The past few months we’ve seen many ups and downs. We’ve rejoiced at the victories both in Oitão Preto and on the farm. We’ve cried over lives lost. We thank those of you who have stood with us in prayer! Without God there truly is no hope, but with Him miracles happen!
”Shine”
Finally being able to work out from a house located in the community is a great victory! We have had services and prayer meetings there, as well as working with different groups in the community. SENAC (a private non-profit organisation focused on offering courses to all of society) also held a 3-week course in the house on how to make sweet and savoury snacks for parties which went really well.
We do, however, realize that we are in a spiritual battle. What we need more then anything is to see more intercession and worship come forth from the house.
”Sítio Graça”- the farm
The farm is going well. Everyone was very excited to see Peter and Selma return in March after a well deserved time of holiday and networking. This year holds exciting challenges especially for Paulinho and Paulo who are taking steps to pursue their dreams. Paulinho is hoping to go to a Bibleschool in Norway and Paulo is wanting to do the YWAM Discipleship Training School in Salvador with the outreach in Africa. Do pray for them, and should you want to contribute financially do get in touch with us! The other boys are also blossoming and walking into the things of God.
We still need to see more staff join Peter, Selma, Fabiano and Dayane. We long to be able to give more boys, who are currently living in hopelessness on the streets, the opportunity to get to know Jesus and be transformed by the grace of God! Pray for committed people to join us! We believe that God has much much more for us.
The reality which shakes us.
The last few months have really shaken us up as we’ve received news of 3 of our young adults being killed. The two young men and young woman were all well known to us, and we had worked very closely with all of them; visiting them on the streets and getting to know their homes and their families. One of them was one of the first boys to ever live on the farm. The two young men got killed fleeing from the police, the young woman was stabbed to death. The stories are grusome. They reflect the reality of where the children, adolescents, and adults who live on the streets are headed unless something changes.
Thomas (one of the boys who spent a long time on the farm, but decided to leave) is painfully aware of this. One Sunday he turned up at church petrified. He knows that it is only a miracle that he is still alive. After getting out of youth prison his life has been comsumed with crack and armed assaults. After chatting with him for a long time we left him with the leaders of ”Lar da Paz” (the church’s drug rehab centre)…Pray for him.
Another boy very close to our hearts is now in prison serving a 30 year sentence for murder.
We choose to hold on to hope!
In the face of all of this it is easy to loose hope. But we refuse to give in to the hopelessness! As long as there is life there is hope!
We choose to keep remembering the victories in the lives of the boys at the farm, the house in the community, and the story of Graziela (a teenager from the community with severe eyeproblems) getting free treatment for her eyeproblems and doing a course.
Stand with us in prayer:
- pray for the work of ”SHINE” in the community of Oitão Preto.
- pray for ”Sítio Graça”- the farm- for staff, the boys, and guidance.
- pray for the kids and adults who still live on the streets.
- pray for Thomas- that God would redeem and restore him.
- pray for the staff of the project, and that God would bring ”more workers for the harvest”.
