WOW, where to begin. It has been a very busy month and like most months it is a struggle to choose what stories to tell and not tell. That is a good problem. I will share about our recent baptism and a pastor’s retreat that was held in Altamira. However, first, let me thank you for your prayers for our trip to Santarém where Elba went to teach many leaders in the region. It was great time.
The Mirante church just celebrated with our new believers by having a baptism. The baptism went really well and the Holy Spirit was touching lives. It was great to have the worship band playing while people were getting baptized and the church celebrating each person’s new birth. Most of the congregation sat in their seats during the baptism but others wanted an up close view. Cleiton (in red) and Cristiane are Pastors at the church and they got the amazing opportunity to baptize their son. Then Cleiton got to baptize his cousin. It is always an exciting event for me to see others make a public confession that Jesus is Lord.
The Pastors retreat was a success. We had the majority of our pastors from the North come and receive an excellent teaching by Bill Bacheller. Bill is a psychologist and founder of the Oasis ministries in the south of Brazil. Bill and his team focus on helping pastors and leaders in the church through a variety of issues such as burn-out, conflict resolution, marital crisis, and emotional crisis. The main topic during our conference was conflict. It is such an important topic because as Pastors / leaders in the church we are always dealing with conflict in some form. I know, I know, conflict in the church…really? J As leaders we need the courage and humility to help others with conflicts in their marriage, between church members, and between leadership to name just a few. Since conflict is present, we need to know how to work through them, and help others work through them as well. We need to understand ourselves, and others as we move to resolution. The retreat provided some tools to help in that process.
Camilly and Alyssa are doing well. They just had some tests last week and they did really good. They are both good students and they like going to school. This is such a blessing to us as parents. Camilly turned 12 years old in April and we took her to a local restaurant with a couple of her friends. She is growing up so quickly and this was a special time with her friends. Here is Camilly studying for her test. She likes to go in a circle with her skateboard as she recants the answers to the questions. Alyssa had the opportunity to try one of the hover boards in a mall in Santarem. She picked it up really quickly and only got knocked off two times. Gratefully, she landed on her feet both times. She also made this replication of a nature reserve out of Styrofoam. Did we say that we are proud parents? J
Please continue to pray for spiritual, physical, and emotional health for us. Please also pray for travel mercies and blessings as we travel to Belém this Wednesday which is about 800 km away. Also, Alyssa has been experiencing some allergic reactions. Please pray for a complete healing.
Much love, Steve, Elba, Camilly, and Alyssa
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The roads here are challenging. This road was deteriorating by the day and about ready to collapse into the ravine. This was on our way from Santarem.
