When my husband and I started dating, we discovered we had several dreams in common: working with music, being missionaries, having children, living in the countryside, etc. Soon after we got married, we had the opportunity to spend a year in Africa as missionaries. We were always very involved in music, both in church and professionally, and we had two daughters, but for almost ten years, we couldn't fulfill the dream of living in the countryside, even though we felt that with each passing year, God was bringing us closer to achieving it.

For the first four years of our marriage, we lived in apartments. After the children arrived, we started looking for houses with yards. And with each move, God allowed us to find environments further away from big cities and closer to nature, until we began to feel a real need for country living.

From 2007 onwards, our desire intensified so much that almost every Sunday we would go out to look at small farms and country properties on the outskirts of the city where we lived, and when we weren't doing that, we were strolling in a park where we could be closer to nature. We felt an increasing need for a peaceful place to live.

As the children grew older, we began to notice the power of negative influences in the community where we lived, and we felt that, in addition to tranquility, country living would give us more control over situations that were sometimes almost impossible to manage in an urban community.

The following year, the economic crisis began in the US, which is where we were living. We then felt we should take a step of faith – to step into the water and wait for the sea to part. Although many at the time thought the crisis was the main factor in our decision to move, it was actually just an extra push towards fulfilling our dream. Our life was simple, and if we had stayed there, it might not have been so affected, but we would have had to make some sacrifices that, above all, would impact our family life.

We started praying more specifically, asking God to show us the way. We had two options: look for a place in the countryside in the US itself, or return to Brazil, where we felt it would be easier. But the truth is, we were in no position to make a move at that time, much less to another country.

We started making a list of our most basic needs, and I began noting God's answers in a notebook. It was simply incredible to see how He was responding. The little list for Brazil grew longer each day. For example, one day I started questioning God about the money for our tickets, the most basic thing needed to return to Brazil. Two days later, my brother called and said that my sister-in-law had started working for an airline and that we would get tickets with a super discount starting the following month. There was my answer.

Dawerne was concerned about work in the countryside. He wanted to start his own business with media evangelism projects, but he didn't have the necessary equipment. We wrote it in our notebook and started praying. Some time later, a friend offered a computer, making payment easier. He needed to buy software, and soon found where to buy it at a discount, without having to resort to piracy or illegal sales. A camcorder was still missing. One day at work, he asked if they were interested in selling an older camcorder they had. They told him to make an offer. He researched and made the offer without having the money. On the morning they were going to talk, he received an email from a friend saying she would be making a donation for his project, and when he checked the amount, it was exactly what they had asked for the camcorder.

Wait a minute… but do you know where you're going to live? That's what everyone was asking. What about the house in the countryside? Where would it be? No, we didn't know yet; we didn't have money to buy a property, but we knew that if it was God's will, He would open the doors. We had already looked at a region in Brazil that we liked, but we had no contacts there. One day, a friend came to visit us and said she was buying a country property in Brazil. Where was it? In the same region we had liked. A few more months passed, and one day she called us and said: The person who was going to live on my property backed out, do you want to go there? There was our answer. Although we weren't yet sure it would work out, as we needed to see the place and check if we would have what we needed for our family's needs, work, etc., we felt more at peace, because we saw that God was in control.

Long story short, seven months after making the decision, we arrived in Brazil, with courage and determination (and a tiny bit of faith). Doubts? Fears? Absolutely, many times. But something in our hearts kept us moving forward; we couldn't imagine that all those answers from God had happened by chance!

We visited the property – it was wonderful! God couldn't have been kinder to us. One small (but big) problem still lingered: there was no internet. All our work depended on the internet. We started praying. My husband went to the city to inquire; they told him they saw no possibilities. He went to a second location, where they showed him a mountain and said: “If you have a clear view of that mountain from the property, there's a chance; we have a transmission tower there.” He, along with our friend's brother, who also owned the property, drove, looking at the mountain and praying. When they arrived, they saw the mountain directly in front of them. They called the company, ran the tests, and the signal was perfect.

We've been here for two and a half years. The longest we've ever lived in the same place! Anyone who knows us knows that in almost 12 years of marriage, we've never lived in the same house for more than a year, and never in the same country for more than two years. Our nicknames? Nomads, gypsies, indecisive, and definitely crazy! But as we always say: All our moves had a purpose and were guided by God, even those that were trials simply to teach us to trust Him more.

Are we happy? Definitely. Problems? Many! But we live with the certainty that we are where God planned for us to be; each day I learn more of His love and care for us. The future? It still remains in His hands…

Some people find our choice to live in the countryside strange, and say they would never get used to it, but do you know what we've noticed? Most vacation packages are for more isolated places; after a year of work and hustle, everyone wants to go to a farm hotel, to the beach, or to a mountain chalet. Why? Because deep in our hearts, even unconsciously, we long to return to the original environment where we were created. Have you ever stopped to think that God created man in a garden, and that when He returns to take us from this earth, He will also take us to a garden? God created us to live amidst nature, because one of the most visible ways He communicates with us is through it.

So why did we choose the countryside?

1. For the tranquility we feel waking up every day to the sound of birds and going to sleep every night to the chirping of crickets and croaking of frogs.

1. For the freedom we feel when we step out our front door and see no walls or fences, but an open space full of the wonders of God's creation.

1. For being able to see simple things every day that we even forget exist in the city, but which make us think of God, such as: sunrises and sunsets, starry skies, birds, and flowers and plants of all colors.

1. For having time for family, to run and play with the girls, without the worry of forgetting some social engagement that would normally distance us from them.

1. For being able to let them play freely without worrying if they are learning anything wrong from the neighbor's children or on television.

1. For the health we gain by being able to: choose to go to bed and wake up early, breathe completely pure air, drink pure spring water, and eat pesticide-free fruits and vegetables from the orchard.

1. For the physical exercise we enjoy, whether hiking, climbing "our mountain," or tending to the garden.

1. Because when worries arise, we simply sit on the porch, gaze at the surrounding trees and mountains, and are immediately reminded that God is with us and will help us overcome any obstacles.

1. Because in a calmer life, we can truly see our priorities and organize our lives accordingly.

1. Because as we begin to enjoy the blessings of the countryside, we understand that this is God's original plan for us.

“My people will live in peaceful dwelling places, in secure homes, in undisturbed places, though hail flattens the forest and the city is leveled completely.” Isaiah 32:18-19.

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