For the first part of this year it has been a major struggle to do any kind of work at the camp we purchased in Morros in late 2011. Conflicting schedules and the priority of getting a fledgling congregation off the ground have made it difficult to begin any sustained work there.

However, the dream of beginning a camp ministry here is far from over. Last month I took some bricklayers out to the property, and together we came up with a plan to get the camp functional for day-long activities, or weekend camp-outs by the end of the year.

The following are the steps we will take to make this happen:

1. In June and July we will be hosting two groups from the US. As part of their ministry here, they will each spend a day helping us clear out the front of the camp, and make other pre-construction preparations.

2. In the middle of July I will spend a week at the camp with the bricklayers. Together (and hopefully with the help of other men of the church) we build a gated wall along the part of the property that faces the highway.

3. Beginning in August, I will take small crews to the camp every other weekend. From there to December we will build simple bathrooms, and a pavilion for eating and other activities. This will involve digging a well, and hooking up electricity. We will also clear out spaces for tents and other activities.

4. Sometime in December or January we will hold an official inauguration for the "Acampamento Elim".

This work has taken on a certain urgency, as we have seen a tremendous door open for us in the area of the camp.

So how can you help? Glad you asked. There are at least three ways:

Pray. Ask God to provide resources and manpower to complete this phase of the work.

Contribute. If you would like to help with the purchase of construction materials, send me an email and I will let you know how.

Participate. Perhaps you have a particular construction skill, or your church has a group of men who like to "get their hands dirty" with this kind of project. Get in touch with me, and we can set up a time for you to come down and help us finish the project.

It was a dark and stormy night.

I was returning home from a deacon's meeting, where we discussed the exciting prospects of our congregation and made specific plans for the future. A couple items of concern were brought up, and these were weighing heavily on my brain as I navigated the dark stretch of road between Paço do Lumiar and Araçagi.

Approaching headlights caused me to squint into the darkness. The evening's rains had caused sand to drift across the road, much like snow drifts, except not as "snowy".

The car passed and my eyes readjusted to the darkness, and there in front of me were three donkeys. Two of them lived to tell of their close encounter with a red Fiatt. The other--whose nose was extended almost to the middle of the road--went to that great grazing land in the sky, where the streets are paved with carrots, and where there are no silly wagons full of bricks to haul back and forth.

The red Fiatt--heceforth and forever more to be known as Donkeyslayer--is in stable condition, having suffered superficial damage.

Moral of the story: when donkeys stick their noses where they shouldn't, the results can be catastrophic…for the donkeys.

The above picture shows the men of the Ebenezer congregation (yours truly in the middle doing his best Braveheart imitation) on the recently purchased property, after having hacked through the underbrush that dominated the landscape up to that point.

Next step: designing the building that will one day house a fully organized, New Testament local church.

*My original title was "Weed Warriors", but that might have caused some confusion...

Students at parade rest, waiting for the ceremony to begin.

Michael in line, waiting to march out and receive his beret.

First year students, preparing to take their oath of allegiance. Michael is in there somewhere.

Michael with his proud parents, after having received his beret.

Michael with his cousin, Paulo Vitor.

Nathanael gets in on the action.

And a couple videos:

The honor guard marches by.

The swearing in ceremony.

Michael marching with the rest of his company.

Needless to say, this is the kind of things that make a Dad's heart burst with pride.

Many of the faithful readers of this blog and supporters of this ministry are aware that we were able to purchase a piece of property for the Ebenezer church plant. We were blessed by the generosity of our Brazilian brethren and the members of our fledgling congregation. On Saturday, Lord willing, we will be clearing off the land, and beginning the first steps to construction.

But wait...isn't this a post about Missionary Max?

Indeed it is. You see, while God has provided the money for the purchase of the property, we will still need to build the building--and buildings do not come cheap.

So, in an effort to contribute to the building process, I have decided to donate all royalties--past and future--from the Missionary Max series to this project.*

Now, before you get all excited, you should probably know that royalties from last year totaled roughly $40. However, at going rates, that will purchase roughly 240 bricks.

And there are some exciting things coming down the pike--things that could potentially increase the interest in the Missionary Max series. These include (insert trumpet fanfare here) the release of the second book in the series and positive changes in the format of the books.

So, if you have been sitting on the fence with regard to whether or not to pick up your own copy of The Astonishing Adventures of Missionary Max, you can do so now and know that a part of the (ridiculously low) price you are paying will go to the support of actual missionary work in Brazil.

* This applies to the author's royalties only. Updates on royalties and their application to the construction project will be given on this blog, and the royalty receipts will be kept on file by me and available to anyone who should desire to see them.

I've been tweeting a lot today about the horrible murders committed by abortion "doctor" Kermit Gosnell. Over the last 24 hours there has been a sustained social media campaign to shine the light on this. It is obvious that the largely pro-abortion media is trying to black this story out, and so people with a shred of decency in their souls have taken to Twitter.

I can't add much to what has already been said. If by some chance you still don't know what this is all about, here is a video. Caution: by virtue of the subject matter, be warned that this is not easy watching.

Of course the reason this doesn't get the same coverage in the media as, say, the Kardashians' latest adventures, is because it doesn't fit into the narrative of heroic abortion providers and villainous anti-abortion forces.

May God have mercy on the soul of my homeland.

Today the beautiful woman pictured above is celebrating her birthday. Her beauty, intelligence, fervor for Christ, and love of her family never cease to amaze me.

Please join me in wishing my lovely wife Itacyara a very happy birthday!

So there I was...

...in the parking lot of the the Brazilian version of the DMV (henceforth referred to as DETRAN) at 7:30 am. The DETRAN opens at 8:30, but being there at 7:30 assured me a decent position in the line that had probably been forming since before 7. I had all the necessary documents--in duplicate--and was ready to go. I explained to the man on duty what I needed to do (transfer the title of my car from one state to another), and he indicated the correct line. I fired up my iPad, opened up the Kindle app, and settled down for a wait.

Three hours later I was still waiting. My car had moved up to the first place, and I had moved to another line where I was to present my documents and get a slip that I would then take back to the guys who would examine the car and put on the new tags. At every step of the way I had informed them what I needed to do and they informed me that I was in the right line.

The delay was due--we were told--to system failure beyond the control of this local DETRAN. We waited and waited...several people in front of me left. Finally the system kicked back in again, and the line began to move. It was with great relief that, at about ten minutes to 11, I handed the man at the desk my papers.

He looked at them, and then looked up at me. "We aren't doing state-to-state transfers right now. You'll have to come back next week."

The most colorful words in the English and Portuguese language were coursing through my brain, and it was by the grace of God alone that none of them found their way to my lips. In a daze I waked back to where my car was.

"Do you have the documents?" asked one of the men who had directed me to the final line.

"No," I replied, grinding my teeth to a pulp. "It would appear that you are not doing state-to-state transfers right now."

"Oh yeah, that's right."

If you were to go to the DETRAN right now and look at the pavement leading out of the examination area, you might see two long black marks where someone peeled rubber on their way out. Some young kid feeling his oats behind the wheel of a souped up hot rod, perhaps. Or maybe, just maybe, they were left by a middle aged missionary in a red Fiat hatchback with a wild-eyed, crazy look on his face.

So...how was your morning?

Water and sand, everywhere. The front of the building--right by the doorway--was also packed high with wet sand. So, while some of my friends in the US were shoveling their driveways, we were doing another kind of shoveling.

With all hands on deck, it took us about 45 minutes to get the whole thing cleared out, after which we posed for a picture to commemorate the event.

What helps us through these adventures is the knowledge that we have purchased a property, and--Lord willing--it is only a matter of time before this kind of unplanned activity will be a thing of the past.

The following are some pictures I shot of their performance.

And here is a video from the official YouTube page of the squadron:

Pastor Samuel is the pastor of our congregation's mother church, the Igreja Batista Regular Boas Novas. We are amazed and grateful to see this congregation step up, financially and otherwise, in the process of this church plant.

May God grant that this will be the first of many such property purchases in years to come, and that each one will represent a new, vibrant, growing New Testament church.