Hey Friends and Family!

We are sure that so many of you are in the hectic days of back to school! Some of you are sending your kiddos off to school for the first time, some to college for the first time, and some to new campuses. Amid new activities, new seasons, and new complications, we hope you know that we love you, we appreciate it. Thank you for your encouragement and support. 

This month was an exciting month of firsts for us as well!

For the first time, we have all four kids in school. Adalee officially started kindergarten. We have met some new neighbors for the first time, made some new friends, led worship in Portuguese for the first time, and had our first small group meeting in the neighborhood (more on that below). 

Here is a quick story from Amanda:

On our daily walks around the neighborhood, the kids and I have made an acquaintance with a mom and her 2 daughters- a 6-year-old and a baby. As our familiarity (and my Portuguese) has increased, we have become friends. I noticed the baby has a severe cleft lip, but I never mentioned it. About 3 weeks ago, the mom stopped me and mentioned they were raising money so that the baby (now 5 months old) could have surgery. They will have to travel to another city for the surgery, which is very expensive. I talked to Derek, and we gave what we could, and even reached out to some other friends who gave as well. The mother was brought to tears. The next week she came by our house to visit and to let the girls play. We have invited neighbors over for meals and have been invited to their houses for meals, but this is the first time somebody casually dropped by, uninvited, for a chat. This brought me great joy and a sense of belonging! Since then, this woman has come to our monthly neighborhood social and weekly small group Bible study. It is amazing how a consistent smile and a friendly hello (when you literally feel like all you can say is hello) can open the door to a relationship. This relationship has been so life-giving to me. Please continue to pray that I can understand and speak Portuguese well and have meaningful conversations about Jesus with her. Please also pray for the family as they travel and for the baby as she has this surgery.

Below are our prayer requests. Please keep them in mind and pray for us in these various endeavors. Your prayers ARE making a difference. 

Much Love, 

Derek, Amanda, Selah, Amaris, Josiah, and Adalee

Recently, the assistant pastors at our central church welcomed a new baby! While they are out on maternity leave, they asked if we could co-lead their small group. Amanda and I thoroughly enjoy this group of folks. This group is important not only for the formation of the members but also as a core training ground for leadership in the church. 

Additionally, in the last several newsletters, we have written about our efforts to prayer-walk our neighborhood, the intentionality with which we engage our neighbors on the street and around shared meals, and that we sensed God was stirring up new work. As a result of those efforts this last week, we had our first small group meeting in our neighborhood! This is a group of folks from this neighborhood or some nearby neighborhoods in Marabaxio, a small community where we live. 

We have started leading worship in these settings. Amanda and I are both enjoying this and working hard to expand our repertoire of songs. We have learned enough of the language that we can generally follow along with what people are saying, and we greatly appreciate everyone’s patience as we endeavor to listen to them in our new language and the Holy Spirit simultaneously.

This is also essential training for us, and what God has done here is essentially the methodology for church planting we intend to use in the future. Please pray for formation, fruitfulness, joy, and understanding as we continue to meet. 

Prayer Support – The success of our church planting here is very much dependent upon the faithful and fervent prayer of God’s people. If you know someone that might be interested in receiving these updates and praying with us please send this link. They will get an introductory letter about us and the mission when they sign up. 

Financial Support – We are continually amazed at the generosity and provision we receive from you all. It does look like we will have an extended season of unfavorable exchange rates, and we will need to raise additional support to get us back to monthly break-even. If you would like to contribute, please use the link below: