Skip to main content

Sowing The Seed In A Different Way

A couple of weeks ago I traveled to Cubati, Areial, and Campina Grande. I spent most of my time in Cubati, where there are four members of the church. I talked about vision, the mission of the church, and prayer with the couple (Afonso and Vânia) that live in this city. The other two members of the church were weak in their faith; I say "were" because I talked with them and I think they were strengthened with my visit, but it seems to be a recurring theme for them.
            Afonso and Vânia pray for their city, but it seems that no one listens to the Gospel. There are many denominations, and the Catholic Church is also present, but these are not the greatest problem for this city of 6,000 inhabitants. This is a city full of immorality. Perhaps it is more evident because of the small population or maybe it is just really immoral. I won't go into details right now. Afonso was telling me of how they are talking to people in the city about Jesus, but no one has come to meet with them. One interesting fact he shared with me is that most of the denominations in Cubati now take the Lord Supper every Sunday because "Afonso's church," as they call it, is doing so. They don't say that out loud, but the reason is so that they do not lose any members. The denominations also started doing some other things because Afonso teaches it.  So with that insight I encouraged both Afonso and Vânia to continue teaching and to not be discouraged by numbers because God is working.  Who knows, maybe the denominations in Cubati as a whole will begin to obey the Gospel truth.  They may not see immediate results in numbers at their church meetings, but God's Word will be working to transform the lives of many and an entire city, wallowing in immorality.

If you have any thoughts on this article, I would love to hear them.

I ask for your prayers for the city of Cubati and the spreading of God's Word.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

For the Kids, Part III

    In the USA, there are two special days during the year that children love: birthday and Christmas. Brazil adds one more: Children's Day. On this day, children receive a present and since it coincides with Our Lady of Appeared Conception, Brazil's patron saint, it is also a national holiday.     Each week we get kids from the Castelo Branco neighborhood together at the square in front of Dona Terezinha's house to talk about Jesus. For Children's Day, we invited the parents to watch the kids perform a play of the "Prodigal Son," then each kid receives his or her fill of cotton candy, cake, and a sack full of goodies. The parents who came received a Today's Portuguese New Testament and an invitation to the weekly Bible study at Terezinha's.     Lori Hagewood has organized this activity for three year with the help from Terezinha, Joseph, and Michel (from the China Taiwan restaurant). Michael, Ashton, and Tif...

The Planting, the Watering, and the Increase

Emesson started coming to Bible Club over a year ago, when Neil Schultz and Cait Beckloff, our AIM team, were teaching it. For several months, they planted the seed in his and his sister's hearts. Unfortunately Neil and Cait's time in João Pessoa ended. In 2014 Bible Club received a boon when Erick and Jenny Paddy, former AIMers, returned to the field and picked up teaching the Bible Study for English speakers. They watered the sprouting seed in Emesson's life until God's Word became more important for him than just practicing his English. Last Wednesday night, God gave the increase, adding Emesson to the Family of Christ. Sometimes things don't happen when we think they should, but God is in control; His time is best, and we must thank Him for playing a small part in His plan. 

Goodbyes

             This past year took several people from the work in the Northeast of Brazil. Our longtime workers in Caruaru, Paulo and Simone Rodrigues, have moved down south to Curitiba. They received a proposal to help in a new congregation in that city. They were looking for a change, and the city offered educational and job opportunities for their kids not available in Caruaru. Fabio, an active brother in the Caruaru church, also moved to Curitiba. The congregation is sorely missing them, but knowing the workers they are, we are sure that God is using them well.             A goodbye a little closer to home – Hunter, Lori, Mathias, Sabrina, and Daniel Hagewood moved back to the US in July. We miss them greatly, especially our kids miss their cousins (they were inseparable while here), even though they are on Skype nearly every day. Hunter had to relocate because of hi...