Our team is not a mission team in the typical sense of the word. Dawn and I are the only Americans on a Brazilian team of non-missionaries. Let me explain.
Our team leader is Alexandre Ferreira. Alexandre came to Christ at our first work, Calvary Baptist Church, in January of 1999. He later sensed God’s call to ministry and graduated from Bible College in 2005. With a tremendous burden for children’s ministry Alexandre started Company C Bible Club in the Habiteto* in 2007. Since that humble start he recognized a need to work with families as well as children. So in March of 2009 he inaugurated Faith Baptist Church.
Though Alexandre initially had nearly twenty helpers from Calvary Baptist that number began to dwindle with time. Club was held between services on Sunday afternoon. With Sunday usually a Brazilian’s day off, enthusiasm began to wane quickly.
However, one couple that began to demonstrate real faithfulness to the effort was Alcir and Damares. If you’ve been to Brazil to visit us you have visited the famous Alcir’s. Alcir has a lunch stand where he cooks up some of the most delicious sandwiches. He works out of his home six days a week but he and Damares have been a huge blessing in Company C.
Dawn and I joined the small team by invitation. In July 2009 we were making plans to return to Brazil but were without a home, church or team. Our coworkers were heading to the States for furlough. But the more we prayed about where we should serve the more the picture seemed to blur.
God began to answer our prayers through, of all things an Internet chat. Alexandre began to drop hints that the “team” had been discussing the idea of us joining them.
I had been a small part of the Habiteto work in 2007 but didn’t have intentions of becoming a permanent fixture but God had other plans. I love when He does stuff like that!
The latest addition to the team came as a results of another Internet conversation. I got a note from pastor friend Samuel Golfeto who was leaving his work in Vargem Grande. God directed in some very interesting details to bring us Samuel and his wife Joelma, (who was a New Life Baptist Church teen when we first visited in 1994) to be a part of our unmissions team. Samuel works for TAM and he and Joelma are fitting in very nicely.
So our un-mission team of: Alexandre, Alcir and Damares, Samuel and Joelma, Dawn and me, is working together with our mix of experience and talent that mesh each week to present the Gospel to the needy children and adults of the Habiteto. Pray for us won’t you?
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* Habiteto is a government housing project in Sorocaba. It began in June of 1998 with the idea of accommodating homeless people or the underprivileged.
