I used to dislike conflict strongly. I preferred to avoid it at almost all costs or do what I could to make it disappear. To my surprise, I am now attracted to conflict and dysfunction because those are places where God wants to use us to dispel darkness. Peace at any price is not always …
This week, we received an unexpected prophetic word from an Uber driver in Edmonton. In Edmonton, we met Daniel, our Uber driver, who shared a story that felt like God was talking to us. When Daniel learned we were missionaries in Brazil, he passionately encouraged us, “Don’t stop being missionaries. It is SO important.” He then recounted …
Charles (Chuck) and Rachel Keim (Dan Thiessen’s son-in-law and daughter)My friend Chuck passed to the other side, and we attended his celebration service in Edmonton. 1989. Chuck, Henry, and I are on an epic road trip, checking out the Joshua trees with Henry’s propane-fueled Cadillac in the background. 1989. Rick and Chuck at an orange …
Lucy and Paul’s people showed up in force at the Anglican Church last Sunday for their baptism. While we dedicate our babies to God, and they get baptized when they are old enough to understand, the Anglicans baptize the babies of willing parents, and then the children, when they can understand, confirm that they want …
This week’s newsletter explores the profound idea that God has plans for us even before we are born, as illustrated in a recent dream. We’ll also extend a heartfelt invitation to our Brazil Night event, some prison-ministry memories, and highlight key moments from the past week that continue to shape our journey. Powered by WPeMatico
I dreamed about an ancient manuscript that included the names of those who helped in this church-planting initiative in Northern Brazil. The dream included a fellow leader named Clenildo. I shared the details with him and obtained his permission before publishing this video. “Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were …
My friend’s baptism remains one of the great highlights of my life. The feeling of that moment still overwhelms me. I ministered to him in jail about five years ago. As you can see, he was a tough guy, and a leader. He has a Christian dad and sister, as best as I remember. I …
Yuri, Rick, Gil, Natán, Yurí’s Christian grandma. When Gil got out of jail, the guard called me to come and pick him up. We had been talking about going on a missionary trip together. I contacted another ex-inmate, Natán, who invited his friend, Yuri. They lived in a village near our city. Gil and I …
Last week, I wrote, “Happy Birthday, Deanna.” It was on the morning of her birthday. Here are some photos of the special day. Bella’s birthday gift to Deanna was to come to church with us, where we could show the twins to many people who prayed for them through their 66 days in the NICU …
Watch a two-minute video to explore the idea of the “good gold” outside the Garden of Eden.Genesis 2 describes how the River of God flowed out of the Garden to the chaos land.And in those rivers, good gold, rare perfume, and onyx stones exist.”The gold of that land is good; aromatic resin and onyx are also there” (NIV, Ge 2:12).Outside of the …