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Pacajá Construction Project

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The team in Pacajá are starting their church construction. Keith has designed a functional facility that can be built in phases. The first phase will include a reception room, a hallway, and some meeting rooms. These can be used for their English School now, and can later serve as Sunday School rooms. It is designed to accomodate an auditorium as phase two. Beyond this there are several options for future expansion. They have a nice large plot of land in what will be a new part of the city.

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Trans-Amazon Highway

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We took our new truck for a test drive on Friday, 513 kms (about 300 miles) of TransAmazon Highway. About half of this stretch of highway is now paved, which is such a treat. The other half…here are some photos. It was a treat having our truck. The trip took about 12 hours, including a two-hour lunch break with the Wilsons in Pacajá.

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Iguana

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One of the girls took these photos out of our window this week. It reminds me of a time in Altamira when Olivia was just small. A large iguana, about 5 feet long, fell out of the tree right above where she was jumping on the trampoline. It landed right beside her.

I think this one lost it’s footing because it was watching the camera. Don’t you hate it when that happens?

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New Missionaries

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We are very thankful for new missionaries and their support teams. It takes
a lot of work to learn the language and the culture. It takes a large
support team to believe in them, and to pray for them, and to support
them financially. 
Missionaries live fairly transparent, public lives (less
privacy). People come here to serve, but for the first couple of years
they can hardly even talk to anyone. Then slowly things start coming
into focus and making sense, kind of like a baby whose eyes first see
her mother’s face, then they can focus across the room, then across the
yard. It’s kind of hard to get started. New missionaries are expected to 
go to so many meetings where they don’t know what people are saying. 
And they have to appear interested. You can imagine the challenge.
Missionaries are here to raise up local leaders, in the training arena of
the local church, and to eventually leave it running and growing under
its own leadership. We are so grateful to each new missionary willing
to obey God even to the point of living in a foreign land if God asks
them to do this. Many times the asking is not really clear. It is many
steps of faith, that are confirmed along the way. I realize it is
challenging in different ways to be disciple of Jesus in your home
country. The tests come in unexpected ways. It is also a walk of faith.
May God bless you as you walk with Him in obedience, faith, and
friendship.
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English School Enrollment

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Our big news as a church/mission here in Marabá is that we started
taking applications for an English School program, which will start on
February 5th. This is part of our CDR, Regional Community Development
NGO (non-governmental organization) program. It will provide graduates
with a work skill which will help them get better jobs. CDR is designed
to work closely with our local church, to help people break out of
generations of poverty.
The reason we are able to do this English School at this time is
because of Art and Cyndi Rae. They are really spear-heading this, as
one of the practical ways they can serve Brazilians during this time
when they themselves are still learning Portuguese. They are in their
second year in Brazil. Phil and Jen Snell, who are in their first year,
have been supporting the project by getting the desks and the building
ready. Monica is learning English, and loves administration. She is
helping with enrollement and other tasks.
We have openings for 30 students. The first week 20 signed up.
Here is a  photo of Art Rae serving at a retreat breakfast.
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Hilux

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Our big news this week, as a family, is that we purchased and drove
home the 2008 Toyota, diesel 4×4 truck. We had an old 1997 Mitsubishi
gas truck that has cost us a lot of money over the years. We’ve had to
rebuild the engine 2 times, replace the clutch, the compressor, which
has cost us thousands of dollars. We drove it to Belem
mid-December. It overheated and needs a head gasket. It’s still there
and still getting repaired.
This Toyota we just bought has only 83,000 kilometers and should run for
years without repairs. May people helped with donations, prayers,
encouragement, and support. Thank you. This truck will be used in
Maraba and out of town to plant churches. Deanna will be able to use it
for medical needs and going to the clinics and hospitals. I look
forward to travelling to other mission bases and churches, and to
travelling on the secondary roads outside of Marabá, where we plan to
plant churches. This truck will serve us well in the city and along the
rough interior roads, and along the trans-amazon highway.
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January 1, 2013

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Annika organized an all night party for the youth of the Marabá church, to celebrate bringing in the New Year. The preparation involved scouring the chacará for branches and old wood to build a bonfire. The fire lasted through two cloudbursts, and the party lasted until daylight, the first morning of 2013.