Traveling Light

Dear friends and family,

We hope you are all well and that you enjoyed your summer. Rebecca and I are excited to share with you about the opportunity we had to go to Brazil in August. But first we’d just like to express our heartfelt thanks for those of you who were able to pray and to give of your resources to help make our trip possible. Our team had over 100% of the financial support we needed to go to Brazil so we were even able to give some of the team money to the Brazilian church which allowed them to care for two destitute families in their membership. May the Lord bless you for your generosity and faithfulness to support the body of Christ overseas.
 
The Ministry in Brazil
Our team went to help Tyler and Gigi Hopkins, missionaries who were sent by our church in southern California (Grace Community) to work alongside Igreja Batista Central (Central Baptist Church) of Fortaleza. Tyler focuses most of his time on training pastors at an institute that he started at the church. There is a great need in Brazil for Biblical teaching. Although there are many churches, very few pastors have ever had any formal Bible training. As a result they are easy prey to false teaching such as the “health and wealth” gospel. The Catholic church is also strong there as Brazil is the largest Catholic country in the world.

The Hopkins
One of the greatest blessings of our trip was getting to know Tyler and Gigi. We were able to spend much more time with them than Rebecca and I expected. We were thankful for their straight-forward and gracious manner as well as their wisdom. Their love for the Lord and desire to serve him is very evident and we were greatly encouraged by our time with them. Lord willing we will be able to serve with them if we go to Brazil long-term.

Our Trip
During our trip, we were able to dedicate time to doing manual labor at two mercy ministries that Igreja Batista Central (IBC) operates in the slums of Fortaleza. It was a joy to serve alongside the Brazilian believers in a tangible way. Among other things we:
·         whitewashed and painted
·         cleared land & laid a stone path
·         encouraged the believers at IBC
·         taught a small group (Justin)
·         spread the Gospel to the children in the slums

Future
As you probably know, Justin entered seminary in order to prepare for long-term overseas missions. Specifically during this time, a passion to help equip national pastors & church leaders has grown in us.  As such, this was a strategic short-term trip. Having had the opportunity to pray, think & seek council, we have decided to continue to pursue Brazil. We pray that the many questions we still have will be answered through the Lord’s timing and leading in our lives. Thank you again for your prayers for us. Please continue to pray as our training and travels continue.  To the Lord be the glory.
 
By grace,
Justin and Rebecca — Rev. 21:1-7
 
P.S. See photos at
http://www.travelinglite.org/brazil2009