Plans for the New Year

Dear friends,

I am MAJORLY owing you an update. A lot has happened in the last few weeks! I am very excited about what God has been up to and the privilege of being a part of it here in São Paulo, Brazil. January is the main vacation month here, since this is summertime (we have, nonetheless, had some unseasonably cold weather... ), but in contrast, February is one of the busiest months of the year! Here's what I'll be up to these next days and months:

1. CEVAP - this is the name used for the Compassion International project at my church here in SP. It's an acronym for "CEnter for VAlueing the PErson," - one that amazinginly enough works in both languages! It's pronounced se-va-py. I will be helping out there every Saturday morning, doing two things:
A. Giving English classes to 12-14 year olds (knowing English greatly increases your possibility of getting a good job here in São Paulo, and so hopefully will be very useful to them in their futures)
B. Ministering through the "Projeto Calçada" or Sidewalk Project, which uses Bible stories to help kids talk about and overcome emotional traumas, leading them to greater intimacy with Jesus (if you want to know more, let me know! I'm really excited about it!). The director of Cevap, a good friend of mine, has seen some incredible transformation in kids' lives through this method, but has so much on her plate that she has been unable to keep up with it. I will be ministering to one kid each Saturday morning, as it is an individualized program that usually takes about an hour.

2. Co-leading the teenager's small group at my church - last semester, I helped out with this group informally, but now I will be doing a lot more! I will be developing weekly practical studies for the main leader to minister in the small group, starting with one on 1 Cor. 12 - finding our place in the body. The group includes about 20 young people from ages 12-18, so developing studies that are relevant and interesting to the full age range is quite a challenge! I will also be planning and leading weekly ice-breakers, and helping mentor the worship leaders.


3. Sepal digital department - my work with the Sepal digital department will officially start on Feb. 18th. I will be facilitating an active internet discussion group on various church/theology related topics, doing some translation work, and various and other sundry things! One huge prayer request is for wisdom in whether to change my flight to the States this May to the 9th instead of the 1st so I can help out the digital team at the yearly Sepal Congress May 5-9. Over 1000 Brazilian pastors and church leaders participate in this Congress (this year the number looks like it could reach as many as 1500 people), and the digital department is responsible for filming the whole event, as well as dealing with various technical difficulties that always crop up. It would be a huge learning experience for me, as I have never worked with that kind of thing before, but they desperately need people who are willing to learn. On the other hand, I was planning to use that time to visit those of you who are living in the Chicago area, and was greatly looking forward to it! I do not know when I will be back in the US after this May, since I am planning to continue living here indefinitely, either as a missionary, or with a normal 8 to 5 job. If you have any insight into the issue, I would be glad to hear it!

4. MAPI website - the MAPI website is growing, and with it the amount of work to be done is also increasing! I am dreadfully behind on updating the English site, so I apologize to any of you who have glanced at it recently. Pray that I find the necessary time for this ministry amidst everything else I am up to.

5. Hospitality - we have always used our good-sized house in Brazil to house small pastor's retreats, to deepen relationships through having people over for dinner, and for other ministry purposes. I was surprised last semester at how much of my time ended up being used in food-making and dish-washing! However, this semester provides new challenges in that area. My mom was called to the US unexpectedly by some complications in my sister's health situation (Karis went through an intestinal transplant last year), and will probably be gone at least through the end of February. That leaves me in charge of hospitality for my dad's executive team of 8 people (other than him) who will be sleeping, eating, and meeting here next week! On Thursday night, we will be joined by the MAPI missionaries, bringing the group up to around 18. Thankfully, we were able to enlist the aid of two wonderful Brazilian cooks for some of the lunches and suppers, but I will still have plenty to do! I would appreciate your prayers that all would go smoothly, and that I don't burn the food! I also will be hosting the young adults small group I participated in last semester every Friday night.

I am extremely grateful to see ministry relationships I cultivated during the second half of last year flourish into new opportunities, and excited at these chances to be involved in what God is doing! Nonetheless, coordinating my time between all of these different activities is a challenge. Pray that I would continue to be open and sensitive to what the Holy Spirit has for me at each moment, instead of getting too caught up in the rush to listen! Pray also that my relationship with him would continue to be my first priority.

Thank you so much for your love and support! Without you, I would not be able to be involved in all I am doing.

Rachel