“They will build up the formerly desolate places, restore the formerly destroyed ones, and renew the ruined cities, destroyed from generation to generation.” (Isaiah 61:4)

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Chapter 61 of the book of Isaiah exemplifies the mission of the Church of Jesus Christ. The Spirit of the Lord was poured out upon her to preach the Gospel, heal the brokenhearted, set the captives free, and set the oppressed free. The Church also needs to comfort those who mourn, announce the day of the Lord's vengeance, change the garment of mourning for a crown, pour out the oil of joy and the garment of praise instead of an anguished spirit, so that they may be called oaks of righteousness .

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Jesus quoted the text of Luke 4:18-21 to say that in Him the word was being fulfilled. He called His 12 and said, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teaching them to keep all things I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:18-20).

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With the aim of fulfilling this mission, the First Baptist Church of Restoration was born in Manaus, the name with which it was registered at its birth, July 19, 1992. It received this name, because it was the Lord Himself who gave it and also because it was born with a specific call: RESTORE.

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The Restoration, in its embryonic phase, was generated within a Traditional Church, the Manaus Memorial Baptist Church. Many people heard about what was happening at the Church and came to see it. This fact began to revolutionize the evangelical circles and the Church grew alarmingly. The multitudes accepted Jesus as Lord of their lives; there were all sorts of people: those who wanted to learn, those who wanted to be healed, those who sought liberation... But, among so many people, there were also the scribes, the Pharisees, the Sadducees. But even from these, many learned, others censured and others tried to catch some fault.

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The Ministry to which the Lord had called Pastor Renê Terra Nova and his family was not the ministry of the letter, but of the Spirit (II Corinthians 3:4). God called them from Bahia and took them from the midst of their people, from their parents' house, like Abraão, to plant them in Manaus/Amazonas, and start a work that would shake the City, the State, Brazil and impact the nations of the Earth. A genuine revival was beginning in Manaus that would disturb those who were attached to the letter and rooted in human traditions.

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However, the changes were not well accepted by the denomination. Then, in a beautiful service filled with the presence of the Holy Spirit, Baptist Convention representatives and Memorial Church leaders blessed the people's departure for the beginning of a new ministry. Thus was born the Restoration, a Church that was neither rich nor numerous – it numbered only 169 people.

There was no place to meet, but God moved the hearts of Anselmo and Rose Vasconcelos, today he is an Apostle and she is a Pastor, to give up the garage of their house. There the Church began. But it was a short time, because the Lord soon provided a beautiful, spacious and comfortable place – an old cinema in the City. This was the second place where the Church remained until the Lord moved His people to build a Palace.

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As it happened in the days of the Apostles, narrated in the book of Acts, the Church of the Restoration grew and multiplied. Before long, there was already a small crowd that grew to become a large crowd. Several services had to be established in the morning, afternoon and evening. The construction of the new temple was essential, because, despite the various services, huge queues formed in front of the Church waiting for the next time. Rain or shine, the crowd was waiting to enter.

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The action of God was evident. Missionaries and Pastors from various nations came to collaborate with the work. They encouraged marching forward. The Church was taught to love the Family – the target of divine grace, the apple of God's eye; look upon Jerusalem — The city of the great King; leaving the altars of Rome and returning to Zion, celebrating the Biblical Feasts; learn about Spiritual Warfare and understand the broader dimension of praise and worship.

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The time has come to go to the temple, under construction, in Ponta Negra in 1999. There was no floor, no ceiling, no doors. However, these were not obstacles to prevent growth, on the contrary, the congregation grew more and more. The services were always full.

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Upon joining Visão Celular in the Modelo dos 12, greater heights and higher flights were reached. The Encounters were born, and with them the return to the principle of Winning, Consolidating, Discipling and Sending. A renewal for the Church in Brazil through the search for unity among the denominations and ministries spread across the country, the need to call the people to holiness and to an upright and irreproachable character before the Lord who loved us and redeemed us on the cross of Calvary.

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Some changes and adjustments were necessary. We remain in the Cellular Vision in the Model of the 12 because we believe that, above all, we need to be a model that shows Jesus Christ and truly lives His teachings.

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The faith, courage, and good cheer of the Apostle Renê Terra Nova, leader raised by God to lead a people with anointing, joy and the achievement of goals and dreams, a true Joshua of modern times, is recorded. And to carry out this gigantic and sublime task, the Lord prepared a team. Among these, like the mighty men of David, deserve to be named: Apostle Marcel Alexandre, faithful and loyal friend; the precious couple, Apostle Aaron and Bishop Ester Amazonas, full of faith, courage and much wisdom; Apostle Anselmo Vasconcelos, who always organized the church's administrative matters; the anointed Levite Pastor Gilmar Brito, who gave up engineering studies to be a vessel of honor in the hands of the Lord. God provided competent professionals in all areas, as it is written in I Chronicles 28:21.

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Today the Church is made up of the Apostles Renê and Ana Marita Terra Nova, authentic parents who teach how to dream and fight for the conquest of the targets that the Lord has proposed, plus Apostles, Bishops, Pastors, Cell Leaders, almost anonymous heroes of this great conquest, and many, many disciples who are part of this magnificent story.

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