The Things We Miss

It's good to live and work in the greater New York metro area. My family has access to so many amenities that would not be available elsewhere. The cultural mix is vibrant. There are constant opportunities to participate in educational and cultural events. Yet, there is so much my family is missing by not being in Uberlândia, Brazil.

The first time I heard of Uberlândia was when a man I knew from previous trips to Brazil suggested I consider looking into working with the church there. It was a new mission church that he, his wife and two other couples had recently joined to serve. His thought was that with my impending graduation from Harding University with a ministry degree, it would be a good place to start my mission carreer.

Indeed it was.

The first night I was in Uberlândia we ran late getting to the midweek service. It was there, just a few minutes after arriving at the concluded gathering, that I met the lovely woman who is now my wife. After marriage, a year later, we remained less than three years before relocating to the United States. The plan was to move back to Brazil after raising more support. Our time in the U.S. wasn't supposed to last longer than five years. It's now been a little over eight years.

Some of the church youth on a camping retreat.

My wife and kids have been back to Brazil since then, but only twice. We've missed weddings, the birth of several nieces and nephews (large family!), baptisms, retreats and more. There were two congregations in the city when we moved to the U.S. in 2003. There are now four.

Baptism of my nephew Lucas.

These are the things we miss. In less than two years I hope to have my family back in Brazil to stay. I don't know at this point how all this can come together, but I am praying, preparing and hoping. This year (2012) we intend to pay a visit. It will be my first time back in the country since we left. While there it's my intention to help revive the social action work of the churches, including a pitch for HOPE worldwide and a well-defined social outreach project (perhaps with an orphanage).

Your prayers as we work through details and flesh out what this new reality will look like are appreciated.

Thanks for reading.

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See also:

• Why Brazil?

• New Dreams