God’s Movement in Brazil

After Team Truth had a few days to build relationships with our roommates, attend a Brazilian church, and adapt to the schedule set for us, we began to prepare our hearts for the coming week. During church, we were given encouraging words by pastors, encouraging us to adopt identities as missionaries for God. Despite the language barrier, we were able to pray alongside the LifeShapers who would be working with us that week. This rest and preparation proved to be necessary as we journeyed through the week ahead.

Our team woke up Monday morning and came to breakfast with our bags packed, ready to leave for our partner, Cristolandia. Cristolandia is a program that welcomes men struggling with substance abuse who are striving to turn their lives completely around. Cristolandia teaches them the Gospel, immerses them in worship, and provides a strong community of Godly men to keep them accountable.

We arrived and were welcomed by the Cristolandia men with warmth and hospitality. After a brief, but incredibly powerful and compelling worship service, we provided help wherever they needed. We had the chance to clean bathrooms, organize bedrooms, tend the garden, cook in the kitchen, rake grass, and other projects. After two days of manual labor at the first Cristolandia location, our team moved to the second location on Wednesday.

This second location required less of our physical strength and engaged our mental and emotional strength. We were able to connect with the men, share testimonies, learn their stories, and navigate the language barrier. We had the chance to play soccer with them and connect through the sport they treasure, as well as learn how to dance to the cultural music, samba. Afterward, we were led in worship as well as in a sermon by the Cristolandia men. These men had an incredible impact on our team, and they influenced the way we served the next day with compassion, grace, and intentionality.

“Watching the men at Cristolandia singing and praising God with so much zeal, while knowing many of their testimonies of God’s faithfulness, was extremely inspiring. We serve the same God whose character is the same everywhere and always.” – Nathan Daniels 

Our team had the chance to serve the Lord through intentionality with different kinds of people, as well as being receptive to testimonies of God’s faithfulness. This week was physically, emotionally, and spiritually taxing, testing all of us, but, nonetheless, it was a learning experience that brought much glory to the Lord. What a great opportunity to get a glimpse into how much these men have been through, and despite this, how they approach life with so much joy!

Isaac Stanfill, Brazil Team #3
Current Fellow, Class XX