has, which is a big part of understanding how to do ministry in this place. The Portuguese are a people who love their history and are proud of where they have come from. To know the statues, the monuments and the history makes them proud and is a fabulous conversation piece when talking with locals. To understand the heartbeat of Portugal, one needs to take in the sites and understand the history of Portugal.

Jerónimo Monestary 

Belem

The Discovery Monument

Capo da Roca - the most Western point of Portugal

Hell's Mouth

 Today we have started our kids club planning for the VBS week, which starts next Tuesday, so we have lots to do to get ready for that! Gotta get my craft and singing on!