Going Back in Time
Mike and Beverly Creiglow have served the Lord in Cruzeiro do Sul, Acre, Brazil together since 1971. In addition to pastoring First Baptist of Cruzeiro do Sul, Mike builds his own boats and frequently travels up and down rivers to share the Gospel with those who have never heard.
I really didn’t know what I was getting into when I came to Brazil in June of 1971. I tell everyone that I went back 50 years in time when I arrived in Cruzeiro do Sul, Acre. I grew up with running water, indoor bathroom, hot water from the faucet, buying almost anything needed, electricity 24 hours, etc. I came to a town with no running water, no hot water, and electricity only in the middle of town at night for a few hours. To buy most anything, it was a hassle, especially meat.
The first few years were pretty difficult, Mike traveled a lot. I knew very little Portuguese. We walked in a lot of mud those first several years! God knew I would need my first born, Adam, to occupy my time. Today much has changed. We have very nice supermarkets, 24-hour electricity (most of the time), and paved roads, even though they are full of holes! We have internet and cell phones.
When it came time for my kids to go to public school, for a while it was fine. After they started insisting that the students bring items for the saint’s holiday, that began our search for a way to home school them. Thankfully a church in Missouri bought the books for this to happen. All of my children homeschooled then went on to get their GED or equivalent and further education. Their social life was at church. Most of their friends were from church. That’s a very important detail.
Adam is an IT manager in the California court system. He has two grown daughters. Monica is manager of a law firm in Lexington and has a young daughter. Andrew started and owns a boat factory, but because of the poor economy, he is also a shop manager of a regional airline. He has two daughters and two sons. Crissy has her own English school and is married to one of our pastors. She has three sons and one daughter. Andrew and Crissy live across the street from us and I usually get visits from my grandkids once a day!
I wasn’t able to go with Mike on his river trips while our children were at home and at school. Now that they are out and on their own, I am able to go with Mike on a few trips. My arthritis limits my activities. Now on most of his longer river trips men go with him. My most important job now is supporting him and caring for his needs.
I cannot see Mike retiring. He doesn’t know how to stop! If he doesn’t retire, I guess neither do I.
Keep us in your prayers,
Beverly
Caixa Postal 24
Cruzeiro do Sul, Acre, Brazil 69980
mdcreig [at] hotmail.com
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My Happy Place
Bobby and Charlene Wacaser have served the Lord as church planters in Curitiba, Parana, Brazil, since 1985.
April 1, 2019
My life as a missionary wife in Brazil is truly my “Happy Place”. It is so evident that this is what God has called me to and He has blessed me more than I could have imagined. He gave me two beautiful children here and now we have our first grandson, named Jayce. Bobby ministered in Brazil from 1985 to 2015 when he had to return to the USA to take care of his ailing father after his mother passed away. We spent 3 years there until January of 2018 when we returned to Brazil to start all over again. It’s been a little over a year since we returned from the States. We had to sell everything when we left and having to start from scratch was quite a struggle. The Lord blessed tremendously, though, and we have seen our ministry flourish beyond our greatest hopes. The toughest part as a wife was to refurnish our house and make it feel like a home again. We were only able to bring a few suitcases on the plane with us and our house was in great need of many repairs.
3 generations Charlene has evangelized and taught.
These two men were boys of 8 and 9 years of age when Charlene was the their Bible school teacher. They have each become faithful leaders in their church work.
When we first came to Brazil, I struggled with the Portuguese language. I grew up in southern Georgia and had never even thought that I might need to learn another language. Since I came to Brazil as an adult, it has been impossible to completely lose my southern accent, but everyone says that I speak the language very well. It is probably just me that feels that my language skills aren’t the best. The Lord has used me, though, to share the gospel with thousands of women and kids through the course of our 33 years of ministry here. I am very grateful for this privilege. One of the most thrilling blessings to me is that I am in the process of discipling two girls who are from the third generation of people we evangelized during the course of our ministry. We had the privilege to lead a woman, her daughter and now, her granddaughter to the Lord and teach them the Word of God.
One of Charlene’s English classes with children from the community around their church.
Besides being Bobby’s life-partner, I also have a few activities that aid in our ministries. During the week I teach English as a second language to children from the community. This is a way for us to come into contact with families that wouldn’t ordinarily come to church. At present, I have 20 students from ages 8 to 12. I am also involved in our church’s couples’ outreach ministry.
A couples event that Charlene decorated for.
We put on 4 couples’ events each year to attract unchurched families where Bobby preaches the gospel and I help with planning the event, such as decoration and food preparation. On Sundays I teach the children ages 8 to 12. In fact, my assistant now is a woman who used to be one of my students and her two daughters are in our class.
There are a few prayer requests that I would like to share with you who would be interested in partnering with me in this ministry:
- My son, Brennen, and his family – his present job doesn’t pay enough and his son, Jayce, has struggles with his health. This is especially tough because we live so far away.
- My daughter, Jessie – She has a great job at her church and she wants the Lord to use her greatly for the growth of His kingdom.
- Bobby and I need wisdom to guide the church in the direction the Lord wants us to take it.
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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