Joyfulness, Look for Joy, It is all around you!

"You will show me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of Joy." ~Psalm 16:11
"But let all those that put their trust in thee rejoice: let them ever shout for joy, because thou defendest them: let them also that love thy name be joyful in thee." Psalm 5:11
"Restore to me the joy of Your salvation And uphold me by Your generous Spirit.  Then I will teach transgressors Your ways, and sinners shall be converted to You" ~Psalm 51:12
"These things have I spoken unto you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full." ~John 15:11
Finally, "And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit." ~Acts 13:52

Let me say first off that in the interest of time and for the benefit of my readers, I have done left out the context of each of these verses.  Please by all means go read the entire passage, it will certainly only contribute to the following lesson which I am going to be discussing.  Secondly, I realize that this is in no way an exhausted list, there are literally THOUSANDS of verses dealing with joyfullness of spirit and gladness of heart.  These verses however are sufficient for the purposes of this article.

In Rio one of the things that Austin and I did on a regular basis once we completed several construction projects and developed basic vocabulary, was to play basketball with the children that would come and hang out everyday looking for something to do.

One day in particular, I noticed a boy with an extremely contented countenance.  While all the other kids ran, screamed, vandalized,  used profanities to see if we would notice, tried to remember the things we asked them not to do so that they could do them, and performed minor surgeries on the small, weaker specimens, he was smiling.  He was always smiling.  I realized that I really never saw him not smiling.  I wondered what was wrong with him, and that is when I realized God had an important lesson to teach me and this small boy was the object of that lesson.

Let's face the music this is what we do as humans.  We see someone completely content and comfortable and instead of asking what is wrong with me that I am not experiencing that level of joy or contentment we quickly conclude, "Oh! there's something wrong with him.  I'll just mind my own business."  I do it!  We all do it.  But my question is what if we could allow our minds and our spirits to be transformed so that we live in this state of joy.  What if everyday Christians lived their lives in such a way that people on the outside were forced to ask the question, "What is wrong with them?  Why are they so happy?"

I wanted that joy, and I know that Christ died so that I could HAVE that joy.  I think about my friends, and I cannot forget Dru Holdren, a fantastic friend and truely an inspiration.  Even in difficult situations he always is bubbling over with joy and can make an impact on everyone around him with a constant smile, and ever rejoicing countenance.  I wanted that joy!

Every Christian should not only have this joy, but should actively be living it out.  But how will this affect others you ask.  Well let's face the facts, most likely they are going to do the same thing we do in our daily lives and say, "Oh my, he..well he is just, special."  GUESS WHAT? We  know that we have met the all-powerful ruler of the universe and He has declared us--What? He says He "Knew us." That means WE ARE SPECIAL!

It is way past time for us to get beyond our piousnessly long and stern faces and start enjoying the amazing creations and beautiful treasures all around us.  We are blessed more than any other nation, and we have the opportunity to experience joy and laughter and appreciate God's truth every day.  Yet how many of us are so concerned with work, kids, bills, american idol, or the next top model, that we never take the time to smile?

Do we wonder why churches aren't full?  Are we unsure why fellow believers do not want to sit in a pew for one hour every week?  Do we fail to see why there are so few new believers?  I think have a pretty good answer for all of these questions.

I decided that I wanted to live my life constantly looking for the good.  Always finding the glad and experiencing the joy in the day to day and living each moment to it's highest.  I wasn't sure if I had begun to succeed or not, until the other day someone asked, "What's wrong with you?"  "Why are you so happy?"  I just sighed and smiled.

Actually, I can testify that if you walk down a busy sidewalk with a sincere smile on your face people WILL stare as if you suffer from down syndrome.   The bad news however, is that when you become aware, I have learned it will only make you chuckle to yourself and cause your smile to grow all the bigger and brighter.  Now those around are really concerned.  At this point you will start getting glares...please resist the urge to laugh out loud, the average person has no idea how to handle seeing someone walking along laughing all alone and they are 100% confident at this point that they should call the boys with white suits.

This is what I would like all of my readers to try.  Purpose to be joyful and to actively be aware of those good things around that will bring a smile to your face.  A flower, a sunrise, an ice cream cone, a happy puppy getting into mischief, maybe a Bible verse (who would have thought about that right), a kitty chasing a ball of string, your favorite hymn, a child laughing and playing outside, or quietly with their toys, anything in the day to day that you would normally be too 'busy' to appreciate.  My personal favorite is watching someone trip on the sidewalk.  Usually just a stumble but occasionally you will get an full on squirrel dive!  Make sure they are not injured and then don't feel badly about laughing hystarically.  If you do witness a good trip that can usually last you an entire day all by itself.

Here is a perfect example of how this works.  To the untrained eye it would appear that I am simply enjoying a cable car right through beautiful Hong Kong.

Take a closer look.I am actually truly appreciating one of the most sincerely humorous things around me.

This is your social assignment and if conducted properly I promise you will receive strange looks, peculiar stares, funny questions, and maybe even make a few odd friends.  Either way the world will be more accepting of who you are, and more willing to understand what you believe if each day is lived as if it were your first and brightest, and each night enjoyed as if it were your last and best.  I wake up smiling about getting to cook breakfast (my favorite part of the day), and go to bed each night thankful and excited about the chance to rest.  Each step between the two is just an additional bonus because God is good and has given us so much to enjoy and experience!

The Timid Gringo

Alertness and Awareness


This is a subject that I wrestled with throughout my journeys through Brasil and so I would like to recap for my readers why this was such a difficult lesson to learn.

It is very easy being from rural NC to begin feeling very trusting and confortable in your surroundings.  It was at least for me, but after all the goings on and shake-ups I found myself struggling with too much caution.  Let me explain by first giving a brief summary of the personality shift that I encuntered during this first tour.  Naive tourist-to-comfortable foreigner-to-extremely cautious foreigner-to-American who is always on guard-to-Gringo with balanced sense of caution and interraction.

As stated in previous posts upon arrival I felt completely safe.  I knew there was a reason I was there and nothing could hurt me.  As that curtain was removed, my level of alertness  had to increase as well, but there was a certain lag time between the two and that is when I had a very short learning curve to catch me up to speed.  After the mistake of riding on the back of the bus and loosing many belongings, I found myself subconciously blocking people out.  My attentiveness to my surroundings was at an all time high.  As I walked down the streets I was constantly positioning myself away from open doorways, passing cautiously those who looked homeless or suspicious, and I was finding that my eyes were always drawn to a persons waiste line (checking for possible weapons) and then immediately back to the ground.

One day while coming home from the supermarceta (grocery store) I heard my name being called.  I turned and a small boy that often came and played with me, was standing in the street shouting my name.  He ran up to me and wanted to introduce me to his mother and friends who were playing with him.  How had this happened I wondered.  I had been so cautious to blend in, not attract attention, and carefully watch anyone of suspicioun that I had actually blocked out the people I had been trying to help.  In my state of alertness I had been so cautious and persistent to realize all possible threats that I had neglected to acknowledge the very reason I was there.  How could I be any use in these slums, or serve any perpose at all if I do not open up and give freely.  These children are the reason I am here, and regardless of what happens to me, I must never become to afraid to do everything I can for them during my stay.

After that instance I purposed to be alert and cautious only to the extent that it did not interferre with helping those in need.  As I have discussed before Christ commanded that we show love.  If showing love means taking an occasional risk then those are risks that I must take, but I cannot live my life in fear of what man can do to me.  I cannot stop interacting or loving those around me just because I had a few 'scary' circumstances.  I am not claiming that we should live out our lives in a state of naivity, I am only suggesting that everyone needs to find a balance in their own life and for their surroundings.

I suppose the lesson I learned today and in the upcoming weeks of reflection are that we must always be alert to our surrounding and environment while being still maintaining a constant awareness to the needs, hurts, and opportunities around us.  I feel this is a critical lesson for anyone wanting to travel abroad or just cross the street.  Be alert to your surroundings, but infinitle more important be aware of those needs all around you.


This is when I realized that Jesus was never suspicious He was simply aware of His surroundings and alert to the needs of others.  He can give strength and courage in any situation.

"The wicked man flees though no man persueth, but the righteous are as bold as a lion."
~Proverbs 28:1

Baisino his nickname means "Shorty" in Portuguese--A lesson in Dedication

I may have mentioned the brief encounter I had with the Brasilian work ethic.  If so I would first like to mention that my oppion is extremely limited as I was only exposed extensively to one demographic of the population and geography of a vast and widely diverse country.

If not then let me elaborate on my experiences.   Any holiday international, national, local, or imaginary is a great reason for a Carioca (native to Rio) to skip work and go to the beach also a futbol game (soccer match) is an unquestionable excuss to skip work, and any boss that is worth working for will close on game day.  Any sunny day it is understood that board shorts and flip flops SHOULD be worn to work in case you can visit the beach before, during, or after work, preferably all three, at the same time as you can sleep in, go to the beach (technically before and during work simultaneously) then leave work a few seconds early to try to beat the "rush".  Actually this became one of my fondest pastimes in Rio, observing people go to great lengths to spend time in the sun if only for a few brief minutes!  Also to note flip flops are always acceptable work attire in Rio de Janeiro.

So there we were one blisteringly hot afternoon, clearing an old room which was full of lumber.  Moving it by hand outdoors to be inspected and put to use so that we could then put the room to use.  As I worked I noticed that it is 3:00, this is a time of afternoon which never goes unnoticed.  At approximately 2:50 nearly everyone working in my favella would begin slowing their pace, and wrapping up anything that had to be accomplished.  Starting anything new would be completely taboo.  Here it was exactly 3:00 and everyone was diligently at work.  Time slowed, my mind staggered, knees weakened, my world began closing in around me.  Had everything I had observed and the steriotypes I forged been completely irrashional and circumstantial.  Now I realize that there are very many hard working individual's in Brasil contributing to the growing economy, but I had worked with these guys for nearly four months now and this was completely atypical behavior.

I shrugged it off and grabbed another stack of lumber.  Despite the heat I would not slow down!  If these men were going to sacrifice their coffee break and continue working then I was determined to work harder.  Finally, curiosity got the best of Austin, "No cafe?" he asked 'Shorty'.

"Que hora sou? (what time is it)" Shorty responded in muttering tones through his missing teeth.

"Trece y Des" I replied, as I was the only one wearing a watch (recall mine had not been stolen because it was so ugly and worthless that even theives snubbed it during each of the robberies.)

At this point without saying a word he drops his lumber in his arms, bolts the door, and while muttering curses and collocials under his breath begins moving faster than I had ever seen this 4' 10" Brasilian man move in my life.  He had a bad leg and walked with a limp anyway, but today he seemed to teleport down the favella, and up two flights of stairs nearly before I could finish saying the time and turn from my project.  I strolled casually to take a cup of coffee and as I picked out pieces of the conversation I kept noticing one major theme, "Maloca, Brinquerra!" (My watch is crazy)

And so my mind was put to ease, his watch had, "Gone crazy!" He had the wrong time, and now he would never get those 10 minutes of extra work back.  Oh well guess my life and jokes can return to normal, crisis averted.  There was however, a 15 minute window where I have never experienced so much confusion in my entire life!

October 20, 2010 Sao Paulo, A lesson in Love

A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.  By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.  John 13:35

This is my commandment that ye love one another as I have loved you.  John 15:12

Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God.  He who does not love does not know God for God is love.  I John 4:7-8

Sao Paulo, a lesson in love:  October 20, 2010

I had just returned from a great weekend with my brother from Sao Paulo, our friend Sarah-whom you will recall from a previous posting-had hosted us in her home city.  It is a massive place, and the financial hub of Latin America.  Her childhood friend Andre allowed us 

While staying with here I had th opportunity to sit with Andre and bouncing ideas and discussing things God had impressed upon us and been showing us.  We began discussing how legalism not only destroys an individual's faith, but also ruins the testomony of the believer.   This keeps people fro knowing Christ in a real way as the message of the relationship with an all powerful God gets lost in a list of 'Do's' and 'Don't's".  

Andre shared his testimony, which in my opinion looked very similar to most "Christians".  He had a resume if you will.  You know what I am talking about, "I have perfect attendance in Sunday School.  I have never touched alcohol.  I go on the mission trip every year, and even help out at kid's camp." Let's face it as a Christian this is about as good as it gets.  I mean this is what a 'real' Christian looks like right?  If Jesus were alive today isn't that what he would be doing, going around making sure to sit in Sunday School every week, and stare down his nose at anyone wearing jeans?  He would invite people to the temple, but if they actually came he would be surprised and try to avoid sitting or talking with them for to long--right?  That has been my experience, and unfortunately the experience of many others who when invited to church respond simply, "Oh I don't really go to church, I have met lots of Christians though."  If we were to truely ask ourselves, "What would Jesus do?" would we be shocked by the answer, would the world be shocked by the answer.  For some of us we may be called into the desert to eat grasshoppers like John the Baptist, others would be famous and have many supporters and friends like Billy Grahm.  Regardless of the answer, one thing is certain, we would ALL be challenged to follow this one command--LOVE!

By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples if ye go to church every sabath day and night, and sometimes wednesday, and don't forget singing in the choir for extra credit. What? NO!  "By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples if ye have love one to another." John 13:35

It is so simple yet overlooked so easily.  Standing in line at the grocery store, stuck in traffic in the heat of summer, how often do we love these neighbors?  The elderly in the nursing homes, the children in the poor areas of town, how often do we love these neighbors?  So simple? Not really, this is a much more difficult command to follow than I could have possibly imagined.  Employers, neighbors, coworkers, even family members and other sunday school attendees can be difficult to love.  

Honestly,  whose life have you had the deepest impact.  Was it someone with whom you have had a deep theological debate, or someone in your life that you just showed love and kindness towards, someone you were not afraid to love regardless of difficulty or self-sacrifice.  I know for me it has always been those who showed me love.  People who poured into my life selflessly, friends who were not afraid to be my friend even when I was being teased or ridiculed.  With this in mind doesn't it seem logical that if we are to have the greatest impact on the world around us that we should start by showing love?  Often we are so concerned with making people perfect that we never stop to realize that--IT ISN'T OUR JOB!

For Andre, it took getting past church, getting out of religious circles, breaking free from Bible College.  Only after Andre experienced life outside of religion could he appreciate and sincerely believe how radically different Christianity is.  As I explained in previous articles, love is what the world is looking for, love is central desire for which human beings yern.  Love is the difference that should be apparent in all Christians, yet for some reason it is not.  I am under the strong conviction that if Christians followed this single mission that churches would be packed, and the need for evangelism would diminish as people come seeking the difference in the lives of their new friends.  

God is not a nagging mother rattling off a list of rules and schedules, He is our loving, patient, Father.  He is encouraging us, cheering for us, and passionate that we do our best and waiting to help us along the way.  That is the God I serve, that is the grace that sent Christ to redeem us.  That is the powerful life that I want to live for this year and the rest of my life.  My goal for this upcoming year is to love people more deeply and in doing so experience Christ's love in a new, powerful, and exciting way.

Brasilian BBQ and Learning the Samba! September 9, 2010

Planning to take this day to work turned into a completely futile idea.  You see moments after we attempted to begin working, we realized no one else would be around and we did not have the keys we needed to continue a project which we had begun several weeks earlier.

Oh well.  Let the Feridas (Holidays) begin!  Having been invited by our close compadre Carlos (Barra) for short.  Actually, I should mention that it was his idea.  We we first met our friend he wore his hair very long and brushed straight.  Another common practice of Carlos was to complain about the "pretty boy haircuts, worn  by the playboys living in Barra da Tajuca."  Too our great surprise, he soon cut his hair in this same stylish 'do'.  Thus they name Barra was born and to my knowledge he still wears his hair in this same fashion.  With a strong sense of right and wrong, he is a close friend and constantly attended to our needs and helped translate when we had difficulty.  Barra even frequented the mission when he was unemployed and spent time with the children and doing construction, and I look forward to seeing him in North Carolina very soon.  So Brazilians, and friends in th states, if you meet Carlos Eduardo please refer to him by his prefered name, Barra.
Here is a picture of me and Barra having dinner before he cut off his long Brasilian locks!

So to continue my story, Barra had invited us to meet some of his friends who were hosting a Brazilian BBQ.  Being from NC I take great pride in my states ability to make the best barbeque world wide.  This, however, was a different experience entirely.  Meat is chopped very finely and a tiny grill is used.  Thus every 10-20 minutes small portions are finished cooking and are enjoyed while more meat/food is placed on a grill which is only a foot or two in perimeter.


Let me explain the process.  You sit, eat, drink, talk, cook, eat, talk, drink, cook some more, eat more, cook something different, talk more, eat more, more drinking, followed by more cooking, talking, drinking, eating, ect.  You continue this proceedure until lunch, snack, and dinner are long past and it is say 8 or 9 p.m. and that is when you realize that there is no way can eat even one more tiny cut of steak, the very last bite of chicken, or jiblet of sausage  as it comes off the grill.  Yes, I think I have thoroughly explained and everyone can appreciate just how wonderful everything about the experience truely is.

After eating for a solid eight hours we were taken to a back street ally which soon filled with Brazilians, Europeans, and Americans.  A band began playing and soon I was informed that this was in fact the very birthplace of Brazil's infamous Samba!  Although I quickly became aware of the fact that the Samba is one of the most difficult dances to learn and even the most basic steps cannot be learned without much practice, I did practice hard an made a full effort to learn.  Late in the evening as the band became silent, we drifted home.  Knowing the proximity of such an interesting location was incentive enough to practice the samba and return to show off our 'skills'.  Ok so to be honest we never showed off any skills, but we did practice and returned to our new found local secret on several occasions.

FIFA World Cup Destination 2014-Maracana Stadium!

Maracana Stadium! (September 1, 2010)

We had the opportunity to visit South Americas largest stadium just before it was closed for renovations for the next four years in preparation for the 2014 World Cup.  The approximation is that it will be closed for three years.  We were able to go to one of the very last games before the stadium closed.

I will never forget what it felt like to walk into that stadium as the sun sank below the highest row of seating, the lights came on, and the crowd became electric!

 We cheered Cristiano's favorite team Fluminese, to defeat Soa Paulo.  Despite passionate cheering the game concluded after ninety exciting minutes, the result a tie 2-2.  There is a very sacred ceremony which is formally conducted upon the scoring of each goal by one's affiliated team of preferance.  The ritual is carried out as follows:  step 1) remove shirt/any other article of clothing covering one's torso.  2) using said article of clothing proceed to perform your most convincing helicopter impersonassion. 3) grunt loudly in a manner as to most effectively bring attention to yourself and be as obknoxious as possible. 4) thrust chest out and aggressively collide with all others around you and work outward until you have bumped chests with as many people as is possible. 5) return to your seat and humiliate, degrade, and mock all fans of the other team until they score and begin the same ritual in your face.

Here is a picture of Austin and I enjoying such a ceremony!!!