Isaiah 48:17 This is what the LORD says– your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: “I am the LORD your God, who teaches you what is best for you, who directs you in the way you should go.
None of us like to embrace change, but if there is anything that life teaches us, it’s that there will be change. I remember when I left Brazil to go to college in the USA. It was quite a change. I remember going back to Brazil as a single, second-generation missionary. More change. In 1988, I became assistant camp director in Northeast Brazil with Word of Life and in less than two years I became the field director. More change.
Marriage and family came next. Then we moved to Costa Rica to work with Word of Life as a field director. After 4 years in Costa Rica, we came back to Brazil with SCORE International to start a new field- running Day Camps and sharing Christ with thousands of public-school students across Brazil. Now we are in the process of purchasing a property and building a camp. This year our youngest daughter will be off to college. Our lives are full of change! I can testify that for most of these changes, I never felt particularly ready.
That is why it is important to have something that never will change. God’s word will never change, and God’s word teaches us how to react to change. Isaiah tells us we have a Savior, who is totally different than anyone or anything we know. He is and always will be HOLY. Amazingly, the one true God says HE will teach us what is best. Through all of life’s changes, HE will show us and guide us in the way we should go.
We have a Savior.
We have a Teacher.
We have a Guide.
So, whatever the changes are today, we can be ready because of Christ.
During this time of social distancing, we have focused on translating discipleship material and ministering to individuals and larger groups through social media. In February, we were looking for a property to build a ministry/camp facility. After looking at over 50 locations, we were able to focus in on one at the beginning of March. We have all the documents needed to purchase the property except one. It is a study of the soil of the property, and if issued, gives us permission to build on the property. Currently, the Department of City Hall, which issues this document, is closed for an undetermined amount of time. We are seeking other avenues to obtain this document but have not had success. Good thing is we know that our God has, is, and will be guiding us in the way we should go.
Prayer Requests:
- We have found the location for the camp. Pray as we seek to resolve all the legal aspects involved in the purchase.
- Pray for Gustavo and Amanda (middle daughter) as they make plans for their wedding. They moved back from the 6th to the 27th of June, 2020.
- PTL, Caden and Jessica (oldest daughter) graduate this month from L.R. Scarborough College. Pray for God’s guidance in their lives.
- PTL, I was able to finish translating the discipleship material, “Launching Multipliers”, to Portuguese.
- Pray for Melissa as she makes plans to study at Word of Life Bible Institute in New York.
You can read more about the Theis family by clicking here: