Bud Simon

Books

I am an avid reader. 

I enjoy reading but I also read as a discipline. 

The discipline of reading helps to provide different perspectives and insights that shape and form my thinking and actions. 

Here are a few of the books that I have read in the first six months of 2009 ( in no particular order). 

Know What You Don't Know: How Great Leaders Prevent Problems Before They Happen
This book is an insightful and helps me to think in a new way about problems and issues that arise.  It helps to move from a reactive place to a proactive place.  The book is written from a business perspective.  The priciples are sound and practical for pretty much any forum of life.  A quick and easy read and I highly recommend it for those that want to think differently about problem solving. 

The Message Bible Large Print Burg Lthr Lk: Large Print Edition
This is a new Bible I purchased.  I love it.  The Message, of course, is a paraphrase Bible.  But, the print for my 45 year old eyes is fantastic.  I also have always preferred the single, wide column filling the page as opposed to multiply columns on a page.  It makes the reading quick and easy.  The Bible is high also well made, being of a good quality.  I recommend this for those that enjoy the Message Bible. 

Tell It Slant: A Conversation on the Language of Jesus in His Stories and Prayers
A wonderful book by Eugene Peterson.  In it, he explains the parables that are unique in the Gospel of Luke as well as the prayers of Christ.  I know, it may not sound too exciting.  However, it is eminently practical and applicable to daily life.  I have enjoed the book immensely for reflective reading and highly recommend it. 

Communicating for a Change: Seven Keys to Irresistible Communication
An excellent book for those that speak on a regular basis, especially as teachers or preachers.  It will help to improve your communications by focusing your thinking.  It is an easy read and very practical. 

Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die
This was written by a couple of professors.  They explain in the book why some ideas and thoughts are easy to remember.  This is a must read for anyone that communicates or presents in any context.  If you are interested in people remembering what you say:)  I highly recommend this.  Funny, interesting and practical. 

Outliers: The Story of Success
Fascinating.  It covers a wide range of subjects and provides for a much wider perspective into all kinds of subjects.  It provides a creative way to perceive things that intuitively you understand as correct.  It will widen your understanding and insight.  Gladwell is an excellent writer. 

Adventures of a Bystander
This is the closest thing to an autobiography of Peter Drucker that you will find.  He tells dozens of stories from his life and interactions with famous and not so famous individuals through the years.  He shares the lessons and insights gained from those times.  A great book, if you know who Drucker is and want something that provides a totally different perspective. 

Take a look at the links to Amazon.com for more indepth reviews and information.  I got a load of other books also, but these are just a few that I found interesting and insightful. 

Good reading!

Visitors

Bud, Tami (my niece), and Lydia on a trip to Souzel

Hey, we have visitors!!  My niece Tami arrived a few days ago.  She came along with her friend, Lydia, and both of them have blended right into our family. 

The got here after a LONG trip, which involved some missed and changed flights, and quite a bit of time hanging out in airports.  Tami is 16 and Lydia is 17.  They are going to be staying for 3 weeks. 

Once a month, I lead a regional training for new leaders.  This time, the training took place in the river town of Souzel.  Tami and Lydia went with me and 35 Brazilians on one of the mission boats, the Maranatha 2.  We all had a great time.  It was fun having them along and a blast to see them interacting with the Brazilians.  It was great having them hanging out with me and keeping company.  There was some good laughs and good times. 

We look forward to a couple more weeks of fun!!

Lydia and Tami watching the sunrise during the weekend boat trip

The sunrise on the weekend boat trip

Do I Love What I Do?

You know, life is short. 

We all come to grips with our mortality, sooner or later. 

But sooner is better than later. 

As I have reflected on a number of things over the past several months, it has become apparent that it is much better to focus on my personal strengths and on the things that I enjoy doing.  We all need to do some things out of responsibility whether we want to or not (I am thinking about taxes).  However, we can, with some forethought and insights, make good life choices that will allow us to do the things that we actually enjoy doing in life and the things that re rewarding. 

Not always, but often.

And, as I look around I realize that it is easy to drift from those things and get caught up in fulfilling other people's expectations.

Rio - A Different Kind of Trip

Clenildo, Angelita, Steve, Elba, and Thiago - Clenildo and Elba are part of the Leadership Team for the Brazilian churches and Thiago is our new friend who drove us everywhere in Rio!

I had the opportunity to travel to Rio de Janeiro last week.  Yes, a little outside my normal travel schedule here in Brazil. 

However, I did have a blast!! 

I went there with the leadership team from our region and we were able to have a great time.  There were meetings for the Vineyard church planting movement in all of Brazil.  I was along as a supporter and encourager for the church planting here in Brazil. 

It would have been great to be able to take my family along - but we are in that season of life when it is  expensive and inconvenient to travel as a family! 

There was a couple of days of meetings for the leadership team and then a church planting conference (InterVinha) on the weekend.  It was great to meet with others and have alot of informal time to meet and converse.  The time flew by!

The whole time was really an excellent way to build relationships and reinforce our values.  It is also encouraging to see others who are facing some of the same challenges in other parts of the country. 

The trip was well worth the time it took for helping the relationships develop and mature.  it was great to make some new friends and deepen the old friendships!

Clenildo, Elba, Roger from Claifornia, and Milton from Baura - São Paulo during a leadership meeting

Rick Bergen, Celso from Belo Horizante - Minas Gerais, and Mark Fields, head of Vineyard Mission - USA. 

When You Can Not Read

Chico, Community Leader in Vila Nova, Maribel

Chico can not read.

Chico is not deterred. 

Chico wants to know the Bible and help out in his local church. 

Through the sharing of the Gospel in the remote area where Chico lives, he gave his life to the Lord.  He had struggled since then because he never learned to read.  The desire was there, but he never had the opportunity to learn. 

Then we were able to provide him with a "Proclaimer". 

A Proclaimer is a small electronic device with a dedicated memory.  On the memory is a copy of the Bible in Portuguese.  The controls on the device allow the user to find book, chapter, and verse and to move there with relative speed and ease once the user learns to use the controls. 

The Proclaimer, a small device that enable people that can not read to hear the Gospel on a regular basis

The Proclaimer is power in a number of ways:  by an A/C power adapter, by a hand crank that powers a battery, or by a small solar panel. 

Here is the really wonderful part of the story. 

When I was in Chico's community during a recent trip, I listened as Chico stood up and spoke before the group.  In his sharing, he quoted several verses verbatim.  I was amazed and grateful.  Here was a man who had never read, but was able to quote Scripture. 

My heart was touched.  It was wonderful to see that even such an obvious barrier as not being able to read was able to be overcome by the persistence of one man to share the Gospel with his community. 

Thanks for your prayers!!

The church community where Chico ministers

If you would like to help out Chico and other national leaders like him, please donate to:

Altamira Region (on line)

Or earmark for "the Altamira Region" and send to:

Xingu Mission
PO Box 340785
Columbus, Ohio 43234
USA

Videos

Here are a couple of videos that are well worth watching. If you wonder what life is like riding your motorcycle through the jungle, well take a look at this video of a recent ministry trip put together by Josh Pflederer, a fellow missionary here. First, there is a video of our time visiting the remote region of Maribel along the Iriri River. Remote means remote - like it is quicker to get from where ever your reading this to Altamira than it is for people to get from Maribel to Altamira. Then, after spending several days there and visiting the communities, we spent three days returning 200 miles. Yes, we averaged 67 miles a day for three days on motorcycles. The mileage was especially impressive when on day two we covered about 22 miles in 9 hours. Ouch. It made for an unforgettable trip and it made for a lot of new friendships along the way.

Photos from Maribel (Iriri River) Trip - May

Mountain and jungle mist on the road home from Maribel - this is outside the house where we slept as we waited for flood waters to subside

Fellow travelers along the road - we gave them a ride to the nearest town after crossing three flooded rivers

A bridge that had been washed out along the road (Josh Pflederer center)

Faces along the road - we stopped at this home to visit and pray for the family

Bud and motorcycle

First impressions - mud, water, mud, water, motorcycles, motorcycles, mud, water and friendly people. 

We stopped and visited many people along the road.  It was Great!!!  We prayed for many families and received many invites to return.  It really renewed my heart towards the thought that God is always at work. 

God is always at work. 

God is always at work.

Leadership Fundementals

The Students and Teachers from the Leadership Training Intensive

We just had a great weekend out on the river. 

We were able to take a group of students out to have a wonderful time doing a leadership training intensive. 

the topic this month was focused on evangelism.  This was the second in our series of leadership training modules.  We met at a community on the river and 32 students took part in the training. 

It is great to see the passion and the sincerity that pulse from the lives of the students.  The goal is to teach in a series of weekend intensives through out the year.  These intensives will help equip the students with the skills they need to step up to a new level in their churches.  It is exciting to see the students embracing the teaching and the opportunities to share. 

One of the most energizing things is when the students are engaged and both sides can see the urgency and relevance of what is being transmitted. 

Thanks for each of you that has been praying for us. 

If you would like to help support leadership training for the Brazilians, you can do that by giving to: 

Altamira Leadership Training

Please earmark the donation for "leadership training" or e-mail me and let me know. 

Anna, four years old, who went along with me to "help out" on the trip.  We had a great time together!

Anna, my four year old, also went on the trip with me.  We had a blast together and it is always good to have my kids along.  It makes it more work and more effort, but I love including them when I can.  She is a delight and enjoys doing what she can to help out. 

Thanks for your prayers for our family!

Flood Recovery

Life has been a blur of activity over the last week. 

There have been hundreds of families misplaced and the recovery has slowly been moving into effect. 

The Easter flood stunned the city.  Thankfully there has been an equally stunning outpouring of sympathy and compassion on those that need help and assistance. 

The church has made a huge effort to reach out.  Initially, there was the rapid response of providing food and a place to stay to those in need. 

Now, comes the longer term issues of helping people rebuild their homes and replace many of their lost belongings. 

We really appreciate each and everyone of you that responded with prayers and gifts to help out during this crisis. 

Please continue to pray that we can show God's compassion and mercy in the middle of so many needs. 

The Easter Flood of 2009

Two dams broke above the city. 

The water rose about 15 feet in six hours. 

People that left their homes in the morning to celebrate Easter with their family returned in the afternoon to find their homes flooded, destroyed or swept away. 

And some people lost their lives. 

The impact on our community of Altamira was immense.  The flood plain runs through the center of town and for about 24 hours the town was severed in the middle as the only way to go from one side to the other was by boat. 

People with little to begin with now have nothing. 

The church is responding to the needs of many and working to help out as well as possible to alleviate the suffering. 

Please pray for the people of Altamira and pray about helping us respond to the needs.  We want to reach out to as many as possible. 

Traffic chaos as people try to cross at the only road in town, flooded but still passable.  Other bridges were completely swept away.  This is 24 hours after the worst had passed.

You can send a tax deductible donation to the Xingu Mission at

 The Xingu Mission

PO Box 340785

Columbus, Ohio 43234

Attn: Altamira Base

 Or on-line at http://www.xingu.org/15a1_altamira_donation.html

 If you decide to make a donation, please let us know.  This will give us a general idea and allow us to start putting your money to work quicker. 

Thanks for your prayers. 

Please read Josh Pflederer's account of the flood at http://pflederer5.blogspot.com/

Please read Steve Doan's accoutn of the flood at http://steveandelba.blogspot.com/

Our home backs onto the creek that flooded (the water came onto our patio, but not into the house, missing by about 8 inches)

10 am Easter Morning with Flooding at record levels

1 pm (three hours later) with flooding at eight feet over record levels

Happy Easter

"God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him."

"God did not go to all the trouble of sending his Son to die just to condemn the world, rather he did it as the way to make people whole and right."

"My Righteous Servant will justify many and He will bear their iniquities...because He poured out His life unto death... He bore the sin of many and made intercession for the sinners."

Sin. Death. Destruction. Hell. Hopeless. Anger. Hate. Separation. Division. 

Righteousness. Life. Wholeness. Heaven. Hope. Peace. Love. Unity. Togetherness.

The difference He has made in me, He can make in others.  And the difference He has made in others, He can make in me. 

God's delight is to change, to save, to deliver, and to bring hope, light, and life. 

Happy Easter. 

River Trip Photos

Here are some photos from a recent trip.  I just spent a week out on the river.  There are so many good things happening - I will write more later.

Sunset on the Xingu River

Sunrise on the River

Traveling by boat along the river

A church meeting by candle light in the interior

Worship during a recent leadership training event

I Want to Kill That Guy!

You know why we do a "New Believer's Retreat"?  Because it is an open door to let the power of God be displayed. 

Last weekend, a friend of mine was participating in the retreat.  Jose has been having a rough season in his life.  He has been through difficult relationships and struggles, too many to name.  One episode stands out.  Jose had been at odds with a man in his community and finally made the decision that he was going to kill this other man. 

This is actually pretty common in our area.  Local justice and people resolving their own conflicts in violent ways in regular news in our region. 

But, there is one thing Jose did not count on in his equation.  God. 

Jose went to the New Believer's Retreat which just happened to be our largest ever.  There were more than 100 men there, including those being ministered to and those doing the ministry.  The retreat covers a variety of subjects, including inner healing, confession any habitual sins, and other things that often are easy to over look and ignore in our lives. 

Well, as God orchestrates things, this very man that Jose was planning to kill was also there at the Retreat. 

But, Jose, being patient and orderly, figured he could wait until later to do his killing. 

However, there is that God thing going on.  Here he is listening to how Christ gave everything for us.  And Jose broke.  God broke his heart and gave Jose a new one. 

Jose stood up a little later on and said,"See that guy over there?  Well, I was planning to kill him this week.  But, I just can't now.  I know that it would be wrong."  What a thing to announce in public.  And, instead of the enmity that had existed, these two men were hugging and laughing. 

Only God. 

I want a little more of that in my life!  What an awesome God we serve!

A Word of Testimony

 
My wife, Suzanne, had a chance to serve and minister this last weekend at a New Believer's retreat.

Let me share one of the powerful testimonies that she told me from her time there.

A certain lady who was attending the retreat as a new believer shared that she was experiencing a very difficult season in her life.  Several weeks ago, she had a moment when she was frustrated and disillusioned and ready to give up on church as well as her plans to attend the retreat. 

At that moment, she saw a vision.  It was an image in her mind of a woman praying for her and talking with her.  Except that she did not recognize the other lady.  She took it as an encouragement and pressed on through her difficulties.   She ended up attending the New Believer's Retreat. 

When she arrived there, she realized that it was the place that God had for her and she was delighted that she had made the effort to attend.  At the end of the first session, during the ministry time, a woman she had never met before came up to pray for her.

It was the same woman she had seen in her vision.  Identical.  And, as they began to converse, it came out that they both had struggled with the same issue in their childhood.  The one woman had come to share and pray at a critical time in the life of the other woman.  She shared how she had passed through the same problems and struggles and come out victorious.  The tears flowed freely and the joy of being part of what God is doing in this moment was apparent. 

God delights in sharing his plans with his children.  He shares things in ways that we understand and in ways that will encourage us.  What an awesome thing to be a part of His family and a part of His plan. 

Thanks for your prayers and support. 

Why Plant Churches?

Kids along the beach in a river village

Boats serve as the major transportation along the river.  Here they "dock" at the door of a partially completed church building as the service is ready to start. 

Why plant churches?  In fact, what does that even mean? 

For the vast majority of us, there is no frame of reference for the concept of "planting a church". 

Allow me to introduce the concept with some thoughts that can hopefully clarify this concept.  We are familiar with the idea of when we are traveling on the road and we drive through a small town or approach one of those many off ramps along an Interstate.  As we look around we see nothing familiar.  And the thought floats through our minds and often passes from our lips, "This place needs a __________ (McDonald's, Taco Bell, Starbuck's, Tim Horton's, or whatever fills in your blank.)"  By casual observation, we realize that there is something missing that would improve the moment and the location. 

Now move that awareness into the spiritual realm.  Consider that there are places that have no church.  The thought process is similar when we consider the need that exists here in the Xingu region of the Amazon.  As we step back and consider the three dimensions of human life - physical, emotional, and spiritual - there is an awareness of a tremendous gap in the lives of these people.  The church is the only institution that tries to meet needs in all three of these dimensions. 

But often, we can not even imagine a place where there are no churches.  Literally, our imagination fails us.  Why? Because almost anywhere we drive in North America, we pass dozens of churches.  It defies our thought process to consider that there are corners of this world in which there is no church.   Or the thought of walking hours or paddling a canoe hours to go to church.  We are outside of our box, we are out of range of our reality. 

Of course, just because we struggle to imagine something does not make it less real.  This is where our faith moves into action.  We step out with the intention of helping change the story and reality of these people. 

That is one of the reasons that we plant churches here and why we need help working towards this goal that God has set before us. 

Angles - the lines of the boat come together

Storm clouds gather over a river community

ON LINE DONATIONS

Impressions

El Shaddai (El-Xa -Day) Bike & Tire Repair - It took me four days to figure out the El Shaddai part, you know, Hebrew spelled phonetically into Portuguese examined by the American mind

 Assurini Ferry Landing

Two days, one exciting night, alot of mud, a simple message, a team of eight people - this is the making of a good time.  I had the opportunity to visit Esperançinha, the location of one of our new church plants.  The seasonal mud gave the trip the characteristic that makes so much of the work here in the interior. 

There is a sense in which it is easy to view the work through a romantic lens.  Drifting carefree down the river, surrounded by white beaches, swimming in sparkling waters and sharing the message of love, hope, and peace with a people that delight in hearing it. 

Well, it just isn't always quite that simple. 

The truth is that most people in this region live the hard-bitten life of a pioneer settler carving an existence out of the wilderness.  The majority of people that live in rural area do not have access to electricity or running water, refrigerators, freezers, or motorized transportation.  It is the old tried and true of the last 20 centuries.  Horseback, water drawn from the river or from a well, and an oil lamp to burn at night. 

But, people still want to change.  They are passionate about finding the key to change in their heart.  And they enjoying seeing the human side of each of us.

Who we are with God.  Who we are to each other.  What we really want out of life and how we can achieve that end.  Those are thoughts and ideas that transcend cultural boundaries and touch lives. 

That is the goal of what we do, making a difference in the hearts of people.  Bringing hope to the hopeless and peace to the troubled.  Each of us need the option and the oppurtunity to be able to encounter that difference for our lives.  We ever we are in this world.

Anna enjoys a donkey ride in the community we visited

The Long Road

Finances and Missionary Life (aka - 5 Principles of Missionary Living - Part 4)

This is the fourth installment in a series on missionary living.  This has been several months in the sharing.  I say in the sharing because the article has been written for a long time.  Talking about finances is always a tough topic, and even tougher in these difficult economic times.

Here are links to previous topics in the series.  I encourage you to take a look.

 Part 1 - Calling

Part 2 - Convience

Part 3 - Uncertainity

Finances

There is never a good time financially in a person’s life to be a missionary.  At this moment, every single missionary that is on our team could be making more money back in North America.  Everyone.  Every missionary has taken from 50% to 90% pay cuts from their earnings potential by choosing to serve on the mission field.  A missionary couple currently needs $2000 monthly to live in our corner of Brazil.  When you consider that two people each work a minimum of 40 hours a week, that adds up to 320 working hours for the month as a minimum.  Or, $6.25 an hour.  Less than minimum wage.  Nope, there is nothing really financially great about serving on the mission field. 

 One of the biggest hindrances for people that want to become missionaries and support missionaries is the “American Consumerism” mentality.  This drives so many people into debt.   And then, they wait to pay off their debt, but they do not know how to fend off the monster.  School debt, credit card debt, car debt, house debt.  Personally, I have seen how a commitment to “debt avoidance” has been a huge help in achieving freedom to do ministry.  First, it made it possible for me to minister in the States for more than a decade in unpaid positions before I came to the mission field.  Then it smoothed the pathway while here on the mission field.  More than 20 years ago I made a commitment to God to take no debt.  This was while I was still a student at Arizona State University.  When I married Suzanne 16 years ago, she took up that commitment with me.  No debt for anything.  What an immense freedom to serve and not be restrained by the concerns that normally come along with a debt.

 It is difficult to “get rich” or fulfill financial dreams for those that serve on the mission field.  It should be clear that if someone is seeking temporal security (in finances) and wanting to go to the mission field, the two will probably not coexist.  The need for security is a strong pull in our lives.  We often let that desire be the rudder that steers the direction of our lives.  Scripture is pretty clear that there is much more to finding out what God wants for our lives than a simple financial formula. 

Where We Need to Go

I like C.S. Lewis.  I always have.  From the first time I picked "The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe" back in Middle School to this present moment. 

I always amazed at how relevant and thought provoking his books are. 

 

"A Year With C.S. Lewis" is mind stretching and spirit stretching.  It takes me where I need to go.  After getting there, I am glad that Lewis provoked my thoughts to travel in a new direction or reexamine a half forgotten line of thinking.  The book is a 365 day devotion, with snippets from most of Lewis' books.  The readings are short and concise, but this is the way Lewis wrote. 

Profoundness is the ability to concisely say what needs to be said.  Lewis understood this clearly.  Many mistakenly believe that by say more and saying it loudly, that we strengthen our arguments.  Quite the contrary. 

There are books that make us uncomfortable because we do not like the way an author treats a subject.  And there are other books that make us uncomfortable because we need to think, ponder and reconsider some of the ideas and images we have in our head.  Lewis' writings clearly fall into the second category. 

Lewis' book is a wonderful challenge on a daily basis.  It is a delightful departure from most of the easy reading that is so common.  And the relevance transcends cultures and eras.  This is a mark of a great writer. 

Take the time to enjoy this book.  The pleasure is that there is a morsel of insight every day.  The book just may turn into a long term companion on your bookshelf. 

Family Photos

Time just keeps marching on...

So, with out further ado, here are some updated photos of my children, with a few comments...

Daniel is nine years old and enjoys reading and home school.  He is maturing from a little boy into a young man.  He enjoys games, pretty much any type of card game, board game, or computer game!  He has a great imagination and can spend hours playing, drawing, and being creative. 

Caleb is seven years old and is active, really active.  he likes to be the boss and likes to be right and enjoys competing when he wins ( I wonder where he got those characteristics).  He has a tender streak of compassion that springs out and he loves being social.  He is sharing and easy going. 

Anna is four years old.  She is all girl, loving playing with the dolls and babies.  She delights in being in the company of the other little girls from around the mission.  She really enjoys having someone read to her. 

Samuel is 19 months old.  His hair usually isn't this wild, but "they" like to mousse it and make it all wild.  Samuel is ready with a smile and is mischievous as any kid his age, actually probably a bit more.  He keeps us smiling.

So, our "quiver" is full and keeps us busy.  we have a great time with our family. 

Here are a couple more photos from the soccer school where Daniel and Caleb attend.

Daniel with his soccer team and coaches. 

Caleb, getting ready for scrimmaging. 

A final note...

I now have an account at FLICKR, which is a photo posting website.  So, there are more photos there from our work here.  take a look at the files and leave some comments.  Comments are good!

Also, my most recent photos from FLICKR are posted on the sidebar now and you can link to the site there also. 

Thanks.

Sawing & Faith

Sawing, originally uploaded by Bud Simon.

This is Alderico, a master carpenter and member of our church here in Altamira.

He went out into the bush to help build a church in a community. Several people have come to the Lord over the last couple of years and one of the new believers donated some land for a church building.

Alderico went along to help out. He has been out of work for the last few weeks.

The night he got back to Altamira, he went into his room and prayed, "Lord, you know I need some work. Help me find something so I can feed my family."

That night he had a dream that a man gave him so much work that it never ran out!!!

And, the very next morning, he had several people seek him out for doing jobs for them. Alderico was delighted to see how the Lord provides for all of our needs.

I am thankful that faith is the same all over the world!