Tuesday, January 24, 2006
At Jaraguá do Sul with Joe and Evelyn
Yesterday we went over to Jaraguá do Sul to see our UFMW colleagues Joe and Evelyn. We had not met for a long time, and it was really good to hear of a year of growth in the church. We are colleagues together in MICEBRA - a mission entity in Brazil that includes the four of us, and Heather Wilson, currently in Northern Ireland. After a period in which Joe has been President, and Evelyn Secretary and Treasurer, an election saw Joe continue as President, but Cora now as Secretary and Andrew as Treasurer. Sooner or later Joe and Evelyn will come to the end of their service, and we need to be building some continuity into our massive bureaucratic structure!
We had a great day together.
Yesterday we went over to Jaraguá do Sul to see our UFMW colleagues Joe and Evelyn. We had not met for a long time, and it was really good to hear of a year of growth in the church. We are colleagues together in MICEBRA - a mission entity in Brazil that includes the four of us, and Heather Wilson, currently in Northern Ireland. After a period in which Joe has been President, and Evelyn Secretary and Treasurer, an election saw Joe continue as President, but Cora now as Secretary and Andrew as Treasurer. Sooner or later Joe and Evelyn will come to the end of their service, and we need to be building some continuity into our massive bureaucratic structure!
We had a great day together.
In a hot country with heavy rain where people want to keep the windows open during a storm, houses tend to have big overhanging eaves. This creates a problem - how to carry the water to the ground? Free standing gutter pipes would not be attractive. The water can't be allowed to just drop - it would blow easily in the way down, and spatter terribly on impact. A common solution is a "chain gutter", as seen here at Joe's house. The rain water clings to the chains, being slowed down in the process, before flowing into a soakaway at the bottom.
Seen from the back of Joe and Evelhyn's house - cattle and bananas.
Our day in Jaraguá closed with a trip to the Kuchenhaus. Good (really good!) German cakes. This part of Brazil has a lot of this - German people, buildings and culture. A friend of Joe's is even looking to plant a German-speaking Baptist Church in Pomerode, a town near Jaraguá do Sul.
Saturday, January 21, 2006
Rafael Liebich (left) at Florianópolis airport, with his parents Gerd and Ester, and brother Marcos. Our pianist has gone to the USA! Will he return or get straight into his studies? Very few churches of our size have a musician who is capable of giving recitals; and as Marquito now says, we can tell people that "our church band is on tour in the States!"
Friday, January 20, 2006
The Peregrinos
Tonight was our last Friday Night meeting before Rafael Liebich (centre, off-white tee-shirt) heads off to Los Angeles and then Montreal to try for a PhD place. If all goes well, he may not be back for a long time. There was much prayer for him, and for other urgent needs. Marquito, Anna and Sara are all sitting public exams in competition for jobs this Sunday: Kito and Anna's wedding plans depend on finding employment.
Rodrigo and Lívia have now sent their second application off to the British Consulate. They have worked hard, and so have a number of others - from the South of Brazuil to the mouth of the Amazon, to Haywards Heath and London. We pray for sucess, and for the reply to be soon. Every week lost in work on English will prejudice the benefit they gain from Cornhill.
Yesterday Cora sat her Christian Ministry Exam for the Evangelical Theological College of Wales. We went over to IBE, where Elzimar invigilated for ETCW. Today she has Christology.
Wednesday, January 18, 2006
Back to Brazil
So – we are home! We thought that it was a good moment to put some general prayer requests up for the semester ahead. From now on we will also try to keep a regular statement of prayer needs – in advance!
Peregrinos
Our group is VERY small, and we really need to see significant numerical growth if we are to be a stable and viable local church. One of the most positive aspects of church life also generates some of our difficulties: the fact that in general the members are fairly long-term or even second generation Christians who have fairly recently come to a more reformed position. In the overwhelmingly activist Brazilian scene, it is all too easy for a kind of practical Hyper-Calvinism to creep in, effectively neutralising evangelistic impetus. Please pray for the Lord’s help through this year, for an aggressive evangelistic outlook to be adopted, and for the church to be ready to use means and strategies, looking to God for his sovereign blessing.
Rodrigo and Lívia
The refusal of a visa to this couple was a very great disappointment, and all the more so as it seems that initial attempts by Brits to avoid a longwinded appeals process were given short shrift. Things are certainly very tight for the granting of visas to Brazilians at the moment: sadly, rightly so, given the vast numbers of illegals, with many involved in criminal activities. It is frustrating that the behaviour of some has made it so difficult for legitimate applicants to get a visa, but also disappointing that the consulate felt the need to go beyond points of law in their refusal, making personal accusations of intent to stay on as illegals.
Rodrigo and Lívia’s appeal has gone on to London, where a decision will be taken in “six months to a year.” For September entry into Cornhill, with adequate time for English studies beforehand, this is clearly useless. The Consulate has said, however, that it is perfectly in order for the couple to make a new application while their appeal is being heard. This seems a little strange, but it is what Rodrigo and Lívia will have to do. So they are busy preparing a new set of application documents, and we are trying to help them so that this application is as water-tight as it can be. The documents, together with the £200 fee, will go off to the consulate in Rio on Friday. This all reminds us very much of our own visa experiences.
Please pray for Rodrigo and Lívia at this very stressful time. She has gone temporarily back to the job she had just given up; he is still working in the church. Some of the changes that needed to be made to their application will involve more financial drain: if anyone out there feels able to help with any costs for English tuition, or for regular travel expenses, either in the language phase or at Cornhill, please contact the Proclamation Trust. Please mark any contributions with "for Rodrigo and Lívia Pena," and send for the attention of Richard Green.
IBE
We are about to start our busiest semester yet at the Instituto Batista de Educação. Andrew will be teaching three nights a week: Cora two. There is a lot of preparation to do, and the challenge of many new students – we hope! Although we have a number of ministry trips planned outside of Florianópolis, in general this semester will probably be quieter (and therefore more consistent) than the manic activity towards the end of last year. In particular we want to see the new course, Aprofundamento Bíblico (sort-of “Biblical immersion”) to take off and make an impact in the city. Please pray for stamina in preparation and teaching of the three hour classes, and that we will keep coming back fresh to the work. The key goal is to enthuse the students with Bible Study and Theology, and with God himself – simply passing information accurately is not enough.
Blumenau
We have not had one Saturday available to visit the group in Blumenau since June last year. They seem to be small, but stable; we value prayer for their growth, in every way, just as we do for our own church here.
The Reformed Baptist Fellowship of Brazil
This could be a critical year for the CRBB, as a number of unpleasant attacks have been made in the Christian press, and as we face some key internal issues of definition and direction. This year our congress is in June, with much to be resolved. Pray especially for Gilson Santos (Pastor, Grace Baptist Church, São José dos Campos), who is our gifted and hard-working president, and Paulo Cesar Valle, (Pastor, Peregrinos’ Church, Volta Redonda), whose church is hosting the congress, and who has suffered some of the most unpleasant personal attacks.
Cauane
Thos of you who have prayed for Cauane (the little girl with a cancer in her face) will be glad to hear that at present she is responding very well to treatment, is at home and playing with the other children on the military base where she lives. Give thanks for this!
Acts 14
As a spin off from work on Acts done for the Carey Ministers’ Conference in January, Andrew has prepared on Paul at Lystra and preached on the passage for the first time in Portuguese at Kobrasol Baptist Church last Sunday. There was a most encouraging impact from the message, which may prove to be a particularly important one in our context. Basically, the theme was, what is the gospel for the man who has everything. This may seem strange in a society known for having many poor people, but it is terribly relevant where the church has basically turned the gospel into “You are sad. Come to Jesus. Be happy.” We so need to hear, “You have joy! Have you never given thanks in the right place, to the right person? Come to Jesus and be forgiven of this terrible wrong!” Andrew suspects that he will return to this passage various times through the year: pray that he will keep seeing more in it and putting it across better.
Cora’s Mother and Stepfather
Ken and Maisie Wood will be visiting us for the first time ever next week, and staying into February. We are so pleased! Please pray for safe journeys for them, and for a good time here. It will not be easy coming to a Brazilian summer from a Toronto winter, and we hope that they will really enjoy seeing something of Brazil. Cora has not seen them since 2001, and Andrew since 1999, so we have a lot of catching up to do.
So – we are home! We thought that it was a good moment to put some general prayer requests up for the semester ahead. From now on we will also try to keep a regular statement of prayer needs – in advance!
Peregrinos
Our group is VERY small, and we really need to see significant numerical growth if we are to be a stable and viable local church. One of the most positive aspects of church life also generates some of our difficulties: the fact that in general the members are fairly long-term or even second generation Christians who have fairly recently come to a more reformed position. In the overwhelmingly activist Brazilian scene, it is all too easy for a kind of practical Hyper-Calvinism to creep in, effectively neutralising evangelistic impetus. Please pray for the Lord’s help through this year, for an aggressive evangelistic outlook to be adopted, and for the church to be ready to use means and strategies, looking to God for his sovereign blessing.
Rodrigo and Lívia
The refusal of a visa to this couple was a very great disappointment, and all the more so as it seems that initial attempts by Brits to avoid a longwinded appeals process were given short shrift. Things are certainly very tight for the granting of visas to Brazilians at the moment: sadly, rightly so, given the vast numbers of illegals, with many involved in criminal activities. It is frustrating that the behaviour of some has made it so difficult for legitimate applicants to get a visa, but also disappointing that the consulate felt the need to go beyond points of law in their refusal, making personal accusations of intent to stay on as illegals.
Rodrigo and Lívia’s appeal has gone on to London, where a decision will be taken in “six months to a year.” For September entry into Cornhill, with adequate time for English studies beforehand, this is clearly useless. The Consulate has said, however, that it is perfectly in order for the couple to make a new application while their appeal is being heard. This seems a little strange, but it is what Rodrigo and Lívia will have to do. So they are busy preparing a new set of application documents, and we are trying to help them so that this application is as water-tight as it can be. The documents, together with the £200 fee, will go off to the consulate in Rio on Friday. This all reminds us very much of our own visa experiences.
Please pray for Rodrigo and Lívia at this very stressful time. She has gone temporarily back to the job she had just given up; he is still working in the church. Some of the changes that needed to be made to their application will involve more financial drain: if anyone out there feels able to help with any costs for English tuition, or for regular travel expenses, either in the language phase or at Cornhill, please contact the Proclamation Trust. Please mark any contributions with "for Rodrigo and Lívia Pena," and send for the attention of Richard Green.
IBE
We are about to start our busiest semester yet at the Instituto Batista de Educação. Andrew will be teaching three nights a week: Cora two. There is a lot of preparation to do, and the challenge of many new students – we hope! Although we have a number of ministry trips planned outside of Florianópolis, in general this semester will probably be quieter (and therefore more consistent) than the manic activity towards the end of last year. In particular we want to see the new course, Aprofundamento Bíblico (sort-of “Biblical immersion”) to take off and make an impact in the city. Please pray for stamina in preparation and teaching of the three hour classes, and that we will keep coming back fresh to the work. The key goal is to enthuse the students with Bible Study and Theology, and with God himself – simply passing information accurately is not enough.
Blumenau
We have not had one Saturday available to visit the group in Blumenau since June last year. They seem to be small, but stable; we value prayer for their growth, in every way, just as we do for our own church here.
The Reformed Baptist Fellowship of Brazil
This could be a critical year for the CRBB, as a number of unpleasant attacks have been made in the Christian press, and as we face some key internal issues of definition and direction. This year our congress is in June, with much to be resolved. Pray especially for Gilson Santos (Pastor, Grace Baptist Church, São José dos Campos), who is our gifted and hard-working president, and Paulo Cesar Valle, (Pastor, Peregrinos’ Church, Volta Redonda), whose church is hosting the congress, and who has suffered some of the most unpleasant personal attacks.
Cauane
Thos of you who have prayed for Cauane (the little girl with a cancer in her face) will be glad to hear that at present she is responding very well to treatment, is at home and playing with the other children on the military base where she lives. Give thanks for this!
Acts 14
As a spin off from work on Acts done for the Carey Ministers’ Conference in January, Andrew has prepared on Paul at Lystra and preached on the passage for the first time in Portuguese at Kobrasol Baptist Church last Sunday. There was a most encouraging impact from the message, which may prove to be a particularly important one in our context. Basically, the theme was, what is the gospel for the man who has everything. This may seem strange in a society known for having many poor people, but it is terribly relevant where the church has basically turned the gospel into “You are sad. Come to Jesus. Be happy.” We so need to hear, “You have joy! Have you never given thanks in the right place, to the right person? Come to Jesus and be forgiven of this terrible wrong!” Andrew suspects that he will return to this passage various times through the year: pray that he will keep seeing more in it and putting it across better.
Cora’s Mother and Stepfather
Ken and Maisie Wood will be visiting us for the first time ever next week, and staying into February. We are so pleased! Please pray for safe journeys for them, and for a good time here. It will not be easy coming to a Brazilian summer from a Toronto winter, and we hope that they will really enjoy seeing something of Brazil. Cora has not seen them since 2001, and Andrew since 1999, so we have a lot of catching up to do.
Elzimar, our curriculum coordinator at IBE, leading the meeting at Kobrasol Baptist Church, on our first Sunday back. Andrew preached from Acts 14 - see above text.
Painting over the cracks.
The incredibly noisy school next door is off for the holidays - replacing playground screams, massive music systems, and awful teachers droning on, with the radio, banter and concrete mixer of maintenance men.
After Marquito from the Peregrinos was recently featured in the local paper in a report of the growing interest in Rugby Union, this week it was the turn of his girlfriend, Anna. As a trained child psychologist, her picture appeared in a report on the threat to funding and maintenance of free psychological back-up to school children.
Alex and Sara now have rabbits at home, much to the delight of their daughter, Lídia. In Brazil rabbits are a fairly exotic pet.
Alex and Sara also found this wonderful blue bee, and kept it for us to see. (This is actually a post-mortem shot, but still worth it.)
We came back to discover just how (un)successful our anti-termite measures had been. Like ants in Britain, that swarm in June, termites here come out of the woodwork in December - largely during the period when we were away. Here is our kitchen floor on arrival. However, given that this is all they could manage over the three weeks with no cleaning, this is still vastly better than last year - progress has been made.
Varig MD11, from the departure lounge, Gate 29, Terminal 3 Heathrow.
Our pilot from São Paulo decided to to take the scenic route into Florianópolis - overflying the island rather than staying out to sea. This meant some unusual views. Sitting on the left-hand-side of the plane, here is the Barra da Lagoa beach.
Lagoa - Avenida das Rendeiras - Lacemakers Avenue.
Saturday, January 07, 2006
Our visit to the UK is nearly over. It has been good to be here, and the main reason for the visit, the Carey Conference, went very well. Bec has already gone back to Birmingham. We are now looking forward to getting home on Thursday. We have two quieter weeks before a visit from Cora's mother and step-father, and then term starting. We will post on that, on our return.
Another family gathering, in the post-Christmas party season. This time the delights of "Squeak, Piggy, Squeak".
We went up to York for the New Year, to preach at York Evangelical Church, which is seeing most encouraging growth. We stayed with our dear friends the Runcimans - Colin and Jenny pictured.
Gulls on a York roof top, New Year's Eve. (Steam from the sugar beet processing plant in the background.)
We love English winter skies in general, and North Yorkshire especially.
Seeing the New Year in with sparklers. Nappy 2006?
The 35th Annual Carey Conference. It was an enormous joy and privilege to be back at Carey, and doubly so to be invited to speak for the first time. After six years in Brazil it was with a strange mixture of nervousness and gladness that Andrew was back amongst his peers, to discover that his generation are now all grown-ups. There was relief that the the six years away do not seem to have rendered his ministry irrelevant "back home." This shot was taken at the very end of the conference, after a number had already left.
Brian Talbot started the conference with a paper on the various unity schemes - abortive and succesful - undertaken by Scottish Baptists in the 19th and early 20th centuries. I am not sure that I would have placed such a paper as the opening address of the conference, which is no reflection on Brian, whose careful and scholarly opening up of the material had clear relevance to us today.
The inimitable, indomitable Phil Arthur, who expounded the Letters to the Seven Churches in Revelation 2 and 3. As ever Phil's preaching was idiosyncratic and yet of universal application and impact. Which is actually what real preaching is.
Andrea Ferrari, from Milan, Italy. Andrea spoke on preaching in a visual and technological age. His talk was a big encouragement to keep at the Word in an age of de-humanising technologies that push words to the periphery. His presentation probably stimulated more discussion than any other. Italy is not an easy country for evangelicals: Andrea's work in church planting and literature translation needs prayerful support.
Gary Brady, bringing Encouragement from Ecclesiastes. Is the glass half full or half empty? Actually Gary, if you looked carefully, you would see that there is nothing in it at all! Gary's introduction to the book, and exposition from chapters 9 to 11 was one of the best sermons I have ever heard from the Wisdom Literature - a model of lively communication with gentle and yet pointed application. Get the CD!
Erroll Hulse, speaking on the final afternoon. Erroll is getting older, but his combination of concern for doctrinal and practical precision, true catholicity of spirit, and passion for world mission shines through brighter than ever.
Father and Sons - Steve Wellum with his two boys who came over for Carey, Joel and Justin. Steve, Ass. Prof. of Theology at the Southern Baptist Seminary, Louisville, Kentucky, gave two excellent papers on Substitutionary Atonement. In the present climate of assaults on the doctrine by "evangelicals" it was great to be brought back to our foundations with such clarity.
