Porto Alegre's Newest Rap Stars!

Don't let the cover deceive you - these are the good guys! This is Davi, Jefferson, and Elder, also known as Vid Brasa, Mano Fino and Di'Mc, members of the rap group G.A.P. (Support Group of the Marginalized). I mentioned them in a post several months ago: they turned away from drug addictions and converted from a life of crime to a life in Jesus at the recovery center! They formed a hip-hop/rap group and won a statewide contest for best original song (the only gospel group with enough courage to even enter the contest!) Now their CD has come out, fourteen songs of positive messages about Christian life with creative lyrics "my gun is 66-caliber; it's the word of God!" "the weapons of my war: knees on the floor, Bible by my door."

Imagine my surprise when I opened the CD case and found this picture on the back cover of the CD jacket...I guess I'm an honorary member of G.A.P.! I took several photos that they used for the cover art of the jacket, and I've lent them my moral support. Don't expect me to be singing any background vocals, though...

The producer was so impressed with their project that even though G.A.P. didn't have the money, he agreed to give them free studio time and produce the album for free, and the guys would pay him back when they could! That is just unheard of, especially for unknown gospel hip-hop artists! Please pray that their message can get out and have a huge impact on this community - they are true missionaries working in a field desperately needing harvest!

Kitchen Construction Update

Once again, we are fully engaged in a worthwhile construction project at the recovery center! As I mentioned before, we are remodeling the kitchen and expanding the chapel. The project has taken on unexpected dimensions, such as completely rebuilding the wood-burning stove and chimney. It's interesting how such a seemingly simple task is actually quite complex in terms of the design and execution of the final product.

This is the new wood-burning stove area. The chef has a lovely scenic view of the surrounding nature as he prepares his daily rice and beans!

The biggest job up to this point has been putting up the walls. This task was finally finished this week. Dagoberto, pictured here, has been one of the principal workers on this fun assignment!

Now that all the walls have been raised, it's time to put up the roof! Vandolei and Ezequiel are working hard to make sure that the roofing gets put on straight and true!

This is looking towards the wood-burning stove portion of the kitchen, with the doorway leading to access the stove area. This wall did not previously exist; it was built to separate the stove from the rest of the kitchen, to allow the heat to escape in a safer and more efficient manner. It is taking longer and costing more than we thought, but piece by piece, the structure will be built! The next steps are to finish the walls, then put down the flooring and put in the ceiling and electric/hydraulic fixtures. Keep up the great effort, guys!