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/

January Amazon Update! Steve and Elba

Thank you so much for your friendship, support and prayers.  It is such a pleasure to have you on our team as we continue to share the Good news of Jesus Christ and give a helping hand up to the marginalized.  We pray you will be blessed by the below update.

For the last several weeks we have been on the road visiting churches with just a few days at home.  Just before Christmas we drove 1120 km back and forth to Santarem.  We had the fortunate opportunity to participate in Clenildo and Angelita’s renewing of wedding vows.  Clenildo is one of the National leaders along with Elba.  Clenildo and Elba have been working side by side since the beginning of the Xingu Mission.  While in Santarem Elba went and preached at a recent church plant about 30 kilometers outside of Santarem called Jacamim.  The leaders of this church plant are such loving and generous people.  The congregation is growing and it is great to see God working in their midst.  Before the service we visited some houses and as a family we prayed for this woman pictured below.  During our prayers she felt her bones move and she felt her arm was completely healed.  Praise the Lord!

We then traveled another 400 kilometers to visit 2 new church plants in Monte Alegre (Elba’s home town), and Priaina.  Again, the Lord was faithful and blessed our time with these new congregations.

We just got home from our last trip a couple of days ago.  We drove over 4200 kilometers to Brasilia and back.  Once we arrived in Brasilia Elba got some dental work done and then flew to Sao Paulo to meet with Phil Strout and Milton Lucas to discuss our upcoming National Conference and the release of Brazil as a National Association of Igreja da Vinha.  These are exciting times and we have been anticipating this release for many years.  Once Elba returned, we then went with a missionary team from Brasilia to Palmas.  It is amazing what God has done with this church.  The Mirante Church sent a couple out a several years ago and they started a very small home church.  God has been very gracious these many years and has helped this church come through many hurdles along the way.  The Mirante Church just sent another pastoral couple to help in the work and this trip was very special because the Palmas team had a church building inauguration and we had the opportunity to see our friends.  The team from Pacajá also came to celebrate in the excitement and encourage our brothers and sisters in Palmas.  It was a great inauguration service and as a BIG bonus we had some people come up to receive Jesus as their Savior. 

After our time in Palmas we headed back to Altamira.  The roads in Brazil are adventurous and can be very dangerous.  This bridge went out and unfortunately the truck driver lost his life.  They then created a provisional temporary bridge which got washed out due to the heavy rains.  We then had to pay an exuberant amount of money of R$150.00 to cross over by a make shift ferry.   These trips were costly in that gasoline prices have been steadily increasing.  It now cost around $4.35 for a gallon of gasoline.  I understand the price is under $2.00 in the States.  Lucky!

Please continue to pray for all these new church plants and works. 

During our time in Brasilia the girls got the opportunity to go to the zoo, and go bowling.  I know, bowling!  Camilly bowled a 59, just edging out her little sister who bowled a 58.  The girls also got to ride a motorized pink animal like thing around the mall.  In the end, we had a lot of fun.  Elba, Camilly, Alyssa and I also got to eat McDonald’s and Dominos.  That was a big treat. 

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/