Sunday, September 16, 2007

Video Update

Here is a link to a recent video that Sascha Terry and I made to visually demonstrate what is taking place at the halfway house. We hope you enjoy it and we thank you for your support! I wasn't able to upload the video (still learning how to use this blogger stuff), so just cut and paste this link into a new browser window and watch...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fXjGPHqnsxs

Sunday, September 2, 2007

A Life Transformed

In this post I'm going to tell you about another victorious servant of God, Alexandre. This guy is 18 years old and has a story to tell. He got involved in drugs early on as a teenager. He has a Christian cousin who always showed love to him, prayed for him & assured him that when he wanted to get clean, she would help him. This stuck in his mind. One night he & some friends went out to make trouble and robbed an old man, stole his cell phone & tried to sell it. They happened on a party and when they tried to sell the phone, some guys recognized the phone as belonging to their uncle. The hoods beat Alexandre up really bad, almost to the point of death. That moment was the turning point. He realized he needed help, so he went back to his mom’s house and sought out his cousin. She led him to the chácara. That was more than a year ago - he has come a long way!

Three months ago, Alexandre got a job working for a building supply store about a mile from the chácara. He works there six days a week as a counter attendant and stockboy. He started as a paid intern, but he has done so well that the owner has now hired him full-time! Alexandre continues to live at the chácara while working in this job, but he hopes to save enough money so he can move out and rent his own place, fully re-start his life in society as an industrial painter. He has a contagious smile, almost always has an encouraging word of Scripture for the brothers, and is full of joy. He is one of the great testimonies of how God is transforming lives at the halfway house. Praise God for Alexandre's changes and pray that he persists in being an ambassador of the Good News, and that he can fully re-establish himself in society!