Finances

On a side note, I taught the finance class in in September. There were a total of 11 that began the course and 9 finished. I just pray that 1 or 2 will put the lessons into practice so that the church in will catch on and invest more in God's Kingdom.

Please pray:

• that people will be more interested in investing in God's Kingdom and will therefore, manage their personal finances with more dedication;
• that the church in Brazil will begin to open its eyes to see the need for spending money on their spiritual family.

SEARA (Member Training)

I traveled to Patos at the end of August to teach the book of James, and I intermingled the class with the finance class, talking about contentment and using some of Dave Ramsey's practical personal finance administrative tools. It had been two years since the last time I taught the finance class in Patos and it seems that only one couple is putting some of the teachings into practice.

I went back to Patos on October 16th, traveling with Enio Latorre to visit and coordinate SEARA. This four year training program will end in August 2015. We will have a graduation and the students who went through the program will continue to teach and serve their respective congregations. They will also serve throughout the state as teachers.

Please pray:

• that these men and women who are gaining this knowledge will continue to practice the knowledge that they have of God's Word;
  
• that a new SEARA class will be welcomed by the church in Cajazeiras with many members dedicating time and energy to the study and practice of God's Word.
  

Grande Ceia (Great Supper)

The Grande Ceia (Great Supper) is a state-wide event for Paraíba. One hundred and twenty people attended this 18th Great Supper, almost every church in the state represented.

This year's theme was "Family, God's Project". The lesson I was gave was supposed to start at 7:30 p.m. but our group arrived at 8:30 p.m. after the long 8 hour trip. After taking our things to our rooms and eating, I spoke at 10 p.m. Most everybody stayed awake so that was good. My lesson was on "Honoring God in Your Marriage". The main point was for everyone to look in the mirror and realize that they themselves are the problem in their marriage. If we can focus on learning to love and serve and stop pointing fingers, demanding that others serve us, things would be a lot more peaceful and simpler.

Please pray:

• that husbands and wives can mature and begin serving one another and stop looking to be served.
  

Pastoreai

Pastoreai is a workshop for families and congregations who desire to establish an eldership. Not many congregations in Brazil have elderships, only 2 churches in the Northeast, that I know of, have elders.

Twenty-two people came, met, talked and discussed the role of elders: what they are, what they do, how they are not perfect, but how also they have the qualities needed to help each member grow in love and service. The previous workshop had 90 participants. The attendance was down this time because it coincided with the presidential election.

I gave a lesson on Abraham. There was a round table session for the speakers to answer questions, and there was good food and fellowship.

Please pray:

that the men of the congregations in will produce elders who exemplify Christ in everything they do;

that young men may desire to serve God in this capacity as well.

Baptism in Cajazeiras

     In the month of August, two people were baptized in Cajazeiras one of which was in connection with the Right Step Program (the soccer school run by the church). Natanael, is 15 years old and has been in the soccer program for two years. Aparecida is 36. She is not in the soccer program obviously.

     There was also a co-worker of Leila, Café's wife, who was baptized during the women's seminar in João Pessoa.

Please pray:

* that these new babes in Christ will grow in their love for God and for their neighbor,

* that they may dedicate more of their time to study God's Word and learn His will.

Fernandes Baptism

     Ricardo was baptized in October of last year and began telling others about Jesus soon after. As a result, he invited Joseph and me to study the Bible with Fernandes, who owns a used car lot. Fernandes said that he had given his life to Christ over 20 years ago, but he had never been baptized. We studied with him about what the Bible says about baptism. He said that he wanted to be baptized but was waiting for his daughter and wife to be available to witness his new birth. I tried to convince him of the urgency, but he decided to wait anyway. While Joseph and I traveled, Francinaldo gave the Bible study. Something I said and the contact with Francinaldo led Fernandes to do some hard thinking and he decided: he couldn't wait anymore, he had to be baptized with or without the presence of his wife and daughter. And so, he was buried and raised to new life in Christ on Tuesday, May 27, 2014. One new life producing life in others.

Please pray:

* that God may continue to increase Fernandes' faith in His Word

* that God may strengthen Ricardo's faith and that he may now learn how to help Fernandes mature in his faith.

Sunny Sunday

Sunny Sunday Jeremy Newlin

On a sunny Sunday, I took a carload to Alagoinha, my two sons, Nicholas and Dylan, Joseph and Edda's son, Samuel, and a sister from church, Lucia de Fátima. We visited only one family in the city before meeting with the church.

This family was the first family I met in the city about 13 years ago. The father was an alcoholic, a daughter told me that if I was trying to make her leave the Catholic church that I could forget it. I told her that I was not trying to make her leave anything, I just wanted to study God's Word with her. This visit, though, they all mentioned how thankful they were to God that I came and taught them God's Word. The father no longer drinks. The daughter told me that she loves to see me and my family when we visit. The mother and one of the other daughters were both baptized years ago, but neither meet with the church anymore. The entire family goes to a denomination, but I am not giving up. I continue to visit and study God's Word with them.

The visit to the church in Alagoinha was, in a word, joyful. We studied how Jesus tells us to carry our cross and to love him more than any family members or even ourselves. Then from Hebrews 10:19-25, we discussed the privilege of being in God's presence and the importance of encouraging one another towards love and good works. We all know this is true, but in Alagoinha, there is a man whose zeal for God, His Word and His church seems, at times, to overshadow the feelings and difficulties of the other members.

The result of the study was a physical change in their body posture and on their faces. They seemed relieved and happier. The spiritual results I hope to see in the very near future. Please pray for the church in Alagoinha.

God is Bigger and He is Working

God is Bigger and He is Working

            The month of July was full of activities here in João Pessoa.  As a church, we watched Brazil play the World Cup, held VBS and held a PORMISSOES meeting,  the meeting that gathers workers from almost every congregation in the state.  At its peak there were 26 people in attendance.  

            We talked about the ideas from the last meeting in March, visits made from one church to another, the role of the evangelist in the congregation, what is the purpose of an eldership, what are the qualifications for these men, and how the evangelist can work to raise up such men.

            We set up visits from one church to another until the next meeting in October in the city of Cajazeiras. 

You Never Forget Your First Job

You Never Forget Your First Job

During our "winter" month of July, where temperatures got down to the low 70's and the high's in the mid 80's, Nicholas' worked for 15 hours a week at a mechanic shop.  This was during the school break.  The purpose was for Nicholas to learn responsibility (getting up and going to work during the three days a week that he set up to go), work ethic (honest and hard work), and financial responsibility (learning that a man must work to take care of his family and how to administer the money received from working).  

He received money from Reinaldo, his mentor, the first week.  After that week Monica and I paid him for a week's work.  I did not tell Nicholas that he was going to receive money for working.  Monica and I had decided to pay him 15 reals (the Brazilian money) per week, but we did not tell him.  At the end of the month he would finish working and begin asking for his "salary."  After receiving it, he had to divide it up into giving, saving and spending.

He said he did not learn anything.  He said all he did everyday was loosen and tighten nuts and bolts.  But he did take brake pads off, change a tire, help put an engine in and take one out, take a hood off of a pick-up truck, pump the brakes to bleed them, etc... 

I saw that he has a different perspective when hearing the word "work".  He seems more ready to serve and help without complaining. He did not complain much before anyways now it is even less.  As we were going down the road one day, he saw someone with a wrench in his hand, and he said, "Look, that is a 18 mm wrench!"  He grew while only working 15 hours a week for four weeks.  He is 14 years old and will be leaving home in about four years.  It is time to start putting into practice what we have been teaching him these 14 years.

 

Prayer Request

 

Please pray for upcoming events and classes in the coming months.

1.         Finance Class - I give this class once a year in João Pessoa to the church.  The purpose is for the church to administer well their personal finances so that they will not be in debt, live more peacefully financially, have better marriages, and invest in God's Kingdom with more joy.  This year the class will be September 11-14th.

2.         Pastoreai - I will be teaching at this seminar in Recife, on October 3-5th, to help prepare men to understand what an eldership is and how to develop men into "eldership material".

3.         Grande Ceia - A state-wide event, called The Great Supper, for the churches to get together for fellowship, teaching, singing, and eating.  I will be teaching at this event, October 10-12th.

4.         Monica's Trip - Monica will be going to an event hosted by the Continent of Great Cities in the south of Brazil on October 6-10th to receive spiritual care.  She worked very hard on VBS and the Women's Seminar in July and August. 

SEARA (Harvest)

SEARA (Harvest)

During the past month I travelled twice to Patos for classes taught by Isac and Ricardo. I also visited members of the church in the state of Paraíba.  

The classes were on the Pentateuch and Exegeses/Hermeneutics, part of the curriculum of S.E.A.R.A. (acronym for Servants Sent to Announce the Kingdom of Love).  The purpose of SEARA is to train members of the church who are already active in their congregations by giving them more Biblical knowledge and teaching them how to study the Bible for themselves.  As you have probably guessed I go once a month to this city.  I do not teach every class but I go to take advantage of a group of active members from a couple of congregations coming together to study God's Word and develop deeper relationships with them.  

The classes are going well and I have seen God's Word changing people's lives.

Please pray for these classes and the disciples who have a great desire to learn more from God through His Word.  

The Fall of a god

     A lot has happened since the last time we talked.  The World Cup has ended, and Brazil was not the champion, in fact the country was shamed by a 7 to 1 loss to Germany .  There were not many riots as people were expecting to happen.  People just went back to work and still a over a month later talk about how bad Brazil played.  The expectations to win a World Cup have been pushed back many years.  Germany seems to be the favorite to win the next World Cup.

     There are many Brazilians who, I guess you could say, worship soccer.  Yes, soccer is their "god".  They may not think so.  I am sure they would all deny this fact because it sounds outrageous, but they eat, sleep, and drink soccer.  They stay out late at night with strangers at soccer matches instead of being with their families at home. They take their meals in front of a soccer game on TV instead of eating at the table with their families. Soccer is enough cause for them to yell and fight with family members and friends, and others have even killed the "enemy" (fans of other teams) just because of 11 men on a field kicking a ball.  

     I, too, like soccer, but not that much.  I have witnessed all of the above with my own eyes, except for the killing, but that I have seen on the news.  

     When Brazil lost the World Cup, it was as if their "god" had died.  They lost hope in the one thing that brings them the most joy, soccer.  There now may be a hole in their heart that they are searching to fill with other things. One whisky commercial on a billboard said, "Now let's drink to forget!"

     What is the lesson we can learn from these soccer "fanatics."  They are not afraid to tell others about their team, they defend their team, they do not deny their team, they invest in their team, by going to games and buying jerseys with joy and not sadness and they believe that their participation in cheering for their team makes a difference, so they show up to the stadium to cheer them on.

     May we show this same devotion to the one true and living God that others show to their "god". 

The Most Important Meal of the Day

Breakfast is considered by many as the most important meal of the day. There is a saying in Brazil that goes like this: "Eat breakfast like a king, eat lunch like a prince and eat supper like a beggar." The idea is to eat less and less as the day goes on but like many of us we tend to eat little to nothing in the morning and more and more as the day wears on.

I am not writing to tell you about breakfast. I am writing to tell you about our men's breakfast in João Pessoa. Sorry, if you were making plans to come, it has already happened. We plan to have another one soon, if you are here we would love to have you.

There were about 20 men that showed up with food that could have fed a king and his family. We sang, prayed, ate and talked about future plans for the church. It was great food but even better fellowship.

Enjoy the pictures!

Please pray:

* that the plans made will not be left on paper but carried out by all of us, especially the Brazilian men;

* that the men of the congregation will live their lives in the fullness of God's Will. (I know that is aiming very high but why aim lower)

Teaching, Guiding and Sharing

PORmissões is the plan to evangelize the entire state of Paraíba through establishing congregations in each of the four major cities, maturing members and reaching out to the smaller cities around them.

There are now three others (Afonso, Júnior and Luciano) who are working with me directly to move this plan forward. This is a huge step for the work to continue without me in the near future. We met at the beginning of June to discuss the vision each one has for the state and how to carry that vision out. We are working to mature the members of the church and continually bring unity among the congregations through visiting, calls and statewide events.

Our next statewide event will be in João Pessoa where I will be teaching and helping each evangelist think about preparing and maturing men to be Elders and Deacons. We will also discuss what the role of the evangelist is and how to carry out his role in the congregation in which he lives and labors.

Please pray:

* that God may use me to help open our eyes to the possibilities and opportunities He provides to guide men to be "men of God";

* that God may work in all of our hearts for us to be fully dedicated to Him and His Kingdom;

* that God may help us to see our role as missionaries, evangelists and all of us as Christians to be light in the darkness.

Please shine through us Lord Jesus.

Let Go and Let God!

I traveled this past weekend to Belém do Brejo do Cruz with six others from the church in João Pessoa . Santo, the evangelist with the church in Belém invited all of his neighbors to hear an evangelistic message on Saturday night. We sang, I taught, and we ate. There were over 60 present.  

On Sunday, we met with the Christians where Francinaldo taught on James and I preached from the book of James. There were around 25 present on Sunday morning. We ate lunch together and made the 6 1/2 hour trip back.

Please pray:

• that the seed that was planted in the visitors hearts may produce fruit;
  
• that the church in Belém do Brejo do Cruz may continue to spread the seed and water where they have planted.
  

Modern Day Slavery

Ten hours to get there, all night on the bus, I arrived in Aracaju, the capital city of Sergipe. The church had invited me to teach Biblical Finances, and I started on Saturday at 8 a.m., two hours after arriving. This intensive course went for 9 hours on Saturday and 2 hours on Sunday. 25 came, and most admitted that they have debt and they do feel like slaves with a master.

My prayer for them is that they may learn to live according to God's ways of handling money, living on less than you make. The purpose for living in such a way is to invest more in God's Kingdom.

The church in is ready to take this next step in maturing in Christ and beginning to support its own workers and send out missionaries. The Christians I talked with in were excited, dreaming about the possibilities of maturing and investing in God's Kingdom.

Please pray:

• that the Christians in may grow in love for Christ and spiritual maturity;
  
• that the managing of personal finances may increase our focus on God and His Kingdom.
  

Three Months Rolled Into One

Hello everyone! I know it has been a long time since you have heard from me. I have been travelling and teaching quite a bit. In this newsletter, I will tell you what I have been doing and what my plans are for the next three weeks.

In March, I took a 10 hour bus ride to the south of where we are to teach the church in Aracajú over a weekend. My parents also came and spent 9 days with me and my family in March.

In April, I stayed more in João Pessoa teaching and preaching because most of the workers from the interior churches were in São Paulo for 18 days in intensive classes. I did get to travel with my family to Patos where Monica taught the women at their annual celebration of the beginning of the women's prayer group.

In May, I taught Financial Peace at the São Lourenço congregation, a four day intensive course, beginning with contentment. I also preached at another congregation in Recife and scheduled a time to teach in June at the Varzea congregation. On Thursday, May, 15th of this month I will be travelling to Patos to teach the Gospel of Matthew, a four day course. From Patos, on May 19th, I will be travelling to Feira de Santana, a twelve hour drive to begin a four day course on the same day I arrive. From there I will be travelling up to Aracajú for a Leader's training camp, about four hours from Feira de Santana and then back to João Pessoa, about 10 hours from Aracajú. Lord permitting, I will arrive back in João Pessoa on May 26th. On May 31st, I will be travelling with a group from João Pessoa to Belém do Brejo do cruz, about five hours from João Pessoa and arriving back in João Pessoa on June 1st.

After these trips I plan to stay more in João Pessoa, teaching and visiting the members with the intent to help them grow and begin doing some of the travelling and taking care of one another that I have been doing.

Please pray:

* that God will use me at all times during the driving and teaching on these trips;

* that God's Word may be taught without fear of persecution or rejection;

* that God may give peace and paitents to Monica, Nicholas & Dylan while I am gone.

Three Months News Rolled Into One

Hello everyone!  I know it has been a long time since you have heard from me.  I have been travelling and teaching quite a bit.  In this newsletter, I will tell you what I have been doing and what my plans are for the next three weeks.  

In March, I took a 10 hour bus ride to the south of where we are to teach the church in Aracajú over a weekend.  My parents also came and spent 9 days with me and my family in March.

In April,  I stayed more in João Pessoa teaching and preaching because most of the workers from the interior churches were in São Paulo for 18 days in intensive classes.  I did get to travel with my family to Patos where Monica taught the women at their annual celebration of the beginning of the women's prayer group.

In May, I taught Financial Peace at the São Lourenço congregation, a four day intensive course, beginning with contentment.  I also preached at another congregation in Recife and scheduled a time to teach in June at the Varzea congregation.  On Thursday, May, 15th of this month I traveled to Patos to teach the Gospel of Matthew, a four day course.  From Patos, on May 19th, I traveled to Feira de Santana, a twelve hour drive to begin a four day course on the same day I arrive.  From there I will be travelling up to Aracajú for a Leader's training camp, about four hours from Feira de Santana and then back to João Pessoa, about 10 hours from Aracajú.  Lord permitting, I will arrive back in João Pessoa on May 26th.  On May 31st, I will be travelling with a group from João Pessoa to Belém do Brejo do cruz, about five hours from João Pessoa and arriving back in João Pessoa on June 1st. I will send pictures when I get back to João Pessoa.

After these trips I plan to stay more in João Pessoa, teaching and visiting the members with the intent to help them grow and begin doing some of the travelling and taking care of one another that I have been doing.  

Please pray:

• that God will use me at all times during the driving and teaching on these trips;
• that God's Word may be taught without fear of persecution or rejection;
• that God may give peace and paitents to Monica, Nicholas & Dylan while I am gone.  

God Is Not Dead

It was a bright and sunny day the Friday we left João Pessoa on our way to Belém do Brejo do Cruz. The trip was going to be long, a lot longer than what we thought it would be. The car I usually travel with blew the head gasket the week before, so Francinaldo, Roberto, and I were travelling in Roberto's brand new, used car, a 21 year old Fiat Uno. My traveling car is a 22 year old Fiat Uno so we were moving up in style.  

Roberto's car began to overheat about an hour into our 6 to 7 hour trip. We stopped for breakfast to let the car cool off. We sat and talked as we ate. Everything was going well. I was at the cashier paying for the food when Francinaldo received a call. All I remember him saying is "Be calm, Ivani!" He said this same phrase many times. The look on his face became more and more serious as the news of his mother-in-law's death sunk in each time Ivani said that she found her mother on her knees with blood coming from her head that she had hit on the floor and she was already purple.  

When Francinaldo got off the phone and told us what had happened, I called Monica, she immediately called others and went straight to their house. David drove the hour that we had driven to pick-up Francinaldo so that Roberto and I could continue on our trip to the meeting. As we waited for David to arrive, we prayed, we did not talk very much but we sat together. Francinaldo had left home about an hour and a half before and had spoken with his mother-in-law who was happy and healthy. What a shock! She had a heart attack as she was folding clothes and died. The next day she was buried. That is how it is done in Brazil.  

Right before David arrived to pick up Francinaldo, Júnior, who was organizing the PORmissões meeting, called and said he was going to visit Francinaldo's family. Roberto and I looked at each other and we decided to return to João Pessoa and have a mechanic look at his car.  

That night Roberto caught a ride with Júnior from João Pessoa to Campina Grande. I got on a bus and made the trip. We slept at Júnior's house and left the next morning at 4:30 a.m. We stopped in Patos to pick up some others and finally arrived in Belém at 9 a.m. The meeting is for people working with the churches that are spread out over the state of Paraíba. There were Christians from Cajazeiras, Belém, Patos, Campina Grande, Luna (João Pessoa) and Colinas (João Pessoa). Six out of twelve congregations represented.  

We spent the morning reading from God's Word, praying and talking about where we are in the PORmissões plan and where we go from here. After lunch we synchronized our calendars for the big events.  We had a drawing to see which congregation would visit another before the next meeting in July. We decided on the subjects to talk about at the next meeting and closed with a prayer.  

After the meeting, we, along with the congregation from Belém drove 11 miles to a nearby city to have a Bible study. The next morning, we met with the church in Belém, had lunch together and drove back to our respective cities. Those are the facts.  

The good about this meeting is that someone other than me was conducting it; Júnior and Luciano are becoming the face of PORmissões instead of me. The next meeting's subject will move us in the direction God wants, that is, how to prepare men to be deacons and elders. We will also talk about the role and work of the full-time evangelists in the field, what they should be focusing on and what they should delegate to others. Things are going forward.  

I continue to be amazed at seeing God work these past three years. When I came back to Brazil in 2011, I felt God was pulling me, and my main focus became working with the workers and the congregations throughout the state. I had prayed for many months, asking God to use me for the growth of His Kingdom, I also asked Him for vision to see where I should be leading others. I had and still have a plan that has steps and goals to accomplish. This plan has been executed, each step, each goal up to this point and even beating my established timeline. I am amazed, not at my planning, I and my plans are nothing. I am amazed that God showed me His plan, that the vision I asked for was what He is accomplishing before my very eyes and even faster than I imagined it would happen.  

There was a time during this process that I thought "my plan" was working very well. Usually, when I make plans they change as I move along, not drastically but modifications need to be made, unforeseen things happen or people are not cooperating. Not with this plan! Everything is falling into place as "I" planned. When I began to execute the plan in 2011 and things were moving along, I knew what the next step should be, and I was pleased.  

The end of 2013, things were still moving along exactly as "I" had planned them, but something was different. This step was planned, but I had not put it into motion yet. In my mind, I was going to begin involving a Brazilian in the planning and this year for him to take over next year. This came out of nowhere, without my prompting it. This is God at work. Then I realized, this was not "my" plan. This is God: He has been moving things along, He has a greater interest in this than I do, He just showed me what He was going to do and how He was going to accomplish it.  

When I realized that, I cried in front of the whole group. How great is our God! How awesome is He! Who am I that I should be so privileged to be involved in God's work to save the world, letting me in on His plan even though I thought it was mine. I am speechless! My God, my Lord and my Savior, praise be to You always and forever!  

Please pray:  

• that the congregations in the state of Paraíba may be united in one cause, with one mind and may we be one family;  
•  that the evangelists will know what they are to accomplish, in their respective cities;  
•  that God may give us all vision of His work and what He wants us to do for the growth of His Kingdom;  
•  that we may be deeply involved in God's saving the world by getting out of His way and letting Him use us, His servants, however He sees fit to do so, even if it will cause us great pain in this life.