Ministering to Street People in Manaus

Odali and Kathy Barros served the Lord in Sao Paulo, Brazil together from 1987-2013. In late 2013, they transitioned to Manaus in Northern Brazil to start sharing the Gospel and planting churches in villages along the river.

January 16, 2024

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

We pray and hope that all of you have had a blessed beginning to a new year. Things are going well here. Thanks for your prayers and support.

We had a great New Year’s Day dinner at church. After the dinner, I told the church that we were going to take all the food that was leftover to the street people in a plaza in Manaus. They all agreed. I went the next day with a group and we gave out several plates of food. We plan on doing this more times.

We have several new families coming to our church. The population is growing on this side of the river.  What is great is that they are getting involved in the church ministries. Our fellowship meals have been wonderful. More couples are getting involved. It makes a great time for fellowship and also to talk about ministry.

We have started the next building at the camp. With this being rainy season, things are a little slower.  Also, we plan on getting back to the church of Cacau. There we need to raise the floor. We have to take quite a few truckloads of dirt, then spread it out so we can concrete it. With the rain, that slows the work down. Since the church is right on the edge of the street, we can’t put too much dirt on the sidewalk. As the dirt is being dumped, we have to have workers put it inside the church. The Lord willing, we can get that done soon.  

We have had several saved. The Lord willing, we will have baptism in the new baptistry. We used to baptize at the lake. Now the church has built a baptistry.

May God bless each of you. Thanks for your prayers and support. You are an important part of the ministry God has called us to do.

Love in Christ,

Odali and Kathy Barros

Contact Info:
Odali & Kathy Barros
Iranduba, Amazonas
Brasil, SA
odali_kathy@hotmail.com

For ministry donations:
Pastor George Sledd, Treasurer of BFM
P.O. Box 471280 | Lake Monroe, FL 32747-1280
or click here to donate to BFM online.


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Continuing Remodel & Fellowship in Homes

Odali and Kathy Barros served the Lord in Sao Paulo, Brazil together from 1987-2013. In late 2013, they transitioned to Manaus in Northern Brazil to start sharing the Gospel and planting churches in villages along the river.

December 16, 2023

Dear brothers and sisters,

We pray and hope that all of you are well. This year has been wonderful after so many hard years with the virus. This year, we were able to do much more amongst the people in our communities.

The work on the building of Cacau is coming along. We covered the building, which will help to be able to work inside and get more things done since this is rainy season. Soon the building will be ready so we can reach out to the people in that town. There are so many children there and we want to do special work with the children to reach out and bring them to church, which is a wonderful ministry. The children really need help because there are tons of drugs around but very few ministries. Pray that God will help us to reach out and have more people to join us from the church in this ministry. Thank you for your support and prayer.

Working on the camp is harder since it’s raining right now, but we are getting things ready when there’s a little bit more sun to be able to work there too.

At the mother church, Pedras Vivas, we’ve had many new people coming in and it looks like we’re going to be having more people to help with the ministry. One of the things that we’ve been doing to help people meet each other is that on Sundays, we have been having get-together dinners and lunches, which has really been exciting.

This week we will be starting a new group of visitation to bring people to the church and if they need transportation, we will be using the bus to bring them to church. The area we will be reaching is around 30 miles, most of which is on the highway. The bus will be coming by the village of Ubim also and those from there can come on the bus if they want to.

Thanks for your prayers and support! God bless each of you!

Love in Christ,

Odali and Kathy Barros

Church of Cacau Cover – Now they can to do the inside work. It will have a second floor.

Contact Info:
Odali & Kathy Barros
Iranduba, Amazonas
Brasil, SA
odali_kathy@hotmail.com

For ministry donations:
Pastor George Sledd, Treasurer of BFM
P.O. Box 471280 | Lake Monroe, FL 32747-1280
or click here to donate to BFM online.


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Blessed by Services in Homes

Odali and Kathy Barros served the Lord in Sao Paulo, Brazil together from 1987-2013. In late 2013, they transitioned to Manaus in Northern Brazil to start sharing the Gospel and planting churches in villages along the river.

November 18, 2023

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

We thank God that all things are doing well here. We pray that all is going well with each of you that are part of our ministry.

The ministry is going well. Kathy and some other adults at the Pedras Vivas Church have started the youth ministry. It had been stopped for quite a while. They are enjoying the time together, and the time to learn to play some instruments and sing. We hope to get the teens more involved in the church ministries. We also hope to get more adults involved. Pray that the Lord will touch the hearts of some to want to help in the different ministries.

The remodeling of the Church of Cacau is coming along. We hope it will be finished soon. Also, the camp is coming along and we are hoping that soon, we can use it at least for a day camp.

We are excited about new families that are coming to the church. Some are Christians that are wanting to get involved in the church ministries. The services in the homes are still doing well. Many times, we get together and eat and then have a Bible Study. Pray with us that God opens more homes. Since we have moved here to where we live, the amount of people moving to this area has really increased.

Thanks for all your prayers and support. May God bless each of you.

Love in Christ,

Odali and Kathy

Contact Info:
Odali & Kathy Barros
Iranduba, Amazonas
Brasil, SA
odali_kathy@hotmail.com

For ministry donations:
Pastor George Sledd, Treasurer of BFM
P.O. Box 471280 | Lake Monroe, FL 32747-1280
or click here to donate to BFM online.


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Kids & Teens Learning to Sing and Play Instruments

Odali and Kathy Barros served the Lord in Sao Paulo, Brazil together from 1987-2013. In late 2013, they transitioned to Manaus in Northern Brazil to start sharing the Gospel and planting churches in villages along the river.

October 24, 2023

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

We thank our Lord for the blessed month we have had. We pray and hope that each of you have had a wonderful, blessed month. We thank each of you for your faithfulness in your support and prayers. May God continue blessing each of you. This month has been really great. We are working with the youth and kids and helping them learn to sing and what instruments they want to learn. Pray that God will help those who are learning to work with these kids and teens. Kathy is working with them at the mother church and at Ubim. Pray that this will encourage them to grow and use their talents for the Lord.

We are looking at some other places we may possibly start having services in the homes. Please pray that God will lead us and open these homes.

The work of the remodeling of the Cacau church is coming along and the construction of the camp also. The Lord willing, soon we will be able to use both places. 

Once again thanks so much for your prayers and support.

In Christ,

Odali and Kathy Barros

Contact Info:
Odali & Kathy Barros
Iranduba, Amazonas
Brasil, SA
odali_kathy@hotmail.com

For ministry donations:
Pastor George Sledd, Treasurer of BFM
P.O. Box 471280 | Lake Monroe, FL 32747-1280
or click here to donate to BFM online.


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God is Still Changing Lives!

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Odali and Kathy Barros served the Lord in Sao Paulo, Brazil together from 1987-2013. In late 2013, they transitioned to Manaus in Northern Brazil to start sharing the Gospel and planting churches in villages along the river.

July 21, 2021

Greetings to all of our supporters and prayer partners! We hope and pray that each of you are doing great and are blessed! Thank God we are doing great. Things here are doing well and are more and more getting back to normal.

The church activities are getting back, too. More and more people are coming. There is a project near the church I pastor that works with men with addictions. Since the church isn’t using the bus, we have we have let the project use the bus. They bring around 40 men on Sunday night. Several have made professions of faith. Also, we have had other visitors and several of them have accepted Christ as Savior also. What a blessing!

We have 4 men working with us who finished the treatment and the project. Pray that they will continue to be encouraged to stay firm and have strength. One of them has two daughters. He got so deep into the drugs that he lived on the streets and lost his family. He is now working on his father-daughter relationship. We let him bring his daughters here to spend some time with him. It was a great time.

Also the services we had in homes on Friday night are back. We want to expand the areas where we have the services to reach more people. There are so many little communities in the area. Also so many of the people do not have transportation, so having these services is a great way to reach more people.

The water in the area where it was flooded is going down—almost down to where getting around is easier.

If you are looking for a specific project, we have small and large projects—from buying a lot to build a church in a new subdivision with no church, to a well for portable water in these communities!

We want to thank all of you for your prayers and support. May God bless each of you!

In Christ,

Odali and Kathy

Contact Info:
Odali & Kathy Barros
Iranduba, Amazonas
Brasil, SA
odali_kathy@hotmail.com

For ministry donations:
Pastor George Sledd, Treasurer of BFM
P.O. Box 471280 | Lake Monroe, FL 32747-1280
or click here to donate to BFM online.


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Special Program at Pedras Vivas

Odali and Kathy Barros served the Lord in Sao Paulo, Brazil together from 1987-2013. In late 2013, they transitioned to Manaus in Northern Brazil to start sharing the Gospel and planting churches in villages along the river.

September 20, 2020

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

We are all well and hope that each of you are doing great. This month was a little different here at home. Kathy went to the US to help with her dad. Paul had messed up his arm pushing his dad in the rain coming from church. So, they asked her to come to help with him. She is back now and had a good trip and visit with her dad and Paul and Wanda.   

We are doing a special program at the mother church, Pedras Vivas. We invited a team of 20 young adults to help with Sunday School and teach music to those interested. We want to make an emphasis on fellowship with other churches and get more people involved in the ministries in the church and show the importance of each one serving in the church.

The church in the village of Cacau is really doing great. We are excited that soon we will be back in the church building with more space. We have put the ceiling in and an air conditioner. The members that had scattered are returning. Praise the Lord!

We are still limited with all the different activities and being careful with everyone’s health. We have had the virus in 2 families from our church. They stayed out of church for over 2 weeks. Thank God they are all well.

Today the last things that we had left in Garça arrived here in Manaus at our home. Thank God that the trip with the things went well. The driver was raised at the Alpha and Omega Home. What a blessing.

Pray that God well lead us in the new project of getting people involved and reaching out to more places. Thanks for your prayers and support. God bless each of you!

In Christ,
Odali and Kathy

Contact Info:
Odali & Kathy Barros
Iranduba, Amazonas
Brasil, SA
odali_kathy@hotmail.com

For ministry donations:
Pastor George Sledd, Treasurer of BFM
P.O. Box 471280 | Lake Monroe, FL 32747-1280
or click here to donate to BFM online.




Read more

Getting Back to Normal; Drilling a Well in Ubim

Odali and Kathy Barros served the Lord in Sao Paulo, Brazil together from 1987-2013. In late 2013, they transitioned to Manaus in Northern Brazil to start sharing the Gospel and planting churches in villages along the river.

August 19, 2020

Greetings from the jungle! We are all doing well and hope all our friends and supporters are doing well also! We thank God for each of you! Your prayers and support are important to us and our ministry. 

Things here in the different churches are gradually getting back to normal. The virus in our area seems to be under control! But we are still taking the precautions necessary.

Since things have gotten better, we are working on things that we had planned but could not do. One of these things is drilling a well in the village of Ubim. There is no running water in this village. So, a well to use at the church is needed and we also plan on helping with water for the villagers. Having a well helps with several diseases especially malária. A young man who learned and lived at the Alpha and Omega Home since he was little is going to be drilling the well. He is married and lives in a village close to us. He and two other brothers stayed at the A&O Home for many years. I asked him if he would like to help me with the well and he said, “Sure’. The Lord willing, we should start this coming Thursday.  When you read this letter, the Lord willing, the well should be done. The final cost, pump and all, is $2000. Thanks to donations made, we are able to have the well.

The work in the village of Mutirão is doing great. Their services are back and they are also being very careful. 

Pray for the work at the village of Cacau. It is growing and we need to make a decision to sell the old building or remodel. The main problem is that when the water comes up in high season it gets into the church. We want to make the right decision.

Things are a little different for me now because Kathy went to the US to help Paul and Wanda with Bro. John. Paul hurt his arm pushing his dad in a wheelchair on a rainy day. So, Kathy is there to help, and we hope Paul gets to feeling better.

Thanks so much for you love, prayers and support. God bless you!

Odali and Kathy

Contact Info:
Odali & Kathy Barros
Iranduba, Amazonas
Brasil, SA
odali_kathy@hotmail.com

For ministry donations:
Pastor George Sledd, Treasurer of BFM
P.O. Box 471280 | Lake Monroe, FL 32747-1280
or click here to donate to BFM online.


Read more

Services Back to Normal; Opportunities in Cacau

Odali and Kathy Barros served the Lord in Sao Paulo, Brazil together from 1987-2013. In late 2013, they transitioned to Manaus in Northern Brazil to start sharing the Gospel and planting churches in villages along the river.

July 21, 2020

Dear brothers and sisters,

We hope and pray that each one of you are doing well. So many times we think that we are in control of our lives and we discover that a little invisible bacteria can change how the world moves! Thank God, who is invisible and the most powerful and loving, who gives us strength and wisdom to move forward and not give up! We are doing well and getting back into the swing of things. God has been wonderful to us and kept us safe. We do our part in keeping safe and encouraging others to stay safe and protect each other.

Our services are all back to normal. People come as they feel safe. Through all this we have had a number of visitors to come to church. Pray that God will lead us as we minister to these newcomers.

The work we have in the community of Cacau is gradually growing. Many of the people from that church had left when the pastor who was there stopped and quit having services. Since we took over the ministry, the ones who had quit are gradually coming back. The church building is not in a real good location. We had been thinking about buying somewhere else and building a new church. But this week a man came and offered a building, and a businessman is interested in the old church building. Pray that God will lead and give us wisdom in this decision.

The work in Ubim is coming back almost to normal. The kids from the Indian tribe have not been coming because they have to cross a lake. But this week some of the older ones came! I had fun playing with the kids before the classes started. Since there is nothing for the kids to do in the village, we always take things for them to play with.

We are having some get togethers, but in small groups. It’s been hard for some people who can’t get around to have fellowship. In this area, so many people live far away from each other. This next Saturday we are going to have pizza night just to have fellowship. The way we are going to do it is this: Kathy and I have a small pizza oven which we are taking and making the pizza dough ready to use. Each family has to take what they want on their pizza. It is going to be interesting to see what their tastes are! We already decided that our pizza is going to taste like fish!

Pray for us as we get back into safe situations, that we can go back to visiting people in the communities around the churches.

Love in our Lord and Savior,
Odali and Kathy

Contact Info:
Iranduba, Amazonas
Brasil, SA
odali_kathy@hotmail.com

For ministry donations:
Pastor George Sledd, Treasurer of BFM
P.O. Box 471280 | Lake Monroe, FL 32747-1280
or click here to donate to BFM online.


Read more
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