Fortaleza

One of the most interesting things about Brazil is its vast size. Brazil is bigger than the continental USA. It really is surprising how different Brazil's reality differs from region to region. Traveling throughout Brazil leaves one wishing it were possible to live in five or six different cities at the same time. It is never boring here.

This past week I visited a city that is new to me but famous to all Brazilians. I was guest speaker at the annual pastors and leaders conference held in the northern Brazilian city of Fortaleza. What a city! What a conference!

Fortaleza is home to over 3 million and it has some of the most beautiful beaches in the world. A mix of beauty and poverty, Fortaleza is home to the Central Baptist Church led by Pastor Armando Bispo. For the past 24 years this dynamic man of God and his dear wife have seen God gather a congregation of nearly 4,000 in weekly attendance. The church is among the finest I have ever seen on any continent. Their energy and passion for Jesus is truly inspiring.

Each year the church hosts a leadership conference and over 500 pastors and leaders come from all over Brazil. The year the theme was "Leaders that Abide". I fit right in! What a privilege it was to preach for hours and hours to this hungry team of leaders.

Fortaleza has become the home to many, many Europeans who are taking advantage of the strong Euro and the excellent weather in Fortaleza. It is amazing to see how "small" the world is becoming day by day. One can see the day not far into the future where Brazil will be seen as a key player in world affairs.

Fortaleza is worth a visit. I, for one, will be going back and wishing I could call Fortaleza home, too.

Pictures from top....
First--Bud speaking at evening session
Second-part of Central Baptist Pastoral team
Third --Closing service of Conference
Fourth--Conference leaders Orlando and Chris
Fifith--Conference theme--Leaders who Abide
Sixth--Evening sessions
Seventh-- Senior Pastor Amando Bispo and wife with Bud

The Amazon

Pam and I have just returned to our first trip to northern Brazil since returning to Brazil. We were guests at Word of Life North where we were able to minister to students and staff at the Word of Life Bible Institute. What a great ministry!

The young people at this institute are being trained to be able to minister among the 33,000 villages that can be found along the many rivers in the Amazon region of Brazil. We were taken to visit one of these river communities. The price paid to minister in these difficult to reach places is amazing. We visited the closest one to the Word of Life facility and it was still quite a day of heat and effort.

Our dear friends Bill and Mary Jo Price were saved many years ago through Word of Life in the USA and now they travel to the 51 international Word of LIfe locations to bless and encourage these great people. Bill and Mary Jo invited us to come to northern Brazil so Abide Ministries could make a connection with the leaders there.

There was also a youth congress held during this same trip and we were able to participate in the teaching ministry to the 200 teens who attended. It made us feel young again!

Click on photos to enlarge. Photos top to bottom.
#1 Guest speaker Dave Boque speaks at youth conference.
#2 Gary and Sandy Parker--Directors of Word of Life North
#3 John Reimer--Director for Word of Life Brazil--oversees seven locations
#4 Bill and Mary Jo Price
#5 The meeting of the two rivers that create the huge Amazon river. Notice they don't mix!
#6 The view from above as we flew over the Amazon.
#7 The river ministry transportation
#8 Elaine Bogue and Pam
#9 and #10 People who live on the river

Pastor's conference

Our home church here in Brazil has a tremendous influence nationwide. Through annual conferences for leaders and with the producing of materials for Purpose Driven churches, First Baptist of Sao Jose is really making a difference in Brazil.

The fact that God led us back to Brazil and to this place is nothing short of miraculous. By simply being here at this moment in time the Abide Brazil ministry has had instant access to hundreds and hundreds of church leaders.

Just two weeks ago I was able to deliver a messages on the theme "Where Leaders Find Satisfaction" to over 500 pastors and their wives during a 4 day conference. These pictures were taken as the messages were delivered. What an awesome opportunity!

Bud

France decides-and French fries.

Living in Brazil one gets to watch news in English on CNN international network. If you think CNN in the USA is a bit left of center, you should see CNN internatiional. I don't think they can find much of anything they like about the USA.

So, since I am at home today nursing a case of cellulitus that has me wondering how a bacteria you can't see can make your lower leg look like a car hit it and feel like it is an oven, I am watching the news. Hopefully the antibiotics will work so I can get back to "normal" life. I would hate to think this car wreck appearance would spread!

Today CNN is covering the French elections. Down here in Brazil what happens in Europe is huge news. The Brazilians see themselves linked very strongly to Europe and especially to French socialism. Today was a tough day for French Socialism. It is kind of ironic that the French people just sent a tough message to the socialists that change is needed just when all over Latin America socialists are in full stride and power.

When the new French President elect said "America can count on us as friends", I nearly fell out of my couch and called McDonald's for some french fries!

Many of you who read this blog know that I don't speak or write about politics. It may the antibiotics that have caused this but here goes...

What struck me about today in France was the passion humans have for their nation and their world. It is awesome to watch unless it explodes into violence. Thank God for democracy. Thank God for a way to change without bombs.

This passion for fixing what is wrong with our world comes from how God created us in the first place. There is supposed to be a hunger and thirst for righteousness in the healthy spiritual life. The food for that hunger is to be found in God and not in defeating your political enemy. When our hunger for righteousnes and justice is found in God, then we are free to enter the battle for what is good and right in the world. If we enter the fight without God as our food for righteousness all we have left to "eat" is other people.

Oswald Chambers once said "In the world never expect justice, but never cease to give it." That is it! The passion for politics and change is not wrong. It is great. It is human. It is what God put into us as the leaders and caretakers of the creation. What he did not put into us is the idea that the passion for justice is only ours and the other people don't have any of it. All humans have it written somewhere in them.

The current politcal leaders in Latin America are filled with arrogance and pride about where they are headed for all of our collective good. Whether from the left or right this is really a very bad sign. The attitude one sees and hears down here goes something like this: "Everything that happened before we came to power was horrible so we will tear it all down and then we will figure out how to make sure we stay in power so those horrible people can't come back" Again, right or left this is tragic because it makes one group of people the source of justice instead of all people looking for justice which really comes from God alone.

France has an incredible history of political battles, wars and debates. The French hit the streets to demonstrate like no other nation I have ever seen. They also have a history of dealing harshly with some kinds of thoughts they don't like.

One of their citizens of many centuries ago was a woman named Madame Guyon. She was a devout Catholic searching for a barrier-free relationship with God who began to teach people they could practice God's presence in personal private prayer even if they did not know how to read or could not go to the church. This radical departure from State and religious dogma and control put her in France's worst prison for seven years. Ironically, they confined her where she could really learn to pray without any help or interference! She spent most of her time in a cell all alone. She came out of prison more convinced than ever one can enjoy God with no help except God.

When I think of the French and their spirit I think of this woman. I also read her words regularly so I will be reminded that what I teach openly here in Brazil about Abiding cost her 7 years in prison. Thank God for religious freedom! Would I spend 7 years in prison to spread the word that every Christian can experience the same quality of relationship with God without the need to depend on State or Church? I hope I would because it is that important to spiritual formation. If we have to be dependent on anything or anyone but Jesus to bear fruit, we have lost connection with the truth that makes Christianity so much more than an institutional experience.

Here is are some of Madame Guyon's words I read this morning.

Surrendering your will to God --Madame Guyon

"We practice this by continually surrendering our own will to the will of God, and renouncing every private inclination as soon as it arises, however good it may appear to be. We must become indifferent with respect to ourselves, only will what God has willed for us from all eternity, and resign ourselves in all things, whether for soul or body, for time or eternity.

We must also forget the past, leave the future to providence, devote the present to God, and be satisfied with the present moment. Whatever this moment brings, it also brings with it God's eternal order in respect to us, and is an infallible a declaration of His will as it is unavoidable and common to all.

Further, we must attribute nothing that befalls us as being from people. Instead, seeing everything as being in God, we must look upon everything, except our sins, as infallibly coming from Him"

I think Madame Guyon would see France's election in light of the last line of her words. Read that last line again and note the words "attribute nothing that befalls us as being from people" and "seeing everything as being in God..."

A person who so trusts in God moment by moment can do prison for 7 years and come away with their soul still well.
A person who so trusts in God can lose an election or win an election and still retain a soul that is well.

A person who so trusts in God can even watch CNN international as his only English news source and retain a soul that is well. It is a test, but it is possible!

Radio

One of our Ask for !5 prayer requests was for funds to do a daily radio broadcast here in Brazil. God has answered that prayer with a gift from some very dear Abide Partners.
During my recent trip to the USA I bought some recording equipment that we have installed in our apartment where I can record programs for the broadcasts and then e-mail them to the station in southern Brazil where our dear friend Edson Bruno will turn my recording into a professional broadcast quality program of 15 minutes.
We hope to start soon and complete 250 programs that will take us through year one.
Thanks for praying.
The young man installing the equipment is the sound tech from our church. Rogerio is a deeply spiritual young man and a great help to this technically challenged radio broadcaster--me.

Priceless Moment

One of the most effective ways to teach the joy of living from the perfect life of Jesus in us is to teach on the subject of marriage. It is amazing how interested people are in marriage! I guess that is because being married is the biggest relational challenge any of us will ever face. Marriage is also the one place where hiding our true character becomes impossible. As someone has well said "Marriage doesn't create problems, it reveals them."

During a recent marriage retrreat Pam and I shared the material from our course "Six Metaphors of a Happy Marriage". The audience was entirely made up of Chinese couples whose parents had immigrated to Brazil from Taiwan. It was a joy to see how these dear brothers and sisters in Christ received this material.

When we reached the part of the course where we talk about satisfaction found 24 hours a day and seven days a week, you could have heard a pin drop in the room. That is may favorite moment in teaching on the abiding life. When a Christian begins to believe God has actually made such a perfect provision for all of us and we all start equally and perfectly provided for, they get very attentive. That moment for me is priceless.

All Things

This past Monday night Pam and I experienced the fruit of missionary life and work. Our Brazilian church received as its guest speaker the pastor of the First Baptist Church of Bagdad. A four year old church which now has over 400 baptized members and has already started a "daughter" church in the city.

This dear and godly pastor spoke of a tremendous spiritual awakening in the city of Bagdad that most people have never heard about. In great suffering the church of Jesus is alive in Iraq!

The thing that made this moment so special is that the First Baptist Church of Bagdad was started by Brazilian initiative.
The Brazilian Baptist churches have sponsored this entire effort and are incredibly committed to seeing the Gospel move forward in Irag.

One of the most interesting things was to hear the Iraqi pastor talk about having baptized some Amerian soldiers. Is that great or what?!

The photo shows the Iragi pastor on the left and the Brazilian missionary who has mentored him on the right.

Abide Training Center

The remodeling project in the mountain city of Campos do Jordão is going really well. If you have not decided yet to join us for our first ever Abiding Life Coaches training in August, now is the time to decide! We will be ready for you by August and together we will learn how to help others live the Abiding life in Jesus.
Bud McCord

Training center

The work on our Abide Training center is moving ahead quickly. God has provided the funds for the remodel and we are praying for the funds to furnish the center for teaching. It is an amazing thing to watch God supply each step of the way.
Receiving from the Lord is a wonderful way to live. In fact, it is the only way to live!
Bud

Prayer and Solutions

When Jesus taught His disciples to pray in Matthew 6, His opening words drew attention to the fact that there is another KIngdom where the will of God is done all the time. His words were.... "Our Father, which art in heaven, hallowed be your Name.
Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in Heaven."

Recently as I was praying this prayer, it came to me that what we keep wanting God to do is already being done in Heaven.
The fact that it is not being done on earth is not because He is unwilling. It is because the conditions are not right on earth. Mankind does not want to do what He wants to do. What should be happening here is because man will not cooperate with God's will.

Often I hear people really get frustrated at God's seeming lack of willingness. I, too, have been frustrated with God's seeming lack of interest or willingness to act. Jesus' prayer sets the record straight. There is a place where His will is done and we should pray that this world would become such a place.

My cooperation with God's will as revealed in Jesus' words is a start. Imagine the world if for one day everyone did the will of God. What kind of day would that be? How many things would immediately change? Imagine your private world with you doing the will of God moment by moment.

I believe that knowing there is a place where His will is being done is the best place to start our prayers. It focuses us on the fact that the same kind of kingdom is coming to this world. We need to become personally engaged with this new kingdom right now. It is just a start, but it is certainly a taste of greater things to come.

The Abiding Experience retreat

This past weekend we were able to enjoy our first retreat for 2007. We have six planned for this year in cooperation with the First Baptist Church of Sao Jose dos Campos. Twenty three people spent two nights at the camp in the mountains and we spent over 10 hours together learning more about the experience of Abiding moment by moment satisfied in Christ.

The camp setting and absence of distractiions made this a wonderful time in the lives of all who paticipated. This concentrated dialog about the perfect sufficiency of Jesus in our lives is an effective way to focus, inform and inspire. It was a very, very good time indeed.

Discipleship

Every now and then I read something that is so well said that I just want everyone I know and love to read it. Today I read just such a statement. Author Mike Wells in his new book HEAVENLY DISCIPLESHIP, makes the following statement on the back cover of the book:

"Generally the concept of discipleship follows a consistent model. First the determination is made about what is lacking in the disciple, and then attempts begin to try to fill that insufficiency. In short, dicipleship has deteriorated to the effort of putting something into a person. Heavenly discipleship begins from a different paradigm. First, it believes that the fulness of Christ exists in every believer, and second, the task of every disciple-maker is to reveal that great truth. Discipleship is not putting Christ or His characteristics into a person but rather revealing the Christ that dwells in a person. It is not working for but from. When a disicple works for what he already has, he will lose that which he has."

This new book by Mike Wells is available through the website Abidinglife.com

If you are ready for a paradigm of abundance and life, read the book. If you want to learn to disciple people in this way, come to Brazil in August and we will learn together.

Receiving and Releasing

One of the most important aspects of the Abiding Life is to receive well from God as the starting place for all activity for God.
As Jesus said in John 6 "This is the work of God that you believe in Him who He has sent." To believe is to receive. In order to believe we have to drop our barriers and accept what is coming our way as good and true. To abide is to always be looking to Jesus as the source of what good and true and brings life. He is all that and more!

Once we begin to learn to receive well our lives pick up speed of activity not in order to receive but in order to release what has been received. We work from and not for. We see ourselves releasing what grace has provided freely. This kind of activity is not nearly as stressful to the one working. It is not so stressful because the pressure to produce has been replaced by the joy of receiving.

When groups of people live this kind of reality together, the most amazing exhanges of life and resources begin to occur. Suddenly we become interconnected by releasing what we have received. A community of intense and joyful receiving and releasing is made visible and God is glorified.

The pictures attached to this blog are the result of a community of branches receiving and releasing together. As we have connected with God's desire to release we have been connected together in a wonderful ministry of releasing together. Pam and I are joyfully releasing in Brazil into a visible construction project where people will come to be taught to abide. As they abide they, too, will release with us and our Vineyard will grow and grow here in Brazil and across the world.

If you are not in this enjoyable process with us it is simple to join. Just ask the Father in the name of Jesus to give you something to release for others through Abide Brazil. When it comes, release it and we promise to pray the same prayer about you and your world. We want to be connected with you through God!

The pictures show what will soon be the Abiding Life Training Center in the mountain city of Campos do Jordãõ here in Brazil. It is on the camp property where our retreats will be held. This remodeled house will also be the site of our first ever Abiding Coaches training here in Brazil August 9-19, 2007. We hope to host at least 15 people from the USA and other countries who want to learn to be capable of discipling others in the Abiding Life Jesus described in John 15.

Orlando Marriage Seminar

Nearly two years ago a group of families were sent out from the First Baptist Church of West Hollywood to begin the Church@theVine in Kissimmee, Florida. Today that church numbers over 100 and is having a great impact on the community.
Pastor Billy Rollins and the church plant team invited Pam and I to conduct their first ever marriage seminar.

It was amazing that a church of just over 100 could gather 20 couples for a six hour course. It was beautiful to see a new church touching so many lives.

Miami Marriage Seminar

Pastor Russell Johnson and the entire International Bible Baptist Church family in Miami, Florida hosted a Six Metaphors of a Happy Marriage Seminar taught by Bud McCord the weekend of February 2nd-3rd. Over 50 couples representing six area churches participated in the six hour course.

The IBB team not only hosted the conference in cooperation with Abide Brazil ministries, they also translated the course into Spanish. The seminar was simultaneously translated from English to Spanish.

The course is designed for use in Abide Partner churches to enhance their ministries to couples in their church and surrounding community. Plans are already "in the works" for January and February 2008 to see the course given in 8 Abiding Partner churches to bless couples and support the Abide Brazil seminar ministry in Brazil.

Micah Brewer

We are pleased to announce the arrival of Micah Hayden Brewer. Rachel and Mark are doing well and grandparents Bud and Pam are enjoying the never ending pleasure of seeing life go on and on. In the words of C.S. Lewis "Nothing good enough or bad enough can be said about life." This is the good part!

Love and Generosity

For the past month Pam and I have been in the USA visiting family and our abide partners. We have experienced something Jesus promised when he told His followers that anyone who left family or home to follow Him would have many homes and an expanded family. We are living proof of this spiritual reality.

Pam and I have no home in the USA and we live the majority of the year over 5000 miles from family. Upon arrival in the USA on December 18th we began to see Jesus' promise coming true. We have literally been taken into homes, fed more food than we could or should ever eat, been loaned cars and blessed on an hour by hour basis.

Though this type of life has been strange to us after 18 years in our own home and leading a local church, we are blessed to be in this situation. We have seen Jesus' words come true day after day. We are truly rich living in, through and for Him.

Love and generosity are directly linked. It is impossible to say we love someone and not open our hearts. If open hearts mean love is in actiion, we have seen a lot of love this past month.

When we return to Brazil our home is a place of refuge for many and our table is a sacred space for others. We love being on the giving end, but we all need to be on the receiving end to see all of love's many beautfiful manifestations.

Just imagine what it will be like to be in a place someday where love is really free to flow! It will be beyond our wildest imaginations. For now, this little taste of love has been a joy for us.

The attached pictures are just a few reminders of some who who loved us along the way in the USA.