Projeito ( Project)

At the present time i am staying with a couple named Gilmar & Ana who live in a bairro (district or neighborhood) of Aracruz. They are in the process of building the equivalent of an in-law apartment on their relatively small property using the skill and labor of one of the brothers in the church. I asked was the purpose of this to rent it out? Gilmar said no- it was for visiting brethren to use- something like the prophet's room that Elisha has in 2 Kings 4. I wished that i saw more of these basic principles- using fellow believers for work projects, and making preparations for hospitality- in the US.
    This morning I experienced yet another contrast. We went out a dirt road about 2.5 miles in length to a ministry for recovering drug addicts. There is one basic building- old- with some electricity. The brother responsible for this ministry- Fabio- showed me around and explained the operation to me. Twenty-four men live there, with three to six to a room. Each has a cot type bed and a few personal possessions reminding me of my early days in the Jesus People Movement of the early 1970's. They cook with sticks gathered off the ground. Imagine cooking all day for that many guys without other forms of energy.
   There is a schedule of prayer, Bible reading, meals, and work periods where the men tend to pimenta (pepper) plants, I'd guess two acres. I saw one old car, and a couple of dogs. Fabio explained that their total expenses for a given month is 3,400 Brazilian Reals. At the current exchange rate of one dollar = 2:25 reais that works out to just over two dollars per day per man. I asked whether they received offerings from churches. He replied, " Many make promises but promises don't fill our bellies. Then he quoted the verse from James 2:26, "Faith without works is dead.
   I was invited to preach, basically without translation although Gilmar read the verses in Portuguese. It forces me to keep things simple and direct, which is probably the best way. I gave a little of my testimony including exhortations to receive the love of God and to read His Word. Afterwards I asked Fabio whether all the men had Bibles. Some are converts and some are not. He said three did not have so today I bought Bibles to give them.
    Afterwards Gilmar and his wife Ana treated me to a Brazilian buffet lunch. The early afternoon meal is typically the largest of the day, and there are many choices. We went at a busy time and i could not help contrasting the well dressed people shelling out enough money for one meal as could feed one of Fabio's guys for a week. I hope to see more of Fabio's side of Brazil. By the grace of God I also want to help