Chris DuBois

My Brazil Experience

By Chris DuBois

I knew almost instantly that this was my year to go to Brazil because of my life circumstances at the time. I knew it would require a great step of faith on my part and that was why I needed to go. The months leading up to the trip consisted of me praying for the money needed to pay for the trip and praying for my spirit, that it would be just right. Raising the money for the trip wasn't scary for me and I knew in faith that it would all come in (and it did!). Before I knew it, the months of pre-trip prayer and preparation were over and the trip had arrived. My only expectation for the trip was to be used by God. I didn't want to build up any other expectations in my mind, especially man-made expectations…those most often lead to let down.


My expectation was first met at a women's prison we visited. There, I met a woman by the name of Davina. She was a 19 year old black woman from London, England who was arrested for bringing drugs into the country. My heart broke for her as she told me of the events that brought her to the prison. In the midst of what was a bad situation, she was still swelled with joy. That joy stemmed from Jesus Christ! The power of the Gospel has set her free within the first two weeks of her stay in the prison. My heart rejoiced at the power of the Gospel at work in her life. It brought freedom to her while surrounded by prison walls. Since my encounter with Davina, I've prayer for her and her future. I pray she's able to make a difference in the world. I pray she's used to bring people to Jesus.


My expectation was met a second time through a 13 year old boy named Eleison. He was a kid I met on the second day of VBS at the Rio das Pedras community. We seemed to connect instantly in spite of the language barrier that separated us. In Eleison, I saw a child in need of the Savior's touch. It became my mission to show him Christ's love. I let him know he was important, not only to me, but to Jesus Christ. He told me he already knew Jesus; a fact that made my heart dance! He spoke very little English, but managed to say something that will linger with me forever. He called me his "friend of forever". He mistook the word of for for. I think I found the improper word usage even more endearing. On the last day of VBS, he somehow saw me in the car as we were driving up and started to run along side it. Any doubts of me actually having any influence on him quickly vanished in that moment. Knowing that we may never see each other again, I made sure to enjoy my time with him that night. When it did come time to say goodbye, I pulled him aside for a talk. I wanted to make sure he knew that I cared for him and would be praying for him. I wanted him to know that he needed to keep focused on his relationship with God. I pray that he will find ways to overcome the negative circumstances within his community. I pray that he is constantly looking to Jesus for comfort and direction. I also pray that we will meet again someday.

My time in Brazil strengthened my relationship with God. I saw Him act in ways that I never thought possible (there I go again, putting limits on God's abilities). My faith was strengthened and I captured even more admiration for my FIRST LOVE. There is, of course, so much more to say about my time there. I've found it hard to put into words what I actually experienced there. I'm sure over the coming weeks, I will learn even more about what my time in Brazil did to me. I'm looking forward to that. For now, I will leave this as it is now. Feel free to ask questions about the trip, I love answering questions.