Esqueleto

Let me paint a picture for you first. Please walk with me on this journey through the streets of Esqueleto as best as possible. Let’s start with what you know to have a comparison. Think of the most rundown neighborhood you can imagine in the U.S. Now, take away the nice sidewalks, the trees, the asphalt you drive on. Take away the stucco and the nice roofs. Trash litters the streets and yards (actually, take away the yards… they don’t exist). Houses are made up of scraps of wood. Random stray dogs run across the street and along the trash trucks hoping for a stray piece of food to fall out. Across your path walks a horse. This horse is small and malnourished. Left to its own defenses it scavenges the trash piles for food. Trash is everywhere. The smell permeates everything in you; everything you can look at is covered in dust and debris. The smell of sewage is rampant. Children between 4-8 years old wander the streets by themselves or in small groups looking for their next meal in the rubble and trash. Graffiti is all over the walls, not artwork like is common in Dona Marta, but signs and symbols indicating the presence of drugs and gangs. Men “hang out” on the street, sometimes weapons in hand, watching as cars drive by. You know they are part of the reigning gang. You continue down the street, past more and more shacks (at best) until you turn a corner and are in the middle of it. Standing there is a large building that says, “Ingrejo do Nazareno” or Church of the Nazarene. Like a beacon of light, it stands in a dark place, offering hope, a future, and the love of a Savior. There are people all around the church. The group of men I spoke about earlier congregate across the street and watch. They do not bother those who are there, but sit there ever present with eyes watching every move. Cameras are tolerated, but not embraced in this place, because awhile back police, disguised as journalists came in and took photos, then raided the place the next day.

I want to share with you stories of Esqueleto. They are kind of unrelated and seemingly random, but there is an overall theme here. Stay with me and you’ll begin to catch the vision here.

Work started in Esqueleto approximately six years ago. Before the church was there, there was little hope of ever “getting out” of there. People are generally uneducated, have no dreams or goals outside of their next meal, and have little resources with which to help them gain any ground on bettering their life. Since the church has been established in Esqueleto, 4 families have made it out of there. Though they still come back to the church there, they live and work outside of the slum and are able to support themselves. One may think that is not enough, that there should have been more success stories by now, but I can tell you that the struggles for these people are immense. There are little social support services currently established for the people in Esqueleto. The people there exist on a day-by-day, often meal-by-meal basis. To say that four families have made it out of that type of lifestyle is an incredible success rate. The work continues, and will continue until Esqueleto is no-longer a slum, but is a productive neighborhood where the gangs don’t run the people, but the people love and support each other, pushing the gangs out into other areas. As you read their stories, and the stories of what the church is doing in Esqueleto, and the stories of the things we experienced, may your hearts be opened to the work and the passion our team now has for this country and these people.

I’ll start with Isabella. She’s a beautiful girl. We found out on this trip that her father was not dead as we had originally thought, but rather is an alcoholic who is unable to raise her as she needs to be raised. The church is continuing to build relationships with him and Isabella does see him on occasion. Please pray that her father embraces God’s love for him and believes Christ is his Savior. Part of the money we raised as a team, is going to put a new roof on his house. We were unable to participate in that work, but we were able to share God’s love and let them know that the materials are on their way and a new roof will be coming.

Pastor Fernando, Pastor Brent, and Myself in front of Isabella's father's house

Another of the stories you heard was of “Marta”. Well, it turns out her name is not “Marta” afterall… it’s Dora. She is doing well and was incredibly blessed by the generous gift one of our church members donated to her family. It was amazing to be able to meet her and see the work she is doing, the love she is pouring out on those children and the way that you met her needs. Thank you for your generous gift and we were blessed to be able to share it with her.

Dora and Pastor Brent sharing an embrace after receiving the generous gift of financial support

Speaking of new roofs, We were also able to purchase materials to complete two other roofs for two other families. I was fortunate enough to be there when we shared this information with the other families and it was an amazing, moving experience. We shared that because God loved them and felt they were important, and we did too, that we wanted to bless them with a new roof in order to keep their belongings (what little they had amassed from the garbage heaps), themselves and their families dry and protected from the elements.

Sharing with one of the recipients of a new roof the news

On two separate visits, most of the leaders on our team met a young seven year old girl. This normally happy, smiling girl is paraplegic and is unable to move around on her own. Pastor Pedro Paulo has a special place in his heart for this young lady and had a house built especially for her to provide a safe place for her to live. One that was permanent, made of bricks and had a roof that would not leak. On this trip though, this normally smiling girl was feeling very ill. Her mother explained to us that she had a high fever, and was vomiting and had diarrhea. Her mother asked us to pray over her and we were honored to do so. Her mother also explained that she didn’t have the money to get the prescriptions and diapers she needed. The church had paid for this young lady to see the doctor the day prior, and she was given a prescription. While Pastor Brent was trying to find out how much she needed to get these things, Pastor Pedro Paulo was already on the phone arranging for the pharmacy too have the prescription filled and ready to be picked up. In addition to the diapers and prescription, he made a grocery list of food and needs to get for the family to eat. I cannot share enough how big this man’s heart is. Not only did he meet the needs of this little girl (which was what the mother had asked for), but he went above and beyond because he loves the family. It was moving to watch Pastor lovingly stroke her sweet face and whisper in her ear that he was here, and that he loved her. The girl looked over at Pastor, gave a sweet small smile and closed her eyes, exhausted from the effort. She knew that she was loved, not just by a man on earth, but a Heavenly Father who loves her more than anything else.

As leaders, sometimes we are privileged to go on “field trips” to learn more about the church, the people and the culture. One of these field trips occurred at Esqueleto, where Pastor shared some more of the vision and plans he has for Esqueleto. He took Leigh Ann, Brent, Pastor Fernando (Pastor of Esqueleto church) and Marcio to a large open area filled with trash, flattened to create a flat surface. Pastor shared how he wanted to create a sports field that would be used for soccer, basketball and volleyball. He also intends to put in a kitchen, locker rooms with bathrooms and showers, and to hire three people to work there as a coach, a trainer and a social worker. He wants the kids to be able to come in and play and be encouraged instead of wandering the streets, or sorting through the trash. At the same time, this will all be done in the name of the church, further strengthening the idea that the church is good, it is helpful and it loves each and every being. It is like Dona Marta, in the beginning stages. You can feel the hope and the joy that comes from these people.

Esqueleto has expanded into a lake/swamp/marshland next to it. The trash has piled up two stories high in this lake area. When Pastor realized and found out what this area was he was disappointed. He learned that the wildlife that would normally inhabit the area are slowly dying off. This could be a great source of food, but is being depleted by the trash. He has taken it upon himself to begin talking to government about restoring the lake to its natural conditions. The government has been coming in and using cranes to excavate lake in hopes of wildlife coming back. Prayers for restoration to continue and for the wildlife to regenerate are appreciated.

One of the things we did as a team before we left was to collect toys for the children here who didn’t have any. We collected anything from gently used toys of our own kids to happy meal toys and we went and purchased a bunch at the dollar store before we left. One of the things we got to do while passing out the care packages of food and toiletries was to give these toys to the children we encountered. I remember my own daughter parting with her beloved Cinderella Barbie doll. We had talked at length about giving to the children in Brasil who had much less than my own children had, and decided that we were going to go through their toys and donate some of them to the kids in Brasil. My daughter diligently went through her Barbie dolls and picked out her treasured Cinderella Barbie. I remember questioning her to make sure she knew that it was going to someone else, and it wasn’t going to come back. She decided that she wanted to give it to another little girl. On numerous occasions we went through the drive through and each time my kids would run to Rachel P. to give her their happy meal toys. Pastor Brent did the same thing with his children. Each of us were fortunate enough to be on teams that watched those toys go to children who needed them. I sobbed with pride over my daughter’s sacrifice when I handed a little girl named Giovanna the treasured Barbie doll. The poor girl was probably slightly confused by this crying woman speaking another language with a smile on her face. As the translator shared that this doll was a gift from my daughter, the mother of the little girl shared that the day prior was the little girl’s birthday and she loved Barbie dolls. In that instant I was overcome with joy for the little girl, and immensely proud of my own children for their giving spirit. Even though they weren’t there, I knew that this trip had touched them as well.

As we walked around delivering these packages, our eyes were keenly aware of the differences in our worlds. It is winter in Brasil. However, their weather still ranges in the mid-upper 70s with humidity in the 80 percentile range. Though the air is not hot, that high of a moisture level makes the air much more unpleasant. The smells of decomposing garbage, animal and human feces, livestock, sweat and body odor permeates everything around it. To get to many of the houses, you had to cross muddy terrain, trash, boards, animal and human urine and feces, fire pits, animals, bricks and boards. One of the groups had to step over a hose that was the fresh water source for 20+ houses. When one finally steps into the houses, the heat is oppressive. I wondered what it must be like in the summer, when we were told it reaches 100+ degrees for two months straight. There is little circulation in the houses because there are few windows and the houses are insulated by blankets that serve as walls and doors. Most of the houses are divided by two rooms. One room is generally the family bed. All members of the family sleep together on this “bed” (sometimes it’s a mattress, sometimes just a pile of blankets on the ground). The other room is for everything else that they have managed to collect. As we entered the homes, we introduced ourselves and shared that we were there because we cared about them and because God cared about them. We presented the care packages filled with beans, rice, basic food necessities and some toiletries, and asked if we could pray for them. Many families asked us to pray for their families to be blessed and to be safe from disease, others requested prayer for healing from disease or injury. We would pray with the families specifically over their prayer requests and then generally blessing them and their families. After the prayers we would hand out candy and toys to the children in the household. One of the most ironic things about the whole situation was the fact that after we were finished praying over their families and situations, handing out the care packages, giving out the toys and saying goodbye, we would be getting back into the vans, driving back to our “compound”, taking showers and cleaning up and then heading to an all-you-can-eat pizza place for our dinner. Though the conversation was light that night at dinner, our hearts and minds still held on to the visions and stories we had heard that day. Many of us will be forever changed by that experience.

Esqueleto Church of the Nazarene houses a “school” program that provides reinforcement or tutoring of the subjects students are learning in school. This program is offered for free to 35 children from Esqueleto and is paid for by the tuition from other areas. There is a part-time teacher who works with the children when they are not in school to teach them to better read, do math, speak and write Portuguese, learn history and geography as well as teaches them skills they will need to move beyond Esqueleto. Each child receives 2 meals every day that they are in attendance (breakfast and lunch), which means that is two less meals that child needs to scrounge around for in the dump. Brain research tells us that children who are malnourished do not perform as well as their nourished peers. That is a huge disadvantage for these students. By providing them two meals a day, the church is not only helping them to be physically healthier, but is also helping their brains develop and learn better, and is helping them to be more attentive and focused on their tasks. I was able to sit down with one of the workers/teachers at the school and asked what it was that they needed and what they were going to need in the future. Currently there is a need for school supplies and food for the students. With the current back-to-school sales that are occurring in the United States, please consider purchasing and donating supplies to be sent to the school in Esqueleto. Additionally, they are trying to get a computer lab up and running at the school. They currently have the furniture and the room ready for this lab, but do not have the technology equipment, nor the funds to purchase this equipment. If you would like to donate to either need, please contact Heidi by commenting here or stopping me at church. I would love to bless this school by meeting their needs now and for the future.

There are so many needs, and so many stories. For each of the stories I’ve shared here, and each of the team members, there are probably 100 others that have not been told. Please join us prayerfully in supporting the work in Esqueleto and if you feel led, by giving to the work being done down there. If you don’t feel led to give to this project, please find some other cause to donate your time or resources. I promise you that you will not regret it. 2 Corinthians 9:6-11 states the following,

"⁶ Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. ⁷ Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. ⁸ And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. ⁹ As it is written:

   “They have freely scattered their gifts to the poor;
   their righteousness endures forever.”^[a]

 ¹⁰ Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness. ¹¹ You will be enriched in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.” (NIV)

You have given to our trip so generously over the past year. I pray that you will not stop giving because we are back. The work still continues in Brasil, just as it is around the world, reaching the lost for our Savior. Please consider what God would have you do and act accordingly. Our lives are forever changed because of this experience. I pray that your lives, through seeing and hearing about our experiences will be impacted as well. God is gracious, kind and generous with His love and may you be blessed because you have taken time to read this and learn about the people and needs in Brasil.