Last week was superb. I bought some plants (cherry tomato, basil, and P. de M. pepper) and things started to look up. Tuesday afternoon, the team headed south of Santiago to Los Alamos for three days of relaxation. Oh man it was nice. It was the first place I had been in Chile with water slides, so we had a blast throwing our bodies down the two chutes. Although, I am paying for it now. I banged my head with one of the boys as we rode together and my back is scratched and bruised from hitting dry spots and flying through the air with hard landings. Between the slides, pools, gorgeous nature, disc golf games, devos, homemade food (yellow curry chicken, curry puffs, and fish tacos), and great company it was probably the best team retreat I have been on in my time here. It was the Deans’ last team retreat so after a thrilling game of Charades on our last night, we had an adjective bombardment - saying words that represented Mark, Denise, and the Deans collectively. It was quite good.

Well the day after, I decided to continue on the pain ride and went out with my friends Kani, Andrés, and Paul for a hike in the Andes that butt Santiago. After starting off with the idea to go on a new route, the heat and aridness changed our minds. We judged to go on the tried-and-true path that leads to waterfalls and natural pools. Near the first signs of flowing water were huge blackberry bushes. Oh so good. It takes a few hour to get to the last waterfall. We got off the path..err..lost the path a few times, but eventually arrived. It’s Texas-in-August hot sometimes so frigid ice melt is quite nice. I slipped in an attempt to get to the guys for a group shot and cut open my left foot under the ankle. SO the transit back home - three buses passing me by and having to walk home for ten or more blocks - was not the most comfortable; in the end it was a good time to talk with the Lord.

Yesterday was spent throwing down some new sod in Jeff and Penne’s (my current home) yard. In the evening, the two went out and I, after putting their son Caleb to bed, made fantastic Gai Pad Grapao. It was SPIIIICY, but delicious. Recipe to follow this post.

School has started back up, so things should be picking up with the youth back in Santiago. My prayer is to join God in the work he has already begun and not make my own plans.

I was able to accompany a group of students from Aggies for Christ to visit two of the churches, Cosmos and Jabour, in the suburbs of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It’s always good to be amongst the brothers and sisters in Rio and good friends from A&M. I enjoyed gathering around at nights to worship a bit in English (a rare happening). This was my third time in Rio and to work with Abel Azevedo, a half Mozambican, half South African man working with the Lord and who I first met while traveling with the Aggies in 2005. (Learn more about Abel here.) Time with Abel, the churches, and the Aggies was refreshing, a change of scenery.

It was one of the best times I had in Rio. Encouragement is the best word to describe the work we do in Rio. The churches are small, but strong and love the life guests bring. The ‘jovems’ (‘young people’) are full of life and carry a bright future for the church in Brazil. Speaking of the future, Abel has called on me to come work alongside him when my time in Santiago is over. I’m still considering it, truly I would love to work there.

After my time in Rio, I flew South to Porto Alegre, Brazil for the annual Brazilian missionary conference. It was top notch and a great opportunity to meet up with old friends spread over the South American continent. It was good to meet Carlos Castilho,a missionary in Rio supported by MacArthur Park in San Antonio. By chance, we were conference roommates. The men’s speaker was Murray Wilton from Huntsville, Alabama. He spoke on the Spirit’s capability to guide our footsteps and totally falling in love with Christ. I was blessed by his presence and had my first experience of true confession. It was an outstanding conference. (Read more about the conference here.)

On return from two and a half weeks in Brazil, I was host in the home of one of the families who was on furlough to Dottie Schultz of Missions Resource Network. She was the women’s speaker at the conference and came to Santiago afterwards to work with the team. It was a pleasure to be in the presence of such a wise and experienced individual.

The following week was a national evangelistic campaign. Speakers from across North and South America came to work with congregations all over Chile. It was a pain and a pleasure, depending on the day, to be a part of the marketing and Web development for the campaign. The church I work with, Iglesia de Cristo Congregación Providencia, put on a dinner in honor of Santiago’s firefighters, a coping with trauma seminar for an organization that aids parents that have lost children, and nightly mini concerts, talks, and religious forums opened to the community. It was good to see members reaching out to the community. See the campaign website here.

It’s summer time in the southern hemisphere. I had the pleasure of spending St. Valentine’s Day with the oldest member of the church, 85; she had no idea what the day was. Vacation time has arrived and it seems that “out of school” can mean “out of touch” or “out of town” for many of the youth. One would think summer would be the most convenient time, but school keeps people in the city. So youth activities are spread out and sometimes one does not see the value in them. Daily I’m thinking “How can God transform the youth?” Being led by the Spirit, I think one-on-one relationships are the best, not getting as many people together to watch a movie, but really taking an interest and caring about individuals and sharing the bread with those individuals. I can report on more things like events, activities, etc, but the reality is God changes lives through small things that are not easily seen. I’ve seen it and I hope you can as well.

Prayer Requests:
- The Montecinos – Felipe a young boy from a family of four has been diagnosed with a brain tumor and will be operated on later this month.
- Youth of the church – May they be transformed in their faith.
- Floods in Bolivia – For months, Bolivia, Chile’s neighbor to the northeast, has been suffering heavy rainfall since November.
- Return of the Emerys – After two months in the United States, the Emery family has a new supporting church, but the kids are quite ill.

Recent Reads/Listens (Things to ponder):
- What is a Christ Follower? – podcast – “Christianity is not about us being committed to a denomination, creed, lifestyle, or a way of living. It’s an encounter with the living Christ. When I encounter him, I fall on my face and say, ‘Oh Jesus I’m tired of all the stuff…’”
- A Christianity That Works (response 2 and 3) – blog post - “…questions and answers challenge both the views we have about ourselves and our own “righteousness-of-sorts” and the religious structures in which we’ve heavily invested…”
- Christians Wrong About Heaven – article - “Never at any point do the Gospels or Paul say Jesus has been raised, therefore we are all going to heaven. They all say, Jesus is raised, therefore the new creation has begun, and we have a job to do.”
- A New Kind of Christian – book – “Instead of saying, ‘Hey, they’re wrong and we’re right, so follow us,’ I think we say, ‘Here’s what I’ve found. Here’s what I’ve experienced. Here’s what makes sense to me. I’ll be glad to share it with you, if you’re interested.’”
- 1 Corinthians – Holy Bible – “If I speak in the tongues of mortals and of angels, but do not have love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.”

If you are interested in any other things I am reading or have read, please visit my del.icio.us page: http://del.icio.us/tterrag

Here’s some music I am enjoying on the FM radio:

Molotov - Yofo (below)

Miranda - Perfecta

Veo Veo - Guajiros

Man, what an experience. What a week. Last Monday, I left Porto Alegre for Canela in the Serra Gaúcho of Rio Grande do Sul to attend the Brazilian Missionary Conference. The first day was quite exciting because of all the familiar and new faces I saw. It was really cool to meet Carlos Castilho,a missionary in Rio supported by MacArthur Park. We were roommates.

I was truly blessed by the presence and teaching from Murray Wilton, mentioned in my last post. He led the daily men’s sessions. What I learned during our sessions is the relief that comes from complete reliance on God, filling your life with the Spirit makes a difference in your desires, far better is joining in God’s work rather than constructing my own ideas of reaching others, and the freedom that comes from absolute, nothing held back, let it all out confession to another brother. Murray cares and he lets God work through his life. He was a gift for me.

John Willis, from ACU and the Highland church, took us (”the two that were listening”) across the Old Testament and a bit of the New. The day and evening trips were fun too. Gramado EXPLODED with music and Christmas lights. For some reason the ATMs in the area would not let some others and I take out money. One day we visited Parque Estadual do Caracol, home of Cascata do Caracol, a 130m (426ft) waterfall at the base of 768 steps. My thighs burned for a few days. It was a good time to catch up with my olf friend Ali and her husband Mark who are now working in Itu.

Cascata do Caracol, Canela, Brasil

The crown jewel of the fun at the conference was banquet night. No roast this year, but a Murder Mystery Dinner. I know, my head almost exploded like an atom bomb. I asked myself, “How can fifty-something people participate in the murder mystery of Big Daddy?” Well the organizers, the Rio team members did an excellent job. Drag and all.

Thanks to the Porto ALegre team for an excellent conference.

I went from Canela to Tramandaí on the coast to meet up with Roberto and Moema. I was there one night, but I couldn’t go to Brazil in the summer and not go to the beach. “Those who know the good they ought to do and do not do it, sin.” The next day we went back to Porto Alegre. I met up with Clemens, a friend I met in São Paulo on the way from Santiago to Rio. We had a great conversation and it was good to see him again. EARLY Sunday morning, after two and a half hours of sleep, we went to the airport to catch my flight (6:10A) to Buenos Aires via São Paulo.

Kevin Blume prayed over Dottie, a speaker at the conference and currently my housemate as she is working with the Santiago team, and I as we were about to depart. He’s a special guy with a big heart and a top notch family. Dottie and I arrived in São Paulo and made our way perplexedly through the airport I do not love. The signs in the airport are truly backwards. Well she headed towards Santiago and I Buenos Aires, after an hour+ delay (this is Brazil).

Buenos Aires was fun. It was one day/night. I stayed at a nice hostel, V&S. I have a lovely meal at a parrilla a few blocks away, El Establo. Honestly they had this Caprese salad (basil, fresh mozzarella, tomatoes, and a vinaigrette). Oh yeah. I left my chocolate and chicken from the restaurant in the refrigerator locked up in reception and had to leave prior to the front desk opening. My flight left an hour later than I was thinking, so I could have stayed longer, but that’s ok, I had the opportunity to talk Sueli, my Brazilian roommate at the hostel. Man, our room was hot. While waiting for our, yes, delayed flight, we met Mariano and his newly wedded wife on their way to Brazil for their honeymoon. It’s amazing who God leads you to talk with. Well they were great and before I knew it I was saying goodbye, Mariano hopped up, and gave me a hug and a kiss, well, you know, “kiss-the-air-next-to-my-ear kiss. Those Argentines. Gotta love them.

Now I’m back in Santiago. In the words of my friend Renzo, “buenas noches handsome men.”

Sadly, I did not mention it in my last post, my point-and-shoot camera’s screen broke in Rio so I sent it back with the group to be returned to my mother, so no photos. Check out Mark & Ali’s blog and The Blumes’ blog for some photos and other points of view.

So we had the opportunity to go to Corcovado, the hill with Cristo Redentor overlooking Rio, and we went. I guess since it now is one of the Wonders of the World the administratio thinks it can charge how ever much. R$35 per person! It was my third time in Rio so I had to visit even though the price was a bit outrageous.

Time with Abel and the Aggies was refreshing, a change of scenery. The churches in Cosmos and Jabour are so loving and welcoming. They even threw me a surprise going away party with a cake that we had on New Year’s Eve that I commented to the maker was delicious. The hostess of the girls wrote me a poem and gave me a shirt. The love here is incredible. It was one of the best times I had in Rio. Who knew Skip-bo could bring so many people together?

Now I am amongst more friends in Porto Alegre, Brazil. Moema and Roberto are a couple that hosted Brandon and I when we here in June. They insisted that I come back and stay with them for a bit, so I am. We’ve visited the local botanical garden, worshipped together, eaten great food, and walked through the city. Yesterday we went to a house church at the home of one of the missionary families here, Kevin and Benay. A man, Murray Wilton, spoke on how we regard each other and everyone around us.

I head out to Canela for a conference today. Should be good.

I have the joy to return to Rio de Janeiro to accompany a group from the Aggies for Christ for about a week. It’s always good to be amongst the brothers and sisters in Rio. The group is composed of six people including myself. I am so happy to be in the presence of good friends and fellow travelers from A&M. Last night we gathered around and had a bit of worship time together in English (a rare happening). I hope this time is refreshing for all; I am already feeling the ’saudade’ of having to leave soon. I will be here until Friday, 4 January.

Have a happy New Year!

“‘Well, how do you evangelize, then, if you don’t try to convince people of truth?…’

‘Demonstration must accompany proclamation, I guess you could say. But there’s more. Instead of saying, ‘Hey, they’re wrong and we’re right, so follow us,’ I think we say, ‘Here’s what I’ve found. Here’s what I’ve experienced. Here’s what makes sense to me. I’ll be glad to share it with you, if you’re interested.’”

“‘I think of it like a dance…I hear the music of the gospel, and my friend doesn’t, so I try to help him hear it and move with it. And like a dance, I have to ask if the other person wants to participate.’”

From A New Kind of Christian by Brian McLaren

Every blessing You pour out
I’ll turn back to praise
When the darkness closes in, Lord
Still I will say
Blessed be the name of the Lord
You give and take away
You give and take away
My heart will choose to say
Lord, blessed be Your name

Yes, thank you to the MacArthur Park Church of Christ in San Antonio, TX. I am now almost fully within my budget. It has been a long, prayer-filled process, but I have been blessed to have received this. Praise be to God.

Last night I flicked on the television to get a quick news update from CNN International and the CNN Heroes presentation was on. These people are incredible. The simplest decisions and methods they have made have impacted so many. I am truly inspired and desire, more than before, to do something that makes this world a bit better for others.

Check it out at CNN.com.

I am currently at a school where I volunteer weekly. I was talking to a friend, Isabel, about general discipline of students, the importance of parents’ active involvement in students’ lives, and so on. We started talking about the importance of teachers and how in England, Isabel’s home, and in the USA there is a general disrespect afforded to teachers. This is clearly reflected in their pay. Which is sad, because, as she said, “the teacher is more than just someone teaching the students something; they are their social workers and involved beyond the classroom.” She contrasted it to rural Indian teachers where they are some of the most important members of the villages; highly respected. It’s great that somewhere teachers are truly respected.