Categoria: News

The Patos church band travelled to Manaíra on Saturday and led the P&W at the 23rd anniversary service there. It was a real blessing.


Sunday was great in Patos with 4 raising their hands at the end of the evening service – 2 were for rededication and 2 first commitments to Christ. PTL! The Lord really blessed the sermon I preached on John 6:37-47.


On Monday Liz and I had a great meeting with the Desert Flower Project team and what a good team it is! It was good to spend time listening to their experiences. Part of the team works with the “battered wives” and part works with their children. Slowly we are seeing some change in the folk. But some of the things the team goes through are unbelievable and I can’t say too much here. Toilets have to be totally washed down and sterilized after each day and much immoral behaviour is thrown at the team at times. It takes a lot of grace to cope. Please pray for the team and the project.

The Patos church band travelled to Manaíra on Saturday and led the P&W at the 23rd anniversary service there. It was a real blessing.


Sunday was great in Patos with 4 raising their hands at the end of the evening service – 2 were for rededication and 2 first commitments to Christ. PTL! The Lord really blessed the sermon I preached on John 6:37-47.


On Monday Liz and I had a great meeting with the Desert Flower Project team and what a good team it is! It was good to spend time listening to their experiences. Part of the team works with the “battered wives” and part works with their children. Slowly we are seeing some change in the folk. But some of the things the team goes through are unbelievable and I can’t say too much here. Toilets have to be totally washed down and sterilized after each day and much immoral behaviour is thrown at the team at times. It takes a lot of grace to cope. Please pray for the team and the project.

https://www.facebook.com/john.p.medcraft/posts/10155709831881240

https://www.facebook.com/john.p.medcraft/posts/10155709831881240

https://www.facebook.com/john.p.medcraft/posts/10155709831881240

Yesterday’s ‘Drug Free’ ministry group was really blessed with 2 visitors being helped. One has been off Crack for 14 months and the other for 8 months. Please pray for these two cases that God might help us to help them. We cannot mention names. The former has come back to God but the other is not a Christian. We pray that they might both live for God and that many more might come to the drug free meetings.

Yesterday’s ‘Drug Free’ ministry group was really blessed with 2 visitors being helped. One has been off Crack for 14 months and the other for 8 months. Please pray for these two cases that God might help us to help them. We cannot mention names. The former has come back to God but the other is not a Christian. We pray that they might both live for God and that many more might come to the drug free meetings.

Yesterday’s ‘Drug Free’ ministry group was really blessed with 2 visitors being helped. One has been off Crack for 14 months and the other for 8 months. Please pray for these two cases that God might help us to help them. We cannot mention names. The former has come back to God but the other is not a Christian. We pray that they might both live for God and that many more might come to the drug free meetings.

I have just had a very good meeting with the leader of the Drug Free Ministry Group, who is Nurse Liliane, and the assistant leader and University worker Adelson. We discussed the progress in the work and how to expand its effectiveness and influence for God’s glory.

I have just had a very good meeting with the leader of the Drug Free Ministry Group, who is Nurse Liliane, and the assistant leader and University worker Adelson. We discussed the progress in the work and how to expand its effectiveness and influence for God’s glory.

I have just had a very good meeting with the leader of the Drug Free Ministry Group, who is Nurse Liliane, and the assistant leader and University worker Adelson. We discussed the progress in the work and how to expand its effectiveness and influence for God’s glory.

Click below to watch my 90 second video:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0Bwqyx-aLBjHRaEJ4YkhuYkZRbk0/view?usp=sharing

Click below to watch my 90 second video:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0Bwqyx-aLBjHRaEJ4YkhuYkZRbk0/view?usp=sharing

The EAB magazine ‘In Touch’ edition 88 should be hitting your doormat shortly. Many thanks to Marian Rashleigh for all her work on this. The online edition is already available at: http://www.eabrazil.com/wp-content/uploads/eab-intouch88.pdf

The EAB magazine ‘In Touch’ edition 88 should be hitting your doormat shortly. Many thanks to Marian Rashleigh for all her work on this. The online edition is already available at: http://www.eabrazil.com/wp-content/uploads/eab-intouch88.pdf

The EAB magazine ‘In Touch’ edition 88 should be hitting your doormat shortly. Many thanks to Marian Rashleigh for all her work on this. The online edition is already available at: http://www.eabrazil.com/wp-content/uploads/eab-intouch88.pdf

Well it was a week with enough to do to keep us out of mischief! Liz and I over the past days visited no less than 15 EAB/ACEV churches – talking to the leaders and praying with them and taking part ministering in services. We took workers Josinete and Ray with us.


We went up the mountains to Teixeira, Matureia, Imaculada & Glória and then moving further west to Juru, Tavares, Cedro, Maia, Princesa Isabel and Manaíra. We held the opening service of the new church at Água Grande where I preached. We also went to Mandacaru, Pinheira, Travessia and Umburana before preaching again at Caroá. 


It was quite a marathon but really blessed. A big crowd gathered for the opening service on Saturday night. It really was lovely. The service on Sunday saw the Caroá church full. We visited well projects and plantations projects too. 


The jeep has returned unrecognizable covered with earth, dust and sand! What tracks we have been coping with these past days. Incredible!


I feel in need of a siesta now this Monday afternoon! Thanks for all your prayers and support. 

Well it was a week with enough to do to keep us out of mischief! Liz and I over the past days visited no less than 15 EAB/ACEV churches – talking to the leaders and praying with them and taking part ministering in services. We took workers Josinete and Ray with us.


We went up the mountains to Teixeira, Matureia, Imaculada & Glória and then moving further west to Juru, Tavares, Cedro, Maia, Princesa Isabel and Manaíra. We held the opening service of the new church at Água Grande where I preached. We also went to Mandacaru, Pinheira, Travessia and Umburana before preaching again at Caroá. 


It was quite a marathon but really blessed. A big crowd gathered for the opening service on Saturday night. It really was lovely. The service on Sunday saw the Caroá church full. We visited well projects and plantations projects too. 


The jeep has returned unrecognizable covered with earth, dust and sand! What tracks we have been coping with these past days. Incredible!


I feel in need of a siesta now this Monday afternoon! Thanks for all your prayers and support. 

We had a lovely service in the village of Arruda yesterday where I preached the Gospel at our church’s 14th anniversary. It was a two hour drive each way to get there but well worth it.


Tonight in Patos there were three decisons for Christ at the end of the communion service and one person re-dedicated their life to Christ. PTL! It was a lovely service.

We had a lovely service in the village of Arruda yesterday where I preached the Gospel at our church’s 14th anniversary. It was a two hour drive each way to get there but well worth it.


Tonight in Patos there were three decisons for Christ at the end of the communion service and one person re-dedicated their life to Christ. PTL! It was a lovely service.

We are exhausted after an intense leadership conference which gathered all our leaders from far and wide at Green Pastures Friday, Saturday and Sunday. There was a packed program of activities, especially for the senior leadership team who didn’t have the Saturday morning free like the rest, but there was a wonderful spirit at the event with harmony and the presence of the Lord very real.


Friday started with a fellowship welcome meal and then we got into our first meeting with different leaders sharing very positive news from Campina Grande, Curral Velho etc. We were off to a good start. On Saturday morning the leadership discussed a harmonious series of changes to our projects coordination team with Pastor Lindon Carlos taking up the main leadership role, Flávia, who was in that role, going back to being the assistant leader at her own request. Who had been the assistant leader had to leave her post owing to work commitments, but we introduced a new additional position for social worker Marah Danielle to take up in a further support role in the coordination team. Hence instead of it being 2 people it is now 3 – Lindon Carlos leading, Flávia writing projects and supporting aand marah supporting both. Our financial coordination Eduardo continues unchanged. These changed were very well received by everyone in the afternoon general assembly.


At night we had a Christian psychologist as speaker on depression and other related psychological problems so prevalent these days. She spoke brilliantly. After the meeting we held a special inauguration event of the new ACEV Digital software developed by Philip for the work. This is an amazing tool online for all our churches to record their members’ details, church activities and results etc. It will be a great tool for us to monitor all EAB/ACEV churches, projects etc. with precision details almost as they happen.


On Sunday morning the Christian psycholgist spoke on the whole gender issue which so bombards Christian position and beliefs these days. She spoke very well indeed about this as she did the previous day. We took the traditional group photo in this final session and then had a closing fellowship lunch before all heading back to our respective churches for our evening services. Our evening service in Patos was wonderfully blessed. PTL!

We are exhausted after an intense leadership conference which gathered all our leaders from far and wide at Green Pastures Friday, Saturday and Sunday. There was a packed program of activities, especially for the senior leadership team who didn’t have the Saturday morning free like the rest, but there was a wonderful spirit at the event with harmony and the presence of the Lord very real.


Friday started with a fellowship welcome meal and then we got into our first meeting with different leaders sharing very positive news from Campina Grande, Curral Velho etc. We were off to a good start. On Saturday morning the leadership discussed a harmonious series of changes to our projects coordination team with Pastor Lindon Carlos taking up the main leadership role, Flávia, who was in that role, going back to being the assistant leader at her own request. Who had been the assistant leader had to leave her post owing to work commitments, but we introduced a new additional position for social worker Marah Danielle to take up in a further support role in the coordination team. Hence instead of it being 2 people it is now 3 – Lindon Carlos leading, Flávia writing projects and supporting aand marah supporting both. Our financial coordination Eduardo continues unchanged. These changed were very well received by everyone in the afternoon general assembly.


At night we had a Christian psychologist as speaker on depression and other related psychological problems so prevalent these days. She spoke brilliantly. After the meeting we held a special inauguration event of the new ACEV Digital software developed by Philip for the work. This is an amazing tool online for all our churches to record their members’ details, church activities and results etc. It will be a great tool for us to monitor all EAB/ACEV churches, projects etc. with precision details almost as they happen.


On Sunday morning the Christian psycholgist spoke on the whole gender issue which so bombards Christian position and beliefs these days. She spoke very well indeed about this as she did the previous day. We took the traditional group photo in this final session and then had a closing fellowship lunch before all heading back to our respective churches for our evening services. Our evening service in Patos was wonderfully blessed. PTL!

I worked on In Touch 88 this week, which is produced by myself and Marian Rashleigh. Now it has gone to the graphics man Dave Flowers for the layout, before going to the printers. It’s due out in October. I also did some report material for a church which they requested.


I have prepared my sermon for Sunday, and done the order of service, as we have the leadership conference starting on Friday, so all has to be prepared in advance. I have also prepared the program for the Conference and the schedule for the leaders’ board meeting to be held there. 


I have also done a lot of work on Action Child here this week sorting out some important matters with the leaders. Action Child is going well again now. PTL!


I have had lots of issues to deal with this week with the leading pastors. It has been an exhausting week.


Tomorrow I take a group of 6 year old children to Green Pastures and on Friday there will be a group of 9 year olds – both groups in the mornings. The Conference starts late afternoon. We value your prayers.

I worked on In Touch 88 this week, which is produced by myself and Marian Rashleigh. Now it has gone to the graphics man Dave Flowers for the layout, before going to the printers. It’s due out in October. I also did some report material for a church which they requested.


I have prepared my sermon for Sunday, and done the order of service, as we have the leadership conference starting on Friday, so all has to be prepared in advance. I have also prepared the program for the Conference and the schedule for the leaders’ board meeting to be held there. 


I have also done a lot of work on Action Child here this week sorting out some important matters with the leaders. Action Child is going well again now. PTL!


I have had lots of issues to deal with this week with the leading pastors. It has been an exhausting week.


Tomorrow I take a group of 6 year old children to Green Pastures and on Friday there will be a group of 9 year olds – both groups in the mornings. The Conference starts late afternoon. We value your prayers.

Saturday saw Picotes village evangelized once again by a few of the Christians in Action group from Patos plus the whole Green Pastures church. It was a great meeting. The Deaf Fellowship also travelled up the mountains to Imaculada where God also blessed as our deaf pastor Luiz Carlos preached.


On Sunday the Communion service was greatly blessed with something like half the church flooding forward for prayer spontaneously at one point when the Holy Spirit swept across the church in power as Sacha sang. I later preached on the feeding of the five thousand. 


Today I had a long meeting with our new communications coordinator Ray Santana. It really was good. He is nearing the end of reading journalism at university and is an expert. He has ACEV on Instagram already and is getting Facebook and the website up to speed. Please pray for him.


Liz and I have been doing some church issues trouble shooting as well today. We value your prayers.

Saturday saw Picotes village evangelized once again by a few of the Christians in Action group from Patos plus the whole Green Pastures church. It was a great meeting. The Deaf Fellowship also travelled up the mountains to Imaculada where God also blessed as our deaf pastor Luiz Carlos preached.


On Sunday the Communion service was greatly blessed with something like half the church flooding forward for prayer spontaneously at one point when the Holy Spirit swept across the church in power as Sacha sang. I later preached on the feeding of the five thousand. 


Today I had a long meeting with our new communications coordinator Ray Santana. It really was good. He is nearing the end of reading journalism at university and is an expert. He has ACEV on Instagram already and is getting Facebook and the website up to speed. Please pray for him.


Liz and I have been doing some church issues trouble shooting as well today. We value your prayers.

Last night’s service commemorating EAB/ACEV’s 79th anniversary was absolutely out of this world. The play was the main message of the night and had so many people weeping (including some of the actors) that we almost had to mop the floor at the end! It is an amazing true story from our history and in a nutshell goes like this:


Zé Paulino was EAB/ACEV’s first evangelist in the 1940s. Prior to his conversion he had an affair with a married woman called Rosa dos Gatos. They eventually planned and executed her husband’s murder but got converted and transformed by God’s grace through the ministry of Bert Mundy in the Princesa Isabel jail. When they had served their sentence they became members of the EAB/ACEV church doing a great job spreading the Gospel. 


Frank Dyer, Ivy and Liz took on the leadership of the church with their help in 1950, but later Evangelist Zé Paulino became ill and died. However on his death bed he even won a man for Christ with his last words. The play ends with his death and then entrance into God’s eternal presence. “Where sin abounds, grace much more abounds”!


From last night’s play from the left: Frank & Ivy Dyer with Liz in her arms; Evangelist Zé Paulino & Rosa dos Gatos; Daisy & Bert Mundy with Graham. (Note that men in those days always wore white suits)

I have had a very intense day which started with the first meeting starting at 7:45 am at the project centre. The meeting was to discuss a possible public health project which if it works out could be fantastic. I will not say more about it yet as it is by no means sure. That’s how things are here in the work. People ask to talk to us and sometimes things work out and sometimes they don’t. If is comes to fruition the project will probably be established on land donated to ACEV by the Patos Council in 2006 which has never  been used for lack of funds. Please pray for this possibility which would be a massive long-term help for the health of thousands of extremely poor people.


After this I initiated the training course for those who are going to work in the new anti-drug project. I introduced the speaker/trainer and generally introduced the entire project idea. 22 came from 8 EAB/ACEVchurches. I stayed for the first part of the course before moving into another meeting. This Friday I will hold a meeting with those from Patos who were trained today to define where we go from here. Watch this space!


I then went into a two hour meeting with our projects coordinator Flávia discussing a very wide rage of projects and issues. It was well worthwhile.


Tomorrow I will be leading the main service of the week in Patos and Philip will be preaching. Your prayers are valued.