At this point, we have thoroughly enjoyed our time back in the States. It has been a good time to get caught up with family and friends, plus share the vision of the mission with others. Elba has had the wonderful opportunity to preach at several Vineyard churches and a Southern Baptist church; all the services went well. The Southern Baptist church was really special because Elba was the first woman pastor to preach at their church. The Holy Spirit was moving and she did really well and was embraced by the congregation. It has been exciting to see how the Lord has used Elba to be the first for a lot of things in the church.
One of the refreshing things about being in the States is not worrying about the work that continues in Brazil. The church, and our non-profit organization, CDR are doing well. The leaders at the church have really stepped up to fill the void in our absence. At CDR, we had the Secretary of Communication of Pará come and recognize our school for its efforts and inaugurate our internet café. The internet café has 11 computers and it is free to use for anyone in the community. This is important because even though we live in a third world area, first world technology is creeping into the lives of the people and it is good to be able to understand and embrace the technology. We feel very blessed to be able to be part of offering this type of service to the community.
Thanks for your prayers for Alyssa, she is doing much better. She has had no more fevers and her cough is at a minimal. We have had some nice times together as a family back in the States. We went to the Columbus zoo and that was really exciting for the girls. They loved the monkeys, gorillas and riding on the ponies. Elba and the girls also experienced their first baseball game. They did not like the game but enjoyed the atmosphere, food and the people.
Please continue to keep us in your prayers for good health and safety. In addition, please pray for Elba as she will be one of the main speakers at the National Missions conference in October, and will also be leading the Holy Spirit empowerment night at Vineyard Columbus on September 24th. Also, please pray that we will be able to raise more financial support to continue the work in
Love and blessings, Steve, Elba, Camilly and Alyssa
