Author: Katya

“So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.” 1 Corinthians 13:13

The bible says to ask and you will receive. This may not apply when you ask to win the lottery or for your Cheetos to transform into carrots on the way down to your stomach but God will definitely answer our requests to love.

Love is simple.

My friend and I had met up to go to an art museum in Brazil a few weeks before I left. During the morning, I had prayed this prayer to God: Lord, give us an opportunity to love someone today.

We were lost on the way to the museum and we stopped at an information center. There at the counter was a woman with a brace around her neck. When I saw her I knew this was the one we were meant to pray for. After she gave us directions, I asked the woman if it would be alright if we prayed for her. My friend helped translate, and we were able to say a short prayer for God to bless her, her family and her life. This woman started to cry. She hugged us and thanked us for praying. She was loved! My friend told me she couldn’t believe how simple that was and she wanted to do things like this more often!

I believe to love is simple but I think we sometimes forget just how simple it can be.

Love thy neighbor… and thy Über driver.

That same night, my little 12-year old Brazilian brother (not by blood, but by love) and I were in a Über coming home from his youth group. I had the same feeling I had for the woman earlier that day – God wanted us to pray for this driver. Except for this time, I felt strongly that I was not supposed to be the one to pray, but my little brother.

We stopped at the apartment and I told the driver I was a missionary and asked if we could bless him and pray for him. He was more than happy for such a request. Then I turned to my brother and said, “Okay, you pray.” He said, “No way! I’ll translate for you.” I said, “No, you pray, not me.” He said, “No, you pray.” This went on for a little while until he finally understood this was his mission, not mine.

Let me tell you, I’ve never been more proud of him.

He prayed with such passion and sincerity, I think the man received every blessing under heaven from this boy! Afterwards, my brother was excited and so happy he did it. A week later, he prayed again for our Über driver on our way to his youth group.

He saw how easy it was to pray and that God could use him, that God WANTED to use him, and he wasn’t the same after that night. He promised me before I left that he was going to continue to pray for Über drivers. Isn’t that awesome?

The mission never ends.

I was reminded of this on my way home from Brazil.

I sat next to this woman on my flight home. I was minding my business, reading my little bible when I heard her speak to the flight attendant and I could tell she did not speak much English. The old Katya would not have spoken to her, seeing as we probably wouldn’t have much to talk about, but from experience of being a foreigner in Brazil, I have learned that it is such a great feeling when people approach you, even knowing you are not fluent in their language.

I asked her where she was from – she was from Japan. I spoke slowly, used simple words and waited when she needed to think to form her next sentence. Basically, we had a conversation for most of the flight. My little pocket bible was still with me and she saw it and thought it was cute. Then suddenly, I had this feeling again from God and I knew I was supposed to give her my bible.

I was hoping to pray for her as well – this is when I went into “self”. She didn’t understand the question when I asked if I could pray for her. She was really confused. Of course, God knew that. That’s why He told me to give her the bible, not pray. Forgive me, God!

We were just about to land, when I gave her my bible and some chocolate from Brazil (because I felt God tell me to give these to her as well). She was so shocked. She knew this Bible was special to me and she refused at first, but I insisted, then she received it with gratitude. She told me she was so happy to have met me, thanked me for speaking to her and for the gifts. My prayer was that she would feel loved and hey, if it means giving up by bible then so be it.

You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you. ¹⁷ This is my command: Love each other.
John 15:16-17

God is the best teacher on the subject of Love. He knows what people need, what they value, and who they are on the inside. In every instance, I had no way to know what would be best, but God did. It never fails that when we follow His voice, He leads us to love. Even for those of us who are shy, He gives us a special boldness in that hour!

Friends, keep your eyes open for opportunities, your ears open to His voice and your hearts full of God’s love and when you ask, you will receive. Keep your love on!

Till the next adventure,

Katya

1 Corinthians 13 – The Greatest Of These Is Love

“If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.

And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.

If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.

Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude.

It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth.

Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

Love never ends.

As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away. When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways. For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.

So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.”

There’s something really special about the youth here in Brazil. Three years ago, I came here with a team on a mission trip. One night, during the ministry time, we were praying for people who needed healing. I remember a girl no more than 10 years old came up to me, I asked her what she wanted prayer for, expecting the request was for healing, but she simply said to me, “I just want more of God.”

“And he said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”
Matthew 18:3

Her simple request was genuine, powerful, and I believe we can learn from children how to approach God.

It’s been interesting on this trip because I seem to have a lot of opportunities to spend time with the youth here.

Singing Like A Frog and Speaking at a Cell Group

Couple weeks ago, my friend Pedro asked if I could sing for worship at the youth group. They couldn’t find anyone else to do it but I was getting over a cold, so my first thought was to say absolutely not. However, God told me to accept and tell him I would do it. I had no idea why!

It didn’t go that great. Well, Pedro said it was fine but nobody sang with me, because I sang in English, and my voice wasn’t very strong because I was sick, so honestly, I was really embarrassed up there. But you know what God told me before I went on that stage? “Sing to me, daughter. Just sing to me.” And friends, I really did. I made a fool of myself for God, but at least I know He was smiling. 🙂

Afterwards, I got to talk with the kids and get to know them better, which was really great. Who cares if I sounded like a frog? God likes frogs! And if I had not been there, I would have missed the opportunity to know these amazing kids.

Little did I know, these were the same kids I would speak to later that week…

My third week in Brazil, I met a lady named Larissa and she had asked me to speak at her cell group. I didn’t know she was the leader of the youth and her “cell group” was with these kids!

Yet, God knew all this ahead of time. He had helped me prepare for this message for two months and whether it be for adults or kids, it was what I was meant to share. The title was: God Can Use Anyone To Do Anything.

I shared about my adventure in Hong Kong, how God setup me up, and used me in a way I had never seen before. I was unprepared, without experience, and yet because He was leading it and it was His Spirit at work, miracles happened and God changed people’s lives. I would love to share the full story about that time in another post.

In summary, I was explaining to them that God only desires that we would be willing, that we would trust Him, and have faith in Him, and He does the rest.

I shared a story of when I was at a prayer room at my church. It was four years ago. I remember this woman who had a broken leg was sitting next to me. So clearly, God told me to pray for her but I was terrified. “I can’t heal her, God! This is too big for me. What if she doesn’t get better? What if the prayer doesn’t work?” I was paralyzed in fear and unfortunately, she left and I never prayed. God asked me, “Daughter, why didn’t you pray?” I said it was because I was afraid she would not be healed. He told me something I’ve never forgotten. He said, “Daughter, I did not ask you to heal her. I only asked you to pray. The healing is what I do. You only need to do what I ask of you.”

By the grace of God, later this day I met another woman with a broken leg and this time I did not hesitate when God asked me to pray. No, her leg wasn’t miraculously healed, but that wasn’t the point. It was just important I followed His voice.

I told them they could have bad grades, live in poverty, crippled, or be super smart, wealthy, and healthy and it didn’t matter – God could use them right where they were if they were brave enough to follow Him.

And I truly believe they will…

I was looking at these faces as I spoke, so hungry to know God, just like that little girl I met years ago. I saw Warriors, Princesses, Righteous Ones, Friends of God, Teachers, Poets, Worshipers, Servants, Seekers of Truth… Children of the King. During worship, one girl just laid on the floor, completely surrendered to God… and she’s only 13. God is going to use these kids to do wonderous things. I’m really excited about it.

The Lord told me to ask if any of them faced fear because they felt inexperienced, or pressured like I felt, or that they needed to know exactly what to say before they could speak. Do you know almost all of them raised their hand? Even my translator? Haha! But seriously, fear is a real thing that is trying to silence the children of God, I really believe that.

God gave me this verse in 2 Timothy 1:7 that says, “For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love, and self-discipline.” His Spirit does not cause us to shrink back, but to be brave.

God told me to have them all go on their knees and to pray over them, the same prayer Paul prayed for the church in Ephesians 3:16-21. It was a prayer for them know God’s love and find their strength in Him. Friends, it was one special night.

Playing A Messed Up Viola At A Young Adult Meeting

The next night was quite funny. My friend Luiza invited me to her small group for young adults. An hour before leaving, I received a text from her asking if I could bring my viola to play with her brother while he played guitar and she sang. No problem! I may not be able to sing, but viola is my thing!

About 10 minutes before I needed to go, I thought, “Hm. Maybe I should tune my viola before leaving.” Well, lo and behold, I forgot I had not played since I returned from my last trip and if you don’t know this about stringed instruments, you have to loosen all the strings before going on a flight. My viola was a complete, stringy mess! I tighten the strings, but usually a viola needs about an hour of playing for it to adjust and stay in tune. I had less than 10 minutes.

I did what I could, but on the drive I was really worried about it. What if it went out of tune while when I played and it sounded horrible? I know I was already embarrassed once this week, but again? I probably have some pride I need to deal with, and really it shouldn’t have mattered, but still, I thought, “C’mon, God. Please let this work tonight.”

We were preparing to play, I was tuning my viola (again), and God said to me, “Play to me, Daughter. Don’t worry about your viola. Just play to me.” We didn’t have any rehearsal, there was no way to know what it would sound like, but I felt such peace then. With my viola in my hand, I closed my eyes, shut out the world and I played to Him. Do you know my viola completely stayed in tune the entire time? O there is a God and He loves me!

Afterwards, Luiza’s brother came to me and said, “Katya, that was so beautiful. The moment you hit your bow to the string the entire atmosphere changed in the room. And I’ve played with other musicians, other violinists, and celloists, but it was really special tonight. I could tell you were completely playing to Jesus.”

Can you believe that? It was only God because Lord knows, at first I just wanted to sound good. He helped me to get my focus in the right place, and from there, God blessed them. I can’t work miracles, but Jesus surely can! It’s also really cool because her brother invited me to join the worship team at the church when I return in November. I need to pray about it, but in any case, it’s an honor he asked. 🙂

The “See You Later” Surprise Party

Since I spoke at the youth group, I’ve been going to their meetings and I keep falling more and more in love with these kids. They are so funny and amazing. On Sunday, I played my viola at the youth church – which was super fun – and then last night, they threw a surprise party for me! I leave on Monday so they all came to say goodbye to me. It was the best. We had a bible study, played games, ate too much brigadeiro (basically, a fudge ball with sprinkles) and laughed the night away. I love them and I’m so happy this is just a “see you later” and not a “goodbye”.

Friends, it’s been great getting to know the youth and young adults here. They are some kind of wonderful and I’m looking forward to getting to know them better when I return. Maybe you can pray for them with me, for them live bravely, to know God, and follow in His footsteps wherever it is He may take them.

Pray they would have adventures with Jesus!

Till the next adventure,
Katya

Hey friends,

I’ve got some news for you. It’s a pretty big change in my life, and definitely a surprise from Jesus, but come November, I’m going to return to Brazil for one year to study Portuguese and teach English.

Well, it wasn’t a total surprise. I think God kind of prepared me ahead of time through Mother Teresa.

Back in March, I was watching this movie called “The Letters” and it was about the life of Mother Teresa. I didn’t know this but before she was a saint, she was a teacher, living and working in a convent in Calcutta. She was faithful in her job for almost 20 years before she ever left her convent to serve the poor. One of the ways she served them was through teaching them, even opening a school. Of course later, with the help of others, she opened hospices for the poor, orphanages, and leper houses and dedicated her entire life to serve the poorest of the poor. There is so much she did in her life, but for some reason, seeing her begin as a teacher inspired me to do the same.

After that movie, I signed up for a TEFL certification program to learn how to teach English in foreign countries. Unfortunately, I didn’t have time to complete it because I was preparing to travel to Asia, but God was planting something within my heart.

It was during my time here in Brazil when my desire to live abroad and teach came up again. Out of curiosity, I started researching the rules and regulations for staying in Brazil, the visas, etc. but I thought I was going crazy. I had just started working at this amazing non-profit back in my home town and had recently been invited in January 2018 to join the staff for the creative school I went to a year ago. I had committed to these things, and it’s not a value of mine to go back on my word. What was God doing? Why did I feel such urgency within me to come back to this country when it would completely change the course of my life?

I called my mom.

I needed someone to talk to and to pray with me about this… and tell me if I was going crazy or not. You know what she told me? “You can do this, you know. If God is telling you to do this, you should and you can. He’ll show you what to do and I’ll be there for you no matter what.”

And that’s why I called her. She’s the best. 😉

I went to church a few days later and in one of the rooms I saw a sign that said, “You Are Here.” God spoke to me through this. It’s as though He said to me, “You Belong Here.” I was suddenly so filled with peace. I wasn’t afraid anymore. Also, I saw this sign and thought: God Is Here. You are here Lord, you are here with me.

If this what Jesus wanted me to do, I would trust Him and take His hand. It probably would be the biggest adventure we’ve gone on together, but if this is where He wants us to go next, then okay. I’ll go.

After a lot of fasting, prayer, and having other people fast and pray with me, this is definitely the new plan for my life and I’m going back to Brazil!

I’ve already paid for part of my tuition, and I’m in the process of getting documents ready for my visa interview in a couple of weeks when I return home. (Please pray for this!)

Here’s the plan:

I’ll be studying Portuguese for a year, from this November to November of next year. At the school I’m attending, they will personally train me to teach English for three months. I’ll learn how to teach all levels of English, even how to teach English in business and English for entry exams for jobs, universities, etc. After the three months, I’ll be able to begin teaching a class at the school and the lead teachers at the school will help me along as I go.

The Lord has told me I am in a time of preparation. There will be a lot of hard work, but I know God has a great plan for this coming year. Personally, I want to go to the streets of Brazil, talk to prostitutes, to the homeless, the orphans, and the wealthy, the elite, and all those who are searching for love. I want to share with them about Jesus and what He has done in my life. I want to listen to their stories. I want to write songs in Portuguese. There’s so many things, and yet, I have to put in the hard work and the time to prepare myself because I’m not there yet.

I can still love, I can always love, and I don’t need speak fluently in this language to do this but God is challenging me to meet these people where they are at, to know Portuguese, because I think He can do more in my life if I can communicate in their language and if I can teach. Yet, at the end of the day, only God knows what He has planned for my future!

 

Can you believe it? Me – shy, little Katya – going on this big adventure? I can’t believe it either. Truth be told, I’m nervous about teaching, it’s a completely new direction for me, but I know I can stand on God’s promises:

“What then shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?”
Romans 8:31

“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”
Philippians 4:13

“The Lord is my light and my salvation, whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life, of whom shall I be afraid?”
Psalm 27:1

“With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”
Matthew 19:26

 

Till the next adventure,
Katya

 

Lately, I’ve found myself in situations where I think, “How did I end up here?”

A few weeks ago I went to another city to visit with some friends of mine. They work at a church there and worship God about 8 hours a day. My friends are incredible and their church has a 24/7 worship, so needless to say, I was loving it.

I brought my viola, and most days would go with them to join them in their worship sessions. One of those days, they had to do some admin work, so I stayed in the sanctuary with the pastor who was playing the bongos on stage. There were maybe three or four people there but nobody else. I had my viola with me and felt to ask the pastor if I could play with him. He was happy to have company!

So I sat there on my knees and played with him. My eyes were closed so I didn’t pay attention to the people coming in. After 20 minutes or so I felt a tap on my shoulder and saw it was the sound guy. He said to me, “Hey, can you just come here on the mic? It’d be easier for them to hear you.” I was thinking, “Okay… sure.”

I went on the mic, and then a girl came next to me. I looked around on the stage and noticed a drummer and guitarist were there now too. I thought, “Hm. That’s interesting.” Then we all started to play, while everyone in the audience stood up, and worshipped with us.

It took me a second, but as I was playing I was like, “Did I just join the worship team? How am I here right now?” I started to laugh because God knew this ahead of time.

He does this so often. I have these nudges, theses feelings telling me to go here or say this or do that, and when I listen and obey that still small voice, what began as a tiny step of faith becomes something far greater.

God likes to take the ordinary and makes it extraordinary…

After we played about 30 minutes, the pastor came up to speak and once he finished speaking the worship leader invited me back on stage to play with them. What an honor! I didn’t even know these people, and was still learning their language, but God orchestrated all of it regardless of what I didn’t know. He put me in the right place at the right time.

At the end, a lot of people came up to me and told me how much my playing blessed them. It was surprising, because I wasn’t supposed to be there, yet here I was. And in that moment I realized, God didn’t do this was for me. It was for them.

Just last week, a girl in my house came in the kitchen when I was cooking and after some time of standing there she broke down and began crying. She told me so much that was on her heart and I didn’t know what to do or say. But I hugged her and asked to pray for her. She wanted prayer. Before, I remember feeling I needed to go downstairs to begin cooking, a feeling so small, and yet, God knew I needed to be there at that exact time to listen to my friend.

It wasn’t about me, but her.

I’m learning this. My adventures with Jesus are about Him taking me to His lost sheep, to the hurting, the broken, the wounded, the ones who just need encouragement or prayer. He knows His children so well. He knows exactly what they need, right when they need it. His timing is always perfect. I’m just amazed He takes what I have to bless His children. A little song here, a little prayer there. 🙂

My desire is to stay sensitive to His voice. These adventures with Him are so glorious and I don’t want to miss a single thing!

Till the next adventure,
Katya

After that last post, I felt like I need to write this: the missionary life does not always look like the “missionary life”. This is something I learned when I spent some time with full-time missionaries in Kosovo.

It was last year. I had just come from a three-month, intensive creative school where we learned how to use music, dance, and art in missions. It was an incredible time. Once we all graduated, we were sent to different countries in small groups to spend one month with full-time missionaries on the field and put into practice all that we learned.

My placement was Kosovo.

I fully expected to write a song while I was there, after all, that’s what I had been trained to do. I was also praying to meet at least one person there, lead them to Christ, and maybe even make some local friends.

I had many expectations but I wasn’t expecting the plan God had for me in Kosovo.

We were assigned to a missionary family from America. They had been there for two years already and had lots of experience in Kosovo. We had an orientation during the first week of our stay and they told us our job that week was simply to observe, take in the culture, get to know the area, learn some basic phrases in Albanian, and meet some people there. As our leader said, “Make this city your own.”

We did just that. We weren’t building houses or digging wells, but we learned the customs of the people and each of us began our separate journeys in this new country.

A week went by and yes, I observed and learned so much, but I couldn’t seem to write. For three months I had written a song per week, yet now I had no direction, no clarity, and I felt really frustrated. On top of that, I became sick. I had to stay home most days while everyone else got to go, connect more with the locals, and start some projects. The artists were given an opportunity to paint a mural in the city and the musicians helped out with worship at a local church. It seemed to me that everyone had a purpose during their time there, while I had none.

Why did God have me there if I couldn’t write songs or get to know people because I was stuck in bed?

I started getting up really early to pray. It wasn’t by choice really. I was sick and my body would wake up at 5:00 or 6:00 AM and I figured since I was up, I might as well go and pray. I would pray, ask God for direction, for a song, but eventually, I would run out things to pray for my life. My prayers would then turn into intercession for my team. When I ran out of things to pray for my team, my prayers would be for Kosovo and for the people.

After some days of this, God spoke to me so clearly and said prayer was my purpose. Prayer was my calling on this trip, to pray for my team and for Kosovo.

For the rest of the three weeks, I woke up every day and prayed for two hours in the morning for the things God put on my heart. And when everyone was gone and I was alone in the house, I would pray some more. The time with Him was so rich and at the end of the trip, I saw some prayers answered within my team. It was encouraging and though my purpose wasn’t what I expected, I believed I was doing what I was supposed to do.

Yet, let me tell you, it was also really hard sometimes because all around me I saw the members of my team doing “mission work”, and I had nothing to show for my time in Kosovo. I admit I wanted to be able to show pictures or video to people back home saying, “Look what I did for God!“. But what was I going to do, take a selfie while I’m praying?

It was humbling.

“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, and give thanks in all circumstances for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” – 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

During the last week, I was walking with one of the girls to meet with our leader’s wife for coffee. She was telling me how excited she was about her time there. I listened to her tell me how God gave her a song for Kosovo, how she met this guy, brought him to church and how he decided to follow Christ, and the friends she acquired there, and so on and so on.

Basically, everything I wanted to do, she got to do.

I would love to tell you I was fine, but listening to her made me feel so small. The lies began to come like, “What did I really do here? My team probably thinks I’m so lazy. I didn’t do anything. I couldn’t even write one song.”

We got to the coffee shop and my leader’s wife and the girl were talking and I just listened and drank my cappuccino, sighing in between sips. I finished my cup, looked inside, and I promise you I almost burst into tears right there. Not because I felt like a failure, but because God did something impossible and I wanted to laugh, dance, shout and cry at the same time.

God wrote, “I love you” in my coffee…

I realized it did not matter what I did or didn’t do, He loved me. God loved me so very much and was so pleased with me. He was with me. He heard my lament, He saw my tears, and yet, He wasn’t disappointed that I couldn’t do the things I was hoping to do. Nobody else saw what I did in the morning, but it didn’t matter. All that mattered was that He saw and He heard.

My leader taught us that missionary life doesn’t always look like “missionary life” because every day is about listening to God and asking Him what He wants to do that day. Some days we will be busy working, other days it will look like we are doing nothing except meeting a friend for coffee or praying alone in our room, and yet all of it is valuable in God’s sight. Our life as Christians is first and foremost about loving God and listening to Him, and from that relationship, loving the people He puts in our path.

We are a team, a body, living for one purpose, and for an audience of One.

It doesn’t matter whether I was the one writing the song, or someone else, what matters is that it was written, that someone did it, and we can celebrate what God accomplished through that person. I was called to pray on that trip, she was called to write, another was called to paint, and another to dance. We can all celebrate each other, and in no way should we judge one person as being more accomplished than the other just because of what we see on the outside. The Lord is looking at our heart and He sees what people do not see, and really, that’s all that matters.

Till the next adventure,
Katya

“The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” – 1 Samuel 16:7

“This is love: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we ought to love one another.” – 1 John 4:10-11

Hey friends,

Last week, I flew to another city in Brazil to meet-up with a friend of mine. I came on Friday, she thought it was Saturday, and oh that was just the beginning of my adventure.

I could tell you all the details of the ways Jesus worked good out of the crazy during my time there, but that would take too long so I will just share three special stories from that trip.

1. Speaking At A Church & Listening To God

My friend invited me to her city earlier this year before I came to Brazil when I was back home and had just booked my airline ticket. She invited me to come and speak at her church. I laughed when she asked because listen, I haven’t gone to seminary school, ministry school, bible college or whatever you go to learn how to preach. I didn’t have training and I felt unqualified to teach anyone how to live their life when I was still trying to figure out my own.

However, there’s something incredible that happened when I went to Hong Kong in April this year (a story for another time), and on that trip, I learned that God can use anyone to do anything. No training needed.

“So he said to me, “This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel: ‘Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says the LORD Almighty.” – Zechariah 4:6

So, a month ago I accepted her offer and told her I would speak at her church. By His grace, God had put a message on my heart and showed me something He wanted the church to do.

Here’s what happened: My friend translated, and I spoke for 15 minutes or so. Not long. The Lord wanted me to share about Psalm 81, about His desire for His people to listen to Him, and I shared some stories.

Then we gave God 20 minutes to speak.

It was so beautiful.

We were quiet, the pianist played a beautiful melody. It was a time for the people to spend with God, to thank Him, to be honest with Him, and then to listen.

Before going to the church, my friend and I brought crayons and paper because God told me He wanted 20 minutes that night for people to practice listening.

God speaks through our imagination, hence the crayons. Sometimes, it’s a song, a picture, words, a bible verse, an idea, a memory… all of it and more can be God’s way of speaking. So, they were able to write or draw anything that came.

At first, I wasn’t sure if they were hearing anything. They could have been doodling for all I knew. But if anything else, I figured it was a good exercise to sit down and create space to listen to God.

The rest of the night was really special, being able to pray with some people and such, but because of the language, it was hard for me to understand what exactly God did, until the next day. My friend said her Whatsapp was full with messages from people saying they heard from God, and all that He spoke to them, and the healing that happened for them.

I couldn’t believe it!! He spoke and they heard Him! Wow, thank you, Jesus.

That was only one night of my trip….

There are just two other really special moments I’d like to share.

2. The Home For Girls Rescued From Sex Trafficking

The day after that night, my friend took me to a home that houses girls rescued from sex trafficking and prostitution. For almost 7 years, I’ve had a desire to work with girls who’ve been through this kind of trauma, and to actually be there with them and hold them and laugh with them… it was beyond words. My heart was broken and full at the same time.

We drew pictures together and did some origami together, it was so fun but at the end of the day one girl, Jess, looked deep into my eyes and asked if I would be coming back. I wanted to tell her I would never leave, but of course, I had to. But what is so amazing is that she knows Jesus now, and He is with her, and they have some incredible women working there who can share His love with her each day.

I hope to come back one day and hold Jess one more time. She was so precious but only 14 years old. I can’t imagine the things she’s lived through, but seeing her beautiful smile, I know there is a God. Only love can make that kind of beauty from ashes.

3. Seeing Prostitutes Experience God’s Love

The last day of my trip, my friend had a meeting with a couple who go to the streets and pray for prostitutes. The wife is from Canada and the husband is from England. They’ve been in Brazil for about two years, and their mission is to love.

When my friend came back from the meeting, her face was shining. She told me all about it and how, if I wanted to, we had enough time before my flight to go with them. Now, my face was shining too!

This was the first time I had done something like this so I was excited but really nervous. What would I say? What would I do? I felt all of a sudden like a teenager again with all these insecurities. But as I talking to God about this He said to me, “Daughter, can you pray?” I was like, “Yes. Haha. I know how to pray.” And He said, “Okay, then just pray as you are with them. Don’t worry about what to say or do right now. I’ll give you the words in that hour.”

^“But when they arrest you, do not worry about what to say or how to say it. At that time you will be given what to say, for it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.” – Matthew 10:19-20

We went and met a few different women, prayed over them, and my friend was so dynamic. She just had so much encouragement for them, and I think it meant a lot coming from her because she is Brazilian and could speak in their language, (Hopefully, that will be me too one day!) It was so simple, just go and love. When they saw we didn’t want anything from them except to pray, to talk, and love them, their walls came down.

We met a lady named Kelly and she was really special. We prayed for her and she began crying. My friend hugged her and as she held her, I watched Kelly’s face. I’ve never seen this expression before. It’s like she was able to breathe for the first time in a long time, as though she hadn’t been held like that since she was a child, or like she was in a safe place for a moment and never wanted to let go… I don’t know another way to describe it but I’ll not forget that face.

She was experiencing God’s love and I literally saw what it was doing to her.

She was a different person. Guys would pull up in a car, waiting for her to get in, and she just ignored them and kept talking with us. The couple told us that usually, the girls will make an excuse to leave and get in the car, but she didn’t.

Then God told me to take her hand and tell her that she was a precious princess and a daughter of God. I actually knew those words in Portuguese! So, I did and she thanked me and gave me a big hug. I didn’t have a lot to say, but God gave me just those words in that hour, and I think that was something special.

God loves her so much. He loves all of them. Again, my heart was broken for them, yet full because they were experiencing His love for them. I just wish I could take them away from all the pain and hurt and take them to a place without any suffering. A safe place. A haven.

I hated that we got to walk away while they had to stay there.

I want Kelly and the other girls to live in freedom and maybe one day I can do more. Yet, right now all I can do is pray.

Back To My Brazilian Home…

I’m back in my room, with the memories in my heart, and still so amazed by God. With all the hurt in the world, I’ve been thinking lately how I would rather go through life with God than without Him. I don’t know I would be able to walk through hell without knowing I had a Savior. That’s the thing, this world has so much suffering, it’s like an inferno but how amazing to know this is our promise:

“When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you.” – Isaiah 43:2

I wasn’t expecting to go on a mission trip within a mission trip, but I’m glad it worked out that way. My next trip is coming up tomorrow. I leave to yet another city for 10 days to spend time with a friend and their family. The husband mentioned an opportunity to speak at a youth night, and I’m bringing my viola with me this time too and maybe I will have some worship time with them. That’s all I know so far.

Only God knows what He has planned next!

Till the next adventure,
Katya

p.s. Hey friend, remember to keep the girls in your prayers, ok? We can’t see them, but they’re there and need people to pray for them. Your prayers are special because God hears them and responds to your heart. Thanks so much for doing that. You’re awesome.

Hey friend,

Right now, I’m in Brazil. I’ve been here for three weeks already and have learned some things so far.

1. Brazilians love to touch and hug. A lot. And a kiss on the cheek is common too.

2. Puxe, pronounced “Push”, actually means “Pull”. I still get confused sometimes…

3. Most Brazilians love Açai cream, but have never actually seen the açai berry before.

4. God really, really loves this country.

This is my third time to Brazil and it never ceases to amaze me how beautiful these people are, on the inside and out. I prayed for months before coming, for Brazil and these beloved people, and every time God would show me just how huge His love was for them.

A few weeks ago, some people from a church here invited me to join them on an outreach to a homeless shelter. We met the owner, a woman named Zizi. Her smile was so contagious! She gave up everything, her home, her job, to open this shelter, yet she had such joy. About six years ago, she read in the bible how Jesus says to care for the homeless, and she said if this is what Jesus said to do then she wanted to do it. What a beautiful heart!

We were able to share about Jesus with some of the men staying there, and how much God loved them. Many were brought to tears, and so many decided they wanted to receive God’s love for them. We sang some of our worship songs and then, they taught us some of theirs. It was so fun. We even were able to baptize one man with a bottle of water!

Afterward, we had lunch together and laughed and shared stories about our lives. My portuguese is still in progress, so I didn’t understand everything but sometimes you don’t need to know all the words to be able to communicate. I think it meant a lot to them just for us to be there and listen. They shared stories, their time, and their food. They treated us like guests in their home.

They didn’t have much but what they had, they gave.

I feel like so many in Brazil have this mindset. They share, they celebrate, they live and they love.

I know I came here to serve this country and these people, but what I wasn’t expecting was the way they have taught me to love. So far, I’ve seen so many people here who know how to love well.

Yet, I know there are so many who feel unseen and unknown.

I hope Jesus will take our hand and lead us to them. Then, we can give them a hug and a kiss, and tell them they how beautiful they are and how much God loves them.

Keep praying for us here!

Till the next adventure,
Katya