My first encounter with brethren on this trip was on Tuesday the 19th in Lethem, Guyana, where Clyde Chinian met me at the airport. Later I also visited with Theo Griffith, a member in South Rupununi of Guyana. I was able to bring to them two portable DVD players to watch sermons.

On Wednesday (20th) I travelled with Clyde Chinian across to Brazil, and took a bus to Boa Vista.

After meeting Chevy Vulchev (see his separate impressions and comments) and few of the brethren from the Maloca de Moscou (the village where the brethren in Northern Brazil live), I hired a car and bought provisions to take to Maloca.

When we arrived at the Maloca we were pleasantly surprised with the work that the brethren had done there. In addition to the church hall they had built, they built a kitchen and dining area, as well as started building a restroom area.  

The temperature there is a regular 90 degrees Fahrenheit plus, and the church hall does not have fans. Our Sabbath attendance and that of the First Day of Unleavened Bread was 56. The number is very encouraging. Furthermore 21 baptized members took the Passover there. Other activities besides the actual services, counseling, and youth Bible Studies, were two baptisms, one wedding, and 17 children blessed on the Sabbath. I also ordained Benedito Gomes da Silva as a deacon, his wife Ana Helena Mateus da Silva as a deaconess. They serve in Maloca. I also ordained Clyde Chinian as a deacon to serve in Guyana. I conducted a Kingdom of God seminar there with 43 attendees.

Chevy brought various second hand clothing to the brethren, which was greatly appreciated, and we both brought second hand computers for them.

One of the members of Maloca de Moscou, Carlos da Silva, was elected recently by the whole community of some 800 people, as their tribal leader (Tuchau). Our congratulations go to Carlos for this assignment, and that he may use it to serve the whole community, and particularly God’s people in the Maloca de Moscou.

During this trip I also took some time to visit the area where the cattle donated by LifeNets is located. LifeNets donated initially six heads of cattle. They now have eight heads and there are two more due to be born soon. We also donated some money to treat some of the heads of cattle from skin disease carried by flies.

As a result from this trip to Maloca de Moscou, I identified the need of some extra work to be done in the kitchen area, as well as in the restrooms and some ceiling fans for the church hall. I must thank God to have already provided for these needs, through the brethren’s kind offerings to God’s work. The funds have already been transferred from the United Church of God’s Portuguese subsidy and through the Good Works program to assist the brethren in this additional work before the Feast.

We will hold a Feast in this remote area of Brazil, and we are pleased that the Macedo family from Montes Claros (Brazil) will be able to be there to serve the brethren.

After, what I believe to have been a very successful visit to the Maloca de Moscou, Chevy returned back to the States and I continued my trip further south, to Sumaré, where I met Carlos Magalhães and his wife, Marinilza. 

Carlos attends with Church of God 7th day—Congregational, a division of the  Church of God Seventh Day. Various biblically based discussions ensued. On the Sabbath, Match 30, we held a Kingdom of God Bible Seminar with 29 people attending. It is to note that there are not any UCG members in this area. The seminar was very well received. One very well spoken visitor mentioned that if UCG was here, or if I was establishing one here, he was prepared to commit himself as a member.

After the seminar I had a number of questions, such as about the two goats of Leviticus 16 and about the Great White Throne Judgment. I then decided to conduct an impromptu and brief Bible study at the seminar venue.

After the seminar we went to the home of pastor Ananias of the Church of God Seventh Day—Congregational. We discussed how that organization started in Brazil. We realize there are some differences, but that should not prevent us from continuing to communicate in a manner that is mutually respectful.

The next stop was to observe the last day of Unleavened Bread with the Macedo family in Montes Claros. After the Feast of Unleavened Bread, on Tuesday morning, April 2nd, Laura Macedo had to attend a job contest for vacancies at public schools, and she was thrilled that God opened up the door for this job. This was made possible, in part, due to a study scholarship on pedagogy that she has been receiving from LifeNets.

In the afternoon, after Giovane got home from his half-day job, we went to a local lawyer to discuss the Church’s registration in Brazil. This is work in progress. The meeting was very fruitful, and we are also working with a person who was previously employed by the registrar office.

From Montes Claros I went to an area outside of Rio de Janeiro where I visited three different people who requested visits. Those I visited with were very interested. Let’s pray that God may add as He sees fit. The first visit was to see Elias Corrêa. He is part of a Sabbath keeping group that wanted to meet us. They are not aligned with any other organization, as they came to learn about the Sabbath by themselves.

The next visit was to Marcelo Marendaz. He is a teacher of theology, and he agreed with practically everything that we discussed, although he had many questions. 

Next I met Sebastião Luiz, his wife and 2 children. I must say this was the most inspiring and uplifting visit I had in this trip as far as visiting prospective members. As soon as I got there at 6:00 p.m., he did not waste time and did not cease to ask questions. He was very interested, very willing to learn and open-minded. I pray that he may continue searching the truth and that Satan may be restrained from taking the seed from his heart and that of his family.

After these visits, I returned back to Boa Vista to get further information about possible future Feast sites. So far, the doors are not open, and I pray that God may open some additional doors in the area if that is His will.

To conclude the trip I travelled back into Guyana, where I visited the Church lawyer in Georgetown with Clyde Chinian to update our records there. I finally got home on April 11th.

In summary it was a very profitable trip, and God’s hand was in it, blessing it, and granting me health through this arduous visit. Please continue to pray that God may add laborers in the Portuguese speaking areas, that He may open peoples’ minds and that the growth which we observed in Maloca de Moscou may continue to His glory.