Hello everyone,
Well, it's been a long time since our last update
here so we throughout we better fill you all in on what's been happening in our
lives... It's a bit of a long one but I hope all the photos help!
Finishing BSSM and Leaving Redding:
After mission trip we finished up our last few
weeks at BSSM which was both amazing and sad as two of the most incredible
years of our lives were coming to an end. The last week in particular was
unforgettable, we had amazing times of worship together where the presence of
God was so tangible. We spontaneously worshipped as a class with Bill Johnson
for a whole afternoon which Bill described as "camping around the
presence", we got commissioned by Bill and Kris, blessed and prayed for by
all the 2nd year staff and finished feeling truly sent out to go change the
world!!
Graduation was a true celebration and thanksgiving
time of all the Lord had done in and through us during our 2 years there and
needless to say the worship that night raised the roof. It felt like a true
honour to be trained and equipped for revival amongst so many amazing, gifted
people and it truly felt like a highly trained, powerful army was being sent
out into the nations to see the Kingdom of God being advanced.
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| Graduation Day |
After school finished we had a few weeks left in
Redding to pack up, spend time with friends who have become family to us,
unwind and enjoy America. That time really was a blessing and allowed us time
to say goodbye to that season of our lives and the many special people in it
without feeling rushed. We know Redding and Bethel will always be a home for us
to go back from time to time, to get refreshed and re-filled. We absolutely
loved our time there and so glad we took the step to go. Our lives have been
transformed by what has been cultivated there and we've grown and developed so
much as people and leaders and feel so trained, equipped and poured into to go
release all that we’ve received into the world.
Thanks to all of you who made it possible for us to
be there for 2 years by supporting us prayerfully or financially, we really
appreciate all of you!
Summer
We arrived home in Northern Ireland at the start of
June to amazing weather, and a new 1 week old nephew. We have spent a lot of
our summer spending time with our family here, including 7 nieces and nephews
which we’ve spent many hours playing with. We have also been able to catch up
with many friends this summer and spent time worshipping, eating and sharing
stories together. It's been great being back with our church family here-
Emmanuel and we've really enjoyed having the opportunity to share, lead worship
and partner with them in all that they're walking in. We were also the guest
speakers at a weekend called ‘Encounter’ organized by Hope Fellowship which we
got to know a bit last summer. This was such an honour for us and we really
enjoyed both leading worship and speaking to a group of really hungry followers
of Jesus. Many people were touched and refreshed and a few people experienced
some level of healing in their bodies. We've loved getting the opportunity to
share at a few other meetings over the summer and have felt so encouraged and
believed in everywhere we've been.
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| Meeting Zac! |
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| Having fun with the kids. |
This summer has been such a good time for
processing and reflecting on all we've learnt and received in the past 2 years.
We sat through hours of teaching and training and have had life changing
encounters with God there and so, its been good to revisit some of that to let
it really sink in. It's also been a great time to start preparing for our new season
(which if you keep reading you'll find out about), thinking and praying about
things such as what our vision is and what are core values are. It's been a
real blessing to have this time to plan and set us up for success.
The Next Chapter
This journey started back in May 2011, just a few
months before we left for Bethel when Daniel went back to Brazil for 10 days to
see his family. Up until this point, we had no definite plans after our time in
Bethel, we just knew that was the next step and thought we'd receive some
direction while we were there. However, one day when Daniel was just driving
around his city there, God really started to speak to him. He started to feel
God's heart for the city, and see it in ways he'd never before and he felt God
saying that it was time for him to come back. As well as this, God started to
show him the great spiritual inheritance he had there, that was ours to step
into. Daniel's parents are influential leaders in their city, they are both
pastors and his Dad is a politician, they have planted churches and carry a lot
of authority in the spiritual realm. It was like the Lord showed all the open
doors there would be for us there as well as really capturing Daniels heart for
the city.
Daniel shared the experience he had there with me
and that He felt like God was calling us there after our time in Bethel. We'd
always talked and thought about moving to Brazil one day but we never thought
we'd go to Daniel's home town as we had a lot of friends and contacts in a city
elsewhere in the country and just thought we'd end up there. However, when
Daniel shared with me, it totally made sense and so much excitement rose up in
my heart and spirit. Throughout our 2 years at Bethel we received a lot of
confirmation that Brazil was where God was calling us through prophetic words,
connections we made there and our own encounters with God and therefore we
gradually made the decision that we would move to Brazil indefinitely after
Bethel.
So where exactly are we going?
A lot of people have been asking us where we're
actually going in Brazil and so here it is: We are moving to a city called
Uberlândia in the state of Minas Gerais, which is towards the south of the
country (see the map). It is the 2nd largest city in the state and has around 1
million inhabitants (if you include surrounding areas). It is one of the
richest agricultural areas in Brazil and therefore was appropriately name as
Uberlândia, which means 'Fertile Land' which we'll take in the spiritual sense
as well!
Daniel grew up in this city from around the age of
7 when his family moved there from São Paulo and stayed there until he moved to
Ireland. All of his immediate family still live there, as well as many friends.
What will we be doing there?
The main thing we will initially be doing there is
working with Daniel's families’ church, which is called Igreja Evangelho Vivo
(Living Gospel Church). His Mum and Dad planted the church and are the senior
pastors of a congregation of a few hundred. Initially we will be helping his
mum out being on the leadership team and leading the youth. We also really want
to start up some outreach programs in the church.
We want to take time to transition well, especially
for me as I learn a new language and culture and also because we plan to be
there long term, we're not in a hurry to take on lots while we're first there.
But some of the things we're dreaming about and aiming towards is to start a
school of ministry to train and equip leaders, start outreach and social
justice projects in the local community and wider city and get involved and
influence the political realm.
There are lots of open doors and opportunities for
us there which is exciting, and our heart in all of this to go love and call
all people into their true identity as powerful sons and daughters of a good
God, who release and bring the Kingdom of God into every sphere of society and
see cities, nations and culture transformed. We dream of seeing the city of
Uberlandia transformed and shining with the glory of God!!
We are leaving for this adventure at the end of
next week and would love for you to be praying for us as we make this
transition. So her are some things you can be praying for:
- A smooth and easy transition into Brazilian life
as much as possible!
- Christine to get the language quickly and have
fun doing it!
- For the church and especially the Youth as we
begin to lead
them
- Transformation, healing, deliverance etc in many
lives
- Sufficient finances as we settle there and make
our home
As we move to Brazil we are going to be continuing to update
this blog but we are also planning on sending updates in Newsletters/prayer
letters by email. If you would like to receive these please make sure we have
your email and tell us you want them!
So that’s it for now, we’ll be in touch and would love for you
to be in touch with us too!!
With love
Christine Oliveira
