Everyone is a disciple of someone. 
The question is, are we disciples of Jesus? 
Do we want to be?

Reading in Matthew 10, we see Jesus' admonition as he sends out his disciples. Some of his statements were shocking.  Think about how Jesus sent out his disciples... He did not send them out with a ton of money, he did not send them into areas of great comfort, and he didn't have a big organized training plan.  He just had walked with them for several years.  

But consider what he asked them to do.

First, he encourages them to take nothing. Presumably this was so that they would not emphasize or overemphasize money.  He wanted them to live simply and in faith.  He taught over and over that money can be the root of evil, and that serving money is impossible when you are serving God.  He told them not even to take a lot of extra clothes.  

Jesus didn't want them to have anything that would distract them from the message of the Gospel, or that would pervert the message or them as messengers.

Secondly, he encourages them to find people of peace.  To stay in the house of someone trustworthy, to experience koinoina, fellowship, for as long as needed.  Not everyone would be able to fulfill this requirement - to those who didn't, he encouraged the disciples to "shake the dust off their feet."  Interesting,  

Third, he reminds them that they must use great discernment.  That there will be wolves among the sheep.  Not everyone who receives them has good motives or pure interests. To be on guard, because the role of proclaiming the Gospel truth will not come without resistance.  Which reminds us...

Fourth, that they will experience persecution.  That they would go before councils and synagogues and kings.  Even family members would betray them.  Essentially, that "all men will hate them" because of Him.  But this comes with an incredible promise - that those who stand firm will be saved.

Finally, Jesus finishes his discourse reminding them... Do not be afraid.  Be courageous. Because you are on the side of light.  Everything that is hidden will be made known.  He reminds them.  Do not be anxious.  I will take care of you, just as I take care of the sparrows.  And you are worth more than many sparrows.

Jesus final words are interesting - "Who acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in Heaven.  But who disowns me before me, I will disown before my Father in Heaven."  "Whoever does not take up my Cross and follow me is not worthy of me.  Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it." (Matt 10:35-36).

As we reflect on Jesus' charge in sending out his disciples, the question is:

Are we sure we want to be disciples of Jesus?  
Perhaps far too many of us have not counted the cost.

Perhaps in 2023 we are living in a crisis of discipleship.  
We want it all to be easy.  

​But where there is no cost, there is no true discipleship.

Hoje faço 50 anos. Aqui estão 50 coisas que aprendi ao longo do caminho.

SOBRE A VIDA

• Quanto mais você envelhece, mais percebe que seu maior problema é você mesmo.
• O incrível de envelhecer é que você começa a não se importar com o que as pessoas pensam.  Você deixa o Senhor cuidar da sua reputação.
• O cristianismo - de longe - fornece a melhor explicação para a existência da vida, da natureza humana e da vida após a morte.  Nada se compara.  É racional e relacional.
• Quando Deus bagunça sua vida para derrubar seus ídolos, é um presente.  Não lute, abrace-o.
• Deus te ama demais para te dar tudo o que você quer.
• Não acredite no que as pessoas dizem sobre você.  Acredite no que Deus diz sobre você.
• A presença de Deus é a coisa mais importante na sua vida.
• Amizade não é pensar igualmente. Meus melhores amigos nem sempre pensam como eu, mas são eles que chamaria em caso de emergência.
• Seus sentimentos não são o Espírito Santo.
• O pecado vai te esgotar e eventualmente tira tudo de você.
• Ficar de boca fechada é realmente um dom espiritual.
• Leve todas as suas inseguranças para a Cruz.
• O que você faz quando está profundamente decepcionado?  Ore.
• É natural amar pessoas que nos amam, mas é sobrenatural amar aqueles que nos odeiam.
• Escolha amigos que realmente celebrem com você suas vitórias.
• Se você odeia se submeter à autoridade, você terá problemas no Reino.
• A vida é curta.  Seja gentil, mesmo com aqueles com quem você discorda.
• O cristão não celebra o que Cristo não celebra.
• Algumas das pessoas mais inteligentes eu conheço não tem diploma, mas conhecem a Palavra de Deus.
• Para o cristão, Cristo não é um complemento para sua vida.  Ele é sua vida.
• O cristianismo é sério, mas não é pesado.  Quando você o torna pesado, você esquece que Cristo carrega nossos fardos, nós não.
  
  

SOBRE A IGREJA

• Todos romantizam a igreja primitiva, mas poucos estão dispostos a abraçar seu espírito generoso e sacrificial.
• Jesus deve ser a atração maior da sua igreja.  Nem o pastor, nem os líderes de louvor, nem celebridades ou pessoas famosas que vão para lá, nem o templo.  Nem a estética, marketing ou a marca.  Jesus.
• Uma geração que diz: "Eu não preciso de nenhuma doutrina, eu só preciso Jesus" acaba tendo com nenhum dos dois.
• Todos perdemos quando nossa geração tentou tornar o cristianismo legal.
• Você não pode salvar a igreja.  Você não pode nem se salvar.
• Você nunca corrigirá a igreja odiando-a.
• Cuidar dos pobres não é um projeto especial.  É um mandato do cristão e da igreja.
• Verdadeiros discípulos querem ser discipulados, ser pastoreados, ser desafiados, ser repreendidos, ser amados.

SOBRE O MINISTÉRIO PASTORAL

• Se o ministério é sobre você, então não é sobre Jesus.
• Se você não pregar o evangelho para si mesmo diariamente, você nunca será capaz de verdadeiramente pregá-lo aos outros.
• Nunca pare de dizer às pessoas que Deus as ama.
• No ministério, nunca esqueça que a intercessão irá onde a estratégia não pode.
• Pastores não são CEOs.  Igrejas não são empresas.
• Quem não está disposto a servir na igreja não é maduro o suficiente para dar feedback que valha a pena ouvir.
• Às vezes queremos salvar o mundo inteiro quando Deus está nos chamando para impactar apenas uma vida.
• Não fique desesperado para ser relevante.  Esteja desesperado por mais de Deus, para ser cheio do Espírito.
• Pastores não são palestrantes motivacionais, são expositores bíblicos.
• Líder da igreja: Não comece perguntando se funciona ou atrai, comece perguntando se é bíblico.
• Você nunca realizará grandes coisas para Deus se você apenas se preocupar com grandes coisas para si mesmo.
  
  SOBRE FILHOS

 

• Talvez o maior problema do mundo sejam os pais preguiçosos e especialmente o pai ausente. O dano à sociedade é incalculável.  Esteja presente.
• Seu filho não existe para validar você.  Isso é um peso e um fardo que não é responsabilidade deles.
• Vá à igreja com seus filhos e não dê desculpas. Priorize o Dia do Senhor sobre todo o resto. Se você não fizer isso, você está ensinando a eles que outras coisas são mais importantes que o Criador.

SOBRE O EVANGELHO

• O evangelho de Jesus Cristo cura, restaura, redime, reconcilia e, acima de tudo, dá uma tremenda esperança eterna.
• A história deveria nos ensinar que nossa esperança não está na política, mas no evangelho.
• O evangelho centrado no homem diz: "Você é um campeão", "Você é um vencedor", "Proclame sua vitória", "Declare seu destino!”
  O evangelho centrado em Deus diz: "Venham a mim, todos os que estão cansados e sobrecarregados, e eu lhes darei descanso.”
• O diabo sempre lhe diz que você está condenado a viver uma vida aprisionada.   Escolha a liberdade.
• Quando você diz que não quer regras, apenas Jesus, ou uma igreja, apenas Jesus, nem a Bíblia, apenas Jesus, o que realmente está dizendo é que você deseja fabricar um Jesus à sua própria imagem.
• Não há ninguém em toda a história humana que tenha uma personalidade como Jesus. Uma mistura de bondade, amor e humildade embrulhada no ser mais poderoso do universo.
• O evangelho SEMPRE lhe diz que você pode mudar.

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​Pursuing Biblical justice is an inevitable response of our love for Jesus.  It is an overflow of the joy we find in our Savior.  Yet when our pursuit of justice is motivated by the applause of the world, and not out of a response of love for our Savior, we often move towards becoming self-righteous in our pursuit of justice.  The world applauds but God is not pleased.  Oftentimes those who are the object of our justice are actually a tool for us to gain a platform or to demonstrate our self-righteousness.

The evidence is often that we find our (functional) identity in being more righteous than another because we are (theoretically) more justice-minded than another.    It is what causes us to subtly say and/or believe:

“I care about the poor more than you, therefore I am more righteous than you.” 

“I care about immigrants more than you, therefore I am more righteous than you.” 

“I care more about X than you, therefore I am more righteous than you.” 

The truth is that many care about these issues and are doing work quietly.  Even in secret.  For example when we started our little nonprofit ten years ago, we weren't trying to tackle the massive issues behind everything.  We just walked the slums, talked to people about Jesus, started churches and engaged in mercy ministry.   Without much fanfare.  We were not heroes, but neither did we seek a platform.  We pursued being a quiet voice.

Certainly louder voices are necessary from time to time, but perhaps a little charity is necessary on our part towards the lesser, quieter voices.  After all, people have all kinds of justice-related issues and causes to get behind, yet it is arrogant for us to believe that our issue is the only issue in play.  Certainly speaking out on various causes is necessary, and prophetic voices are fine, but I suspect that some in Evangelicalism develop a platform on the backs of those whom they care less about than some would like to admit.

Could it be that often we are not truly concerned with justice for justice sake because of our pursuit of the applause of the world?  Example:  Causes that are in vogue in the West will gain applause.  Causes that are not in vogue are discarded and belittled, even if they have a strong Biblical rationale and impetus. 

And our relationship with the greater Church?  Some will go so far to make the Church their punching bag - over and over - as it is one of the easiest ways to get the applause of the world.

Are we hated by the world because of our position on an issue?  Are we loved?  If we're only loved, there is a problem.

Spurgeon writes...

“If we were more like Christ, we should be more hated by his enemies. It is a sad dishonor for a child of God to be the world's favorite. It is a very ill omen to hear a wicked world clap its hands and shout "Well done" to the Christian man.  He may begin to look to his character, and wonder whether he has not been doing wrong, when the unrighteous give him their approbation. Let us be true to our Master, and have no friendship with a blind and base world which scorns and rejects him. Far be it from us to seek a crown of honor where our Lord found a coronet of thorns.”

Perhaps we should be hated from time to time.  Maybe that’s a sign that we are faithful to a Biblical worldview, not being moved and swayed by the instability of the opinion of the world.  Perhaps that is a regular part of faithful, Christian, justice ministry.

Friends, we have some important news to share.  We are moving back to Florida!

As you may know, we are celebrating ten years in Brazil. Ten years of ministry, ten years of life. Ten of the best years of our lives for us. Three kids born and raised here. Churches planted, pastors trained. So much ministry activity. It was a pleasure to give the best years of our life to the people and country we love!

Yet recently, we have felt like our time in Brazil was coming to an end. And just when we didn’t expect it, God opened up an amazing door for us. 

I’ll be serving as the pastor of the Brazilian ministry campus at First Baptist Orlando. There’s an enormous amount of Brazilians both at the church as well as in Orlando, so the opportunity is incredible for us. We’ll be working at a church with a great reputation in the city. We couldn’t be more happy about the opportunity.

We are also sad that we are leaving Rio. We love Rio and have loved living in Brazil. So many years, so many memories. It is hard to say goodbye! Fortunately, while we are leaving Brazil, we won’t be leaving Brazilians. Orlando is the backyard of Brazil. 

God has given us this opportunity. And what I’ve noticed over the years is this… When a cycle of our lives is coming to an end, the hand of God is clearly in it. We don’t need to force His hand. We simply need to follow the clear leading of the Spirit. What a privilege it is to be a Christian!

In the coming days and weeks we will be saying a lot of goodbyes and hellos. Pray for us. It’s an emotional time. Pray for our kids adaptation, for a smooth transition, for our churches and ministry in Brazil (that will continue), for our new work. Pray that God grants much grace.

What about our ministries? Pastor Cristiano Gaspar will lead Igreja do Redentor. Craig Weyandt will serve as the interim pastor at Union. Cristiano and the team will continue with Restore Brazil, which I will continue to lead from the US, and I will continue leading A29 Brazil in the short term.

Would you commit to praying for our family and ministry during this time?

​Much love.
Jay, Lu and family

Friend,

This October we celebrated nine years in Brazil.  Nine years!  That's a long time, a long time to live in a country far away from home, to live in a city of 12 million, to speak a language daily that is not your native language.  It's been intense, it's been wild, and it has been great.  Most of the time anyways!

Pastoring two churches, and leading two organizations is intense.  Our Brazilian church is growing, our family of churches in Acts 29 is growing, and Restore Brazil, now operating in five cities, is growing rapidly as well.  Besides over 30 events per year, three church planting cohorts, Compassion Int'l partnership, we are receiving requests from all over Brazil to start initiatives, train pastors, speak at conferences, and to resource churches.  The needs are great and the time is short.  While our staff has grown from 2 to 4, we still are under-resourced, and at times, I feel not fully equipped for the task that lies in front of us.  All of this in a context where the daily pressures of our churches is ever-present.  Yet God is faithful.  We are doing what we can with what and whom we have.

As Luciane and I reflect on these past nine years, we are so grateful for the amazing work God has done.  But we feel like it is time to take a break for a few months, to rest.  To enjoy time as a family, to enjoy our new adopted baby boy.  To spend time in a less stressful environment than the chaotic city we live in (not an exaggeration).  

We'll be taking a sabbatical for about 10-11 weeks, beginning December 17, through March 8.  Our hope is to disconnect in all forms, and to enjoy family time, some down time.  With the free time, I'll be doing some writing as Mundo Cristão, a Brazilian publisher, has given me a proposal to write a book.  But besides writing, I'm planning on being quite offline as we spend time in Central Florida, in our free time, connecting with family and friends.  More time for prayer, devotion, and family.

2019 will serve as 10 years for us in Brazil.  Pray that the Lord would continue to guide us, to maximize our influence for His glory in the coming years. 

​We truly appreciate your prayers, your support, and your encouragement.

Love in Christ,
Jay & Luciane Bauman

(PS - Joshua is not pictured as we are avoiding photos until our adoption process is complete.)

This is probably obvious, but all Latinos are not the same.  If you are trying to target a people group such as Latinos through broad-based approaches, good luck.  There are vast cultural differences among Latinos, whether they are from Chile or Puerto Rico, or from Mexico or Brazil.  Take your time to learn about the different cultures and countries from which people come, and for God's sake, avoid generalizing.   All Latinos are not the same. 

Many churches want to outreach through Spanish services. "We've got a lot of Spanish speakers, let's start a service!" Slow down.... While most Latinos will respond very graciously to non-Latino's attempts of outreach in general, this does not mean that your efforts will be effective.  Some churches attempt to start separate services too early.  They don't have proper leaders in place, or they don't "vet" well the Latino pastor/leader for a new service, or the church is not large enough to provide all of the resources necessary for a Spanish-speaking service.  In some cases, this creates a "second class" feel to the Spanish-speaking service.  Not the message your church wants to send.

"We include Spanish choruses in our music!"  Singing a chorus in Spanish here or there is great, but at the end of the day, that is not a strategy to serve Spanish-speakers in your services.  Most Spanish-speakers prefer listening to preaching available in Spanish.  The preaching of the Word of God is the most critical element of the service to be translated.  I consider live, simultaneous translation as one of the best ways to initially outreach to the Spanish-speaking people who are already coming to your services.  Invest in several headsets as well as a solid, capable and reliable translator.  Even if only a few people opt for the in-service translation each week, it speaks volumes to the Spanish-speaking community and says that your church is thinking of them.

While it's true that most Latinos already have a good sense of community in their family, it may not always be a Biblical sense of community.  Developing Spanish-speaking community groups in your church, with translated curriculum, can be a great step towards reaching Spanish speakers.  I know of several churches that have first started with Spanish-speaking community groups, and then an entire Latino church plant developed out of it.  Whatever your objective, people need community, and a mid-week gathering in their language goes a long way.

It takes a real kingdom perspective, but in some cases, it is just best to launch a new church plant out of your church.  Perhaps there is a catalytic, strong leader who is ready to plant.  Consider putting him in a church planting residency or apprenticeship and planting a new Spanish or Portuguese speaking church out of it.  Send many of the Spanish-speakers in your church out along with him.  At the end of the day, church planting is ultimately the best form of evangelism.

All of these considerations will ultimately be unhelpful if you are not actively engaged in the lives of Latinos.  Do you have a Latino friend?  Have you ever discipled or been discipled by a Latino?  From the highest levels of leadership in a church, there must be a commitment to growing in awareness and in engagement with the Latino community.  If not, any attempts at church outreach will likely remain on the fringe and relatively ineffective. Good pastors get their church engaged in reaching out to all kinds of people in your community who are non-majority, not just Latinos.

Living in Brazil, it breaks my heart to see so much continued racial tension in the US.  Not necessarily between Latinos and other peoples, but between peoples of any type.  I believe that growing your people to love missions is the best way to grow them to love people outside of their culture.  All of the forums, protests, and speeches in the world will have a lesser impact on reducing racism than a Church full of Christians who have a heart for the nations.  Christians with a heart for the nations know that racism is never an option, but rather, that the mission of God calls us to love all peoples.  As to the Latino community, getting involved in missions in Latin/South America is a great way to engage your people to grow in understanding Latino culture.  It also sends a message to your church that Latinos are important.  

Friends, there is a lot more that could be said.  I have primarily shared considerations for church leaders, as opposed to ideas regarding specific community outreach or social programs, which can also complement the above.   By the way, if you need references... There are a lot of churches doing Latino outreach really well, all across the US.  I'd be happy to put you in touch with them.  

Jay

​For more information on missions with Restore Brazil in Rio de Janeiro, feel free to contact us.