Our Week of Camp

  This past weekend Ali and I returned from an exhausting and blessed week of camp.  We directed a Saturday-to-Saturday session for 13 to 18 year olds.  The theme was, “Jesus me amaria, Cantando minha historia” (Jesus would love me, Telling my story).  It is impossible to put all that took place there into words, but God showed up in an amazing way, and He was glorified in the lives of our campers and our team.  

 

 

pic #1- Ali & I introduce the camp session

  Our main message was that the love of Jesus for us is amazing, not just because of what he did once upon a time, but because of what he does, every day in our lives.  Each morning one of our counselors would reinforce this by talking about someone who Jesus interacted with whose life was a lot like theirs, and how just like the Bible characters, they received the love and acceptance that changed their lives.  At the end of each day we offered time for any of the campers who were touched by this story to share from their hearts as well.

    

pic #2- Guto shares parallels                                 pic #3-  Lucas reflects on how

between his life, and that of Peter                    the message of the day spoke to him

This morning class was followed up with group time where campers wrote down their thoughts on the message, talked about what the application of it would look like in their lives, and put together creative ways to demonstrate it in the evening gatherings.  These groups were used incredibly by the Lord to touch lives and to bring the message into the practical realm.  All of the campers were put into four groups, shown below in pics 4 - 7.

      

  In the afternoons campers chose what classes they wanted to take part in.  Choir, arts, nature and culinary classes were daily options.

   

pic 8 Choir class                                                           pic 9 Art class

   

pic 10-  Nature class and hike                                            pic 11-  Culinary class

After these classes we had some  free time, group games, and sports.

     

pic 12- Chillin' with the Gee-tar                     pic 13- My cousin Jeff leads a treasure hunt

  

   

pic 15 & 16-  Brazilians try out the pigskin...       and love it! 

  

pic 17- Playing soccer, my foul caught on      pic 18- Soraya (Counselor) and Buckeye (my dog) 

  camera. Sheesh!                                       catch a recovery nap

  

Ali's birthday came mid week, the campers secretly hung around late to surprise her just after midnight on the big day, then sang to her again at lunch, dinner, and night time tea.  She also received three cakes throughout that day! 

      

pic 20- midnight surprise                                                  pic 21-  cake #1

  

And that's a wrap!  This picture was taken just before getting on the bus to head home. Yes, that is my dog Buckeye with the camp dog's throat between her jaws, but they were great friends. Really!

Starting Saturday is take two, a four day encounter where Ali and will be running the youth part.  We pray that He will bless this second round as he did the first.

a mini album of a new year

We have spent 1 week in Rio Grande do Sul. It's the most southern state of Brazil. And the coldest state of Brazil. It was heavily populated by Italian immigrants in the 1800s. 

It is also our equivalent to Napa Valley for it's fine production of extraordinary wines. 

We came to Rio Grande do Sul for a Missionary Conference, where we met amazing workwers of the kingdom... then we stayed around this part of the country for some R&R with my parents and friends. 

Mark and i want to share with you some new friends, new pics and new stories we collected along the way... 

Some precious friends! Girls, have fun in Paraguay!

The town the conference was in is the National capital of Christmas!

so we all enjoyed a beautiful light show and a choir in a tree!

768 steps down to this picturesque waterfall! totally worth it!

Walking at the top of a waterfall 

and of course Mark had to walk way too close to the edge...!

We searched the entire city for a place with cable so we could watch the National Championship game. There was a pizzaria that let us stay till 3:00 am!!! bad game, good story! 

Our post-conference traveling crew: Matt & Waleska  (missionaries in Porto Alegre, the capital of Rio Grande do Sul), mom & dad & mark  

the gorgeous vineyards

have a little wine!?

Train ride thru traditional cities and vineyards

Trying some Mate tea

Lost in the vineyards

and here you have it! 

we are off to camp tomorrow! please pray for us as we minister to the teens there. 

we love you so much. 

mark and ali 

2008 kick off

It has been a busy time, hence the lack of time to blog. We recently had a great practical day with our youth group. We have been talking to them abo

ut using this vacation time to bless the lives of others, and they suggested a trip to a nearby orphanage. It was a fun time watching them interact with other children and teens and finding that selfless acts of love can bring great joy and satisfaction.  (orphans below are blocking our exit... sad to leave)

Today, Ali and I are in Rio Grande do Sul, the southernmost state in Brazil, where we spent the last week attending a missionary conference attended by missionaries to Brasil, Chile and Paraguay.  It was an amazing time of sharing dreams, considering new ideas, and fellowship with new and old friends.  (fun night with fellow missionaries in pic) 

This week we will travel back to the state of Sao Paulo and make final preparations for the camp session we will be directing next week. PLEASE join us in prayer as we prepare ourselves and our team of counselors to serve an unknown group of teenagers for 7 days. There will surely be many a stories to share with you after that!! 

we love you and miss you. 

please do not give up on our blog. =)

m&a

Quick message from the "dark side of the moon"

Right now, Ali and I feel a little like the astronaut rounding the moon who loses all contact with home base till emerging on the other side. The internet provider of our city is not doing much providing right now, so we have been unable to post blogs or even send e-mails. I am sitting in a LAN house in Votaporanga now. I can´t post pics from here, but at least we can let you know that we are still alive!




Christmas and New Years were wonderful. On New Years Eve Ali, Phyllis and Antenor took part in a 15k rase in Sao Paulo called the Sao Silvestre that had more than 20,000 runners. (I sat out as I am trying to recoup a bum knee) We then spent the New Years with Aunts, Uncles and cousins who live in Sao Paulo, and on the 1st of the year traveled to Votaporanga where we have spent the last days with more family on a small farm that is home to one of our uncles here. It has been a good opportunity to do some planing and scheduleing of ministries for the coming year.


On Sunday we will be attending a Missionary conference in the south where we will meet other workers from cities throughout Brazil. It will be a good time to build our network and learn from the experience of others. After this confrence comes the first of two camps that Ali and I are directing. The theme of this camp will be, "He would love me." Classes will be taught by various people whose lives have parraleled the lives of individuals who Christ met and interacted with. These will include Peter (who turned his back on Christ and then came back to Him), the Pharisies (whose religious pride did nothing for their relationship with Christ), the woman who descretely touched Jesus's cloak as He passed and received healing (who while being too ashamed to seek out Christ publicly, was saught out by Him), and the children (who Jesus welcomed to come to Him in their inocence and used as an example to His adult followers).



Thank you for your prayers for our work, and please keep this upcoming camp, AMO, in your prayers. Pray that both the counselors (who will be teaching the classes) and the campers will be prepared, used, and changed by the Lord through this effort. And while your at it, pray for our internet connection too!



Thanks for reading, and Happy New Years!

-the Kaisers

So this is Christmas

The holidays have a very different feel from the Southern Hemisphere, so I have found myself humming this Christmas tune a lot - at least what I can remember of it ("So this is Christmas, somthin somthin, da da da").

Thanks for praying for our Blessed to be a Blessing program, it was fantastic! We provided "cestas basicas" (baskets containing the essential food items for a family of four for one month) for over 180 families. To distribute the cestas we went to local favelas (impoverished neighborhoods where many families reside in small poorly put together shacks) and handed out invitations. We then had a little reception where those who had invites came to the church, had some refreshments, received a short welcoming message and picked up their cestas.

Last night we had our last Bible Study at Yesky (the English school) before a holiday brake, and now it Christmas with our Brazilian side of the family from various cities here. We are going to a small farm about twenty minutes outside of Itu to spend Christmas together and it should be a ton of fun.

We sent out Christmas letters, so if you have not received one please email me your address (mk.kaiser@gmail.com) and I will add you to our very occasional address list, and I will e-mail you this letter. Thanks again to all of you you are praying for us and who care to know what is going on with our lives and service here. It is a blessing to have your support!

Merry Christmas to all of you, we love you and hope that you will take this time to let those you love know it.
-the Kaisers

He is at work!

If you have been praying for the work that Ali and I are doing here in Brazil, thank you! Nothing is more crucial than the Lord's intimate involvement in our ministry. During our last Friday night Bible study at Yeskey (the English school here owned by a couple of church members) we read the first 22 verses in Acts 19 and discussed questions such as, 'what has brought you to where you stand with the faith,' and 'are you interacting with the God you have entered into a relationship with, or asking for help from the God who so-and-so preaches?' At the end of the study a request for prayer was shared that I would like to pass on to you.

The request came from George, father on one of the owners of the school. He is the man behind me in the photo posted here. He said to us, 'Please pray for me... I have been coming to these studies for a while now, but often even while I am physically present I am completely removed from what is going on here. I want to open my heart, but it is difficult to believe in God.' It was wonderful to hear such an honest heart cry for a spiritual awakening! Please honor this request and pray that the Lord would draw George to Himself and help him believe.

Our opportunity to serve has been in abundance lately as, in addition to leading our nightly small group Bible studies, Ali and I have helped lead the church in the Christmas "Blessed to be a Blessing," program. The church is compiling 200 packs containing one month's supply of rice, beans, oil, and other food items for needy families. This has been a great cause to get our members into action!

For example, in our last youth group we had a short study on what "loving your neighbor," means. It is not a mater of finding what segment of people we need to be nice to, instead it is ours to take the initiative of caring for those who we might or might not naturally interact with. After this talk, the kids took to the streets and we went door to door in the neighborhood to tell families about the "Blessed to be a Blessing" program and to ask them if they would like to contribute.

We have also been taking this opportunity to businesses in our area. Having a cause to share with our surrounding community has been wonderful for us. Companies that have joined us include a veterinary clinic, grocery stores, the gym I attend, a juice place and the town meat market.

Again, thank you for praying for Ali and I. It has been a blessing for us to serve the Lord here and in this fashion. Please continue to pray that He would guide us and keep us focused on what He has for us. Glory be to God, He is doing great things!

Blessed to be a Blessing

Inspired by a church in San Angelo, Texas, 5 years ago my parents began an event here in Itu called Blessed to be a Blessing (for those of you who'd like to practice your Portuguese, "Abencoados para Abencoar").

People bring non-perishable food items to church one Sunday, and we spend the following week putting together food packages and distributing them throughout the poor communities in Itu.

Last year our goal was 100, and we made 109 food baskets!
This year our goal is... 200! This is a lofty goal for our congregation. But not for our God.
Sunday, the 9th is when the food will be collected.

Please pray as we encourage the church members to be generous, and as we go into the community and hand out not only food, but the love of Christ.

(**If you are interested in participating, please leave a comment or write us at mk.kaiser@gmail.com**)

to God be the glory.

kaisers