The Lift

The president of Brazil, President Lula, came to our region this week as he opened the “Eclusa do Tucuruí”. This is a way for boats to pass over the Tucuruí dam. You might be more familiar with the word “lock”, as is used in the Panama Canal or on the Great Lakes. This lift, as they are called in English, has a much greater vertical distance than a more common lock. This lift is a two-stage altitude difference of 69 meters or 226 feet. This project has been underway for 20 years and is almost the size of the Panama Canal.

Apparently up to four line boats will be able to pass through at one time. I look forward to the day I see these boats passing through. As this gets going it will become possible for us to go by boat from Marabá to Porto de Moz and close to Altamira, and other places where we plant churches. The Tucuruí reservoir has a surface area of 2800 square kms, or 1,080 square miles. Most of the river villages are below the reservoir and along the tributaries and waterways directly linked to the Amazon River. 

We look forward to helping bring the message of hope along these waterways. Most of the villages near us are connected to the road system. The region is so vast. We are eager to go as far and as deep as we can with the people and resources God joins together, planting churches which builds stronger families, stronger communities. Less bad, more good.