D.L.

It has been more than a month since I was in Portugal.
I have been to Portugal before in 2002 when we visited Lisbon and stayed in our former home, the M/V Logos 2.
This time I went with the General Secretary of our Overseas Mission Council.
We left early on Friday morning on an 8:20 flight from Dublin. It was a direct flight to Lisbon, where we met the leadership of ICPP—Presbyterian Christian Church of Portugal and then travel north to Porto to spend time with our friends, James and Heather Cochrane, a family we have known since our time at Belfast Bible College in 1995! That is a long time.
They have been living in Portugal for many years now, and they moved to Porto almost ten years ago to plant a beautiful church “Pedras Vivas”.
Porto is a beautiful city that offers everything you expect, architecture, buildings, cathedrals, historic places, and an impressive bridge where you can see the old city and the beach! It is a clean city, and its people are very friendly. I was struck by the beautiful Porto train station.

Every city has its history, and the Presbyterian Church in Ireland and the ICPP are history-makers.

The Reformation never reached the shores of this country, and if it did, then it was minimal, and, with its close neighbour, Spain, they became the birthplace of the counter-Reformation. So, to plant a Reformed Church in Southern Europe was and still is a challenge, yet it will always be the work of the Holy Spirit.
Pedras Vivas Church has a strong desire and vision not to remain a church for brothers and sisters from overseas but actively engage with reaching out to the people of Porto. There has been substantial immigration from Brazil; many brothers and sisters have found a spiritual home across the Christian Churches in Portugal, which is such a blessing. Yet, as someone from the South American continent, I know well that we have been sent to bless the nations where God has placed us. We need to join with the local brothers and sisters so that many nationals can come to encounter Jesus.
The community of faith of Pedras Vivas is a fresh, vibrant, young church with a heart to reach out to all and with a warmth that is evident as soon as you enter through their doors. I was made so welcome and accepted. The whole service was an expression of a people loving the Lord. If I move to Porto, that would be the church I would join.
At the heart of Pedras Vivas are several vital elements. There is a sense of godly solid leadership, a church planted with vision and purpose. There is a healthy balance of allowing the Holy Spirit to lead and a robust reformed theology that is not dry but very much alive. This community is gifted with men and women who love worshipping the Lord and serving. Another element of this church is worth mentioning: the proper use of social media. A newly appointed elder told us that he found Pedras Vivas through Facebook. This community has transformed his life and the life of his family.
I was moved to tears more than once to witness what the Lord has done and what he is doing and will do through Pedras Vivas. To plant a church in ten years is a miracle. This may seem like a long time for some, but it isn’t. This is Southern Europe. Pedras Vivas has been the fruit of ten years of hard work, which started at the home of James and Heather.
Now, the Cochrane’s are returning home for a well-deserved sabbatical and do pray for them as they are leaving the church and for the future of the congregation as they navigate a period of transition in appointing their new minister.