KDurant7 blog adventures

Feira de Santana, Brazil 1980

Regina and I were very enthused to apply for resident visas in Brazil as it is a beautiful country with many people hungry to hear about the Lord. We were informed that if we got translated our documents into Portuguese from both of us, birth certificates, police records, wedding papers, etc., all certified by the embassies, we could get changed our tourist visas to resident ones. It took months, and a bit of money, to get all of that together and the day came that we went to the Immigration Office to turn it all in. You probably know how this will end… the officials explained the laws had recently changed and since we were at the end of our tourist visas, we got our passports stamped, “8 days to leave”! We were devastated! We had little money and got a few rides from some friendly truckers on our long 5-day journey back to Bolivia. We did not know why the Lord closed that door, but we just had to accept it…we were not going to live in Brazil. Sometimes things happen and we must accept it as all for our own good as God knows best and He may be protecting us from some sinister thing we have no clue about. I know many immigrants often must return to their countries due to various reasons, but there is a clear reality, God has a certain place for you and me to be for a certain time. It is our role to just accept it and live content trusting He knows what He is doing. Our dreams and ways are not His, but He does take care of us when we are seeking His will.