God blessed Shar and me with the friendship of a young woman named Eliene when we served as missionaries in Brazil. She was a seminary student in a class I taught. Every student needed a mentor and to be connected to a place of service in a local church. Eliene asked us to serve as her mentors and to let her help at the church we were planting. She thought we were helping her, but she was really a Godsend to us. God used her in many ways, especially working with teens. She was engaged to a wonderful follower of Christ named Adilson. He was a gifted musician and we quickly enlisted him as our worship leader.

 

While we were in Michigan on furlough, Adilson and Eliene got married and moved to a brand new neighborhood with hundreds and hundreds of new homes and thousands of people. There wasn't a church of any kind in this new neighborhood. Upon our return to Brazil, they asked us to help them plant a church in their neighborhood. They offered their home (actually it was their front lawn) to get started.

 

It was the dry season so we didn't have to worry about rain for a few months. Adilson rigged up a string of 100 watt construction lights and placed them overhead so we could see during the service at night. We bought bricks and set wood planks on top of them so people would have a place to sit. We praised God in the open air and preached the Gospel. People came and a core group developed.  

 

We purchased land (with a really small house) on the main street between where they lived and another housing development that was being built. It was time to launch the church. We went door to door and invited the community to attend an outdoor showing of the Jesus film in our new location. Shar sewed sheets together to make a massive screen. It turned out to be a great idea because people could see the movie on both sides of the sheets. Every bus that entered the neighborhood had to pass in front of the screen coming and going. A large crowd gathered on the site and many watched from their homes.