Dear Pastor, Thank you so much for taking the time to look over the information packet that I have enclosed. We are excited to introduce ourselves and our ministry to you. The Lord has given us a burden for the people of Brazil, and we deeply desire to share our hearts for Brazil with others. We are praying that God will raise up many other laborers to strive with us and encourage us in this work, and that, as a result, multitudes of Brazilian people will have their spiritual eyes opened and will come to know our Lord Jesus Christ as their personal Savior. In Christ, Nathan Nichols Missionary to Brazil
Madison, Alabama, and began attending Madison Baptist Theological Seminary. During my time in school, the Lord allowed me to be involved in several ministries at Madison Baptist Church, including being a bus captain, teaching Sunday School, and singing in choir. In 2013, I graduated with a degree in Pastoral Theology. Since then I have continued serving in the ministries at church and have been awaiting the Lord s timing about going back to Brazil. Kathryn s Testimony About Us We are Nate and Kate Nichols, missionaries to the country of Brazil. Our sending church and mission board is Madison Baptist Church in Madison, Alabama, pastored by Dr. Mike Allison. Nathan s Testimony Hello, my name is Nathan Nichols. I was born in Ribeirao Preto, Sao Paulo, Brazil and was raised in a missionary home. My parents have been missionaries to Brazil since 1985. At the age of five, I accepted the Lord as my Savior. A few years later, God made it clear to me that He wanted me to be a missionary as well. Throughout my growing up years, I was actively involved in the ministry and was able to serve in many different capacities. Being the song leader and choir director, leader for the children s ministries, youth pastor, and interpreter for visiting preachers were just a few of the ways I was able to help in the ministry. In 2008, my family and I came back to the United States on furlough. When they went home to Brazil a year later, I stayed in Hello, my name is Kathryn Nichols. I was born in northern Alabama and was blessed to be raised in a Christian home. I grew up at Madison Baptist Church under the ministry of Dr. Michael Allison. When I was four years old, I received Christ as my Savior and He began preparing me from a young age to be a missionary. I have always loved hearing and reading different missionary stories. They gave me a burden and desire to someday go myself and give the gospel to people who have never had the opportunity to hear it. Over the years, I have had the privilege to serve in many different ministries at our church, especially ones involving children. In December of 2009, the Lord allowed me to be able to go to Brazil for 2 ½ weeks to visit a missionary family, and while I was there He burdened my heart for the Brazilian people. In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them. II Corinthians 4:4
I attended a local college and graduated with a Bachelors in Accounting. Shortly after graduation, Nathan and I were married. I am excited to go back to Brazil with my husband and take the light of the gospel to the Brazilian people. About Brazil With a land mass of over 3 million sq. miles, Brazil is the fifth largest country in the world. It contains 60% of the world s rainforest, the second longest river in the world, and a wide variety of animals including pumas, piranhas, anteaters, capybaras, and monkeys. Home to more than 200 million people, Brazil is a conglomeration of ethnic groups, including Japanese, Italians, Syrians, Lebanese, Bulgarians, and Germans. The distribution of the population is heavily weighted towards the east side of the country, since the people tend to stay near the coastlines and big cities. There are twenty-six states and one federal district, which contains the capital city of Brasilia. The government is a democratic republic with executive, legislative, and judicial branches. Catholicism has been the main religion for many years. Especially in the more recent years, the young Brazilians have turned away from Catholicism because of the emptiness and hypocrisy they see. They are looking for something fulfilling, and this presents a wonderful opportunity for someone to go and share the gospel with them. Our Vision and Goals Once we get to Brazil, we are planning to work in the city of Carmo do Rio Claro with my older brother, Charles, and his wife Isabel. This will allow us to be able to get back into the ministry down there and to help my brother in planting the new church. It will also enable my wife to attend language school to learn the language and culture. After our first term, our plan is to go to the smaller cities and towns of Brazil to plant churches. The Lord has burdened our hearts for these cities where most missionaries will not go because of the size and location. We want to take the light of the gospel to these people and give them an opportunity to accept Christ as their personal Savior. Our goal is to constantly be a witness wherever we go. We plan to be passing out tracts and sharing the gospel with people we meet. When someone gets saved, we want to make sure they are discipled and grounded in the word of God. We plan to start a church and then a Bible institute to teach the people how to witness to and disciple others. In God s timing, we would like to turn the church over to a national pastor and then follow God s leading to the next city or town to repeat the process. Our vision for Brazil is that there would be multitudes of strong, vibrant Christians. We desire that the spiritual eyes of the Brazilians would be opened. Our hope is that the Brazilians who get saved, go out and witness to and disciple their family, friends, and community. Thus, shining the light of the gospel all over Brazil.
Statement of FaithStatement Of Faith 1. The Bible We believe the Holy Bible was verbally inspired and the product of Spirit-controlled men, and therefore is the absolute truth without any error in its content. We believe that we have a faithful representation of the originals in the King James Bible and its the only version we accept and use. We believe that the Bible is the sole authority for our faith and practice. (II Timothy 3:16-17. II Peter 1:19-21) 2. The True God We believe there is one living and true God. He is the creator and supreme ruler of heaven and earth glorious in holiness and alone worthy of our worship. In the unity of the Godhead there are three persons: The Father, The Son and The Holy Spirit. (Exodus 20:2-3. I Corinthians 8:6. I John 5:7) 3. The Son of God We believe that Jesus Christ was begotten of the Holy Spirit in a miraculous manner and was born of Mary, a virgin. He is both Son of God and God the Son, fully God and fully man. In taking upon Himself our nature, yet without sin, He honored the divine law by His obedience, and by His death made a full and substitutionary atonement for our sins. (Isaiah 7:14. Luke 1:27. John 1:14. John 1:29-37) 4. The Holy Spirit We believe in the person of the Holy Spirit. His work is to reprove the world of sin, righteousness, and judgement. He indwells the believer at salvation and we are sealed by him until the day of redemption. (John 16:7-14. John 14:16,26. Ephesians 4:30) 5. The Devil/Satan We believe in the personality of Satan, that he is the unholy god of this age, and the author of all the powers of evil and sin, and is destined to the judgment of an eternal justice in the Lake of Fire. (Matthew 4:1-3. Revelation 20:10. II Corinthians 4:4. Revelation 12:9) 6. The Act of Creation We believe the Genesis account of creation being six literal twenty-four hour days, and believe that man came by direct creation of God and not by evolution. (Genesis 1 and 2. John 1:3. Colossians 1:16-17) 7. The State of Man We believe that man was created in innocence under the law of God, but by voluntary transgression fell from his sinless and happy state, the consequence of making all mankind sinners. Therefore every man and woman born today is a sinner in need of the sacrifice made for him by Jesus Christ coming to earth to be crucified. (Romans 1:32. Romans 3:10. Romans 3:23. Romans 6:23)
8. The Salvation of Man We believe that the salvation of sinners is wholly by grace apart from works; through the death and resurrection of the perfect Lamb of GOD, Jesus Christ, who substituted Himself for us by taking the penalty for our sins. This satisfied the demands of the Holy God, thus justifying the repentant sinner. (Ephesians 2:8-9. I John 4:10. Acts 15:11. I Corinthians 15:3-4. John 3:16. Acts 16:31) 9. The Local Church We believe that a local church is a congregation of immersed believers, associated by covenant of faith and friendship of the Gospel, observing the ordinances of Christ, (baptism by immersion and the Lord s supper), governed by His laws. Its officers are Pastors and Deacons, whose qualifications, claims, and duties are clearly defined in the Scriptures. (Acts 2:41-42. I Corinthians 11:2. Acts 20:28. I Timothy 3:15. Colossians 1:18) * If you would like to see our video presentation, the link to the video is attached below = https://vimeo.com/133413107