It's almost midnight here and I must post something quickly before I try to go to sleep. I just returned to the hotel. The team has been back here for several hours now. They are exhausted and some are struggling with sore throats and a touch of the cold. The last couple of days have taken their toll.
But your prayers are working. The English Camp was phenomenal. They only had about half the people they were expecting show up but that was a blessing in disguise. We had just the right number of students for the number of people on our team. We had different stations and the students rotated through all of them. They played games, learned songs, Bible verses, learned about about English expressions in American colloquialism, and played Pictionary.
They also heard the gospel presented clearly in both languages -- English and Portuguese. And we had the opportunity to interact one-on-one with some outstanding students. In the end, I prayed a prayer of repentance and heard several students praying out loud with me, even though I told them they didn't have to do it right there and then.
The skit AGAIN moved people to tears and the Holy Spirit did the work of convicting. I was so blessed to watch the God work from a potentially chaotic experience -- last night we didn't know what to expect -- to an amazing opportunity to bringing glory to God by sharing the Gospel of Christ in this part of the world. The vast majority of the students who participated today are not churched.
After the Camp, all of us stayed back, chatting with several students who simply didn't want to leave. We gave each student a copy of the New Testament, and they also took some to their friends. We gave away many prizes. They each got their bright yellow t-shirt saying "Amazon Adventure English Camp 2012." And we handed each student a certification of completion.
I was personally encouraged to see all the work this church had done prior to our coming. They had sent nice invitations out and invited many students to come from both the public as well as private English schools. One of the private schools sent a teacher with several students. The atmosphere was alive and festive. We praise God for this great ministry.
After a nice and healthy snack we headed out to an outreach the church has to under resourced children. It was in a place where we literally drove the car until the road ended. The children came from places nearby. they were lovely and lovable, but their home situation is very sad. To give you an idea of how rough this neighborhood is, I overheard one boy, as he saw us getting out of our three silver colored cars, ask the other children, "Could they possibly be from the Mafia?" But we still managed to have a fabulous time with the children and some of our team members absolutely fell in love with them. Praise God!
One last word: after supper we went to a community called "Muca." I took the team there just to be introduced, since half the team will lead Sunday school there this weekend. After the introductions, I headed back to the hotel to drop the team off and I went back to the movie site (I was giving the gospel at the end). We showed the Jesus Movie there. One father had a small girl with him. As the film was lingering on and on (it is two hours long!), the father said to the daighter, "We need to go home, you have a fever. The little girl simply said, "Dad, I am not going anywhere until the movie is over." And she kept her word!
Tomorrow we head out to the community of Maruanum to do work with children, contact-making, and encourage the believers there. Please pray for effective ministry. And for the health of the team. We are feeling weak right now.
Pastor Ivanildo C. Trindade
But your prayers are working. The English Camp was phenomenal. They only had about half the people they were expecting show up but that was a blessing in disguise. We had just the right number of students for the number of people on our team. We had different stations and the students rotated through all of them. They played games, learned songs, Bible verses, learned about about English expressions in American colloquialism, and played Pictionary.
They also heard the gospel presented clearly in both languages -- English and Portuguese. And we had the opportunity to interact one-on-one with some outstanding students. In the end, I prayed a prayer of repentance and heard several students praying out loud with me, even though I told them they didn't have to do it right there and then.
The skit AGAIN moved people to tears and the Holy Spirit did the work of convicting. I was so blessed to watch the God work from a potentially chaotic experience -- last night we didn't know what to expect -- to an amazing opportunity to bringing glory to God by sharing the Gospel of Christ in this part of the world. The vast majority of the students who participated today are not churched.
After the Camp, all of us stayed back, chatting with several students who simply didn't want to leave. We gave each student a copy of the New Testament, and they also took some to their friends. We gave away many prizes. They each got their bright yellow t-shirt saying "Amazon Adventure English Camp 2012." And we handed each student a certification of completion.
I was personally encouraged to see all the work this church had done prior to our coming. They had sent nice invitations out and invited many students to come from both the public as well as private English schools. One of the private schools sent a teacher with several students. The atmosphere was alive and festive. We praise God for this great ministry.
After a nice and healthy snack we headed out to an outreach the church has to under resourced children. It was in a place where we literally drove the car until the road ended. The children came from places nearby. they were lovely and lovable, but their home situation is very sad. To give you an idea of how rough this neighborhood is, I overheard one boy, as he saw us getting out of our three silver colored cars, ask the other children, "Could they possibly be from the Mafia?" But we still managed to have a fabulous time with the children and some of our team members absolutely fell in love with them. Praise God!
One last word: after supper we went to a community called "Muca." I took the team there just to be introduced, since half the team will lead Sunday school there this weekend. After the introductions, I headed back to the hotel to drop the team off and I went back to the movie site (I was giving the gospel at the end). We showed the Jesus Movie there. One father had a small girl with him. As the film was lingering on and on (it is two hours long!), the father said to the daighter, "We need to go home, you have a fever. The little girl simply said, "Dad, I am not going anywhere until the movie is over." And she kept her word!
Tomorrow we head out to the community of Maruanum to do work with children, contact-making, and encourage the believers there. Please pray for effective ministry. And for the health of the team. We are feeling weak right now.
Pastor Ivanildo C. Trindade
1 comment:
We will certainly pray for health and endurance as you continue on. PTL for the opportunities....it is simply amazing and God-orchestrated. Steve and Celeste KErn
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