The Academy and the Church

This week I will be representing the Faculdade Teológica Batista de São Paulo, the São Paulo Baptist College and Seminary, at the mid-atlantic regional meeting of the Society of Biblical Literature. I will be presenting an academic paper to this very diverse group of university and seminary professors. On Sunday we will be going to Cranford, NJ, sharing our ministry and preaching at the Raritan Road Baptist Church. We served in pastoral ministry in this same church for several years before the Lord sent us to Brazil as missionaries. We still have many dear friends in this church and many fond memories of our time there. As a seminary teacher on the mission field I have always urged students that the study of the Bible should never become a merely academic exercise, theology should always be practical. I am thankful to have dear brothers and sisters, like those in Cranford, to encourage me to be teachable and sensitive to what God is saying in his Word.

Video online!

If you have a good internet connection you can look at a brief video greeting that we recently made talking about our ministry in Brazil. The link below will take you to the video. We are not actors but we hope you can appreciate our passion!

http://downloads.worldventure.com/Nash/SteveMaryNash-download.mov

If your internet connection is a bit slower this is a smaller, lower definition version of the same video:

http://downloads.worldventure.com/Nash/SteveMaryNash-email.mov

Another student in Brazil

I have often said that I am only a Bible teacher who happens to serve in Brazil, the real missionaries are my students. This week I received an e-mail from Zenaide who serves in a Bible Club ministry to children. They give the kids a meal, and present the Gospel to them. Many come to faith, and often their families are reached as well. As the photo reveals, the children come from humble situations in sometimes dangerous neighborhoods. Pray for continued growth in effective ministry to to the poor children of São Paulo.

March Newsletter Online!

Our March Newsletter is now online at the WorldVenture website. The link for the PDF version is:
http://www.worldventure.com/Missionaries/Missionary-Directory/Missionary/Nash_Steven_Mary_Ann/Links/Downloads/Nash_Steven_PL_03_08.pdf
Thanks!

News from Brazil

I was encouraged to receive an e-mail from one of my students in Brazil this week. Márcio is a young husband and father with twin boys. He went through our undergraduate programs at the Baptist Seminary in São Paulo and has finished the course work for his masters degree. Along with working a secular job and being involved in his local church, he is also teaching at the Baptist Bible Institute on the south side of the city. This semester he is teaching both New Testament Introduction and New Testament Theology. This is an encouraging example of the principle of 2 Timothy 2:2 in practice: “The things that you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, these entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.”

Steve

Our first "First Baptist Church"?

We are blessed to be partners in ministry with several "First Baptist Churches." This week we will be at First Baptist Church in Metuchen, NJ. First Baptist is just a couple of exits down the Parkway from where we served in pastoral ministry before joining WorldVenture in the early to mid-90s. In fact, our relationship goes back a bit further. Almost ten years earlier, my first ministry position, as a part time associate pastor working primarily with youth, was in nearby Edison. In those days we became acquainted with First Baptist through the then youth pastor Wiley Johnson. So its been over twenty years that we have been friends of the church, and almost fifteen since we have been part of the missionary team of First Baptist! We look forward to reaffirming our partnership in ministry with our friends in Metuchen, pray for an effective weekend of ministry.

Steve