New Blog Site

Greetings from Brasilia!

This morning I met up with the medical team from our church in Boca Raton here in Brasilia. Tomorrow we'll be heading off to Palmas to begin a week of ministry. Our team of doctors, nurses, and translators is joining with some Brazilian doctors, dentists, nurses, hair cutters, etc. for a huge week-long free clinic. The organization that we're joining picks a different Brazilian city each year to have this huge event--after each day of giving free health care, there is a church service in the evening. Although many of these people have serious physical problems, it is often their souls that need the most healing.

Anyway, this is all just to say that as part of the medical team, (well, I'm a translator) we have a different blog. It is located at: http://brazilmedical2006.blogspot.com

And since the hotel here in Brasilia has fast internet, I've been able to upload some pictures from last week into this blog, so scroll down on this page and take a peek!

I miss you all!

--Joy

Quick note from Araçatuba

Bible Study time

Greetings from Araçatuba!

Just a quick note here at the end of camp. Things have been going pretty well these last few days, especially in the area of language--thanks for your prayers! I have had some of the girls teach me some slang words, which helped me to understand them better, and helped them realize why I was giving them blank looks at some of the things they were saying!

Yesterday I competed in the final stages of our version of Brazilian Idol. I am really really glad that I spent so much time last year translating and recording a bunch of songs, and organizing all of my performance traks onto one CD--it´s been a really fun time picking out a different song or two to perform each night!

It will be sad to board a bus and leave Araçatuba at noon today! I have really fallen in love with this little town and the people here--families like the Harmons, the seminary, the camp, the little churches, the kids. I am praying that the Lord would let me come back soon!

Today and tomorrow will be spent traveling from Araçatuba to São Paulo, and then to Palmas. There are some logistical problems involving Ben´s plane ticket to Palmas that still have to be worked out, so please pray for things to go smoothly and safely!

I miss you guys!
--Joy

Camp Harmony

Team Barcelona at Camp Harmony

Greetings from Araçatuba!!

These past 3 days have been spent at Camp Harmony, home to George Harmon and his family, as well as several acres of space that can host over 100 campers. I had originally come to help out with the music, but they were short on counselors, so I spend the nights in the 40-girl dorm and pass the days playing soccer, volleyball, water balloons, relay races, and plenty of Bible Study! We are divided into 2 teams which compete in every aspect of life during the week, from sports competitions to bathroom cleanliness. Ben Neff is a counselor for the guys on our team, and so far, Team Barcelona has been doing very well! Last night I helped our team by singing in a camp version of Brazilian Idol. Tonight will be phase 2 of the competition!

Pastor George Harmon is Ben´s mom´s brother, who had a dream for many years to have a camp in Araçatuba, where church groups could come for retreats during the summer and winter holidays. He and his brother had worked in radio ministry for many years and started a seminary here in Araçatuba before starting the camp. Uncle George´s 4 kids are helping out with the music and other activities at the camp, and his wife leads the girls´ Bible Study in the mornings. This week´s theme has been Wisdom, and we are digging into the book of Proverbs.

I am enjoying getting to know the 17 girls on my team ages 11-16--some of them were raised in church, some of them are at camp for the first time, some are from very poor families. Being a counselor comes with a lot of blessings, especially when the girls want to hear about the US or learn words in English, but the language factor for me has been an especial challenge. Depending on what kind of environment the girls are from, some of them use a dialect that I have a lot of difficulty understanding. After doing fine in Atibaia for 2 weeks in a Portuguese-only environment, all of a sudden I´m back to feeling frustrated that I can´t understand what the girls are saying and they´re frustrated that I can´t understand them. This, combined with the tiring schedule, late nights, early mornings, and responsibility over so many girls, is my prayer request for the rest of this week! On the positive side, yesterday, I DID score my first soccer goal ever!

My Heroine Ruth Harmon

I took an overnight bus from São Paulo that arrived in Araçatuba on Monday morning. I got to spend a few hours at John and Ana Harmon´s house, which meant I got to meet my heroine Ruth Harmon. "Grandma Ruth" came to Brazil as a missionary in 1936, traveling by horseback with her husband to bring the Gospel to the Indians. Her 4 children and many of her grandchildren are now involved in full-time ministry, many of whom I´ve gotten to meet this week! I had written a song about Grandma Ruth, (who was a pianist and a teacher herself) which I got to play for her on Monday!

There is so much I could tell about Araçatuba and the people I have met here, but I don´t have a lot of time to use the internet, as you can probably tell by the lack of blog posts the past few days. I might take some pictures on Friday before we head back to the São Paulo airport to catch our flight to Palmas. Thank you for your continued prayer--God has been faithful in supplying the energy that I need (sometimes in the form of Brazilian expresso that I´m drinking at the moment). I am SO thankful that He has found me worthy of serving the Kingdom here so far away! This week has been filled with new friends who also have hearts for ministry in Brazil, and it has been so encouraging and exciting to meet so many members of the Harmon family of friends!

Thank you for praying! Abraços,
--Joy

Rua 25 de Março

Rua 25 de Março
Originally uploaded by joywilson.

Greetings from São Paulo!

I think one of my favorite things to do in a new city is to get to know it on foot, and WOW have we been doing that! I have always disliked tourist-y stuff and prefer experiencing the culture as a member of it, not as an observer. For me, the best way to do that is by walking on the streets in the center of town, going into stores, sitting in parks, and navigating the subway. And there you have a summary of my past 2 days in São Paulo!

Yesterday (Saturday), we went down to a famous street called Rua 25 de Março, which is where people from all over Brasil come and get their goods wholesale to sell elsewhere. Translated: Everything you can imagine, really cheap, REALLY crowded. It's technically an actual street, but at noon on a holiday weekend, the few cars trying to pass through were quite unfortunate. I LOVE being around so many people--but don't worry, I've learned to be careful about my belongings in a place like this.

Old Men in the Park

We have also had the opportunity to visit some city parks. Like, huge Central Park-style city parks, with lakes and vendors and playgrounds and sports fields and bridges and guitar players. What I love most about Brazil are the people. I love watching people and meeting people. Parks are a great place to do this.

I have also enjoyed getting to know Igreja Batista de Esperança. Last night we had a fun time at college group, and I met a big part of Ben's church family. This morning I got to sing/play in the service ("Your Grace Still Amazes Me"), which I will also do this evening ("Lord Have Mercy"). This church has a seminary with around 80 students, and one of the 4th year students gave the message this morning. In Brazil, you can become a pastor after only 4 years of college.

I've had a good time getting to know new friends. A group of us went out to dinner at Burger King after the service last night, and we went to an art museum this afternoon! It was only $2 to get into the museum, but even that small entrance fee instantly put us in a high-class world, with high class people. It was weird to go straight from that environment to the subway, a few meters below. This juxtoposition of rich and poor peppers the culture of Brazil. You have big fancy houses right next to the favelas, and makeshift housing one block over from booming commerce. It's easy for me to think "Why don't these rich people help the poor that live in their backyard?" until I look at myself and realize that here I am, blessed to be an American with a college degree, living just an 8-hour plane ride from people with whom I can share what God has given me.

Tonight after the service, I will take an overnight bus to Araçatuba, which is 7 hours away. I wish I could spend more time here in São Paulo. Last year, I didn't like the city too much because the sheer enormity overwhealmed me, but getting around town these past few days has really helped me appreciate the culture and the atmosphere and realize that it really isn't as scary as I thought!

I have to go now, and I don't know when I will next have an internet connection, but I'll try to stay in touch!

Abraços,
--Joy

Paulista

the Office at IBE

Greetings from São Paulo!

Just a quick note to say that I got to São Paulo safe and sound yesterday, without experiencing a single riot or bus-burning! Yesterday morning I said all of my good-byes in Atibaia and then Paul, Micheli, and Naira drove me into São Paulo. I got a tour of the church where Ben Neff lives, called Primeira Igreja Batista de Esperança (First Baptist Church of Hope). The 7-story church was founded and built by missionaries in the 1970s (I think) and sits really close to the center of São Paulo.

Today I'm going to be able to get to know São Paulo by foot and by subway. Last year when we took the subway here in São Paulo, I was really impressed with how clean everything wasThis evening we have college group, and I'm looking forward to making more friends and spending time in fellowship! Tomorrow I'll be doing special music in the morning service, and in the afternoon, we'll take the bus to Araçatuba, at which point I do not know if there will be internet access.

Please continue to pray for safety--even though I'll be walking around with a 6'3" bodyguard today :-) I have to still remember I'm in the middle of São Paulo, Brazil!

Abraços,
--Joy

A First Time for a Lot of Things

Ropes Course Trio
Originally uploaded by joywilson.

Greetings from Atibaia!

Although today was my last full day in Atibaia, it was also the day of many "firsts." Whenever you go out of the country, you just set yourself up for doing lots of things you've never done before, and today was jam-packed with new experiences in my life! We (Micheli, Naira, and I) spent the day in Joanópolis, which is about an hour away from Atibaia, where Micheli's family has their farm and her parents' bar. I was really excited about this because I love the scenery of the interior of Brazil--the rolling hills, grass, trees... I also got to spend some more time with Micheli's family, talking with her grandma for a long time and getting a tour from her dad. And I got to do a lot of new things!

Lopes Sitio

First #1: Today was my first time visiting a Brazilian "sitio." It is really common in Brazil to have more than one house, the second one being on a large piece of land in the "interior" of Brazil. This farm is called a "sitio." The Lopes family, besides their cute home in Atibaia (see previous blog) has a sitio in Joanópolis, which is buried beyond the rolling hills of the interior of São Paulo. Micheli's mom and dad have a little bar there, as well as a house on a cute little man-made lake complete with a dock for catching fish, which, by the way, was delicious. They have a lot of land and several animals, including a horse or two, a few pigs, some birds, and a lot of chickens/hens/roosters/etc. Micheli does not spend as much time at the sitio as her parents, but it is a really nice place to relax and enjoy fresh air. Nearby the sitio is a really tall waterfall, which we got to go visit. Micheli brought her camera and tripod, and we spent a good hour taking pictures. I put several of them on my Flickr account, which you can access by clicking on any of the pictures on this page.

Joy in the Air (haha)

First #2: Today I went on a ropes course for the first time ever! Nearby the waterfall is a cool ropes coarse, and when we went over to check out the rates for future visits, the owner, who knows Micheli's parents, offered to let us go for free! Fortunately, we had good tenis shoes on, so we strapped on our helmets and spent a breathtaking hour suspended over rushing water and sharp rocks, secured only by our own willpower and two very important cords harnessed around our waists. There were some guys down below who started taking pictures of us during our adventure, who we thought were employed by the ropes coarse to gather imagery for brouchures, but it turned out that they were just hobbyists passing through, and they gave us all 300 digital pictures for free! We had a blast in Joanopolis this afternoon, as you can tell!

Tomorrow after lunch I'll be headed for São Paulo to meet up with Ben at the church where he lives. I'll be staying with some friends of his, and will be helping out at the church on Sunday morning, after which Ben and I will head to Araçatuba by bus. I do not know when I will next have access to e-mail, but I will do my best to send a "safe arrival" message at some point. Please pray for safety--there was some rioting again in São Paulo today and even one bus-burning out here one town away from Atibaia. Although things are not nearly as bad as they were in May, Ben told me that much of the public bus system was shut down this afternoon. Most of my transportation once I'm in São Paulo will be by Subway, fortunately.

Keep in touch! Thank you for all of your prayers!
Abraços,
--Joy

Mirror Mirror on the floor

P.S. First #3: Today was my first time EVER winning a bowling game! I really don't know how it happened--maybe you were all praying for me, but tonight at our re-match, I actually WON a game!!!

Tour of the Lopes House

Lopes House

Greetings from Atibaia!

I thought I'd tell you a little bit about Micheli's family, and their house where I'm staying. They live close to the center of Atibaia, which as about 100,000 people spread over several large hills. The Lopes house is behind the big blue doors in the picture. The pink paint is the beginning of her grandmother's house (their front walls are attached). Behind the doors is where they store the car. The whole house is about 10' wide, but it goes back pretty far. Micheli's room is in the very front, behind which is the kitchen with the side door to the outside walkway.

Most social activity here takes place between the kitchen and Micheli's room, which has already slept 4 at least once in these past two weeks! Naira is on break from college, so she has been spending the nights and days here this week. I love it when we do devotionals together before bedtime! Even though I can converse pretty well in Portuguese, talking about God and praying is a whole other level, especially because in Brazilian Portuguese, they use a whole different conjugation of verbs when talking to God, which of course, I did not learn in my University of Miami Portuguese 105 class. Naira has been helping me learn and giving me opportunities to practice using this special conjugation.

Behind the kitchen is the hall which has 2 more bedrooms and 2 bathrooms. If you walk outside behind the house, you get to the overhang where the washing machine and "solar dryer" (translated: clothesline) is, as well as the stairs down to the cellar and an extra storage room, where Micheli has some space to act as a photo studio. Yesterday I spent part of the morning doing laundry with Mrs. Lopes.

Mr. Lopes

Micheli's mom and dad spend half of the week in Atibaia, and the other half in Joanopolis, where they have the family farm and the bar that Mr. and Mrs. Lopes own. There are a lot of grandparents, aunts, and uncles, most of whom live within a mile or two from the house here--as I said, her grandma lives almost connected, and one set of aunt/uncle/cousins lives right there in the back. I feel very safe, because Atibaia is a pretty tight-knit town, and there's always a family member to look after you, even when Mr. and Mrs. Lopes are at the farm and Micheli and I have the house to ourselves. Tonight, a group of us from church went bowling, which was a blast! Sad to say, I'm just as bad of a bowler in Brasil as I am in the U.S, even though the lanes are shorter! At the end of the game, the scores were so close that we decided to have a re-match tomorrow night. My goal is to not come in last place! Woo-hoo!

It's at times like this when I step outside of myself and think, "Why do I feel so comfortable and accepted here? I'm this little fair-skinned kid with strange clothes and a heavy accent, lacking the Portuguese to fully participate in most 3-way conversations, with a degree in something that cannot get me a full-time job straight out of college anywhere in this country, here living off of people who make a quarter of what I would in the US, and I can't even bowl!" I put myself in the shoes of my Brazilian friends and seriously wonder if I would treat a stranger the same way in the US. I can only chuckle a little, shake my head, look heavenward, and say, "Wow, God, whatever You did to put me in a place where others would show me Your love and grace, I am thankful!!!

Tomorrow we are going to the Lopes family farm, and by Friday I'll be on my way to São Paulo!

Abraços,
Joy

Long Day in Campinas

Very Silly Girls
Originally uploaded by joywilson.

Greetings from Atibaia!

Today was a long day spent in Campinas, which is about an hour away. Micheli's mom had to have a Catherism, (I think that's what it was), which was this 6-hour exam that turned into 8 hours in a doctor's office. Micheli (leftmost person in the picture), Naira (rightmost), and I (in the red) drove her to the doctor's, and spent the afternoon walking around the big mall in Campinas. Naira is in her last year studying to be a Physical Therapist, so today she taught me a lot of medical terms in Portuguese, which will be really handy when I translate for the medical mission trip the last week of July. I learned useful words like "itch," "glass," "immune system," "hyperglycemia," (I'm not even sure how to spell that in English) and "bladder infection."

Yesterday was spent here at the house. I helped Mrs. Lopes cook lunch (the most important meal of the day) and I wrote everything down so I can practice when I get back home. It was funny--some ingredients I had no clue what they were. There was one important liquid she used a lot called "Molho inglês," which I had no clue about until I smelled it and realized it was basically A1 steak sauce! Mrs. Lopes and I got to talk a lot about the different ways we grew up, and she had a lot of questions about "my country" and why I decided to come to Brasil in the first place.

These last few days have been a stark contrast to the rush of last week. It's actually kind of a struggle because even though I know that my job this week is to get to know and spend time with Micheli's family, something American deep inside me is saying, "But Joy, you're not DOing anything!" The long quiet miles in the car, the hours spent trying to read magazines in the waiting room. . . for a person who is used to multitasking everything, this is almost as hard as giving private lessons 8 hours a day. But at the same time, I have found myself turning to the Lord in prayer, realizing that He has pulled me out of the business of life to have a different Focus. I am praying for Micheli, for her parents, for her cousins, aunts, and uncles, for PIBA, for Ben and his studies, for the future, for Brasil. Thank you for all of you who have been praying for these things as well. Prayer does not need a plane ticket to reach a different continent or hemisphere, although it seems like God needed to send me away to teach me about Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, and Supplication.

Tomorrow we will get to visit some friends and family, and hopefully head over to the family farm on Thursday. I'll keep you updated! Thank you again for the comments, e-mails, and most of all, prayer!

Abraços,
--Joy

Music Clinic

Workshop Group
Originally uploaded by joywilson.

Greetings from Atibaia!

It's been a long time since I last wrote, but there has been a lot going on! Or, as they say here, things have been "bem corridos"

Saturday was the music clinic. I had been given pretty much free reign as to what we could do at the clinic. In the past few months, I thought a lot about Brazil's shortage of instrumental arrangements of worship songs. (By "instrumental arrangements," I mean written-out music for an assortment instruments to play to accompany congregational singing in a church service.) My initial response to fill this need last summer was to write arrangements myself of these Brazilian songs for the band at PIBA to play, but this year I realized that my clinic opened a grand opportunity to fulfill the old adage: "Give a man a fish, feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, feed him for life." So instead of coming to Brazil to write arrangements, I taught the students at the clinic how to write arrangements for themselves!

Workshop in Action.

The first thing we did was I conducted an "interview" with each instrument--I invited a person who played each instrument to come to the front, and we talked about the range of their instrument, what notes and keys were most difficult for them to play, how they made sound with their instrument, what parts of their body tired most easily, and whether or not their instrument transposed. This was a lot of fun because there were a lot of teenagers in the group and they liked showing off their instruments and learning about each other. After the interviews, we walked through an arrangement I had made, talking through the step-by-step process of arranging a song.

Then came the fun part--we divided into small groups, and each group had to come up with their own 8-part arrangement of an 8-measure excerpt of a praise song. It was fun to see everyone trying to work together and try out some creative ideas. During lunch, I quickly entered these arrangements into Finale on my laptop and printed out parts for all of the instruments so we could play through them (remember, a Brazilian lunch break is like 2 hours). It was cool for them to hear right away what they had written!

Pedra Grande view of Atibaia.

After the clinic, Micheli, Ben (who was here from São Paulo for the weekend), and I had a few free hours to go up Pedra Grande, which is the mountain that overlooks the city of Atibaia. The view was spectacular!!! It is a great place to parasail and there were a lot of people spending the afternoon on this "Big Rock." This part of Brazil is absolutely breathtaking. Even when we're driving in the car from one part of the city to another, I love just sitting quietly and soaking it all in--the hills, the trees, all the little houses, the bumpy roads...But the best part of Brazil is the people. The 7 weeks I spent here in Atibaia last year left me with lifelong friends, with whom I can not only communicate, but be myself! Last night, two friends came over here to Micheli's house and we turned on the music and had a "festa," just the 4 of us girls! I can't remember the last time I laughed so hard!!!

Today (Sunday), was my last Sunday at PIBA (already!) before I embark upon the next leg of my journey. I played the prelude for both the morning and evening services, the latter of which was a 4-hand piano duet of the hymn "My Tribute" that Wania and I pulled together at the last minute. At the end of the service, Cléía (the director of music here) invited me to come up to the front and she publicly thanked me for my help with the music program, and they prayed as a congregation for me and especially for my future ministry, whatever/wherever it might be. I was not expecting this, and I was really touched!

Speaking of, tomorrow begins my "real ministry," namely, spending time with Micheli's extended family, all of whom are all non-believers. We will be spending a little bit of time at the "family farm" an hour away, as well. Please pray that God would use me be His salt and light by sharing my heart for the Lord! God has been teaching me SOOO much, I feel it's like drinking from the fire hydrant. Please continue to pray that God would protect me from Satan's attacks. Thank you for your prayers! There is NO WAY I could be here without prayer!

Abraços,
--Joy

Singing Class

Singing Class
Originally uploaded by joywilson.

So last night was my first big class, kind of a warm-up for the clinic I'll give on Saturday. By now, I have figured out that no matter how much I plan, everything always ends up being improvised in the end. Last night, I had planned on doing a lot of warm-ups and breathing exercises, and then we would talk about improvising harmonies, and by ear, we would create a 3-part arrangement of Aclame Ao Senhor (Shout to the Lord). The warm-ups were a lot of fun--we did a lot of breathing exercises and I had them doing sirens and sighs, which made everyone laugh because, well, I guess it sounds funny to have a room full of ambulances. But my idea about improvising an arrangement of Shout to the Lord (which I had done in another clinic last year) didn't really work too well in Atibaia for some reason. The crowd was a little older than I had expected, with 15 out of 20 being women, and at the beginning, we had a difficult time even descending a major scale in unison without going flat. So trying to teach how to hear harmony parts (alto, tenor, etc) ended up being such a subjective process that I scratched the whole idea after 2 times through the song.

Vocal Technique

So instead of the class improvising, it was me who improvised! It was late at night and we were tired, so we took a break from singing to talk about how the vocal folds function in the larynx (good thing I had printed out a diagram a few hours before!) and how to get rid of breathiness in our singing tone. We also worked a little more on intonation, and by the end of the class, the group had really improved and we learned a simple chord progression in 3 parts.

Thanks for your prayers for the class--I had been giving lessons all day every day since Monday, and my voice was really tired, but I made it through and slept really well last night! And as always when I'm teaching, I learned new Portuguese words from my students, like the words for "harmonic series," "larynx," and "row."

Brazilian Smiles

Brazilians are so friendly and accepting! I am SO thankful for this. Even though I constantly have to talk around what I'm trying to say because I don't know the words, and I'm always making mistakes, everyone is always willing to help. I have yet to meet a Brazilian who has anything less than a warm, grateful attitude towards a little American girl with broken Portuguese.

Tonight we have college group at the church--I'm excited to see all of the friends that I have yet to see again! Please pray for tomorrow's music clinic. I don't know how many people will be there, or what assortment of instruments, but I have a lot of materials we could go through. Please pray for my Portuguese tomorrow--that I am able to communicate effectively enough to share my heart for the Lord and my passion for music. Thank you again for all of your encouragement and support!

Abraços,
--Joy

São Paulo

São Paulo at night

Greetings from Atibaia!

It's always kind of an overwhelming experience to go to São Paulo, even when it's too dark to see the forest of towering buildings that stretches farther than the eye can see from a rooftop. Yesterday after my lessons ended at 6:00, we went into the city (an hour away) for the weekly Bible Study that my boss gives for college students that live in São Paulo during the week and commute to Atibaia on the weekends. We are studying a translation of The Pursuit of God, which is an amazing book by A.W. Tozer. Doing this Wednesday Bible study last year was always one of the highlights of my week, and I'm glad to be able to participate again

São Paulo Bible Study

Last night we were on chapter 7, which is about faith. It was interesting to think about how something so simple can be so confusing. True Biblical faith is all about looking up to God instead of down to ourselves and to our circumstances. There will always be immediate problems and concerns in our lives, and instead of saying "I have faith that God will solve my problems," we are free to say, "Lord, You are Faithful!" and we can leave it at that! Just the fact that I'm in Brazil reminds me that I may plan out my life in my head, but it's often totally different from the plans that God has for me.

The Office at PIBA

Between classes, Micheli and I sit in the office and work on our computers. PIBA just built a new building with several classrooms, including a wing for music classes, and a new office that has cubicles for all of the pastors. Micheli and I share a desk in the reception area of the building, where we get to see the comings and goings of everybody. It is definitely a hopping place!

Tonight I will be giving a voice class--there will be about 30 people there, of all ages. I'm really looking forward to this--although I enjoy helping out in all ways possible, I'm more of a choir/piano teacher than an instrumentalist.

By the way, if you click on any of the photos in this blog, it will bring you to my page on Flickr, where you can view and/or download all of the photos I have uploaded from Brazil, including some that are not on this blog. So far, most of the pictures have been taken by Micheli, who is a great photographer. She has been taking some photography classes, and she has a really spiffy Nikon!

Até mais! (until later)
--Joy

Practicing Improvisation

Making Music with Wania

Greetings from Atibaia!

Things are going beautifully in Brazil--I hope everyone had a wonderful Independence Day yesterday! I have been enjoying giving classes each day. With a lot of my students, we have been focusing on breathing and improvisation. Most of the students have not been taught to breathe correctly for playing an instrument, and it takes a lot of time to learn this and practice it.

I have also been doing improvisation with my students because those who participate in the church orchestra are often required to improvise their part off of a sheet with just the words and the chords. The younger players, who have just recently graduated from their first-year method books, find this extremely frustrating because all they know how to do is read notes off of a staff. So, I am trying to help them learn how to apply this knowledge to the notes that make up each chord, to help them feel more confident reading off of a leadsheet.

Mi and Joy on our computers

Last night Micheli and I had dinner at a friends house, and tonight we will be driving into São Paulo (1 hour away) with Paul (our boss) to do a Bible study for college students from PIBA who study in São Paulo. Micheli and I have been having a good time using our APPLE computers together in the evenings, as well as in the office.

Prayer Requests: Praise the Lord that my classes have not been too tiring, and they are halfway through! Pray for a safe trip to São Paulo, and a beneficial Bible Study.

Brazilian Music in the Church

Sunday night

Greetings from Atibaia!

Today was a full day, but at a Brazilian pace. Micheli and I were the first ones to arrive at the church at 7:50 this morning, and the last to leave at 6:15. I got to give private lessons in flute, clarinet, trumpet, tuba, and a 5-minute piano lesson to Micheli, who successfully learned the first 6 notes of Chopin's Nocturne in Eb major in the key of F.

I also got to spend some time talking to Cleia, who is the director of music at PIBA. I told her about everything I had been thinking about during the year in regards to music, Brazil, and the church. The public schools in Brazil have two very interesting things about the way they are run: 1) Music is not taught in Public schools 2) Religious education is required in the public schools, and it is mostly accomplished from volunteers from surrounding churches (whether it be Christian, Catholic, Candomble, Satanism, whatever) who are willing to go into the schools every so often and do programs for the children. This means that there's a completely open door for anyone who has the time to come and bring the Good News. I met someone here last year who did this 5 days a week. He said that there were so many schools that wanted people to come in to teach "religion," but a huge shortage of willing volunteers. My dream is to one day do this as a full-time ministry--going into schools and of course using music to teach the Bible. Music reaches down deep, and it is something that kids can take home with them to even share with their families. This has been my dream ever since coming back last year--I don't know if or when it will ever happen, but it was really neat to talk with Cleia today about how she had also felt a great need in this area as well.

PIBA crowd
Originally uploaded by joywilson.

Anyway, what was interesting was that last night in the service at PIBA, the youth choir sang a piece with text taken from Psalm 40, but the music was distinctly samba, complete with samba rhythms and instruments like the Tamborim and Pandeiro. This created a slight controversy, even though the performance of this song was fully supported by the Pastor.

You see, last year, I had noticed that all of the music sung in the churches was distinctly American (though translated into portuguese), and I wondered why people didn't write Christian songs in the style of Brazilian music. Then, I realized that the Brazilian mind immediately associates the sound of Samba with the event of Carnival, which is a big lascivious festival in February, like Mardi Gras ...without as much clothing. Anyway, for a lot of Brazilians, samba music (as opposed to other types of Brazilian music like Bossa Nova) is inseparable in their minds with Carnival, and so to think of it appearing in church makes them horrified. On the other hand, there are many people who believe that Samba is an important part of a Brazilian's life, and so it should be used for the glory of the Lord like any other form of music.

Very silly girls, glad to see each other again.

I had given a presentation on this subject (Brazilian music in the church) at a conference last year, and I had thought about it so much that it was really cool to actually see a real-life example of this problem, since yesterday was the first time Samba had ever been performed at a PIBA church service. As an American, never having experienced Carnival, I have no problem supporting all kinds of music, including Samba, for the glory of God, but it gave me a new perspective to talk to some people today who disagreed.

I think this Blog entry has rambled on long enough! Keep in touch, and thank you SOOO much for all of the comments!

Abraços,
--Joy

Singing at PIBA

Greetings from Atibaia!

These last 24 hours have been quite a whirlwind! I arrived yesterday morning, had a few hours to rest and have lunch at the house of Paul Gale (my boss) with Micheli (my best friend) and Ben Neff, my other MK friend. In the afternoon, there was the embarrassing World Cup game against France, and we immediately went to my friend Camilinha's wedding, which was beautiful! It is so good to be back in Brazil! Thank you to everyone who is praying for me, especially for my Portuguese! It was so easy to come back and fit right in! I feel so at home here--thank you for your prayers! Tomorrow will start a marathon of teaching that will really stretch my physical and emotional endurance. I'm staying at Micheli's house, so please pray also that I can be a witness to her parents, who are not saved.

Singing at PIBA

This morning at PIBA (Primeira Igreja Battista de Atibaia), I sang for the service the song that Mrs. Gale translated for me last year--"He Knows My Name." I'm glad to have the opportunity to jump right in serving! It went well, and I met several of the people who will be taking my classes this next week. My schedule is pretty full from 8 or 9 in the morning to 6 at night every day, giving private lessons in every instrument from oboe to tuba, plus some group voice classes. I'm really looking forward to helping out! This morning, the orchestra (well, group of instrumentalists) played in the service, and it was really cool to see how they have improved since last year, especially in the area of intonation.

Naira Micheli Tamara

Tonight at PIBA's main service, I will be singing "Lord Have Mercy" which I translated a few months ago. Pastor Mendes is going to be preaching about God's grace and mercy toward his people. The service is broadcast live over the internet, audio-only, at www.piba.org.br


See you soon!

Abraços,
--Joy

Brazil to USA, do you read me?

I made it here safe and sound! Ben, Micheli, and Paul met me at the airport! The flight was fine, besides the 2-hour delay--I met two other girls who were coming to Brazil for the first time--they will be doing mission work for a month in Salvador. Just like Mrs. Pereira helped me through the airport last year, I was able to help them go through customs and immigration.

We're off to lunch at Paul's, and then to watch Brasil win a World Cup game, and then straight to my friend's wedding! Woo-hoo!

I'll post some pictures today or tomorrow!

Abraços (hugs),
--Joy