July Amazon Update! Steve and Elba

Thank you so much for your prayers for us and the team from Columbus and Madison County Vineyard.  We had a wonderful and full week with the team and it was a blessing.  When the team landed on Sunday afternoon they got directly into a few vehicles and they were off to Pacaja with Keith and Marsha Wilson which is about 250 kilometers away from Altamira.  The team made it just before the church service and they were able to minister to the church congregation.  They did various activities throughout the week to bless the community and encourage the workers.  They participated in an English get together at CDR, home groups, an oral hygiene clinic at one of the local schools to which they passed out toothbrushes and toothpaste, they helped with a big church outreach to the community where the church provided free haircuts, health checkups, counseling service with a lawyer, documentation, and a lot of prayers.  During the prayer time we had testimonies of people being healed of headaches, toothaches, emotional healing and the confirmation of God’s unlimited love for them.       

After the week in Pacaja, the team came back to Altamira and they went to the Mirante church.  Cindy Taylor preached to the congregation about returning to our first love in Jesus and to regain that enthusiasm that we once had in the Lord.  The message appeared to touch many in the congregation and the Holy Spirit was active during ministry time.  All in all it was a great time with the team and I believe that the Lord used them to minister to us and the Brazilian people.  For all the team did and help participate in it would appear that it would have taken a whole month.  However, they were able to squeeze all of it in a 1 week timeline.  

After the team left, our whole family was back in the truck on the road again to visit the church in Marabá.  The Marabá church is about 530 km away.  We had a really nice time with Ivanildo and Monica who are the pastors.  Elba got to preach at the church and she shared about the importance of being committed to the church, and ultimately to Christ.  The church is comprised of a lot of young adults and it was encouraging to see them hungry for Christ and wanting more of Him in their lives.   Praise the Lord.  Please pray for the church in Marabá and its leadership. 

On July 4th, Alyssa turned 9 years old.  She is growing up so fast and is a real sweetheart.  For her birthday she got a secret diary and a coloring set.  She loves to color and beatbox.  Beatboxing is one of her hobbies that she is crafting and we are always amazed at the different sounds she is able to generate.   The team brought down this pie in the face game.  It was a big hit at her birthday party.  Camilly got a new skateboard and she is really picking it up quickly.   

Please also continue to pray for spiritual, physical, and emotional health for us.  

Much love, Steve, Elba, Camilly, and Alyssa

Tax deductible donations can be written and sent to:

The Xingu Mission

P.O Box 340785

Columbus, Ohio  43234

Or On-line donations at:

https://xingu.org/opportunities/giving/dolan-ministries/

One of the nights we went outside the city to look at the stars.  They sky was filled and we saw many shooting stars.  It was really nice.  Leonard Taylor took these shots by keeping the exposure open for a long time.  Then I turned on a flashlight so that we could see Alyssa and the team. 

June Amazon Update! Steve and Elba

Thank you so much for your prayers for us as we traveled to Brasilia for our National Church conference.  This was a special conference because the churches were recognized as a National Igreja da Vinha church movement.  This has been a long time in the making and the Brazilian National leadership has been doing a great job to get us to this point.  Milton and Erika were named as the National Leaders and we feel very confident to be under such wise and loving care.  You can find out more about Milton and Erika by visiting: https://xingu.org/opportunities/giving/piratininga_region/ .  Please pray for them and consider giving. 

We had many international leaders at the conference and we were grateful for each of their presence.  Their guidance and support throughout the many years has been so instrumental in the growth and direction of the church.  Elba also had the opportunity to share the Word of God.  She preached one of her favorite topics which was about being a missional church and people.  Her message challenged us to continue to keep reaching out to the lost and not get trapped within the confines of the church.  Her message was received well. 

When are time ended in Brasilia.  John and Eleanor Mumford, and Dan Thiessen came back with us and we went on the river to visit two small church groups.  It was a great time visiting these communities and getting to know John, Eleanor, and Dan more.  The first church service was at a small river church along the Xingu river.  This church is a healthy and vibrant church and many people attend the weekly church service.  The night we attended there were only a few people because a lot of the people in the community boated into the city and stayed for the evening.  Clenildo shared the Love of Christ and everyone was very attentive even though we were getting eaten alive by mosquitos.  The second night we had the church service outside seated in a circle.  Alyssa preferred participating in the service by laying in the tree.  This was a fun service because we all got to interact with Clenildo and his message.  We also had the opportunity to pray for others for God to heal them. 

On the river, Alyssa went fishing and she caught a piranha.  John and Dan ate the eyeballs and now are part of the fish eye club.  This is one club I am not interested in being a member.  The girls enjoyed the nice view of God’s beautiful creation as we headed home. 

Please pray for a team coming from the Columbus Vineyard and Madison County Vineyard.  We will be going to Pacajá to minister with Keith and Marsha Wilson.  It is going to be great to be with this team.  Please pray that the Lord shows His power daily and that we have eyes to see and ears to hear what He is doing.  Also, pray for all of our travel that it will be filled with safety and peace. 

Please also continue to pray for spiritual, physical, and emotional health for us.  Prayer works and we feel them. 

Much love, Steve, Elba, Camilly, and Alyssa

Tax deductible donations can be written and sent to:

The Xingu Mission

P.O Box 340785

Columbus, Ohio  43234

Or On-line donations at:

https://xingu.org/opportunities/giving/dolan-ministries/

May Amazon Update! Steve and Elba Dolan

The church has been focusing on trying to grow our home groups in the church.  One of the ways that we believe this can happen is by using a method called Disciple Making Movement (DMM) https://www.cityteam.org/idisciple/   Churches that have implemented the DMM in some parts of the world are experiencing amazing growth and seeing people come to know the Lord.  It is a strategy for making disciples and planting churches.  Rick Bergen has been implementing the DMM in Maraba for over a year, and he came to Altamira to teach us how to implement the DMM.  He has been mentoring our leaders during the initial phases to launch these groups. 

We also had a couple’s potluck dinner at the church.  We had many couples come and participate.  Elba shared a message to help encourage our couples and to also share about the struggles of being married.  Gary Thomas states in his book Sacred Marriage “What if God designed marriage to make us holy more than to make us happy?”  That is a hard pill to swallow because just living in this world is hard enough.  Being married is not that easy and it takes work.  Gary Thomas also wrote “A good marriage isn't something you find; it's something you make.” 

The couples had a great time playing games and just being with one another.  Below is a game in which the guy picked an ordinary item and then had to declare his love to his wife.  For example, the guy has a book and he has to be creative to declare his love to his wife using the book as the reference point.  It was really silly and it was a struggle for a lot of the guys.  It would have been a struggle for me as well.  I mean unless you are passionate for books it is a long leap to try to declare your love referencing a book.  J

Camilly and Alyssa continue to do well, except they are in a constant battle with lice.  Lice is a big problem here and Elba is constantly picking them out of the girls’ hair.  Picking lice out of people’s hair is almost like a national past time for most families here in the Amazon.  Aside from the battling lice, the girls have been helping as teacher assistance at CDR in the English classes.  They really enjoy interacting with the students and helping them in the learning process. 

Prayer Request:

Please pray for us as we travel to Brasilia for our National Church conference.  This will be a special conference because the churches will be recognized as a National Igreja da Vinha church movement.  This has been a long time in the making and the Brazilian National leadership has been doing a great job to get us to this point.  Big props to Milton and to my lovely wife Elba. 

Please also pray for our staff and students at CDR.  Just last week 3 crimes happened a couple of feet from our house, 2 guys pulled a gun on our coordinator and stole her motorbike that she just bought 2 weeks ago.  This was devastating for her emotionally and financially.  The day after that happened a little girl about 9 had her mom’s phone stolen from her at gun point.  A guy tried to stab another guy with a machete.  Please pray for protection over our staff, students, family and church members.  

Please also continue to pray for spiritual, physical, and emotional health for us.  Prayer works and we feel them. 

Much love, Steve, Elba, Camilly, and Alyssa

Tax deductible donations can be written and sent to:

The Xingu Mission

P.O Box 340785

Columbus, Ohio  43234

Or On-line donations at:

https://xingu.org/opportunities/giving/dolan-ministries/

Alyssa got a new pony.  J  We gave away 2 puppies and have 3 left.  The puppies are growing: 

April Amazon Update! Steve and Elba

For Easter we had our annual church service and breakfast in the morning but this time we did something a little different.  We also had a baptism.  We had 6 people get baptized.  It was a great morning and emotional for the people being baptized and their family members.   It is awesome watching people getting baptized.  The symbolism of letting the person be completely immersed in water being baptized into Jesus’ death on the cross and no longer being slaves to self or sin.  When they are raised out of the water they are raised into a new life in Christ and are with Him forever.  Praise the Lord and may His transforming power be upon each of them and us daily.  After the church service, we celebrated together by sharing a meal together.  Elba’s twin sister Nira loves making everything look so beautiful and good. 

As a family we had the opportunity to go to Macapá to visit with the leadership.  Macapá is the capital city of Amapa and we have had a church there for many years.  It takes about 24 hours to get there, and 36 hours to get home by boat.  Throughout the years the church has gone through a lot of ups and downs, leadership transition, and uncertainty about its future.  Just recently, the Mission sent Christopher and Denise Meyer to help support the church and leadership.  They are doing a great job with building up the leadership, promoting small groups, and training the worship team.  The church has embraced them and we walked away feeling more confident than ever about the future of the church.    

Camilly turned 11 years old on April 18^th.  She was so excited and was looking forward to this day so that she could celebrate her birthday with her friends.  They got to play on the trampoline, hunt for candy in the yard, have a balloon throwing contest, eat cake, and pop a BIG balloon filled with candy and flour.  She also got some gifts.  She had to guess what was in the gifts and if she was wrong, each girl would slap her arm with two fingers.  Not sure what that is all about.  Thankfully, she guessed a lot of them correctly. 

Alyssa is doing great and she is starting to read in English.  She read her 1^st book with Bella Bergen and we were all impressed.  She read a Dr. Seuss book.  She also loves to draw.  She sat in front of the boat and drew when we were coming home from Macapá on our 36 hour boat ride.  Our dog also had puppies and she is doing a great job taking care of them.  We feel so blessed to have 2 wonderful daughters. 

Please continue to pray for spiritual, physical, and emotional health for us.  Again, have a blessed Easter in celebration of Jesus resurrection.       

Much love, Steve, Elba, Camilly, and Alyssa

Tax deductible donations can be written and sent to:

The Xingu Mission

P.O Box 340785

Columbus, Ohio  43234

Or On-line donations at:

https://xingu.org/opportunities/giving/dolan-ministries/

February Amazon Update! Steve and Elba

One of the events that the Mirante Church participated in recently was our annual "Christoval" celebration.  Carnival is Brazil's annual "celebration of the flesh" before the initiation of Lent on the Catholic calendar.  It's a week- long party where "anything goes" and every city in the country shuts down allowing full participation by the people.  The Vineyard churches combined efforts several years ago to begin "Christoval", a retreat for youth, away from the city, with a focus on Jesus and having a lot of good clean fun.   It has been a great success to redirect the youth's energy towards God instead of the temptations of the world and drawing kids toward Jesus.  During the three day retreat, the youth had opportunity to connect with Jesus through lively worship and dynamic teaching.

As a church we are continually engaging our community to reach people for Christ.  One of those ways is to hit the streets and pray for people for healing.  We went to the corner grocery store and setup tent.  We prayed for many people for healing.  We also had a lot of people want us to pray for them and their family for peace and protection over them.  The city is going through a lot of transitions and it is not safe with lots of robberies, and murders.   We pray that this time that we had with them will draw them closer to God. 

When the rainy season starts we have these large ants come out.  They are large and have big butts.  Elba told us that when she was a little girl they would pinch off their butt and fry them up and eat them.  The girls and I winced but we were up for the challenge.  We fried them up and ate them, well some of us ate them.  Camilly chewed it up and spit it out.  This was the first time that I consciously ate an insect and it was definitely different.  It tasted like a peanut in the beginning, and then later it tasted like liver.  It was interesting but I think it will be the last time we eat ant butts:   

We would like to ask you to join us in prayer for our dear friends and brothers in the Lord, Orlando and Mateus (father and son). Orlando needs lung transplant and Mateus needs a bone marrow transplant. They need a miracle. Please pray for them!!!

Please continue to pray for spiritual, physical, and emotional health for us. 

Much love, Steve, Elba, Camilly, and Alyssa

Tax deductible donations can be written and sent to:

The Xingu Mission

P.O Box 340785

Columbus, Ohio  43234

Or On-line donations at:

https://xingu.org/opportunities/giving/dolan-ministries/