Categoria: News

This wisdom psalm by the Sons of Korah points out that death is inevitable for both rich and poor. It says than no ransom is ever enough for a man’s life. The wise, foolish and senseless all die just the same. For man, come what may, is mortal like animals. But despite the grave being unavoidable for all the author expresses his hope in the redemption of God. For God “will surely take me to himself”, he says. For accumulation of wealth is pointless as you take nothing with you to the grave.

 Psalm 48 is a song of praise by the sons of Korah celebrating the mighty, beautiful, lofty Mount Zion with the city of Jerusalem – the city of the great Lord! God, it says, is Zion’s fortress causing enemy kings to flee in terror and shattering them with the wind. Mount Zion, it says, rejoices because of God’s judgements. God is our God for ever and ever to the end.

Psalm 47 is another psalm of the sons of Korah written for the director of music. It is a joyful positive psalm extoling God’s sovereignty who is “the great king over all the earth”. Much praise ascends to God who is the one who “reigns over the nations”. It says that “the kings of the earth belong to God” who is highly exalted.

Yesterday was International Women’s Day and we had Sacha preaching very well on Women of the Bible: Esther (courage), Ruth (faithfulness), Hannah (prayer) and Mary (willingness). It was lovely too to have Louisa and Tiago back in the praise and worship group. It was a very good service.

Yesterday QPR were hammered yet again at home! This time they lost 4 x 0 to Middlesbrough! Oh dear! We are now down to 16th in the Championship. 😖

Yesterday was International Women’s Day and we had Sacha preaching very well on Women of the Bible: Esther (courage), Ruth (faithfulness), Hannah (prayer) and Mary (willingness). It was lovely too to have Louisa and Tiago back in the praise and worship group. It was a very good service.

Yesterday QPR were hammered yet again at home! This time they lost 4 x 0 to Middlesbrough! Oh dear! We are now down to 16th in the Championship. 😖

Yesterday was International Women’s Day and we had Sacha preaching very well on Women of the Bible: Esther (courage), Ruth (faithfulness), Hannah (prayer) and Mary (willingness). It was lovely too to have Louisa and Tiago back in the praise and worship group. It was a very good service.

Yesterday QPR were hammered yet again at home! This time they lost 4 x 0 to Middlesbrough! Oh dear! We are now down to 16th in the Championship. 😖

Yesterday morning I went to the Patos Shopping Centre to pray a prayer of blessing on a new shop/kiosk called ‘Flora Pura’ run by Thayse and Alan from our church. May God bless this endeavour. 

Last night I led the service at Green Pastures and preached on ‘not abandoning Jesus’ from John 6:60-71. After the service I drove up to the lake and saw the largest Brazil Plum Tree we have looking wonderful after the rains in the Jeep’s headlights. I also saw a Burrowing Owl for the first time in quite a while.

Philip has just arrived back in England via Recife, Rio de Janeiro and Paris. The clutch packed up in Campina Grande on the way back from taking Philip to the airport.

Yesterday morning I went to the Patos Shopping Centre to pray a prayer of blessing on a new shop/kiosk called ‘Flora Pura’ run by Thayse and Alan from our church. May God bless this endeavour. 

Last night I led the service at Green Pastures and preached on ‘not abandoning Jesus’ from John 6:60-71. After the service I drove up to the lake and saw the largest Brazil Plum Tree we have looking wonderful after the rains in the Jeep’s headlights. I also saw a Burrowing Owl for the first time in quite a while.

Philip has just arrived back in England via Recife, Rio de Janeiro and Paris. The clutch packed up in Campina Grande on the way back from taking Philip to the airport.

 Psalm 46 is a glorious expression of confidence in the sovereign Lord. God, say the sons of Korah, is refuge and strength always present in times of trouble. No matter what happens we will not fear it says. It says that God is within Jerusalem and therefore she will not fall. Nations maybe in uproar, kingdoms may fall but when God speaks the earth melts. “The Lord Almighty is with us”! He is above all and ceases wars and ends violence. “Be still and know that I am God” exalted among the nations. The psalm ends saying that “the God of Jacob is our fortress”!

Psalm 45 is another psalm by the Sons of Korah. Only this time it is a royal wedding song probably written to honour one of King David’s many weddings. The psalm extols the most excellent king whom God has blessed forever. The king is clothed with splendour and majesty, he loves righteousness and hates wickedness, his robes are fragrant and his palaces are adorned with ivory. Then the bride is addressed telling her to forget her father’s house as she is all glorious in her chamber and led to the king as a virgin in embroidered garments and she is led to the king with joy. This psalm has strong messianic tones and is partially quoted in Hebrews 1:8-9. 

Philip left Patos at 4 pm yesterday starting his long journey back to England where he won’t arrive until tomorrow afternoon. He will call in to see his in-laws Julimar and Graça in João Pessoa on the way before flying from Recife to Rio de Janeiro and then on to Heathrow.

I went to Green Pastures and saw Great Kiskadees, Striped Cuckoos and Caatinga Cacholotes making a nest with enormous twigs as they do. I saw the fencing work going well. I will be back their later to take the communion service and preach God’s word,

Philip left Patos at 4 pm yesterday starting his long journey back to England where he won’t arrive until tomorrow afternoon. He will call in to see his in-laws Julimar and Graça in João Pessoa on the way before flying from Recife to Rio de Janeiro and then on to Heathrow.

I went to Green Pastures and saw Great Kiskadees, Striped Cuckoos and Caatinga Cacholotes making a nest with enormous twigs as they do. I saw the fencing work going well. I will be back their later to take the communion service and preach God’s word,

Philip left Patos at 4 pm yesterday starting his long journey back to England where he won’t arrive until tomorrow afternoon. He will call in to see his in-laws Julimar and Graça in João Pessoa on the way before flying from Recife to Rio de Janeiro and then on to Heathrow.

I went to Green Pastures and saw Great Kiskadees, Striped Cuckoos and Caatinga Cacholotes making a nest with enormous twigs as they do. I saw the fencing work going well. I will be back their later to take the communion service and preach God’s word,

This psalm is a lament written by the Sons of Korah. It first of all recalls the good old days when God gave victory upon victory to his people. It is stressed that these victories were exclusively possible thanks to the arm of the Lord and not by their own swords. However now God’s people feel abandoned. The authors cry to God to wake up and stop rejecting them. For they feel forgotten. God’s people feel they are enduring undeserved suffering and disgrace and cry to God to rise up and help them!

This psalm is a lament written by the Sons of Korah. It first of all recalls the good old days when God gave victory upon victory to his people. It is stressed that these victories were exclusively possible thanks to the arm of the Lord and not by their own swords. However now God’s people feel abandoned. The authors cry to God to wake up and stop rejecting them. For they feel forgotten. God’s people feel they are enduring undeserved suffering and disgrace and cry to God to rise up and help them!

 Someone summed up Psalm 43 in 4 words: From depression to praise! The psalm cries to God for vindication asking God to rescue the author from deceitful and wicked men. The psalmist says he is mourning and feels oppressed. So he prays for God’s light and truth to guide him so that he can go to God’s altar where he will praise him with the harp. The psalm ends with the psalmist reflecting on his unnecessary low mood and he encourages himself to put his hope in God and praise him.

Last night was Philip’s last service with us on this trip and we are so glad he came. What a blessing he has been at the Carnival camp, in the Patos church etc. It has been wonderful! After the service last night everyone was hugging him and wishing him a good journey, and sister Veronica said “come back soon because your ministry is SO blessed”! So I ask everyone to pray for Philip, Gylmara, Lucas and Luis to be back permanently with us as soon as possible… by the middle of next year or even in December this year. How great it would be for them to be here for Christmas!

Last night was Philip’s last service with us on this trip and we are so glad he came. What a blessing he has been at the Carnival camp, in the Patos church etc. It has been wonderful! After the service last night everyone was hugging him and wishing him a good journey, and sister Veronica said “come back soon because your ministry is SO blessed”! So I ask everyone to pray for Philip, Gylmara, Lucas and Luis to be back permanently with us as soon as possible… by the middle of next year or even in December this year. How great it would be for them to be here for Christmas!

Last night was Philip’s last service with us on this trip and we are so glad he came. What a blessing he has been at the Carnival camp, in the Patos church etc. It has been wonderful! After the service last night everyone was hugging him and wishing him a good journey, and sister Veronica said “come back soon because your ministry is SO blessed”! So I ask everyone to pray for Philip, Gylmara, Lucas and Luis to be back permanently with us as soon as possible… by the middle of next year or even in December this year. How great it would be for them to be here for Christmas!

Yesterday afternoon I had a spin out to Green Pastures and with 329 mm of rain to date in this rainy season it is very green and we are making the most of the wet earth to put up some more fencing for our donkeys. Francisco reports many sightings of deer which is great. I saw Picui Ground-Doves, Chalk-browed Mockingbirds, Striped Cuckoos, Campo Troupials and Spot-backed Puff Birds.

Last night I dealt with more pastoral matters whilst Liz and Philip went to the service at the Pastor Frank Dyer School.

Yesterday afternoon I had a spin out to Green Pastures and with 329 mm of rain to date in this rainy season it is very green and we are making the most of the wet earth to put up some more fencing for our donkeys. Francisco reports many sightings of deer which is great. I saw Picui Ground-Doves, Chalk-browed Mockingbirds, Striped Cuckoos, Campo Troupials and Spot-backed Puff Birds.

Last night I dealt with more pastoral matters whilst Liz and Philip went to the service at the Pastor Frank Dyer School.

Last night the men’s fellowship was really good with Philip leading the praise and speaking really well. The meeting was led by school teacher Claudivan. There were 15 men present.

Yesterday it rained another 16 mm at Green Pastures.

Last night the men’s fellowship was really good with Philip leading the praise and speaking really well. The meeting was led by school teacher Claudivan. There were 15 men present.

Yesterday it rained another 16 mm at Green Pastures.

Patos has 2 principal reservoirs and these are taking in a lot of water with the heavy rains now falling. The Farinha reservoir has gone from zero to 79% and Jatobá has gone from almost zero to 30%. PTL! Please keep praying.

With the heavy rains the road up the mountain to Teixeira is very dangerous as trees are falling and rocks and boulders rolling down on to the road. 

I have finished the résumés or summaries of the first book of Psalms covering psalms 1 to 41. Now it’s on to book two from psalm 42 to 72.

Last night we had a family pancake night wishing Philip a good trip home to Basingstoke on Friday. It was a great evening. 

Patos has 2 principal reservoirs and these are taking in a lot of water with the heavy rains now falling. The Farinha reservoir has gone from zero to 79% and Jatobá has gone from almost zero to 30%. PTL! Please keep praying.

With the heavy rains the road up the mountain to Teixeira is very dangerous as trees are falling and rocks and boulders rolling down on to the road. 

I have finished the résumés or summaries of the first book of Psalms covering psalms 1 to 41. Now it’s on to book two from psalm 42 to 72.

Last night we had a family pancake night wishing Philip a good trip home to Basingstoke on Friday. It was a great evening. 

Patos has 2 principal reservoirs and these are taking in a lot of water with the heavy rains now falling. The Farinha reservoir has gone from zero to 79% and Jatobá has gone from almost zero to 30%. PTL! Please keep praying.

With the heavy rains the road up the mountain to Teixeira is very dangerous as trees are falling and rocks and boulders rolling down on to the road. 

I have finished the résumés or summaries of the first book of Psalms covering psalms 1 to 41. Now it’s on to book two from psalm 42 to 72.

Last night we had a family pancake night wishing Philip a good trip home to Basingstoke on Friday. It was a great evening. 

This psalm of the sons of Korah apparently expresses people’s longing for God when they were far away from Jerusalem (“the heights of Hermon – from Mount Mizar – verse 6) maybe in exile. The writers say their soul thirsts for God, and critics ask where is your God? The writers remember nostalgically about the “festive throng” at Jerusalem. People are downcast and feel forgotten by God. The psalm ends proposing hope in God as the solution for all their woes.

This Davidic psalm for the director of music is a lament related to ill health and abandonment by a close friend. David says happy is he who cares for the weak because the Lord will deliver him, preserve him and sustain him when sick. David then cries to God to have mercy on him and forgive his sin. David says that all his enemies conspire against him and even his close friend has abandoned him. He cries to God for mercy and rests assured that he will be in God’s presence for ever. He ends with praise to the Lord. Amen.

This psalm ended book 1 of psalms.

David in Psalm 40 starts thanking God for past deliverance but ends up asking for further help. He starts praising God for him having heard him and having lifted him out of a slimy pit and having put a new song in his mouth. Happy is the person who trusts God, says David, because the resultant blessings are too many to tell. David says his desire is to do God’s will and speak about God’s salvation and faithfulness. He asks the Lord not to withhold his mercy from him, save him and help him. For God is his help and deliverer!

This another psalm of David for the director of music and for Jeduthun expresses his decision to control his speech so as to avoid sinful utterances as he went through a period of God’s discipline or of illness. He starts saying he will put a muzzle on his mouth. He realizes that his life is very short and that “each man’s life is but a breath”, as he bustles about in vain. David then expresses that his hope is in God and asks for him to remove his scourge from him. He concludes asking the Lord to hear his cry for help!

This another psalm of David for the director of music and for Jeduthun expresses his decision to control his speech so as to avoid sinful utterances as he went through a period of God’s discipline or of illness. He starts saying he will put a muzzle on his mouth. He realizes that his life is very short and that “each man’s life is but a breath”, as he bustles about in vain. David then expresses that his hope is in God and asks for him to remove his scourge from him. He concludes asking the Lord to hear his cry for help!

I led the main service of the week last night which was the monthly communion service and Pastor Rafael preached on the parable of the pharisee and the tax collector from Luke 18. Sacha, Marina, Philip and Rogério led the worship backed by Netinho, Ricardinho and Davi. Philip brought a short word during the meeting. It was a lovely service.

It rained another 20 mm at Green Pastures last night taking the year’s total to date to 313.1 mm. We need about 1,000 mm for a good rainy season.

I led the main service of the week last night which was the monthly communion service and Pastor Rafael preached on the parable of the pharisee and the tax collector from Luke 18. Sacha, Marina, Philip and Rogério led the worship backed by Netinho, Ricardinho and Davi. Philip brought a short word during the meeting. It was a lovely service.

It rained another 20 mm at Green Pastures last night taking the year’s total to date to 313.1 mm. We need about 1,000 mm for a good rainy season.

Psalm 38 is a penitential prayer by David in which he recognizes that his ill-health, his low mood and his abandonment of friends are all a result of his unconfessed sin. “Because of your wrath there is no health in my body”. “I am bowed down and brought very low”. David says that his friends avoid him and stay away from him. He says that he feels like a deaf man and he confesses his iniquity. Oh Lord, he cries, do not forsake me. Come quickly to help me.

Psalm 38 is a penitential prayer by David in which he recognizes that his ill-health, his low mood and his abandonment of friends are all a result of his unconfessed sin. “Because of your wrath there is no health in my body”. “I am bowed down and brought very low”. David says that his friends avoid him and stay away from him. He says that he feels like a deaf man and he confesses his iniquity. Oh Lord, he cries, do not forsake me. Come quickly to help me.

David here tells people not to worry about evil people who prosper because it won’t last. David encourages people to trust in the Lord and wait for him to give their hearts’ desires. The wicked will soon be gone, he says, but the meek will inherit the land, as God laughs at the false hope of the wicked. In fact the wicked’s bows will backfire because better is a little with God than lots with wickedness. When things go wrong God is with the blameless and they will not wither, however the wicked will perish like plants in the fields. The wicked borrow and don’t repay, but the righteous are generous. God’s people may stumble but they won’t fall because God supports them. I am old but I have never seen the righteous forsaken, David says. Turn from evil and do good, he proposes. For the offspring of the wicked will be cut off. Wait for the Lord, David says, and he will exalt you. There is always a future for a man of peace, but the wicked will be cut off. The salvation of the righteous come from the Lord.