You will seek me and find me...

...when you seek me with all your heart!

Jeremiah 29:13

Flavia, Ana Laura, Daniele and
Samara with their new Bibles.

  This past week has been a week of such blessing in my life! Last  Friday (May 20th) we were able to give Bibles to each of the teenagers in our discipleship class. All 26 of them! They were all so excited to get their very own Bible (a very cool one at that!) and many of them told me later on that their families liked the Bibles as well. Throughout the last week, several of them have come up to me, sharing all that they've read that week. I am more than overjoyed to see the hunger they are having to read their Bibles and seek God!

Wandrerlan and Yuri showing the inside cover
of the Bible: their names and a Bible verse.

  We also dedicated each Bible specifically to each one of them. We wrote their name in the front cover, each in a unique and artistic way, along with a Bible verse prayerfully chosen for them. It has been incredible to see that the verses we wrote in the Bibles were perfect for what many of them are going through right now.

Marimar and Mikaele

  Several of the teenagers are also volunteer teachers at the project. They teach math and Portuguese and so on to the younger children. It is also a requirement for those over 12 to be a part of the discipleship classes, especially if you are a teacher. One of the volunteers had been refusing to come to class. She always seemed to be either sick or busy every Friday (these were just excuses.) While I had been dedicatin the Bibles the day before, I noticed that there was an extra Bible. I saved it for her, hoping that she'd eventually join our class. Friday morning, one of the students said they tried to convince her to come but she didn't. We were surprised (but very happy!) when she walked into our classroom! And there was one Bible left, just for her! It's amazing how God was working this all out!

Nando and Joao Filho

  This week the discipleship class went very well. Everyone brought their Bibles and we studied about purity. They all seemed to respond well. On Saturday, I taught my dance and drama class and it also went very well. This is a very fun group to work with and I hope they are enjoying it as much as I am!
  One last story: I am always asking the kids what the time is to make sure that I am not going over time. One of the girls offered to give me a watch her mom had gave her that she'd never used. On Saturday, the girl gave me a wrapped birthday gift (since today is my birthday =D ) and told me she wasn't able to find her watch so she bought me a new one! She is so sweet! Now I have a way to know the time, all the time!

I am so blessed!!

Thanks to all that helped to make this all possible! May the Lord continue to bless you as you bless others!

THANK YOU!

Our wonderful afternoon class saying THANK YOU for their gifts!

(To see any of these pictures enlarged, just click on the thumbnail.)

Nothing Better

There's nothing better than receiving hug after hug from children you love

(even though your shoulders are badly sunburned.)

There's nothing better than tickling a child so much, that they stop crying.

There's nothing better than being affectionately called 'Tia.'

There's nothing better than sitting down in the grass with a child in your lap,

reading them a story about monkeys and scuba divers;

Or helping them build a fortress in the sand.

There's nothing better than getting flowers hand-picked especially for you.

There's nothing better than a little boy introducing you to their new friend, the little grasshopper

And spinning and twirling with the sweet little girls.

There's nothing better than a child wanting to stay in your class and do more homework,

Even though it is time to play outside.

There's nothing better than to hear the precious prayer of a 5 year old,

thanking God for every little thing: 

For their families, teachers, friends, animals, snacks, grasshoppers, flowers and candy.

There's nothing better than to see a child smile, laugh, dance and play with you.

It's the simple things like these that make my day.

Let your light shine: A note from one of my students

I received a note today from one of my students and thought to share it with all of you:

Amelia, 

You are a very special person. I like you a lot as a friend and as a teacher. 

There are no words to explain how special your friendship is to me as

well as to the others from the Project [Friendly Hand.] 

-Danielle

Though it is simple note, it definitely encouraged me and reminded me, once more, that investing in these kids' lives is most definitely worthwhile!

May we keep our little lights shining bright wherever we are and help others to let their's shine bright as well!

God bless,

Amelia

Do not awaken love until it so desires.

  In the last few weeks in discipleship class, we've been talking about love, relationships, purity, sex, and etc.  Last week we discussed romance with God.  This was something they'd never heard of and it was very difficult for them to grasp and process such a foreign idea of a God that wants to romance us and to be romanced.  But they loved the thought of it!  We encouraged them to read the Bible so that they can get to know this God that loves them so much and I shared a personal experience of romance with God when I was in a little village lying under the stars with Jesus in Mexico.

  This week we had a special guest share with the teens. My friend Melanie, who works with pregnant teenagers in the area, came to share about 'The Perfect Family.'  Some of the kids believed that perfect families do actually exist.  Others did not.  You might be wondering yourself what the perfect family is.  The perfect family is a husband, a wife and the love of God present.  Just the way God planned families to be. With God in the middle, you can't go wrong.  Your family is perfect.

  Melanie did such a great job addressing several issues that some of the teens are involved in, and that we are deeply concerned about.  Some of the young girls are involved with guys that are much older than them and some are also in abusive relationships.  We encouraged them to wait and let God bring them that perfect husband or wife, set apart just for them, instead of looking for them on their own.  One of the girls asked that if she was a child in the midst of an "imperfect" family, did that mean that she could not have the perfect family?  A family the way God had planned?  My heart rejoices when we can share with them the awesome plans that God has for them!  Plans to "prosper [them] and not to harm [them], plans to give [them] hope and a future." (Jer 29:11)  We can tell them of how God restores!  We can tell them that they don't have to be their parents or grandparents, their siblings or their friends.  They can have the future that God has planned for them!

  Please pray for these young boys and girls, who only know the reality that they've grown up with.  Pray that God's love would be so strong and so real to them and that it would change them.  Pray that they can take a stand and choose to be different, to be the exception.

Do not arouse or awaken love until it so desires.

-Song of Solomon 8:4