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Fabio and Geice are group people. When I picked them up to come over for pizza and baked potatoes we drove around and picked up other family and friends, and even a neighbour kid who was standing in his driveway and watching them get into our car. Like my mom says, “You can’t have a party without people!” 

We were trying to stretch the pizza dough out by hand. Finally I remembered the rolling pin. I think it was the first time Gleice (Geice’s sister) had ever used one. “Hey, this thing works really well! I am going to get myself something like this.”

We made another jug full of icy mango nectar.

Pineapple bacon pizza, mushroom bacon pizza, cheese bacon pizza, sugar and cinnamon pizza, baked potatoes with bacon, butter, yogurt, and fried corn, pineapple and pieces of sweet guava dessert with giant toothpicks . . . it was feeling a lot like Christmas at our house on Thursday night.

Huge pretzels and rock salt from the leftover pizza dough.

I used the embers of the pizza fire to roast up a pumpkin, which I snacked on all week.

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South Africa appears more violent than Brazil. I don’t know about this statistically but I observed a whole different level of property protection. The Bible School where we had the AVLN conference was surrounded by two fences, about half a meter apart. The outside fence is chain-link with razor-wire at the top. The inside fence is 20 rows of electric wire that go right down to the ground.

I went for a walk down the road a couple of miles. Properties are all highly protected with double fences or high walls. Some also have a Neighborhood Watch type of service claiming a 5-minute armed-guard response to breakins. I asked a local about this and he said that the countryside used to be where wealthier people lived, but now they prefer gated communities because these acreages are too dangerous.

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Dad had chest pains last Sunday morning. The ambulance showed up in 5 minutes, and he spent much of the week in the hospital. Thankfully he is home again and doing well.

Emma, Via, Anni, and Bella in church Sunday morning. My cousin sent me this candid photo.

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Ghibeau is the editor of a peer-learning community of people who are launching Disciple Making Movements. They define a Disciple Making Movement as a group who are planting 100 new churches every 2-3 years, with groups starting groups down to at least 4 generations.

http://www.accelerateteams.org/index.php/our-guidebook

We met for lunch with Ghibeau while we were in Johannesburg. I asked Ghibeau if he meant 100 new groups, or 100 new churches, and he responded like this. “Sustainability is the key thing. It has to be a sustainable, growing movement. So what do you think would help your group be the most sustainable?”

This diagram can be found at

http://www.accelerateteams.org/index.php/our-guidebook

Jesus came as a mentor. Some of us are in mentor roles. We send out TEAMS of two to find People of Peace, to start GROUPS. These groups need to form into GATHERINGS to remain alive. The GROUPS themselves will fizzle out if they are not formed into GATHERINGS (churches). These GATHERINGS are groups of people who are obedient to God’s Word (instant obedience) and they tell their friends (rapid multiplication). The GATHERINGS become resource centers who send out TEAMS that start GROUPS. The process is not strictly circular. For examples, GATHERINGS can start GROUPS or GROUPS can send out TEAMS.

The important thing about this diagram is the importance of church-planting for long-term sustainability. This is our conviction in Brazil. Healthy churches transform communities and last for generations. Our best hope to help the underprivileged is to start healthy churches in their neighbourhoods.

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Amanda’s Drawing Character

 

Interpreting Dean. He taught about Christian Doctrines.      People say you understand better when the interpreter acts like the foreigner.

Interpreting Larry. He reminded me that God is the one who draws people. So don’t feel discouraged or that you fail when sharing the gospel.

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The Mozambique and Angola churches have been asking Brazil for worship and learning resources. These countries all speak Portuguese. Milton and Elba were invited to be guest speakers at the African Vineyard Leadership Conference (AVLN) in Johannesburg with the hope that friendships and working relationships would form. Elba and Milton invited a few others, and soon 13 of us were signed up to go.

Anold from Tanzania gave one of the morning Bible talks. He loved Clenildo’s talk about rural church planting, and we enjoyed some meals together.

Elba spoke at one of the main evening sessions. Milton, from Brazil, spoke at a morning session and did a workshop on Urban Church Planting. Clenildo did a workshop on Rural Church Planting. These messages were well received, and some great connections were made between Brazilian and African churches.

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I often dream about our Brazil churches sending out overseas missionaries. I don’t see this happening real soon, but dreams turn to words, and words turn to reality.

Scarcity Thinking suggests that if we used our limited resources on a faraway project like sending a missionary couple to Mozambique, this will take away from church planting in Brazil.

Abundance Thinking, on the other hand, believes that if a disadvantaged neighborhood is pooling collections to help a missionary to an even poorer country, this will spur that church on to do even more in their own neighborhoods. Can you imagine someone growing up in a high-risk Marabá neighborhood sending Facebook or Youtube updates back to their on-fire Christians friends and family.

CLICK HERE to learn about Scarcity Thinking and Abundance Thinking

^{Luke 6:38} “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”

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