Different Point of View

This week's post comes to us courtesy of one of our LIFTers...

Well, week 4 is drawing to a close. I am pleased, and humbled, to be able to announce that things are going very well. I've actually been quite enjoying myself as of late. I particularly love the fact that I'm learning things here that I can see becoming a reality for when I leave here. For example, we are required to read the 70 resolutions of Jonathan Edwards every week, and I can see how they are actually permeating my thought process and I think this will be something that I will continue to read and re-read for years to come. I will definitely recommend them to you. They're a quick read, until you really study them of course, but well worth the time. And looking back to last semester, we memorized the book of James. I still go over it every once in a while, and it still comes to mind quite easily when it is relevant with the conversation. We are also reading Augustine's Confessions, and it's fascinating to see him struggling with the same things I do now, quite a few years later. And I can see the conclusions he came to, which are really helpful. For instance, he recalls a time in his life when he would break into a pear orchard, steal some pears, and go feed them to the pigs. He did not do it to harm the farmer, nor for the nourishment of the fruit, nor for the profit of selling the fruit. He simply wanted to break in and steal. And it resonates with me incredibly! But I can see how he came through it, and how he eventually saw the folly of it. So ya, it's really a learning experience to be here!

Today we all did mini presentations on Brazil and the ministry and the history and the people and the culture, so that was pretty cool. There's a lot of nominal catholic influence, and some spiritism that's growing, but the evangelical church is taking hold and we get to see it and be part of it for 2 weeks! I still don't know the specifics of what we'll be doing, but there will probably be some time spent in building a church, hauling water filters, and establishing relationships with the missionary families and the locals. It also looks like we'll be spending time assisting in evangelizing! Everything must be done through translators. And just as a side note, turns out there's a lot of animals down there that stay alive by ending other lives! So I'm gonna have to be real careful how I go about catching them!