Shopping in Paraguay

A week ago we spent some time with Ben, Melissa and their kids

at their home in Iguacu.It was great to be able to talk

and hear their hearts for ministry as new missionariesto Brazil.

We are excited to watch and see how God is going to use

the whole family.

And He will. He does that with willing people.

On the last day we were there, we took a couple of buses

and headed over to Paraguay.

Even as we were doing it we weren't quite sure why -

it's just something you do.

We laughed at the joke that the first 45 min. are fun

but the remainder of

the 5 hours - not so much!!!!

Actually we enjoyed our time with them

and we also met up with KaKa, Lilianand little Marcus.

We got to know them when they lived in Iguacu

during our time there in 2009.

They have since moved to Praia Grandeto begin a church there.

So happy that we could spend time with them.

This is the way we got around once in Paraguay!

And it was hot. Very, very hot!

Warren needed a new backpack since the one he had bought in the

states fell apart in a matter of days.

This store had so many it was hard to decide.

He got one. $9 for a really good one.

Oh ya, that's why you go to Paraguay.

For the prices!

Their import taxes are either non-existant or they are very low

so by crossing the border the prices of things go down considerably.

So it is a busy, crowded, dirty,

(we keep forgetting not to wear flip flops there. Poor KaKa!)

depressing town

because it's full of people wanting to make money.

But we go because Brazil is very expensive.

We went to a chinese restauraunt for lunch.

I'm not talking American kind of chinese.

It was wonderful and inexpensive.

The table was huge and sat all 10 of us

(the baby sat on a lap).

the menu.

They did have one in Spanish too which is the one we did our best with.

Slippers in one of the stores.

They have a lot of general type stores that carry a little bit of everything.

Recognize the packaging?!

From the same store as the slippers.

They also have a lot of specialty stores and high-end stores.

Just about anything you can imagine can be found here.

The streets are narrow and full of traffic. They don't watch out for anyone but themselves

so it's your job to make sure that you are safe from traffic.

Melissa almost got her arm taken off right after this picture was taken

as a SUV came down this and wasn't concerned at all that it didn't fit

along side of parked cars on one side and Melissa walking on the other side.

I was walking behind her and didn't see how it missed her.

The sidewalks are full of vendors. Usually more of the poor that set their wares

out there and send their children out to try and entice customers.

Many a times you would find children sitting under the tables where they

literally spend their day - maybe their childhood.

It is heartbreaking.

When you do purchase something from a store you must first take your purchase

to a department that writes it up and then has you pay for it.

Then you move to another department with your ticket

and they give you your merchandise.

That is how it is pretty much done in Brazil at a lot of stores too.

It is time consuming and frustrating sometimes but...

patience, Sheri, patience.

More of a look at the streets.

Monday is actually a slow day there.

The first time we visited it was crowded beyond belief.

A stuffed animal store.

Here they are sitting in one corner of the store actually

stuffing the creatures!

I tried to talk with them but my Portuguese isn't very good.

Oh, that's right, they speak Spanish over there.

No wonder!

Julia loved the fact that the bear was bigger than her!

These are packing supplies.

As you walk the streets you hear tape being pulled off of the rolls are they

repack things that were bought during the day.

The reason? Well, you can only take $300 or less into Brazil without paying

a duty tax. People don't always agree with that law so they take things out of the original

packaging and pack things together in other boxes

and then sneak them across the border.

Sometimes paying a runner that will take them across

by going under the bridge to the other side.

None of us had enough money to have to worry about it!

It was hot and tiring so we promised the kids ice cream at the end.

In all honesty, we wanted it as bad as they did.

Funny how McDonalds can even taste good when you haven't had it for a while!

It was good alright!

Notice all the re-packaged goods. Not sure how these were being delivered

without being found out. Or maybe it was for a whole different purpose that they

didn't have them in the original packages...don't think so.

Saying good-bye to KaKa, Lilian and Marcus.

And to Tim and TaLisa.

Who by the way had homemade ice cream for us when we got back.

(they've been to Paraguay before!)

And we ate it, every last bite.

Actually, it was a very fun day.

A good day to put in the memory book.

Oliver is 3!!!!!!!

Oliver Isaac our little "laughter" boy!

His big brothers knew what they were doing when they picked his name -

he can bring sunshine to the darkest of days with his joy for life.

You are my sunshine

you make me happy when skies are gray

you'll never know, dear, how much I love you.

please don't take my sunshine away.

Love you to the moon and back again, little guy.

You are a joy.

Happy Birthday!!!!!

Life (in Brazil) Thus Far

We made it, not just to Brazil but also to summer!!!!!

After experiencing winter for two years straight, we

arrived to enjoy many warm, comfortable days and a few hot, suffocating ones.

Ahhhh, to wear flip flops once again - my choice for foot wear!

We flew into Foz do Iguacu where we were able to spent a few days with the Roger's family.

As always, we enjoyed our time there and it felt like being with family.

We also got to meet the newest addition to their family, Linda Grace. Linda means beautiful in Portuguese so

"beautiful grace"

I love that.

waiting to load on the bus for retreat

From there we went to the Carnival retreat in Campo Mourao. It was an amazing time.

We saw friends from many places in Brazil that we hadn't been able to see for some time.

I looked over the crowd amazed at God's goodness - that we could have the opportunity to

know so many people from so many places. And call them friends. We are blessed.

one of the sessions at retreat

It was beautiful to see the people from one church fellowshipping with some from another.

I believe some good friendships were made.

There were also some teaching sessions that were amazing.

We were strengthened as believers and then there were some that became believers.

God used the time.

fellowship

The last morning there we had a baptismal service.

These two women especially touched my heart because

I had met them the first night of retreat.

I believe God had put them in my path.

They were mother/daughter and had just lost their mother/grandmother to suicide.

They were in so much pain and had come because friends had encouraged them to come.

They had shared their story with me that first night and because I had learned a little bit about grieving from my good friends, Cindy and Deb, I was able to minister and pray with them.

And God did meet them. He has began a process of healing.

And by the end they were filled with a peace and joy that they didn't have when they arrived.

Yes, they will still grieve their loss but now they knew

Jesus was going to go through it with them!

Beautiful!!!!

After the retreat was over we stayed in Campo with Diego and Aline.

What a great time with them!

The first evening we also had dinner with Bill and Sheri Holdridge from Calvary Santa Cruz.

We so enjoyed getting to know them. And Bill got to go to his favorite place to eat in Campo:

Pizza Brasil! It was good!!!

We loved the time in Campo, experiencing life as Diego and Aline know it. Meeting some of their friends. Getting to attend the Wed. night study at church. And having wonderful, long talks with them. Hearing their hearts. Praying together.

It was good. Really, really good.

Then we caught a bus back to Iguacu where we were able to spend time with our newest missionaries. Ben, Melissa, Moriah, Daniel, Julia and (another new addition) Alaniah Lyon.

They warmly welcomed us into their home/lives, even giving us one of their two bedrooms!

It was almost like being home as we have known this family for years. Warren and Ben worked together for some time and one way or another they have always remained in our lives.

It was good to hear their hearts and to watch a little bit of the process as God has begun to reveal some of what their ministry is to be in Brazil. We're watching with anticipation!

Their children are a delight and we saw our time together come to an end way to quickly.

We did spend a day in Paraguay with them but that is for another post :)

We were able to go to the Sunday service and were so blessed by it. So good to see so many of our friends from previous visits. And the service was awesome!

Then we took a 11 (was suppose to be 10 but there was a lot of road construction) hour bus ride to Curitiba where we were met by our good friends, Ricado and Marcella. It was soooo good to see their faces!!!! We have settled back into our home here at the church and in many ways it feels as though we had never left. We look forward to seeing many of our friends on Sunday.

Warren has been able to see some of the guys and meet Tom Stowe (the pastor filling in for John). I got to spend time with Pricila yesterday but, quite frankly, I've been hiding in the bedroom with a terrible head cold/flu. Better today but still not ready to get out and about.

God has been good to us. We have had safe travels, gotten to see so many people we love and have been reminded of God's call on our lives to be here.

It's always good to be reminded.

Thank you for the love you show to us by praying for us. So many times we feel in desperate need of it, for we are in desperate need of Him.

A Note to Calvary Corvallis

As we sat with the group of people about ready to receive the first message while at the Carnival Retreat in Campo Mourao I couldn't help but smile as I looked around at the group of people that have come from different Calvary Chapels throughout Brazil. It is a large turn-out.

Tim Rogers then stood up and welcomed everyone and prayed for the time together. During the prayer he thanked the Lord for what He has done in Brazil. Tim choked up. Suddenly I understood his feelings. He was looking at 11 years of he and his family's service in Brazil as he gazed at that crowd. I know that Tim would give God the glory, and rightly so, but I also know that God chose to use this man because he and his family we're willing to take that step of faith.,
.
Eleven years. Some rewarding and some just plain hard but now the fruit of his labor was before him.

My next thoughts were of Calvary Corvallis. How I wish that you could have seen this small ( in comparison to the whole, for it is just some of the members of the churches represented here) portion of the work that you have partnered in throughout these 11 years. Many lives saved and changed. Many people healed and restored. Many leaders raised up. Many families saved from ruin.

And much more work to do.

But God is faithful.

May we all be as steadfast in our callings.

1/2 a Century?!

Happy Birthday, Dori!!!!!

How does it feel to be 50?

Thought so.

Hope it's your greatest year yet!

Dori, from the very beginning you have always brought a bunch
of "life" to our family.
Your sense of humor always makes one smile
and your kindness is beyond words.
Your also the one that has the greatest sense of what it takes
to keep this family connected.

You're a one-of-a-kind sister
and a one-of-a-kind friend.

I am so thankful you're mine.

Enjoy today.
You'll be in my thoughts.

Love you much.

Our plans, our needs, our thankfulness!

Many of you know that we are about to make our third trip to Brazil since officially becoming missionaries in July of '09. Back then we had gone with the expectation that we would be settling into the city or town that God would have us to minister out of. We had packed what little we had left with that in mind!

That, of course, was our expectation and now, in hind sight, see it was not God's plan. We have been blessed beyond measure in being able to travel to many of the churches, spending time with the pastors and their families and ministering to the people however God would lead. We know, had we settled in one place, that things would have looked much different and we wouldn't have had many of the opportunities that have been ours this way.

We've been reminded many times of Pastor Rob telling us of a vision that he had before we were even ready to leave. He had seen a map and on that map there were stick pins on the places throughout Brazil that we had traveled with our routes drawn out for each visit. Much like the way we view the maps of Paul's missionary travels (NOT that we are anything like Paul!). As we talked about “settling down” in one place, Rob, upon several occasions would remind us of his vision and express that he did not see us settling down – at least not for some time. As of yet, although there are many places we could see ourselves living in Brazil, we have never felt God confirm to us that we were to put down roots.

A year ago we were given an opportunity to buy a house in Tennessee. This was not in our plans. Even after the purchase was made we were in awe of it, wondering what God had in mind. Although, we are still not convinced this is a permanent situation we feel for now this house is to be our home when we are in the states. It was in need of work that we are doing with the hopes that when and if the time comes to sell it we would make a profit of some sort on it. The cost of housing and of living in Tennessee is quite a bit lower than that of Corvallis making this a possibility for us. Another added bonus to living in Tennessee has been the cost and the hour reduction of flying to Brazil. On our last trip we were amazed at how short the trip felt after having made it so many times before from Oregon. Now it's done in less than a 24 hour period compared to a 32+ period before. (counting layovers and travels to and from airports). That is huge when you are arriving, hitting the road running! We also were blessed to learn after moving here that a Brazilian Consulate had opened in Atlanta – a 2½ hour drive for us! We were especially grateful for that as we made our way there yesterday to apply for our new visitor visas. We did the interview and had the new visas before the end of the day!!!! These are just some of the ways that God has confirmed that this move was of Him.

So we continue on with another missionary trip! We are returning to Curitiba for the majority of our time. With John Hwang on an extended leave right now he had asked us if we would consider going back and helping Tom Stowe with the church as they settle into the changes that so suddenly came upon them. We are blessed to do it. We also will be spending some time with our friends in Foz do Iguassu where we spent much of our time on our first trip, then on to Campo Moura. Here we will be able to spend time with many different churches, pastors and their families as there is planned a Carnival Retreat for many of the Calvary churches throughout Brazil. We look forward to touching bases with many we have not seen for some time and also those that we have not been able to see at all. While in Curitiba we are hoping to make a trip out to Florinopolis in order to spend some time with both the churches there. Many of you know that Claudio and Jess Caze are in the states right now and so we would like to stop there and encourage the pastor that is filling in for Claudio while he is gone. Also Nathan Cate is still pastoring at the other church in Floripa. His young family is a joy to us and we look forward to our time with them. After leaving Curitiba we are headed for Rio where we will spent about 2 weeks ministering in whatever ways Alexandre has for us. We hear he already has plans!!!! We are thankful to have an opportunity to go back to Rio. We have a love/hate relationship with the city but with the people it is pure love!

I will try to keep updates on this blog while we are there and we both have facebook accounts where we would gladly welcome you as our friend if you are not already!

We just received a new 10 year tourist visas (it allows us to be in Brazil 6 months out of each year) and are praying about whether we are to try for a more permanent visa this fall or be content with this. We have found that God has always given us the next step, however, He has not given us much more than that at any given time! We are trying to learn contentment in whatsoever state we are in without feeling anxious about it.

As you can imagine all of this travel is expensive and while we know that God alone is our provider we have been reminded that many times God uses people for that provision and that those who assist in this way share in the ministry. Philippians 4:17. We know that times are hard and money is scarce these days but should God lay it on your heart to help out with these expenses we would be so grateful. Maybe it could be a monthly contribution for the 3 months we are gone (March, April and May) or a one time gift. All the money would totally go towards the expenses of this trip as God has provided us the means to take care of our living expenses. Any gift can be given through Calvary Corvallis 2125 NW Lester Ave. Corvallis, Or 97330. Write Warren Yoder in the memo line.

It is a tax deductible contribution. We are not asking for anyone to make any kind of commitment to us. We are taking this trip, as we have the others, by faith knowing that God is our ultimate provider.

We wish to thank all of you that have continued to bless us with phone calls, e-mails and facebook messages! It is ALWAYS such a blessing to hear from you. We also are so very blessed by the support of your prayers. We are so needy of them. Please know that you are loved.

I can't believe I'M old enough.....

You have always been amazing.

You were one of those "great" kids -
an "awesome" teenager-

(Okay, there are a few things during that time
I still don't like to hear about or talk about!)

And then you became a man.
A husband. A father.
A grown son.

And you're great at all three.
I'm proud to be your mother -
I love being your mother!

You've changed my life.
And it's been wonderful.

Happy birthday

to my favorite
oldest son!

I love you, Josh.