Hey everybody! Brazil is crazy, and the days keep getting crazier. The heat is nice…sometimes, but it feels good to get away from some cold and rainy weather. As some of you may have heard, we had the opportunity to visit FASE, a juvenile center for kids around the ages of 15 to 18. Personally, the second day at the center hit me the hardest. I really saw the Holy Spirit moving, whether it was through worship, sharing testimonies, having conversations, the drama skit, just overall. During our first service for the guys, I was really struggling. I had this indescribable desire to really speak to the teens there. As I was sitting on the ground, Bekah leaned over and asked me if everything was okay. I began to explain to her that I was experiencing this sense of intimidation and fear. I felt that we were not sharing the full extent of the gospel during the guy’s service. I thought that so much more needed to be done. What you need to know is that on this day, I was not planning to share my testimony or speak to the teens, but all of a sudden I felt led to speak. It felt almost like there was this fire in my heart, and I couldn’t hold it in any longer. Before the second service began, I walked up to Nolan and told him that I needed to speak, that I needed to share my part 3 testimony even though it was not the plan. At this point I was pacing in the back of the room, shaking, and continuing to feel this feeling I had never exactly felt before. As the time came for me to speak, I walked on the little stage with our translator and just allowed the Holy Spirit to speak. Most of the time, I like to go my own direction with things. With this, I forgot about myself and allowed the Holy Spirit to go in whichever direction it wanted to go. You see, in my prepared testimony I relate myself to Jonah’s character in the Bible, but, instead, I started speaking about Paul’s story and focused on Psalm 51. It was one of those moments where you don’t exactly remember all that you said but you feel satisfied after. However, a thought hit me while speaking. How can I share the gospel with people who do not speak my same language, and not be bold enough to share it with some of the people who are closest to me? The thought convicted and impacted me. That day I allowed God to use me; my prayer is that God would use me for His glory any time, anywhere, no matter where I am. I hope this could be the same for you too.
-Matthew Guzman
