The Story of A Fonte , Penafiel
Beginnings in Penafiel
Penafiel in Northern Portugal was a very different place when Jessica and I turned up with our two very small children in 1984. We were the first foreigners to register with the local authorities, the church we were called to plant would be the first evangelical church in the city, four years later our daughter Katie would be the first six-year-old to enter primary school as the daughter of evangelicals in a very strong catholic community. Six years after that we conducted our first funeral – a well-known 35-year-old man had died of cancer. Standing on a mound of soil, I preached (letting them have both barrels as Greg Haslam once said!) to a crowd of hundreds in the cemetery, on “Christ and Him crucified” and proclaimed the victory won on the cross. The head teacher of Katie’s school came over to me afterwards and said “This is the first time I’ve come away from a funeral feeling good – it should always be like this”!
There are lots of “firsts” when you pioneer church planting! Praise God!
Spiritual Battles and Breakthroughs
I remember the thrill of that day, preaching the gospel, proclaiming Christ, not just to the lovely people listening but to the principalities and powers that had ruled for centuries. That’s where the fight was. Practically all of the first Christians were converted out of idolatry and witchcraft, and delivering from demons was not uncommon. Southern Europe was a dark place. Those firsts were memorable, but I think practically all of them came after much perseverance with many disappointments and apparent failures– then suddenly the “first” emerges, and you know that something has moved forward.
Iron sharpens iron and this sense of perseverance was all around us in those days. Growth came just through conversions and each one was contested. We benefitted from the apostolic encouragement and wisdom of some of the first pioneers to Portugal, then in their 80’s, along with leaders from Ethiopia and Guiné Bissau who were part of our monthly meeting of couples ministering in unreached cities of the north. On one memorable weekend in Lisbon, Mike Frisby brought the theological framework of the Ephesians 4 ministries to a small group of unsuspecting couples! It all clicked with Jessica and I and a couple of years later we became part of Newfrontiers with Guy Miller.
What an amazing adventure Life in Christ is! Glory be to God! Adventures never happen without us actually deciding to step out of routine into the mystery! The step is called faith of course and the adventure is witnessing to Christ in the power of the Spirit.
Current Focus and Growth
This is our focus in Portugal right now – we want to see disciples witnessing to Christ and thus bringing through more disciples. The strength of a local church will depend on the spiritual capacity of each individual disciple.
Slowly the momentum is building. Our emerging Ephesians 4 Juntos(Together) team oversees strong, functional, strengthening relationships with Brasil, India, UK, Portugal and Spain and will shortly be sending one of our own to Italy (Luis and Anna, Vida Nova). Our son Peter became lead elder at the Fonte when he was 25 whilst Andrew moved to Porto with Luis. Katie was to marry Litos, an elder at the Fonte. It’s a thrill to see a host of 2nd generation men and women taking the Kingdom forward. 40 kids between 3 and 12 were in Kidz Klub last week and hopefully they get discipled by their parents using the online materials every week. 2nd generation believers lead the 6 Kidz Klub teams which rotate each week. The central church gathering brings in people from 3 different counties and is a place for worship, teaching, encouragement and fellowship as a family and many are happy with just that. Others enjoy the additional stretching of one-on-one discipleship with the goal of witnessing to Christ and making more disciples themselves. It will be a great leadership development track!
Looking to the Future
Jessica and I are so thankful to God for His Grace and Faithfulness to us and our family over the 40 years. There are notable prophetic visions over the church here, from Greg Haslam, Vinu Paul and others. When they come to pass, they will be an absolutely incredible first for Portugal. What a joy to see our kids and other second-generation leaders steering us into those promises for the Glory of God. The sense of perseverance, and dependence, especially with only two full time leaders, persists in the face of such a future.
Please pray for them.
- Mike Shore
