Meet the Chaves Family
We are Elisio, Melissa, Hadassah, and Micah Chaves.
I (Melissa) came to Brazil in 2011 with a heart to mentor teen girls for 1 year at an orphanage in a city outside of Fortaleza. I ended up serving for over 3 years and met my husband Elisio who was also volunteering at the same orphanage.
We got married in 2014 and felt the Lord shifting our focus and leading us to serve at the Iris base in Fortaleza. Right away, we began serving in the Red Light District ministry. And about a year & a half later we started leading the ministry. This included weekly intercession and street evangelism to the men and women working in prostitution. We focused on discipleship and building relationship with each person one on one. We did periodical Love Banquets (brought them in and loved on them as we served them a big dinner banquet)!! We have been able to see many testimonies of salvations and healing on the streets and in our daily interaction with these men and women. We have also seen huge favor as the Lord opened countless doors to minister inside the night clubs and on the street corners. He is such a good God and never stops pursuing His lost ones.
Over the last 4 years, the Lord has been slowly speaking to us about moving to Asia in the future. We did not have a specific nation in mind, but God pressed on our hearts about praying for Asia. As we prayed and sought the Lord, He allowed us to go on an exploratory trip to Thailand in 2018 with another missionary family.
During our 2 months in Thailand, God shared many things with us about the need for the gospel in that nation and our hearts began to break for the Thai people. Thailand is considered the most Buddhist nation in the world and is less than 1% Christian. There are millions of people in Thailand who have NEVER heard the name of Jesus. We want to be a tool in changing this!! Our hearts cry is to make Jesus and His love known in the nation of Thailand and in the hearts of the Thai people.
God has asked us to take our prayers one step closer and move (with currently no official Iris base in Thailand). We will be starting a ministry (project) from the ground up. We are confident in the things that God has spoken to us and asked us to partner with Him in. Part of the process for us to be sent as pioneers under Iris Global is to participate in a Pioneer training school held in South Africa in June & July of this year. We will be going to that school and soon after, be spending 6 months in the states (South Carolina) connecting and serving 2 local churches. We also have a heart to spend time connecting with our supporters, intercessors, and family.
Our plan is to move to Thailand in January 2021. We will be moving to a small town called Maha Sarakham, where there is not a strong presence of the church of Christ. For the first year, we will be focusing on our two small daughters adjusting to Thailand.
Our plan is to be “sent out” by our leader here at the Iris Fortaleza base as a pioneer project. In Thailand we will be doing worship & prayer, learning the language & culture, and connecting (doing life) with the local people. Eventually, we would like to work with preventative methods of keeping young girls from being sold into sex trafficking as well as rescuing girls from trafficking and exploitation.
Please pray for us as we take these huge steps of faith with our little family of 4. It is a huge challenge but we are content, knowing that we are being led by the Holy Spirit!!
Thank you for reading about our dear friends. Their testimony of going after God and just simply saying Yes is inspiring. God is worthy of our everything and a life surrendered to Him can and will lead you to do anything or go anywhere.
Defintely keep them in your prayers in this next season. If you feel on your heart to give them an encouraging word, connect with them to learn more, or bless them with a love offering here is their contact info.
Email: Melissa.ms88@gmail.com
Paypal: paypal.me/melissaandjunior
DeMarsico Missions 