News from Gary and Ellen Sweetman January 2026.

We are going to Brazil

We have some exciting news. In June of this year, we are moving to Brazil to work with Elim Brazil. We have prayed long and hard and have had many conversations about this move.

As a family, we have long believed that we would go to Brazil at some time in our ministry; it was always a matter of when. We believe that the time is now!

We believe first and foremost that this is a call from God for the next step of our ministry. We believe God has placed this calling on our hearts and has given us a passion and desire for Brazil as a family. Over the last season, God has directed our steps towards this move. Although exciting, it will not be without its challenger.

“Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Matthew 28 19-20

Updates & what have we been doing to prepare to serve God overseas

We are listening to where God wants to place us and praying about how we can serve Him to the best of our abilities and full potential. So as we take this step, we invite you to join us on this journey through your prayer, encouragement and support.

At the end of September, we enrolled and began training as missionaries through the Elim Missions Academy. We are now four months into this training, and have been encouraged, equipped, and supported in our calling. We have been blessed by all we have learned and all we have been taught by the mission department of Elim.

Gary has also been learning Brazilian Portuguese at Queen’s University to be ready to use the language confidently when we arrive in Brazil.

As for Sophia and Asher, we are looking at schools for them and have encouraged them. We already have a small support network in Brazil , including Ellen’s family and Elim Brazil. We are blessed to have them supporting us as a family in the next steps of our journey.

But we would like our church family in Ireland and Northern Ireland also to support us. We have many things to prepare and tasks to complete before we leave Ireland. There will, of course, be time for goodbyes, but we give thanks to every single person who has been with us.

Newsletter

As we prepare to embark on our call in the next couple of months, we would love for you to join us on this journey. Please sign up for our newsletters to keep up to date with everything that is happening. You can email us at sweetmansinbrazil@gmail.com, and we will add you to our mailing list to receive our newsletter quarterly.

Prayer

We give all our requests to God first and foremost. He will supply and meet every need according to His perfect will. But we ask that you join us in prayer, encouraging us as a family as we take this step

Invite

For Pastors and Church leaders, please invite us to come and speak at your Church. We believe that we serve a missional God. Invite us to come and share our hearts not only around Elim Mission’s but also around Brazil. Please contact Gary at +353834119594 or email sweetmansinbrazil@gmail.com. You can also contact the missions office at info@elimmissionsireland.com

Support

Although asking for financial support feels awkward for us, it is essential for us to serve God overseas. While we will have a support network in Brazil, we are seeking to step into this work without financial limitations. Our desire is to fully impact the community where we will be placed.We are therefore looking for people or churches who feel led to support us on a monthly basis. If this is something God has placed on your heart, please contact us—we would be more than happy to talk further about our vision and our ministry plans for Brazil.