Two Profess Christ at Christmas Presentation
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser have served the Lord as church planters in Curitiba, Parana, Brazil, since 1985.
January 3, 2020
Dear Friends,
Happy New Year! We were blessed by the Lord so much last year, but we are already excited about the new opportunities and blessings in store in 2020. We know that there is always the possibility that trials and loss may be awaiting us, but we also know that God will be with us in any struggle and that He has already promised that He is working all things together for our good because we love Him and are called according to His purpose.
Our Christmas presentation at our church was very well attended and at least two individuals professed Christ as Lord of their lives at the invitation given at the end of the message. At least 30 of our church members were involved in the presentation in one capacity or another and they were very faithful for 3 months going to practices and putting together the stage and sound and lighting system. We are thankful that the Lord has blessed us with such dedicated servants.
Our traveling evangelistic team is taking a short break because Brazilian schools are on their summer break. Around the second week of January we will start our first missionary training seminar of the year. We will teach Missions strategy and theology for the first two weeks and follow that up with practical evangelism, both to crowds and one-on-one. We are expecting about 20 new students from four different states. At least two of these students will stay on to work with our teams for six months after the seminar and, possibly, for a year or more if God so leads them to do so.
Charlene and I have also given a break to our English students until the end of January since there are no regular school classes going on and most families travel on vacation anyway. We will start back up again in February and we are looking forward to how the Lord will use this ministry this year.
Please keep us in your prayers as we seek to carry the gospel to as many people as the Lord places before us.
In Christ’s love,
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser
Rua Laudelino Ferreira Lopes, 279
Sobrado 1, Novo Mundo
81050-310 Curitiba, PR. Brasil
Phone: 55-41-99899-2333
bobbymichael_1[at]hotmail.com
For ministry donations:
Pastor George Sledd, Treasurer of BFM
P.O. Box 471280
Lake Monroe, FL 32747-1280
or click here to donate to BFM online
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Two Teens Turn from Hopelessness to Christ
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser have served the Lord as church planters in Curitiba, Parana, Brazil, since 1985.
December 2, 2019
Dear Friends,
At our English as a Second Language classes I got a wonderful opportunity to share my testimony with the students. One of them asked what brought us to Brazil and that question opened the door for me to share with the class how God had called us to come to Brazil to share the gospel of Jesus Christ which had transformed our lives. The students were emotionally moved by my testimony and I pray that the Lord will use it to bring them to salvation.
Our last couples’ meeting of the year exceeded our expectations quite a bit. We had about 20% more people turn out than we had been having at previous meetings. I just love this kind of a surprise. I brought a message from God’s word that I pray He will use to help the married Christian couples grow in their love and respect for one another. It is also our intended purpose through these couples’ events to attract families that don’t know the Lord so that they can hear of God’s love for them and be saved. At all four meetings this year we had several unchurched couples present and we saw most of them return to church to our regularly scheduled services.
Last month I reported how that our traveling evangelistic team met with strong resistance from the administrators in the public schools in Rio de Janeiro. The exact opposite was the case this month in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul. The team was given total liberty to share whatever message God had for the people. There were over 5000 people they were able to share the gospel with, between students and staff. More than 300 indicated that they were surrendering their lives to Christ. At the end of the hour-long presentation, the audience was invited to come and speak personally with our volunteer evangelists. One teenager had come to school that day with a pocket knife in his backpack and was planning to end his life at school because he felt that he was unloved and unlovable. After hearing of God’s love for him and how Jesus had given his life to save him, that young man gave the guidance counselor his pocket knife and said that he wouldn’t be needing it anymore because he knows he is loved by God and has trusted in Jesus. A different teen had been cutting himself and several of his friends told our team about him and how worried they were that he would take his life soon. His friends led a volunteer to talk to him about Christ’s love and forgiveness. The young man was so touched by how God showed His love to him through his friends, and even a stranger, that he believed on the Lord and handed them the razor that he was carrying to cut himself. He confessed that that very day, he intended to cut an artery and bleed to death because of how hopeless he felt.
I am so thrilled that the Lord has provided us with this amazing strategy for sharing the gospel where so many unreached people are starving for the lack of God’s word.
Our next major evangelistic thrust will be during our annual Christmas presentation. We have a team who has been planning and practicing a drama presentation for a couple of months already. We will be doing a two-day presentation at our church building the weekend before Christmas. Last year at our presentation we had the largest attendance to date in our building and this year we expect even more. There were also 15 professions of faith at the conclusion of that event and we pray and hope for even more this year. Pray with us that God will use us and our efforts to make His gospel clear and persuasive to the lost who will be in attendance at these presentations.
Charlene and I wish you all a very merry Christmas and a blessed New Year of 2020.
In Christ’s love,
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser
Rua Laudelino Ferreira Lopes, 279
Sobrado 1, Novo Mundo
81050-310 Curitiba, PR. Brasil
Phone: 55-41-99899-2333
bobbymichael_1[at]hotmail.com
For ministry donations:
Pastor George Sledd, Treasurer of BFM
P.O. Box 471280
Lake Monroe, FL 32747-1280
or click here to donate to BFM online
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The Good, the Bad, & the Ugly
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser have served the Lord as church planters in Curitiba, Parana, Brazil, since 1985.
November 3, 2019
Dear Friends,
Let me tell you about the good, the bad and the ugly. We are so blessed of the Lord in more ways than I can fully share, but one of them is that almost all of our evangelistic efforts in the public venues are very well received by civic leaders. This past month we were ministering in several neighborhoods of Rio de Janeiro. All of the schools received our team with open arms, except one. They did allow us to come in and to talk in front of the student body about avoiding illegal drugs, about suicide and depression, etc., but they warned us not to teach “religion” or to mention Jesus while using the microphone. That was the bad, but we were allowed to do our dramatic skits, which are done in mime, where Jesus was clearly portrayed as coming from the Father and giving his life as a sacrifice for man’s sin and resurrecting again. So, we still got to “preach” the gospel publicly and after the presentation ended, we were able to speak one-on-one with those who came to us privately to know more about what was presented in the dramas. That situation also helped to remind us that we are truly ministering in a world that is hostile to the Lord, but ultimately under His command. On the human level it is always a little disheartening to confront this type of resistance, but the Lord strengthened our faith by touching hearts even where our enemy sought to close the doors.
Two weeks ago, we launched a Jiu-Jitsu class at our church facilities on two days of the week. We have a very dedicated church member who is a black-belt instructor of Jiu-Jitsu and he has been asking me if we could provide these classes as a way to draw people from the neighborhood to the classes where the martial art is taught, but also to share Christ with the students. I thought it would be a great opportunity and we have 16 students already participating. We begin the classes with a time of devotional teaching and prayer, and we end with a reminder of the lesson taught. I joined the class myself, hoping to stay better fit and also to encourage others to participate.
Charlene is working with several of our volunteer ladies getting ready for our final couples’ event of the year. She always works hard and does a great job of preparing the environment for a meeting where the couples can enjoy themselves, relax and focus on listening to biblical marriage counseling and an evangelistic message. We are expecting a good crowd this month and we hope to leave the couples with a strong desire to be better mates and better fitted for serving the Lord as families.
Thank you for praying for us and for your faithful support. We know that God’s blessings will rest on you who seek to serve Him. Please know that He is using you beyond your own sphere of influence.
In Christ’s love,
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser
Rua Laudelino Ferreira Lopes, 279
Sobrado 1, Novo Mundo
81050-310 Curitiba, PR. Brasil
Phone: 55-41-99899-2333
bobbymichael_1[at]hotmail.com
For ministry donations:
Pastor George Sledd, Treasurer of BFM
P.O. Box 471280
Lake Monroe, FL 32747-1280
or click here to donate to BFM online
Read more
PalavraFest, Sharing in Schools & Parks, Headed to Rio
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser have served the Lord as church planters in Curitiba, Parana, Brazil, since 1985.
October 1, 2019
Dear Friends,
You may remember that I wrote how Charlene and I teach English as a second language in order to gain an opportunity to reach people who wouldn’t ordinarily come to a church service. We continue to do that and we are truly getting those opportunities. She and I teach different age levels and we both have English students who now come to our church services as a result. One of my students, a twelve-year-old girl, has also started bringing her entire family of six to church on Sundays. Our art teacher has also been able to draw several of her students to our worship services. This ministry is time consuming and requires effort, but the results that we are seeing make it worthwhile.
In our discipleship efforts at our base church we engaged in what we call, “PalavraFest,” translated, “WordFest.” This three week long event is pretty challenging for anyone, but especially for new believers. To complete the challenge, each person must read the Bible books of 1st Samuel, 2nd Samuel, 1st Kings, 2nd Kings and 2nd Chronicles completely. Also, they must memorize the 4th and 5th chapters of James and, additionally, they must study and fill out a prepared Bible study guide that requires approximately 30 minutes of study per day. We are in the middle of our third week of “WordFest” right now and I am very thrilled that around 60 percent of the congregation has kept up with all the challenge’s requirements. One of the greatest joys to me is to see how excited everyone is at our meetings as each one recites the verses they memorized to one another and discuss the details of the Bible texts that they read during the week! Our aim, above all, is to encourage our church members to study and practice God’s word so that they will be better equipped to love and serve Him.
Bobby Wacaser shared his testimony in a public school in Tatuí, São Paulo.
This past week I traveled to the interior of the state of São Paulo to meet together and minister with our team of evangelists. We shared the gospel in several public schools as well as in two city parks. I can’t think of any activity in life that gives me a greater joy than to share the gospel in a venue like a public school or park. In the town of Tatuí, I spoke to a group of around 300 high school students and shared my testimony of how I came to know Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior. As I spoke, I looked around the crowd and could see many who were crying as God used me to communicate His love and mercy. I believe that several of those who heard the gospel also surrendered their hearts to Christ. In the schools, we aren’t permitted to ask the students to come forward to proclaim publicly their faith, but very often, some of the students come to talk to us individually to share how they felt God speaking to them through us. Like I said, I can’t think of any greater joy than that!
Bobby Wacaser shared his testimony in a public school in Tatuí, São Paulo.
In a week, our team will be packing up to head out again to 2 different states of Brazil, Rio de Janeiro and Rio Grande do Sul. Both locations offer some daunting challenges. In Rio de Janeiro, the drug use and crime rate are very high and our team is at constant risk. We are confident that God is sending them and that He will protect and use them. In Rio Grande do Sul, there is a very high percentage of demon worship and ritualistic sacrifices of animals, grains and alcoholic beverages in nearly every public square. It is sad to see how blind the people in this state are to the grace of God. They are desperately in need of the gospel and we are praying that the Lord will use our efforts there for the salvation of many. Please remember to pray for our ministries.
Thank you for your faithful prayer and support.
In Christ’s love,
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser
Rua Laudelino Ferreira Lopes, 279
Sobrado 1, Novo Mundo
81050-310 Curitiba, PR. Brasil
Phone: 55-41-99899-2333
bobbymichael_1[at]hotmail.com
For ministry donations:
Pastor George Sledd, Treasurer of BFM
P.O. Box 471280
Lake Monroe, FL 32747-1280
or click here to donate to BFM online
Read more
God is Changing Lives through the Power of His Word
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser have served the Lord as church planters in Curitiba, Parana, Brazil, since 1985.
September 2, 2019
Dear Friends,
The winter break from public schools ended in August and our evangelism team was invited to minister in several schools in 4 different towns. The sheer number, alone, of people who were able to hear the gospel personally through our volunteers is amazing (over 5000 in one month). Most of these people have never set foot in any evangelical church. In the town of Prudentópolis over 300 people professed Jesus as their Lord and Savior!
I want to share three testimonies from among those who surrendered to Christ so that you may praise God together with us for His love and grace.
Projeto Vida preaching the Gospel in a public school!
Projeto Vida sharing the Gospel in an elementary school.
One teenage girl lives in a home where there is constant fighting and she herself is constantly abused emotionally. She had attempted suicide and even her own sister had tried to kill her. She was experiencing a deep sense of depression and hopelessness. When our group shared the gospel through a skit about family life without Christ and then followed that skit up with a message from God’s word, that girl sensed God speaking to her heart about her need for Jesus as Lord and Savior. When one of the volunteers was speaking to her personally after the presentation, she publicly called upon Jesus to forgive her for her bitterness and hatred of her family and accepted the forgiveness and mercy He gave her. She rejoiced immediately with what she knew was salvation by God.
In another situation, a lady sought out one of our female volunteers to share her deep sense of worthlessness. She had been betrayed and abandoned by her husband. When she was a girl, she had also experienced abandonment by her father. When he left, her mother had resorted to prostitution and became addicted to drugs. In her heart she harbored a powerful sense of resentment and hurt. After hearing the message of the gospel, she understood God’s love and forgiveness and was able to forgive those who had hurt her. She understands that Christ is now her defender and that she no longer needs to get back at those who have abandoned and abused her.
This last testimony reveals how powerful God’s word is.
When we go into a town to minister publicly, we park our van in a centrally located park or square. There we offer free haircuts, blood pressure checks, family counseling and activities for children. These services attract quite a few passersby and those who have heard from others about what we are offering. In the town of Paranavai, a woman kept hanging around our booths, but wouldn’t enter into any of them. This went on for most of the day. Anytime a volunteer would try to get close to talk to her she would shy off and not let them engage in a conversation. At the very end, when our team was getting ready to close up the tents, she finally came to the counseling tent and asked for a Bible. She still didn’t want to talk, so she just took the Bible and left. Later that night, our team returned to the same square to perform gospel skits, share testimonies and preach the Word. Not only did that woman show up, but she came with her husband. She had taken the Bible home and had let him read it. At the end of the gospel presentation, he came to the front to share the news that he had surrendered to Christ as His Savior. He said that he had only heard about Jesus by word of mouth from others, but that he had never read the Bible until that day. He also said that God had stirred in him a tremendous hunger to know His word more. Oh, how amazingly does our God work!
Please continue to pray for us and for God’s blessings on our ministries.
In Christ’s love,
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser
Rua Laudelino Ferreira Lopes, 279
Sobrado 1, Novo Mundo
81050-310 Curitiba, PR. Brasil
Phone: 55-41-99899-2333
bobbymichael_1[at]hotmail.com
For ministry donations:
Pastor George Sledd, Treasurer of BFM
P.O. Box 471280
Lake Monroe, FL 32747-1280
or click here to donate to BFM online
Read more
God is Still Showing His Love & Power
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser have served the Lord as church planters in Curitiba, Parana, Brazil, since 1985.
July 30, 2019
Dear Friends,
The month of July is a wonderful month for us here in southern Brazil. One of the highlights is our church’s anniversary. What makes it a little extra special is that it falls during the winter season when the climate and culture lend themselves to a festive sentiment which makes it ideal for inviting folks to our services. We had a record crowd a couple of weekends ago which also led to our highest regular service attendance the following week. We are excited and thankful for the new opportunities to minister to those whom the Lord brings our way.
Our traveling mission team, Projeto Vida, was up on the state line that separates our state, Paraná from the next state north, São Paulo. Where they were ministering there is an extensive river valley called Vale do Ribeira. Along this valley are a number of towns and communities in great need of the gospel and our team was used of the Lord to preach and share there for two weeks. The public schools are our usual venue for presenting the Word, but they were on winter break and the team presented in the public squares instead. Still there were many who surrendered to Christ as their Lord and Savior.
School has already started back up now and the team will be traveling again this week to other interior towns to minister.
We are still rejoicing from the wonderful grace the Lord showed this past week among our youth! Four teenagers made public professions of faith in Jesus at their most recent meeting. One young lady, Maria, has been attending with her boyfriend, Eric for several months, and, finally, she surrendered her life to Christ. Two others were attending for the first time, but the Lord graciously opened their hearts to understand and receive the gospel also. I didn’t get the personal information on the fourth person, a girl, that also trusted in Christ. I will be meeting soon with their leader who will begin a personal discipleship program for each of these new converts. We are so grateful that God is still showing His love and power at work even when society, in general, seems to be more and more decadent.
Thank for your faithful prayers and support.
In Christ’s love,
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser
Rua Laudelino Ferreira Lopes, 279
Sobrado 1, Novo Mundo
81050-310 Curitiba, PR. Brasil
Phone: 55-41-99899-2333
bobbymichael_1[at]hotmail.com
For ministry donations:
Pastor George Sledd, Treasurer of BFM
P.O. Box 471280
Lake Monroe, FL 32747-1280
or click here to donate to BFM online
Read more
Sharing the Gospel on Mountain Hikes and in Public Parks
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser have served the Lord as church planters in Curitiba, Parana, Brazil, since 1985.
July 3, 2019
Dear Friends,
Our winter weather has arrived here south of the equator. We aren’t having snowstorms, but the upper 20s without indoor heat or insulation feels frigid for almost anyone. Fortunately, I thrive in cooler weather and this is my favorite time of year. One of our ministry efforts during this time of year is to take teams hiking in the nearby mountain range. The cooler weather makes the physical exertion more invigorating and that makes it easier for us to invite unsaved friends to go with us. The hikes give us opportunities to get to know new friends better and show them the love of Christ through our actions and words. We have had several people come to our church services for the first time after having participated with us on a mountain hike. Just recently there were 36 of us who climbed a local peak and one of our members had 2 workmates and their wives go also. We always have prayer before we begin the hike and, during it, we intentionally point out God’s greatness in the creation of the natural beauty around us. When we stop to eat our packed lunches, we give thanks for His provision. I have spent time teaching our people how to use opportunities like these to find open doors for sharing the gospel with their friends and family members who accompany us. We also teach the entire group to consider how they behave and treat our guests so as to reinforce what the one sharing the gospel has to say. These hikes are also a great way to get some physical exercise while being distracted by the beautiful scenery around us.
Our outreach team went to three interior towns this month sharing the gospel. We were amazed at how many teens and children are being abused, both sexually and physically. Sadly, many times it is the very family members that should be loving and protecting them that are doing the abuse. It is enough to break your heart hearing 8 to 18 year-olds tell about suicide attempts and feelings of being unloved by their parents. Most of them live in fatherless homes and often the stepfathers and step-uncles are the sexual abusers and aunts often abuse them physically when they are called upon to “babysit” their nieces and nephews. On the one hand, these youth are distrusting of nearly everyone, but on the other they are very hungry for the good news that God loves them. Our teams are almost overwhelmed with sadness for their situations, but often are thrilled with joy when these youth come to Christ as their Lord and Savior! Our team was privileged to share the gospel in public parks and schools to over 2,000 students, teachers and adults this month. Only eternity will reveal how many of these truly surrendered their lives to Christ, but dozens openly confessed that they are now trusting in Jesus as their Lord and Savior. We are grateful for the opportunity to take the good news to them and we want be faithful in doing it while we still can.
Next Sunday we will begin worship and Bible study in English for the first time in our church services. We don’t know what kind of attendance to expect, but we are hoping that it will be a ministry that will only increase our outreach in the community. Many Brazilians want and some need English for their jobs and education, so there are quite a few who, we believe, will come to improve their language skills. It is our hope that God will use this strategy to communicate His word to them even if their aim is only secular. Please pray that God will save many through us.
In Christ’s love,
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser
Rua Laudelino Ferreira Lopes, 279
Sobrado 1, Novo Mundo
81050-310 Curitiba, PR. Brasil
Phone: 55-41-99899-2333
bobbymichael_1[at]hotmail.com
For ministry donations:
Pastor George Sledd, Treasurer of BFM
P.O. Box 471280
Lake Monroe, FL 32747-1280
or click here to donate to BFM online
Read more
God is Saving a Wide Spectrum of Sinners!
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser have served the Lord as church planters in Curitiba, Parana, Brazil, since 1985.
June 4, 2019
After all our weekly services are over, Charlene and I like to sit together to talk and reflect on what the Lord did during that week. This past weekend we were strongly impressed by how balanced His blessings are on the entire mission work. Our local members are really stepping up to the plate to serve in every needed area. We keep having new converts asking to be baptized in obedience to Christ. Our traveling evangelistic teams are as excited as we’ve ever seen them as they go to some of the most difficult regions of the country. And our church has joyfully increased their giving to further the ministries. She and I have seen all of these aspects many times in our work, but we are especially impressed that they are all occurring at the same time and we know that this is God’s doing. We are thankful.
Speaking of baptisms, we rejoice to see such a wide spectrum of conversions. Last week I baptized an 11-year-old girl who was raised in a Christian home all her life. She had come to realize that she was a sinner in need of the Savior, but anyone who knew her well could hardly point out any particular sins. This coming weekend I will be baptizing an elderly lady who has been an idolater nearly all her life. She raised several children who are spiritists, but now, late in life, she has found God’s grace and has surrendered her life to Christ. God continues to work in and through her life also. One of her granddaughters is a student in my English class and she also recently came to Christ.
Our outreach team, Projeto Vida, will be leaving again tomorrow to be ministering in three different interior towns. While giving our base church their last trip’s report, we could see an excitement that usually wanes about this time of the year. The Lord has blessed them with a unity among themselves which is often tested due to their 24/7 togetherness for 3 weeks of each month. You can imagine having 12 people (even sanctified ones) together in one vehicle and staying at the same locations, eating together every day for 9 months of the year, how that could begin to cause friction. But we were thrilled to see and hear how united they are and excited about how God is using them to reach the lost with the gospel.
We thank you for your faithful prayers and support for us and our ministries.
In Christ’s love,
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser
Rua Laudelino Ferreira Lopes, 279
Sobrado 1, Novo Mundo
81050-310 Curitiba, PR. Brasil
Phone: 55-41-99899-2333
bobbymichael_1[at]hotmail.com
For ministry donations:
Pastor George Sledd, Treasurer of BFM
P.O. Box 471280
Lake Monroe, FL 32747-1280
or click here to donate to BFM online
Read more
