I believe in God. I believe He has designed a very special plan in which He longs to share His glory and loving kindness with all people around the world. I believe one day the whole universe and the nations of the earth will be healed and reconciled with Him, the Creator. I believe in this project called the Kingdom of God, in which the Church – a people redeemed by the power of Christ’s Gospel – is the principal instrument to transform the world.

For these reasons, I understand that God, in his sovereignty, wisdom and grace, has decided to act in partnership with us, His people. Contemplating the greatness of such a calling and our own limitations, I can only accept this truth by faith and willingly open my heart to His word, with the understanding that He wishes to use the fragile and the weak so that the merit be His alone. In other words: “We cannot do it by ourselves; He does not want to do it without us!” Continue lendo →

In his epistle, James observes that Elijah, the prophet, was just a human being, like us (5.17). For some people, this is hard to accept. I can understand them. How we could be identified with someone who challenged a king, raised a child from the dead, prayed for no rain and for fire from heaven and was heard, and also was taken up to heaven in a chariot of fire! But remember, there is another side to Elijah.

That Elijah who feels alone, runs to the desert, sits down under a Juniper tree and asks for his “promotion”. I can identify myself with him. Those who can’t understand why James wrote that in his epistle do not observe this point of view about the prophet. Moreover, maybe they think that it’s hard to accept that God uses broken and cracked vases, and that sometimes they spill. But this is the way God acts. Continue lendo →

Have you ever looked attentively upon a garden? If so, you’ve probably noticed those small plants that surprisingly come up through the grass, flowers and decorative plants. These “marvels” of nature, called “weeds”, do not need to be sown and therefore no gardener helps them grow. They simply show up, springing up without any consent and, unless removed, they’ll be all over the garden in a little while.

When considering the growing number of churches nowadays, the inattentive observer would think that just as those small plants, the Church would naturally spread out till it reaches the ends of the world. However, it is not that way. Churches need to be sown, looked after. They must be intentionally planted and cultivated, just as a soybean, wheat or coffee plantation. Continue lendo →

There was a time when the Lord manifested His presence and guided His people through the desert by means of a cloud. When the cloud moved, they would journey; when it remained above the tabernacle, the children of Israel would remain encamped.

In the next few lines, we want to share with you our understanding, which indicates that the cloud has been taken up and goes North. More specifically, Northeast Brazil! We invite you to come along, under the cloud and blessing of the Lord.
Continue lendo →

I have not heard, so far, of a minister, missionary or leader who is able to provide for himself all the prayer needed to sustain his personal life, his family and his ministry. Whoever has been born of God is called to be an agent in promoting spiritual and historic change. The more strategies we use for the kingdom’s advancement, more we will face spiritual opposition, which, consequently, stresses the need to be under the umbrella of prayer.

The ministry is the work of the Holy Spirit in people’s hearts, in the heart of the messenger himself, and in the circumstances. Since we ourselves cannot produce spiritual change, every ministry is prayer-dependent. That doesn’t mean that we only ask God to bless what we do. More than that, I believe, our prayers should impact what we do to reflect exactly what God is doing. The two must be synchronized.
Continue lendo →

The interior small villages reality in Norheast Brazil is quite a challenge for the brazilian church. Alcoholism, drugs addiction, unemployment, besides poverty, lack of proper answers from the public services (health and education) compose a lamentable and devilish picture, even worst than in the biggest cities.

The number of promiscuous places nearing the entrance of these cities is just an example. At first glance, it would be a simple symmetry issue. Yet, the reality provides us with a sense of a far greater issue: the outside wound as a result of one of the most fierce and chronic social diseases in the needy Brazil: the prostitution. Continue lendo →

We arrived in Paraíba State, in the heart of northeast Brazil, some months ago. However, it seems much more. Probably, because the 4,500 miles followed through the interior of the region provided us with multiple perceptions of the people and their needs.

The purpose of such tours was to make us aware of the interior of the northeast reality and to check out the insight brought up during the planning and research process: the sense of a key factor being neglected by missionary projects and programs, which consequently prevent the Gospel to advance in these regions – the leaders of the middle-interior cities. The insight has been confirmed. Few people are investing on these leaders.
Continue lendo →