| Brazilians Celebrate – Lives Changed |
The meeting was characterized by celebration because it was the 100th anniversary of the Baptists in Aracaju. Christians from various denominations gathered to celebrate the gospel message preached among Evangelicals for the past century.
However, the event wasn’t just a celebration of the past, but also the present. More than 100 former “crack” addicts from Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, and Recife were baptized at the beginning of the meeting. Pastors from Sao Paulo baptized those who had been rescued from drugs on the streets of Sao Paulo. Rio pastors and Recife pastors also baptized addicts who had come to Christ in their cities. Sammy Tippit baptized one of the addicts from Sao Paulo.
The event also pointed toward a bright future for the church in Brazil. Tippit preached an evangelistic message, calling people to turn to Jesus. People listened intently and often broke into applause as he explained the meaning of the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus.
At the close of Tippit’s message, many hundreds responded and prayed with him to receive Jesus into their lives. The message was also broadcast live throughout the state of Sergipe. According to news reports, the event was one of the largest in the history of the Brazilian Baptist Convention.
Tippit also met with leaders to discuss the future of evangelism in Brazil. One leader appealed to him. “God is bringing the world to Brazil. We will have the World Cup in 2014 and the Olympics in 2016. Please help us to reach the world by reviving the Brazilian church.” Tippit trained 12 Brazilian evangelists two years ago and will train 60 Brazilian evangelists in July of this year. STM asks our friends to pray that God will use what we are doing in Brazil to impact the world for Jesus.
