May 2009 News

Mothers Day in Salvador, Bahia: We spent the week before Mother´s Day at our third team workshop with the Salvador Mission Team. They have just finished their fourth year on the field and have been through some difficult adjustments, common to all the teams and church staffs we have helped. The team is doing well and really getting into the work now. We praise God for the way He has helped this team to come together and mature in His service. We have witnessed individual, couple and team growth over the past 3 years!
We were able this time to stay for the weekend and visit with the congregation as they celebrated Mother´s Day with testamonies from two of the members and breakfast for everyone. There are several other congregations in this city of 3 million. Please keep this team and the work in Salvador in your prayers.




Randy Porter preaches at the Mother’s Day service.
Mother’s Day is one of the most important celebrations in Brazil.





Russell Quirey leads singing for the 50* member congregation.





Alicia Sass leads the children in a special part of the worship service just for kids.



















The whole Salvador team together: Sasses, Mabreys, Porters, Quireys and 2 year intern Heather Alkire

Back in Itu: We will be working in Itu for the next couple of months as we gear up for several special activities including Kristofer’s arrival, the inauguration of the new church building here, a bilingual camp, a medical campaign and visits from Acapella and Max Lucado. This weekend we will be hosting a church growth seminar at the Itu congregation similar to the one we conducted in Brasilia earlier this year. Please pray that God will show us all what we need to do as a congregation to impact more people in this city.
There have been three baptisms here in the last couple of months: Wanderley de Mello, Ana Rita Carvalho, and Cíntia Gomes.





Cíntia, who is confined to a wheel chair, was baptized a few weeks before her marriage to Dirk, her boyfriend of 8 years. They met on line and he came to meet her. They’ve been together ever since. Pray for him to join her in the Lord!








Wanderley was baptized after a bible study group started meeting in his home. He and his wife Carla (already a Christian) had been separated for some time and moved back together about a year ago. So wonderful to see God´s mighty hand at work in the lives of His children!


All our love to each of you! God blesses us daily through your prayers for us!

April 2009 News

Some Family Time



Gail’s mom and step dad at the orphanage, Lar Cristão

Gail’s mom, Mary and her husband of 3 years, Spurgeon Vanhoose (Van), paid us a two-week visit between our trips to Brasilia. We had a wonderful time showing them around Itu and the surrounding area. They helped us with several projects around the house that we had not had time to get done, like hanging pictures! They accompanied us to one of our monthly couples dinners, where 34 couples from the Itu church and some other area churches gathered together to eat and share about our marriages. We visited a nearby orphanage run by the Churches of Christ (Lar Cristão). Mary sells cookies every Christmas and sends the money to us to give to some worthy cause. This year she was able to give the money herself and meet some of the children she would be helping. The home has 33 children and 4 families of house parents. The church in Itu helps the home financially and with volunteer work. Van enjoyed getting to sit in on our singing practice as we worked on some new songs to teach the congregation. Van sang in the choir at his church for years and had some encouraging words for us about this ministry of music. Mary wrote down everything they did and saw and when they got back to their church they gave a presentation about their trip. Their Sunday Bible class has been praying for our work for some time. We are thankful for the support we have always received from Mary and now from Van. Their willingness to come down here to visit at 84 and 82 years old was a real motivation for us!



Mary and Gail with Andressa at the home. This baby was taken off the streets at 20 days. Andressa only weighed 2 1/2 pounds. She is now about 2 months old and has since gained another 2 pounds and is doing well.





Mary and Van under the BIG phone booth in the center of Itu.














Brasilia Church Vision










We returned to Brasilia during the week of April 9-15 with three important tasks to perform.
1. We lead the church through a daylong process of brainstorming for ideas on church vision, values and mission. The team and leaders will take all the suggestions and present the church with several ideas to vote on. Their goal is to come up with a mission statement, vision perspective and specific values that will be the identity of this congregation in their community.
2. Coaching. The new mission team and leadership are receiving monthly visits from Bryan Gibbs, Zanatta or us in order to guide them through this first year of working together. On this visit we worked on integrating the new staff members (the team) with the already established leadership of the congregation. This included discussions on the decision making process within the group, and helping them deal with relationship issues they might tend to avoid or cover up. This is something we do with each team or staff that we visit. It helps to keep misunderstandings from festering and interfering with the mission. During this trip two couples from Otavio and Alessandra’s supporting church, Park Plaza in Tulsa, OK, were making their first visit. We included Don and Donna Millican and Chris and Sharon Worsham in our discussions about expectations and communication issues between the team, the leadership and the supporting churches. Their input was valuable and helped to put these complicated relationships into perspective.
3. Mentoring. Another important job we have during these visits is to mentor each of the couples on the team. We meet with each couple individually to examine their personal and family priorities and to make sure they are adapting to their new life and work in Brasilia.


On this trip we were blessed to have one of the Itu interns, Mary Lou Thompson, accompany us. She studied leadership in college and was interested in seeing what we do to help leaders. She was excited about participating in the group dynamics and seeing the World Café method used for the church wide brainstorming sessions. When we debriefed with her after one of the sessions she said, “I want to do what you do!” We need more people doing what we do and are praying for God to raise up servants who will take on the task of ministering to leaders in Brazil

All our love to each of you! Thank you for keeping us in your prayers.

March 2009 News

Elders and Missionaries from the Victory church in Rio

March was DISC month! The DISC is a personality instrument that we use often with teams and church staffs. It divides individuals into 4 relational styles, depending on what they value most and fear most in working relationships. The Mennonites have developed a workbook for presenting this instrument that is fun, dynamic and interactive. We have used this system with groups all over Brazil to help them learn how to understand each other better and work more effectively for the growth of the Kingdom. We were on the road for 22 days during the month of March visiting 4 different cities. In Rio de Janeiro we conducted the DISC workshop with the American missionaries and the newly installed Brazilian elders at the Victory church. Their goal was to work together better as a whole and to help integrate the new elders into a cohesive group. In Belo Horizonte we conducted a similar workshop with the 8 couples in the leadership group of the El Dorado congregation. In São Paulo, 35 elders, deacons, ministry leaders and Bible school teachers from the Ninth of July congregation, participated in the workshop. We had never done the DISC workshop with so many people before, but it turned out to be a wonderful time of sharing and understanding for the group. Then we went to Brasília where Jerry taught the last class out of 4 which have been offered to the new team and the leadership there in preparation for the beginning of the new outreach to that city. The class was on Interpersonal Relationships so we were able to review the DISC, which they had all already taken now that they are actually working together. We spent time in the homes of each of the couples on the Brasilia team to make sure they are adjusting well to their new city. We will be making three more trips to Brasília this year. We are dividing coaching responsibilities for the new team with Bryan Gibbs and Zanatta, elder from Campo Grande, so that each month the team receives a visit from one of us.





DISC workshops at the El Dorado church (Belo Horizonte) and at Nove de Julho in São Paulo



















The leaders of the Brasília congregation and the new
Mission team during their class on Interpersonal
Relationships.





Ministering in Itu: Before we began all the travel in March, Jerry led a seminar here in Itu on how to best use small groups in the homes. The church here is having a small group campaign this year to begin new groups in the city. There are currently 13 groups meeting on every day of the week and the Eldership’s goal is to have 90% of the church in a small group by the end of the year. Two more will begin this week, including one in our neighborhood that we will be helping with when we are in town. Gail also attends a women’s group led by Maria Dutton, wife of long time missionary, Allen Dutton. 30 leaders attended this, the first of several seminars to equip group leaders, to be offered this year.




Small Group seminar in Itu










Personal News:
We are excited that our son, Kristofer, will be coming down this summer as our first intern here in Itu. He will be working part time with us and part time with the youth group. He is currently raising money for his trip and expenses. If you are interested in helping with Kris' internship you can write to him at: kth04a@acu.edu and he will send you the information on how to contribute.

We value your prayers as we travel and minister to the leaders of God’s church here in Brazil. Strong leaders will build strong churches and reach more souls to join us in the Kingdom!

February 2009 News

Raising up Leaders


Participants from the Reach Brazil Retreat






Jerry spent a week in Tegucigalpa, Honduras in January at the Baxter Institute where he taught a class on Interpersonal Relationships and Team Dynamics to a new team of Spanish speaking missionaries, from 3 different countries, who will be moving to Mexico City to begin a new church. It was quite a challenge for him to present material that he has only in Portuguese while speaking English and being translated into Spanish by Calvin Henry of Continent of Great Cities.



Team from Baxter Institute preparing to evangelize Mexico City






After months of preparation the Reach Brazil retreat was held in Atibaia, SP from the 5-8 of February.
30 influential couples from every corner and region of Brazil.
60 (49 Brazilians) disciples, including missionaries, deacons, preachers, businessmen, elders and entrepreneurs representing: 16 States, 21 cities, 26 different congregations.
This event was a dream come true- many years in the making. It began three years ago during discussions with Dale Brown, of Golf Course Road church in Midland, Texas. It was soon apparent that we shared many of the same dreams and passion about developing leaders, planting new churches, and expanding the Kingdom in Brazil. Challenging and expanding the vision of Brazilian leaders was our main goal. Later we connected with his son, Tod, and Bryan Gibbs of Continent of Great Cities.
The three-day event included no lectures. Instead, Tod facilitated our communion using the “World Café” dynamic in which everyone participates and contributes equally. The openness and involvement of everyone was amazing to experience. This may have been the most important and transformational retreat we have sponsored in 29 years of ministry in Brazil. Every participant reported that it was a remarkable time of authentic communion, prayer, Bible sharing and visioning for the future of the church in Brazil.




Bible study using the World Café dynamic









Catch up News—We wanted to catch you up on what we have been involved in here in Itu over the past several months.
Kris got here in time to help with the food distribution that this church promotes every December to help out poor families in the area. 172 families came to pick up their food and hear a message about God’s grace. Kris also helped out with directing a play put on by the youth during the Christmas program. Kris plans to come back to Itu this summer to help out his parents and to work with the youth ministry.




The Itu congregation distributed 172 baskets of food to the poor at Christmas. (Kris & Gail)







Itu Christmas program










In January, the missionaries here in Itu hosted the annual Missionary Conference. Don McLaughlin from Atlanta brought us some inspiring lessons from the book of Hebrews. We loved getting to share with our fellow missionaries from all over Brazil and some from Paraguay and Chile. During the conference Jerry recorded two TV programs with F.H. Gates and Antenor Gonçalves, who have a weekly, nation-wide program shown here on Saturday evening. You can view the programs online at www.igrejadecristo.com. Jerry was on the Jan. 24 and Jan. 31 programs talking about marriage and raising children. “Open Your Bible” registered 72,000 responses and 82 baptisms in the first year of broadcasting.





Missionary Conference in Itu









Jerry on the TV program Open your Bible









We led a couple’s retreat at the Guanabara congregation in nearby Campinas the last day of January. 16 couples participated. The next week Jerry gave a Bible study for the young professionals group where several visitors were present. When we are home in Itu we want to be used by the church here as much as possible. We are happy to be able to share in the work being done in this dedicated community of believers.

Prayers: All our love and prayers go out to each one of you during this challenging time. Some of our supporting churches have cut back on their contributions because of the economic crisis. We ask you to be in prayer for us as we are for you, that God will grant us what we need to continue to do His will “whether well-fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want” Phil. 4:12. For we know the secret of being content.

January 2009 News

Friends and Family day for the Brasília Team


Otávio’s mother was baptized at Friends and Family Day.








The Brasília Team is on their way to their new home. They each have found an apartment and are in the process of making their move to Brazil’s capitol where their training will continue with teachers from CGC and the Family Institute. Before their departure, we invited them and their friends and families to a special goodbye party at the Ninth of July church in São Paulo. In 30 years of ministry, this one is among the most memorable weekends we have experienced. This is the first Brazilian team recruited by CGC. It was the first "Friends and Family" workshop for a mission team in Brazil. This inspiring Saturday included testemonies from Bryan and Jacqueline Bost and Maria Dutton, long term missionaries and mentors to many on the field. They shared their inspiring stories- of faith, courage, defeats, rejection and discouragement, victory, changed lives, churches begun, and families and supporters who sacrificed and tenaciously supported them. António and Ju Borges, from the Brasília leadership, were there to assure the parents that these three couples will be well cared for in Brasília. The team shared their dreams for the mission they feel called to embark upon. Each family unit was able to get together separately to share their love for each other, express their concerns and hopes and pray specifically for the success of each couple. The highlight of the day was the baptism of Otávio’s mother. Sunday was the “sending off” service for the team at Nove de Julho and João De Marco, one of the elders, blessed them. Jerry’s sermon challenged the church to remain focused on God’s mission in Brazil. This weekend was the culmination of months of preparation by the Family Institute for the event and more than two years of preparation of the team.


Bryan and Jacqueline Bost













Dona Maria Dutton










Here are some of the team’s thoughts after the event. God gave us a great gift when my mother decided to give herself to Jesus. I have been praying for her and studying the word with her for 15 years. On this day I witnessed the baptism I have most wanted to see. God presented me with the joy of going into the fields to find the lost knowing that my mother is no longer among them.



Families and Friends of the Brasília Team









This weekend helped many people to get a more mature idea of what missions is all about. Our families are feeling more comforted about us being far away from them. Today they understand how important this work will be for the Kingdom.
It was good to share some of what we have been through in this training and to hear the experiences of those who have worked in ministry for so long. I feel we have gained allies and supporters for this work. I loved being able to tell my family what they mean to me and how much I will miss them.







Each family prayed for God’s power in the life of their team member.




Elder’s blessing on the team. Keep these families in your prayers: Junior and Patricia Lira, Otavio and Alessandra Calegari, Renato and Carol Pereira.





A Personal Note
At the very time this amazing day ended, six thousand miles away, the celebration service for Prentice Meador began. It was Prentice, with two other men, who first scouted out Brasilia thirty years ago.
We were so blessed to have our children here with us over the holidays. We thank Joel and Angela and Kris for spending the time, energy and money to give us the best Christmas present: time together.
This week Jerry is in Honduras teaching at the Baxter Institute. He is helping to train a Hispanic team that will soon be going to begin a work in Mexico City. Please be in prayer for Jerry and for this new church planting team.

Our love to each of you who make our work a joy by your encouragement and faithfulness.

December 2008 News

The Northeast of Brazil is comprised of 9 states and, with more than 50 million people, almost a third of the nation’s population. It is noted for it’s ethnic mixture and strong adherence to Catholicism and Spiritism. This is the fastest growing area in Brazil with some cities growing at an astounding 15% yearly!

It is also where the churches of Christ have perhaps been enjoying the fastest growth. In the last ten years the number of congregations has tripled, from 28 to the current 100! There are 50 full and part-time workers in these congregations. Forty-one have graduated from EBNESR, a training school run by Randy Short.

Because of the fantastic growth of churches and number of workers Gail and Jerry have spent two weeks there annually for the last twelve years. This year we were privileged to participate in three big events.















Above: Biblical Counseling: These ministers participated in the weeklong counseling training course administered by Jerry. In addition to lectures they were given case studies to resolve and spent one-third of the class actually being trained in live counseling.

Below: Graduation: EBNESR has graduated 41 workers and trained another 60. They have a unique system in which church workers travel to Recife for an intensive, one-week course, each month. This way, they are not taken away from their ministry, and classes take on a more practical, “hands-on” nature. Pictured here are the 5 graduates and some of the teachers who participated in the life of these ministers over the last two years.















Impact Northeast: These seven couples were chosen as ones who have impact and influence beyond their local congregation and city. This was the second annual spiritual renewal retreat in this region. Maciel and Janaina were added this year, having recently moved to Recife where they will direct the new Children’s Home. This unique event is having a powerful effect on their lives, families and ministries. Here are some of their comments:
















**We mark our ministry in two eras: before and after knowing the FILA. Our lives and ministries have not been the same since Jerry and Gail began coming to the Northeast to minister to us.
**In more than 10 years of ministry, this is the only time that we have had someone devote time exclusively to minister to our needs.
**This retreat has impacted me so much; it is like new blood in the veins of my spiritual life.
**Being able to stop in the course of my busy life of work and church activities to pray and reflect has reinvigorated my energy and improved by leaps my relationship with God. May plan is to better develop this area of my ministry, to build up other church workers, beginning with the students at EBNESR and reaching out to other workers who live farther away, through email. We have seen how important it is for each worker to have someone in whom they can confide.
**Our view of God has changed. We have a Father who loves us and cares about us and who takes pleasure in helping us in our work. Our children want us to come to these encounters because they have seen how much we have changed. The attitudes of our church members have changed too. They respect us and are partnering with us in the work. They are concerned for our spiritual health as their leaders. I am able to encourage my team of ministers here with the blessings I have received from these retreats.
**We now understand the necessity of pastoring our church leaders. Out of our experience with these Impact retreats, we have begun in Salvador a project to spread this blessing to other workers in our state. We will be meeting twice every semester to share about our spiritual needs. We have already planned all the events for 2009 and hope to replicate what Jerry and Gail have done with us with the workers in the 5 congregations in our city.
**To the brothers and sisters who have invested in sponsoring this event I would like to say that you are doing something admirable in caring for the emotional and spiritual needs of the soldiers in God’s army on the front lines of the battle. This ministry is very important and will help us avoid many losses in the combat against our enemy.




Randy and Kathy Short-logistical and financial support for Impact Northeast.







Merry Christmas to all of our loved ones! May God grant you peace in His presence and guidance as you serve His name.

All our love, Jerry and Gail

P.S. We have a new land line at our house now: 55-11-4023-4566

October-November 2008 News

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!
Since mid-October we have been to 4 different locations in the state of São Paulo and Brasília. We began this trek with a weekend seminar at the new Mauá congregation. This church began meeting the end of August and they already have their own meeting place and about 30 members. We conducted a DISC workshop with them to help them learn to trust each other and work together effectively for evangelism and church growth.

Gail had the privilege of attending two women’s conferences: one with 260 Brazilian sisters from all over the country and the other with 60 missionary wives from Latin America brought to us by the Continent of Great Cities ministry. Both conferences were wonderful times of fellowship and spiritual renewal for all involved.

Jerry helped to organize a leadership retreat for 10 key Brazilian leaders along with Dale and Tod Brown and Bryan Gibbs. They are planning to have another
retreat in February with 30 key Brazilian couples. The idea is to prepare these couples to take the Brazilian church to the next level of growth and better equip Brazilian leaders.

In Brasilia we, along with Bryan Gibbs, conducted a church wide survey based on the books by Christian Schwartz on Natural Church Development. (We believe this is the first Brazilian Church of Christ to take this test.) The congregation was able to see where they are in terms of 8 characteristics of growing churches. The results motivated them to make some changes, as they prepare to receive the new mission team arriving in January. We are very optimistic about what God is going to do with the church in Brasilia in the next couple of years. While in Brasilia we also met several times with each of the 3 leaders to encourage and equip them for the changes and growth

The Mauá congregation works on relationships.












The men’s leadership retreat was an inspiration for impacting Brazil with Christ’s love.







Annual Women’s Congress












The wonderful sisters who came from the US to minister to the missionary women of Latin America.







Seminar on Natural Church Development with the Brasília congregation.









At home in Itu: Renowned artist, Rolando Diaz, visited Itu at the end of October. He is a member at the Preston Road Church of Christ in Dallas. During this, his second visit to Itu, he performed 3 live painting recitals with musical accompaniment to raise money for the construction of the Itu church building. His generosity, love for the Lord and for Itu was obvious to many people in this city and greatly appreciated by the congregation here.

Our newest sister Ireni was baptized on November 9th after studying with one of the men of the congregation and several women who have a weekly Bible study near where she works.

Bryan and Becky Gibbs visited us for several days to look at apartments, furniture and meet with the elders of the Itu church. They are planning to move here in September of 2009 to work for Continent of Great Cities as on field recruiters and trainers for Brazilian mission teams. We plan to continue to work closely with them in this preparation of national teams.

On Nov. 25th, the three couples of the Brasilia mission team spent a day here at our house in a mini-retreat to plan for their move in January. We have been so blessed to participate in the selection, training and spiritual growth of these 3 wonderful servant couples.


Rolando Diaz creates a painting before a live audience at the Itu shopping mall.










Ireni, new sister reborn in Itu.













The Gibbs with two of the Itu elders, Rossi and Maria, Zezo and Marilena.











The Brasilia team, their kids, and our wonderful baby-sitters, Mark and Alice Kaiser, in our back yard.




Our Gratitude!!! In this time of difficult economic crisis, we are grateful to the Father for each of you who have been able to continue to support this ministry financially. Your sacrifice is an example of Christ’s generosity and we want you to know how much it means to us. May the Lord bless you always with His grace and give back to you 100 fold!

Jerry and Gail Heiderich

**We are greatly saddened by the loss of our dear friend and long-time supporter, Prentice Meador, who left us to be with the Father on Nov. 25th. Our prayers go out to his family. We will miss him.