Skip to main content

Nice Activity Mario!

got-cha

For the second time in as many months our teens were invited to participate in a youth activity at Calvary Baptist. Mario and Juliana were there and in fact it was Mario who was coordinating the evening. It was great to see both Juliana and Mario in action serving the Lord with their varied talents.

Mario had spend a lot of time during the week making up a, “Treasure-hunt, monster-chase, cops and robbers” type game that involved, a treasure map, hidden money and keys and a jail! And all of this in the dark. How much better could it get? Well how about throwing in a killer gorilla and about six policeman (one with a machinegun no less).

The kids were very excited about the game as they were being divided into three teams and figuring out their strategy. The lights went out and the fun began.

While all of this was going on Dawn and I chatted with Ju. She related how that she and Mario have moved seven times in the last few years since their marriage. They are back in Sorocaba and seeking God’s direction in their lives and coming ministry.

As our conversation progressed, all of a sudden two police rode up on motorcycles and stopped at the church gate. Mario and pastor Alexandre went to see what they wanted. activity

It turns out that several police were passing the church and noted kids jumping over the wall and thought that it was being robbed. They called for support and burst into the church ordering several of our teens to the wall! The photo above left was staged (for your benefit) but the actual moment was almost NO laughing matter. The above mentioned “machine-gun” wasn’t a prop nor part of the game. It was REAL!

In the end no one was hurt and even though several of the teens received a few rough words from the cops, all went very well. Can you imagine the stories they’ll tell when they get home?

Nice activity Mario! When can we do it again??Winking smile

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Caught up to Paradise - 2 Corinthians 12

Residing in Michigan for over half my life, I had heard about Paradise. Because Paradise is a small town in the Upper Peninsula, you may have never visited there in your life, but you knew it existed. It was WAY up there next to Tahquamenon Falls and nothing else. Where's Tahquamenon Falls? Next to Paradise and nothing else. It's a long way from home.  Why all of the talk about Paradise? Because Paul talks about it in 2 Corinthians 12. There was this guy who had been caught up to Paradise. Not in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, but into the REAL Paradise. While there, he'd heard things that he was unable to repeat. What on earth was this? Who was this guy? Here's what was going on. Paul defended his position of Apostleship in chapter eleven and gave the Corinthians an idea of what Apostleship looked like in chapter twelve. It came with great wonders, like seeing or instead hearing unimaginable things. But, too, that position came with a terrible cost. God gave Paul a &q

What to get God for Christmas

Jesus left perfect surroundings, relationships and glory to be born into squalor. He was homeless before birth. His father was a carpenter in a culture where carpentry was a despised trade. His, mother though young and giving birth to her firstborn, had no attendant nurses, helpers or friends. Rather than a pristine hospital, birth was given in the filthy stench of a stable. Romantic? Hardly. This sacrifice brought a life of hardship. Why? Why this odd story? Obedience. God's gift to humanity was His son. Jesus' gift was obedience to the Father. He paid the greatest price. Not because we are special but because he loves His Father. His gift was the perfect gift. Our Father wants obedience for Christmas and every other day for that matter. In Brazil Christmas is becoming commercialized. A phenomenon familiar for years in the United States tickles a growing economy. There is little time for meditation on God's Gift. There are no chestnuts roasting or Jack Frost nippin

Stop Trusting

Isaiah 2:22 says Isaiah 2:22 Cease ye from man, whose breath is in his nostrils: for wherein is he to be accounted of? The Prophet is saying that we shouldn't put our trust in humankind because they are so finite. They are not like God, who is infinite. People are fickle. They change their minds. They love you and then hate you in moments.  God invites us to trust him completely with everything that we have. He doesn't show himself to us physically or as a spirit. He demands that we have faith. However, he also gives us the faith to trust him.  The universe shouts "Creator!" and yet we often ignore the proclamation. This ignorance does not make God's creation any less a physical demonstration of his grandeur. God's boundless being becomes more amazing in his presence within us. How can the infinite God dwell in the mortals he commands us not to trust?  Jesus said, "with man it is impossible but with God, all things are possible."