A letter from Marta Carriker serving in Brazil
January 2015 - Former Students Bearing Fruit
Let no one despise your youth… (1 Timothy 4.12).
Dear friends,
How would you like to have a Christmas meal under some trees with your church friends, eating grilled ribs together? In the heat of December in Brazil we thought that was wonderful! Not only was the company very nice, we were celebrating the year of 2014 for that congregation, there was a new member joining that day, and several of our former students had been involved in that ministry.
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Gilson
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Admilson
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Marilene
Gilson was invited by Tim to care for this congregation at the beginning of the year after an unfortunate situation with the pastor who left and took some of the money he should not have taken. Gilson, who is the president of Shiloh Project and deals on a regular basis with the families of drug dependents, was the right person to help them get back on track. His sense of humor and his determination helped them to recover and trust again in the Lord who is forgiving and who has all the resources in the world. In September I took part in a tea the whole congregation promoted to share the Good News with their friends. There were more than 100 people present—a lot of friends for this small congregation!
Marilene was introduced by Gilson that morning. She was also our student at the Missionary Training Center a few years back. She has taken over the congregation for this year as they prepare to call a pastor. Short and small, Marilene also has a great sense of humor and commitment. She is already living at the camp where the congregation meets, and she is leading services.
Admilson was the third former student we saw in action that day. He is the pastor of another local congregation but was specially invited to participate that day. His word was comforting and encouraging. We knew him as a student both at our training center and later at the Seminary in Fortaleza. We are not his parents, but he made us proud that day. All of them did. God has molded them and their special gifts to be the young adults they are now, serving, encouraging, healing. That is wonderful!
We feel privileged to have been a part of the training of Gilson, Marilene and Admilson. They have stepped up to the plate and we are cheering them on.
When we were in San Salvador for the Latin America and the Caribbean mission personnel gathering of Presbyterian World Mission, we met up with one of our colleagues, Kristi Van Nostran, who serves in El Salvador. We had already been impressed with Kristi, who helps women who work on food sovereignty for that country with a project called Mana Ojushte (Brosimum alicastrum or Breadnut or Maya nut). Read more at www.pcusa.org/news/2014/11/5/tree-life/). She is young enough to be our daughter, and smart, and she dedicated her gifts to serve and bless the people of El Salvador. All of this is to say that our former students are young, yet they are fully grown, mature and producing good fruit through their ministries!
I am sure that is what it felt like to so many people when we were getting started 35 years ago. I am so grateful for your investment in our lives and ministry. I want to finish with an image God used to bless me last year. Sometime near the beginning of last year we planted some sweet potatoes. The new plants came from a potato that we had let sprout for a decorative plant inside the house and had outgrown its boundaries. Some months later we had a nice crop of sweet potatoes that we enjoyed very much (a nice contribution for the low glycemic index foods we can eat)! Also at the beginning of last year I had told our cell group that I was anxious to see the fruit of our ministry and that sometimes I felt that there was not enough. God used the sweet potatoes as a lesson. I did not really know what was hidden in the dirt until we harvested the sweet potatoes. We had planted it but had no idea how much we would have in the end. Well, it is the same with our ministry. We are all called to plant and take care of the plants, but the results we may not know for a long time. Someday, however, we will be pleased to know that our work was not in vain. And God, who is faithful, will see us through in the whole process.
Witnessing how God has matured our former students was one of our best Christmas gifts for 2014. My prayer is that you, too, will be blessed to see some of the fruit of your labor and that God will bless everything you do in 2015. Your contributions and prayers are much appreciated and they too are seeds you have planted in our lives. We invite you to help us plant more seeds in the coming year through your prayers, correspondence and financial commitment to this ministry.
In His love for the world,
Marta Carriker (for Tim as well)
The 2015 Presbyterian Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 49
Read more about Tim and Marta Carriker's ministry
Write to Tim Carriker
Write to Marta Carriker
Individuals: Give online to E200322 for Tim and Marta Carriker's sending and support
Congregations: Give to D504832 for Tim and Marta Carriker's sending and support
Churches are asked to send donations through your congregation’s normal receiving site (this is usually your presbytery).
