Myla and Joanna her missionary friend from Rio.
We thank the Lord for the New Year and the ministry to which He has called us. We had the opportunity to spend New Year's Day with our colleagues in Rio de Janeiro and enjoy Rio's world-class fireworks display that lasted late into the night.
Now in February, Brazil's famous Carnaval has just come to a close. Carnaval is basically a nationwide party which encourages people to drop their inhibitions and engage in any and all lusts before Ash Wednesday and the beginning of Lent when they are to do penance and purify themselves. Because of this, many churches have a retreat for the youth during that time to help them avoid the temptations that Carnaval presents. So, while our sending church in the U.S. had Teen Snow Camp, we had our Summer Youth Retreat. Below are some of the pictures from the retreat.
Below are our friendly neighborhood monkeys. Recently they have been hanging out in the tree in our front yard. Melissa and the girls went out one day to see them and feed them crackers.
