LEADERSHIP TRAINING
A gift that keeps on giving
PROJECT COORDINATOR
Cleiton Oliveira
PLACE
Bahia, Brazil
PERIOD OF THE PROJECT
2016-2017
When Antonio Celso and Cleiton Oliveira started the Samaritan Strategy (SamS) project in Feira de Santana, Bahia, they found the Christian Community Church, led by pastor Erivelton, working on three pillars: Bible studies, fellowship, and worship. Their challenge was to strengthen these principles already adopted by the church by presenting them the importance of service, sharing God’s love to others. The church responded in a positive way with several God-honoring outcomes during their training. A church planting project in Alecrim Miudo was started from seed projects on early childhood education and support to the elementary school. Men started to use their time in a productive way after the installation of a broom machine in the therapeutic community “Genesis”. Women who were so distressed that could not engage in daily chores, became calmer and focused after a “Dignity Week” in a therapeutic community, when helpers did crafts, plays and read aloud with them. The Harvest lesson, “The Wheel of Wisdom” was used in a class of graphic design, beginning a weekly discipleship program in a public school where students were involved with drugs and self-mutilation. Two new camps were opened in the town of Brejões, blessing the local Assemblies of God and the First Baptist Church. People with legal demands and the Catholic Church received free consultations helping the management of water supply in the city and care of low-income families, after Humberto (lawyer) and Eva Santana made their professional expertise available to the poor. The understanding of biblical wholism opened the horizons of friends and churches to show God’s love and serve others as a lifestyle.
MULTIPLICATION
There were 134 participants in the SamS project and 45 attended the commissioning event. People trained in the Christian Community Church in Feira de Santana shared what they learned in Alecrim Miúdo and Brejões, where a new SamS project was initiated.
PRAYERS
Praise God for the initiatives to serve others in their needs, such as the goal of glorifying God.
May the Holy Spirit continue to remind people of His healing power to restore relationships.
ESTABLISHING SELF-SUSTAINING SAMARITAN STRATEGY TEAMS IN NEW AREAS