We hope you had a time of thanksgiving to God as you gathered this past week for a holiday. The habit of giving thanks should be a normal reaction throughout our days. God is so wonderful and has given us so much and has forgiven us all of our sins and daily intercedes for us as He prepares a blessed eternity for those who choose to trust Him. Yet, too often our day to day attitudes are filled with grumbling and complaining. There really is no excuse for attitudes like that! God has given us the gift of thanksgiving for our own good. He knows that having an attitude of gratitude changes our perspective and makes our life better. Above all, God deserves our thanksgiving and praise and devotion. Life in the real world, in the here and now, is not easy. We face great difficulties in the challenges of missionary life in Brazil. We realize that the suffering many people are facing today is far greater than our own. But, one thing is certain – God’s will for His people is to give thanks in all things. Today I give thanks for our family and friends, for our churches and for our supporters, for health and food and daily provisions, for the trials and challenges we face, for the nearness of God, for His Word which is true and sure, for salvation and forgiveness and HOPE and a million other things. Thank you, Lord, for your indescribable blessings in our lives and for your perfect plan worked out in the midst of suffering and trials. If you haven’t thanked God yet today, take a minute to honor Him with your thanksgiving.
We are driving home (6-hour trip) after spending four days in Campo Mourão for the graduation ceremonies at the Bible School and seminary. I was invited once again to direct the choir and help with the music and organization of the event. The students are very appreciative, and we always sense that the investment of time and money and concern is well worth our efforts. We pray that the Lord will use each one in a special way as 
they follow His call on their lives. Paul was involved in several meetings during these days with pastors and leaders of our denomination. Both of us spent hours counseling various individuals and praying with them. There are needy people all around us who need encouragement, exhortation and prayer. Paul will be preaching at our church in Campo Largo tonight and I will be helping the children lead the service, so we trust the Lord to bring us safely home to continue ministry on the home front.
Since I last wrote, we had a blessed Missionary Conference at the ARCA with about 60 participants. Each one chose a workshop – Personal Evangelism, Social Outreach, Child Evangelism, or Impact Evangelism using art, music and drama. After the days of training we had a practical outreach on the last day to help the participants actually evangelize. Besides the time of challenge and teaching, God used this event to bring revival through repentance and confession of sin and a renewed awareness of His plan for our lives. One of the positive results of the retreat was the commitment of a great group of young adults to help plan our next big event for youth – Carnaval camp in February. We have already had one planning meeting where the theme and division of responsibilities were defined. This event seems to start off the year with renewed commitment on the part of youth to seek the Lord and live for Him.
A fun visit from a group of Canadian boys filled two weeks in November with lots of activity and projects. Matt and Kyle Hagen are members of a Free Lutheran church in Canada. Their two friends Bentley and Garett, joined them for an adventure in Brazil. They helped us with several projects including a landscaping project in our yard, building gates for the fences around the pasture, painting the Sunday School rooms and fixing the roof at the church in Campo Largo. Of course, we took some time for fun in the sun, too. Joe Long also dropped in for a day or two while the boys were with us.
We are in the busy time of year now preparing for Christmas. Choir practices and Sunday School programs are on the top of my mind. I need to get the house decorated and get things ready for my dear boys who will be here again to celebrate Christmas this year (what a blessing!). Our churches have their annual meetings at this time of the year and important decisions are made. Our Saturday afternoon Bible club in going well but ends up being another commitment of time and energy and planning each week. Leadership courses twice a month have also been good. The dedication of the new church in Borda do Campo was another big event this month. Life marches on and we keep looking to Jesus to renew our energies and teach us how to be His people in every situation.
Please continue to pray for us as we preach and teach and interact with people. We know the Truth and the Truth has set us free. We seek to bring that Truth to those who continue bound in the chains of sin. We ask for special prayer support for our friend Yara as she works through past traumas in hopes of emotional and spiritual wholeness. Pray for spiritual protection and victory in the name of Jesus.
May the Lord bind our hearts together in love even when distance and busy schedules seem to keep us apart. Have a wonderful December!
Love and thanks, Paul and Becky
