Well it’s certainly has been a busy month! We started April off with an Evangelical Outreach in a small town near Curtitiba called Canha. Jon was able to preach on the text of Exodus 14 and the Lord’s faithfullness and provision in all situations. The Lord brought three new people into His kingdom! More people raised their hands for prayer for strength in their current walk with Christ and Pastor Paul Abel had the opportunity to pray and talk with several people after the service. We proceeded to spend Easter in Curitiba celebrating and ministering with three churches in the area. From there we went to Florianopolis and got to tour the East side of Brazil.
The weekend after Florianopolis we went to Foz de Iguacu for an Evangelical Campaign. Pastor John Abel was there for a total of ten days and we were able to be there for the last four. During the campaign seventeen people accepted Christ as their own personal Lord and Saviour! We as a team sang nightly and kept very busy with the childrens ministry. We all had an amazing time working with the children and it was a great opportunity for all of us. While we were there we were able to spend one day sightseeing and being tourists! We went to the bird park and the massive waterfalls Brazil is famous for. God shows His flawless and amazing design through the falls and wildlife in Brazil.
After going to Foz de Iguacu we started preparations for our English camp. Amanda wrote a great piece in their blog about the camp that we’ve inserted:
“Well, the weekend is finished and camp is over. It definitely didn't turn out how we expected! With no pre-registration, it was only by word of mouth that we heard many people were interested in coming. So we were prepared for whatever might come our way! As it turns out so often in life, God's plan is a lot different than ours, a grand total of one student showed up! How did something like that happen? As humans we can't always understand what God is doing, but He quickly showed us that we were going to have an even better weekend than we imagined! There would have been no other way for all of us to have an entire camp all to ourselves for a Christ centered weekend. So thank you for all the prayers!”
We are also excited for future opportunities that are coming up that we will be able to participate in! One of which will be in the month of July while the Bible School here is closed. We will be going with Bethany Mission Fellowship across the country of Paraguay and taking a boat down along a native river and sharing the gospel with the tribal Indians that live along the shore. This trip will be from July 11-18 and will be costing us about $500 for transportation (bus and boat expenses) and our food along the way. Please be in prayer for us as we take an adventurous trip in sharing with some seldom reached people groups.
As we look to the future of our time here in Brazil, we look forward with joy as we have seen so many open opportunities here that God has opened for us and the with excitement as we know that God is faithful to use us according to His good pleasure! We go forward in confidence as we know that we have a Mighty God leading and guiding us and a strong prayer force behind us! With this in mind, please continue to pray for us as we continue in these months before us.
Prayer requests:
-Good health as we start into the cold season here in Brazil (40 degrees outside/inside)
-A continual heart to serve and love the people around us as we minister, as well as encouragement for the pastors alongside us here that are working so sacrificially.
-Continual growth in our learning of Portuguese
-For the kids in the Miriam Infant Home that have been arriving lately as they have no spiritual background and have a time to have exposure to the gospel during their stay here
-For continual assistance as we look to take on our financial needs here.
($200 a month rent, expenses for travel to/from churches for ministry, food, etc.)
Praise Updates:
-We have been able to visit 10 of the AFLC churches here in Brazil so far and share with them in the ministry they are apart of.
-We have been blessed by the Miriam Infant children that we have already had interaction with and have been able to share the love of Christ with. All those who have come to stay here with us we have been able to give a Bible too for their future growth with the Lord!
-By God’s grace, our Portuguese has grown and far exceeded where it was when we first arrived! Communication is getting easier!
-We have had great times in God’s Word with the Bible School students here and have come to build some great friendships with those we are with here in Brazil
-For the opportunities that we have had to get involved in the local community (Amanda and Bethany with city art classes and at the Miriam infant home, Nate and Jon’s house visits with a local Pastor, Nate’s curriculum writing for Ambassador Institute, Jon’s basketball with nearby youth who come most afternoons)
Thanks again for remembering us in prayer! God bless!
Amanda Aldrich, Bethany Marschner, Jon Nelson & Nathan Olson
If you would like to support us in our ministry here in Brazil, please send your support to:
(Amanda, Bethany, Jon or Nathan)
AFLC World Missions
3110 East Medicine Lake Blvd
Plymouth, MN 55441
