The Story Behind My Trip to Brazil
A year ago, I said yes to something that pushed me well outside my comfort zone.
I boarded a plane to Northern Brazil, not entirely sure what to expect, only knowing that I felt God leading me there.
What I didn’t expect was how much the trip would change me.
There’s something that happens when you step away from your normal routine, your schedule, your plans, and place yourself in a position where you simply have to trust God to work. You begin to see faith differently. You realize how much of your life is built around control and how powerful it is to live open-handed instead.
That experience stayed with me.
So this year, I’m going back.
This August, I’ll be returning to Northern Brazil for my second trip, serving alongside Central Church and the ministry of Word of Life in Belém.
Word of Life is doing something incredible. Their mission isn’t about outsiders coming in long-term to reach Brazil, it’s about raising up and training Brazilians to be missionaries to their own people. Through a Christian school, youth camps, public school outreach, sports programs, and a missionary training institute, they are equipping leaders who will carry the hope of Christ into communities all along the Amazon River.
Many of those communities are remote, isolated, and often unreached.
And the impact doesn’t stop with one generation.
They reach young people through camps.
They train them.
They send them.
And those leaders go on to reach even more communities.
It’s a ripple effect of faith that continues to grow.
Our team’s role this year will be to help run an English camp for middle-class Brazilians, from students of all ages to working adults. English is an important skill for opportunity and advancement, but more importantly, it opens the door for relationships.
The entire camp is taught in English, which creates space for conversation, connection, and ultimately, opportunities to share the hope we’ve found in Christ. Because the ministry staff is now primarily Brazilian, this is something they can only offer when a team from the U.S. comes to serve alongside them.
We’ll also spend time serving in public schools and helping with practical projects around the ministry campus. Simple ways to support the work that’s happening there every day.
But if I’m being honest, this trip is about more than what I’ll be doing.
It’s about who God is shaping me to become.
Every time I say yes to something like this, my perspective changes. My faith deepens. I’m reminded that the world is bigger than my plans, my routines, and my comfort zone.
I’m not going to Brazil because I have all the answers.
I’m not going because I feel especially qualified.
I’m going because God is moving there.
And I want to keep being the kind of person who says yes when He calls.