Hi! First experience of Brasil and it is so varied!  Even walking down a street looking at the houses you see that each house is so surprisingly different; so it has been each day here.  Have been in some incredibly religious meetings, (perhaps the majority of them!) but occasionally there is a glimmer of light; something free from the structures or at least something heading that way.  Great people.  The favella was a highlight, a different world.  The lady pastor (who I personally would not mess with!) opened the meeting and was animatedly waving her hand in the shape of a gun – Martin and I laughed that she was threatening to shoot people if they didn’t put in enough offering – however it turned out she really was making the shape of a gun but her message was ‘if someone has threatened to shoot you out there, come to the front to know Jesus’.  Well a ton of people rushed to the front to be prayed for.  Not your usual altar call.

The next evening we met with a group who were a serious breath of fresh air.  They jammed on drums, prayed a bit, chatted, ate food, prophesied a bit and had fun also men and woman were equal and they were simply normal. Trust me this is not the usual thing here.  It was refreshingly good.

We’re all on a different journey huh and so glad to meet these people on theirs.

A lot happens in a few days. First the elections… there was a close race with the winning candidate getting just over 50% and the losing over 49%. There was also over 20% who did not vote (voting is ‘mandatory’ here, and the late announcement of a holiday on Monday took people out of the city during voting time) so the result is somewhat skewed. Gabeira lost, but will still continue with the issues he has raised, and I was able to get a message to him of both commiseration and also encouragement during these next couple of days. If there is some comparison with Moses (and we do not assume the candidate who won is to be compared to Joshua!!) then perhaps he has to work outside the system.

Given the nature of his campaign I was very keen that he won.

Our main time since the last blog has been in Mesquita. Honest!!! Well we did have a day on the beach – Cabo Frio. Acai is from an Amazonian fruit and is full of minerals / vitamins and transforms everyone into an amazing species of humanity. Last time I was in the US I saw 70ml size bottles on sale for aorund $60.00.

OK Mesquita. It is very much a more challenging area economically, but the unity here is wonderful. There is even a good interaction with the local Catholic priest, and a strong working relationship with the city mayor. The calling here is for the church to be modelled in the community – not a model church, but a model of integration into the community. The first day we had healthy discussion of the nature of the church as a tithing machine, transition etc.

On the final night I was able to release some material on 3 generations flowing together.

Today – a visit to a project that works with families affected by HIV/Aids. Such soft-hearted people and they were so moved when we were able to give them some money.

Then a visit to another city just outside Rio for the addressing of leaders. Hebrew v.Greek mindset was my theme. The openness, humility is wonderful. Some of the religious trappings are challenging. It seems to me that things are coming to a head in this area and there will be some cross roads reached soon – transition will become needed here in a shorter period of time than we found in the UK.

It has been interesting to note the campaign style of the two candidates here for mayor. Gabeira made three commitments:

• not to dirty the streets with his photograph, so there is virtually no sign of his presence at all
• to be transparent in his dealings
• not to criticise his opponents.

Apparently it will be a miracle if he were to get elected but it is so refreshing to hear of this style of campaign. When we spoke with him, he said ‘if we lose we are here to serve and look for change… but we expext to win!’

That approach would be most interesting if applied to a UK or USA campaign! One thing that we have prayed for in the past is a new politic in the nation, and when Gabeira spoke he talked of a seed sown here in Rio for a new politic in the nation.

The election is Sunday. The voting could well be skewed as the current mayor has announced Monday as a public holiday – so some will leave the city on a long break and not be here to vote at all.

Well what a great day – amidst the frustrations of how does transition really kick in and what does it look like.

I was priveleged to be invited to pray publicly – with cameras and journalists present – this morning for one of two candidates for the position of mayor of Rio. To say he has had a colourful background would be an understatment, but I really warmed to him… The person who is running as his deputy was equally touched – not a Christian – but recognised what was given was a prophecy. So I will have to check out the papers tomorrow and see what is reported!!

Then this evening we were in the City of God favella. To be with pastors who moved there specifically and to dig in this poor, violent and drug-ruled area is very challenging. Some wonderful healings including a woman who could not touch her hip because of pain nor could sit down because of the pain, after prayer was jumping up and down and spinning around.

Oh and in the middle of the day a long conversation with a pastor about the rapture, the millennium, etc… Fun going through the Scriptures and presenting a very different perspective, then to be told this is what we need in Brazil.

Now off to sleep, sweet dreams I hope.

Last night was great. Maybe 250 people – less than normal but this was so helpful. Much more intimate, able to address the people without the platform (a big yes for me). And able to go a lot slower. I used some ideas that I borrowed from Adrian Lowe about the river of God flowing through the gates of our society and what elements needs to be in the river. I pushed hard on the flow from God through us to society, touching on issues of eschatology (a sideswipe at the rapture which dominates all thinking here: a little note below on this).

Then the prayer for healing was done by the people with some instruction. Then testimonies – and we heard in answer to how long have you had this such a wide range of responses, but mainly we heard ‘muito tempo’, or 8 years, 12 years and the like. Wonderful… the whole scene helped model something that we have talked about (so often we talk about the church beyond, but the model is very much the church as is).

Had a thought about the rapture / dispensationalism and the demise of the church in Europe. Dispensationalism begins around 1830, is beginning to be popularised by 1860s, and the scofield Bible makes its entry early 20th century. Could it be that this fuelled the escapist mentality to such an extent that the church lost connection with society? I know there are many other factors, but this was a thought I had last night.

Well we have made a start… some wonderful healings, particularly in the realm of arthritis, and quite a few who have had problems for years… then many other thoughts.

Seems to me that now there is a shift here in Brazil. Perhaps the church is no longer growing (?) nationally, there are certainly fresh interests that compete with church. Two pastors I know who have been working with one model that was hailed as a great (if not the great) vision for the future, are now saying they are no longer looking for a model, it is now about simply maintaining what they have. Maybe these are signs of a (healthy) death of a vision.

It of course raises all sorts of questions: ranging from every time that one (I?) picks up a microphone is it feeding a deception? every healing does it re-enforce the front? However, the biggest issue for me is that of transition – the larger the place, the greater the dependency culture and the bigger the task.

Then we wake this morning to be told the owner of the church building where we are conferencing was killed with a bullet to the head last night. And some of the requests for prayer last night, and life experiences that people come with are very sobering.

How vital that we do not seek to replace one old western perspective of the Gospel with another western perspective.

Well we arrived here last night and are now in Jacarepagua for the next days, hosted by good friends of some 5 years, Cesar and Nubia Carvalho. I have been awake since 4.00 am as there is a 4 hour time difference, but today will be a rest day and then tomorrow morning we begin with an opportunity to address leaders across this area.

(Oh and by the way – I arrived safely!!!)

Jacarepagua is a big area of Rio (it includes the infamous City of God) and I would love to get agreement here to work steadily toward a measure of transformation.

I will update on the schedule soon and hope to get a few photographs also posted.

I have had a very exciting conversation with someone who is involved deeply in the world of the environment, touching on waste disposal. (Jump below the next few paragraphs to read, but before I simply quote back what has been in previous bogs.)

March 30:

I also released as a word what I have been praying into for some time:

there is a new product that is going to be discovered that is not yet available that will bring in a revolution about waste management. It will be exceptionally efficient and release energy. I have been praying that a believer might make this discovery.

July 3:

For some time I have been declaring that there are some amazing discoveries about to be made into the issue of waste disposal. This is such an enormous problem but there are solutions that will come forward.I have a dream of some major discoveries coming through here that are good for the environment.

July 17:

I have, before, noted that I am anticipating some breakthroughs in the realm of waste management. There are other areas that need breakthroughs: usage of power, food supplies, pollution, water conservation and supply. The list goes on. In health: discoveries that parallel that of supernatural intervention.

In this conversation I discovered that a year ago I prophesied over a man that he was going to be used to bring new technology into the UK. Over the past year he was head-hunted by someone and the technology will take all residual waste and turn it into an inert product from which blocks, paving slabs etc., can be built. This technology can also clean polluted land – it is truly a breakthrough product. It has been developed using the lessons learnt from nature and through knowledge of nuclear physics.

I was blown away!!

The prototype plant is made next year and then it will be replicated.