One day a few weeks ago, I noticed a young boy standing near me just patiently waiting. He said nothing, but as I turned to look at him he gave me the biggest brightest smile. So I asked his name, he said Arlindo. His face was bright and so sweet.
As I went about the market buying what I needed, he quietly followed behind. Usually you put as much as you can in one bag, but this day I was buying a new plastico for every item I bought.
He quickly saw what I was doing and his smile grew even bigger. I finished my shopping, Arlindo's bags were sold out and I was ready to head back to the car. I asked if he would help me carry my bags and he readily accepted.
I told him my name and that I work with Pastor Jeronimo at the Dondo Baptist Church. I asked if he went to church and he said that he did.
The church is on the outskirts of town nearby where he lives. He told me he is 11 years old and goes to school in the afternoon. I told him I would look for him to help me when I come to the market. I encouraged him to go to school each day, that it was very important.
Many of these boys are hungry and selling their bags gives them a few coins for bread. So they often skip school. I also encouraged him to go to church and pray to God to watch over him and his family.
He smiled and we agreed that Deus e' bom ( God is good)
We said good bye and as I drove away I was so thankful for the gift God has given me. My Portuguese is really not that good, but I was able to communicate all of this so Arlindo could understand. I was blessed and so grateful that God hears our prayers!
If you think about Arlindo, say a prayer for him. Life is so very hard here, these young boys have little to look forward to. They see no reason to stay in school, and so they beg and get into trouble. They need to be encouraged and assured that they can fully rely on our Lord.
They just need to be told about Jesus.
Thank you for helping me to be here, to talk with Arlindo about Jesus.
God has a plan....we just need to follow it.
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