Seeing God Do Immeasurably More

Igreja Batista Central In Praia Grande

2012-01-23T17:15:00.001-02:00

We have recently begun working with Pastor Reinan and Igreja Batista Central to help them to share Jesus in their community, which is located in the city of Praia Grande. Praia Grande is one of several cities that make up the coastal area known as the "Baixada Santista". Pastor Reinan has been the pastor at the church for 19 years. His wife is a teacher in 2 schools, and we met her when we did our Qualidade De Vida project in a Praia Grande school last year.

We will be working with the church in a state school in Praia Grande in late May. Pr. Reinan invited me to preach in the church, and I did last night. It was also a good opportunity to meet the people of the church. Ellen, a member of the church, served as my interpreter. We had a great time of worship in the service last night, and God moved in many hearts during the message, which was to encourage everyone to participate in God's mission of reaching out to those who are without Christ. In the end we shared the Gospel and we praise God that 12 people accepted Christ and committed their lives to Him. Afterwards we ate at the church and enjoyed some nice fellowship.

Missions Quotes

2012-01-18T16:45:00.001-02:00

"We were not saved from our sin simply so that we would qualify for heaven. God delivered us so we would have a relationship with Him through which He could carry out His mission to redeem a lost world."
- Henry Blackaby

"The command has been to "go," but we have stayed - in body, gifts, prayer and influence. He has asked us to be witnesses unto the uttermost parts of the earth… But 99% of Christians have kept puttering around in the homeland."
- Robert Savage

"While vast continents are shrouded in darkness…the burden of proof lies upon you to show that the circumstances in which God has placed you were meant by God to keep you out of the foreign mission field."
- Ion Keith-Falconer

"I wasn't God's first choice for what I've done for China…I don't know who it was…It must have been a man…a well-educated man. I don't know what happened. Perhaps he died. Perhaps he wasn't willing… and God looked down…and saw Gladys Aylward…And God said - "Well, she's willing."
- Gladys Aylward

"Brother, if you would enter that Province, you must go forward on your knees."
- J. Hudson Taylor

"The man… looking at him with a smile that only half concealed his contempt, inquired, "Now Mr. Morrison do you really expect that you will make an impression on the idolatry of the Chinese Empire?" "No sir," said Morrison, "but I expect that God will."
- Robert Morrison

"Here am I. Send me."
- Isaiah

"And people who do not know the Lord ask why in the world we waste our lives as missionaries. They forget that they too are expending their lives…and when the bubble has burst they will have nothing of eternal significance to show for the years they have wasted."
- Nate Saint

"Had I cared for the comments of people, I should never have been a missionary."
- C.T. Studd

"Oh, that I had a thousand lives, and a thousand bodies! All of them should be devoted to no other employment but to preach Christ to these degraded, despised, yet beloved mortals."
- Robert Moffat

"We must be global Christians with a global vision because our God is a global God."
- John Stott

"He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep, to gain what he cannot lose."
- Jim Elliot

"A tiny group of believers who have the gospel keep mumbling it over and over to themselves. Meanwhile, millions who have never heard it once fall into the flames of eternal hell without ever hearing the salvation story."
- K.P. Yohannan

People Sharing Jesus

2012-01-10T17:13:00.007-02:00

I recently re-read the book People Sharing Jesus, written by Dr. Darrell Robinson, founder of Total Church Life ministry. They have a seminar based on the book that we use to train pastors and church members to effectively and powerfully share Jesus person-to-person in a loving and caring way. It is an excellent book, as is the seminar.

Here are some of the quotes or statements that made an impact on me:

* only 3-5% of Christians are obeying the Lord's command to be "fishers of men", actively sharing Jesus with others in their community.

* Many churches today do not have the same passion and priority that the Lord has: "God wants all men to be saved." (I Timothy 2:4)

* When we join God in His work and mission to seek and save the lost, and faithfully share the Gospel with others, we are joining God's unbeatable team of 3:

1. God's Word (there is great power in God's Word and the Gospel)

2. The action of the Holy Spirit (the Holy Spirit empowers us to share Jesus, and also convicts of sin, convinces the lost person they need Jesus, and reveals spiritual truth)

3. The faithful witness

* God has empowered all of His children to share the Gospel, through the Holy Spirit

* To be successful in sharing Christ, the other person does not have to accept Christ. If you do the following 3 things when sharing Christ, you will be successful in God's eyes:

1. You need to faithfully and prayerfully share the Gospel ... the only way you will fail is if you fail to share.

2. You need to share in the power of the Holy Spirit.

3. Leave the results in God's hands. (this takes the pressure off of us)

* You may live a consistent life, minister to people, and invite them to church. You have not really witnessed until you have shared Jesus. Unbelievers will not experience the forgiveness of Christ until someone shares the life-changing Gospel with them.

* There is nothing that energizes and gladdens the heart of a Christian more than leading a person to Christ.

* God's plan for His church is for every believer to actively share Jesus with others.

* We need to have a person-centered, loving & caring approach to reaching out to lost people.

* We need to learn to listen to others and then share Jesus in a way that meets their particular needs.

* There are numerous methods to sharing Jesus with others. The method is not the most important thing; sharing in the power of the Holy Spirit and then leaving the results in God's hands is.

* We need to have Jesus' love (John 3:16) and compassion (Matt. 9:35) for others in order to effectively share the Gospel.

* We need to be focused and sensitive to the lost people around us. Sharing opportunities and lost people are all around us in our daily lives. Many times we are not focused and sensitive to the "divine opportunities" that God gives us.

* God is always at work and He has already prepared a harvest (Matt. 9:37-38) ... we need to be faithful and join God in His work, sowing and sharing the Gospel, and reaping the harvest.

A Bad Cultural Habit

2012-01-02T22:09:00.000-02:00

We generally like living in Brazil, and there are not many things that we do not like about Brazil and it's people. One of the things that is not so nice is the habit many people have of leaving garbage in the streets and on the beaches. Actually the vast majority of people that live in our city of Santos do a good job of keeping the streets and beaches clean. The problem is the tourists that come from the city of Sao Paulo. Many people there have a bad habit of throwing garbage in the streets, and they expect the street cleaners to pick it up. When they visit our beaches for vacation, they bring this bad habit with them. The city has placed many garbage containers on and near the beaches, but many people still leave their garbage on the beach.

This problem not only occurs here, but in many beach areas in Brazil. During the latest New Years holiday this past weekend, many cities on the coast had to have it's street cleaner workers pick up tons of garbage on New Years day. On the famous Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro, the city had to pick up 370 tons of garbage on the beach after the New Years Eve celebration. Here in Santos, the city workers picked up 75 tons of garbage. That is one of the reasons that many residents here are glad when the vacation season is over and the tourists have to go back to their homes in Sao Paulo and other cities.

Happy New Year / Feliz Ano Novo 2012

2012-01-01T15:02:00.001-02:00

Happy New Year / Feliz Ano Novo. We hope that 2012 will be a victorious and blessed year for you. May you grow closer to the Lord, and may He bless you and use you for His kingdom and glory, in ways that you could never have imagined.

We are looking forward to seeing what God is going to do this year and in future years. There is no better place to be than in the middle of His will.

Last night we had a very Brazilian new year celebration. We ate churrasco (Brazilian BBQ), drank Guarana (Brazilian soft drink), and at midnight we watched the New Year fireworks show on the beach. Santos is a great place to celebrate New Years.

Merry Christmas / Feliz Natal

2011-12-24T12:23:00.000-02:00

We want to wish everyone a Merry Christmas / Feliz Natal.

Remember, Christmas is not about the presents, it's about The Gift. God bless all of you.

"the gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord." - Romans 6:23

11.4 Million Brazilians Live In Favelas

2011-12-21T19:32:00.001-02:00

A recent report shows that the number of poor people in Brazil that live in favelas (slums) has increased dramatically in the last 10 years. In 2000 there were approx. 6.5 million people living in favelas in Brazil. In 2010 the number increased to 11.4 million. Despite Brazil's strong economic growth in the last few years, the number of poor people continues to grow. At the same time, the number of rich people in Brazil is growing as well, although not as quickly. Brazil is truly a place full of contradictions.

Rio de Janeiro leads the nation in the number of people living in favelas with nearly 1.4 million. That is 22% of the 6.3 million residents living in the city, which is a staggering number. Sao Paulo is the city with the 2nd largest population living in favelas with nearly 1.3 million.

New Website

2011-12-18T13:57:00.003-02:00

One of the projects I have been working on lately is to update our website. I have updated most pages on our site now, and will probably finish with all of the pages by sometime this week. Please take a look and see what God is doing in this part of the world:

Our New Website

Looking Forward to 2012

2011-12-13T16:57:00.001-02:00

We had a great year in 2011, and we praise God for the privilege of joining Him in His Kingdom work. God is mightily at work here and all over the world, and it is an undeserved privilege to have the opportunity to be His servant. Here are some of the highlights of 2011:

* we spoke in 20 schools this year, and we saw God do great things in the hearts and lives of many students, teachers, and school leaders.

* I had the privilege of preaching in 11 churches this year, and in all we worked with & helped 14 churches to share Jesus in their communities through various events and projects. (we have now worked with approx. 30 churches in this area of Brazil known as the Baixada Santista).

* we had our 1st American church come to help us to share Christ, and we had a tremendous week in October where we spoke in 5 schools and visited various homes with a church to share Jesus. We had close to 2300 people that accepted Christ and committed their lives to Him that week.

* we had the privilege of helping some churches in their ministry to poor people, and we had the opportunity to share the Gospel during these events.

* we saw over 13,000 people accept Christ and commit their lives to Him this year.

* we had 2 People Sharing Jesus seminars in churches, to train pastors and members to powerfully and effectively share Jesus with others person-to-person.

* we had a great trip to the US in late June and early July, and we were able to see 2 of our sons and both of our families, along with many friends.

We are looking forward to 2012, and it promises to be a great year:

* we have already scheduled our Quality Of Life project in 10 schools in the first half of next year.

* we have 2 American churches confirmed to come to help us next year (1 in May and 1 in October), and there is a possibility of a 3rd church. This is a great blessing to us, and it allows us to be able to reach many more people for Jesus than we can by ourselves.

* we will be working with several new churches next year that we have not previously worked with.

It will be great to see what God will do in this upcoming year. We give Him all of the praise, glory, and honor. Without Him we can do nothing.

December Newsletter

2011-12-07T14:42:00.000-02:00

Here is a link to our December newsletter. Check out what God is doing in this part of the world. Thanks to all who have been faithfully praying for us, and for the people we are trying to reach for Jesus. Your prayers are very valuable and encouraging to us, and we very much appreciate them.

December Newsletter

A Good Opportunity To Share Jesus

2011-12-05T12:30:00.001-02:00

On Saturday night (Dec. 3) we had a great opportunity to share the Gospel. Igreja Batista Vila Nova Mariana, located in a very poor area of Sao Vicente, has a ministry called PEPI for poor children. They take care of about 50 pre-school children during the week, and they feed them as well as have pre-school classes and Bible studies for them. It is a good ministry designed to help and reach out to poor children and their families. Most of the children and families are unchurched.

Saturday night the church had the ministry Christmas party, and Pastor Andre invited us to come and share the message. We shared the same message that we use in the public schools, and in the end we gave a clear and detailed presentation of the Gospel. We praise God that 92 people accepted Christ and committed their lives to Him, most of whom were parents or adult relatives. We pray that God will continue to work in their hearts and lives, and help them to grow closer to Him and grow spiritually, and that they will get plugged into the church. After the message, the children put on a Christmas show for their parents and relatives, and they did a great job.

Coral Reef at Porto de Galinhas

2011-12-03T12:01:00.000-02:00

We returned late last night from our trip to Porto de Galinhas. We had a great trip, and it was good to get some much needed rest. One of the best attractions in Porto de Galinhas is the coral reef. During low tide you can take a boat ride out to the reef, where you can see several natural pools and thousands of tropical fish and other things. We enjoyed it so much that we went twice. The tropical fish are literally everywhere on the reef, and we have never seen anything like it. You can even feed the fish while you are there.

Porto de Galinhas, Brazil

2011-11-30T14:57:00.001-02:00

We have finished our events in the public schools for the year, and we are on vacation this week in the beautiful area known as Porto de Galinhas. It is located in the northeast part of Brazil, in the state of Pernambuco. Porto de Galinhas was voted to be one of the best beach areas in Brazil, and we can see why. Here are some photos.

Let There Be Light

2011-11-19T11:42:00.000-02:00

"God made two great lights—the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars. God set them in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth, to govern the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good."

- Genesis 1:16-18

A beautiful sunset the other day reminded us once again that God has created many amazingly beautiful things.

Miscellaneous Photos

2011-11-17T15:03:00.000-02:00

Today was a beautiful day so we walked around and took some photos. Hope you enjoy them.

Sharing Jesus In A School In Cubatão

2011-11-11T16:29:00.000-02:00

On Wednesday morning we did our Qualidade De Vida project at the municipal school EM Lorena in Cubatão. We spoke at the school for 3 days in September, but the day we spoke in the morning period the 4th grade classes were out of the school, so we needed to come back to finish up. The school leaders really liked the project, and they recommended us to all of the remaining municipal schools in the city of Cubatão, which is a great blessing. We praise God that on Wednesday 106 students and 2 teachers accepted Christ and committed their lives to Him.

School Outreach In Santos

2011-11-09T16:02:00.001-02:00

This past Monday morning and Tuesday night we worked with Igreja Batista Chico de Paula in a state school in their "bairro". The church is a small church that is only 7 years old, and is led by Pastor Jose Cavalcante. We have begun to work with them to help share Christ in their community. The school is called EE Bartolomeu Gusmao, and is a state school with high school students and some adult classes at night. The principal is married to the principal of another school, and that school recommended us to this one because they liked our project when we did it last year.

The church participation during the outreach event was great, and they had 5 or 6 people with us each day. Once again, God went ahead of us and prepared many hearts to hear the Good News of Jesus. We praise God that 361 students and 7 teachers accepted Christ and committed their lives to Him, including approx. 60 adults studying at night. We also had several opportunities to discuss the church with students, and the church is going to talk to the school about doing some type of other events there as follow-up to our project.

Helping The Poor In Sao Vicente

2011-11-06T13:45:00.000-02:00

Yesterday we worked with Primeira Igreja Batista Sao Vicente and Igreja Batista Vila Nova Mariana in a community service project in a poor area of Sao Vicente. The project was organized to help poor people in the Humaita area of the city, which is a remote area with many poor people. The churches provided various services to help the poor in the community, including doctors and nurses, psychologists, counselors, and lawyers. They also gave away shoes and clothing.

The event was a great success, and many people were helped with their physical, emotional, as well as spiritual needs. We had the privilege of sharing the speech that we do in the schools, which is about how to have a high quality of life and a good future. In the end we talk about the spiritual life and how to have a personal relationship with God through Jesus. We praise God for the opportunity to participate in this event to help others, and also we praise Him that 17 children and 5 adults accepted Christ and committed their lives to Him.

Interpreter Atila, Us, Pr. Gilberto & his wife Neuza, and Pr. Andre

November Newsletter

2011-11-01T14:15:00.000-02:00

Here is a link for our November Newsletter ... check out what God is doing in this part of Brazil:

November Newsletter

The Harvest Is Great

2011-10-26T14:08:00.005-02:00

"Then he said to his disciples the harvest is plentiful but the workers are few." Matthew 9:37

The harvest is plentiful ... These words spoken by Jesus are still very true here in Brazil, and in other parts of the world. God has prepared many hearts here, and many are ready for someone to tell them the Good News of Jesus Christ. God has gone ahead of his people, and has done the work of preparing and opening hearts. A great number of people are ready and willing to listen to someone tell them about God's love and salvation through Jesus ... they are waiting for someone to tell them how they can have peace with God, eternal life in heaven with Him, and a restored relationship with Him. They desire to have these things, thanks to the Holy Spirit's work in their hearts, but they do not know how to have them.

... but the workers are few. These words are unfortunately true also. Far too few Christians here are actively sharing Jesus with others in their daily lives, and they are completely missing God's activity in the hearts and lives of the people all around them. In many churches the pastor(s), some leaders, and a small group of church members are actively sharing Christ with others. Many are oblivious to the great harvest that is all around them. There is also a shortage of workers who are willing to do the important follow up work that is necessary to help new believers who accept Christ to grow in their relationship with Him, and to disciple them to become faithful & fruitful servants of Jesus. Sadly, many are too busy pursuing their own interests and doing church things that they are not doing the things that are most important to God ... reach lost people with the love and Good News of Christ, and then work hard to help them become faithful disciples and servants of His.

Our outreach work last week with 3 local churches and a team from the US once again showed that God has prepared a great harvest here. Many many people are seeking for God, and they know they need Him in their lives. They are ready, and they are waiting for us to tell them about God's love and Jesus. I pray that God will touch and convict and break more Christians' hearts, and that He will send more workers.

Americanos In Brazil - Final Day

2011-10-22T10:45:00.003-02:00

Friday was the final day of the mission trip by 2nd Baptist Church Cedartown GA, and today the team is flying back to the US. We had a fantastic week of loving on people here and sharing the Good News of Jesus, and God did a great work in many hearts and lives. We first met at Primeira Igreja Batista Sao Vicente (First Baptist Church of Sao Vicente) and the team and Nancy and I had lunch with Pasotr Gilberto at a nearby restaurant. Then we went back to the church and we spoke in the Colegio Batista school next to the church, which is a private school run by the church. Even though it is run by the church, the majority of the students and their families do not attend a church. Joseph Mauldin shared the message to the students who are in the 1st through 5th grades, and their teachers, and a member of the church, Atila, was his interpreter. 57 of the students and 3 teachers accepted Christ and committed their lives to Him. Afterwards I asked them some questions about English, and we always encourage students in schools to learn English if they can, because it will help them to have more good opportunities later in their life.

After speaking at Colegio Batista we went up to Sao Paulo, and the team stayed at a hotel near the airport there on Friday night, because they were leaving early on Saturday morning and the airport is a 2 hour drive from Santos. Our friend Diego from Primeira Igreja Batista Sao Vicente helped out by driving 3 of the folks from GA in his car, and we took the rest in ours. On the way to the hotel we stopped at a really nice museum in the Ipiranga section of Sao Paulo called Museu Ipiranga, which was built in the late 1800's to commemorate the independence of Brazil. It is a beautiful palace that is filled with many items from the 1800's, and it is surrounded by beautiful gardens and fountains.

God did a great work during the 8 days we were all together, and we praise Him for allowing us the opportunity and privilege to join Him in what He is doing here. We spoke in 4 public schools and 1 private school during the week, and visited & spoke in 2 churches, visited various homes to share Jesus in Sao Vicente, and we also had "divine appointments" during the week to share Christ with numerous other people person-to-person. We praise God that 2295 people accepted Christ and committed their lives to Him, including 53 teachers, a vice principal, and various adults that study at night in the schools.

Americanos In Brazil - Day 7

2011-10-21T10:48:00.001-02:00

On Thursday we worked with 2 churches (Capela Calvario and Primeira Igreja Batista Sao Vicente) in 2 state schools in Sao Vicente. First, all of us went to lunch with Pr. Celso and his wife and several members of Capela Calvario. We went to a typical Brazilian style buffet lunch restaurant, and we had great food and a great time. Then we all went to the school EE Armando Victorio Bei and spoke in 17 classes in the afternoon period. It went really great, and 343 students and 4 teachers accepted Christ and committed their lives to Him. Afterwards many students came up to the Americans and wanted to talk to them, so we stayed awhile.

Later at night we split up into 2 groups and some of us returned to EE Armando Victorio Bei and spoke in 17 more night classes for high school students. Our other group worked with Primeira Igreja Batista Sao Vicente in the school EE Enio Vilas Boas, and we spoke in 4 night classes for high school students. Once again many students wanted to meet the Americans and talk, so we stayed quite awhile afterwards. At EE Enio Vilas Boas we had 56 students and 1 teacher accept Christ and commit their lives to Him, and at EE Armando we had 347 students and 9 teachers.

At each school the leaders really loved the project, especially because we had 6 more Americans with us, and each recommended us to other schools in the area. EE Armando asked us if we could come back once a month to continue to help, and Nancy and I are not able to do more because we speak in many other schools and have many other projects, but we are going to try to get the church to start doing something with them as part of the important follow up work.

All in all it was a great day. We are all very tired because it has been a long and busy week, but it is hard to describe the joy that we all feel as a result of the things we have seen God do in the hearts and lives of so many people. Nancy and I personally have loved the time of fellowship, fun, and laughs that we have had this week with the folks from 2nd Baptist Church Cedartown GA, and we are looking forward to having them come back next year. We have 1 more day of activities on Friday, and then they will be leaving for home on Saturday morning.

Americanos In Brazil - Day 6

2011-10-20T10:03:00.002-02:00

On Wednesday we had a very busy day, as we split into 2 main groups and visited 2 schools in Sao Vicente in the morning at the same time, and then 2 more schools at night in Santos. In the morning we worked with Capela Calvario in the state school EE Armando Victorio Bei in Sao Vicente, and also 1 group worked with Primeira Igreja Batista Sao Vicente in the state school EE Enio Vilas Boas. In both schools the project went great, and the students loved having Americans in their school, and they really enjoyed talking to the "gringos". The leaders of both schools really liked the project also, and they were very very appreciative of our help. In both schools some of the teachers and the school leaders were telling the students that our message was very important, and that they need God in their lives. Combined a total of 460 students and 10 teachers accepted Christ and committed their lives to Him in the morning period.

After these first 2 schools we all went to a small restaurant near the beach in Santos and had a nice lunch, and one of our interpreters Patricia joined us. We had Japanese food and seafood for lunch. Then another one of our interpreters, Rebeca, took some of the ladies out shopping for 2 hours. After resting for awhile, we all joined up again at the hotel at night and split into 2 groups again. 1 group spoke at the state school EE Visconde Sao Leopoldo in Santos (where we were Monday morning & afternoon), and another group spoke in the municipal school EM Therezinha (where we were on Tuesday morning & afternoon). At night both schools have adults studying to finish their middle or high school education. There were fewer students than normal on Wednesday night because the Santos soccer team had a game that night, and many people stay home to watch the game. We still had a great night, and combined 134 adult students and 8 teachers and a vice principal accepted Christ and committed their lives to Him.

One very wonderful thing that God did was at the school EM Therezinha at night. One of our 3 interpreters did not come, so we were 1 short. The teacher at the school who teaches some English classes volunteered to help, so she translated in 2 classes for us. In the first class she got very emotional during the speech, during the spiritual life part and in the prayer. After the class I asked her if she felt in her heart that she needed Jesus, and if she prayed too to receive Him and commit her life to Him, and she said that she very much felt that and yes she did pray and receive Christ. God is great !

After the schools at night we all went to a nearby restaurant and had a late night pizza snack. We had a great time of fun and fellowship, and a lot of laughs.

Sightseeing

2011-10-19T17:38:00.000-02:00

After we spoke in the school EM Therezinha on Tuesday morning and afternoon, we went up the ski lift to the top of a small mountain near the beach in Sao Vicente. It was a beautiful day, so we decided to take advantage of it. It is about a 12 minute ride up to the top, and all the time you are going over the forest and you get to see all types of tropical plants, flowers, and trees. The view from the top is spectacular. On many days there are hang gliders that take off from the top, and we saw a couple of them take off and fly around. It was a great time.

Americanos In Brazil - Day 5

2011-10-19T17:13:00.000-02:00

On Tuesday morning and afternoon we spoke at the municipal school EM Therezinha in Santos, which is located in one of the poorest areas of the city. It is located high up on a small mountain in the city, and most of the area is a favela (slum). The school is for students from 1st to 5th grades. It also has classes for adults at night, and we will be speaking there on Wednesday night. Because the students are poor the school feeds all of them (approx. 700 total), because most likely it is the only good meal they eat every day. We were very impressed with how well the school is run, and with how well the children behaved.

We had 4 teams with 2 Americans and 1 interpreter per team, and we had a couple of extra people to help from Igreja Batista Nova Jerusalem also. After we spoke in 10 classes in the morning period we had a lot of time to talk to the students and teachers, and the children loved it. The school kindly invited all of us to have lunch there, since we were coming back to speak in the afternoon period also. It was a very nice gesture and we gladly accepted. After lunch we talked more with the students, and then we spoke in 10 more classes. We praise God that 529 students and 11 teachers accepted Christ and committed their lives to Him. God did a mighty work in their hearts before we arrived, and they were very glad to hear of God's love and salvation through Jesus.