Thank you so much for your prayers for us during our time in the states. The Holy Spirit night at the Vineyard Church of Columbus went very well and we saw the Lord touching and healing many people. In addition, Elba was invited to share at the annual Vineyard Mission conference held in Colorado Springs. As the National Coordinator for the Brazilian church movement she was asked to speak about missions and the church, specifically about self-governance and self-financing. Elba articulated the missions and churches point of view eloquently about our philosophy of church planting. The feedback that she received was really positive and hopefully helpful for all the church planting teams present. Since we were in Colorado Springs, we had the opportunity to see a black bear. I am not sure if opportunity is the best word, we were pretty scared.
The Mirante church and Santa Ana congregation had a baptism along the Xingu River. It was really exciting to see all of them making a public declaration of their faith. I always get emotional watching baptisms because it reminds me of the huge impact that Jesus has had on my life and the wonderful journey upon which these new believers are starting to embark. Keith and Marsha Wilson have been doing a great job leading the Santa Ana congregation and discipling these new believers.
On a personal note, I had been training for a marathon for the last several months and by the grace of God ran the whole distance. It was really difficult but extremely gratifying. The girls ran the last 100 yards with me. Incredibly, even with all the training I still managed to gain 15 pounds. UGH!! The girls have been enjoying their time back in the States. They had great time while we visited the Rocky Mountain National Park. They loved feeding the chipmunks and birds.
Please continue to keep us in your prayers for good health and safety. Especially, please pray for Elba as she has had been experiencing a low grade fever almost every day for about a month. We went to the emergency room and they did not find anything with the battery of tests that were performed. She is on another round of antibiotics and we pray that this will eliminate the fever. Please pray for her and please pray that our trip back to Brazil will be safe, without incident, and that we integrate back in with ease.
Love and blessings, Steve, Elba, Camilly and Alyssa
