I wanted to talk a little about the Renato and Jacob’s Well ministries.

Renato Cassula is the President of Jacob’s Well, Brazil. Renato was born and raised in Brazil. He worked in electrical engineering with Honda and Coca-Cola in Brazil. He further held various management and leadership positions in both Brazil and in the United States. In 1998, he followed a job opportunity to Denver, and left his home country to establish a future and home in the United States. He married Michelle in 2004 and they both launched their passion for ministry by loving and serving the poor. Between 2006–2012, Renato led and served on several teams into the Amazon jungle for community development and church planting projects. Currently, Renato and Michelle and their three sons are full-time missionaries in Fortaleza, Brazil. He is the founder and pastor of the church Communidade Crista A Fonte in Fortaleza. This faith community provides the necessary relationship-building and oversight for the Jacob’s Well projects in the drought region.

I had the pleasure to meet and work with Renato and Michelle during my visit to Fortaleza and Pentecoste Brazil this April.  They have a true heart for God and the people of this region.  God has been blessing their ministry greatly.  The government has given them an old hotel complex and warehouse for free for twenty years to use for their ministry.  They plan on turning this complex into a base of operations as well as a residence for visiting missionaries in the region.  The government also agreed to fund and drill the wells in the communities they plan on supporting with their ministry.

I was looking at some Internet information on Pentecoste and ran across a photo that showed the lake at full levels.  The lake today is at less than 1% capacity and is expected not to be able to provide for the community after December 2016.

This is one of the region’s God has brought Ranalto and the Jacobs Well ministry to Pentecoste.  Jacobs Well works with the government to provide the care of the well and pumping equipment for the people.  The government drills and provides the initial equipment for each well.  The Jacobs Well ministries then plants a church for each community to provide for the living water needs as the gospel spreads breaking the hold of religion on the people in these areas.

For more information, visit http://www.pocodejaco.org

Wow!!  What a loving God we serve.

Fortaleza was beyond what I had imaged it would be.  We were blessed to travel out into the country to visit Pentecoste to bring the Gospel as well as medical care to the people.  Pentecoste is now under major drought as the weather pattern has shifted in Brazil.  The town’s lake and reservoir is almost dried up and the town is suffering great job loss from lack of fishing.

Jesus showed up as He always does and touched many souls.  We had many healings and salvations during the three days we were there. We held clinic at an old Hotel complex just outside of town.

One of the coolest things I remember was the story of Phelipe who had gone through the evangelism room and had refused to accept Jesus as his Lord.  Then at one of the nurses stations he reported suffering from great pain in his lower back and feet from being an agriculture worker.  Laying hands on him and praying for his healing, all pain had left and he was healed.  We then told him that the reason for his pain leaving was that Jesus loved him and wanted a relationship with him. He then answered “How can I refuse Jesus after receiving His love?”… He became a true believer in a loving God that day.  Hallelujah!!

We held night services in the old Hotel lobby on Wednesday evening.  This is a 50 year old Hotel that has been abandoned for twenty years.  The Brazil government gave this property and buildings to the Jacobs Well missions for free for twenty years for their use in the ministry.

Once back in Fortaleza, we held clinic and services at a church down the road from the new soccer stadium that was built for the World Cup event of a few years ago.  During services in the evening the Holy Spirit came and put most of the church members on the floor as He lavished them with His presence.

In total we had a 147 souls come into relationship with Jesus during the week we were in Fortaleza and Pentecoste.  It was an amazing time walking with God as his hands and feet and seeing many people set free and delivered.

I even had a chance for a picture of myself and Renato before we left.

There is so much more than I can report here that happened during our Fortaleza trip… All I can say in closing is that God is good and loves all of His people.

–Rod