We've Arrived!

Yes, we're back in Blighty!

We arrived yesterday afternoon (Friday 22nd) at Heathrow - see below

We'll be getting a mobile phone soon so that you can contact us if you're in the UK.

See you soon!

Groovy Vocals

Today we had a special treat at our English-language service at PIB. The Gospel Group "Vocal Groove" joined us for the morning. It was a warm up for a concert that will be take place next week as part of the International Church Ministry. We were pleased to be there today, as next week we won't be in the country!

Also, as it was our last service for several weeks, our Pastor (Jay Gomes) invited us up on the platform to thank us for being part of the church family, for our help with the various ministries. He prayed for our trip back to the UK - and that we would come back refreshed and ready to continue serving God along with the other volunteers. 

It has been really great to be regulars at the Sunday morning English services, to get to know people (Brazilians and ex-pats), and to be able to contribute by serving God with the abilities He has given us. 

When we return in August the service will have moved to a brand new auditorium in a different part of the city. Something to look forward to ...

Europe in Brazil

Of course Europe is not in Brazil, but we did have a little bit of Europe in Brazil last week. 

We had the pleasure to host the Director of OM Europe in our home last week. He was in Brazil for ten days in order to promote OM, particularly the European part, in various churches. Frank Hinkelmann is German, but lives in Austria. It was very interesting to hear about OM's work in Europe, and about the current religious map of this part of the world. Most Brazilians know little about Europe, and Frank's aim was both to educate and to encourage potential Brazilian missionaries to consider Europe as a mission field. 

On Wednesday evening, Frank preached at Primero Igreja Batista (PIB) in São José dos Campos. He spoke in English and was accompanied by Claudia who translated into Portuguese. Claudia is a Brazilian, but is currently the OM Field Leader in Bosnia.

During the week, Frank and Claudia were at the OM base talking to the staff and students, and also leading morning devotionals. This was during a designated "English Week", so the students had a chance to practise their English.

It's great to have international visitors, as being in such a large country, it often feels that other countries are so far away. It is a great help to be able to emphasise the international nature of OM, and the fact that there is a need for Christ all over the world.

Easter Newsletter

Read our (post) Easter Newsletter!

You can download the pdf here

See the "Our Newsletter" tab for previous newsletters.

Renascimento

"Renascimento", or "Rebirth" was the title given to an amazing Easter Passion musical presentation performed by PIB (First Baptist Church) in São José dos Campos. A team of around 470 volunteers including actors, musicians, dancers, stage crew put on 7 public performances over the Easter period, with over 15,000 people in attendance. It was also streamed live over the PIB website.

A group of eleven of us went along on Good Friday evening and queued for nearly 2 hours to ensure a good seat! It was worth it. There had clearly been a lot of effort put into the production - the costumes, the stage, the music, the singing the acting - everything was of the highest quality.  

But it wasn't the number of people nor the quality of the props that touched us the most; it was the way that God spoke to our hearts. Although we knew it was a show being acted out by normal people, it was as if we were really seeing the life of Jesus Christ on earth happening in front of us. Even if we have read many times in the bible the scenes that we saw recreated on the stage, the impact of seeing the events with our own eyes brought home the amazing truth about Jesus Christ. For sure our emotions are aroused when we see a performance such as this, but there was something deeper and longer-lasting. It's a week since the event, and it is still tugging at our hearts.

Just to mention one thing: the experience revealed so clearly the tremendous love and compassion that the man Jesus had for ordinary people - good and bad, and the way he wanted to fix the brokenness of everyone. This love still exists for you and me today, and although we sometimes don't feel it, it's there and we have only to receive it in faith.



There are more photos available on the PIB website here.

Easy to be a Christian?

The recent edition of "Portas Abertas" (Open Doors) magazine that we receive at home in Brazil includes a special article on the countries in the world where Christians are most persecuted. Difficulties that some of OM's missionaries have been facing recently, together with recent news items like the attacks on Christians in Nigeria, plus a book I am currently reading all seem to be bringing this topic to my attention. I believe that this is something God wants me at least to pray about, and I thought I would ask you all to do the same. If you look at either the UK or Brasil websites (links below) you will find plenty of information.

The article that I mentioned in the magazine (and also covered on the websites) talks about the top 50 countries in the world for persecution against Christians. They also include a world map showing the locations of the countries, which really helps you visualise the statistics. The country in first place is North Korea.

I'm not going to give you any details or stories - the websites do that very well - but I urge you to take a look, and maybe pick a country and pray this week for the Christians there; or read one of the news articles and pray more specifically. I certainly feel fortunate to be living in a country where being a follower of Jesus Christ is not only tolerated but almost always respected. 

Mike


Open Doors UK

Portas Abertas

Carnaval!

Yesterday afternoon and this morning, Brazilians have been returning to work, school, and their normal business after the long Carnaval weekend. Millions of people took to the streets, as they do every year, to take part in the loud, colourful festivities. But what's it all about? What is it they are celebrating? What makes it different from Carnivals in other countries? Is there an 'official' way to do Carnaval? Is it spelt 'Carnaval' or 'Carnival'?

Painting of Entrudo dating from 17th Century

It's hard to give exact answers to many of the questions, since the modern-day carnaval can take its origins from several different events and parts of history - but here are a few 'facts' we've gleaned from other people and of course the internet …

Sambadrome in Rio de Janeiro

CHRISTIAN ORIGINS: The period of Lent (the 40 days before Easter) has often been marked by abstinence from something. Some christians, but mainly Roman Catholics in Italy have traditionally abstained from the consumption of meat. The word "Carnaval" has its root in the Latin languages, and means something like 'Take Meat' (carne) - i.e. remove it from the diet. Carnaval, therefore, was a celebration of eating meat and doing other pleasurable things, prior to a period of discipline, when these things would not be 'allowed'. 

OVER THE YEARS IN BRAZIL: There are records of many different celebrations and parties, many of which merged together to become today's Carnaval. These included a street party imported form Portugal called "Entrudo", partying in Rio de Janeiro to mark the coronation (in Portugal) of Don João IV, and later again for his wedding.  In the late 18th century, some groups in Rio started celebrating "Serração da Velha" which means "old sawmill", which celebrated rejuvenation. This took place just before Lent, and so became combined with the religious festivals of the Catholic church. There has also been an African  influence introduced by the descendants of the black slaves in Brazil. Over the years, things started to get more organised and elaborate, with costumes, floats, music, and organised dancing.

Samba band

BRAZILIAN CARNAVAL TODAY: Carnaval is celebrated all over Brazil, and although it always involves costumes, music, dancing, food and drink, there are regional differences. In some regions, such as Rio de Janeiro, there are Blocos (blocks), which are teams usually made up of people from particular neighbourhoods, all dressed the same. Things can get quite competitive,  in many cases Samba Schools spend months practising dance routines. The type of music can vary from region to region, but there's always music! In some cities there are specific stadia built for Carnaval - like the Sambadrome in São Paulo; in other places streets are closed off and the city stops everything just for Samba. In our city, one of the main dual carriageways near the centre of town is closed to traffic, stands are erected and it becomes a temporary Carnaval stadium.

Carnaval in São Paulo

A Day in São Paulo

Wednesday 25th January was an annual holiday in the city of São Paulo, to celebrate its 458th birthday. Being less than 60 miles away, we took this opportunity to visit some of the historical attractions of the city, and we've included a few snaps from our day.

Museu do Ipiranga

The first place we visited was the "Museu do Iparanga" - also known as the "Museu Paulista". This museum is famous as much for the building, gardens and surroundings as much as the contents of the museum. It helps if you know a little of the history of Brazil or have someone to explain it in order to appreciate some of the items on display - many of which are paintings. The children were interested to see some items which they had seen in books, and learnt about at school. As it was a special day, entrance to the museum was free!

Museum Ipiranga and Gardens

Nice Tree near the Museum!

View from Museum Iparanga

City Centre

In the centre of the city, near the old banking district is a footbridge over a busy road system, called "Viaduto Santa Ifigênia". The interesting thing is that the bridge is made of iron, constructed in England, and then transported in pieces to Brazil by ship. Presumably it was flat-packed with numbered pieces and instructions…

Viaduto Santa Ifigênia in the centre

Praça do Sé

Close to the Praça do Sé is the official birthplace of São Paulo. In case you hadn't guessed, the city is dedicated to St Paul!

Of course, in one day we only saw a part of the city, and we hope to visit again one day.

New Tab - OM Newsletters

We have added a tab (see above) to provide links to OM newsletters. We'll start with those produced by OM Brazil, and we'll add any others that we think might be interesting ...

We have produced a New Year 2012 Newsletter!

You can download it here.

Or see the Newsletter tab above for all our previous newsletters!

Happy New Year!

Preacher Mike?

Preacher (right) with translator (left)

For years I've felt comfortable sitting with the congregation, or behind a sound desk, listening to the preacher bringing the Word of God. For me it's always been the focal point of the service; I love praising God, but the sermon is the part of the service I most look forward to, anticipating hearing what God has to say to me.

So it has been way "out of my comfort zone" to be standing at the front bringing God's word to the people. It's something I approach with some degree of trepidation; I feel it is such a big responsibility; questions run through my mind: Am I going to be faithful to the word? Will the people 'get' my points? Will they respond? Will we get invited back?

On most of the occasions I have been invited, it has been during a missions conference or similar event at the church, so the theme of my talks have been somewhat common, although I have used various passages in the Old and New Testaments, to make different points.

This has been one of the big challenges that God has lined up for me since we've been out here. But it has been a great experience. I have had to rely fully on God; of course I have often been on the receiving end of bible teachings, whether through listening to preachers, studying the bible, or reading Christian books, but to be taking up the role of orator is very different. It takes me hours to prepare, and I always start unsure of what I'm going to say - but as I pray and meditate on the scripture, I have always arrived at the church sure of what God wants me to say.

This has been a great learning experience in reliance on, and trust in God. One of my favourite verses comes to mind:

Trust in the LORD with all your heart 

   and lean not on your own understanding 

in all your ways acknowledge him,
   and he will make your paths straight.

(Proverbs 3:5,6)

If I'm fixing a computer, or mixing sound at the sound desk it seems that I can rely at least in part on myself - education, training, experience. For preaching, however, I have to start and finish with God. I suppose in some ways this makes it easier - He's more reliable than me!

Pastor Evandro and wife, Nélia and Mike

My last two preaches were on 27th November at the Igreja Cristã Evangélica de Santana, and on 11th December at the Assembléia de Deus - Jardim Das Industrias, both in the city of São José dos Campos. The photos are from the latter.

I thank God for the challenges and the experiences that He has brought me, and I pray that He will continue to use me in this way in 2012 if it is His will to do so. Amen.

Guitar Recital - Joshua

Hi, Joshua here!

I did this presentation last Saturday and it was really fun.

There were lots of other people who played and some people played in groups.

I hope you enjoy!! :)

Amor & Vida 2011

Easy does it ...

OM Brazil's "Amor & Vida" (Love and Life) ministry has been a great way to help local people this year. There is a team of professional volunteers who give their services for free once a month, at drop-in centres set up at different local churches. There are General Practitioners, Psychiatrists, Dentists, Opticians, Lawyers, Hairdressers and so on. There is often a live band, and always special activities for kids. At the end of the event, there is a presentation in the church itself. Also, evangelism teams venture out into the surrounding streets to chat to local people, invite them to the event at the church, and share the gospel with them. 

A job well done!

The students from OM are always on hand to help out too, and all the Leals have been involved several times this year too. We've  helped out in various ways: check out the September Newsletter for a story about Mike's experiences doing door-to-door; amongst other things, Nélia interpreted for a visiting American pastor who gave a presentation on bullying; Louissa helped to entertain the little children doing art; Josh helped putting up the gazebo and organising the football. 

This is a really great ministry, demonstrating the love of Jesus in practical ways, making a difference to people in the communities of the city. During 2011 there were altogether 4,827 people who received free professional services from this ministry! In addition to this were people who just turned up for a chat or a cup of coffee, and always plenty of children running around and having fun.

The video below gives you and idea of what goes on - watch out for us in some of the snaps ...

Louissa's Ballet Performance - Coppélia

Hi, It's Louissa

On Thursday It was my end of year ballet performance. I was a country girl and a Russian doll.

The ballet is about a man who makes a life-size doll that he calls Coppélia. The main male character falls in love with it, much to the disappointment of his girlfriend. The ballet tells the story of how she tries to win back his heart.

My ballet school is called Clara Irie and it's registered with the Royal Academy of Dance. I took my grade 3 exam in May and I passed with Merit. There has been lots of hard work all year long but I have improved a lot.

Below is a video of one of the dances:

Louissa's Flute Concert

Hi it's Louissa!

Yesterday (25th of November) it was my flute concert. I played a couple of songs:  Lullaby by F. Schubert, which you can see below and Minuet by J.S.Bach. The concert took place at my teachers house, where I have my lessons. My family went along with a student from OM who also plays the flute. 

The teacher, Beth Blanco (in the video) goes to my church and I have had lessons with her for a year - my second year learning the flute. I  am hoping to play at church during the English Service soon!

Quarter-Final football Josh

Hi, it's Josh here!

Warm-up

On Friday the 18th I played a football game for my team called Grêmio. It was the quarter-final and a very important game. We won 6-2 and I scored a goal! It was my first game for the team as I started training with them about a month ago. It has been great fun. 


I am looking forward to the semi-final on Wednesday.

Team Huddle

In action

Answer to Prayer! Car Insurance

Praise God for an answer to our prayers about car insurance!

Our car insurance is due for renewal at the end of this month, and with only 2 weeks to go, someone has offered to pay our instalments for us. This is a great relief, as car insurance here is expensive - around R$2,700 which is about £1,000. We want to say THANK YOU! to the donor (you know who you are!) and to God for His provision through others.

Who's that on the Sound Desk?

This is the Production Control Room at Primeira Igreja Batista (First Baptist Church) Campus Centro (Downtown Campus), São José dos Campos. Yes, and that's me (Mike) at the PA Desk!

We've been attending the English Language Service on Sunday mornings for a while now. They've been asking for volunteers for various ministries, and I mentioned my past Production Team experience at Holland Road. So yesterday (Sunday 13th Nov) was the first morning on the sound team. 

Since the band do their practice at 8.00 in the morning, we had to start at 7.30. It went very well, and they were very happy to have extra help as the PA team is very stretched with another service at the main campus at the same time.

PIB is often asking for musicians too, and there is also a chance that Lou and Josh will be able to help out with their musical talents, either in the main band or maybe in a youth band. It's all in the planning stages at the moment, but Josh wasted no time and sat strumming along with the band during the rehearsal.

The people attending the English Language service are a mixture of Brazilians wanting to practise their English, and also native English speakers. There are old, young, families, couples and singles. The pastor would like to offer Sunday School for the children, which is something Nélia may be able to help with in the New Year. 

So there may be a Sunday to come where the whole Leal family is serving at PIB English Service …

Dutch Ecuadorians from Latin America in Brazil

Yes, that title's a bit confusing, so let me explain!

Operation Mobilisation (OM) divides the world into Areas and Regions and Countries. Latin America is an Area, which consists of Regions (usually groups of countries), and then countries. As Brazil is big it is both a country and a region (and often called a 'field'), within the Latin America Area. Got it? 

Michael and Anneke at OM Brasil

Michael and Anneke are originally from Holland, but currently based in Ecuador. Rather than doing all their work specifically 'for OM Ecuador', they have a role across the Latin America Area. They have experience in communications and in development & planning, and they have brought these skills from Holland to Latin America, and now specifically to Brazil. In some ways their situation is similar to ours - bringing what we know from Northern Europe to South America. 

Over the last few days, they have been spending time at OM Brazil. Before I explain what they were doing with us, I'd just like to say THANK YOU! (in case they're reading our blog), and also to say how amazing it is that although the world is big to us, we are all God's children living together on one of the planets he created. To Him there is nothing odd about a Dutchman from Ecuador helping out an Englishman in Brazil, and it kind of made the world seem smaller.

Michael and Anneke spent time getting to know the team members and their roles and experiences, and learning about the ministries at OM Brazil. Since they have also done this in other Latin American countries, they were then able to help us with the preparation of our annual "Ministry Plans", and also to suggest additional ways in which we might work together or share ideas with other OM organisations in Latin America.

Some of the OM team after a coffee-break

Please pray:

• for a safe journey back to Ecuador for Michael & Anneke
• for wisdom amongst the OM Brazil team as we seek to apply what we learnt
• for a growing relationship between OM Brazil and the other Fields within  the Latin America area

Welcome to our Blog!

Hello and welcome to our Blog!

We've been in Brazil for just over a year now, and we thought it was time we made use of modern technology and provided a source of news for our friends and family. So here it is!

We'll be adding more information, stories, features and photos as we go along, so be sure to check back with us regularly, or subscribe to automatic feeds.

We hope you find it interesting and have fun reading our posts!

Love Mike, Nélia, Louissa and Joshua