Missionary Update: Bobby & Charlene Wacaser in Brazil [March 2015]
Bobby, Charlene, Jessie, and Brennen Wacaser have served the Lord as church planters in Curitiba, Parana, Brazil, since 1985.
March 6, 2015
Dear Friends,
I got one of those horrible painful calls this week. My youngest sister called to tell me that my 80 year old mother has been diagnosed with Leukemia. She also said that it is in a very advanced stage and that she doesn’t have much time on earth. My mother knows Jesus and she is ready to go home to him, but I ask that you would pray for her to have the strength and grace to honor him in her final days in her pain and suffering. My dad has failing health also and the news about his bride of 64 years having a terminal illness has left him nearly without a will to live, himself. My wife, Charlene, and I will be taking a furlough to the US for some months to help my brothers and sisters out during this trying time for us all. All of our ministries here in Brazil are in the good hands of leaders and helpers we’ve prepared for just such a time as this.
Despite these weighty circumstances, we will continue our ministry partnerships with our Brazilian church, Projeto Vida and our young missionary to a Muslim country to the degree that it is possible. In fact, we have a group of 48 teenagers arriving in just a few hours to spend a week evangelizing in the local schools and public parks.
We will have the thrill of baptizing on this coming Sunday one of our first translator volunteers who recently surrendered his life to Christ. His name is Milton and he is 65 years old. When we met Milton 14 years ago he claimed to be an atheist. He loved to help us translate the gospel message every year when this group of youth comes, but just this winter, Milton sensed the Spirit of God speaking to him to repent and accept Jesus as his Lord and Savior. He did that and now he wants to be baptized and let everyone know that he is now a follower of Christ. We are so thrilled and thankful to God for His mercy and persistence to extend salvation, even when we first reject His love. Milton is my new brother!
Before we leave Brazil next week, I am planning to seek out 3 of my close friends who have come to church on many occasions and, with whom I have shared the gospel several times, to seriously consider surrendering their lives to Christ. We never know how long we have in this world or what events may take place affecting future opportunities to share Christ’s message of salvation, so I don’t want to leave these friends without making an extra effort to persuade them to trust Christ. I pray that their hearts will be receptive to His grace.
Charlene and I are so thankful to all of you who pray for us faithfully and give so that we may serve the Lord through Baptist Faith Missions. We trust that He will bless you both now and eternally for your faithfulness.
In Christ’s love,
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser
Rua Laudelino Ferreira Lopes, 279-1
Sobrado 1, Bairro Novo Mundo
81050-310 Curitiba, PR Brasil
(813)481-7007
bobbymichael_1@hotmail.com
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Missionary Update: Bobby & Charlene Wacaser [February 2015]
Bobby, Charlene, Jessie, and Brennen Wacaser have served the Lord as church planters in Curitiba, Parana, Brazil, since 1985.
February 8, 2015
Dear Friends,
When I went to renew my Brazilian driver’s license recently, I got an unpleasant surprise. Before I could renew it, I would have to go through a 30 hour defensive driving course. This punishment was the fruit of a good deed to a needy friend. I had loaned my old spare pickup truck to the husband of one of my church members. He had recently arrived from Germany and didn’t have a job and needed transportation to get out looking for work. He wasn’t aware that our city has speed radars scattered about and in just a few weeks he had accumulated enough violations to have his driver’s license suspended. Except it wasn’t his that got suspended, it was mine. Usually the driver is responsible for these fines and the ensuing points against one’s driving record, but in our case, the fines were sent to my old address and the time frame allowed to transfer those points to his license had already expired before we even knew that he’d gotten them. So, off I went to defensive driver’s classes. Apparently a bad thing, but not with God. My time spent in lock up, I mean, defensive driving class, put me in contact with some people that the Lord wanted me to share Gospel with that I would not ordinarily come into contact with. Through the class interaction and discussion, several opportunities arose that allowed me to share my testimony of coming to know Christ and also to present the Gospel to our teacher and other classmates. Without even asking them to come, the teacher and one other fellow inmate asked me for our church’s address and the times of services. I hope and pray that they go, but I already thank God for the opportunity to share His word and love.
I had a meeting this week with Alysson, the young man who will be going to _____________ on a two-month missionary journey this spring. He is in intensive training for how to evangelize in a Muslim nation. I will have to leave the name of his destination blank for security purposes. I may have already said too much in the past, but I pray for his safe journey and prosperous efforts to share the Gospel there. He is extremely bold and courageous and trusts the Lord completely. Please keep him in your prayers as he seeks to honor the Lord where He is not preached.
Projeto Vida is starting its public school outreach ministries again next week. That is, if public schools start back up. Between state and national politics and misappropriation of funds, the public school teachers and administration haven’t been paid for months and are threatening to strike if they don’t get paid soon and with raises. Most private schools will start on schedule, but our main venue is in the public school system and it’s also where we reach many more people. We know that the Lord is in control of this situation and we’ll be praying that He’ll open the doors when He sees fit.
Keep us in your prayers.
In Christ’s love,
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser
Rua Laudelino Ferreira Lopes, 279-1
Sobrado 1, Bairro Novo Mundo
81050-310 Curitiba, PR Brasil
(813)481-7007
bobbymichael_1@hotmail.com
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Missionary Update: Bobby and Charlene Wacaser in Brazil [January 2015]
Bobby, Charlene, Jessie, and Brennen Wacaser have served the Lord as church planters in Curitiba, Parana, Brazil, since 1985.
Dear Friends,
We have just finished our first Missions Training Seminar for 2015! It was such an encouragement to see young men and women excited and willing to get better prepared to take the Word of Christ to the lost. After a week of classroom lessons, the volunteers went out into a couple of towns and cities to put into practice what they learned in class. We hope to hold 5 more such seminar/workshops throughout this new year.
I was away from the pulpit of our new church for 3 consecutive Sundays, but the reports from those who attended were great and that our newly ordained co-pastor, Alek, did a great job preaching and guiding the ministries in my absence. The Lord has truly shown that Alek is called to this ministry. His wife joyfully aids him and the church clearly loves them.
During this last month of ministry we had some amazingly diverse opportunities to witness the Lord at work around us, in us and through us.
Our young missionary, Alysson, who will be going to _________ in April shared with us how the Lord used him to lead a more mature man to rededicate his life to Christ this past month. The man has been a Christian for some years, but had backslidden into drinking and lax morality. His wife is a believer in Christ and never ceased to pray for him. After attending one of Alysson’s evangelistic meetings, the man repented of his sins and wanted to become active in evangelism himself. He started accompanying Alysson and his ministry partners on a daily basis and began to grow in his relationship with Christ. His wife and children now testify that he is definitely a changed man and they are living in harmony and walking with the Lord. We are trying to put together everything that Alysson will need to travel and spend two months in __________, which is a muslim nation. He understands that it may be very dangerous and that he could even be imprisoned or put to death for sharing the gospel there, but he feels certain that God is leading him in this direction. We are so thankful for young men with the boldness to trust the Lord with their complete surrender like this.
We have some exciting challenges coming up in the first weeks of this new year. We have begun the discussing the plans for making the first new church plant from our own relatively new church. My leadership team will begin to develop the practical steps necessary to pin-point the precise city and neighborhood for this new work in the next few weeks. I will keep you posted on those details as they develop.
God was great to meet our every need in 2014. We know that some of you were attentive to His prompting to contribute toward our ministry needs and we are grateful. We also know that some of you do not have the means to contribute financially, but have prayed for us faithfully and we are also thankful to God for answering those prayers. The plans we have for this new year are greater than we can accomplish on our own. We must be guided by and supplied by the Lord to do what honors Him. Continue to pray with and for us that we will constantly be attentive to His direction for what we do and our attitudes towards Him. He is our true delight and we want to please Him.
In Christ’s love,
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser
Rua Laudelino Ferreira Lopes, 279-1
Sobrado 1, Bairro Novo Mundo
81050-310 Curitiba, PR Brasil
(813)481-7007
bobbymichael_1@hotmail.com
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Missionary Update: Bobby & Charlene Wacaser in Brazil [December 2014]
Bobby, Charlene, Jessie, and Brennen Wacaser have served the Lord as church planters in Curitiba, Parana, Brazil, since 1985.
December 8, 2014
Dear Friends,
We had to get out the baptismal pool again last week. We are thankful that Ella Mari surrendered her life to the Lord a few weeks after her friend invited her to our services. We have been witnessing to her and teaching her the Scriptures and she came to me after a Sunday evening service a few weeks ago to tell me that she wanted to be a follower of Jesus. We thank God that He is still transforming lives.
Projeto Vida in a public school
One of our Projeto Vida teams will be returning today from a 5 day trip into the interior of our state. There were 15 volunteers participating, sharing the gospel through drama skits, choreographed music, testimonies and preaching. They had the chance to present the message to over 400 people during these days. The town where they were working does not have a single New Testament church in it. It is just one of the thousands in our region of Brazil that is without a gospel witness. I am meeting with my team leaders to pray for the Lord’s direction on how we might best begin to plant churches in these cities. It breaks my heart to see entire regions where the Name of Jesus is not known or praised. We are seeking to change this situation with God’s help and direction. Pray together with us.
One thing that we do know from Scriptures about how to reach these folks with the gospel is to pray for the Lord of the harvest to send laborers. We believe that the young men and women that are coming to our services and participating in our ministries are the next generation of missionaries to these locations. We are teaching them the Word of God and training them from our experience how to get the message of salvation to the lost who are without Christ. We train as many as possible and pray that God will place an unquenchable burden on their hearts to take the gospel to these folks. We don’t know which ones will be the “goers”, so we prepare them as if they all are going and let God work out the specific calling details.
Another year is ending in which the Lord met our every need and blessed us with much fruit in our ministries. We want to take this opportunity to thank you who prayed and/or gave so that we might be in this part of God’s mission field in 2014. May the Lord bless you in 2015 and may His Name be further glorified as we seek together to share His love.
In Christ’s love,
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser
Rua Laudelino Ferreira Lopes, 279-1
Sobrado 1, Bairro Novo Mundo
81050-310 Curitiba, PR Brasil
(813)481-7007
bobbymichael_1@hotmail.com
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Missionary Update: Bobby & Charlene Wacaser in Brazil [November 2014]
Bobby, Charlene, Jessie, and Brennen Wacaser have served the Lord as church planters in Curitiba, Parana, Brazil, since 1985.
November 6, 2014
Dear Friends,
With the Thanksgiving holiday coming up we are more vividly reminded to be thankful for all that the Lord is doing for and through us. We are thankful for the health to work and the faithful support you give us through your prayers and generous giving. We are thankful that our children love and live for our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
Our young missionary, Alysson, who had spent a couple of months evangelizing in the Amazon jungle is now preparing to go to _________ on a two year mission project. He will be working together with a group that specializes in youth evangelism on college campuses. Although the culture will be a major contrast to what he experienced in the jungle, he knows the basic need of humanity in any culture is to hear the gospel of Jesus Christ. I will give you periodic updates as Alysson’s mission preparations develop.
Later this month we will be ordaining to the ministry my co-leader, Alek Rossi. He has proved himself to be solid in the word of God, full of integrity and character and gifted in teaching and leadership. He is married and his wife, Livia, exhibits all the biblical traits of a godly woman and she is supportive of his leadership at home and in ministry. In just over one year Alek and Livia have led our youth group to grow from 5 to over 30. Not only has the group grown numerically, but these youth study the Scriptures daily and we can see them living out the teachings of God’s word. It is wonderful to have a co-laborer who can handle the Scriptures faithfully and we are certain that his ordination is a step in the right direction, for his life and for the church.
In Brazil, the school year ends around the first week of December. Since our main venue for our Projeto Vida teams is in the public schools, our traveling teams will work hard until the break and then we’ll suspend most of their activities until the early part of February when school starts back up. Only one team will remain active throughout this period working to help local churches with Vacation Bible Schools and various evangelistic outreach projects. The Lord allowed us to overcome some serious obstacles during 2014. We were able to get all our bus/motorhomes back operating after some expensive repairs were needed and accomplished. We are thankful.
Thank you who gave and prayed faithfully toward this.
In Christ’s love,
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser
Rua Laudelino Ferreira Lopes, 279-1
Sobrado 1, Bairro Novo Mundo
81050-310 Curitiba, PR Brasil
(813)481-7007
bobbymichael_1@hotmail.com
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Missionary Update: The Wacasers in Brazil [October 2014]
Bobby, Charlene, Jessie, and Brennen Wacaser have served the Lord as church planters in Curitiba, Parana, Brazil, since 1985.
October 3, 2014
Dear Friends,
I missed giving you a report last month on what’s going on, so I’ll try to get you caught up without making this letter too long.
In my last report, I mentioned that we were sending one of our young evangelists out into the jungle region where Brazil and French Guyana share a border. Alysson, our volunteer has now returned from that trip and has shared the experiences and results that he had while working there. In the course of one month the group went to several villages of Indian tribes and a few towns of small population. They were able to share the gospel in hospitals, public schools, public squares and in 67 homes. In all, they spoke to over 3390 persons and, of these, 750 made a profession of faith in Jesus. Alysson was so encouraged that now he wants to prepare to go to other regions as a missionary.
Our motorhomes are all running again and we have 3 teams out sharing the gospel as I write. During the last two months we took two of our teams to some neighboring towns to evangelize in the public schools and parks, as well as assisting some local churches with their missions training. Projeto Vida has gone through some very trying times, both financially and some health issues. Our leader of this ministry, Paulo Novaes, received a doctor’s report that he has cirrhosis of the liver. He, of course, is concerned and is having to change his diet, his exercise program and was advised that he’d have to stop stressing. It is this last item that is the most difficult. There are over 50 volunteers involved in this ministry and their well-being is a constant concern. Also, there are all the issues involved in maintaining 4 motorhomes equipped, fueled and running properly. Add to that, the relational issues between 12 people per motorhome living together in a small space for 3 weeks per month, 9 months per year. These are stress-generating issues, to say the least. Please pray for Paulo that he may know how to fully surrender these issues to the Lord and not let them destroy his health.
We just went through a rough period with the death of my co-pastor’s aunt. Glenda fought with breast cancer for nearly one year. She maintained a strong testimony to God’s grace and love throughout the ordeal, but the Lord saw fit to take her home last Sunday. Many of you have had to suffer a similar battle, either from having cancer yourself, or accompanying a loved one who had it. You know how hard this battle can be. My co-pastor’s family was strengthened by God’s grace as a result of this battle and we have seen in many ways how trials truly serve for our growth and spiritual well-being. We rejoice that Glenda no longer suffers the pain and uncertainty of how to please the Lord in sickness, but we are saddened by the family’s loss of their loved one.
Our church is experiencing encouraging growth, especially among our youth and children’s ministries. I am amazed every week while I’m preaching to look out upon the congregation and see so many new faces of folks that I’ve never met. Even more exciting than this is that they return week after week and several have come seeking to be baptized as followers of Christ. Next week we will be scheduling a baptismal service for 6-7 converts. We are so thankful to the Lord for using us and blessing us with these signs of His power at work around us.
Thank you for your continued prayer and faithful giving so that we may continue to serve the Lord here in southern Brazil.
In Christ’s love,
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser
Rua Laudelino Ferreira Lopes, 279-1
Sobrado 1, Bairro Novo Mundo
81050-310 Curitiba, PR Brasil
(813)481-7007
bobbymichael_1@hotmail.com
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Missionary Update: The Wacasers in Brazil [August 2014]
Bobby, Charlene, Jessie, and Brennen Wacaser have served the Lord as church planters in Curitiba, Parana, Brazil, since 1985.
August 6, 2014
Dear Friends,
July offered us some serious challenges, but the Lord was with us and gave us victories in every instance. After a night of training our children’s ministry leaders we were returning home when three armed thugs raced into our yard and demanded that we go into our house and sit under gunpoint while two of the bandits went through our rooms, closets and wardrobes, taking what they wanted. After they had searched the house they took our wallets, computers and then locked us in a small room and got away with my car and the loot. We had two guest couples staying with us at the time and the thieves also made off with their wallets, cell phones and laptops. The Lord didn’t allow them to do us any bodily harm and the police found my car intact the very next day. The incident served to teach us that satanic forces are at work against us because we are laboring in the realm of God’s kingdom. It also served to show us that, no matter how much Satan seeks to harm us, he and his forces are limited by God’s power and purposes. We and our guests were somewhat shaken, yes, but we also came out of the experience more resolved to serve God and continue sharing the gospel that transforms lives.
We helped to send off one of our missionaries to the jungle on the Brazil/French Guiana border to preach to the Tupi Indians. Alysson has been training for missions for two years and is a dedicated evangelist. We are looking forward to hearing a report from him after a two month trip where communication will be impossible. Please pray for his safety and success in sharing the gospel.
Our church has been experiencing exciting growth and this has forced us to find ways to accommodate the increased numbers and develop ministries and leaders to disciple the new members. There is nothing like volunteer group work days to unite the members of a church and to help them develop a sense of partnership in what God is doing in their community. We have been pouring the concrete floor for two new classrooms and many of the men have turned out on Saturday mornings to mix and spread the concrete while our ladies have prepared some delicious meals to fuel them with energy and strength. A couple of our volunteers have had the “privilege” of investing sweat and blood into this effort since they have carried sand and cement and have smashed a finger or two with tools in the process. I trust that, rather than be discouraged by these trials, they feel a greater sense of belonging and connection to the Lord’s work.
Charlene and I are doing very well physically and we are grateful to all of you who pray for us faithfully. Thank you for your generous support also so that we may continue to share the gospel in our corner of the world.
In Christ’s love,
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser
Rua Laudelino Ferreira Lopes, 279-1
Sobrado 1, Bairro Novo Mundo
81050-310 Curitiba, PR Brasil
(813)481-7007
bobbymichael_1@hotmail.com
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Missionary Update: The Wacasers in Brazil [July 2014]
Bobby, Charlene, Jessie, and Brennen Wacaser have served the Lord as church planters in Curitiba, Parana, Brazil, since 1985.
Dear Friends,
Many of you know that Brazil is in the middle of hosting the World Cup Soccer Championship games. As I write this letter, Brazil’s national team is headed to the semi-final game against Germany where one of the finalists will be decided to play in the final for the World Championship. As you can imagine, the whole country is super excited and there are numerous venues where people meet in large groups to watch the games on huge outdoor screens.
During these events we have been able to take advantage of the gatherings to present the gospel of Jesus Christ. On four game days we took our Projeto Vida teams to distribute free bottled water and gospel tracts in several languages to these venues. We had the opportunity to share the gospel with visitors from several Muslim nations also, since their teams were playing in our city and there were thousands of fans here from those countries. We hope to have planted some seeds of faith through the sharing of God’s word in these people’s lives.
Early in the month of June we hosted a youth group from Phoenix, AZ. There were around 25 teenagers with us for a week taking the gospel to the public schools and parks around our city. On the first day they were here they helped us cook for and feed over 200 homeless people in the inner city. Before, during and after the meal we interacted with these poor folks, sharing the gospel and sharing our time with them and loving on them with the love of Christ. We are partnering with a pastor from Chile who feels called of God to minister continually with these people on a week by week basis. Also, we are organizing volunteers from our church to help with the preparation of the food and serving it to them with a word of hope.
Tomorrow our new church is celebrating its 3rd anniversary. We are extremely grateful to the Lord for how He has blessed us. We started with 8 in attendance and we now have a regular attendance between 65-85 on any given Sunday. Those that the Lord has added to us are growing spiritually and we trust that this growth will lead to more people coming to Christ and to the church.
Charlene and I want to thank you for your faithful prayers and offerings so that we may continue to use our lives to reach these folks for Christ. May the Lord bless you for your faithfulness and generosity.
In Christ’s love,
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser
Rua Laudelino Ferreira Lopes, 279-1
Sobrado 1, Bairro Novo Mundo
81050-310 Curitiba, PR Brasil
(813)481-7007
bobbymichael_1@hotmail.com
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