joshtravels

[joshbroo]

3 of 3 - it’s time for another series! These photos all come from our time in Garzê, China. Most of the kids in the village had rosey cheeks (from being at a high altitude - 3500m). This kid was shy and always hiding but something about him made me want a photo - I was surprised he let me take one. You were created uniquely, you carry something special, don’t hide it - show it to the world! (at Garzê, Sichuan, China)

[joshbroo]

2 of 3 - it’s time for another series! These photos all come from our time in Garzê, China. This lady happened to be walking passed as we were taking photos. I chased after her with the guy in my first picture to ask if I could take a photo. As they both didn’t really understand English this was a challenge but I managed to take a few photos. When I showed her the photos, her face lit up and she started speaking in Chinese. Through translation I found out she had never had her picture taken before and was asking if she could have a copy. With the portable printer we were able to print a photo for her. Sometimes even the simple things can provide great blessings. (at Garzê, Sichuan, China)

[joshbroo]

1 of 3 - it’s time for another series! These photos all come from our time in Garzê, China - a village in the mountains we visited. This guy helped hold my flash when I was taking photos of others. Whenever I pointed the camera at him he would freeze and smile. At the time I didn’t even notice what his beanie said. So often I take for granted the blessings and love God has for me - it’s important to take time to reflect, remember, and realise how much he loves us. (at Garzê, Sichuan, China)

[joshbroo]

Reflecting Him everywhere I go - While I was in China we met a missionary who said something that stuck with me: “Location doesn’t change my purpose or meaning of life, whether I’m home or overseas it doesn’t change how I act.” - Who are you? Does that change depending on where you are or who you are with? (at Aba, Sichuan, China)

[joshtravels]

The Final Days of DTS

3 days to go. Wow. If my calculations are correct I've been away for 165 days. In 3 days I'll be graduating and beginning to say goodbye to my classmates as they fly home. On Wednesday we arrived back in Kona after flying from Miami. Here we spend time debriefing; reflecting on outreach and also looking ahead to going home and beyond.

God does not belong in a box

As I begin to reflect on outreach this is one thing that really sticks out to me. So often during outreach I would go into a situation thinking I knew what the outcome would be or how God would work. I don't think I was ever right. An example of this is at the beginning of outreach on the plane from Miami to Brasilia. I was slightly freaking out and wondering if I was really supposed to be going to Brazil and also what my future after DTS would look like. I asked God for a sign that I was going in the right direction, I asked to see a shooting star. I put my finger on the window and drew a line, before I had even finished drawing the line, a shooting star took the same exact path that my finger had. I was blown away, I was expecting to see a wee shooting star, not be helping create it. Through this I felt like God was saying I was going in the right direction and that together we can imagine and create my future.

Another example of this is during street evangelism with Dunamis. Raymond and I went out with two translators downtown in Sao Paulo and looked for opportunities to talk with people. I approached one of the first people I saw, his name was Francisco (below). We talked for a while and he shared about his family and I offered to pray for him. He said he wanted to feel the peace and presence of God. To be honest, I'm not sure if he did - in my excitement about how easy it all was I forgot to ask. But he was really appreciative and both the translator (Vini) and I, walked away super encouraged, especially by how open Francisco was. Vini then took this excitement with him the next day as he translated for other members of our team and was able to encourage them. Obeying God through a simple yes can have far more impact than you imagine.

What's next?

In less than one month I'll be heading to Chengdu, China! We begin meeting and preparing together in just over two weeks. It looks like we won't be splitting into two teams as there are only 6 of us going, but we should still be able to work with YWAM China and go to some remote villages. I've done some more calculations and completely forgot to include my time staying here in Kona into the costs of this next stage so it looks like it will be closer to $3,200. If you would like to support me during this time please let me know! Alternatively you can click here!

Prayer Requests

-Debrief - for the team during the next few days as we process, reflect, and look ahead -Safety - as people fly home -China - for the trip and visa application

[joshtravels]

A hurricane and possible tornadoes?!

My first time in mainland America and I'm greeted with a hurricane and possible tornadoes?! Crazy. It looks just like it does in all those TV shows. I've also already noticed that things here are a lot cheaper than in Hawaii. We are now in Orlando, Florida! We spend about two weeks here, the last two weeks of our outreach before heading back to Kona for debrief and graduation. The temperatures are similar to Brasilia but it's so humid - lots of rain and thunderstorms. We've also had a tornado watch (or warning I don't know the difference) and Hurricane Hermine pass nearby, fun times!

I am seen, I am valued, I am loved. This is the theme of the gallery we showed at an arts village on Friday. This is also the theme of the campaign we are running this week here in Orlando - "I am Valued". We are using our photo printers and going downtown offering free photos, writing encouraging words on the back, and offering prayer. The people we have taken photos of and talked to so far have all been very appreciative and love the idea. One of our teams saw a healing and someone rededicate their life to God. We are doing this multiple times in the week ahead and looking forward to seeing the different ways God encounters people.

We are buying tickets to China this week! We are estimating $1250 for flights. If you would like to support me in this, please get in contact with me - alternatively if you are at Northcity you can talk to Esther (and then get a third of it back!).

Prayer points:

Good weather for when we are outdoors doing our free photo ministry

That people can encounter God through this campaign

For China, the trip, flights, and visa

Still having no luck adding photos here.. sign up for my mailing list for the photos :) http://eepurl.com/ccyxcn

[joshbroo]

We spent yesterday by Lake Eola giving free photos to people, letting them know that they are seen, valued and loved. #iamvalued #photogenx (at Lake Eola Park, Downtown Orlando, Florida)

[joshbroo]

Goodbye Brasilia and Brazil! My time here has been incredible. I’ll be back. 🇧🇷 (at Brasília International Airport)

[joshtravels]

Bom Dia!

Good morning from Brasilia! Time is flying.. And we've been flying. We flew in to Brasilia nearly two weeks ago and are here for a few more days before heading to Orlando. Our time here is going fast. In less than 1 month I will have graduated my DTS! These last few weeks of outreach are times of communicating and sharing what we've been doing but also a few more opportunities for ministry. We all love the photo printing ministry and will hopefully get a few more chances to do that (I talked about this in my last blog)

What's been going on?

The Great Exchange. This week we worked with an organisation called the Great Exchange. It wasn't until our second day working with them that I actually realised the meaning of the name. We went to a university and spent the day talking with students and doing "spiritual interest surveys". We would ask them questions such as: do you have a spiritual background, do you believe in God, who do you think Jesus is, what is the worlds biggest problem? Following on from that we were able to share our beliefs - hence "the great exchange", and also able to give them a challenge. The 21 day challenge involves them reading one chapter of John every day and seeing if God speaks to them through that. We gave out a lot of New Testaments and even more 21 day challenge cards - Brazilians love to be challenged.  I was really surprised with how open everyone was no matter what their belief. This was a really cool opportunity and I'm sure that God will continue to work through those we talked to as they process the questions further and begin to read John.

I can do all this through him who gives me strength - Philippians 4:13. Last week I had the chance to share a little about my time with YWAM to a young adults group. This also gave me the chance to reflect and think about what I've learned so far. One thing that stood out to me was how anything and everything is possible with God. At the beginning of the year I would have laughed if you told me I was going to do YWAM or even go to Hawaii or Brazil. I would have freaked out at the idea of praying for strangers on the street, or giving them verses and encouraging words on the back of photos. Over this journey so far, as I started taking small steps out of my comfort zone, trusting in God, I have grown more and more and those things don't seem crazy or scary any longer.

What's next?!

China. I'm going to China! I mentioned this a few weeks ago and am really looking forward to it! We'll be booking our tickets and doing visas when we arrive in Orlando. Details are not completely confirmed but there will be a small team of us and we will spend a few weeks in Kona after graduation preparing and then fly over to Chengdu, China. We will then split and there will be two teams: pioneering new ministries - working with YWAM China to help raise awareness of what they are doing, and unreached people groups - hearing stories and sharing the gospel to remote villages. I'd love to be a part of the unreached people groups team. We spend close to a month there and then come back and spend a few weeks in Kona, editing and finalising media and stories. I'm guessing that the trip will cost around $2500 USD. I would love your prayer support for this, as we look into tickets and visa applications, and the trip as a whole. Also if you would like to support me financially I would love it! - you can reply to this email and I can send you details.

Thank you!

Thank you! I want to thank all of you for your support through this time so far, whether it was through prayer, financial support, or just saying hi and seeing how I'm doing, I appreciate you all so much!

Prayer Requests

-Safety for the team and our gear as we travel -Grace for one another

-Health - a lot of the team have been sick

-Wisdom & Creativity - as we work on sermons and photo galleries for Orlando

-China - for the trip and applications Sorry I’m having issues with the wireless so there are no photos in this post I’ve made a mailing list, if you want to be a part of it sign up here - http://eepurl.com/ccyxcn

[joshbroo]

Busy bodies of Paulista Avenue - the Times Square of São Paulo (at Paulista Avenue)

[joshbroo]

3 of 3 in my Soccer Series - pictures taken during our time with IMBRA

This is Matheus. I didn’t get to spend much time with him because he only came to IMBRA a few times we were there. He nearly refused the photo because he said he couldn’t juggle (he can). They’re very humble about their soccer abilities but many of them have dreams of being professional footballers one day. (at IMBRA Instituto Muda Brasil)

[joshbroo]

2 of 3 in my Soccer Series - pictures taken during our time with IMBRA

One day we went a visited another venue that IMBRA had where they teach soccer to the kids. I’m not sure of his name but he seemed to love being there and his mum was close by proudly watching on the sideline. Gui (IMBRAs founder) was telling us that often the parents have very little but use it to pay for their children to be apart of things like this to get their them off the streets. (at IMBRA Instituto Muda Brasil)

[joshbroo]

1 of 3 in my Soccer Series - pictures taken during our time with IMBRA

This is Rafael, he’s 13 and was one of the kids I got to hang out with at IMBRA. He has been going for 4 years and hasn’t missed a day. He loves going so he can play soccer and many of his friends come along with him. He said he’s learned how to respect leaders and become even better at soccer. I was lucky enough to go to his home and meet his family. More to come on his story. (at IMBRA Instituto Muda Brasil)

[joshbroo]

A day or two to reflect and organise photos before we get into ministry.. I don’t even know where to start with my many many photos

[joshbroo]

We are in Rio! And it is incredible! #rio2016 (at Mirante Do Roncador)

[joshtravels]

Photos, photos, photos!

As our time with Dunamis comes to an end I thought it must be about time for an update! We’ve spent the last three weeks with them and it’s been great. It’s been completely different to our first few weeks in Sao Paulo but still awesome. We’ve got to see a lot more of the city and meet many different people along the way. We’ve spent a lot of this time preparing and showing a photo gallery and also spent time doing street evangelism and photo ministry.

You are seen, you are valued. We took a photo printer to the busiest street in Sao Paulo and also one of their biggest parks and offered free photos to those that came by. With these printed photos we were able to write words of encouragement on the back and offer prayer. Many people were touched through this, and it was such a cool experience. I look forward to doing it in other locations.

You carry something special. We named our photo gallery “ouro” which means gold in Portuguese. We believe everyone has gold inside of them and through our gallery we wanted to show this. Our time with the kids at IMBRA really impacted us and we loved that no matter what their circumstance they all carried so much joy. With the photos we captured we were able to put together a gallery showing a few of their stories (with audio of them speaking) which we are showing at different locations around Sao Paulo and hope to take further (Brasilia, Orlando, and Kona).

You can make a difference. Some of you may have already seen Abby’s (our school leader) post on Facebook earlier in the week. It was our day off and a group of us went out to get coffee. Quickly we realised how easy it is to talk and share with those around us. Both our uber drivers were Christian and we got to share words and pray with them through google translate. Also similar with a waiter and coffee shop owner – who gave us free fries and candy!!

From here we spend a few days in Rio, and then are off to Brasilia for two weeks and then similar in Orlando. This is where we will begin sharing with churches what we have done, but also spend more time doing ministry where possible.

[joshbroo]

Got to see a different perspective of São Paulo today. So cool! (at São Paulo, Brazil)