Perhaps nobody did as much to popularize the Brazilian Bossa Nova style as Frank Sinatra. A close second may belong to sax man Stan Getz (more on him later), but his influence pales in comparison to “Old Blue Eyes”. Though his best-known adaptation of a Brazilian song was “Girl from Ipanema”, he also did others,…
For this week’s ministry update, I thought I’d give you a little glimpse of what a typical Sunday looks like at Ebenezer, focusing on the people who minister there each week. We are truly blessed to be able to participate with these people who, week in and week out, take an active role in our…
They are ubiquitous throughout small-town USA. Today they mostly serve as houses, sheds or chicken coops, but once they were a fixture, an integral part of every community. You can still usually tell them apart from other houses, sheds, or chicken coops by their rather unique structure. I am referring, of course, to the one-room…
Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain; and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months. And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth produced its fruit. I chuckle a little every time someone from…
Barely enough to justify a snapshots post this week…but interesting nonetheless. Be sure to follow us on Instagram to see these updates as they happen. ____________________ Did you enjoy this post? Consider making a donation to our ministry in Brazil. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. This means that clicking on these…
Back towards the middle of 2023 we received an invitation to speak at the Carnaval retreat of the First Baptist Church in Barreiras, Bahia – attended by a former student of ours. At that time I was not pastoring a church, and there was no retreat of our own planned at the Mount Zion Camp,…
We’ve covered a lot of ground since our last snapshots post. Here are some pictures, which, as always, you can see in “real time” by following us on Instagram. ___________________ Did you enjoy this post? Consider making a donation to our ministry in Brazil. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. This means…
Last week we gave an example (one of many that could be cited) of a Brazilian song that has crossed the ocean and been recorded in French. But, has the cultural exchange gone the other way? Mais oui! Here is the Brazilian version of the hit by French singer Cristophe, Aline: _____________________ Did you enjoy…
Last week marked yet another milestone in the life of Mount Zion Baptist Camp. Up until now, our churches have each held their own retreats (or simply done nothing) during Carnaval season. This year, however, at the urging of our pastors, they decided to pool their resources and have a joint retreat at camp. This,…
As mentioned in earlier posts (for example here) I’ve had a personal project of learning French. In doing so, I have inevitably been introduced to certain aspects of French culture. One thing that stands out to me is that the French seem to have a certain fascination with Brazil. One evidence of this is the…