GoD iS sO gEnErOuS...& hE uSeS gEnErOuS pEoPLe...

O.K, here we go...this is the second time I'm going to type this... last friday I was just uploading the last photo and Zaaap..everything was gone :-/ have no idea of what happen...but anyway, that doesn't stop me from writing it again...winning technology by patience and perseverance :-) eh, eh... specially coz I want to praise God in this post :-)...
so yes, God is generous...and He uses generous people... I was thinking about that on thursday during my trip from Porto to the Mount of Oaks in this beautiful car :-)... I still can't believe I actually have a car...
and right on time, coz now we'll be picking olives and had no way to carry them... not that this is exactly the kind of car anyone would carry olives in, but well, it will have to work :-)

Paulo, my brother in law gave me the car...just like that... he was about to sell it coz they didn't need it anymore and I just asked if we could use it for the olive picking...and he simply said " You want it?!! You keep it !!!"...
he even fixed something that was broken and made a complete washing up before he hand it to me... Paulo is an amazing person... This is just the way he is !!! And Edna, my sister as well... they are not only generous, but they are so hospitable with so many people that come and go through their house...actually, most of those who come here through Porto airport end up staying one or more days in their house...pretty handy actually :-)... and everyone gets impacted by their sympathy, hospitality and generosity...even though they have already 2 guys living with them, Nico from Angola and Juran from Italy, besides the 6 cats and 4 dogs :-) eh, eh... and they just had twins !!! don't try to picture !!!
So, I'm so thankful to get to know them... they've been a blessing to me in so many different times...
All this made me think about many other circumstances when God blessed me... and I'm only referring to material things, coz if I would mention all the others this would be a never ending post...I'm not even mentioning all the material blessings anyway...but I can't help but being in awe and thanksgiving for the things God has been allowing me to use...
like this laptop I'm using now and the mobile internet...I remember 2 years ago just saying in one e.mail that my communication was not so good coz the computer I was using was almost "dying"...a friend replied and said "why don't you share with your friends and raise some money to get a new one?!"...and he was the first one to give some money... I never thought about that...How could I just ask money to buy a new computer?!! well, but I did it...and in one week I had all the money... God is generous...and He uses generous people... What about the iPod that I'm charging now too?!! well, that was a funny one...I had a friend coming over and he had an iPod...I just thought in my mind..."Hmm, that would be great to have in the land"...believe me or not, next day I got a package from my sister... she was sending me her iPod..eh, eh...isn't that crazy ?!!! it took me almost a month to figure out how that works, but now it's a blessing in the land...our "sound system" !!! eh, eh...
Oh, o.k, the craziest story you might know already...how we got this land ...well, how God provided 30.000 Euros in 5 weeks...
All this is crazy for me... these are things that I never thought I could afford, and I never even dared to ask for... first because I don't have any savings account (saving what anyway), I don't have rich parents, and I never buy anything on credit...
But one thing I know from my Father in Heaven...He is generous...and He uses generous people... And I'm so thankful to all those who have been participating in my life through their money...people that believe I am supposed to be who I am, and do the things I do...
I'm living like this for almost 10 years now, and God has always been faithful... giving me even more than I could think I could ever have...
I remember one day when I was in Lisbon... Those were the "not so wealthy days" of my journey (well, not that much has changed now, eh, eh)...I was counting every cent to buy the essential food I needed... I was renting a room mainly because Byron and Lisa were supporting me every month... I remember as if it was today... I was coming out of the train, it was a hot summer day, and a desire just came to my mind : " it would be so good to have an ice-cream now" ... For me that was an "extra" need, and I couldn't afford then to have "extra" needs... I was not having a job, I was receiving money from people, so I shouldn't have more than the essencials... These were my thoughts then... and that's when God taught me a lesson..."- Go and buy an ice-cream for your own pleasure"... it was almost like a command...but then He started to minister to my heart... I'm not His slave...I'm His child and friend...and He likes to give good things to me...He loves satisfying my heart's desires...
I'm not having a job coz I just don't like working...I do work, but mostly volunteering... And I don't have a 9-5 job coz God told me He wants my full time...
So, I learned to be ok with that...but sometimes the pressures of society make me feel bad about it...
For some people it's even preferable and more secure to have a 9-5 job with a paycheck in the end of each month to do what they want with it... and that's ok , if it's ok for them...
As for me, I gave all my time to God and He gives me things and money for me to do what He wants, and also what I would like to do...
when Jesus said :" -...do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.", He meant it for real :-) ...

O.K, this is getting too long already...it went on a bit different direction than the one I wrote friday...maybe what God wanted ...eh, eh...

I just want to end up giving thanks again to all those who've been participating in my life...This is a lesson I learned with one of my fathers in faith, Marcos Azolin (already with the Father in Heaven now), when I was struggling about "living by faith" asking other people for money...he told me "- but you will not ask people for money, instead, you will give them a chance to participate in your life and what God is doing through your life... and that changed my perspective since then...

"I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength.
Yet it was good of you to share in my troubles...you sent me aid more than once when I was in need.
Not that I desire your gifts; what I desire is that more be credited to your account. I have received full payment and have more than enough. I am amply supplied, now that I have received... the gifts you sent.
They are a fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice, pleasing to God.
And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.

To our God and Father be glory for ever and ever. Amen."
(Philipians4:11-20)

"I WiLl nOt gO pReFeR a FeAsT oF fRiEnDs, tO tHe GiAnT fAmiLy..."

O.K, here goes my report about this weekend in Seville for the "24-7 Fest"... well, to be really honest, I just went there to see Byron and Lisa :-), my blond parents, eh, eh...even though Lisa always says it would be weird to have a child at 12 :-)...by the way, she just turned 45 on Monday,the 22nd... this picture here is from their 25th wedding aniversary, coz I totally forgot to take a picture with them this time...Tsss...I guess I was too excited to be with them...like Byron so well expressed, it was like "chocolate covered joy" to see them :-)...
but here goes my impressions...I warn you that it's gonna take a while to read, so just press "read more" when you really have time to read some deep thoughts...:-)


First of all I have to say again that it was really great and still a bit surreal to be with Byron and Lisa after I last saw them more than 1 year ago in Portugal when I left to Palestine...When I returned they were already in USA, preparing to go to Tanzania and join a beautiful project and family called
Wild Hope , a group of friends who love Africa and Africans...
Oh, how I miss them...
so that was the main reason why I went all the way to seville and travelled in buses and trains for more then 12 hours :-/ ... but I would do it again if I could have more chances like that...

All the rest was extras, and it was very good as well...
I got to see Tom again, after his visit to the Mount of Oaks some months ago...I got to meet Steve , a wandering "clay pot" who travels around praying wherever God leads him... he's a friend of Emma, and that's how we connected...And of course I got to meet other interesting people throughout the weekend...

As you may noticed, I also took sometime during my looooong trip to figure out how to improve my blog appearance:-)...

But many things I heard also led me to meditate in lots of things, and that's the reason why this post will get sooooo long...


They called the weekend the "24-7 Fest"... a gathering of friends from all over the world who purposely met to celebrate what God has been doing among and through them during the last year...an inspiration from God, who told the people of Israel to celebrate in different feasts throughout the year and remember His faithfulness...
This group of friends are just a small expression of the Body of Christ (the real "Israel"), as they represent just a few of God's children living today...
For me, I would even skip the "24-7" emphasis, and I would called it simply a "Feast of friends"...as a remarcable poet once sang:
"...No more money, no more fancy dress
This other kingdom seems by far the best...
I WILL NOT GO
PREFER A FEAST OF FRIENDS
TO THE GIANT FAMILY." (JM)


These are maybe a little "finger" from the Body of Christ celebrating together, but it gave a bit of a taste of what's gonna be like when the whole of God's family will be eternally together to party :-)...
...one of the things that made me think was that I might have some part on this "finger", because I have relationships with some of them, but I don't really feel I belong to it...I feel more like a little blood cell :-), as I'm most of the times coming and going into different parts of the Body, relating, hanging out or connecting with so many different parts... I've been noticing more and more that I don't really belong to any, in a way...and I don't really feel the need of it as some do...
I know that's part of who I am and the way God created me... a nomad I guess...or as the meaning of my name, "a stranger in the land" , eh, eh, I like that...like Abraham who "made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents"...as I'm actually doing now...eh, eh...but that's not the point I know...just being goofy...
still, I belong to all... The Body...and that's it :-) ...
so when I heard things like "we, as a movement", or "we, as 24-7", I didn't really connected with...
I'm more connected with expressions like "we, as God's children", or "we, as Christ's Body", or even "we, as part of God's Kingdom"...

I was really touched and encouraged by so many stories of simple people who chose to believe that prayer does make a difference and that what Jesus spoke He meant it for real...
Actually, they were not the ones who chose that, and this was the core of most of the messages of this weekend... Jesus was the one who chose all of us, as He said "You did not choose me, but I chose you..." (John15)
This also made me meditate and also cry a lot in one of the morning sessions... a lot of times I feel unworthy of this...Jesus chose ME...and it has nothing to do with being worthy or anything I might have done...Jesus chose ME... And He is the one who chooses everyone really...

but why ME?!! I was not looking for Him when He came on my way...I was not so interested in Him, besides for the fact he was an amazing peaceful person who once lived on this earth... I even hated christianity and all the hypocrisy I used to see around me from the so called "christians"... so why ME?!!! I always wondered... but the thing I realized is that is not about ME at all...it's all about HIM, JESUS...And how come He trusts me so many times?!! I never figure that out... He knows me...Tsss...He knows how fragile, limited and sinful I am... How come He chooses me to share His amazing dreams & desires?!!

well, I have no idea how to answer these questions, besides knowing that nothing is about ME...
But I can be sure of this : He chose me for some reason... and that gives me confidence when I feel worthless... the only thing I can bost of ...
"This is what the LORD says:
"Let not the wise boast of their wisdom
or the strong boast of their strength
or the rich boast of their riches,

but let those who boast boast about this:
that they understand and know me,
that I am the LORD, who exercises kindness,
justice and righteousness on earth,
for in these I delight,"
declares the LORD.(Jeremiah 9:23,24)

Maybe I have no idea of what I am DOING in this life here, but I'm more and more sure of WHO I AM...
Sometimes I may think I 'm not really sure of this either, but deep inside I know that this is the only truth that keeps me alive and standing...
I AM WHO I AM, BY THE GRACE OF GOD ONLY... I BELONG TO HIM COZ HE HAS CHOSEN ME AND SEPARATED ME TO HAVE THE IMAGE OF JESUS... (Romans 8:29)
I know I'm so far from that reality now... But that's what I long and hope for...
"See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called CHILDREN OF GOD! And THAT IS WHAT WE ARE ! ...we know that when Christ appears, WE SHALL BE LIKE HIM..."( I John 3:1-5)
I know I am unique, like everyone else...and that together with the rest of the Body, we are One and complete : Christ !!!
Isn't this amazing !!!

YOU ARE A CHILD OF GOD... AND A UNIQUE PART OF HIS BODY...
"Christ is all and is in all."(Colossians 3:11)
In reality WE WERE ALL CREATED TO BE CHOSEN, since the beginning...
"For he CHOSE US in him BEFORE THE CREATION OF THE WORLD to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will."(Ephesians 1:4,5)
Sorry for so many Bible quotes, but it's just to make sure that I'm not making this up in my mind... This is the TRUTH about all of us :-)

This was another thing we heard different times this weekend...
"we are not called to bring Jesus to people who don't know Him, but we are called to go and meet Jesus in every person" (Aaron from Vancouver)
It reminded me of a time I meditated on Colossians 3:11 in Angola...this was also what I came up with - Jesus is in us, as He is in all... so we are to find Him and make Him alive in those who are still anaware of His presence...
Yes, Jesus is in us...so we are to love others as Jesus would...
And Jesus is in all others...so we are to love all others as if they were Jesus...
We are to find Jesus in the poor, in the hungry, in the prisoners, in the pimps, in the prostitutes, in the homosexuals, in the drug addicts, in the widows, in the orphans, etc... coz that's where Jesus is to be found... We are to seek Him, not only when we are alone with Him, or when we gather with others who already know Him, but we are to seek Him and find Him specially among those who are still lost...


I heard very encouraging stories of simple people who didn't came to bring theory, but people who are really putting the Gospel in practice...with their prayers, their hands, their attitudes of heart and their real compassion for the ones Jesus loves...
I was very impacted by a young woman named Kelly who just decided one day to go to "Boystown" and pray...this is the first stop after crossing the USA border into Mexico... a town surrounded by walls, inhabited mostly by prostitutes, pimps and drug addicts...Kelly simply moved in and prayed for more than a year around this walls...she honestly thought she was getting crazy, but now she can see some fruits already...she said that's where she really met Jesus...in those people...and these people are no longer faceless and nameless for Kelly...they are her friends... she not only knows their names and faces, but she also knows their stories, their pains, theirs sorrows, their struggles...she sets up birthday parties for them...she watches and speaks about Tv shows with them...she arranges their hair and nails...she prays for and with them...she visits some in jail...
and in all this , she definitely brings Jesus in their midst...and she often meets Jesus in them... coz she also learned to see Jesus in each of them... I imagine how hard some days may be, as she's often alone, besides a friend who join the last months...but I also imagine how rewarding it might be some days to see Jesus there, loving her friends...definitely worth it...you can read amazing stories of her days in Boystown if you want to be inspired by this amazing woman... one of those anonymous heroes on earth today...

O.k, there were many more stories to tell, but I guess this is already to long for you guys...sorry for that...but it was also a processing time for me...

be blessed... Hope to meet you all one day in the big Family Fest :-)

"...No more money, no more fancy dress
This other kingdom seems by far the best...
I WILL NOT GO
PREFER A FEAST OF FRIENDS
TO THE GIANT FAMILY." (JM)

"For here we do not have an enduring city, but we are looking for the city that is to come." (Hebrews 13:14)...

bAcK 2 oLd tEmPlAtE sTyLe...

o.k, that's it...I gave up...it seams that it's impossible to hide my loooong posts , and for me that 's one of the most important things coz I think that makes it much better to read ... it doesn't look so discouraging if anyone just want to scroll down and have a look :-)
so, sorry for that !!!
PEACE

bLoG uNdEr cOnStRuCtiOn...

don't worry, your computer doesn't have any virus...i'M jUsT tRyiNg 2 fIgUrE oUt tHiS lAyOuT sTuFf 2 iMpRoVe mY bLoG aPpeArAncE...well, so far it hasn't been improving much...if someone can help me...pLeeeeeeeeeeeeeeAsE...I'd like to hide my posts so you can just click on "read more", but now I don't know how to do it...I'm trying to follow the "help" instructions, but it's not helping much, for my reduced understanding of "computer language"...
so, just don't worry if my blog will look different every time you click on it :-/ sorry... iT's uNdEr cOnStRuCtiOn :-) eh, eh... till I figure this out ...

cRaZy...bUt tRuE...

Yep, it can be crazy to travel in Portugal if you're not in Lisbon, Faro or Porto...even Porto can be hard...
It's 6.20 am now and I'n on my way to Sevilha...I already woke up at 4am and I'm on a train to Lisbon...I'll arrive there around 9.30am and then I 'll have to wait till 12.30 when my bus to Faro departs...in Faro I'll wait almost 2 hours till my bus to Sevilha departs at 5.20, which will get me there, if nothing unpredictable occurs, around 10pm... fiiiiiu...

a whole day trip for maybe 500 Km distance between Povoa de Atalaia and Sevilha...But going back to Lisbon, then Faro and Sevilha, I might travel almost 1000 Km today... Oh well...
But the worst was even to get the tickets... I tried online, but it didn't work... the bus company, called "EVA" that makes Faro-Sevilha, has some sort of link with "Rede Expressos" that makes the connection between Lisbon and Faro... so, when I tried to buy the ticket online on "Eva"'s web site, they sent me to "Rede Expressos" web site...but the thing is that they have no destination to Sevilha, so, impossible...
Luckily I went to Lisbon last weekend and could buy it there...but still, it was not easy...I had to go to "Eva"'s ticket place to get one from Faro to Sevilha...with an open return which I still need to confirm as I get there... Then I went back to the "Rede Expresso" ticket place and wanted to buy the ticket from Lisbon to Faro and return... for my amazement, I couldn't get a return ticket coz it was more then 7 days...oh well, I didn't get it...so, I just pray I will have a return ticket on monday from Faro... believe it or not, that's how buses work in Portugal... :-/

here's a picture of Huck and Violeta...they always follow me to train station now, then they go back home by themselves... I like that they are like that, free and independent...so I don't need to worry so much...Tom is not always around, but when he is, he also comes along...they're funny... I hope they get a way to find food while I'm away...Stephi, Jared and Angela are in the land now, but they'll be going to Porto on friday, and Jared will be back only on monday... I'm praying that God will feed them all, cats and dogs, during these days :-/... well, the kittens are good hunters already, so that shouldn't be a problem for them... I hope...

nEw visits, aFtEr tHe LoNeLy dAyS...

Tiago, an old friend of mine from Porto came for few days to visit...I think he arrived friday night, more than a week ago... it was really cool to have him here...and really fun...he works with "arborism" (go to google if you have no idea what that is, eh, eh) and he came with a little gift for us... a small slide from a tree in the forest... Saturday morning another guy arrived, Jared ...hopefully to stay for long time :-)...


His visa will run out in the end of October, so he needs to extend it for more 3 months for now...He'd like to have a permanent visa and make the land his home base in Europe, but for that he would need to go to USA to apply for it... how can we understand this things?!!!
He heard from Al and Tina about the Land and felt this might be the place for him to have a home...he wants to stay in Europe for a while...travelling and getting to know travellers, squatters and anarquists...
so now I have a new neighbor in the woods...eh, eh...He's a tree lover as well...he just set up his hammock and rain tarp between 2 trees, and he's happy... he's a funny guy...
Next day, Tiago set up the slide for us to have some fun...

and it was soooooooo cool, even though it was just a small one...we were speaking and he said he has a project to present to the city-halls to set up Arborism "playgrounds", some sort of adventurous turism... and I thought that was great to present to our Mayor to make one in Povoa de Atalaia... That would be great I think !!!
On monday Stephi was coming...she's a woman I met in Germany 2 years ago in the rainbow when I met most of the Jesus Freaks' family...she's married with Uli and they have 3 kids, Milan, Melody and Elias... they're a great family...
me and Jared went to Fundao to go shopping ...we had a lot of things to buy, but luckily we found a baby car on the trash that helped up to carry along the way ...eh, eh...

After shopping we picked Stephi up from the bus...she was happy with that, and also very proud of herself as she didn't travel by herself for long time...

It has been really cool to have her around... but unfortunately I don't have much time to be with her as I just came this weekend to hang out with some friends (next post I write more about it, I'm just going back to the land now) and I will have to leave again to Sevilha to see my family, the Borden 's :-) Yiipppyyy !!! I'm so excited and looking forward for that...I miss them sooooooooooooo much !!!!

mOrE cOnNeCtIoNs iN d@ nEigbOoRhOod...

It's so funny how google can connect people who just live next to each other :-)...
so, one day I got a comment on my blog from someone who was interested to get to know more about our community style and principles...Then he asked me why did we name it Mount of Oaks and I explain it to him...Then he told me that he also has a house in the Mount of Oaks, and possibly the same :-) , isn't that funny?!!... well, so far our only contact was through my blog... so I asked him how did he find my blog, and he said he just saw the signs on the road and he was curious to know what was that all about... then he typed "mount of Oaks" on Google and he found Nuno Barreto 's blog who was recently here and had made a post named "mount of Oaks"...from there it was easy to get the link to my blog... Is that funny or what ?!!!
So, Aquiles Pinto is his name, he lives in Lisbon, but he grew up in this area, more in Serra da Estrela (which is just next to Serra da Gardunha, the mountains around us)... here was the house of his grandmother where he used to spend all the summer hollidays...
So finally I got to meet him...he came this saturday with his daughter Alexandra to see the land...but it was a bit rainny already so we didn't even went to look around...I just made some tee and we mainly spoke about many things... he said he heard about many people living like this, but never heard about christians...
he was pretty interested to know about that part as well...I found out that Aquiles is a natural lover of this area too and knows a lot of cool stuff and traditions of people here...you can check his blog by the way, if you read portuguese... he has a lot of interesting things there about this area and a lot of traditions... we were exactly speaking about the village parties and how it could be much more traditional than it is (as I wrote in a previous post)... So, I guess Aquiles can give me a lot of information for me to research...and maybe we can work togethert on something, who knows?!! he already sent me yesterday some music and other links about different traditions from this area, I still need to check it out... And maybe cool things can be birth through that... we'll see... It would be nice to revive some of the traditions and culture of this place ...
"Deus quer, o homem sonha, a obra nasce"(Fernando Pessoa)
("God wants, man dreams , the deed is born" (rough translation))

Alexandra might be back soon with her boyfriend..they are both musicians, she plays the flute and he plays the saxophone...actually I heard him around new year when I was passing by their house, but I didn't see anyone..
Another blessing was that Aquiles gave me a key for the electricity house they have in the end of their land, less than 5 minutes from ours... There I have 2 plugs where I can charge my computer and other stuff...Isn't that a blessing !!!
I'm so thankfull !!!

lOnG rAiNiNg dAyS ...

today is the first day I can see the sun again, after one full week with rain... Fiiiuuu !!! I was feeling like this little mouse here at the picture...poor one, I took him out of the road just 5 minutes before a car came...I hope he survived...but I hope he doesn't find the way to my kitchen, eh,eh...
I didn't mind the rain actually, it was a nice, quiet and cozy time for me...I was all the time alone (except for all the cats and dogs of course) , so I would just take my own time time to do what I needed to do... I realized I need so much time alone with God than I thought I did... I'm just loosing the track of time every morning now...I 'm usually getting up at 8am, I go down to feed the cats and dogs...it's always that excitement :-) as if they wouldn't see me for weeks !!! I make my own breakfast too and then around 9 I'm going up again to my hut to have my meditation time... I'm just going through a bunch of teachings I already have and I'm also translating them all into english (don't ask me why, coz I've no idea yet)... As I do that, God is revealing new stuff, or He's reminding me of other things that I kinda forgot... it's so cool ... I also realized how much I love the Bible... that's the way God speaks most of the times to me... in the end I just pick my pen and journal and just share random thoughts with God...sometimes prayers, sometimes questions, sometimes cool revelations...this days, because I'm alone and have no one to really care for, I end up staying in my meditations till 1 sometimes 2pm... and it just doesn't feel a lot :-) I feel so glad to have this back... and I guess I need to make more time for that even when more people are around... it will look a bit unsocial maybe, to skip breakfast with the others, and be away almost all morning...but that would make me such a better person to be around with :-) ...eh, eh...I hope people will understand...

besides that I've been having other challenges...like discipling the kittens to pee and poo outside the kitchen and my house... look at them, so cute !!! But they are extending my patience to the limit... they just don't get it that they shouldn't pee on every place that has some dirt... because inside our kitchen, there is dirt ( I'm trying to put some clay now)... all around and behind my house, there is dirt... so , it's hard for me to get them to understand...Pffff....hard work...
Speaking about hard work, I've been also digging canals for the water to flow and not to get stuck where it shouldn't... the heavy rain helped me to see where it was needed...cool !!!

And another cool stuff about being alone here was that I was able to bathe inside the kitchen in front of the fire place...chique ah !!! eh, eh... it felt so good !!! There's something about having a bath, specially in a basin and with a simple soap , that reminds me of childhood (or Angola too, eh, eh)... and this time it even reminded me more, coz that's how I remember having baths in my grandmother's house in the country side...she always had her fire place in the kitchen on, and she'd take a huge basin (maybe the size of it was according to my size at that time, eh, eh) to the kitchen and filled it with nice warm water... then I'd jump in and had my bath... it felt so good!!! just like the one yesterday, except for the size of the basin, coz I couldn't even sit properly :-) ...
Oh well, little things in life that can make us happy !!!