Looking Ahead

Hey Guys!!

Guess what?! I will be back in the States visiting with all of you in about a month and a half! I am so excited, you have no idea. As much as I love being here in Brazil, there is still no place like home.
However, the more time I spend here, the more comfortable with my surroundings I become. I notice little things that change with me. For example, I find that I can have conversations in Portuguese for longer without getting tired. I have even started praying for people in Portuguese sometimes. Also, when I travel, I don't get as exhausted afterwards as before. Basically, I judge everything by how long it takes me to get tired, and that's how I know I'm improving!
We take for granted in the States our modern conveniences. I'm not complaining, but I will just point out some differences. There are no dishwashers or dryers. Because there is so much dust from the streets, your whole house gets covered in layer of it daily. You constantly have to fight bugs and spider webs and dust, so you basically have to clean your house from top to bottom once a week. Also, for the water I use to wash my clothes, I have to use a pump about once a week to move the water to a larger tank. And sometimes, the water doesn't come. That's a headache, let me tell you. There are not any "fast food" restaurants around here either, so most of the time, if you want to eat, you have to cook yourself! I actually like cooking, but sometimes, you get busy with other things and don't really have time. Anyways, all this stuff adds up and takes a lot of time.
Well, I hope that gives you a better idea of some of the mundane things I have to do everyday. Now, on to the more exciting stuff.
So, last time I wrote, I told you I would be traveling to a city called Portel with Richie Bouthillier and his family. Well, it was a great trip and a great time on the boat getting to know their family better. It took us about a day to travel from their current city, Porto de Moz, to arrive in Portel. It is a very small town that is shaped like a peninsula on the river. From one side to the other is about a 15 minute walk. One side is a harbor with many boats coming from all over the Amazon region as well as from the large city of Belem. The other side is a very shallow beach area that stretches far out into the river. Even though the city is very small, it still seems to have a lot of activity because of the harbor. We spent the week checking out the different parts of the city and swimming at the beach. Richie found a piece of property right on the water, which is a perfect place to dock his boat as well as build a church building. He has already bought it, and his family were fortunate enough to also find a house to rent.
While I was there, I was asking myself if I could see myself working there. I like the city because of its beachy feel. (I always told the Lord I wanted to plant a church near the beach!) However, I was concerned if my abilities and passions were a good match for the city. As I have said, I really enjoy teaching English and the kinds of doors that are opened through the benefit of the school. I would want to start a school wherever I go. After talking to Richie and a few of the locals, it was clear that the people there would really be blessed by an English school, especially because of their proximity to a big city like Belem where there are a lot more opportunities. It gives them a chance to better prepare for their futures, as many of the Brazilian public schools in this region are of a really low quality.
Anyways, when I came home from my trip, I talked it over the Steve and Elba and all the other missionaries here, and I have decided that I am going to move to Portel with Richie and Christie and help with their new church plant! I feel like this will be the best fit for me at the right time. I am going to stay here in Altamira probably until June or July of next year and then move. I want to spend the next 6 months learning as much as I can about how CDR (the English school) works, and also give Richie and Christie a chance to get settled in there before they receive me.
I am very excited about this. I am especially excited because I feel like I have a great opportunity to really make a difference within the community I will be serving. One of my greatest hopes is that my life will make a lasting and powerful difference in the world, and I feel like Portel is a great place to start.
Please, pray for me as I work to make plans and get ready to move. Please pray that God orders my footsteps and directs all the timing and necessities. Thank you for moving along in this journey with me. You guys are really the ones who have positioned me to make a difference. I could never, ever do it on my own. God bless you!!!

Love, Allison

Check out the beautiful pictures from my trip below!

Portel

Still Searching

Hello to my Favorite Missionary Team!

Right now, most of you are experiencing my favorite season of the year--Fall. Oh, how I miss Fall! However, I would not trade it to have to endure those awful winters again....I am definitely a summer person! Anyways, I hope everyone is enjoying this special time of year and that you are experiencing joy and peace.
Let me catch you up on the latest with me. I have been very busy.
As some of you may know, I went to Vineyard Leadership Institute a few years, however, I never quite finished the program. Well, I have only a few more classes to go, and I have decided to work on completing the program while here in Brazil. As you may not know, the program has changed now, and is called Vineyard Institute. It is also launching to become a worldwide ministry training program for the Vineyard movement. We hope to have the program translated into Portuguese and moving along in Brazil in the next year or so. I am very excited about this as I believe solid theological training is a much needed asset for the upcoming leaders in the Brazilian churches. We have many passionate and talented leaders here who are hungry for a deeper understanding of the Bible.
The Alpha Circles group that my team and I started has ended, and we are now moving onto new endeavors. Through many of the relationships Christopher and I built in the Alpha Circles group, we have created a new group. This group is different in a few ways. For one, it is not in English, but Portuguese. It is basically a small group with the hopes of digging deeper with our new friends. We are looking forward to learning how to live the Kingdom lifestyle together. Please pray that God continues to bring us closer and gives us an environment of safety to be vulnerable with one another.
In the past few months, I have had the privilege of helping out my good friend, Marcelino, with a new homeless ministry. I admire Marcelino for his passion and his desire to change the world. He very much believes in doing practical things to make a difference and in loving all people, no matter where they are coming from. So, once a month he and a few others have been coming to my house and making lunch for the homeless people in our city. Then, we go out and give the food away while talking and offering to pray for them. Through talking to them, we discovered some of their other basic needs that we could help with. We decided to put a care package together for them that includes, a toothbrush and toothpaste, a shirt, soap, and deodorant. We also include a letter telling them about the love God has for them. It is one of my favorite ministries that I have done so far because it is so easy to make an impact in these people's lives.
At the Xingu Mission, we have had some new missionaries join us from another base. They are Art and Cyndi Rae, and their son Daniel. They are currently staying with me as they work on repairs to the new house they bought. Their hopes in moving to Altamira is to bring the program, Living Waters, here to Brazil. Cyndi is working with a translator to translate all the material into the Portuguese dialect best suited for Northern Brazil. I am very excited about having them here to start Living Waters in Brazil for the first time. I believe Brazilians are in great need of a healing care program to begin to experience deeper healing and deeper intimacy with God. It will be an amazing blessing to the church and the community. I have also been blessed to have such gracious and loving people in my home. We have become really close in this short time.
Lastly, I want to keep you updated on my future. Since I have come here, I have been keeping my eyes open to see where God might want to plant me. I have visited the other bases and other cities, but still do not feel any definite callings from God for a certain place. Recently, another missionary couple, Richie and Christie Bouthillier, and their children, have decided to branch out and start a new base. They are still not 100% sure, but they think they will be moving to another city in the Amazon Region called Portel. I will be joining them this week as they travel there again to make their final decision. So, this is yet another possibility of where I could end up in the future. This would be a completely new work, as there are currently no Vineyard churches in this city. Everything would be starting brand new. Please pray for my trip, and that God would speak to me one way or another about his plans for me.
The time for me to visit all of you is getting closer and closer, and with it, I am getting more and more excited. I can't wait to reconnect with all of you. Thank you again for all of your support, both financial and moral. I pray that everything you have given to me will be given back to you. I bless your families and your jobs and your dreams. For those of you that are struggling right now, I pray God's mercy and tenderness over you. That he would use this struggle to bring you closer to the knowledge of his great love for you. To all of you, remember that your true home is in Heaven, and that all of us are called to bring Heaven to Earth. Thank you for being apart of the journey with me. 

Love,
Allison Rupert

I am going to include a few links below showing you some of the things that has been happening here. We were blessed to have another baptism. Also, once a year is Children's Day, and our church held an event for the children in our neighborhood. It was a great way to show them that they are special and loved.

Marcelino preparing lunch for the homeless

 

 

 

 

Me teaching at the Youth Group with Cleide translating

Pictures from the Baptism and helping the homeless

Pictures from Children's Day

Good News and Bad News

Hello Everybody!!

How are you? I sincerely hope you are all doing well. I hope that whether or not your circumstances are good, that at least your heart is doing good and is full of peace.
So, I will go ahead and get started catching you up on the latest here in the Amazon Region of Brazil. Last time, I told you about the Intervinha Regional Conference featuring Phil Strout, and Danny and Penny Meyer. Well, it was amazing! It was so good to hear messages in English, and they spoke right to my heart. It was really what I needed for encouragement. I also got a change to spend some time with Danny and Penny Meyer because they stayed to visit with their son, Christopher. I loved getting to know them better, and just feeling their support and encouragement for me. They are a really special couple.
Well, CDR has started again, so I am teaching again, and I must say that I love teaching. It is such a privilege to not only teach these kids something that will help them in the future, but also to speak into their lives about the love Jesus has for them. It is very rewarding for me.
I have also been able to teach some at the Youth Group at church. The last time I talked, I explained to the kids about spiritual gifts, and how they could use those gifts to reach the lost. After I taught, I broke them up into groups of 3. In each group, the kids were suppose to pray for one another and ask the Holy Spirit to speak to them. If they heard anything, they were suppose to tell the person what they heard. To my excitement, many of the kids were deeply touched by the Holy Spirit, and God used these kids to speak powerful words of encouragement and healing to one another.
Also, I want to mention that there have been no new developments on my ideas of moving to Macapa. I have not heard any clear direction from God on how or when to move forward. So, I would like it if you continued praying that God speak to me clearly about the future he had in store for me. I, of course, will keep you informed.  
Ok, so you are probably curious about this Good News and Bad News thing. Let me start with the Good News!
So, I've decided that because I miss all of you so much that I am going to come home for a visit early! That's right. I originally had planned not to come home for another year, but I talked to my superiors, and they said it would be fine for me to come back early. So, I have decided to come back for the month of January. I will be on a break from CDR that month, so I will not miss anything happening here. I will be staying with my mom in Georgia for about a week and then heading to Columbus to spend some time with you all! I can't wait to see you again!!!
Ok, now for the Bad News. Financial Support.
Let me explain the situation. Over the past two months, I have not received almost $1000 worth of support. I need around $1500 a month to continue to stay here and work, and I have only received around $1000 the past two months. This is really significant. If this trend continues, it will wipe out the saved funds I have in just a few months, and I will have to go home. And not just for a visit.
I know that each of you supports what I am doing here in Brazil and would like to see me continue it. Its important. I believe in what I am doing, and I believe that God has a future for me here.
I ask that if you are not already supporting me financially, that you would make the decision to start. And I ask that if you are already supporting me financially, that you would consider raising your support every month. I want to remind you all that monthly, consistent support is the best way to invest.
I also want to remind of how grateful I am to all of you who have been so faithful to me through every kind of support you give, be it financial, emotional, moral, or spiritual. You guys are my team, and nothing I do here is possible without you. I hope that I do a good enough job helping you feel connected to the work of God here. I know its easy to feel distant from it or that your life doesn't have an effect on things down here, but its not true. You are so intricately connected, and what you are doing makes a profound difference.
I love you all so very much, and I am so looking forward to seeing you soon. Below is list of ways that you can give financially, if you so choose. Thank you again.

Allison

*You can allocate the funds at church for me by check or cash for: Xingu Mission-Allison Rupert.

*You can mail your support directly to the mission:
Xingu Mission-Allison Rupert
PO Box 340785
Columbus, Ohio 43234
USA

*You can also donate online at:
http://www.xingu.org/14o_rupert_donation.html

Penny and I at the Intervinha Conference

Click on the link below to view more pictures.

Intervinha Regional Conference

Going Back, Going Forward

Hello to all my Beloved Friends and Family!

Thank you for your prayers and support and for hanging in there with me. If you can believe it, next month will mark my one year anniversary here in Brazil. It seems that it has gone by so fast, and I can't believe the amount of things I've learned in one year.
My Portuguese has greatly improved. I can understand most of what is being spoken to me, and can communicate enough to even have some deep conservations. Last night, I even taught at a friend's small group in Portuguese. I have also decided that next month, I will stop taking classes, but continue to study on my own. I do still have a lot to learn, but I feel confident that I will continue to grow with more time and experience.
I feel pretty comfortable with the lifestyle here. There are many things here that in the beginning seemed so different, but now, I have started to take them for granted. Actually, the thing that has probably been the hardest for me to learn is the different communication styles between American and Brazilian culture. This is something, I know, will take me a lot more time to learn. Brazilian culture focuses on pleasing others. They use more indirect communication and avoiding telling another person "no". As you know, American culture is very different from this. Our communication is very direct and saying "no" does not usually offend someone. Neither communication style is "right" or "wrong". Both have their advantages and disadvantages, but for me, it is sometimes like trying to solve a mystery with a bunch of subtle clues. I am sure that if a Brazilian moved to the States, they would feel the same way I do!
Right now, I am on a break from teaching at CDR, so I decided to do some traveling. I took a boat back to Macapa. Macapa is a city that I traveled to when I first came to Brazil. Some of you may remember that Buck and Lusiane Schmit were missionaries there some years ago. They have since moved back to the United States, but the church that they planted still remains. I spent almost 2 weeks there getting to know again some of the people I had met originally, as well as meeting the new people in leadership. It was a great time.
While I was there, I started seriously considering the possibility of getting involved with their ministry. One of the ideas we discussed while I was there is the possibility of starting another CDR (the English school). CDR provides a great opportunity to help support the local community, as well as give exposure and credibility to the church. I also spoke with another couple in the church who have a great heart to minister to the people they refer to as "Urban Tribes". Basically, these people represent those who would not normally be attracted to the church environment because of traditionalism and legalism. They are also located more in the downtown areas of Macapa which is a large city of around 500, 000 people. Both of these ideas really got me excited as I feel I have a lot to offer in both of these areas. I am praying that if this is what God has for me, that he would continue to reveal his will and favor. Please, pray with me about this, and let me know if you feel that God is speaking to you concerning this possibility.
Next week, we have our annual Intervinha Regional Conference here in Altamira. This is very exciting because pastors and church members from the North and Northeast regions in Brazil will all be coming here to attend the conference. Phil Strout, Danny and Penny Meyer will also be coming here to speak at the conference. Several other missionary families and I will be joining them on a boat trip for about 4 days, and then at the end of the week, we will have the conference. For me, I am really hoping to be ministered to by our visitors and really get refilled by the Holy Spirit. Please pray for me that this is a time of refreshing and direction for my future here in Brazil.
Also, on a deeply personal note, I have a request. As you all know, I am single. I am 33 years old, and I will be 34 in October, which is just around the corner. Since I have been in Brazil, I have yet to meet anyone that I think I could marry. This is a deep hope and dream of mine to meet someone I could share a loving, life long relationship with and start a family. I ask that you would pray for me to meet the man God has for me. And again, if you hear the Lord speak to you anything about this on my behalf, please let me know.
Thank you again all of you for your faithfulness to God and to me. Thank you for being on my team, and for being my cheerleaders! I long to see all of you, and sometimes its hard to think that I have another year to go before that happens again. I long to worship with you again, to hug and cry with you again. I love you all. Bless you and your families and your hearts.

Love, Allison

Below is a link with the pictures from my trip.

Macapa

A Good Busy

To the Folks back Home.
Miss you. Love you. Sometimes, I wish I could fly back home for a day so I could go to church with all of you and see your faces. When I think about what I miss from home, I always think of all of you.
This month has been so busy, which is really good. One of the things I love about being a missionary is the variety of things I get to do and experience. This month, we had a baptism, a dance club night with our youth group, a church festival, and our Alpha Circles group. We also had a short-term missions team come in from VCDC in Sunbury, OH.
This baptism was special to me because one of my friends, Gustavo, who is about 15 years old and speaks English better than I do sometimes, got baptized. He had asked me about a month before to explain baptism to him. I told him it was like a wedding ceremony between you and God. You are making a public declaration of your love and commitment to a life long relationship with God. It is also a picture of moving from death to a new life in Christ. He liked that idea, and so he made the decision to get baptized. When it came time for him to get in the water, you could see the Spirit of God powerfully touching him and confirming this new relationship with Christ. It was a beautiful moment.
Our youth group is working on attracting more young people to our group, so they had a "Balada Gospel", which basically means a night of dancing offered at our church rather than at a club which usually involves a lot of drinking and other questionable activities. Use your imagination. It was a success, and the kids loved dancing and having fun with one another.
This past weekend was the 4th annual church festival. Each ministry in the church set up a booth to sell food and things donated by members of the church. We also had our worship team play and games for the kids. This year was the best yet, and the church raised over $6000 that they plan to use to make some needed repairs to the church building. We all worked hard and had a great time.
For our last Alpha Circles group, we did a skit of which I was a participant. I have a video of the skit below for you. Its now at the end of the semester for CDR, so our group will stop for now and start again next semester in August. We are still having fun with the group, and always thinking of how we can make it better.
When the team from VCDC came, they spent most of the time traveling, but I did get to spend one night with them at another Vineyard church in Altamira. Jonathan Meyer, Christopher Meyer's brother (our new missionary), spoke a powerful message about God's grace towards us, even in the face of our many imperfections. During the ministry time, the Holy Spirit really showed up and many people were strongly impacted. It was such a blessing to minister with them and be apart of what God was doing at that church. Those are the moments I live for.
In a week, I will be traveling to Macapa, which is a big city located on the Northeast coast of Brazil. I actually went there when I first came to Brazil almost 5 years ago. This will be my first time back. I'm really excited about reuniting with all the people there.
I've said it before, but I want you to know that I'm having the time of my life. I'm doing what I've been dreaming about for so long. I feel so incredibly blessed and cared for by God. Guys, I sincerely ask that you keep me in your prayers. I want more of what God has for me. I want to honor him here in the same way that he has honored me. I want to be used powerfully by him. I need the covering of your prayers. Thank you. Thank you for your support and friendship and concern and kindness towards me. I need it. And I know that what you give will be given back to you.

Allison



Here is a Link to the Alpha Circles Skit.

Alpha Circles Skit

Gustavo being Baptized

Night of Dancing

Our church festival

 

 

 

Click on the Link below to view more pictures.

June 2013

Moving in the Right Direction

Hello Trusted Supporters and Friends!


As always, I hope you all are doing well! Things are going great here in Brazil. Everyday, I am still learning so much and working towards my goals. I want to give you an update on what I have been up to recently.
First of all, the group, Alpha Circles, is still going strong. The students from our English school seem to really enjoy it and have a lot of fun. What is interesting about the group is that in the culture of Northern Brazil, there are not a lot of people who claim that they don't believe in God. Most of the people in our group are either involved in church or have been at one time. As leaders, we question what is the best way to engage the members. We want to give people an opportunity to grow closer to God, no matter where they are on their journey. We have tried to set up an environment where people feel comfortable asking questions and expressing any fears or doubts they have about God. This is very important because in some churches here, people are often told what to believe without the option to be honest about their true feelings. We are continuing to question how to move the group forward. Please pray that God gives us wisdom.
Also, through CDR and the Alpha Circles, I am getting an opportunity to grow closer with some of the students. I have been working on building relationships with them, and helping them to grow closer to God. Please pray that God uses me to be a light in their lives, and that I would have the wisdom and patience and love that I need to bless them.
A few weeks ago at our Youth Group, we had a special night where we asked the kids to invite their friends. Around a 140 kids showed up for a night of dancing and skits and great worship. Christopher, our new missionary, shared his testimony. Everybody seems to really enjoy it, and many of the kids have been coming back since then. There are pictures in the link below.
I am still teaching English at CDR, and plugging away at the language. I am definitely improving all the time, but sometimes, because I am spending so much time speaking English, I don't get a lot of opportunities to practice as much as I would like. Please pray that I continue to learn and that my mind would be able to grow in this area.
Thank you again for all of your support. I am so blessed to be here, doing something that I love to do. You make this possible. Your sacrifice and willingness to give make this possible. I know that as you give, God is giving back to you in big ways and small. Thank you for your prayers for me. Even though I am very happy here, there are times when I feel lonely and miss the things that are familiar. Your prayers reach me in those difficult times. They have the power to comfort me and hold me up. God bless you all.

Love you,

Allison

 Please click on the link below to see my recent photos.

Pictures of our Youth Group

An Open Door

Hello All of my Friends and Generous Supporters!

I hope you are all doing well, even with the craziness that is happening in Boston right now. My heart goes out to the families who are suffering.

I loved being able to see you all at church this past Sunday! What a blessing. It felt like being home, even if only for a moment. I truly do love and miss all of you!

So, I want to tell you story to let you know what's been going on here over the past few months. Some amazing things are happening. But, first, I need to give you some back story.

I don't know if you remember or not, but not too long after I got here, we started a cell group for the single young adult women in our church. The first few months of the group went fairly well, but it wasn't exactly taking off. Then, I went traveling for a month, and the group pretty much stopped for that time period. Not only because I was traveling, but also because the month of January is sort of like our month of December where everyone is traveling or visiting their families and so forth. When I got back, I tried to bring the group back together without much success. Unfortunately, one of the other leaders (who was pretty much my translator) was very busy with school and work, and no longer had time to help lead the group.

I was disappointed. I felt like I was trying to do something, but I just couldn't make it work. Anytime that happens, I think its natural to question yourself about your purpose and abilities. In my heart, I had been praying, "God, I want to do something! I want to be apart of your Kingdom! How do I get my foot in the door?"

During this time, I had also been struck by the verse where Jesus talks about sharing your food with those who can't afford to pay you back. I decided I would have a "churrasco" (barbeque) and invite some people from my friend's neighborhood who I knew would not be able to afford such a party like that. I thought it would be good to try and develop relationships with them and just try to love them. So, I made the plans, bought the food, invited the people, and got everything prepared. When the day arrived, no one showed up. I had to call other people that I knew to come over and eat the food. I can't say that it was terrible. The other people were happy to come. But again, I was disappointed.

It's in my personality to get fired up about things. I want to do something. I need to do something. I can't just sit around waiting for things to happen. I need to be chasing after something, and I want my life to count for causes that matter. So, when I put my effort into a project, and get zero results, I get discouraged and feel a little like a failure.

After this happened, I went and talked to Steve, who is often the gracious receiver of all my frustrations and misunderstandings about my new home. He patiently listened, and then gave me some really good advice. He said, "Why don't you do something with the students at CDR? You already have a growing relationship with them. How can you develop that?" That made perfect sense to me, so I started toiling the idea around in my head about what would be the best way to engage them.

After a week past, I still did not have a clear idea, but I was talking about it with the Lord and asking him to reveal it to me. One day, I was sitting in one of the classrooms at CDR, preparing my lessons when another teacher, Marcelino, asked me a question.
 "Allison, have you ever heard of Alpha Circles?"
"No, Marcelino, what is that?"
"Well, we used to have them here on Friday nights with some of the other missionaries. The students could practice their English and we would have talks about God and I really loved it. Do you think we could do that again?...."

Well, that was all it took. I knew God was opening a door. I got Marcelino to tell me all of his ideas for the group and everything he knew about the previous group. We started talking to the other teachers at CDR, as well as Elba and Steve, and everyone seemed to be on board to start making plans in that direction. I was getting excited.

About a week after that, I was at church one evening and the youth pastor, Cleiton, said he wanted to speak to me after church. He asked me how my single's girl's group was going. I told him, sort of laughing, that it was not great, but that we had another had idea in the works to do something with the students at CDR. Then I asked him what his idea was. He began to explain to me that God had also put on his heart the idea of starting something with the students at CDR! Now, I was even more excited and even more confident that this was God's idea and not mine.

Last week, we had our first Alpha Circles meeting. We had more than 45 students show up for that first meeting. We have had a great response from everybody, and anticipate having even more students the next time. It was a great success.

This has taught me a wonderful lesson. Mainly that, its not about me. I don't make things happen or not happen. It is in God's hands. I just need to be willing and available. He does intend to use me, in his way and in his time. What a amazing privilege it is to co-labor with the living God!

Bless you all and please keep with new group in your prayers as we grow and continue to think of ways to make the group better. Thank you so much for what you have already done, and for partnering with what God is doing here in Brazil. You are amazing!

Love always,
Allison Rupert

I have some pictures in the link below of the recent Baptism at our church, as well as pictures from Easter and our group, Alpha Circles.

Baptism/Easter/Alpha Circles