September Trials and Triumphs

The last month has been challenging in many ways. It started off well, with big plans for a youth event at the building. We got video games together, picked up the kids (all girls this time), and went to the building to get things set up. When we arrived, the building was a terrible mess, everything moved and thrown around. We had been robbed!

They had snuck in the back through a window, and stolen our fans, microwave, computer, tools, mop, cooking pans, and even juice and crackers!

Ariane's sisters loved to have their picture taken when I picked her up for the youth event

The kids helped Alley and I clean things up a bit and take inventory, then she took them back to our house for an all-girls devotional. I stayed to continue the clean-up process, finish the inventory, and try to secure the building. Alley and I were both very disappointed.

Cleaning the building after the robbery

We were able to board up the window in case they tried to come back again, and I immediately got to work beefing up the security of the building. Most of my energy for the rest of the month went to cutting bars, installing them, and shopping for better security measures such as reinforced locks on the front doors, installing a working lock on the gate to the back passageway, and a more robust lock on the back door.

The sight that greeted me at work for the following days got me down a little.

However, with the materials from our old fence, I was able to cut bars and begin installing them without much extra cost. After filing two police reports (you have to do it twice here, once for each police jurisdiction), talking to the investigator, and neighbors, it became clear that one of the people involved was an ex-con named Agner who lived on the street and whom we had helped several times to buy milk and other basic foods. He was identified by one of the neighbors the next week when he came back to ask for food! I described him, and his address (Francisco had gone to pray with his wife and kids, and to offer them a Bible study) to the police investigator, but as is usual for Brazil, have heard nothing back, and I don't really expect to. Ours was one of about 14 robberies in a five block square are during the first two weeks of the month.

The girls' devotional at our home sparked quite an interest. Alley read a book with them called "You can be pretty," about Christian beauty, and they all loved it. They asked if they could meet again the next Saturday and read some more. So in spite of our disappointment, the girls were very encouraged, including three visitors!

The girls at our home after the robbery

In spite of trials, or maybe because of them, the church has continued to grow over the last month. Sebasitan, who was working nights and unable to participate in our cell group, has transferred to daytime hours. He and Gilda are currently studying with their neighbor, Fannie. Please pray for her.

You can be Pretty (Voce pode ser Bonita): Alley, Taynara, Ariane, Isabele, Carla, and Naiara

The next week, Isabele and Ariane were able to return for more!

The School of the Bible has grown, with an attendance now of 12 students. We have had several visitors as well, including Ne, who copies the course material for me, and my martial arts instructor Luis, his wife Carol, and mother as well. Caio, a former student, also has returned for a visit. He was recently married and his wife Sabrina is now expecting. Please pray for them. We have offered them a study, they just need to let us know when! We had dinner with them last month and met her grandparents as well. One of the highlights of the School of the Bible last month was the presentation on the archeological sites of Corinth and Rome I presented with our projector. That technology helped me make a huge impact as I presented them with the cultural context of three very important letters in the New Testament.

Caio, Sabrina, and her grandmother, in Boquerao

Eduardo Dutra

Another challenge this month has been the absence of Francisco and Liduina as they visit their daughter in Washington. We sure miss their help! But, things have kept on moving nevertheless. We had a wonderful pizza night on one of the most rainy and dismal Sundays so far this winter, and the day after the robbery. But our spirits were warm as we talked and shared about everything that was happening. That night, Carlos was out of work, Sebastian also, the church had been robbed, and we were lacking our usual regular visitors. In hindsight we can see how the bonding and mutual encouragement nurtured our faiths and helped us all move on.

The Kids on pizza night


Pizza does help one to feel better

Carlos and Adriana: consider it pure joy when you face trials of many kinds...

Sebastian and Gilda, with unshaken faith in the face of financial uncertainty

Sebastian and Gilda have taken it on themselves to be our cheerleaders and encouragers.

As work continued on the building's security issues, I expereinced another personal tragedy. My PDA and cell phone died. Again. I spent two trips to Sao Paulo to try to have it repaired, but all was lost. For those of you who rely on such devices, you know how hard it is to lose them. Here it is also a major challenge to replace them, as they sell for about three to five times the price in the US. However, thanks to a generous donation from my parents, a new one is on the way. Whew.

Hanging those bars

Clean up after all the activity

The bars are rather ugly, but are also safe. Life in South America.

We made contact recently with a couple who lives very near us, Ray and Edna. Ray is an American, retired, and Edna is a Brazilia. They are very alone and were looking for some friends. They have agreed to study the Bible with me. Please pray for these studies. I also continue to study with Lucas on Sundays. Please pray for him as well.

The School of the Bible is exciting and strong. The congregation is taking care of one another's needs. God is taking care of all of us, in spite of unpleasant circumstances. After all, if God can't be Lord, even in hard times, what kind of all-powerful God would He be? Yet, in all things, he is watching over us for our good. We are thankful to be part of His good, pleasing, and perfect will.

Thank you very much to those of you who have decided to pray for us as we strive to plant the church here. Thank you also for the help some of you have sent: the work here moves on because fo your generosity. Thanks, Southwest VBS, for the donation to improve our kitchen! Thanks to the Nelsons! Your donation bought much-needed fans for our hot summer (and winter) months. Thanks to my cousin Amber for your generosity as well. Thanks to the Kerseys for your generous help, again. Thanks also to Juanita Hall, and thanks to the Kelleys for my new drill and phone. May God reward your earthly donations with credit in heaven.

August Action: a photo report.

A group of volunteers cleaned the building

Francisco and Eduardo, before Francisco left for the US

Francisco gave great adult classes

Adriana invited us over for her birthday. "Parabens!"

I had the privilege to help with the youth event in Sao Vicente. Some of these kids first came to the church when we had an event called Games for Brothers at our house.

For our devotional we watched part of "The Jesus Film" and talked about the way Jesus treated people.

5 from Praia Grande participated along with the kids from Sao Vicente.

Teenagers are camera shy in any culture, it seems.

Lucas

Our kids class is growing, and the Ladies do a great job of teaching them.

The School of the Bible class on Tuesday Nights, studying their way through the New Testament

The cell group in Boquerao, with Eduardo, Chris, Silvio, and Denira.

Maria, who studied with Francisco on Sunday mornings.

Chris leading singing

Our new water tower, provided by a generous donation from Marlene Kelley. Thanks!

Lines are something we have to deal with on a daily basis here in South America. Above you will see the line from the Loterica, a place where people pay a variety of bills and buy lottery tickets. Here the line to pay bills goes around the corner.

This is the line in the Banco do Brasil, where I have to pay one bill every month.
Here you can see on my slip of paper that I am number 116. By the way, the sign in the background says, "Now serving number 79." This was so I could deposit money in the church account. When we work in other countries, our sense of time and accomplishment are tested as we discover that things simply take longer to get done.

Sebastian preaches for the congregation. This brother is a real blessing to the work here. He has a lot of experience and training as an evangelist, and is a great encourager.

This is one of the offering I referred to in a previous newsletter: an offering of wine, rice, beans, and roses to please whatever saint or demon people want to ask for their desires. This was taken on the corner of one of the main roads, right in front of the fruit market, on market day.

This is one of the Ladies' Invasions, when they went to Fannie's house (in the middle). Fannie is studying with Gilda (2nd from right) and Sebastian.

Alessandra and Gilda, in Gilda's home in Mirim.

This is what we call Churrasco (pronounced chew-haas-coe). Meat grilled on a spit. Mighty good.

I hope you can see from these pictures that the congregation is growing in maturity; each member is participating more, and appreciating one another to a deeper level. Visitors are greeted warmly. Neighbors are studying with members, not just with us. I can't take credit, really, for all these good things, because they are the work of the Lord. but if He isn't' behind the growth of the church, it does us no good to work here. We're thankful that He is truly providing increase and multiplying our efforts. we pray He will bless you all as well.

July 2009 Birthdays, Beginnings, and Blessings

We are preparing for the next semester of the School of the Bible by passing out fliers and inviting people who stop by. Previous students are also called and reinvited, as well as any contacts we have made since the first semester. Please pray for all these efforts to be fruitful.

The first blessing of the month was the arrival of Marlene on the 3rd. She came for four weeks, and was truly refreshing as she helped us out, reconnected with the kids, and experienced Brazil. She even was brave enough to ride with me on the bike to one of our church activities.

The activity was a dinner for the congregation at Adenira's house in Boquerao. We sang, had a short devo, and shared wonderful Strogonoff, made the Brazilian way, of course. Adenira later offered her home for the cell group that now meets there on Wednesdays.
Francisco presenting the grace of God found in Jesus Christ

One of our new regular visitors, Ligia, came to that event and has been a regular attender ever since. She is participatin with the ladies in thier weekly studies, and is very encouraged. Please keep her in your prayers. The kids also had a blast. Dessert was fresh fruit and chocolate fondue!

Marlene and Ligia

Debora, Thaisa, and Isabele

Diego, Stephanie, and Lucas

From Left to right: Silvio (studies with Francisco and attends our new cell), Chris, Ariane (Jorge's oldest daughter), and Gilda, Sebastian's wife

Ariane wasn't feeling well, but still hit it off with Marlene very well.

Manoel and his birthday cake

Manoel, who drove us to Santos when our car was in the shop, and drove a bunch of youth around as well during the campaign from Itu, celebrated his birthday this month and Alley thought it was fitting to make a cake in his honor.

Marlene and Silvana, from Sao Vicente

Florinda put Psalm 84 to music and sang it to me during the birthday party

The rodrigues family is already fully active with us in Praia Grande. They have invited the above young couple, Fannie and Wellington Freitas, to church, cell group, and a Bible study. Please keep them in your prayers.

The whole family at the cutting of the cakes

Birthdays in Brazil are considered much more important events than they are in the US. If you don't call a friend or family member, on the exact day of his birth, it is a serious oversight and is considered very rude (they don't remind you in advance, either). We had the pleasure of hosting almost the whole congregation for Jonathan and Stephanie's joint birthday party, and it was a wonderful time of family and ministry together.

Alessandra gives a dynamic class the next sunday

Maria Eduarda and Isabele in class

The group is growing!

It was a blessing to finally find a host for our second cell group in Boquerao. Please keep this group in prayer, as it has the possibility of reaching a number of people for Christ. Please pray for potential members and visitors, as well as the members: Marcia and Valdivino, Silvio, Adenira, Eduardo, Caio and Sabrina, and others whom the Lord will call.

Silvio and Adenira after the cell group in her home.

Valdivino and Maria Eduarda, after a study in thier home.

Sebastian Rodrigues after the cell group in Mirim in the home of Carlos and Adriana

We thank God for your many prayers for Jonathan's surgery. It went very well, took only about 25 minutes, and he recovered almost instantly. Thanks for keeping us before the Lord in what, for a parent, is truly a tense moment.

Brazil has a very spiritually aware culture. This is very good, but it also a culture that is very suggestible (is that a word?). Combine those elements and you will see how that can make preaching the gospel a challenge. Praia Grande is the center for the worship of two separate pagan ocean deities. One is a male native american deity, the other Iemanja, in Candomble, the mother of most of the other Orixas (Candomble is a blend of Brazilian and African animism with spells, incantations, and blood rituals, and posessions, much like Voodoo). Besides Candomble, there are several other branches of spiritist worship entrenched here: Macumba, Umbanda, and Kardecism. There is much spiritual awareness, but much suggestibility, resulting in odd mixtures of belief and superstition, combining Spiritism, animism, Catholicism, evangelical christianity, and even Buddhist and Hindu religions. St. Sebastian, patron saint of Rio de Janeiro, one block from our building

One practice that we see a lot here is the leaving of a ceramic bowl with an offering of rice and beans, other foods, a candle, and a bottle of rum or Cachaça, by the side of the road or at an important intersection. These are offerings to saints, or spells, in order for the person who left it to get what it is he or she is looking for. Just a block down from the church building there is a shop that sells a number of images of saints, incense, oils, and a number of ingredients for spells as well as candles and other items used by a wide variety of different religions.

Translation: REFICUL, Rituals and Magic for love

(let the reader understand that the name is to be read backwards)

As shocking as this seems, it is even more shocking to me to see the different religions coexist in the shop, as well as people's minds. Please pray for us as we shine the light of Jesus Christ here in Praia grande, that we might have courage and love to speak the truth continually so that the superiority of Christ will be plainly seen. His in the only name given, by which we can be saved.

June 2009 update

Greetings, supporters! Many good things are happeining in the work and our lives, and we wanted to share some of them with you.

First, thanks for all your prayers for Jonathan and his surgery. He is fine now; all went very well. He is back in school and fully active. We thank God that he is recovering so quickly.

We had a couple of birthdays this month: Leticia and her father Carlos both celebrated with us after worship with special cakes. This fellowship is wonderful, fun, and shows how the church is truly growing into the spiritual family that God desires it to be.

Jonathan, Leticia, Debora R., Alessandra, and Debora C.

Carlos and Leticia

Mother's Day was also a very special day here. One of our newest members, Marcia, brought flowers for all the moms. She is a great example as she encourages the body with her creativity.

Vera, a regular visitor, Adriana, and Janete from Sao Vicente, on Mother's Day

Alessandra and Florinda preparing the Lord's Supper

Many of our new members show growth as they begin to serve the body. Florinda began to help with the preparation of the Lord's Supper immediately after her baptism. Carlos has been preaching, and does a great job. Marcia and Alessandra make cakes and momentos for special occasions. Jorge and Pedro have begun to help in worship with the offering and the Lord's supper. These are small things on the surface, but with time, can grow into great service and encouragement to the body. That is what church growth is about: each one grows and encourages the others, like ligaments and sinews, attached to Christ, who directs all for the benefit of His body.

Alessandra and I were both priveleged last month to bear witness to the marriage celebration of Caio and Sabrina, two young members. They are a great couple and deserve your prayers for a healthy marriage. We pray God will use them in many ways as they grow with us in the church here.

Chris, Caio, Sabrina, and Alessandra at their wedding reception

The body here continues to grow in number, to be blessed with visitors, to grow in love, and to grow in relationship to Christ. Together we have 18 Bible studies per week, most with non-Christians. Our cell group in Mirim is maturing in love and in faith, and this week we hope to beign our second cell group in Boquerao in the home of Deni, another new member. Please pray for these opportunities and for the growth of the Kingdom in Praia Grande, Sao Vicente, and the rest of Brazil.

Chris Kelley

May 2009: April Intensity

April was a very intense month for us, as you will see. It was very positive and productuve, but also challenging and full of activity.

Chris preaching in Sao Vicente

To begin the month, Francisco was able to get four hours per week on a local radio station that covers about half of Praia Grande and part of São Vicente. He presents his “show” for two hours on Saturday, and on Sunday uses recorded materials for two more hours. His show is called God's Eternal Purpose, and we hope it will reach many with the gospel. We set up a post office box and special email address to receive feedback from the program. Please keep that project in prayer, as it requires much preparation, but has the potential to reach many people.

Francisco leading singing

As I was unloading my pockets one day, my cell phone fell on my Palm organizer just right, and broke the touch screen. I instantly lost access to all my phone numbers, addresses, as well as my agenda and reminders. This was a real bummer, as I depend on it for nearly everything I do or need to remember. Fortunately, my brother-in-law Jefferson lent me his, so I can continue to function until my replacement arrives in June.

The congregation had a Put Luck this month, with was a wonderful event. There were 19 visitors and a total of 50 people, not counting several members who were traveling that day. We pray God will continue to bless us with many visitors as we reach out with the Gospel.

Good food

Visitors even helped out!

My motorcycle went into the shop for over a week to repair the rear suspension. The parts weren't available even from the factory, so they had to be machined from scratch. Fortunately, it didn't cost too much, but it did crimp our schedules as we worked with just one vehicle for a week. As if in sympathy, the microwave quit working too, and a day later the phone line went dead, along with our Internet, of course. It took a week to find the problem and fix it, so we were unable to communicate for a while.

As soon as we were able to communicate again, we got news from our friends the Kaisers, in Itu, that they wanted to bring the youth group from Itu to Praia Gande and have a joint youth retreat here. We were delighted, and since they had the events, lessons, and crafts all planned, we just had to arrange for food and lodging. We got right to it.

Alice and Mark Kaiser, from Itu

Meanwhile, The kids school arranged a special event for a city-sponsored retirement home here. Alessandra asked if she could also invite some church members to help, since we wanted to make contact with the home and help in the future. They agreed, so Alley and the ladies from church went along. Florinda wrote Psalm 113 into a song and sang it, Alessandra sang several hynms in English and Spanish, and even ended up emceeing the talent show of the school. It was a great day for the elderly who lived there, as well as for the church here. The administrator of the home said we could come back whenever we want.

Florinda singing her version of Psalm 113

Alley was a great MC

Alley singing in Spanish and English

Francisco and Rosa, a former neighbor, whom we have been trying to evangelize for a long time. She came with the church ladies to help.

The kids loved the ears and make-up. Grandparents love the kids.

As Alley was driving the ladies home again after the event, the car burst a hose and overheated. Fortunately, it died just in front of a good mechanic (we later learned that they are highly recommended). It took a week to fix the head and valves, and replace the hoses.

While the car was in the shop, the campaigners from Itu arrived! In order to keep up with the activities, Manuel, one of our regular visitors, loaned us his car and even drove to some of the campers home. Thanks, Manuel!

Isabele, Naiara, and a visitor at the retreat

Evening devotional

Game time (Guilherme Roncoleta on the right)

Carla, a visitor from Praia Grande

Crafts

Worship on Sunday with Itu

Chow time

Morning class

The inevitable Group Picture

Thanks to Mark, Alice, and Itu for a great time, and great outreach!

The kids stayed in Igloos (made of cement, not ice) and had a wonderful schedule of crafts, devotionals, beach time, study time, and small group discussions. More than half of the youth were visitors (9 came from Praia Grande and São Vicente), and two studies were set up afterward: Liduina will be studying with Edriana, Jorge's daughter, and Alessandra is already studying with Isabelle, Adriana's daughter. Praise God!

Easter in Brazil is a little different than in the US. Here, kids pretty much just get one, big, chocolate egg. There isn't a big hunt, but it is great fun to eat the chocolate (adults get one too!).

The day after the retreat ended, we took Jonathan to the doctor and discovered he had sinusitis with bronchitis. He was scheduled to have surgery at the end of the month for a small hernia and undescended testicle, so we were very concerned. He began ten days of antibiotics and got better quickly.

Three couples placed membership this month with us: Caio and Sabrina, who will be married next week. Caio is a student in the School of the Bible. This young couple recently invited us to thier engagement party to pray with them and thier family for thier future marriage. It was an honor to be able to be there. Many of the people present were not Christians.

Alley, with Caio, Sabrina, and Sabrina's mom

Engagement here in Brazil is different than the states. Here instead of a private dinner by candlelight and a spakling diamond ring presented at just the right moment as part of an intimate evening, the couple invites the both families, like a huge birthday party, and they announce together the engagement, giving each other gold bands (but work on the right hand instead of the left, until they are oficcialy married).

The moment of the announcement

Marcia and Valdivino, and their two children Marlon and Maria Eduarda also placed membership, also from the School of the Bible. I continue to study with them on Thursday evening. Sebastian and Gilda Rodriguez, and their two children, Diego and Debora will also be worshiping with us this month. They had been worshiping in São Vicente, but had to sell their car, and since they live in Praia Grande, will be with us now. Sebastian was trained at a preaching school in northern Brazil, so we know they will be a blessing to the family here.

As Jonathan's sinusitis/bronchitis cleared up, it became clear that I had caught the same thing. I didn't need antibiotics, but it still was a pain to deal with the congestion. Jonathan did get better, but then caught a cold right afterward. The day we went to Santos for his surgery, the anesthesiologist didn't want to take any extra risks, and postponed the surgery for 15 days until his congestion cleared up. Please continue to pray for him, as he goes in in about a week.

Alley and the kids' class on Sunday

We averaged 38 per week in worship in April, and our cell group averaged 11. We are involved in many studies, so please pray for these wonderful people by name as you remember the work in Praia Grande before God in prayer this month:

Chris studying with Marcia and Valdivino, Lucas

Chris, Alley, Marlon, Marcia, Valdivino, and Maria Eduarda after studying in their home

Alessandra studying with Isabele

Liduina studying with Edriana

Francisco studying with Fatima, Serra and Albina, Gilberto, Analda, Egipcio, Edson, Maria, Vania, Jorge, and following up with several members as well

Liduina, Stephanie, and two of Jorge's daughters

We pray that through it all, our efforts will yield eternal fruit in the kingdom that belongs to the Lord. We are indebted to you for your prayers and support. May God bless you all.

Chris, Alley, Francisco, Liduina, and family

Liduina, Francisco, Jonathan, Chris, Alessandra, Jefferson, Stephanie, Priscila

April 2009

The preparations of last month paid off as the School of the Bible opened in March. 19 students began to study with us, in 2 classes (Tuesday evening and Saturday morning.) Four of those students have visited us on Sundays. They are Caio, Roseli, Marcia, and Valdivino. Marcia has asked for a study on baptism, which will begin next week. Please keep them in your prayers.

The School of the Bible on Tuesday night

Francisco is also studying with several people we would like you to pray for: Jorge and his three daughters; Serra and Albina; Aderson and his wife; Elito; and Analda. These are precious opportunities to preach Christ. Our attendance last month averaged 24, with 20 visitors during the month. The school of the Bible averaged 10 students per week.

A highlight last month was the trip the ladies took to the Metro congregation in São Paulo. Alessandra drove Cida, Analda (2 visitors), Liduina, Florinda, and Marcia to the all-day conference. They all returned invigorated and encouraged by the experience of being with so many Christian women (there were about 150).

(l. to r.) Floringda, Liduina, Analba, Alessandra, Cida, and Marcia

Our sermon series last month was about the one-another passages in the Bible. Love one another. Be patient with one another. Accept one another. Encourage one another. If we grow in these attitudes of mutual service, the church can't help but grow to be more like Christ, and grow in number as well.

Ladies invasions: The ladies of Praia Grande, along with Gilda Rodriguez from São Vicente, have been “invading” each other's homes each week and having an on-site devotional. These visits have been a great encouragement to our members, a gret opportunity to gtet to know each other, and even reach out. One of the invasions was at the home of our former neighbor, Claudia, whose daughters have participated in some of our youth activities.

The "invasion" of Claudia's house: Claudia and her daughter, Alessandra, Taynara, Jane, Liduina, Marcia, Ofenisia, and Gilda

The highlight of the month for our kids was the trip to the Zoo Safari in São Paulo. It is a drive-through zoo where you can see lions and tigers up close, as well as monkeys climbing on your car, and you can feed the deer and camels. The kids loved it and are begging to go back.

Missionaries by necessity have to wear many hats. I have been recently wearing the hat of a pedreiro, or bricklayer. We have put a small flower bed in the front of the church building and are working on finishing part of the loft to accommodate a small library. Bricklayer is the more traditional translation, but a pedreiro here really does everything from laying cement blocks and framing molds for poured concrete to laying tile. I have been working more with blocks, and will graduate to tile in a few weeks.

Couples event: March saw the first of what is going to be a regular couples event in Praia grande. Couples from São Vicente joined us, as well as a number of visitors, for a seminar on the rights ways to deal with marital conflict. That was followed by a wonderful dinner together. Chris gave the class, Marcia's mother Ofenisia watched the kids, and many others helped with the dinner. May God bless us with strong relationships and homes, to His glory, and to the strength of the church!

There is such a thing as "good conflict"?

Ofenisia with the kids

The fiood was GREAT!

Marcia and her husband, Edson, one of our regular visitors, and Alley

We are proud to announce the opening of the first of what we pray will be many of the church body's cell groups. We began a small study in the home of the Carlos and Adriana Guerrero family. We have had several visitors to the group, including their neighbors from both sides, and as a result Adriana's father Manuel has been coming regularly to worship with us on Sundays. Please pray for Manuel and Eva, whom we have been trying to reach for some time. Pray also that this group can grow and multiply as a true cell should.

We are very busy about the work here, with the constant prayer that business will not overshadow fruitfulness, nor distract from spirituality, but truly produce a spiritual return in the Kingdom. May God bless all of our work.

The congregation, with regular visitors Marcia, Valdivino, Analba, and Alley's sister and brother-in-law, Jefferson and Priscila

March 2009

This last month has been mainly focused on preparations for the opening of the School of the Bible. We will begin classes in March. Our first blessing of the month was the opportunity to buy desks for a very affordable price-about ten bucks each. So we brought them to the church building and repainted the ones that needed it most. We now have 18 nice school-style desks ready for our new and returning students.

Liduina and Alley help reorganize our classroom space

The Liras and Kelleys both had a wonderful surprise in the visit of Ken Lewis from the US. Ken is a former missionary and mentor for Francisco, and also the one who introduced Alley to Chris in the US. It was wonderful for our whole team to be reunited once again with such a good friend and brother. Thanks, Ken, for the visit!

As the preparations for the opening of the School of the Bible continued, I finally was able to contract a real phone line. I wired the outlets in our offices after they left us a wire dangling from the post, and we were able to make calls and follow up with everyone interested in the School of the Bible. Thanks, God, for the phone line. I had also hoped to get Internet through the same phone line, as I was told that DSL was available in our area. However, after much calling, it turns out that all the ports are full and the telephone company has no projected date for opening additional ports for Internet connections in our area. Who knows when we will have good Internet at the office.

Materials ready, calls made, fliers distributed. Class begins tonight!

We were able to pass out 3000 fliers as we got ready for the School of the Bible opening this year. The response was pretty good, with about 50 calls. Pray these contacts will come and fall in love with Jesus through our school and church body.

Pedro Sobrinho leads us for the first time as we take the Lord's Supper

The preaching theme for February was Grace. Grace in your life, and letting others experience grace as well. It was a wonderful breath of fresh air in a negative world to realize that someone loves us so much he would do the unthinkable just so we could have the chance to return that love. No guarantees that we would, just the chance. God loves us that much. May we all serve and obey Him diligently this month.

Worship service with visitors Edson, Jorge, and Nalda present

May our obedience lead to fruitfulness, and our efforts multiply into the growth and joy in the Kingdom that God wants so much for us to experience.

February

Hello everyone! This last month has been very rewarding for us. We hope that you all have been blessed and grown spiritually as well.
We averaged 24 adults and 7 kids for worship in January. January is summer here, so we always have the blessing of a few visiting families.

Liduina and the kids' class

In January we had the pleasure of hearing Carlos Guerrero preach again. Carlos is a very encouraging brother who always greets us with a smile. He is a dedicated brother who will be a blessing to the congregation as we work him into the worship schedule.

Carlos preaching in Praia Grande

Continent of Great Cities hosted a missionary conference in Itu the first week in January. Itu is just two hours from us, so we had the pleasure of five days of great teaching by Don McLaughlin from Hebrews, as well as treats from the US. The best part was meeting many other missionary families on the field, some whom we had not seen since our training in Abilene.

Don McLaughlin concludes our study of Hebrews

Missionary Conference participants in Itu

When we returned form the conference, it was time to run some tests on Jonathan. He has an undescended testicle, and will have to have surgery to correct it soon. He was born that way, but in Argentina we were told by his doctor to not worry about it. Here they said that it would have been corrected in the first year. We were a little shocked to discover that what we thought had been good care had in fact been lazy and primitive. So we set about getting the pre-surgery tests taken care of, which included a round of hormone shots that could have resolved the problem without surgery. They were six shots, one per day, in the bottom. Jonathan did a great job handling that, but by the end he was wary of even driving by the clinic. The last test was a blood test, and, well, it is hard for kids to have blood taken, especially when they are already very wary of needles. We were thankful for that to be over. So please keep Jonathan in your prayers as we schedule his surgery. We will try to let you know as things progress.

I continue to preach and teach classes in Praia Grande, and preach occasionally in São Vicente. While the School of the Bible has been out for the summer, I have been preparing the last part of our three-part course, which will begin in two weeks.
Aside from those normal activities, we organized a youth event in Praia Grande at the end of January. The theme was Summer! So we decorated with surfboards and beach umbrellas, made punch, and had a great time. When the kids arrived, we greeted them with some popular Hawaiian phrases. The game-show style activity and devotional were all aimed at teaching the kids to evaluate the message of the world, and decide who they should trust-God, or TV, the Internet, and friends. We hope this will be the first of many activities for the youth here in Praia Grande. There were 11 kids, and 8 adults helping with the event. Alley's sister and brother-in-law came down and helped us with the activities, adding the wonderful energy that only two thespians can. Thanks, Jefferson and Priscila!

Priscila, Chris, and Jefferson personify the messages of the world

Thanks to our lunch helpers, Ofenisia, Francisco, Marcia, and Silvana

"Mahalo na'a loi" or "Thanks for coming!"

The year is looking like it will be a busy and full one, and we hope and pray that that means growth in the church here through the School of the Bible, personal studies, visitors, youth activities, and everything we do. Please join with us in praying for four full classes, lots of open hearts, and the wisdom to do all that we can to preach the Gospel!

January 2009

The work in Praia Grande is going well. We average 22 on Sundays and are working on learning new songs. In December we were encouraged by many visitors from São Paulo. One of the families that visits us frequently is from Campinas, about three hours away. They love to stay and visit, and even treated us to pizza after worship. It is so nice to be appreciated!

We would like to give a special thanks to the Christ’s Heritage congregation in Lynwood, Washington. They graciously donated a digital projector to the work here.

The new digital projector

New possibilities open up with digital technology!

It is a wonderful and flexible tool for both outreach and worship. I was told about this special donation in a phone call on Sunday evening. I wanted you all to know it was the same evening the bulb burned out of the old overhead projector we had been using. I have no doubts that God is looking over the work here and blessing us. Many times that blessing comes through you.

Another special thanks goes out to the Kite family, who generously responded to a previous newsletter with a donation to help us with the church's legal fees as we try to set up our official non-profit status. Thanks for the timely help! We are currently awaiting the city's approval of the statute, at which point we will be official and can apply for a CNPJ number. This is our tax-exempt number that will allow us to recieve donations from businesses for food baskets, camp supplies, building materials, and even properties. Please pray that the process will continue smoothly.

The Holiday season is almost always a busy season, even though it may be a different sort of busy. I started off December with a urinary tract infection, which had me down with a fever for two full days. Then Christmas and New Years, which here on the coast means lines for everything. An hour to get to church (7 miles away). Lines of an hour in the supermarket. Parking gets scarce. The water pressure drops significantly, and in some neighborhoods, including the church building, there is no water at all on the 24th and 31st of December. The motorcycle helps me get through the traffic and park a little easier, but I guess I still like the laid-back pace more than hyper city speed.

Brazilians usually eat Christmas Dinner at midnight Christmas Eve, then open presents. It makes for a late night. In fact, at about 10:00 Christmas Eve, our neighbor Bete called Alley and told her that all her family had cancelled, and they were alone. Alley went over, and took some fajitas (our Christmas Eve dinner) for them to try. Alley stayed until after midnight, which in Bete's eyes was like forsaking her own family to be with theirs, so it meant a lot. We tried to be as American as possible for Christmas this year, which meant celebrating the next morning, so Alley was free to encourage this dear neighbor.

We had to work hard to convince our Brazilian family to try opening presents Christmas morning instead of Christmas Eve. After it was over, though, they all seemed to like it that way. Jonathan and Stephanie absolutely loved it-more for the presents than the schedule.

Chris carves his first Christmas bird(s). Turkey and Chester.

Christmas dinner was in the afternoon, outside, since the weather was nice (80 degrees). We took advantage of the fact that everyone was here to take a team picture too.

Please join with us in prayer for the Guerrero family. Carlos and Adriana had been struggling financially until about six months ago, when they both got new jobs. They had been growing in their faith and Carlos has even preached for us twice, but recently they have begun to be with us less often, and haven't come to worship for the last month. Please pray that they won't let the jobs God gave them become stubling blocks to their faith.

Our new sister in Christ, Florinda, got really sick last month with a bad flu. Alley stopped by to visit her and she could barely get out of bed. Florinda is retired, and didn't have much food in the house. Alley made a quick trip to the supermarket for some basic necessities, including coconut water, one of the best electrolytes there is for combatting dehydration. Florinda was so encouraged that she began to feel better right away. Florinda is working on putting one of her favorite Psalms to music.

We celebrated the end of the year with a pot luck on the last Sunday of December. Everyone brought different dishes and we spent around three hours eating and fellowshipping after worship. The end-of-the-year pot luck was delicious.

Gingerbread houses are irresistable!

It was truly a great evening, perfected by the lime mousse for dessert, made by Edson (a professional cook, and regular visitor). We then invited everyone to our house to ring in the new year later on that week.

Marcia and Carol checking email. We started our New Years party about 10 am.

Marcia and her son Lucas and her mother Ofenicia came, along with Francisco and Liduina, Florinda, Alley’s sister Priscila and her husband Jefferson, and her cousin Carol. So we had a full house and a wonderful time of fellowship.

Chris and Lucas playing LEGO Star Wars

Lucas got a haircut in the afternoon, and Chris did after that!

Priscila, Ofenicia, Liduina, and Marcia preparing dinner

Marcia's mother, Ofenicia, is a member of the church from Aracaju, Recife, in NE Brazil. She wrote a letter to the church in Sao Vicente looking for a congregation for her daughter and son-in-law to attend. Adauto showed the letter to Francisco, who went to visit with Marcia and Edson. When we inaugurated the building in December of 2007, Ofenicia came and brought Marcia with her. Since then she has been a faithful member, and even volunteers to help Francisco and I clean the building every Friday. She is a dear sister to us. Please keep Edson, her husband, in prayer, as he is considering baptism but still has a few doubts.

New Years dinner

They have a fireworks display at the beach every year, so all went down to the water to ring in the New Year and watch the show. Everyone loved it, except Stephanie, who is terrified of fireworks.

Another highlight of the month was meeting as a team to plan next year’s calendar of events. We spent four hours together thinking through sermon topics, youth and married activities, ladies events, and everything we could think of in order to get ahead of the game next year and be as fruitful as possible in helping the church grow. I look forward to describing each event to you all as they happen.
May God bless you all in 2009. May it be a year filled with purpose, faith, hope, joy, peace, and love, as we each grow to be more like Christ; our Savior, our example, and friend.
Chris and Alley Kelley

December 2008

Dear supporters, family, and friends,

We thank God daily for your prayers and support. You truly are a part of the mission here in Praia Grande, Brazil, even though you may never get the chance to see the work here firsthand (in this life). Please continue to remember us in your prayers, for boldness in speaking the good news, for health, and for the safety and growth of our children.

Alley started off November attending a week-long women's missionary conference hosted by Continent of Great Cities (http://www.greatcities.org/). It was a time of deep encouragement and renewal for the women who participated, and Alley was truly blessed in many ways by the experience. Thanks, CGC! Thanks also to Liduina who helped me with the kids while Alley was gone.

We have been involved helping the team that will be moving to Brazila next year in several ways, but this time it was one of the members of the team who helped us. Otavio Calegari offered to come to Praia Grande and give two lessons on sermon preparation. Several members from
São Vicente participated, as well as Pedro and Eduardo, two of our newest members. The Brazilia team will be leaving for Brazilia in January.

(Left to right) Members of the Brazilia team: Junior and Patricia lira, Renato and Carol Pereira, Alessandra and Otavio Calegari.

At the end of November we had the privilege of participating in a goodbye conference for family members of the team in São Paulo, at which Otavio's mother finally decided to be baptized!

Otavio (right) and his sister (left) accompany their mother as she confesses Jesus as Lord.

I can't imagine a better way to begin their work in Brazilia.

We took a little "break" in the middle of November to go to São Paulo for a number of things. The first was that we made the final payment (in Brazil) on our house, and recieved the title. It took half a day of signing and bank transfers, but it was an inportant step for us as homeowners. The next day we picked up Junior and Patricia Lira at the airport, who were returning from two months of fundraising in the states. It was great to be reunited with family and be helpful in hauling all the luggage to their house. Th bonus was that they were carrying a serious payload of things our family had been holding, waiting to send to us via someone travelling to Brazil. So we had an early Christmas with Junior and Patricia, opening things like Red Vines, Zip-Lock bags, marshmallows, and most important of all, Peanut Butter. We can't get those things here so it is wonderful when people send us a taste of home. Thanks to all who participated in those care packages!

A day later, while still in São Paulo, we attended the wedding of Patricia's sister. The next day we finally returned home. It was good to stay with family and be there when they needed us.

Church members sharing pizza after worship. The pizzeria is next door to our building.

The church continues to prosper here. Eduardo, a member through the School of the Bible, finally found a job. Francisco, who was having a lot of leg pain, has been doing physical therapy and is recovering well. He walks with a cane, and probably should from now on, but the pain is gone and he is able to make his visitation and study rounds much better now. We still average about twenty on Sundays, but continue to recieve visitors on a regular basis.

(Left to right) Marcia, Liduina, and Edson , after worship service

Edson, Marcia's husband, worship with us regularly. Paulo and his son João visited recently. Paulo is the brother of Antonio, one of my students in the School of the Bible.

November brought the conclusion of Module 2 of the basic Bible course in the School of the Bible. Of my first 15 students, 2 continue faithfully (Eduardo is already a member). Next year we will reopen with Module 3, as well as the first two. Please pray that we can find a great group of students who will be truly interested in the Word and living it out in thier lives.

In all the hustle down here, I forgot about Thanksgiving until someone mentioned it to me in a phone call (the day before). Alley and the rest of the family here jumped to put together a delicious Thanksgiving meal, with a little Brazilian flavor thrown in. It was one of the most meaningful in my life, though, because I was feeling far from home. Thanks, Alley.

It's not, truly, how much you have, but with whom you share it, that makes the difference. We wish you all a Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year wherever you are. May God bless you all as you seek to grow in the faith and knowledge of the Lord, and as we share together in the work of the Kingdom.

Chris