Jesus Freaks - Pr. Lucinho

Of spiked hair, shoes and easy smile, Pastor Lucinho Barreto conquer increasingly young audience. He travels all over Brazil to talk about crazy very healthy. Madness that earned him three books released by publisher Central Gospel: Survival Guide for young Christian, Johnny, tonight will ask your soul and Crazy for Jesus - Vol I.

Pastor Lucio Barreto Jr., better known as Pastor Lucinho, studies the life and behavior of young 20 years ago. His ministry is known for daring and good humor with which the Word of God is preached. "Youth do not want boredom. He wants crazy, "he explains. One of his stops was crazy on the internet recently: a photo he smells the Bible as if it were cocaine. The photo was featured in evangelical and secular media.

In a chat, Pastor Lucinho talks about this controversy and tells about his ministry, the relationship with his family and curiosities about the authorship of his books. Learn more about this crazy for Jesus.

When he started his "crazy for Jesus"?

My crazy for Jesus started in my late teens when I was baptized by the Holy Spirit. A few years earlier I had lost my mother. Was experiencing a crisis of depression and sadness. But once I was baptized, I noticed a big change in everything: in my motivations, actions and reactions. And from there, the Holy Spirit who is this "doer of crazy for Jesus" put me on this path by God to live intensely.

What is the secret to being "crazy for Jesus"?

The secret is to have you in the "doer of crazy for Jesus", which is the Holy Spirit. There is crazy for Jesus apart from the Holy Spirit. If we are filled with the Spirit, all the time, He will point us to lead and guide you to the person of Christ. If we are filled with Jesus, we will be crazy in love with him, because of the person blessed by the Holy Spirit.

How did his ministry with young people?

My ministry with youth appeared just after I was baptized by the Holy Spirit. I went through a very troubled teens, ill. I felt alone with the loss of my mother and my father. Soon I was baptized, I beheld the Lord directing me to start working with girls and boys, teenagers, who lived in the same profile that I lived. As I married early, at the age of 21, I worked with people 5-8 years younger than me. I started to give them what I needed even in my teens and had not. So, the Lord helped me to minister in their lives exactly the areas in which I suffered more.

By knowing your wife, you've had that work with young people? What is the relationship of your family with your ministry?


The beginning of my ministry I was a bit before I met Patricia, my wife. But when he began in earnest, she was with me. My family has everything to do with my ministry. It's all because my wife is young like me, and since long been helping me in this challenge. And today has much more to do mainly because of my two children who are entering adolescence. They are my great teachers in the ministry. They keep me young. It is analyzing and studying the lives of my children that I find out what direction I should take. The complicity of my family is with me in all aspects. I could not make a youth ministry without their help.

As you work your ministry in your home, in day-to-day?

I try to devote my mornings to pray and read the Bible. I am very passionate about the spiritual disciplines. I fast constantly too. Inside the house, I try to live the madness by Jesus Christ to love, to give my children and my wife the example of a man of God, who does not yield to run the day-to-day, who is not a shepherd mechanic, the auto-pilot, but a person who abandons to be with Christ. To abandon them every day for a few hours to seek God, I have their respect and authority to minister outside the home, because I'm living Christ inside. Also respond to emails, write books and sermons prepared at home. But the main activities are to read my Bible and prayer.

Has gone through some unusual situation in his ministry with young people?

I have been through several unusual situations in my ministry. In fact, almost all of them I created myself (laughs). To work with young people must be unusual, crazy. Young people want to see crazy. Youth do not want boredom. Several times I fantasized superhero to preach, I themed parties and attract thousands of young people, and there they were evangelized.

Tell a madness that you've done in your ministry.

Once I threw the challenge to baptize thousand young in a year. We did a thing called "Baptism drive-tru". We spent the whole day in the baptistery, and young people brought their friends to be baptized. We were there from 9am to 23h. Only 98 young people were baptized that day.

His madness has already earned him a negative response?

I've been confronted by mistakes I made in youth ministry. I was chased by parents, was sworn, was called "transformer church in nightclub", by trying to turn the church in an environment where the young feel more cheerful. I've been called a clown, playful ... But the situation most beautiful of all is to see the change of heart by those who gave us so many years.

The photo you smell the Bible also generated the most controversy. How was that?

I took that picture a year ago on a photo shoot for my website. At the time of taking a thousand pictures, I thought about which poses could do. Fancy dress superhero, took a photo of a suit and tie, with little hair softly. I picked up the Bible and began: I took photo with the Bible as if it were a weapon, other like eating. I was reminded of Psalm 119 131, which says: "I opened my mouth, and panted: for I longed thy commandments," and music Solomon of Reggae, which says: "based on the Word and in it I travel." I thought, "Boy, I'll take a picture like I was doing what the drug user does, only inhaling the Word of God." After that I took, I told the staff not to disclose because it would mess.

Every Wednesday, I have a cult there in Mission Beach Coast in the Holy Spirit, called Wednesday Crazy for Jesus by Pastor Simon Araújo. Every week they put a picture of my new. I passed the file to them with photos of the test, and they chose this photo that I'm smelling the Bible.

How was the impact of this in his ministry?


The type of fish I fish requires of me a little more radical strategies. Many young people who have seen this picture say, in their language, which is normal. Why? They see Hollywood movies, all sorts of things inside and outside the Kingdom of God, which makes them even find it ordinary.

The response from the media and some evangelicals was negative, but you achieved some positive response?

I received a call from a young man named David. He told me he was crying in the bathroom of his house after seeing the photo in the newspaper, said to be a user of cocaine, but no longer wanted this life. I told him to throw the drugs in the toilet and flush, and prayed with him. This guy said he weighed 90kg, but because of the drugs, was 60kg, and when he saw me smelling the Bible, saw that Jesus needed to go. So set up a meeting with him.

What I mean is that I made this photo with two motives: first, a drug user does not need the drug, but into something better, which is the Word of God. It is a journey with a straight face. You do not have to take drugs, and the second: you is not drugged, but not putting the Bible into you. Perhaps you are a Christian without the Bible. Do not read, do not practice, do not live and does not believe in the Word of God.

What about people who failed their attitude, what would you say to them?

For the type of fish I'm fishing, this approach is considered acceptable and even a great strategy to win young. But I understand those loved ones who saw and were shocked.

I mean, if anyone was offended or saddened, I apologize to that person, but I Lucinho, I have no difficulty with that image. My relationship with my Bible allows me to it. And let me even more.

So you're relaxed about the picture?

Let it be clear that I do not regret the act, but I apologize to those who felt sad. If anyone live what I live, to be a youth pastor, understand that the message is holy (holding the Bible says), but the strategies to take her ... If it's a song, a fantasy, a theater, is worth.

When he began to write his first book? What it was?

I started writing about 12 ha or 13. It was called survival guide for parents of teenagers. At the time I was working with teenagers, and I felt the need to have parents at my side. So I wrote this book with the intention of call them as allies in this challenge of shepherding teenagers.

Is there any standard or rule that you follow when writing a book?

Well, when writing for young people, I generally follow the trend given to me by young people themselves. The world changes every six months, and the young world changes much faster than that. Then, I run the risk of speaking of things that are not relevant to them.

What is your reference to write for young people?

When I'm writing a book or recording a message, a DVD, I try to listen to what the need, the need of the moment. Why are they giving the U.S. so I know what to say, what to write and what to teach in their lives, but can fall into error.

In survival guide for young Christian, you cite examples, gives biblical references and covers topics that many young people still feel embarrassed to talk and ask questions. How was preparing to mount this content?

The preparation of the visits came basically what I do with young people, pastoral offices, calls the end of worship and they send me the internet. They send me questions for almost 20 years, and ask questions in person. Was joining these emails and watching what they told me I gather all the material and wrote the survival guide for young Christians. Did not want to write what I thought was relevant to them, but I wanted to let them guide him in the direction they thought was important. I even joke when declaring the book, saying that I wrote to them to stop sending me emails asking questions (laughs). The goal is just to be a book that gives a direction, which gives a direction for this generation.

The book Crazy for Jesus is a number?

It's a lot, yes. It is a series of four books. I'm already with all the material ready to finish the room. Have released three, with the volume I was published by Central Gospel.

Which line you follow these three books?

Well, I tried to put those books that I was blessed. My line of thinking is this: if I wanted to be a successful lawyer, I would have to look up to the best lawyers in the world and study their lives. If I wanted to be a football player of success, I should imitate the life of those who were good ball. So I wrote Crazy for Jesus counting in each 60 stories of men and women who marked the world with their faith, just so that when we read these books, our standard rise, and we had very strong examples to be able to live a Christianity above average. It was with this objective that I wrote the series Crazy for Jesus. To serve as an inspiration for this generation.

Including volume III of the series has transformed the lives of many. It's called Mad for Jesus, which has a history of 60 women and girls who marked the world. And there are thousands of women and girls who have send me emails and letters saying they had their lives changed by reading this book.

Where did the idea to write Johnny, ask for your soul tonight?

In 2004, I went to India on a mission trip. There I discovered that many Hindus go to the temple for the Hindu priest say which day they will die. In India it is commonplace to look the priest's head, go into a trance and say that the person will die on the day of such month this year such. When I saw this, I thought: "My God, this is a story that perhaps gives to tell." From there I decided to write a book about a young man who could see the day when people die.

How was mount it?

Assemble this story was not easy, because I tried to get the idea I had in India and adapting to the world young, the profile of the young Brazilian. Johnny's story is not true in the United States. I made a point of making the whole story up spending a Brazilian city where the weather, the clothes, the expressions are very Brazilian. Much of what we have today are Christian fiction American translations. I made sure that the character, despite the name, was Brazilian.

So how did the character Johnny?

(Laughs) Well, anyone who knows me knows that I'm Johnny. I am a boy who has been very ill, faced death many times, I was diagnosed with extremely serious diseases. Even in the simplest aspects of the book, who knows me, realizes I'm Johnny.

Johnny is always rushed. I am very rushed. Sometimes it appears eating apple. Apple is my favorite fruit. But mostly the person of Johnny's me, because I had a very radical encounter with Christ, as he had. I stared death in the face, even death, many times in my life. And I was spared death, like Johnny. So, the character was riding upon aspects of my life that few know.

What is your message for the youth to have a real encounter with God?

My message is simple: stop existing and start living. An object exists, but he is not alive. But one does not. A person can be alive or can only exist. What is the difference between existing and living? You have a real encounter, striking and powerful with the author's life. While you do not know Jesus and this is not crazy about him, there is only you, only vegetation is on autopilot. You are alive, but not alive. But when you become a fool for Christ, and that love and passion you consume during the day, afternoon and night, for you to exist and real life begins.

Be very crazy about Jesus, start collecting follies by Him Who knows one day there in the future, there will arise another "Lucinho" will write another book Fools for Jesus, and who knows, if you have lived well passionately by Christ, and his name will be in my book of heroes of the faith. God bless you. Be very crazy for Jesus.