I remember praying before I went to Brazil that God would allow me to simply love the people I met there (since people don't care how much you know until they know how much you care). And I fell head over heels. I seriously left a piece of my heart with each face... Andreza, Jacqueline, Caique, Camilla, Ceasar, Tathiana, Christina, Fabiana, Claudia, Flavio, Alan, Natalia, Pricila, Danielle, Marcelo, Pinta, Thiago... the list goes on and I know I left a lot of names out... but none are forgotten and each face is still as vivid to me as they were 5 years ago. Even now, it brings me to tears to be so far removed from the people I came to love so dearly that summer.
But Filipe, for some reason, had and still has a special place in my heart. When I met Filipe, he was a freshman in college with an atheistic world-view just trying to make the best of life. I cried myself to sleep many nights in prayer over Filipe begging the Lord to work in his life. I really have no explanation for such drama over a guy I barely knew, except that the Lord moved my heart to pray for him. I don't know that I had ever prayed for anyone like I did for Filipe. The summer came and went, and, although he came to every event, retreat, party or get-together we had... he still refused to trust the Lord. However, he continued to hang out with the Brazillian staff; and six months after we left Filipe became a Christian! Praise the Lord! Oh! It was amazing to watch, and Filipe's life still stands to be one of the most powerful evidences to me that my God is real, living, and active! But God was not only active in Filipe's heart during that time. I understood passion for life for people and for God maybe for the first time. I came to give, but my Brazilian friends gave me so much more.
A few summers later, Kristen also traveled to Brazil with Campus Outreach where she met Filipe. And this weekend, I got to hear a little about how God changed her life as well a couple summers before she went. So after a long road of a long-distance/overseas relationship, Kristen and Filipe finally have their happy ending! Their wedding day started with a hair disaster that we laughed about for the the rest of the day, limo rides to the church, a beautiful service during which Filipe got to have a live chat with his family who was unable to come, and an awesome post-wedding mini photo session. But by far the most amazing thing was to watch a man, who the last time I saw him was as an atheist but is now vowing to be a godly husband and father. I cannot wait to see the powerful ways the Lord is going to use this couple! Kristen and Filipe, thank you for allowing me the joy of being apart of such a happy day. I will continue to pray many blessings over you and your marriage.
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