Abundant Life

" I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." - John 10:10

" I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith so that you will have a full understanding of every good thing we have in Christ." - Philemon 6

Jesus came so that we could have a reconciled relationship with God, so that we could have eternal life in heaven with Him, and also an abundant life here. The abundant life that God wants for us is a life full of joy and peace and power and victory and fruitfulness and satisfaction. This type of life brings much glory to Him. Why are there so many Christians who are not experiencing this type of life ? Churches are full of people who are missing out on the abundant life.

Two of the reasons why so many Christians are missing out on God's best for their lives and the abundant life are found in Matthew 6:33 - "Seek first for God's kingdom and His righteousness and all these things will be given to you." Quite simply their relationship with God and the building of God's kingdom are not the first or top priority in their lives. Look at Philemon 6 above, a very interesting verse. Actively sharing Christ with others (being a faithful witness for Christ) is vital if you want to experience all that God wants for you. You will never have the abundant, victorious, fruitful, joyful, satisfying life until you commit to actively and faithfully share Christ with others. Jesus says in Matthew 4:19 "Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men." Unless you are a "fisher of men" (a person who actively & faithfully shares Christ with others) you are not truly following Jesus, The Source of abundant life. You must walk closely with Jesus, The Source, and truly follow and obey Him, or you will never experience abundant life.

School Outreach In Sao Vicente

Yesterday we spoke at the state school EE Jose Nigro, which is located in a very poor area in the city of Sao Vicente. The school is for students from 5th grade to high school, and also has some classes for adults studying at night. Many of the students come from broken homes. The students were very friendly and warm and well behaved, and we had a great visit at the school. Many of them, as well as the teachers and school leaders very much appreciated us coming to help them in their lives.

The Holy Spirit touched many hearts as we shared the Gospel, and more than 130 students, 7 teachers, and the school coordinator accepted Christ and committed their lives to Him. Afterwards we passed out the Livro Da Vida books to all, which have some devotions in them as well as many Biblical values and truths for living. The school leaders were very pleased with the results, and they recommended us to 3 more schools in Sao Vicente. They also were interested in seeing if we knew of a church in the area that could teach English classes to some of the students at the church, and we will be talking to some churches in the area about it. That would be a good way to do follow up with some of the students and get them to come to the church to start discipling them.

Trans Evangelism Week in Santos

This past week we worked with Igreja Batista Areia Branca and various other churches in a government housing project for poor people and in the surrounding neighborhood in Santos. Approx. 35 people from the various churches participated on the team during the week, as well as several people in the church who made lunch for everyone each day. The entire Mega Trans project during the month of July was held in 500 cities in every state of Brazil.

On Monday and Tuesday we visited apartments in the complex to share Jesus, and also to offer home Bible studies for the families. From Wednesday through Friday we moved to the streets in the surrounding neighborhood and we had many opportunities to share Jesus and help and encourage people in their walk with God. We met a wide variety of people from various religious backgrounds. We met various people who practice the Spiritist religion here, and many of them believe that Jesus already lives in their hearts when they are born and that they do not need to repent from their sins and invite & receive Jesus as their Lord and Savior. 

Many people were open to hear the Gospel, and others were not. We praise God that more than 30 adults accepted Christ during the week, and also numerous children accepted Christ during some of the programs for children that the church held. There were also 20+ home Bible studies scheduled, and many many seeds of the Gospel were planted as well.

Mega Trans Project

All of this coming week we will be participating in a project called Mega Trans, which is designed to reach people for Jesus and start discipling them. The Trans part of the project name is short for Jesus Transforms. We will be working with Igreja Batista Areia Branca and other churches in Santos, helping them to visit homes in a government housing project for poor people to share Jesus, and also to share with people in the streets. There are other parts of the project that will focus on reaching children, as well as Bible studies and other activities. There will be a Mega Trans project going on in 90 cities in the state of Sao Paulo this week.

Nationwide in July there has already been or will be a Mega Trans in every state of Brazil, in approximately 500 cities. The national goal is to share Jesus with 2.5 million people, which is an incredible endeavor. May God bless and use this project to reach many people for Jesus, and may many lives be wonderfully transformed by Jesus. Here are some photos of the Trans project in another state earlier this month:

One Thing

"We tend to say that because a person has natural ability, he will make a good Christian. It is not a matter of our equipment, but a matter of our poverty; not of what we bring with us, but of what God puts into us; not a matter of natural virtues, of strength of character, of knowledge, or of experience— all of that is of no avail in this concern... The most important aspect of Christianity is not the work we do, but the relationship we maintain and the surrounding influence and qualities produced by that relationship. That is all God asks us to give our attention to, and it is the one thing that is continually under attack." - Oswald Chambers



What would you say is the single most important requirement to being a fruitful and victorious follower of Christ ? The "one thing" that will make the difference in your service for the Lord and produce greater fruit ? Education ? Training ? Experience ? Zeal ? Trying your very best for the Lord ? More prayer support ? All of these things can be very helpful and are important, but the "one thing" that is absolutely vital to being fruitful is your fellowship with the Lord. Many people place their ministry for the Lord as the top priority and emphasis in their lives, and they end up leaving no time for fellowship with the Lord Jesus, who is our Source of power and victory and fruitfulness. No matter how hard we try, and no matter how zealous and passionate we are in ministry, we can do absolutely nothing without Jesus. We first need to have a passion for Jesus, and not just for doing things for Him.

"I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing." - John 15:5


"but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her." - Luke 10:42

30th Anniversary Trip

Our 30th anniversary will be in August, so to celebrate we took a special trip to Paris, Switzerland, Lake Como & Venice Italy. Because of our schedule, we are not able to travel in August, so we took the trip from June 18 to July 6, which is when schools here are out for winter break.

Here are some of the many photos we took. It was a fantastic trip, and we are very blessed and thankful to be able to have the opportunity to take such a nice trip.

Paris

Luzern, Switzerland

Lake Como, Italy

Venice, Italy