Sizzling in Sao Paulo

From warm and rainy Sao Paulo, we send New Year’s greetings to all, with thanks for your indefatigable partnership in our ministry.

January is summer vacation here, but we look forward to a full schedule of work-related activities.

• Jan. 12 to 20: We travel 250 miles north to the small town of Ibiraçi, for another Promifé (a Portuguese acronym for “Vacation Missionary Project”). Dozens of Brazilian young people come together from various churches and denominations with a common goal: share their love for Jesus and the transforming power of the gospel. Our role is encouragement and service to the leadership of the project. We need your prayers for physical stamina, as well as for open minds and hearts.

• Lalia continues to translate from English into Portuguese a book of 52 Bible lessons for children (320 pages, large format). Special challenges in this project are adaptations of puzzles, poems and music. This is where Lalia’s creative neurons start to flash frenetically.

• Curt is heading up the editorial process for two new books: a handbook for youth workers and a book of object talks for kids. Both are being translated by Brazilian free-lancers, but the former requires an additional chapter to fit the Brazilian context. Curt will check the translations line by line to see if they are accurate and faithful to the original text.

• Other books in the pipeline under Curt’s care are an introduction to Christian counseling, being written by a Brazilian author, and the revision of a series of discipleship self-study workbooks.

• In the red tape trophy category, Curt has been trying for more than a month to get some official papers registered for both the publishing house and the mission. There’s nothing like bureaucracy to build patience!

• Seminary classes start in February, after Carnaval. Curt has been asked to teach New Testament Greek again. The challenge is to present the material clearly, but in a way that will also challenge and motivate. Many students do not have a good grasp of Portuguese language and grammar, and this is a big roadblock to success. However, I take heart in the fact that the teacher always learns more than the student!