Autor: eabrazil

The Life Squad ministered the Gospel at the Men’s Prison yesterday afternoon composed of Pastor Rafael and Sister Iara, and 1 decision was made for Christ out of 400 prisoners.

Last night the weekly service was held in front of our Patos school when 32 gathered to hear the Gospel preached by Brother Wellington – not Lord Wellington! It was a lovely service.

Liz and I did a lot of administrative work yesterday morning, and during the rest of the day I prepared a new sermon on “The River of the Water of Life” (Revelation 22:1-2) to be preached in Campina Grande next month. We value your prayers.

Last night I chaired a planning meeting for our Pastor Frank Dyer School for the second half of 2026. There were 14 people in the meeting discussing services, sporting and educational activities, work with teens and work with children etc. Please pray for this school and for the planting of a branch church in it in this southern borough of Patos.

Liz has just got back from a long counselling session.

Last night I chaired a planning meeting for our Pastor Frank Dyer School for the second half of 2026. There were 14 people in the meeting discussing services, sporting and educational activities, work with teens and work with children etc. Please pray for this school and for the planting of a branch church in it in this southern borough of Patos.

Liz has just got back from a long counselling session.

 I was all set to preach last night on ‘the great I am’ at Green Pastures when I received a call from Francisco telling me that the lighting had gone off so there was no way to hold the service in the dark as we need an electrician to solve the problem. I then proceeded to contact the different farmsteads calling off the service. God willing I will preach there next week and hold the monthly communion service.

Tonight I will be preaching on ‘The Joy of the Redeemed’ from Isaiah 35 in Patos at the communion service. Pastor Rafael will be preaching at Imaculada. 

Jeremiah makes it clear that God’s mind is made up to judge Judah owing to their sin and unrepentance, and not even Moses and Samuel intervening would make any difference! The message from God through Jeremiah is devastating: “Those destined for death let them die; those destined for the sword let them have it; those destined for starvation let them starve; and those destined for captivity so be it!” God goes on to say: “You have rejected me… so I will destroy you… I will bring bereavement and destruction on my people… because they won’t change”. Then the prophet cried out to God weighed down by the message of doom and despair that he is commissioned to deliver. “Alas, my mother, that you gave me birth… everyone curses me”. But God replies saying he is with Jeremiah and will “make his enemies plead with him”. Jeremiah responds asking God to remember him and care for him questioning why he has to suffer so much “pain unending” in the service of God? God reacts to Jeremiah’s complaints calling on him to repent of his moaning and get on with the job. “If you repent I will restore you that you may serve me… and promises Jeremiah to protect him with a wall of bronze… saying he will save him from the hands of the wicked”. 

Our Pastor Oseias at the Itaporanga church has had some sort of mild heart-attack in which he passed out twice hurting his face a lot in the process with the impact of his falls. He is now in the hands of a cardiologist doing tests to arrive at a clear diagnosis and treatment. Please pray for Pastor Oseias and his wife Lucia at this time.  

Last night I led the prayer meeting and Bible study which went off very well with a good number present and many blessed participations in the service.

I have just eaten a delicious ‘custard apple’ for my morning snack! 😋

Dona Florzinha is a lovely very poor middle aged lady who rides round Patos on a donkey cart collecting recyclable goods. Liz is her friend and every week gives her all our recyclable items like empty tissue boxes, empty yogurt cartons etc. Dona Florzinha has just taken our materials to the recycling centre where she sells them, not for much, but it all helps. 

Liz is now out distributing food hampers to the poor and hungry,

Today is a public holiday in Brazil for the Roman Catholic festival of ‘Corpus Christi’ (body of Christ) commemorating the transubstantiation of the literal body and blood of Christ in the mass. This day occurs on the Thursday 60 days after Easter. Of course we do not believe in transubstantiation, and on Sunday we will be holding our monthly communion service in which we share the emblems which represent the body and blood of Jesus which we remember with grateful hearts.

I have just eaten a delicious ‘custard apple’ for my morning snack! 😋

Dona Florzinha is a lovely very poor middle aged lady who rides round Patos on a donkey cart collecting recyclable goods. Liz is her friend and every week gives her all our recyclable items like empty tissue boxes, empty yogurt cartons etc. Dona Florzinha has just taken our materials to the recycling centre where she sells them, not for much, but it all helps. 

Liz is now out distributing food hampers to the poor and hungry,

Today is a public holiday in Brazil for the Roman Catholic festival of ‘Corpus Christi’ (body of Christ) commemorating the transubstantiation of the literal body and blood of Christ in the mass. This day occurs on the Thursday 60 days after Easter. Of course we do not believe in transubstantiation, and on Sunday we will be holding our monthly communion service in which we share the emblems which represent the body and blood of Jesus which we remember with grateful hearts.

Yesterday a snake appeared in our Patos School and the headteacher called the Fire Brigade who came and “arrested” it! The children loved the diversion from regular lessons and once the fireman had hold of the non-venomous snake they all took turns in stroking it! I reckon the snake was glad to finally be released back into the wild after so much affection and attention! 🐉

Last night I went with the Patos Men’s Fellowship to preach the Gospel in São Mamede in a street meeting. It was a nice little service with about 35 people present.

A young man in the process of being taken to rehab for alcoholic addiction is to have a foot amputated owing to advanced diabetes. He has made a commitment to Christ and the plan is to take him to rehab as soon as possible. Please pray for him. 

An 11-year-old boy has been bitten by a shark in Recife. It is the second shark attack in Recife this year. The boy is recovering well in hospital.

I took some people home from the Care Centre last night who had been attended by our dentist. On the way to the farmstead I saw 3 Burrowing Owls and I saw the same 3 on the way back.

Yesterday I finished sending the reports from our 15 Action Schools to our EAB UK Office. Our total number of pupils attended this year is 810. I also sent the translated letters from all the sponsored children.

An 11-year-old boy has been bitten by a shark in Recife. It is the second shark attack in Recife this year. The boy is recovering well in hospital.

I took some people home from the Care Centre last night who had been attended by our dentist. On the way to the farmstead I saw 3 Burrowing Owls and I saw the same 3 on the way back.

Yesterday I finished sending the reports from our 15 Action Schools to our EAB UK Office. Our total number of pupils attended this year is 810. I also sent the translated letters from all the sponsored children.

Last month this blog was read 74,153 times. I checked this statistic and learnt that Google, who owns the blog site, is not completely reliable so I have no way of knowing what the correct figure is. But anyway thanks for being with us and thanks for all your prayers and support.

Last night I led the service in Patos and Pastor Rafael preached on Psalm 32:1-5. It was a good service with a full church.

Last month this blog was read 74,153 times. I checked this statistic and learnt that Google, who owns the blog site, is not completely reliable so I have no way of knowing what the correct figure is. But anyway thanks for being with us and thanks for all your prayers and support.

Last night I led the service in Patos and Pastor Rafael preached on Psalm 32:1-5. It was a good service with a full church.

Ipueira is a small town with a population of 2,090 in the neighbouring state of Rio Grande do Norte about an hour’s drive from where we are based. We have been preaching the Gospel there for 13 years and now has come the time to build a little church there. We are at present building the foundations and value your prayers and support.

Yesterday we held a jumble sale to raise money for the Ipueira church building and it did exceptionally well raising over £300.

Last night I preached at Green Pastures on: “Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free”! It was a blessed service. I saw the usual toads and tree frogs whilst there. This week we will be busy preparing for another youth camp at Green Pastures from June 19th to 21st.

Most of my English readers will not have heard of ‘João Fonseca’ but take a note for future reference as he is a superb Brazilian tennis player who yesterday knocked out Novak Djokovic from the French Open Tennis Grand Slam and he is just a teenager! He won in 5 sets. 

Yesterday I worked all day on the EAB Action Child Schools and Child sponsors reports. So far I have done 7 school reports and one child sponsor’s letter and sent them to Marian Rashleigh who handles the UK side of things. If there is anyone willing to help Marian with this work please contact her. 

Tonight I will be preaching the Gospel at the Green Pastures church.

I have just eaten a lovely load of watermelon which was delicious. 😋It was given to us by Green Pastures neighbour Júlio Camilo whom we saw coming to the Lord some years back.

A further drug addict, this time from the town of Pombal, is being taken to a Christian rehabilitation centre at Princesa Isabel. Please pray!

I recommend UCB’s daily devotional ‘Word for Today’. 2 minutes of quality Biblical reflection to start your day. https://www.ucb.co.uk/word-for-today This Christian radio is at Stoke-on-Trent and I did an interview there about the work of EAB/ACEV in Brazil many years ago.

Last night I led the mid-week prayer meeting and Bible study and Pastor Murilo gave the study on 1 John 5:13-21. It was a lovely service.

I have just eaten a lovely load of watermelon which was delicious. 😋It was given to us by Green Pastures neighbour Júlio Camilo whom we saw coming to the Lord some years back.

A further drug addict, this time from the town of Pombal, is being taken to a Christian rehabilitation centre at Princesa Isabel. Please pray!

I recommend UCB’s daily devotional ‘Word for Today’. 2 minutes of quality Biblical reflection to start your day. https://www.ucb.co.uk/word-for-today This Christian radio is at Stoke-on-Trent and I did an interview there about the work of EAB/ACEV in Brazil many years ago.

Last night I led the mid-week prayer meeting and Bible study and Pastor Murilo gave the study on 1 John 5:13-21. It was a lovely service.

Our grandson Arthur is in São Paulo for a music concert and other cultural activities.

The Life Squad evangelized the men’s prison again yesterday and God blessed them with one decision for Christ.

We had an important meeting with Pastor Rafael yesterday discussing the work of the Lord. 

I hear that it’s hot in the UK with temperatures reaching almost 35 degrees! Meanwhile here it’s the cooler time of the year with a maximum of 31 degrees.

I am progressing with my summary of the Book of Jeremiah and have now completed the first 13 chapters out of 52, so that’s a quarter of the book done.

I took some people home from the Care Centre’s dentist last night and saw 2 Pigmy Nightjars along the way plus 1 Burrowing Owl.

In Jeremiah 11 God speaks to his people through the prophet Jeremiah reminding them of the covenant they have broken: “Cursed is the man who does not obey the terms of this covenant… obey me!… but they didn’t listen or pay attention… they have returned to the sins of their forefathers… so I will bring them a disaster they can’t escape… for you have as many gods as you have towns!… the Lord Almighty has therefore decreed disaster for you”. Then God revealed to Jeremiah a plot to assassinate him, so he prayed for God’s vengeance upon them. So God answered saying the young men would die by the sword and their children would die by famine so that there would be no survivors of these schemers and would-be assassins! 

Jeremiah 10 brings a stark contrast between the power and greatness of God and the weakness and frailty of idols. It should be noted that the tree being cut and decorated in verses 3 and 4 has nothing to do with Christmas trees as some argue, but is a condemnation of pagan idol fabrications! Jeremiah ridicules idolatry saying: “Like a scarecrow in a melon patch, their idols cannot speak; they must be carried because they cannot walk”! He goes on to exalt the greatness and power of God standing in contrast to idols. The Lord is the true God… the living God… the eternal king! However these gods will perish… but God made the earth! He makes thunder and lightning, wind and rain… but images are a breathless fraud… but God is the maker of all things. Then Jeremiah foretells the impending Babylonian exile: “Gather up your belongings to leave the land… a great commotion from the land of the north… pour out your wrath on the nations… for they have devoured Jacob”.

Our annual General Conference was blessed of the Lord. We had some delicate issues to handle, but the spirit of unity and love was maintained. We heard reports from our pastors in the states of Bahia, Rio Grande do Norte, Pernambuco and Ceará as well as from Paraiba. We also received reports from our churches at Princesa Isabel, Tavares, Belém, Itaporanga and Imaculada where problems have arisen. 8 new ministers were given ministerial status (5 men pastors and 3 women missionaries). From Patos we have 1 new pastor, Pastor Murilo, and 1 new missionary our daughter Missionary Sacha. We had reports from new churches at Campina Grande Novo Cruzeiro and Campina Grande Cuités. We now have 37 pastors, 25 women missionaries, 2 men missionaries and 8 non-ordained leaders – making a total of 72 ministers for our 81 churches. Next year’s general conference will be held at Conceição and the 10-Day evangelistic outreach will be held at Juru. Our churches grew by 1.1% over the past year. We continue running 15 little schools and will drill 2 wells, build 4 toilets, set up 2 chicken runs and 1 market garden, and distribute 15 to 20 goats or hair sheep this year. Our Bible College in Campina Grande continues as do 2 partner colleges. Radio programs continue at Imaculada and Flores. Our granddaughter Beatriz (Bia) is now responsible for our digital online communications via Facebook, Instagram and YouTube. 

The above is a summary of the decisions taken at the conference.

Last night’s Sunday service was led by Missionary Sacha who also preached.

Our annual General Conference was blessed of the Lord. We had some delicate issues to handle, but the spirit of unity and love was maintained. We heard reports from our pastors in the states of Bahia, Rio Grande do Norte, Pernambuco and Ceará as well as from Paraiba. We also received reports from our churches at Princesa Isabel, Tavares, Belém, Itaporanga and Imaculada where problems have arisen. 8 new ministers were given ministerial status (5 men pastors and 3 women missionaries). From Patos we have 1 new pastor, Pastor Murilo, and 1 new missionary our daughter Missionary Sacha. We had reports from new churches at Campina Grande Novo Cruzeiro and Campina Grande Cuités. We now have 37 pastors, 25 women missionaries, 2 men missionaries and 8 non-ordained leaders – making a total of 72 ministers for our 81 churches. Next year’s general conference will be held at Conceição and the 10-Day evangelistic outreach will be held at Juru. Our churches grew by 1.1% over the past year. We continue running 15 little schools and will drill 2 wells, build 4 toilets, set up 2 chicken runs and 1 market garden, and distribute 15 to 20 goats or hair sheep this year. Our Bible College in Campina Grande continues as do 2 partner colleges. Radio programs continue at Imaculada and Flores. Our granddaughter Beatriz (Bia) is now responsible for our digital online communications via Facebook, Instagram and YouTube. 

The above is a summary of the decisions taken at the conference.

Last night’s Sunday service was led by Missionary Sacha who also preached.

This blog was off the air for a few days whilst we travelled to João Pessoa on the coast for our annual General Conference which gathers all our pastors and missionaries to discuss the work of the Lord, pray and plan together and hold a celebratory and dedicatory service at the end when I preached on Psalm 15 and when we gave probationary status to 8 new ministers which were 5 men pastors and 3 new women missionaries including our daughter Sacha. It was a very good conference but very tiring, so I will leave the details for tomorrow when I am more rested up. Thanks for your prayers.

The rainy season is sadly over here. At Green Pastures we had rain on April 28th and then not until May 17th when we had just 4 mm taking us up to a total for the year of 653.6 mm.

Last night I travelled to São Mamede to preach the Gospel in a street service on ‘the healing of a demon-possessed man’ in Mark 5:1-20. School teacher Claudivan led the service and praise was by Biê, Maricô and José. It was a nice meeting.

The rainy season is sadly over here. At Green Pastures we had rain on April 28th and then not until May 17th when we had just 4 mm taking us up to a total for the year of 653.6 mm.

Last night I travelled to São Mamede to preach the Gospel in a street service on ‘the healing of a demon-possessed man’ in Mark 5:1-20. School teacher Claudivan led the service and praise was by Biê, Maricô and José. It was a nice meeting.

It was interesting last night to see Southern Lapwings at night as I took some people back to their farmsteads after having been to our Care Centre Dentist. I saw 3 of the birds which we normally see in the daylight.

At home here in Patos we have a pair of Ruddy Ground-Doves who have moved into our front room where Liz has a collection of indoor plants. The birds don’t worry about Liz and I at all. It is lovely! They fly in and out at will. 

The latest edition of EAB’s magazine InTouch #105 has been posted to everyone on our mailing list and should be reaching you soon.

Yesterday morning we had an online meeting of the ACEV senior leadership team in preparation for our general conference which starts next Friday. The meeting lasted nearly 2 hours and was very positive.

Last night I took the 25 minute drive to Green Pastures with 18 km on tarmac and 3 km on an earth track. It was to lead and preach at the weekly service that I take there with wonderful simple farming folk whom I love. It was a lovely service. I saw there the usual tree frogs, toads and Burrowing Owls. 

 Jeremiah 2 presents God’s charges against Israel for their abandonment as they involved themselves in outright paganism and idolatry, exchanging God’s living water for their own broken cisterns! God says: “I remember the devotion of your youth… Israel was holy to the Lord… but they followed worthless idols and became worthless themselves… you came and defiled my land… the prophets prophesied by Baal… therefore I bring charges against you… my people have exchanged their glory for worthless idols!” Then the text goes on to define two specific sins of Israel. First of all the forsaking of God’s living water which is God himself, and secondly the creating of broken cisterns that cannot hold water which represent the political international alliances as with Assyria and Egypt, instead of depending on the Lord. God asks: “why go to Egypt to drink water… or why go to Assyria for water too? Your backsliding will rebuke you!” God goes on to reprimand Israel for its unfaithfulness: “You lay down like a prostitute… How can you say I am not defiled; I have not run after the Baals?… you are like a wild donkey on heat!… as a thief is disgraced when he is caught so Israel is disgraced… they have turned their backs on me… you have as many gods as you have towns O Judah!… Does a bride forget her wedding ornaments? Yet my people have forgotten me!… you will be disappointed by Egypt as you were by Assyria!”