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	A letter from Dorothy and Gordon Gartrell in Brazil

	January 20, 2005 Dear Friends, Greetings in the Lord Jesus Christ! Leadership is a very important element of evangelism and church development. One of the many things that we try to do is help congregations become independent, led by strong national leaders. Last Saturday joyful laughter and exclamations could be heard in our church. The youth were having a “lock-in.” It began at 8:00 Saturday morning and ended when Sunday school began. Their theme was “spiritual gifts.” About 18 youth talked about what spiritual gifts are, which spiritual gifts were strong in them, and ways to strengthen their gifts and talents. They sang, had activities, lectures, a film, time to visit, and good food.

	At the "lock-in" for youth at our church, youth learned about using their spiritual gifts in the best possible way.				The youth identified areas in which God had blessed them, and how they could strengthen and best use their gifts. Monthly throughout 2004, leadership development weekends were sponsored by the board of deacons. Each month a different topic was studied through lectures, activities, and worship. Justice in the Old Testament, mercy in the New Testament, “serving others” (based on the examples of Jesus, Paul, and James) and, “serving one another today” were some of the themes. Four churches participated.

	A third event helped enrich marriages by leading 16 couples in a service, in which they recommitted their marriage vows. Participating in the event strengthened marriages and helped develop stronger spouses, thus better parents. A different child carried in the rings of each couple, enabling the presentation of the rings to play a beautiful part of the service. There was even a wedding cake at the reception afterwards. Another area in which leadership development took place was in turning over the Lauro de Freitas congregation in a suburb of Salvador. A Brazilian pastor and Brazilian evangelist will carry on the work. Dorothy will continue to work with the youth.

	Gordon is going to work more closely with the eight congregations in the presbytery. A congregation is a church that can’t exist on its own because of lack of leadership or finances. In the large Presbytery of Bahia, which in area is a bit smaller than the state of Texas, there are seven organized churches and eight congregations. We plan to visit a number of congregations, and anytime they need to they can turn to Gordon for support.		At church we organized a worship service in which 16 cuples recommitted their marriage vows. In the process, each person discovered that he or she has a valuable contribution to offer.

	John was accepted at Presbyterian College in Clinton, South Carolina, so the family will be taking our once-a-term vacation in the United States this July. We will visit Presbyterian College, family, and some friends. Thank you for your continual prayers! Peace in Christ, Gordon and Dorothy Gartrell The 2005 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 44

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