Why, when I start getting better, do other parts of me start to fall apart? I am currently on antibiotics, trying to get rid of an infection, and my throat hurts. And my ear. Maybe it's because I'm tired -- people make me tired sometimes, and we work with volunteers. I know, I know. I do love it, though it's a strain for my personality some days. I know I need rest, but the problem is that I just can't bring myself to go to bed before 10:00, no matter how tired I am (or no matter how much I need rest). Not that I'm doing anything of value to avoid resting, though I am looking forward to a night of reading and hopefully making a bigger dent in some of the books I'm working on.
Addendum: It is not even 8:30 yet, and I have taken 2 Benadryl 25mg tablets. I did manage to learn something in pharmacy school, like the fact that these little hot-pink tablets will melt in my stomach and eventually make me very, very sleepy.... The reading is coming along splendidly, and going to bed is looking more and more appealing.

Update

Hello friends and prayer partners!
I know it’s been awhile since I’ve written an update, but I’ll be short, I promise. Or at least as short as I can be.
Last time you heard from me (related to ministry), we were in the middle of June in a medical team. Since then, it’s been a blur. We have had 2 more medical teams, mission meeting, a week off, the Pan American games for 2 weeks, and we have just finished our third medical clinic since then! AND I have turned in my papers for visa renewal, which should be ready in 3-4 months. Thank you for your prayers about all these things, even when you didn’t know exactly what you were praying for. God knew, and He honored your prayers with blessings for every person we came into contact with – through the 20,000 water bottles we gave out during the Pan Am games, through medical care in the favelas, through simply getting to rest and relax for a week with fellow laborers.
The Lord has given me Jeremiah 29:7 to remind me of the fact that He has me here to seek the well-being of those who live in Rio. “Seek the welfare of the city I have deported you to. Pray to the Lord on its behalf, for when it has prosperity, you will prosper.”
I still find it hard to express some days how amazed I am that God would orchestrate circumstances to allow me to be here, in a job that fits my skills and strengths, and challenges me to grow in my weaknesses. But on the other hand, this is what He has called me to right now, and so this is what I do. It’s funny to me how awesome and how normal it can be all at the same time. But I think that’s part of how God works. He calls us to glorify Him in whatever situation we find ourselves, whether we are “official” missionaries overseas, or at home raising children, or working outside the home in any setting. Ministry is where you are, and glorifying God is as connected to that as breathing is to life.
Prayer requests:
Continue to pray for S (my supervisor) and her family, that they will be given rest and peace in Him regarding her upcoming surgery (thyroid surgery in October).
Pray for our team and the teams coming in over the next couple of weeks. My roommate's parents and their team come in Saturday morning (August 18) and will be doing a medical clinic in Jardim América, and FBC Nashville comes in next Saturday (August 25) to do a medical clinic in Vila do João.
Continue to respond to the Lord’s charge to pray for the city He has “deported” you to.
Pray that we will rest well during our week off (September 1-7), so that we may begin again and continue to be faithful to Him who has called us.
For He alone is worthy.

Waiting.....again

I went to the Federal Police (those are basically the immigration and ID guys here in Brasil) yesterday to turn in everything to renew my visa. After all that happened last year (at the consulate), I am suspicious of any visa process being easy. But that's exactly what happened.
I went to the despachante's office (that's the guy who runs around and knows everybody, which is a huge help in Brasil) and picked up my documents. I was a little worried that I would have to make copies of my passport and my protocolo (that's my little ID paper, since I don't have a card yet). Lo and behold, he had already made them and gotten them authenticated! Check off one thing on the to-do list. Once we got to the police, I asked like 3 times to make sure all the papers I needed were there. Sure enough, they were, so I paid my tax and came back to turn the papers in.
I walked out with a little sheet of paper giving me 6 more months to stay in the country, and a number that I can check on the internet in 90 to 120 days. THEN I can go back and get my visa stamped in my passport. THEN I can leave the country without worrying about having problems coming back. Geez.

So our bus got pulled over on Sunday. Our driver swerved to stay straight instead of turning and he got pulled over. Stuff like this always happens in my bus, because my boss always rides in the bus with the good driver. The driver was talking to the police for about 15 minutes, trying to convince them that he knew somebody that he could call to get him out of it, and borrowed my phone to call the owner of the bus company. The owner showed up out of nowhere (I think he morphs into something bat-like and skulks or flies -- take your pick -- throughout the city). The bus was liberated, but not before the other bus came back to pick the 22 of us up!
How's that for a Sunday afternoon?

"The price of freedom of religion, or of speech, or of the press, is that we must put up with a good deal of rubbish."
Robert Jackson