January 2012 News

A WEEK OF MINISTRY IN RECIFE
Jerry spent the first week of December in Recife in the Northeast
of Brasil ministering at several congregations.
1. Monthly couples meeting on Romance and the Stages of Marriage at the Boa Viagem church with 65 participants.
2. Relationship building workshop at the area wide men´s meeting where 46 church leaders participated in our DISC seminar. 15 different congregations were represented at the event held at the Boa Vista church.
3. Jerry preached and led the Bible class at the São Lourenço church on the Power of Forgiveness.
4. All day leadership workshop with the staff of the Boa Viagem church.
5. Area wide meeting for seasoned leadership couples on conflict styles in marriage at the Boa Vista church.
6. Interviews and counseling sessions with the house parents of the Lar Maná children´s home.
It was a very full week! But it was wonderful to work with the brothers and sisters in Recife again after several years of not being able to go there. The Lord is good!



Jerry teaching at the DISC seminar








Men at the DISC seminar

Couples meeting









With Daniel Palk who helped organize the events.















SABBATICAL

December 12 to March 12
We began our sabbatical on December 12 after Jerry returned from his trip to Recife. This past couple of years have been exhausting, but very fruitful! We felt God calling us to a time of rest and renewal. A time to reflect on where we are and where we are going with our ministry. A time to recover from the stress of a very active mission. We thank God for a sponsoring church who has supported us in this decision and for friends and supporters who are encouraging us. We have been on sabbatical for a little over a month as I write this. We have rested, exercised, gotten back to eating well, read books, and spent wonderful time in prayer and listening to God. Next week we will be traveling to the US for a retreat at Sonscape in Colorado. Sonscape retreats minister to church workers in need of rest and spiritual renewal. We are looking forward to having others minister to us! Please keep us in your prayers as we travel and as we seek His wisdom during this retreat.
















Workshop on Gestalt Therapy
Our first step into sabbatical was a weekend retreat to learn about and experience Gestalt Therapy. It was lead by a well known Brasilian therapist, Jorge Ponciano. Jerry got him to sign a couple of his books. We went with some very dear friends from the church in Campo Grande. It was a great way to start winding down and venture into a new arena of learning. It was held in a beautiful place in the interior of São Paulo state where we could feel close to God in His creation.

KRIS HOME FOR CHRISTMAS!

The best part of December was having Kristofer here for 3 weeks. We missed getting to have the whole family this year, but it was wonderful to see Kris and spend some time taking care of our boy/young man.
Kris is now in his last semester of teaching at Heritage International School in Kampala, Uganda. In June he will be returning to the US and looking for a job in Indiana so he can be close to his girlfriend (who is also a teacher at HIS).
Angela finished her masters in Modern Languages in December and is now teaching part-time high school Spanish, a Spanish class at the University of Texas at Arlington and also working on some translations for one of her professors.
Much love to everyone!! Thank you for your support and encouragement.