Ticuna Leader Jordão Flores – A Life of Faithfulness
By John Kallin
From Betania, in Amazonas, Brazil, John and Sylvia Kallin write that one of the faithful Ticuna Indian leaders there, Jordão Flores, passed away in August:
"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, Who comforts us in all our troubles..." (II Cor. 1:3-4). These verses have again shown themselves to be so true these past several days... Pastor Jordão had been suffering from stomach cancer for many months. How we hate to lose such a good friend and faithful servant of God, so valuable to the work here.
The entire village lined the street from the port to the church when the body arrived in Betania. An ongoing meeting for viewing, testimonies, songs, and prayers began Thursday afternoon, and lasted through the night and Friday morning, with burial just before noon on Friday. The expressions of love and gratitude were deeply moving. He was an outstanding shepherd of the flock, and will be greatly missed.
How the Village of Betania Came to Be
When Jordão Flores was just a 12-year old boy living in a thatched roof house along the Amazon River, some of his people decided to move to another location and start their own village. However, a number of his people had been hearing God's Word at a nearby Baptist church, and they decided they did not want to "leave the Gospel." Their solution was to invite the missionaries to move with them, and that is how ABWE missionaries Lindsey and Jean Harrell came to be the founders of the Ticuna Indian village named Betania (for the Bible village of Bethany, the home of Mary, Martha and Lazarus).
For many years the Harrells worked in Betania, caring for medical needs, starting a school, building a church, and studying the difficult Ticuna language. At the same time, Lindsey trained three young men in the Bible doctrines and duties of pastoring the church. When the Harrells retired after thirty-six years of ministry, Jordão, Henrique, and Modestino were already trained and seasoned in carrying on the work of God
God's Man at Betania Baptist Church
Jordão Flores became an outstanding pastor of the Betania Baptist Church. God gave him a real heart for preaching, teaching, counseling, and carrying the Gospel to other villages. The church has grown to over 900 baptized believers, each over twelve years of age and able to give a clear testimony of faith in Jesus as Savior.
Sadly, Pastor Jordão spent most of 2004 in ill health. Doctors eventually discovered he had untreatable stomach cancer. On August 19, the pastor called his family to gather around his bedside, announced that he was leaving them, and exhorted them to continue studying and to be faithful to God. That night he peacefully slipped away to Heaven to be with Jesus. He was only fifty-four years old, but his life was one that was invested well, in service to God.
A Great Loss to the Ticuna Indian Work
Pastor Jordão's death leaves a huge gap in the Ticuna Indian work. More leaders are being trained, but not fast enough to meet the growing needs. Pastor Jordão's vision for a Ticuna Seminary and Bible Institute is in the beginning stages, but the work is shorthanded. One or two couples are needed to live in Betania, as the Harrells did, to make the Bible Institute truly function. The Harrell house in Betania is in good condition, but is vacant. The village would welcome a resident ABWE missionary, but at this time we have no one free to take that assignment.
There are more Jordãos among the Ticuna Indians, wanting to lead their people in God's ways. Please pray for John and Sylvia Kallin as they train those leaders.
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