Christmas Eve marked 6 years for us in Brazil! Wow, what a time it’s been. Just looking back on 2012:
The girls rode their tricycles down the hill at Grandma & Grandpa’s house 1,967 times (more or less).
I recorded and produced the church’s 2nd worship CD: Adoração com Propósito
We spent some time in the States going to the weddings of Debbie & Ben, Jed & Susan
Ministered alongside Reinhard Bonnke in the Congresso da Paz, bringing over a thousand people into the Kingdom
Had fun missions teams and great visits from Geneseo, New Life, and several friends
Continued in disciple-making and leading/supervising our ever-multiplying cell groups!
Had one of the best MDA conferences yet with participants who came as far as Japan and Italy
Became the Leader of Praise & Worship at the PAZ Church when the leading pastor (Pastor Welson) went to a new base to take over leadership
Became pregnant with our next baby! That’s right, #3 is coming along, due early July!
For more on our 2012, click to open our Christmas newsletter
All this week are Christmas celebrations, next week is new years and right afterwards the Leadership Conference. Then we have a week or two to prepare for Japan — yes Japan! We are going there on a vision trip with the possibility of going to help the PAZ churches there over the next several years. Looks like our first 3 months of 2013 are set 🙂 Enjoy these picture highlights from 2012! Click on your favorites to see them full screen. We love you and appreciate your love and support so much!
Judging by the start of 2011, it should be an exciting, fruitful year! The girls are quite busy people, walking around, climbing on anything and everything, blabbing away and even helping mom and dad with the housecleaning. They are more and more fun every day as they interact with us and each other. The word “no” is being taught, much to their dismay (but for their own good). Being parents of twins is not just a full-time job — it’s two full-time jobs. Fortunately over the holidays we had Ruth’s family in town to celebrate Christmas with us! We were so, so very busy last year that this year we are paring back a bit in order to balance our new life-responsibilities well!
The Hrubik family all together!
Robbery Prompts New Security Measures
Among some of the more interesting happenings as of recently has been the theft of several things from our property. Just before Christmas, robbers started entering our yard when we were not home — jumping over the tall walls. Unfortunately, we had lots of the girls clothes stolen, their bedding, our clothes and many other things left on the drying line. Just two weeks ago they opened up our outdoor chest freezer and took everything in it — tupperware and all! Even the brooms and fabric softener went. We had to do something, so we installed a security-camera system to deter the thieves. But they just kept coming in, even entering while we were at home. When we saw them trying to break into our house (via the video footage), we knew something more had to be done. We got some quotes and installed some concertina wire around the walls. The stuff is nasty, and hopefully will deter the crooks. Hence the “sharp” start to the year.
A few fingers were pricked during the installation of this fence.
But no security measure is perfect, nor could it be. Our treasure isn’t here on this earth anyway. Thank goodness our treasure is in a place where thieves can never steal it. Is yours? Sometimes you don’t know the answer to that until something is stolen. What would your attitude be then? In the end, we’ve been praying for the good of our “enemies” by praying for their repentance and salvation. But we must also be wise in this world and do our part to protect our family and the things God has given us to use for His Work, hence the fence.
2011 — The Year of Discipleship
Looking back on 2010, we were able to complete a vast majority of our goals. The CD was launched successfully, we had a successful (but quick) furlough in the States, our ministry and family grew (physically, not in numbers). But some of these things happened at the expense of other goals: cell group and discipleship growth. For 2011, we realized we needed to make these things a bigger priority, because they’re a priority to God. 2011 is the year of discipleship and multiplication (cell group growth). We are focusing on investing in our future leaders and disciples, to raise them up to take over the groups we’re going to multiply this year.
Our vision is to multiply our group early this year, supervizing the new groups as we train in two different couples in each group to lead. Then in October, we multiply both of those groups again, installing 4 couples as leaders. Please pray with us to see that happen! To invest in leaders, it takes time, but the harvest in great!
Praise and Prayer Requests
Praises
Our continual safety in Brazil
Generous year-end gifts
A great 2010, with an even better 2011 coming
Requests
The raising up of new leaders
Wisdom in balancing all of our responsibilities in the mission, church, family and ministry
Continued increase in support
We thank each and everyone of you from the bottom of our heart for your generous support of our family and Project AmaZon. We look forward to seeing all that God has for us in 2011! Enjoy these pictures and don’t forget to click them to see them larger!
We just got done with a marathon of conferences, and we have come out more challenged then ever in the great task of reaching the Amazon Basin, Brazil and South America. Ruth came out of it exhausted and a little sick, as she was very involved in the planning and implementation of the two conferences.
Welcome to Camp Shalom, home of the 2009 PAZ Leadership Conference
Our speaker for our last 2 conferences was Pastor Harold Weitsz of Little Falls Christian Center in South Africa. He and his wife Maude blessed and wowed us with their presence. Over the last 2 weeks we have learned so much about how to be a victorious Christian. Pastor Harold and Maude have plenty of room to talk about that area, being some of the largest, modern-day spiritual giants I know.
Pastor Harold Weitsz
Pastor Harold told us about how, when he got serious about God, he thoroughly studied the Bible – going through New Testament 6 times in the first month of his studies – not just reading, but studying!
Finally! The update I’ve been promising is here, and what an action-packed update it is. The title alone makes you wonder what all has been going on, doesn’t it? Since Anna died, God has been doing some absolutely amazing things that is getting us more and more excited about the future. Let’s start where I left off before the “My Hope” updates, right before Ruth and I sang at the National MDA Conference in Santarém.
On Thursday, October 23 both Jeff and Becky Hrubik spoke at the MDA Conference, an annual conference where pastors and leaders from all over Brazil come to Santarém to learn from some of the most successful church planters in the world and be equipped to make disciples in all of the world. The theme of the conference was “The Spirit of Faith that Makes the Difference” and it marked each address. Jeff talked about how a strong spirit of faith in the midst of trying times can allow us to bend and not break when our circumstances get tough. We felt so honored as he used our story with Anna as an example of a godly response to trying times. Becky spoke afterwards about living a life that is worth the living, telling real stories of her mom and dad who, in the end, lived an amazing life with a huge eternal impact. They gave up so much to live how they lived, where they lived, and in the end it was all worth it.
It was in that context that Ruth and I sang a song I wrote two days before Anna died, inspired by Melvin Huber’s life and testimony – a song about living life for the fullest eternal impact.
