“We have known Elba since Olivia was 10 months old.” Deanna was introducing Elba as the Guest Speaker on Sunday at the Marabá Church. “We are so proud she is now our leader.”
This is one of our favorite stories. After our first year in Brazil, when we could barely speak Portuguese, we moved across the city of Santarem to work with a small church of about 20 people, counting all the children. We had two babies in diapers and no vehicle. We would traverse the unpaved, sandy roads with our bicycles to buy groceries. I would hook the chariot up to the back of my bike, put the two girls in and off we would go. At the grocery store we would pile all our food on top of Anni and Via and we would head back home.
One day we really needed help and a small neighbour’s kid told us he knew a teen-ager who had just moved to the city continue her high school studies. She was starting Grade 11. The next day Elba started helping with the housework. Three weeks later she invited Jesus into her life. Elba lived with us for a year in Santarem. When we decided to leave Santarem for the Xingu, Elba asked if she could move with us. Elba graduated from Grade 12 in Altamira while living with us.
After Bible School in Southern Brazil Elba asked if she could come back to work with us in Altamira. She started what is now CDR, Center of Regional Development, a non-governmental organization set up to help the poor with an English School, a computer school and a theology component. After CDR was running Elba joined us planting our second major church plant in Altamira, the Mirante Church, where she is now the senior pastor. Along the way Elba married Steve, who was running the Mission Books in the United States. Steve has a keen sense of business and is a strong leader in his own way. It was a perfect match, enabling both of them to function far better than either one could alone. A number of years ago Elba was chosen to be one of five national coordinators for the Vineyard church-planting movement in Brazil.
Steve and Elba, and their daughters Camily and Alyssa, came to stay with us in Marabá for almost a week. Steve helped significantly with our network. Elba helped update some legal documents. Mostly they encouraged us personally, and hopefully we encouraged them too.
They left here to travel another 9 hours South, to visit a church they are planting in the state of Tocatins.
Such good pictures of Elba and Deanna, and the rest. and angelita and her family, that was a lot of travelling for them. Did they fly?
Bella is so good with kids too. I can imagine you had a good visit. Love Mom