July 2015 Update
Logan off to collage
In May, we had a big going away BBQ for Logan, as he returned to the States to study at the Ohio State University.
The church group here already misses him, especially his enthusiasm at our weekly soccer game.
He’ll be starting his second year of undergraduate studies working towards a degree in civil engineering. Logan is staying with his aunt and uncle in Columbus, Ohio, and he’s starting to get plugged in there.
We are extremely excited that both Logan and Justin have a vision for getting degrees and returning to live and work in Northern Brazil.
We’ve heard too many stories of missionary kids rejecting the country where they lived while their parents served. We’re blessed to have our kids serving the Kingdom with us and see them embrace the people and culture of Northern Brazil.
We have a long-term vision for Brazil, and the expectation of our sons living here makes maintaining that vision that much easier.
Please, pray for Logan as he tries to adapt to the States while not giving up all the positive things Brazil has formed in him.
The Church family
The last several months have been good as we continue to see newer Christians grow in Christ. It is our belief that God tends to use a process as He works to teach us about Himself and transforms our lives.
In our experience, this process is typically slower than what we would like to see for ourselves and for others. We also realize that some folks have more ground to cover in this process than others, and therefore the road to maturity is a bit longer and tougher. None the less, God is at work and over time we can see that clearly.
With all that in mind, we are very excited about the increasing maturity amongst the group here in Pacajá. We see relatively new Christians starting to share their faith in meaningful ways with family and co-workers, and some starting to help yet newer Christians on their journey with Christ. Still others are sharing and even starting to lead the discussion at small group.
Though the process is slow and the growth apparently subtle, these transformations are nothing less than an amazing work of the Spirit of God. We can only praise God that we see what we perceive to be people who are building a real and active relationship with Christ.
Our basic strategy for spiritual growth is creating meaningful opportunities to enhance relationship through genuine community life, and a teaching and discipleship focus on the importance of an active personal relationship with Christ based on biblical truth.
We ask for your prayers as we work along with our Brazilian co-pastors to guide this group, help them grow, and as we seek God’s direction for the future of this church and this region.Missions
The church is now at the point where we feel we can start reaching out to the remote interior communities in our region. This interior work is the heart of our vision for Pacajá. Our strategy is to develop a strong vibrant city church that has a vision for reaching out to the surrounding villages and homesteading communities.
We now feel that the church group has real disciples who will benefit from missionary trips to the interior and have the basic tools necessary to participate in active ministry. We see these trips as discipleship and growth opportunities for the city church, as well as opportunities to reach remote peoples with a life changing message of joy, hope and peace that comes through a relationship with Christ.
In July we will be taking a small group from the church to visit a homesteading community where one of our church members has a plot of land. Their whole family is there for the month and this visit will be an easy introduction to interior missions for the group. Later in August/September we will visit another community with the hopes of finding an open door for starting a regular small group.
These steps are an exciting development as we try to form a church that has a strong vision for taking the Kingdom to Pacajá and the two neighboring municipalities (Anapu and Novo Repartimento) in an intentional, relevant, and relational manner. Please pray with us as we enter this next phase of the church’s development.
Pastoral Team
We’ve been co-pastoring with a wonderful and very gifted Brazilian couple, Ferreira and Fernanda. They have committed to remain in Pacajá through the end of 2015, but they are still working through what God is calling them to. It is not clear whether they will continue on here in Pacajá or return to Altamira.
We sense their time is not done here, but we know personally some of the difficulties they face as they try to understand more clearly God’s calling on their lives. Please pray for our team as we try to understand and adapt to whatever it is God is doing in our leadership team.
Building Projects
Thanks to generous donors, in May 2014 we were able to complete Phase 1 of our long-term building plan for Pacajá. This building has been a blessing to the community serving as both our Community Development Center (CDR in Portuguese) and the temporary church building.
However, we have essentially outgrown that temporary church space and need to start working towards construction of the main church building. Over the next several months we hope to share more regarding this building project and the related financial needs.
Until then, please pray with us as we consider the design and layout details and work towards raising local support to help with the project.
Thank you for all your support! Please keep us and this work in your prayers.
Blessings in Christ,
The Wilsons
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