Dear Prayer Partners,
We hope all of you have enjoyed the holidays as you spent time with friends and family and celebrated the greatest gift of love ever – Jesus! We have had a very special month with our youngest son, Joel. He arrived December 18th and will be leaving Sunday, January 16th to continue his studies at Ouachita Baptist University. As we begin a new year, we have a lot of dreams and plans we believe the Lord has placed on our hearts and we trust Him to complete the work He began in us.
PRAISES:
- Bairro Ipiranga – On December 16th, Pastor Zenilton became our pastor. He will still be working closely with Pr. Roberto Chenk, who is the pastor of the “mother church”. He has been busy visiting and discipling new believers. There are several people preparing for baptism. The services will move to Sunday evenings February 13th. At Christmas time, a friend helped 10 needy families with a food basket and clothing for the children.
- Brejaru – Weekly Bible studies are continuing and new believers are being discipled.
- Madri – We actually found out that the correct name of the area where we have been meeting is São Sebastião. We have concentrated much of our time in this area recently. Projeto Vida was in the area November 18-21. Projeto Vida was a group of 18 young people that worked very effectively in the schools and neighborhood with dramas, clowning, counseling and films. After the survey was complete, we found that there were actually over 400 homes in the immediate area where we have been working. There were 88 who registered a desire to know more about Christ. All of those have been visited and offered a weekly Bible study. At this point, 5 families are actually taking advantage of the offer. After Projeto Vida, we needed a larger space to meet, so the husband of one of the ladies who made a decision, offered the large open porch behind his home and snack bar. We have had between 20 and 30 people consistently. We have just rented a building in the neighborhood and, after fixing it up a little, will begin offering activities for the youth, children, and classes for the adults, etc.
- Estiva – A team from Canada was at the drug rehab center in November beginning work on the educational/administrative building. They were a great team and accomplished a lot. Forty-one homes were visited in the community of Estiva during the month of December. We completed a basic Bible study with Salete. Her family actually became interested toward the end as she shared with them what she was learning. With help from several churches and individuals, each boy at the drug rehab center received a nice gift bag that contained health items, school supplies, chocolate, fun things, etc. Several of the boys there made decisions for Christ in December.
REQUESTS:
- Bairro Ipiranga - Please continue praying for all the new believers as they are discipled and share their faith. Pray particularly for Célia and Geolar. This couple had been extremely involved in spiritism before accepting Christ, particularly Célia. This has created a lot of oppression and psychological problems as well. Please pray as the church seeks to minister to them spiritually and to get them the help they need medically, and emotionally. Pray for Pr. Zenilton as he leads the congregation and works with the leadership.
- Brejaru – Pray for the believers who are being discipled. The ones who have remained are all women. Pray that through their testimony, their husbands might be won. Pray for perseverance for the ones who are ministering to them because there are many obstacles to spiritual growth in a community like Brejaru.
- São Sebastião (we will begin using the correct name from now on!!) – Pray for the special activities planned for the inauguration of the new building later this month. Pray that through those, we will find more people who want to know Jesus.
- Estiva – We need a clear direction from the Lord on how to proceed with the work there. The ministry with the boys from the drug rehabilitation center is going well, but we need a new strategy for reaching the community. At this point, we are planning on continuing home Bible studies, and we are praying for direction.
- Loretta Young – She has received word that she will be going back to the States sometime soon to work on another visa. Please pray that the process will move quickly so that she can return as quickly as possible.
We appreciate so much those who have faithfully prayed for us. We have been overwhelmed with the way God has blessed, directed and strengthened us, how He has provided for every need. We know that you have been a vital part of the work here through your prayers and offerings. We want you to know we are thankful for you! Our desire is to be faithful stewards of every opportunity God has provided.
Love,
Ron and Alana
