Has the Anointing Shifted to Brasil?
Monday, October 31, 2011 at 1:51PM | Craig 
View of Sugarloaf from Corcovado by Kay Charlotte
I spent three weeks in Brasil this year. One of the reasons I went was to help Kay Charlotte scout a location for our next International WAVES Gathering, (yes, it’s a tough job, but someone has got to do it!). Another reason I went was to connect with our partners and MA regional leaders down there. If you attended the I-MALT meetings in May 2011 in Tijuana, you may remember the report that Gustavo and Genim gave us. You may remember that they shared with us that they’re seeing rapid growth both in the number of teams that they’re hosting, and in the number of bases that are doing Mission Adventures. By the end of the year, they expect to see eleven MA ministries in the country.
I spent a week in the south with Gustavo at his base in Maringá. Then I spent another week with Genim in the Amazon in Porto Velho. I asked both of them about the rapid growth of Mission Adventures there. I asked them what were the top two or three things they were doing to see the Network grow in Brasil. Here’s a summary of what I learned from them.
Genim and Gustavo Are Actively Courting YWAM Leaders in Brasil
Even though there’s not a formal leadership team for Mission Adventures in Brasil, (yet!), both Gustavo and Genim have been intentional about recruiting other YWAM leaders to pioneer Mission Adventures ministries on their bases. As I discussed this with them, several things stood out to me as key to their success:
- The national leadership of Brasil is supportive of Mission Adventures and creates opportunities
- At national gatherings they share from the front and meet one on one with interested base leaders
- They have a “gospel” message of Mission Adventures that includes:
- MA can bring unity to your base
- MA produces students for your schools
- MA can bring financial resources
- They have authority to speak to other YWAM leaders because they have built prototype MA ministries that are healthy and growing
But perhaps most important is ownership and sacrifice. Both Genim and Gustavo believe so strongly in growing Mission Adventures that they spend their own hard-earned support money. Both leaders shared with me how they will buy lunch or coffee for other YWAM leaders in order to have quality time with them to share about Mission Adventures. They even spend their own money to travel to national YWAM gatherings with the intent to multiply the ministry. I believe God is honoring their sacrificial attitude and blessing them and their ministries for their generosity. I am personally challenged by their example! Are you?!
Gustavo and Genim Host Seminars and Train Other Leaders
When base leaders express interest in Mission Adventures, these guys are quick to offer training opportunities. In the last five years they’ve hosted no fewer than six different Mission Adventures seminars all over the country. (And these are just the ones I know about). In addition, they’ve invited staff to come and hang out at their bases while they run Mission Adventures so those staff can see MA in action and catch the Mission Adventures fever.
Not only have they hosted Seminars, but they’ve invited some amazing World-Class teachers to help them out. Since 2005, I’ve been to Brasil at least three times to help train leaders. Kay Charlotte has been four or five times I think. Okay, so that was a cheap plug to encourage you to invite people like us to help you run seminars in your region. Are you getting the hint? You can contact me here… heh heh heh… If I’m not available, there may be others I can recommend to you.
Some of these training times have not been at their own bases either. They’ve travelled, again at their own expense, across the country to help put on these crucial training times. Are you catching a theme here? What’s your level of commitment to the growth of Mission Adventures in your region?
Genim and Gustavo Help Other Bases Get Started
Both of these guys have travelled to other bases to help them run their first Mission Adventures outreaches. They bring a few of their experienced staff with them, and show the new base how it’s done. These guys challenge their staff to consider staying at that other base to pioneer the Mission Adventures ministry there. I don’t know a lot of leaders with the bravery to challenge their staff to leave like this! Are you sensing the depth of commitment that these men have towards Mission Adventures?
I Write this to Provoke You
It was so exciting to be in Brasil and spend time with these guys. Their love for Mission Adventures is evident, and their willingness to sacrifice is catching. That’s why I’m writing this to you today. I want you to consider what you can do to see the Mission Adventures Network grow in your region. I know you already believe in the ministry. I know you already have given a lot to it. However, I think the Word of the Lord to us, is to learn from this example. Take a few minutes right now, and ask the Lord, what he might require of you to see MA increase. Look out though, it might be inconvenient, and it might be costly. But I know the reward will be worth it.
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