Forgiveness and Hair: Adult Mission Story for October 11, 2025

Jair

One evening, Jair saw people boarding a white boat as he took a walk in his remote village on the Amazon River. The boat had docked recently, and he saw that the people were going to a meeting. He decided to join them.

Nearly all 150 seats in the main hall of the floating church were filled. Jair found an empty seat and sat down. That evening, the floating church’s pastor, Cassi, was preaching about forgiveness.

Forgiveness was a painful topic for Jair. He had visited many churches to seek forgiveness. But every church leader had told him that his particular sin was unforgiveable. When Jair was younger and using drugs, he had killed a man. It had been a revenge killing. The man had killed Jair’s brother. Now Jair was 32 years old, and he longed for God’s forgiveness.

Jair came to the floating church with no hope for forgiveness. But that night, he heard that God could forgive any and every sin.

Jair returned the next night and the next to hear more sermons. At the end of the meetings, he gave his heart to Jesus and was baptized. He was a forgiven, redeemed man.

Jair

Maria didn’t want to visit the floating church, but her husband came to every meeting. As the meetings wrapped up, the husband decided to be baptized.

It was then that Maria decided to go to the floating church. She attended the very last meeting.

The next day, when Pastor Cassi was conducting baptisms, Maria declared that her husband could only be baptized if she were baptized with him.

Pastor Cassi wasn’t sure what to do. So, he prayed and ended up baptizing both her and her husband. Afterward, he put Maria into a discipleship program that all new members take. Through the program, Maria learned biblical truths that she had missed at the meetings. Today, Maria and her husband are faithful and active church members in their isolated Amazon village.

Geiciane

A 38-year-old woman named Geiciane approached Pastor Cassi after a meeting.

“When I was a kid, I used to go to church,” she said. “As a teen, I left the church. But tonight, I have decided to return to the church.”

Through the floating church, God had claimed another soul for His kingdom.

Paulo

Paulo never left the church. He had never gone to church in the first place.

The 60-year-old man had also forbidden his wife from going to church, but she had slipped out of the house and gone anyway. Upon returning home, she had always faced a big fight. She thought her husband would never go to church.

When Pastor Cassi and his team arrived, they didn’t say anything to Paulo about church. Instead, they spoke about his everyday life and his interests, including fishing. They sent a barber to his house because he needed a haircut. He lived up on a hill, and it was hard for him to come down.

The day that his hair was cut, he decided to go to the floating church. On the boat, he hugged Pastor Cassi and the other members of his team. “Who are you people?” he asked. “You are even worried about the number of hairs on my head.”

Paulo attended the rest of the meetings and was baptized with all his family.

Pastor Cassi praises God for every soul claimed through the floating church.

“Each person has their own story,” he said. “God has been sending us special people, and He is leading in His special way.”

The floating church is taking hope to people on the Amazon River after being acquired with the help of a 2016 Thirteenth Sabbath Offering, also known as the Quarterly Mission Project Offering. Thank you for supporting this quarter’s Thirteenth Sabbath projects in Brazil and Chile with your prayers and donations. Together, we can share the hope of Jesus’ soon return.