When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.” So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. Luke 2:15-18

São Paulo Mercy Ministry turns ten this year. I can hardly believe it. In 2013, we started with nothing except with the conviction that God was calling us to minister to the homeless children and teens of São Paulo. I wasn’t entirely sure if it would take off. I imagined that the idea sounded a little crazy for some. After all, Florida was thousands of miles away from Brazil and one has nothing to do with the other. Thankfully, our Bishop saw it differently and officially recognized us as a mission of the diocese with the permission of the local Brazilian diocese naturally. It is a miracle of love that we lasted so long. Like I mentioned before there is no pragmatic reason for people and churches of Florida to be involved in this ministry except for sheer purpose of sharing God’s love. Our initial support came from small churches. It was amazing that despite their limited resources they said “Yes” together with us to be a presence among the homeless children and teens in the largest city in South America. We started with nothing and now we have received much more than we ever imagined.

And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life. Matthew 19:29

There is no denying that we have received a hundredfold since we started this ministry. Many people, some whom I never met and some maybe in mere passing, have constantly encouraged us with their words and affection. We also have people who correspond with us who are from other parts of the world and in some instances of different faiths. These people have become part of our lives as much as the children albeit in different and unique ways. Many have adopted these children in their hearts. They often write to us asking about a specific child or teen. This ministry over the years has developed into something which I always hoped that it would become. It created a bridge between the church and our homeless children. Even though this church in particular is thousands of miles away, Love is able to overcome the divide.

We could not have remained here all these years here without receiving love from the children and teens. I have to admit it has not always been easy. These are young people whose very first experience in life is one of rejection. They were cast away by the very ones who were supposed to love them. Most of their parents also suffered the same fate and are just repeating this cycle of rejection and abandonment, understandably. It took a while for our children and teens to accept us. Being friendly is not the same as being accepted. Even their initial friendliness is due to the novelty of meeting someone new, especially someone from away. This phase is brief. After a while, when they realized that we are not going away like the other foreigners who are here short term, they did not know what do with us. They had to figure out whether we are worth carving out a space in their lives. This process took some time. In some cases, there was a lot of resistance and even hostility before anything concrete happened.

Erica was one of the very first girls we met in 2013. We visited her in the juvenile detention. She was detained for stealing but she claimed to be innocent. It was later proven that she was telling the truth. She was a little standoffish and made it seemed like she did not appreciate our visit. We decided not to impose ourselves upon her and stopped our visits. After a while, we saw her in the streets again upon her release. She basically confronted me and enquired why we stopped our visits. I was honest with her. I told her that I thought she did not get anything from it. She did not say anything. The following years she would just ignore us, I am not sure if it was deliberate. For some of the kids, we are just invisible. Most likely, they do not know where to place us in their lives. We were not offended. In the streets, there are always some who ignore us while others respond positively to us. It balances out in the end. We are never left alone. Besides, everyone has their season.

Frankly speaking, I do not remember when it happened but one day Erica started interacting with us. By this time it has already been more seven years since our first meeting. She started acknowledging our presence more and more. Sometimes, she would even sit and talk with us for long periods of time. Little by little we discovered about her past. Her mother is a crack addict and abandoned her in an orphanage. She grew up with very little contact with her. In fact, there was a time she hardly remembered what her mother looked like. The only thing she has to remind her of her mother is a weak lung. Her mother used a lot of drugs when she was pregnant with her and now Erica is asthmatic as a result. Erica grew up in the midst of homelessness and crime. This is the norm for her but she hated both these things and felt stuck in this world. She felt like she needed to use drugs and engage in crime in order to belong with the other teenage girls. However, she did not want to become like her mother. From very young age, she realized that if she wanted anything in life, she had to fight for it. Once she even commented to us, “I am a woman, black and poor. No one is going to give me anything freely. I have to fight for everything in order to survive.” I told her that she was right and she was surprised. Maybe she thought that I was going to contradict her.

Erica’s survival skills were developed based on the idea that no one loved her enough to care for her. To be frank, she was not the easiest person to love. She can be very manipulative. She attempted to get money from us on several occasions especially during the quarantine when food was scare in the streets. We helped her but she wanted to get as much as possible out of us. Then the other teens stepped in and stopped her. They made it clear to her that we are not the kind of people to be manipulated. Then she changed. Manipulation is a survival skill for her and we knew that it would take time for her to realize that it was not necessary to use this ‘skill’ with us. Eventually, she learned that whenever she needed something, all she needed to do is ask and we are more than willing to help her. It is hard for her to comprehend that we are willing to help her because we like her. She and Kawanna decided that they needed to leave behind the streets and drugs and crime. However, they have both been homeless all their lives and they have no family to help them. They reached out to us in this process. They desire to be independent but we had to explain to them that the road to independence is a process. Everyone needs someone who loves them to help them achieve it.

There are a lot challenges facing Erica. She never went to school and consequently she is illiterate. Recently, she went to the local library and was amazed at the number of books. She asked us if we could help her get a card. She has been teaching herself to read and has been able to read simple things. We gave her “Alice in Wonderland” once and she grabbed it and placed it close to her heart. Just before Christmas, she and Kawanna wanted to know if we could one day go for a walk in a park nearby together. They want to just spend time with us.

Our journey with Erica started with hostility and indifference and now she is one of our favorite people in the streets. She still has a lot of rough edges like the rest of us. The most important thing is that she is learning that there are people in the world who genuinely care for her. One day, I asked her what she hoped to do in the future. She told me that she wanted to make sure her mother has a place to stay when she gets out of prison. She wants to help her mother have a better life.

These ten years we have not done great and marvelous things but we have created strong bonds with children and teens like Erica. There are many more like her and every day new “Ericas” are making the streets their home. They might be hostile or even distant for now. We know that eventually they have the potential to become our favorites.

I want to end with the above gospel reading. When I read this, I thought to myself that this text best describes our ministry. God summons us to come to this place to see His Son in the streets of São Paulo. We have met Jesus alive and well in midst of these children and teens who were castaway so freely by the world and yet have so much to offer to those who are willing to allow the Holy Spirit to open their eyes and hearts.

Have a Blessed New Year.