What's Next?

That seems to be the question every one asks us these days since we've arrived back in Sobradinho.  What's next?  What are you going to do now?  Where are you going?  A few people ask about how the boys are or things about my grandbabies or parents.  But not too many.  This week three people asked when I could start teaching English to their children again!

First year in Brazil, 1994

So what is next for The Athas in Brazil?  If you were able to attend one of our furlough meetings, hopefully you have some sort of idea.  If not, I'll try to give a brief answer to the big question.

Remember that trip we took all over interior Bahia back in the fall of 2017?  We visited over 200 communities over the course of about two weeks all within a few hours of where we live.  You can back to my post about it and review some of the details here...

Bahia Road Trip

Byron and I plan to begin evangelizing some of the nearest and neediest communities that we visited on our trip.  We came back with evangelism materials.  Byron is working on our vehicle, a Mitsubishi Pajero SUV.  He'll be reworking our sleeping situation in the car.

on our trip with Greyson to Southern Brazil in 2017

We'll most likely stay in one community for a week or so at a time and then come home to restock supplies, rest in a bed, and head out again like a circuit riding preacher or a boat ministry with no boat!  We're not sure exactly what this all looks like in real life, but we are excited and getting ready.

The dry, semi-arid Northeast of Brazil where we live is among the top most needy areas of the country economically and spiritually.  While we still have some good years left, we hope to have a wider impact on the state of Bahia in which we live.  We hope to make our first series of trip yet this fall.

We'll provide any support and help here in town at the Maranata Baptist Church as well as helping other area churches with pulpit supply or special events.  We'd also like to revisit some of the national pastors that Byron met on his big Amazon trip of last fall to provide encouragement and help.

I hope this explains some of what were up to these days and why we came back to Brazil for another term of service!

For so hath the Lord commanded us, saying, 

I have set thee to be a light of the Gentiles, 

that thou shouldest be for salvation 

unto the ends of the earth.

Acts 13:47