Sharing Jesus In a Praia Grande School

EE Julio Secco is a state school located in the Solemar area of Praia Grande, which is about an hour from where we live in Santos. It is a small school with 4 classes for each period, with high school students in the morning, 5th through 8th grades in the afternoon, and adults at night. We spoke in 4 classes in the morning and in 4 more in the afternoon on Monday, and then in the 4 adult classes on Tuesday night. Andreia and Marcela were our interpreters on the first day, and Camila and Elisa helped us on the 2nd day. We were supposed to work with Primeira Igreja Batista Solemar, but unfortunately no one showed up to help from the church on both days, even though the pastor committed the church to help. We had a great time in the school, and God did a powerful work in the hearts and lives of many people there, and 220 students and 9 teachers and the school coordinator accepted Christ and committed their lives to Him. The school leaders loved the project, and they asked us if there was anything we could do to continue to help their students & families. This is exactly why we work with a church near the school, so that they could continue to minister to the people & families, and to do the important follow up work. This was an opportunity that God opened up for the church, but unfortunately they missed it.

Andreia, Marcela, and us 

part of the school 

Nancy, Andreia, and Marcela with some of the students 

Nancy leading adult students in prayer

 one of the adult night classes praying

 Camila and I sharing the good news of Jesus with adults

 another one of the adult night classes

Elisa, us, and Camila

Happy Birthday Pelé

Yesterday was Pelé's 70th birthday. He was born Edson Arantes do Nascimento on October 23, 1940. Pelé is still a national hero in Brazil, and he was the greatest futbol player in a country that is crazy for it's futbol. Most people feel that he was the greatest player ever, scoring over 1200 goals. He is the only player to play on 3 World Cup winning teams. Known as "O Rei" (The King), he played the majority of his futbol for Santos Futbol Clube, which is the team in the city where we currently live.

Battles & Victories

Many times when we are sharing Christ with alot of people in a church or in a school, we have many difficulties and challenges. We need many people to pray for us because we are in a spiritual battle, and at times it can be very difficult. This week we spoke in a state school in Santos called EE Cleobulo school, and it was a difficult week filled with various problems and challenges. We always have to rely on God for His strength, wisdom, and grace, or we would never be able to handle the warfare and battles that we frequently have to face. Even though it was a difficult week, we saw God do great things in the lives of the students and teachers that we shared Christ with. We worked with Igreja Batista Nova Jerusalem in the school, and their participation was excellent. We had at least 4 people from the church every day helping us, plus several members were our interpreters. The majority of the students were adolescents, as well as some adults studying at night. God powerfully touched many hearts and lives during the week, and we praise God that 635 students and 10 teachers accepted Christ and committed their lives to Him. We had the opportunity to talk to many students during break times, and a good number had questions about the church. I had one conversation with a young man who said that he does not believe in God, and I recommended that he asks God to show to him who He is and that He is real. I also told him that if he sincerely asks God to show him that He is real, He will certainly respond.

Some Favorite Ministry Pics

We are quickly coming closer to the end of our 4th year of ministry in Brazil, helping & training churches to share Christ with others in their communities. To date we have had the privilege of working with nearly 60 churches in 4 years, and we have spoken in close to 80 schools. We have seen God do some amazing things in many people's hearts and lives. Here are some of our favorite photos in our 4 years of ministry.

Brazilian Hamburger

Brazilian Hamburger = hamburger, bun, ham, mozzarella cheese, bacon, lettuce, tomato, and scrambled egg = delicioso !

Igreja Batista do Horto

On Sunday night I had the privilege to preach at Igreja Batista do Horto, which is a small church in Santos. The "bairro" that the church is located in is a mix of middle class to poor people, with a favela as part of the area. We have started working with Pastor Anderson and the church to help them to share the Good News of Jesus in their community, and we will be working with them in a school in late November. Our friend Rebeca was my interpreter. The message was well received by the church, and at the end I shared the gospel and 7 people accepted Christ and committed their lives to Him. It is always a joy and a privilege to serve God in this way. After the service we enjoyed some cake and Guarana (a popular soft drink in Brazil) with the church, and we enjoyed getting to know some of the members better.

Friday Afternoon

On Friday morning we had meetings in 2 schools in Sao Vicente, and we praise God that we were able to schedule our Quality Of Life project in one of them for April 2011. After the meetings we had to go to Igreja Batista Central to pick up more of the books "Livro Da Familia" and "Livro Da Vida" that we pass out to all of the students and teachers when we speak in the schools. This is an excellent tool to continue to help them in their lives, and to start teaching them what God's Word says about many subjects and values for our lives. Afterwards we went to a nice place for lunch called "O Terraco", which is on Ilha de Porchat in Sao Vicente. It has a great view of the ocean and beaches in Sao Vicente and Santos, and it also has very good food. We had a seafood dish that was very good. O Terraco is a little expensive, but it was worth it. After lunch we went for a walk on the beach and took some pictures ... here are some of them.

A Great Week

We had a great week this past week. We spoke in the EMEF Lourdes Ortiz municipal school in Santos on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday this week, and it went great. We worked with Igreja Batista Ponta da Praia in the school, which is for students in 1st grade through 8th grade. Because the school was having some remodeling work done, half of the students are temporarily attending classes in another school near downtown Santos, and the other half are at the regular school. So we went to the school near "centro" first each day to speak in some classes, and then to the other school to finish up. God worked in a mighty way in the school, and many hearts were open to hearing of God's love and many were receptive to the gospel. In 3 days 633 students and 17 teachers accepted Christ and committed their lives to Him. The school leaders were very happy with our project and with how the students responded to the message and were open to receiving help for their lives. Of course all of the honor and glory and praise goes to God.

On Friday we had a couple of good meetings in some schools in Sao Vicente, and we were able to schedule our Quality Of Life project in one of them in April 2011. We now have 4 schools scheduled in 2011 already.