Ready to be stretched...

It's been over a month since my last update and there are a few exciting things that have happened in that time. In the middle of March, I graduated from a Leadership Course that I took the second half of last year. This course is essential for all who want to become cell group leaders and grow in the ministry here. It was a 5 month course with topics of Evangelism, New Creation, Christian Family and MDA vision (the discipleship and cell group system used in the PAZ churches). It was an excellent way to get even more involved with the work here in Santarém. Another big announcement is that I am now officially a cell group leader! I am very excited to have a cell group in my home now of all young girls!!! This has been my heart's desire for sometime now and it is very satisfying to see God bringing it to fruition. Also, becoming leader of this group has given me the privilege to have 2 more disciples. I now will be discipling 3 young ladies =). God is faithful!!!

Wednesday a team from ORU will be arriving and I will be very involved during their stay of almost a month. Our PAZ guesthouse hosts are currently on furlough so there is a group of us that are going to be helping a lot with the teams that will be arriving in the next several months. God is going to be stretching me for sure. With the arrival of the ORU team, I am going to be used a lot for translation during services. Sometimes this will include using a translator set and translating the church service for the team and other times it will include being up front as a team member shares a testimony or preaches. This will be a stretch for me in so many ways. I know the Lord will give me the strength to do this and I count on your prayers to hold me up during the next several weeks. Saturday and Sunday I will be translating for the ORU team during the youth/young adult service and Sunday during the main service. Sunday evening around 7pm we will be leaving on a boat trip to Vista Alegre which is located on the Maró River. It is a 20 hour boat trip from Santarém so we will have a lot of time to get to know each other and to rest up for our work. It looks like our main job will be to pour the floor of the church and also participate in cell group and any services they have while we are there. I will be the main translator for any house visits and church services. Once again God taking me out of my comfort zone! We will be back in Santarém on Saturday morning the 21st. The team will travel again but I will stay in Santarém getting ready for our summer interns to arrive at the beginning of June. On June 27th, I will lead the team to the city of Parintins (I went last year with the ORU team). We will spend about a week there helping the church and being involved in different ministry opportunities. As soon as we get back from Parintins, the interns will be here in Santarém ready to start the 2011 internship. I will try to get a blog update out between the trip to Vista Alegre and Parintins and again after Parintins before I run off with the interns haha!

Thank you so much for your prayers and financial support! I could not be here realizing God's call on my life without each of you. May God bless and keep you and yours!

Some pictures from my graduation:

Waiting for our names to be called

Receiving my certificate with my Pastor

Me!

With my friend, Darlen

My class and our teachers and pastors