Team Brazil Update: Pressing Towards the Mark

Thank you so much for your faithful prayers and support. We are so thankful to represent you in this great and needy country. Here are some updates about what is going on here in Brazil.

Ministry News

This year, New Life Baptist Church’s theme is “Pressing Towards the Mark.” We are pressing towards the mark of the high calling of God. We continue striving not only to be more like Jesus but also to grow to the next level in our Christian lives and as a church. My family and I arrived home from the States in January and hit the ground running. We made it a goal to visit every family from the church in the first few months after arriving in Brazil. In February, the church had its Family Camp. Several other churches participated with us. It was a great blessing. The new semester for the Valley Baptist Seminary also began. We are thankful that the number of full-time students has increased.

Jonata Olivera’s Ordination

On December 28, the last Wednesday of 2016, a sixteen-year-old boy visited the midweek Bible study and prayer time. He was already saved but was still very young in the faith. He was eager to learn and full of questions. Very early on, I knew the Lord had something special planned for him.

That young teenage boy was faithful, and God eventually called him to the ministry. He graduated from our four-year Bible institute and went to help Missionary Keith Putnam while waiting on the Lord for his helpmate. In November of last year, he married Karlene Whitmore, the daughter of our fellow missionary, Dave Whitmore, and on February 24, I had the incredible privilege of ordaining him to the ministry! He is the first to be ordained of many the Lord has been raising for the harvest field in this ministry. He is a fine young man; we are incredibly proud of him. Lord willing, within the next year or two, we will ordain a couple more young men who are almost ready.

Salvation and Baptism Story

Three weeks ago, I invited Rose to visit our church. She came, and on her second visit, we were able to lead her to the Lord. The following Sunday, she was baptized. Since then, she and her husband have continued to come and have even tithed and given towards missions! It is always exciting to see new families coming to church.

Family News

A couple weekends ago was the wedding of my niece, Carol Johnson. She married a fine young man from our church. Doing the vows for their wedding and presenting them as husband and wife was a privilege. Abigail was able to come down to Brazil from the U.S. for her cousin’s wedding, even if it was only for a few days. Daniel and I both got dengue fever two weeks ago, but we are finally better.