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Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God; 20  And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; 21  In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: 22  In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit. (Ephsians 2:19-22) Sunday just after Sunday school our church went the 100 meters from where we meet now to our future church building site. There were around forty of us who spread out to cover the four sides of our property. There we bowed our heads and prayed for God to consecrate this tiny piece of land for His honor and glory. It was a historic moment. It was a moment that we had been praying for for over two years. We had asked God’s direction, protection and provision. We had asked for clear and concrete proof as to where He wanted our building. Three ...

Uthai. Now there is a name for you. What mother looked into the eyes of her newborn little bundle of love and with a cooing voice said, “Your name will be Uthai.” Pronounced in Portuguese it would ooo-tie. Using a Mid-west U.S. accent it might come out You-thigh. Whatever the pronunciation it is not among the top-ten most popular boy names. If you have read the Bible through you have read about Uthai. Unless of course you "speed-read" the genealogies. You won’t find Uthai’s story in Flannel-graph, Bible coloring books nor in bed-time devotionals for kids. His name won’t come up in marriage counseling applications, wedding counseling presentations nor in Father’s Day messages but his is an important name. Or rather Uthai accomplishment was landmark. Now, you might be just dying to know who Uthai is and have already gone to you smartphone Bible to do a quick search. If so fine. If not listen to what my quick search discovered about the meaning of his name. In Strong’s Concor...

Heman a singer (1 Chronicles 6.32) Reading through 1 Chronicles I came across this interesting name and sacred music came to mind. What genera did Heman imitate? What kind of “set-up” time did Heman’s ancient group need. How did they do what they did without electricity? How did they worship God without amplifiers, soundboards, mixers and mics? Our worship music has evolved into an ugly alien these days. Its barely distinguishable from barroom music. There is a “Top Ten” countdown for gospel (little g) just as there is for Heavy Metal, Hip-Hop and Rap. And like the latter the gospel music performers receive little trophies for their labors and millions in their bank accounts. Of course I’m sure that each of them tithes to their local band of believers. Pun intended on the word “band”. Millions upon millions are invested and made in the gospel music industry. Didn’t that last phrase sound cold? It is cold. The gospel music industry is a sham. It is the Devil’s lie. It gratifies the f...

carry the silver and gold, which the king and his counsellors have freely offered (Ezra 7.15) Through the years I have often envisioned myself in a giant MONOPOLY game. I am terrible at MONOPOLY. Most know that MONOPOLY (I think that it needs to be spelled with all caps) is usually a dreadfully long game. Many times I have avoided embarrassment simply because I didn’t want to spend hours playing. Or rather hours waiting for everyone else to finish. I am usually the first one eliminated. It is a proven fact. I can’t seem  to win. MONOPOLY is a game of strategy and luck. This mix can be fun when you are a good strategist and when the luck is going your way. But when the die does you bad you’re out in a flash. I’ve tried to start small with Mediterranean and Baltic Avenues and grow. I’ve tried to start big with Park Place and Broadway and crush every opponent. I’ve tried the old barter system, buy a little of everything. I’ve tried to own all of the Utilities and Railroads but usu...

This last week at Faith Baptist Church was historic. For two years our church has been praying and saving to buy land. If you've visited our church you know that a venture like this was really an impossible dream.  God likes impossible dreams. On Thursday we signed the purchase agreement. We own two lots on Rua Laura Maria de Barros, Jardim dos Eucaliptos in Sorocaba.  What this means is that for the next two years we will be paying R$1.000 per month to pay off our loan. Pray with us for this phase.  We plan to begin to build soon. That to will be a miracle. Stay tuned.  Saturday we had rain for the first time in four months. We got five inches in one day. This made our Bible club turnout slim. We had forty-five kids. Though the turnout was low we shared the Gospel with each child.  Sunday we got another five inches of rain. Our people showed their committment to Christ by their presence in Sunday school and the evening service.  Saturday was ...

Biblical genealogies are easy to speed-read. At least for me they are. For one thing the names are usually tongue-twisters. For another there is usually nothing to know about each individual. So when I come to a long list of names that begin, “And so-and-so begat so-and-so, who begat so-and-so, who begat so-and-so…. I whip through that list in nothing flat. Is that a sin? About four years ago I did something that I had always wanted to do. I began to research my own genealogy. There was this site on the Net and it had a free trial so I began to dabble. The site had a huge database and it would offer suggestions as to who I might be related to. They were tantalizing tidbits for someone who wanted to know about where he came from and just how much royal blood he had. There was a catch, however. When I would come to an crook in my family tree. That is bend in a branch and not the bank robber type crook. There would be a slight charge. “For just $3.99 you can dig a little deeper into o...

And Meshobab, and Jamlech, and Joshah the son of Amaziah (1Ch 4:34) My name is in the Bible! Michael means, “One who is like God.” It is a powerful name and an impressive moniker. I didn’t choose it and I didn’t like it as a kid. For some reason I couldn’t imagine a man named, “Mike”. Michael is mentioned fifteen times in Scripture. I loved the fact that five of those times he is mentioned as an angel. I always use that designation to my advantage. He is one of only three named angels you know? Is it important to have your name written in the Bible? Each written name gets eternal recognition whether for good or for bad. Take Rueben for instance. He is noted to have defiled his father Jacob’s bed and thus lost his birthright. If I were Rueben I wouldn’t want that news highlighted. Or how about the above curious list found in 1 Chronicles 4.34-37. This group traveled to a “Lord of the Rings” name type city called Gedor. There they massacred a peaceful people and took their land. Did ...

The seller is very anxious to sell and we are anxious to buy but our lawyer friend has the level-head and we are proceeding cautiously. Purchasing land here can be a tricky venture. I will be meeting with the seller this morning to put down a sizable deposit on the two lots and I should learn more about finalizing the purchase as well. We would appreciate continued prayer protection on this important event in the history of our young church!

We went to City Hall today and discovered that the lots can be used for a church building. We then talked to our lawyer and he made some crucial calls for us. He confirmed what the guy at City Hall had told us. We’re excited and trembling at the same time. I always sweat the details of a big ticket purchase. I think of all of the extra costs that will be involved like: taxes, electric, water and building upkeep. Each will require money that we don’t have. We had a business meeting just yesterday after church. If you would have seen it you might have compared it to one of the old Little Rascals movies. You know the ones where the club is meeting in their old broken-down hide-out and the kids are calling all of the shots. It was something like that. Alexandre was directing the meeting but it was the kids who were voting for and against each item on the agenda. I went back to that scene on the hills of Judah when David met Goliath. I wonder what that looked like? Did it seem silly to t...

To See the Two Lots click Here For years I was considered a “wise” missionary because I had an investment that would be wonderful when it came time to retire. That was until the financial crisis hit. Now if I tell anyone that I have a house in Michigan I get that, “Oh my! You poor soul!” look. Isn’t it funny what we consider a good thing? Our house in Michigan hasn’t changed much over the years. We’ve had and have great renters. The income pays the bills each month. But when the crisis hit our “investment” took a tremendous hit. Here in Brazil, which promises to be an “up and coming” country it is interesting to watch people clamor for their piece of that “good investment” pie. I have been informed that I need to jump on that bandwagon. I would if I had any money! Our tiny church is taking a “David” (ie. David vs Goliath) step of faith just now in this up and coming real estate climate. Lots here at the north end of town have skyrocketed in price in this last year. When they were m...