Evangelism Visit

Hello all. My dad Aj and my husband Walmir took a group from our church here in Caraguatatuba to the mission point in Natividade da Serra to help with evangelism and visiting in general in that town. So the 16 individuals from our church left here early on Sunday the 15th to spend the day in Natividade.

They got there in time to participate in the morning service where Walmir preached to the adults.

In the afternoon they went around town sharing about the church and the services there and when God opened a door, they shared about the plan of salvation.

After all the visiting, they got cleaned up to run the evening service. Dad preached, a group of 3 youths played instruments as a special and the group sang as well.

They had 54 people attending the service that evening (this included our 16). God was good and the kingdom gained 3 new inhabitants that evening. And to add to that blessing, one of the men that gained eternity has said he is going to donate property for the church to build its own building. As dad would say, "AWESOME!!!!!!"

God is good.

June Newsletter

Dear friends,

I cannot say it has been an uneventful month. We have seen some sad endings and happy new beginnings. Three of our brothers in Christ have gone to live with the Lord, 2 young Christians united in marriage and work has been going on at the property as well.

Sometimes we wonder if when we are doing evangelism in the communities, "Is it really necessary?" Well the first of the three who passed away was a 37 year old man who had heart surgery 6 to 8 months ago. He accepted Christ before his surgery while sitting on the front steps of his home near one of our preaching points (Barranco Alto). My son-in-law, Walmir and I had the privilege of not only leading him to Christ but being with his family at the hospital when he went to be with the Lord. We were also privileged to participate in his funeral service, or as my late father-in-law would have said, "His promotion."

The second brother who passed away was Walmir's father, Gibson. He was 60 and was cutting down some fruit for his grandchildren in the back yard of his home. He was talking with Walmir and another friend and he fell forward. Mary witnessed most of the event and did CPR until the Fire Department Rescue crew arrived. Gibson was pronounced dead about 45 minutes to an hour later at the hospital. It is totally awesome to preach a funeral when there are no doubts that a person has Jesus Christ in their lives. His testimony and witness demonstrated his commitment to our Lord and Saviour. He was one of the assistants at the preaching point where the first young man died.

The last man who passed away was a father to one of our faithful church members. He was not a member of our church but we were privileged to participate in his funeral. He had been an alcoholic and had accepted Christ late in life. He lived his last 3 years going to church and demonstrating a witness that his life had changed. How awesome is the Lord we serve.

In the midst of this sadness we did have the joy of witnessing 2 young Christians join in marriage. Both of these young people serve faithfully in church and we are looking forward to God using them even more as a married couple.

So even though we has what appears to be a very busy month, we are blessed because these 3 men and this couple ave the testimony they had and have Jesus in their lives. How awesome is the Lord we serve.

This month has also been very busy with the vocational school. We have been installing the foundation and plumbing for a dormitory. It has required a lot more dirt to fill than was anticipated. The work goes on and it is simply awesome how the Lord supplies.

We have planned our evangelism for the rest of the year. Included in this evangelism outreach are our mission points located out of our area, Salesópolis and Natividade da Serra, as well as the communities in town where we currently have preaching points or congregations. In all of this, especially the 2 missions out of town, the van will be serving a vital part! Without the van we would be unble to go and visit in these mission fields. It is awesome when we can take some of our church members and help our missions. Not only is it needed but out church members enjoy participating in this church work. In each of the 2 towns, we are planning to spend a day each month evangelizing and having a church service in the evening before returning home. In the local communities, we are planning on going door to door spreading the good news of the gospel. We will rotate through these areas through out the rest of the year.

Barbara has been in the States visiting with her mother and recuperating from her surgery these last 4 or 5 weeks. She has surely been missed here. Pray for her as she will be returning June 19th.

So as we are ministering here, we request your prayers for the work that is ongoing. It is because of wonderful people like you that this work continues. Pray with us for more souls for the harvest.

Thanks so much for your financial support and prayers. Remember, there is always a bed and extra beans for you here with us. Like Motel 6, we'll keep the light on for you.

In His service,
Aj and Barb Hensley

Check out the pictures

Hello all!! This is Mary K. wanting you to check out the pictures we have posted to the Flickr site. You can go there and see the pictures of recent works, Mission groups pictures and family stuff among us Hensleys (and Hensley Quaresmas). The easiest way to check these pictures out is to click on the Flickr badge on the side of this blog. It will take you to the Flickr page where you can see all the pictures without having to strain to see the small pictures passing along in the Flickr badge.

Hope you enjoy seeing the progress in the work here in Caraguatatuba.

In His service,
The Hensleys

May Newsletter

Dear friends and Family,

Things happen here just as they do in the States, Barbara has had hemorrhoid surgery and is recuperating here at home for the past 3 weeks. All is going well. She was in the hospital for one day and a half. And just to show you how God works, her surgeon was an acquaintance we made while studying Portuguese two years ago in San José dos Campos. Our teacher was a great Christian lady and her son-in-law, also a Christian, is Barb's surgeon. What a wonderful and AWESOME God we serve. Continue to pray for her recovery which at times has been painful but thanks to the Lord is now going wonderful.

Pastor Walmir, our son-in-law, and I have visited one of our out of town mission points this week. The distance is about 1 1/2 hours from our town. The town in named Salesopolis. We took several bags of clothes for the cold weather as it is beginning to be cold here and in this town even more so as it is in the mountains. The Church people have moved into a new building for the Church and are getting settled in. They will need to build some walls to divide for Sunday School classes. They also will need some appliances for their kitchen and paint for the walls and various other projects that will need to be done. They are very excited about their new building and the prospect of reaching more for Jesus Christ. There is still opposition to the Church there in the town, this week Pastor Luis was stopped on the street and told that their church was not the true Church. Pray for this pastor and Church.

This past week Walmir, Edson and I were helping a member of our Church close his business that was going under and while helping him I was able to purchase 3 computers for the Vocational School. We helped him remove his illuminated signs and made the comment that these would be good for the two mission points out of town and he offered them to us at a very low price. But we did not have the money to purchase them but before we had completed the three day moving job this man came to us and said that God had touched his heart to give the signs to the Church. Can you see the heart of a brother who is closing his business and needing every cent that he could raise but listening to the voice of God to give away the product that he needed to sell.God is always speaking, but are we always listening? In addition this man has volunteered to teach his computer classes to our Vocational school and at Church. How AWESOME is the God we serve.

Our pastor has been away this month to Manaus and I am having a wonderful time preaching Gods word every Saturday in the English Church and on Sunday in our regular services.This has been a double blessing in that we have gotten several of the people that attend the English services to come to our regular Church services also.

This month our plans were to begin the foundation for the dormitory but rain has delayed us. Sand, gravel, and cement is on the job site but we are stuck inside because of the rain.We are thinking of changing the name of our city from Caraguatatuba to Caraguata"chuva". Chuva means rain in Portuguese. Tomorrow we are planning to start digging if the Lord is willing. The "backhoe" is ready to dig,that is the Brasilian "backhoe" hoes, shovels picks and post hole diggers. Construction here is a challenge but when God is in charge all things are possible. We have been accumulating resources ($) for almost a year to get this project underway. We now feel that we can pour the footer--level the lot(perhaps 10 truckloads of dirt) and pour the floor and start the walls. This is one more item to put on your prayer list for our ministry.

Continuing with news of the Vocational School, we finally purchased the key making machine needed for this part of the School. The price wound up being R$ 1,530.00 Reais (almost $1000.00) The machine is paid for thanks to all who helped in this purchase. Isn't the Lord truly AWESOME?

We got our taxes finished there in the States and now we are working on the necessary paperwork for the same thing here in Brasil. We need proof that we have paid in the States so they wont charge us again here. Paper work is 10 times more here than there. But it looks like all is done to every body's satisfaction until another year. As I said at first, things happen here just like there.

We are looking forward to the groups that the Lord is sending this year. Are you part of any of them? If not you will be missing a blessing of seeing what God is doing with your mission dollars. Why don't you get a group together and COME ON DOWN. We will treat you so many ways that you will have to like one of them. Time is wasting, get your ticket and come see us.

In His service,
Aj and Barbara

April Newsletter

Again, sorry for not posting in the proper time frame. mkhq


Dear Friends,

Well we have had a very busy month. We began last year a campaign to help the widows of our Church in their homes. We are remodeling doing necessary repairs to their homes and painting and helping with necessities--food clothing and etc. The latest project was for a widow with 4 children. Thanks to Mt. Eden Baptist Church in Western Ky. we were able to lay tile in her 300 square foot home and painted inside and out.Then the ladies decided that a new house deserved new furniture. So they went shopping and returned with new beds and mattresses and chest of drawers and closet. This has been nothing short of a miracle for us, the Church and for the mother and family. How awesome it is to be able to serve our Lord and Savior and at the same time get to see His handy work. How AWESOME is the Lord we serve. (Check out the pictures at our Flickr site)

The ladies helped the first day in the morning and then in the afternoon we held a Bible School in the mission point near where we were working on the house. We had on the average 45 to 50 for three days. It was a blessing to see these children listen to the Bible stories and do the crafts.

Our new mission endeavor, the English Church, is going well and growing. We have had from 1 to 5 visitors every Saturday and the news is getting out about the service. The other new mission endeavor in Massaguaçu, is still giving us a lot of challenges. In physical labor we are repairing the outside walking area, painting and some general repair. There is also the problem of getting the electricity hooked up, I really don't know what the problem is there but we are working hard to get the work up and running. We have painted our Church name on the building and the service hours and the neighborhood is starting to pay attention. We will start visiting in the area this week to let the people know that we are in the area. We have already gotten some comments and not all of them are good.The other day a car drove by and stopped and asked if this is another place of hades and then drove off. This is just a sign that we are needed in this area.

This month we are planning to start the foundation for the dormitory for the Vocational School. We have gotten 2 donations for this project so we have enough to get started. This will enable us to have a few more young men in training. We are praying about two young men in São Paulo. It would be great to have them here helping in the construction phase. This will be a part of their training, learning a work ethic. This project will go slow as our Pastor is traveling for a month to Manaus and I and my son-in-law will be in charge of our Church here. Preaching, teaching and taking care if the needs of the people. Pray for us as the work, physical and spiritual is going forward.Also Barbara will probably have surgery this month so I will be occupied in all areas of life.

There is lots of work to be done, many friends to make, and beans and rice to eat so come on down your bed is turned down.

In his Service,

Aj and Barbara

Newsletter

Dear friends,

This month we have been busy on two of our mission buildings. In Morro do Algodão, where we almost lost the building because of the rainy season and being flooded two times, we are painting, have installed a fan for the services, and are building a wall in front of the Church building. There is still much to do. Services are now going on in this building and we are beginning to see a renewed interest in the neighborhood. While the building was being repaired we were having services in homes in the neighborhood and our attendance fell. But with God's help we will see this Mission growing again. We have services here on Thursday nights.

In the Olaria Mission we have put concrete in the front of the Church building, poured a sidewalk beside the building, and this week the water was finally connected. Attendance is growing in this Mission point. We have services here on Thursday and Saturday nights.

Our two Mission points that are out of the city are doing good. In Natividade do Serra where Pastor Jorge is working has 8 people awaiting baptism. We are seeing continued growth there. In Salesópolis where Pastor Luis is working we are in a bit of turmoil: we find that the people that come to visit this church have some reserve about going through the pastors home to get to the meeting place. If you remember, the meeting place in inside the home of the pastor. We have found a building in the center of town (on the main street) that is for rent and has 5 smaller rooms off a big room. It looks like it is tailor made for Church and Sunday School. As usual the only problem is the rent, Pastor Luis and Dani have found a smaller house to rent and this will help with the cost of the new Church building. However we serve an AWESOME God and He is in control. Pray with us for these works and the other locations we have within the city limits. Our desire is to start another work down the coast line, this is in the future so put this on your prayer list.

We are also doing some much needed repairs on the main Church building. We are repairing the roof where we have some leek problems and are doing some much needed painting. It seems that there is never any end to the amount of work that there is to be done.

This week-end we are planning a working on the newest place where we will be beginning another Mission work, Massaguaçu. When this building is ready we will begin services there also.

As you can see there is no lack for places to preach the gospel here in Caraguatatuba. I have told you about the works and have not even touched on the Seminary that is about to start again after the summer break nor the plans for the construction of the dormitory for the Vocational School. But I'll save that for the next letter.

We have one more prayer request for you this month. The value of the dollar is declining here in Brazil and as you can see our work is increasing so it makes it difficult to do all that we need to do here. But the one thing that we know it that we serve a living God and He is capable of all things if we just ask. So we are hoping that you along with us will ask Him to supply our need.

We would love to have you come down and be a part of these works. Just give some notice and we will turn your bed down and put some more water in the pinto beans.

In his service
Aj and Barb

February Newsletter

Friends,

We are back in Brasil after a quick trip to the States for the holidays. We took the opportunity to be together in the States with our entire family for the first time in years. Mary and her husband were able to go with us so that completed the family unit. We were not on furlow just on a family holiday. Our time there was wonderful.

Barb's mom had had a fall and we came to encourage her, but to be honest the main reason was that God had blessed our son and daughter-in-law with expecting our first grand daughter. We came to be present for the birth and God was good as he let us have two days with the most beautiful grand daughter we have ever seen. Her name is Briley Alaine Hensley and she and her parents are doing well. (photo included) What an awesome experience to get to hold your first grand child---just call me Grand Pa.

There was a 3rd reason for coming back to the States this time and that was Barbara's health. There were several tests that she needed to have done and past problems that needed to be re- checked. So she spent a bit of time in Dr's offices. Her previous problem had resolved itself but the Dr's discovered another small problem. We covet your prayers as we come back to Brazil to hunt a Dr for her so that the problem can be treated here.

Coming back to Brazil was quite a shock temperature wise. Here it is in the high 80s and the day we left the States it was 10. We are getting adjusted to the change and trying to get back into the routine. The ministries are going well considering the time of year, here it is holiday and everyone is either working as much as they can or is off somewhere on vacation. Here in Caraguatatuba we always have a decrease in attendance because of people working.

Our newest endeavor, the English speaking Church, is scheduled to start on the 16th of Feb. We are targeting the people that speak English and those that are studying in the schools that teach English as a second language. We covet your prayers as some of these people would never enter a Church if it weren't for something like this. When you remember this ministry we will be having the services on Saturday nights at 6:00 o'clock.

While we were home we were given a donation to help get the dormitory going. We have been saving another donation for some time now that was designated for the footer, so now we can get to work on this project. We will be making the blocks and letting them season while we are pouring the footer. Then we will start the walls. We will keep you up on the progress of this project.

While we are doing this we will need to attend to some construction problems that happened while we were in the States. Some of the roof on the mission point is Olaria blew off and needs to be repaired. Morro do Algodão still needs to be painted, tile on the floor and some concrete walks poured around the building.

We got back just in time to get the bills for the tax and insurance on the new van and our truck, believe me when I say, in the States we have it good in these areas. Also the repairs on these vehicles sometimes gets ahead of you because of the situation of the roads. Every 5000 miles or so I need to line and balance the tires. It is getting harder to keep up with these repairs as the dollar keeps dropping in value here. I know that we are not the only missionary that is having to look around to see where we can let somethings go for a while so I am asking on behalf of all of us for your prayers concerning our finances.

Pray with us as we minister here in Brazil and pray for our families there in the States and here in Brazil.

Speaking of family did I say that Grandpa is sending a picture of the gift that He sent to us on the 19th of January 2008? Well here it is, isn't she beautiful?!!?

I wish for God to richly bless you and yours this coming year.

Also don't forget--the light is on and your bed is turned down, so come on down.

In His Service,
Aj and Barb