Building A House On The Rock

As with all newborn babies, new Christians also need a lot of attention, care, and teaching. My family will be in Cajazeiras from April 16 to April 18, teaching a three-day intensive class to new converts and some visitors as well.

Café asked me to come edify the church. Thinking about about God's perfect plan of salvation, about new Christian's needs, especially in worrying about what happens if they sin after being baptized, I decided to teach my routine evangelistic Bible study because it deals with these things. Therefore, visitors have been encouraged to come to these three days to learn God's will. These are the eight lessons:

I.    God Created And Man Sinned;
II.    Abraham, Moses, and God's Chosen People;
III. Prophecies About The Messiah;
IV. Faith in Jesus And Repentance;
V.   Repentance And Confessing Jesus As Lord;

VI. Confessing Jesus As Lord And Baptism;
VII. Baptism, Uniting Yourself To The Body Of Christ Which Is The Church;
VIII. Grace And The Church, The Fulfillment Of The Promise To Abraham.

Please pray:

that we will have a safe 7 hour trip going and coming;

that God will open my mouth to speak the truth of His Word;

that God will open the ears and hearts of those present so that God's Word will have an everlasting effect on their lives.

Please pray also for Café and Leila - they feel the need for spiritual renewal. Café said, "I have served the church for 22 years now, we need the church to serve us." It is not out of selfishness that he says this but out of a desire to serve more with a wisdom of being still and knowing that God is God.

Please take a moment and pray for these things and may God bless you.

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Consecration

We know that God can do anything. The question is what will He do? What will the Lord do in the lives of His people when they consecrate themselves to Him? We hope to find out. Friday, May 22 nd , the Luna congregation had an all night vigil of consecration. We went from 9 pm to 5:30 am, and over 50 people participated, from the ages of 10 to 75 years. In the prayer corner, brothers and sisters signed up for time slots so that we would have prayer without ceasing. The vigil focused on Consecrating our Lives, in Gratitude, in Unity, in Service, and in Sharing . Each part consisted of prayer, singing, Bible Reading and Reflection, and practical activities, like in Service, we washed everyone’s feet, and then everybody joined in making breakfast for the group: homemade bread, fruit, tapioca and eggs, juice, and coffee. In Sharing, we ended with a wonderful meal together in family, talking about people with whom we want to share the gospel. Spend

Luna Men

The men of the Luna church of Christ have a weekly meeting for the purpose of edification and planning God's work in the congregation. Some are going strong, others have family problems, and we all want to grew in God's purpose for our lives. Last night's meeting included a discussion of what really happened on the cross, on resting in Lord in the Psalms. We made plans about the upcoming Carnaval (Mardi Gras) retreat, and talked about the need to do some manual labor on our building. Though the group was smaller this week, there is a hunger to serve. Five out of the six committed spending Wednesday ripping up a big wall that needs to be redone. Whether leading, studying, admonishing, evangelizing, or tearing up a wall, let God use us to His glory!

Pentecost in Paraíba

"This is Pentecost in Cajazeiras," Rivaldo Café said, "Almost three thousand were baptized in Jerusalem, almost ten in Cajazeiras." A wild comparison, of course, but the excitement that produced it was legitimate. Six young men gave their lives to Jesus and were baptized on Saturday. I was blessed to be there: the sixteen hours on a bus, going and coming, was worth it. I went to teach a weekend couples' seminar on the theme "God Gave Me You". The couples (around 12) were mostly parents of kids in the Right Step Program. The changes in these boys' lives have made an impression on the families, many of which have started Bible studies too. Saturday morning, after the soccer practice, three of the boys asked to be baptized. We headed to the building. Café began filling the portable swimming pool while I talked to the boys about what it means to come into the Family of God. Franze (15 yrs), Luam (14 yrs), Jorcelam (17 yrs)

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