Good evening everyone!!
I want to take this time to inform you on what is happening on the race. For the past couple of weeks if you’ve been following me through Facebook or Instagram you have probably noticed we’ve been traveling rapidly through several countries such as Suriname, French Guiana and Brazil.
Why?
This month is Unsung Heroes and I briefly touched on it in the last blog. In Mathew 10:10 Jesus sent the disciples out on a mission, telling them to take no money, food, extra clothes, etc.
Matthew 10:10
“Don’t carry a traveler’s bag with a change of clothes and sandals or even a walking stick. Don’t hesitate to accept hospitality, because those who work deserve to be fed.” NLT
And that’s what we’re living out this month as we pioneer into new territories that the world race has never been to before. We are literally stepping into countries with no idea where to stay, what to eat, what transportation to take, etc. In the midst of all the craziness, we’re here to find a man of peace and make connections with local churches for future racers. After all, the expedition route consist of forerunners who will build bridges for the kingdom of God to be establish in these areas. Through this month I’ve learn what it looks like to completely surrender myself to God. Below are some lessons on what I’ve learned so far.
Surrendering your life means:
– Following God’s lead without knowing where he’s sending you
– Waiting for God’s timing without knowing when it will come
– Expecting a miracle without knowing how God will provide
– Trusting God’s purpose without understanding the circumstances
Now I want to share with you some photos and a short summary where each of these lessons took place.?
Welcome to Suriname the place where we started Unsung Heroes. For the first couple of days we spent time pressing into each other, sharing testimonies, and spending time in listening prayer. After 2 days our Squad Leader had found out that a guy he grew up with in Indonesia lived in Suriname. The gentlemen had invited us to Sunday service and over for dinner. After church service the next day, Pastor Iriviring invited us to a birthday party and payed for our lunch that day. But most importantly he connected us with Paul who heard our vision about the World Race. We had mentioned our route and that we were heading to French Guiana in the next couple of days. He immediately offered us a free ride to French Guiana. By the end of our time in Suriname we had gather contact information from Paul to contact back with Adventures in Missions as a potential host ministry for future mission teams.
?
After 3-4 hour ride into French Guiana we had already encountered a man of peace when Carlo and Anita had welcome us into their home. They both are missionaries that go into the Amerindian villages to share the gospel. Not only that but Anita works at the bible organization disturbing bibles in French Guiana. Carlo is a pastor running services out of his garage for the community and his wife picks up families who have no way of transportation. They both have stories that complled us into a deeper walk with our faith. They have a servant’s heart like no other that I’ve encountered before. Upon arrival until departure they cooked breakfast, lunch, and dinner every night for our team. And in the end, they wouldn’t even accept our money for lodging, transportation, and food. However, they are thrilled to host future racers.
This is Carlo and Anita’s home that we stayed at for our duration in French Guiana.?
Lunch with Anita, Carlo and their daughter.
A day in French Guiana.
Neal and I encountered Feles outside of the market place selling brackets and necklaces. We were caught off guard when he began speaking English. What surprised us us even more was that he has a degree as a technician, he’s a follower of Christ from Africa, and sells merchandise for extra money to get back home. He was eager to share his his story with us and encourage us in our walk with Christ. It was amazing to see that many times we overlook the simplest things in life because not everyone we encounter on the streets that appear to be homeless are homeless.
During our time at Carlo and Anita’s we had the chance to lead church service by singing, sharing testimonies, and preaching. Our Squad leader had wrapped up service with prayer, where we saw mircaluos prophesies and healing take place. This is Christina a lady that God had led me to pray for. While there was the barrier of French that I didn’t understand, God stilled showed up in a mighty way when I had prayed for God to send His fire upon her life and that she would feel it. 5 minutes later our squad leader asked if anyone had an encountered with God. Christina raised her hand and walked to the front. As she spoke, Anita translated for her. Christina mentioned that she had felt God’s presence when a warmness ran through her head to her stomach.
The next day we had left Carlo and Anita’s house so that we could cross into Oiapoque, Brazil which is the border.?
During our time waiting for the boats to cross into Brazil we had met up with another team from our squad. We decided to split the price with them and take a boat together into Brazil.
Once we arrived in Oiapoque, Brazil we met Timothy who is the son of pastor Carols. The other team had decided to travel all day through Oiapoque to Macapa where we would eventually end up at to get on the boats to Manaus, Brazil, a city on the Amazon river. But we decided to rest for the night and see what connections we could make with Pastor Carlos.
But before we arrived to the church, Timothy had something better for us.?
He showed us a place on the Amazon to swim at which felt like paradise.
After spending the night at Pastor Carlos church, we was able to make future contacts for racers. So the next day we hopped on an 11 hour bus ride to Macapa, Brazil. We arrived at 3:30 a.m. and decided to sleep in the airport until we figured out a place to stay the night at. But breafeast was approaching quickly and as racers we live on $5 a day. The best way to spend that low of budget was at a contnetial breakfast in a hotel. After all, Brazil is known for its fruits.
That’s an update what is currently taken place for this month. As of now we are here in Macapa, Brazil waiting to get on the Amazon River to head toward Manus, Brazil by October 31. Along the way we will stop at villages and try to make contact with local missionaries and churches. There may be a possibility that I won’t be able to update everyone again until Manaus. In the meantime, I asked that you keep our team and squad in your prayers as we get ready to embark on the Amazon River. Also, I’m 6 weeks away from having to meet my final deadline of $4,451 to be fully funded. Currently I have raised 75% of my goal. I greatly appreciate everyone’s prayer and financial help. So would you consider joining me on this journey by financial supporting me to meet my deadline so that I can continue on the World Race?
