Tathiana's Family Update: Nov 2017

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Over the past months I have felt a desire to send a family update. I believe this is a way to connect with you, our friends and supporters, with our family.

Isaac has made significant progress in his social interaction and speech development. His therapist is very happy with his development, and his evaluation scores put him in a not-at-risk position of the autism spectrum. However, he still has a hard time making new friends and describing details due to a limited vocabulary. He has a hard time remember names, also. We have continued to speak only Portuguese at home in order to help him. He told us several months ago that he “decided” to not speak at school, which is odd since he talks all the time at home and with other people in other environments. We believe it is in part due to his shyness, insecurity and his strong desire not to make a mistake. Due to these issues e some other factors, Isaac’s therapist suggested we increase his speech therapy sessions per week.

Currently, Isaac has 1 session with his therapist and 3 speech therapy sessions per week. That has generated a lot of extra getting around in during the day and extra financial strain. Together with his first year of school, the busy routine in a big city has been tiring and stressful, not only for Jon and I, but also for Isaac. We have good days and bad days, trying to trust in God’s provision and goodness. The truth that I seem to constantly forget is that God loves our little boy more than we do.

Sara is growing up, both in size and in personalty. She is a spunky and extroverted 1-year-old. She loves dogs and cats and destroying anything her brother builds. She spent the Brazilian winter months sick with ear infections, colds and allergies. She has begun a 6-month preventative treatment for asthma because of all these respiratory blights.

At the end of August, I underwent surgery in my right leg to remove screws and a plate from a childhood surgery that had begun to cause inflammation throughout my upper leg. My recovery has gone reasonably well, and I continue to walk with help of a cane and a noticeable limp. I imagine it will take several more months before I am back to normal. My doctor suggested I do water aerobics to gain flexibility and strength, but I have yet to begin.

Jon had 2 full-time jobs these past months - house dad and missionary. I am very thankful for his selfless service to me and the family. Beyond a doubt, the surgery was one more stress factor for our family, we’ve been exhausted!

Friends have continued to tell me that this difficult phase will pass. We are asking God to send challenges one at a time. I do believe God uses the “storm” to reveal himself and, also, reveal the sin in our own hearts. Oh, that my hope would be in His word!

Romans 8:28, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”

I would like to ask for your prayers in these areas:

  • Financial support
  • Tathiana’s recovery
  • Rest for Jon and Tathiana
  • Isaac’s speech development
  • Marital and Emotional health for Jon and Tathiana
  • Sara’s health

Thank you for all your care and support! - Tathiana

CCP 2017 Update

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The semester has come to a close and with it one of the most exciting seasons in our ministry cycle - the Cross-Cultural Project, or Just CCP. Each year we partner with teams from Campus Outreach regions in the US to labor with us in Brazil. These students come ready to share their worldviews, beliefs, and lives with Brazilian students as a tool for God to draw Brazilians to Himself. For 8 weeks we live in “CCP world”, which among many things consists of God providing opportunities for in-depth conversations, transformation in students, and new relationships on campus. CCP is a time of year from which we emerge very tired, but with many reasons to praise God. 

This year we received two teams: one from CO Birmingham with 14 people, and another from CO Atlanta with 5 people. The Birmingham team focused on the students of Physical Education, specifically focused on connecting with 1st through 3rd semester students. The Lord gave us favor in allowing us to meet a lot of new students. We were also excited about several 3rd semester students showing a lot of interest in investigating Jesus. The Atlanta team’s focus was on a new area of investigation on campus that includes majors such as Math and Engineering. We have been amazed at how much favor we have received by these students, only to see it increased during the CCP. God has drawn in a group of students from the new area who regularly attend our events. Praise God for all He is doing on both sides of campus! The CCP was also very involved with GringoEnglish, our English initiative, doing things such as leading free English clubs on campus in order to meet new students and participating in classes and socials. 

Because of the more skeptical and non-religious culture that exists on the UFMG campus, much of our evangelistic strategy revolves around events that allow us to gain insight to the unique worldview of each student. Also, we use this platform to introduce Christian perspectives about God, the world, and the person of Jesus. This semester, we used the theme “What moves you?” to encourage conversations about satisfaction and purpose. Through our main event, Café com Prosa, and two weekend trips, we dove into these ideas via discussion groups and personal conversations. On the first trip we challenged the students to consider the historical person of Jesus in their search for God. By the end of that trip we had many students expressing the desire to investigate more about who Jesus is and how or if he could connect them to God and to everything they are searching for. On our last trip, close to the end of the semester, we actually began the process of looking into who Jesus is, his character, his miracles, and the resurrection. By the grace of God we left that trip with several students seeing the value of asking those controversial questions and investigating more about Jesus.

 After such an exciting semester filled with God’s grace and so many new faces, we will go into next semester with a plan to deepen our relationships with new contacts, create studies for the students who expressed the desire to investigate more about Jesus, walk alongside those who are already investigating, and continue to establish believers in discipleship. Please pray that we would be able to rest well and abide in Christ during our short break in between semesters, and that God would continue working in us and these students next semester. Thank you so much for your investment in Brazil.

 

Graphic Design and Communications 2017

As part of the Resource Team for our ministry, I get to work on communications and graphics projects from time to time. I enjoy those days where I can put other tasks aside and focus on other deadlines for more creative objectives. Often you guys, my supporters, do not get to see this side, as almost always these projects are destined for a Brazilian public and are published in Portuguese. Below I have highlighted a few of my favorites just to keep everyone in the loop.

Our coffee-house discussion group event has been gaining momentum as a great tool for our engaging students and recent grads for a few years now. Café com Prosa, as we call it, has had several series of themed discussions that begin with an introduction, then the group breaks up into smaller facilitated discussions groups where we try hard to create an environment where students can voice their opinions and beliefs. Below are a few of the themed series' images. (click images to enlarge)

ENGLISH: What Moves You?

ENGLISH: Skeptic: in what do YOU trust?

ENGLISH: It's all Good, It's Alright

Also, I help with our church, Comunidade Horizonte, with communications and images for sermon series. Below are the past two, for series that went through Hebrews and currently through 1 and 2 Peter. (click images to enlarge)

ENGLISH: Hebrews: Jesus is better

ENGLISH: Dear Exiles: the letters of Peter

 

CLICK TO ENLARGE

Lastly, the past years we have ben developing an English-learning initiative called "GringoEnglish". Gringo in Brazilian Portuguese just means, "foreigner". It is a work in progress, and we hope it will be a long-term branch of our ministry to increase contact with students and even provide financial support for our Brazilian staff. I had the privilege to be a lead developer of the brand, logo and this flyer for the 2017 classes.

PNP2017 Recap

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Recap video of the PNP with English subtitles

For the last four years, we have organized a week-long beach project with students called Prosa na Praia (PNP). Full of fun, deep conversation and discussion groups, we try to create the same atmosphere of our monthly coffeehouse discussion event called Café com Prosa. We combine the beach, summer vacation, discussion and profoundly relevant issues into a package and add lots of fun!

Our Theme: Skepticism
University students are part of the “generation of skeptics”. But, what is skepticism? In general, skepticism is characterized by a posture that doubts or is untrusting of accepted concepts. Yet, one wonders, is it possible to be absolutely skeptical? The obvious answer is NO! It is not possible to be completely untrusting. The most skeptical person will trust in, at the very least, his or her own skepticism. Therefore, if on one side we have the skeptical generation, and, on the other, the fact that everyone trusts in something, we raise this question: “Skeptics, in what do you trust?” This was our theme for our last Café com Prosa discussion groups of 2016. During those discussion groups, we asked the “If everyone trusts in something, why not trust in God?”

Jesus in the Age of Skepticism
We decided to have a PNP theme that would continue with the same idea as “Skeptics”. Our aim was to present the same idea, yet through the perspective of Jesus himself. How would Jesus answer the above question? Would Jesus say that God is trustworthy?

In stark contrast to our skepticism, Jesus was a man of great convictions. He strongly affirmed absolutes concerning God, human beings and the origin of so much skepticism - sin. While we have doubts, Jesus has assurance. While we have a hard time trusting, Jesus trusted unwaveringly. Given these considerations, we asked the PNP participants to consider “Jesus in the age of skepticism”. Our aim for PNP 2017 was to survey the gospel by observing Jesus’ convictions about these four points: 1) God’s character, 2) Man’s problem, 3) God’s solution and 4) Man’s response.

It was a challenge unpackaging the gospel to students who were in such different points of their consideration of Jesus. Of those on the PNP, there were Christians, non-Christians open to talking about Jesus, non-Christians closed-off to the idea of Jesus and those who had never shared their opinions about spirituality with us. However, we were extremely encouraged to see the power of God before our own eyes: many left the PNP stating a desire to have a relationship with God.

Fun!
Beyond the amazing and deep conversations that took place, the PNP sought to deepen our community through shared experiences. To achieve that, we had many informal moments at the beach, pool, sports and especially through dividing up into teams and facing off in a multi-faceted competition. It was fun way to create intentional contact and camaraderie to get to know everyone even more. It became one of the most talked about memories of the PNP.

Equipping Leaders
One of the most exciting objectives of this year’s PNP brought was an opportunity for young Christians to lead and learn through being room leaders. Our aim was for them to be intentional with their time with others in their room and to lead the discussion groups. The hope was that this new experience would fuel in them a desire to multiply their lives. Our evaluation and the feedback we received was very positive. This was an important step in seeing God provide momentum toward laborers being raised up for His harvest field.

Partnership with the Local Church
This year we invited some young professionals from our local church to the PNP. Having them with us provided the students from the campus the opportunity to see and hear from other people in different phases of life. Also, it provided quality contact with the Body of Christ. Unexpected benefits of having church members with us were the support they provided by serving, prayer throughout the PNP and, also, via encouragement they gave us by being reminded of what God is doing through Campus Outreach.

Testimonies:
Below are two short testimonies of PNP participants.

PEDRO: a non-Christian student who has participated in our events and been involved in an investigative Bible-study. Pedro has been attending our church since returning to BH from the PNP. 

Through the PNP I had an opportunity to delve even deeper into my thoughts about Christianity and Jesus, and I still felt amazingly comfortable to share my ideas and doubts about it all. I believe that opportunities like these, in an environment where everyone is relaxed, should be valued because through such experiênces  we can build friendships, new understandings and grow personally and spiritually.

CRISTINA: a local church member that only recently came to have personal contact with our ministry. 

Participating in the PNP was an encouraging experience because it showed me a beautiful vision of the infinite love of Christ. Being there brought me an immense gratitude for the staff that live a calling to this love. I only recently joined our church, so I had never seen up-close the work of Campus Outreach. So, after seeing a glimpse of their lives, I see how what they do is only possible by being full of the Spirit and compelled by the love of God! It was obvious that they needed to depend on God in many moments, especially in their weaknesses. To wrap it all up, it was an amazing experience in which I could experience the love of Jesus and see an example how we can glorify God in our own lives.

Please Pray For:
* God to open the spiritual yes of students who heard the gospel at the PNP
* New Bible studies to help these students to repent and believe in Jesus.
* Wisdom and perseverance for our team as we lead these students.

Summer Project 2017: #pnp2017

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Our annual Summer Project (in Portuguese: Prosa na Praia) for 2017 is almost here! Our team will spend January 24-31 with a group of students and recent graduates. We are returning to Cabo Frio beach in the state of Rio de Janeiro for the third year.

For this year's edition we made a decision to invest in a better option for housing to facilitate a project that is attractive to students and, also, provides an environment conducive to building community and a shared experience for the students who will attend. Since most Brazilian universities do not have campus housing, time with students is always a challenge, and our Summer Project allows for us to create a unique experience that we rarely get throughout the year with students. Our project is 8 days and involves talks, discussion groups, bible studies and a leadership training option for room leaders. Our project has a more evangelistic scope, continuing with relationships built over the previous year, or even years! For that reason the “greenhouse” effect of relationships and gospel conversations makes this project a great tool for our ministry.

As a team, we made the decision to cover the ensuing deficit that we knew would be incurred with available funds and staff participation. However, an added challenge to the 2017 Project began in October of 2016. Our main campus focus, UFMG, had classes suspended because of a student occupation in protest of a change in Legislation to the Ministry of Education, that was followed by a professor strike. Both these events have severely limited our recruitment for lack of contact with students on campus, and we do not expect to reach the contractual minimum of spots at the hotel.

I ask for prayer for our Summer Project for the following requests:

  • For this project to facilitate a momentum for 2017 as we have been tracking with a number of students who are investigating Jesus.
  • For young and new Christians to grow in their knowledge and relationship with God.
  • For the financial challenges to be minimized by participation from students, graduates and others who are considering joining us.

If anyone would like to consider making a donation specifically to the Project or to help a student attend the Project, please follow this LINK to donate online through the Campus Outreach giving site, with the Brazilian Summer Project already selected. 

Sara is here!

Sara Isabel Elam, born Oct 26th, 2016

The fact that this is month late in announcing tells a lot about how the transition from 1 child to 2 has gone for mom and dad. But no matter how many non-quality-rest nights and how hectic running around a busy big city with two small ones gets, we are so very happy and excited to welcome the newest Elam baby to the world and to our craziness that we call life!

Sara Isabel Elam arrived at 8:07am on October 26th, healthy and quiet. She was 6 lbs, 2 oz (2.660 kg) and 18 in (46 cm). Mom and baby girl had a non-eventful stay at the hospital, and we all went home in a a few days.

Isaac is getting used to the idea of "Baby Sara" and is already asking to hold her and help when she cries. He's going to be a great big brother. 

At some point in 2017 we will likely make a trip to the US and then you all can see that she's the cutest baby ever. Until then, please pray for our little girl, her growth and health and for mom and dad to get some rest!

Isaac's Journey [ENGLISH]

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Para PORTUGUÊS clique AQUI

This has been a post that I've put off for a while, because I don't really know how to write it. It may come out like a journal entry - but here we go.

Isaac is our first-born; he's almost 4. This year he's had a bit of a journey, and has taken Tathiana and I along for the ride. It began when his pre-school, which we think is great, suggested that their school psychologist observe Isaac a bit. We agreed and she proceeded to spend several hours over the course of several weeks observing. Afterward, Tathiana and I sat down with her and proceeded to hear that it might be worth consulting with a clinical child psychologist because Isaac does present some signs of potential risk toward a learning disorder, or an even more severe issue like Autism or Asperger's. As you can imagine, that was not easy to hear. We knew he likes to be alone sometimes and is a bit rigid, but hearing from some professionals who seem to really have genuine desire for Isaac's best interests motivated us to seek some help.

We began weekly therapy with a very well-recommended child psychiatrist/psychologist who specializes in early intervention here in Belo Horizonte. We have enjoyed her interaction with Isaac, her interest in helping us find other means of intervention, her instruction to Tathiana and me in how to interact with Isaac, and her explanations to us in parent conferences about what she is observing. We feel very confident with her and in her desire to help Isaac develop.

These weekly sessions have been ongoing for 6 months now. There are good times and bad times for us as we wade through the haze of just what God is doing and how Isaac is developing as a little person. We have received some second opinions and, also, involved Isaac in complementary group sessions and speech therapy.

To sum it all up, if Isaac does present a learning disability or other issue, we are calmed by the fact that he has been responding well to therapy and the consensus is his signs are mild at most. Everyone has commented on how intelligent Isaac is, and how he is sensitive to others - so there no real concern for any lack of mental capacity. We have appreciated that the professionals aiding him have been hesitant to give an official diagnosis due to his young age and mild signs. We have decided to establish only 1 language at home, Portuguese, to help him gain some independence in his language skills in preparation for actual school (which he will start in Feb of 2017 per Brazilian law). Lastly, God has given us some unexpected opportunities for Isaac to interact with more children, and time away from our apartment to be free to run, play and even argue with other kids. He is still using diapers, so there's still some things to work through - even if in our own hearts.

This has all been an exhausting journey both emotionally and financially. But as any parent will say, we'll sacrifice anything for the good of our baby boy. We have made it this far with a positive perspective for our little boy and his future. Kids are resilient, parents not so much! These next 6 months will be interesting as we welcome another baby into our home, and as Isaac likely begins school. We appreciate any and all prayers now for the next season that awaits the Elam's in Brazil.