Family News...

I just received a call from my brother in Tennessee that our dad, Boyd Nash, age 77, died at the hospital early this morning. We appreciate your prayers since there are a lot of details that will need to be taken care of in the next few days. His wish was to be buried in NJ where our mother and our brother Gary are also buried. A missionary friend from Brazil who visited him in the hospital did offer some hope that he was trusting in Christ, but only in eternity will we know for sure. Thank you for your prayers.
Steve

Where is the bottom?

I remember as a young boy going on a tour of a cave with my family. At one point the guide tossed a stone into an abyss alongside the path we were taking through the cavern. I don't remember how deep he said the hole was, but I do recall that it seemed to fall a long time before it stopped bouncing off the sides of the crevice and finally splashed in water in the darkness below. I don't want this blog to become a monthly report on the currency crisis facing missionaries, but where is the bottom already? I read a headline today that said the dollar has been almost level against the euro for the last three months. That is surely good news for American missionaries serving in Europe! However against the Brazilian Real the dollar has continued its decline, falling almost ten percent over the same period. Over the last four years about a 50% decline. For us, the frustration is that though we have gained some support, our annual support need is almost $2000 higher this month than it was last month, and we have actually dropped from 78% supported to 77%. We do appreciate your prayers for our family as we seek to follow the Lord.
your brother and co-worker,
Steve Nash

Feeling the heat?

There has been a lull in our posting to this blog over the last couple of weeks. We are in a heat wave here in the Northeast of the U.S., its been in the upper 90 degrees F. (over 35 C.) for several days. To say the least, we are feeling the heat! We are also feeling the heat a bit figuratively as we look at our calender and anticipate our scheduled return to Brazil before year end. Though we have seen some support increases and some new support pledges, the falling dollar has kept us under 80 percent of the amount we need to return to the field. One devotional reading I have been including in my morning prayer time reflected this week on the need for patience, and the assurance that God's plan will unfold in his way and in his time. One paraphrase of Habbakuk 2:3 reads, “These things I plan [for your life] won’t happen right away. Slowly, steadily, surely, the time approaches when the vision will be fulfilled. If it seems slow, wait patiently, for it will surely take place.” It does seem that God is teaching us to trust Him, to listen to Him, and to wait, patiently, for Him to reveal his plan in his time. Thank you for praying with us as we seek to serve him!
your brother and co-worker,
Steve

Memorial Day

Memorial Day

On memorial day, we look back with thanksgiving on the sacrifices that were made to preserve our freedom. “Remember” is also a key verb in the theology of both the Old Testament and the New Testament. The Jews are repeatedly urged to remember God’s faithfulness in history. The same God who brought them out of Egypt would bring them into the land as he had promised. The NT letters urge believers to remember the cross and the resurrection: the same power that raised Jesus from the dead would help them in the midst of crises and persecution. Whatever challenges you might be facing on this memorial day, I thought the link below might be an encouragement to you:

http://www.greatdanepromilitary.com/Battle%20Hymn/index.htm

Hitting the wall?

"For I know the plans that I have for you, says the Lord..." (Jer 29:11) We all should understand that truth, but when the plan is not clear in terms of the details or the timetable, its easy to get impatient! About now, according to our original plan for this home assignment, we should be making airplane reservations for our return to Brazil. God clearly has a different schedule in mind since the continued fall of the U.S. dollar has kept our support under 80% as of this writing. It is a daunting situation from our feeble human perspective. Many churches are struggling to meet budgets and to take care of their ministry commitments at home and abroad. So far the invitations for the fall are not pouring in. Lord, we know you have a plan for us. Would you mind letting us see just a bit more of it?

Bible Club Kids in São Paulo

I wanted to post one of the photos I received from Zenaide, one of my former students in the Baptist Seminary in São Paulo. She has a Bible Club ministry for children in a poor neighborhood of our city. This is the kind of "in the trenches" ministry that many of our students have reaching the unreached with the good news of salvation by grace through faith in Jesus. Praise the Lord for what He is doing through faithful servants such as her in our corner of the world!

A great heart, a great mind...

The students I have been blessed to work with over the years come from a wide variety of backgrounds. Most have a similar sense that God has called them and a commitment to serve the Lord wherever he might lead them. Jean-Claude Dimbu is an unusual story and an especially gifted young man. He came to Brazil as a Catholic missionary from his home in the Congo. While here, he came to faith in Christ, and soon began studying with us at the Baptist Theological Seminary in São Paulo! During his time here he fell in love with a Brazilian and was married. He is probably the brightest student I have ever had - it seems he remembers everything he hears in class or reads. He is fluent in several languages and has a working knowledge of a couple more. After graduating from our undergraduate program in theology a family from the U.S. was so moved by his story that they decided to give a full scholarship for him to continue with a master's program! This is a young man who loves God passionately and has a brilliant mind. It will be exciting to see what God will do in him and through him!