Owsleys in Brazil Blog

"Neat Freak" or Jesus Girl?

As a college co-ed I was convinced I could never be a pastor’s wife because I could not sing or play the piano.  My heart longing was to be involved in ministry, but I thought I had nothing to offer to the Lord.  I remember praying, “Lord, You know what my strengths are. Please use them.”

Through the years He has shown me many ways to serve Him, but one of those ways isn’t on the traditional “gifts” lists.  I cleaned other people’s houses all through college and seminary as a means of earning spending money, never dreaming it was one of my talents.  Later I realized that I love to bring order out of chaos; it’s how the Lord has hardwired me.  Oddly, people like me are labeled, “neat freak” or “obsessive compulsive”, but that label fits only when I misuse that gift to be controlling.  Rightly used, it can be a blessing.

Last week a friend asked me to travel with her to northern Michigan to help prepare her house for sale.  It was pure joy to scrub bathrooms, re-arrange furniture, pack up boxes, and de-clutter.  I can hardly take pride in this since it’s the way God has made me, but I can certainly rejoice that He uses less traditional gifts.   No, I don’t play or sing, but I can give the Lord my loaves and fishes and watch in wonder as He turns them into so much more.

 

Renewal

 

We finished up April with some great missions meetings.  On Wednesday, the 27th, we went to a small church in Ohio to speak to the youth.  We loved that since we don't get to share with that age group very often.  On Saturday a missions conference was held at the Spring Arbor FMC and we were asked to give a brief word.  Only folks who are really interested in missions were there so it was a terrific group. 

Sunday we went to the Milan FMC.  We have only one more church to go before our deputation year is over and, frankly, I've run out of steam.  So we went praying that the Lord would renew our strength and give a freshness to our stories.  He answered so beautifully!  The people were warm and loving and their interest in our ministry made our tiredness vanish away.  

What a privilege it is to be a part of the Body of Christ!

 

Do the Math

In our recent travels I saw a large, freshly paved church parking lot.  The sign at the driveway entrance read, "Absolutely no loitering, skateboarding or roller blading".   It made me think of a friend in California who told me that her church's newly paved parking lot had attracted neighborhood teens.  As the church board met to discuss how to deal with the problem, several men (including my friend's husband) suggested that the teens should not be viewed as an inconvenience, but as an opportunity.   

Thereafter every Friday night was "skateboard night" in front of their church.  Church members mingled with the young people.  Many were won to the Lord.  One church protected their temporal pavement.  Another church had an eternal perspective.  Yes, there was a cost:  time spent and potential damage to church property.  But the pay off was worth it.  God forbid that we protect our earthly stuff at the expense of those who need to know Jesus.

  

Easter Thoughts

For Lent I've been reading John Piper's The Passion of Jesus Christ.  The subtitle is "50 Reasons Why Christ Suffered and Died." As a theology teacher I thought I would be familiar with most of them, but the author threw in a few that I'd never thought about.  Reason #36, for example, states that He died to create a people passionate for good works.

 

Piper writes, When God's forgiveness and acceptance have freed us from fear and pride and greed, we are filled with a zeal to love others the way we have been loved.  We risk our possessions and our lives since we are secure in Christ. (p. 90)

 

In recent days we've experienced the fruit of number thirty-six.  (Brazilians would say we have "felt it in our skin".)  As we have encountered some unusual challenges, the Body of Christ has rallied around us.  Friends have been lavish withtheir time and resources.  They have bent over backward to help us with advice, encouragement and prayer.  When we've tried to thank them, they've said, "Are you kidding?  It's our privilege!" It's been humbling to be recipients of such grace.

 

This Easter we are rejoicing for the MANY reasons Christ suffered and died.  They are too many to count or fathom, but we praise Him for allowing us to understand a few of them through our present circumstances.  We are awed by His gracious, self-giving love and by how He continues to reveal it through His followers.

 

Have a Blessed Easter.

Dr. Fábio Church At It Again!

 

 

We’ve mentioned this church before, but we can’t stop talking about the folks at Dr. Fábio because they are actively reaching out to the lost and are making a huge difference in people’s lives.

 

Recently the Dr. Fábio Church sent eight teens and nine children to YWAM’s intensive evangelistic training during the month of January.  Nobody had the money for this training camp, but Pastor Ney and his wife Veruska had the faith they could raise it.  And the money came in!  The young people returned overflowing with joy, telling stories of God’s transforming power and how He had called several of them into full-time missionary service. (The kids in purple t-shirts were participants in the YWAM program.)

 

This is the same church that is always short on Bibles and Sunday School materials because they can’t keep up with the demand for them.  (What a great problem!)  We were very glad to hear that the WMI in the U.S. raised above and beyond the amount we requestest in 2008 for these materials.  We praise God for the work He is doing in the neighborhood of Dr. Fábio!

Jesus or Death!

      As I’ve mentioned before our church has been having a campaign of fasting and prayer for the lost.  This past weekend we had another glimpse into the marvelous answers the Lord is bringing.  At our church retreat (with 60 in attendance) many lives were transformed.  Some were new Christians.  Others were long-time believers who had “unfinished business” with God. 

Our hearts sang as we listened to the many vibrant testimonies last night at evening church.  Several young men who had been away from the Lord told about how the Lord had called them back to Himself.  These men have banded together to encourage each other to not fall away again. Rodrigo, a young leader in our church stood up and shared that they would rather face death than be separated from Christ again.  He said, “Our new slogan is:  Jesus, keep us close to Yourself or let us die!”   We praise the Lord for His mighty power at work in the Free Methodist Church in Cuiabá.

Combustible Plants?

Recently Dan and I took the opportunity to explore a nature preserve near our home.  We took a grueling yet rewarding hike to the “Bridal Veil” falls and even hired a guide to take us to “The City of Stone” which consists of natural rock formations of petrified sand.  (Some pictures are posted on our “Featured Pictures of the Month” on the upper left side of our blog page.)

Our guide, Alfredo, took us to a savanna area (called the Cerrado) which is famous for its dwarf trees and miniature fruits. Only a few trees were over three feet tall.  He explained that there were several reasons for this phenomenon.  One was that the soil was sandy and that roots could not go deeply enough for the tree to develop normally.  Secondly he pointed out a prehistoric looking plant (which looked like the head of “thing one” from the The Cat in the Hat).  Alfredo said that when temperatures reach 100 degrees this plant can actually bursts into flames, burning down the flora nearby, and preparing the land for the next season of growth.  Frankly, I found that a little hard to believe, but it was an interesting fact to tuck away in my mind.  He also told us that there were more different kinds of plants per square meter on the Cerrado than on any other place on the planet.   This ecosystem boasts 10,000 different species of plants!

All that talk about plants got me thinking about the church.  We certainly have a lot of different types of folks “per square meter”! But how many of us are “dwarfs” in the faith with little or no fruit because our roots in Him are too shallow?  And how many of us easily “burst” into angry flames scorching all those around us?  If we must burst into flames may they be the kind that come from the Holy Spirit.  His fire purifies and refines us.  Instead or repelling people it makes them want to stay close and share the warmth.  As C.S. Lewis said, “True holiness is irresistible”. Lord, help me to burn like that!

Uncomfortable Worship

            Someone was “slain in the spirit” in church last week.  A few years ago this would have put me in quite a tizzy.  I used to cry out self-righteously, “They can’t do those kinds of things in a Free Methodist Church!” But as I cried out to the Lord to help me love fellow Christians who had such a different religious orientation than my own, He heard my prayer.  He has helped me to be more loving (and less judgmental) toward my brothers and sisters with charismatic leanings.

            I remember four years ago when I went on a retreat for missionary wives from various denominations.  I could hardly wait to be with “like-minded” women where our worship would not be interrupted by unpleasant surprises.  No one was more astonished than I to perceive that I wanted to be “like-hearted” more than I wanted to be comfortable in worship.  I missed the vibrant worship and the blatant hunger for God of my Brazilian church friends.

            Did I mention that when the woman fell to the ground last Sunday the altar was FULL of people seeking more of Jesus?  With the Lord’s help I was able to focus on the many who were hungering and thirsting after righteousness and not get sidetracked with the one who made me uncomfortable.  I praise the Lord for the privilege I have of serving Him in the Free Methodist Church here in Brazil.  The Lord keeps stretching me and I thank Him for His patience and mercy.  He is doing great things!

Prophecy Fulfilled

One hundred and fifty Sundays ago the church in Sinop, Mato Grosso was meeting in a bakery for weekly Bible study.  They decided to read the book of Psalms together (in addition to their other study) - one chapter every Sunday.  One Sunday Pastor Joel announced, "I think we'll be in our very own church building before we get to the last Psalm." They began to pray and trust the Lord for the money to buy land. 

Just then economic disaster hit.  The main source of income for the city was lumber and all lumber mills were suddenly closed down by the government. The personal resources of the church members dried up.  But not the Lord’s!  Slowly donations came in for land and materials.  In November of 2007 a work team from East Michigan came donating supplies and physical labor. The church was half finished when the team left. Little by little it kept going up. For the reading of the 147th Psalm the congregation met in the newly-roofed building with the wind blowing in through the yet-to-be-finished windows.  What a joy for Dan and the boys and me to be in Sinop yesterday for the reading of the 150th Psalm.  We've seen the Lord build this church and will continue to watch Him complete it for His honor and glory.

Church Messes

Our church has some permanently open windows that allow the neighborhood cats to come in and “claim their territory”.  The janitress usually has a few unpleasant messes to clean up before the Sunday service.  Still, I was shocked last night to walk in and see a pile of doggy “doo doo” in the middle of the floor near the pulpit.  I ran to get some paper towels, but when I got back it had mysteriously disappeared.  Our pastor’s wife told me that the worship leader had put it (the plastic “poop”) on the floor as a joke.  I didn’t see the humor in it and was upset that someone could so carelessly dishonor God’s house.  As the time for singing came, I struggled to enter into a spirit of praise. 

This was NOT a problem for the others who were there.  In fact, I looked over at one man who was waving his arms violently with the music and thought he was being pompous and pretentious.  Suddenly I realized there can be more than one kind of “doo doo” in the church.  I was pretty sure the Lord was more concerned with my unkind thoughts than He was with that man (or even with the prank Patricia had played.)  I found myself repeating the theme of Psalm 51, “Create in me a clean heart, Oh, God, and renew a right spirit within me.”

Wouldn’t this be a good New Year’s resolution? “Help keep doo doo out of the church!” (And start with me, Lord!)