I am Igor Dias Ramos, born in 1986, in a German colony in southern Brazil. My parents raised me with Roman Catholic principles until I was 18 years old, when some friends invited me to join a Pentecostal church. My dream since childhood was to be a soccer player, and this was my passion until 2008, when I was hit by a truck and this accident was God's way of taking me out of a world of vanities to lead me to an eternal life. It was from this moment that I understood that God's calling for my life was to lead people not just to celebrate a game for a moment, but to rejoice in the eternal salvation that has been given to us in Jesus Christ.

In 2007 I married my beautiful wife Eliane Kochhann de Miranda, and we have been married for 17 years. For over 12 years of marriage the doctors had told us that we would not be able to have children, but our prayer to the Lord was to give us wisdom to rest in His will. Until 2020, in the midst of the Covid pandemic where many people died, the Lord granted our heart's request, we have been graced by Him with a son through IVF treatment and in this month of July 2024, our son Christopher will be three years old with great health, lots of love and desire to know God and our King Jesus Christ. Glory to God for his tremendous generosity and goodness to us.

After some years of theological training in seminaries and participation in Reformed churches, the Lord is sending us back to Spain to help strengthen the local church in this country. But in March 2022, on a mission trip to Paris, I met two Christian women, as in the book of Acts 16:9; "At night a vision was shown to Paul in which a man from Macedonia was standing praying to him and saying, "Come over to Macedonia and help us!" These two women told me that they had been praying for a Bible church in their city, Lleida, for more than 15 years. They begged me to help them get to know God in a way that the churches around them had not been doing for many years. So from that moment on, my wife and I began to pray and ask advice from our pastors about the possibility of starting a work in the city of Lleida.

Lleida is the capital of the region of Segrià, with 211.7 km², it is one of the largest municipalities in Catalonia. Founded in the 6th century BC, it is the largest city in the Principality outside the province of Barcelona, a modern and cosmopolitan capital, an AgroBiotech reference in southern Europe, with an important communications network, a pillar of its geostrategic position.

In September 2022 we moved to Lleida and started meeting in our house until we had no more space and moved to new premises in November 2022. I am pastoring this small group of brothers, which sometimes has grown due to the curiosity of the people. Curiosity to know a reformed church, but they do not want the commitment that God demands of them with Himself, with His Word and with the people of God, so very few stay to be part of the people that the Lord has called, justified, is sanctifying and one day will glorify Him. 

Today we are a group of 8 members, five candidates for baptism and eight candidates for membership. On Sundays we gather about 25 people to read the Scriptures, sing the Scriptures, pray the Word of God, listen to the Word of God and see the living Word in the fellowship of the breaking of bread and wine in the Lord's Supper and in loving one another. 

We have spent over a year studying the book of 1 Timothy in Sunday services. This summer we will study the marks of a Biblical church and in September we will begin the study of a book of the Old Testament. On Thursdays we study the fundamental doctrines of the Christian faith. And once a month, on Sunday afternoons we have our prayer meeting, in which we meditate briefly on the Word of the Lord (this meeting is an opportunity for new preachers), listen to two or three short testimonies and spend a lot of time praying for our church and for the churches around us and around the world, and also spend time seeking the Lord together as a church.

JANUARY 2025 UPDATES FROM OUR FAMILY AND MINISTRY

Hello dear brothers and sisters, it is with great joy that we send you our latest report for 2025. We are so grateful to God for each one of you who have faithfully been accompanying us for another year alongside with our family and ministry. We are very grateful to God for another year of experiencing His faithfulness, love, and grace in our family and ministry. We are very grateful to God for having a family in the faith that enables us to serve the Lord full-time. We give special thanks to AIT, Grace Life Church in Muscle Shoals, and all of you brothers, sisters, and friends who invest your resources, emotions, and time praying for us here in Lleida. This work would not be possible if you were not supporting us in such a concrete and close way.

We hope that in 2026 we will continue our journey together with great expectations of what the Lord will do in our midst. We pray for each of you that the grace and wisdom of the Lord will be given to you abundantly so that your lives will reflect Christ and His glory in all the situations you will face this coming year. 

1 Corinthians 9:24-27; 24 Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win. 25 Everyone who competes in the games exercises self-control in all things. They then do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. 26 Therefore I run in such a way, as not without aim; I box in such a way, as not beating the air; 27 but I discipline my body and make it my slave, so that, after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified.

This was the last message to the IBL church in 2025, so that in 2026, we can run the race in such a way that we reach the goal, which is to remove all obstacles in our lives so that those around us may know Jesus. Many believers begin their Christian life with enthusiasm and devotion. They train diligently for a time, but soon tire of the effort and begin to “slack off.” Before long, they are disqualified from being effective witnesses. They lack what it takes because they are unwilling to pay the price. The flesh, the world, daily affairs, personal interests, and often simple laziness hinder spiritual growth and preparation for service.

This is our challenge for 2026. Our church needs holy people, believers who have been delivered from sin and are committed to the good of others. Our society needs holy neighbors, it needs to see men and women who have been completely transformed by Jesus and who now set aside anything that might hinder the gospel. Our families need to see holiness in us; they need to see a husband and father who is a model of what it means to be a mature Christian. The world around us needs us to be holy; it needs to see evidence that Jesus Christ continues to save His people and transform them into His image. In the priceless reward of Jesus Christ, you have all the motivation you need to embrace a new purpose and fix your eyes on the glory of God.

We want to share with you the events that marked our month of December, our family and church photos, and our prayer requests for the coming year.

DIAS KOCHHANN FAMILY

This December, our family has been through some very bad flus, mainly Christopher and I (Igor). Thank God that Eliane did not catch the flu at all, but rather that the Lord kept her strong in our family throughout this time. Even at work, she was one of the only ones who remained healthy and free of the flu virus.. We spent two weeks with high fever, coughs, chills, and extreme fatigue. But thanks to the Lord, even in the midst of these bouts of flu, Christopher was able to attend school for the Christmas festival, where he was one of the friendliest and most participatory children of his age.

Eliane spent December studying hard for the big exam she will take on January 8 for her vocational training course. At the same time, she has been working hard at the English academy, taking care of our house and teaching the children school Sundays morning. The Lord is helping her a lot to approach some teachers to bring them a word of comfort and guidance them at the feet of Christ for help. Mainly those who are overwhelmed by the burdens and standards that the world imposes on them.

Thanks to the Lord, the pain in my spine has decreased a bit, although there are times when it seems like I won't have the strength to get out of bed. But the Lord, in His grace and mercy, has provided me with help to endure the pain in the midst of the flu.

We are so grateful to the Lord for this year of 2025. The Lord has answered our prayers. He has cared for us in ways we never thought, asked, or imagined. He has shown Himself to us in small and large details this year, showing us that we should never doubt His presence and care in our lives. The Lord is so good and never forsakes those who trust in Him.

We were able to celebrate the end-of-year festivities with our brothers and sisters in our home. Together, we meditated on the grace that the Lord has shown us throughout the year, and we also made biblical resolutions in the Lord for the year 2026.

IBL CHURCH UPDATE

At the Biblical Church of Lleida, we had a special month. It was a very special month for our church, as we had the baptism of Sister Yaima and Brother Marc. Yaima has been attending our church for more than two years, although not regularly due to the distance she lives from us, but only now did she want to commit herself to the church and understand the importance of being baptized and becoming a member of a local church. Marc came to our church in November 2024 for other reasons; he was interested in a young sister in the church, but in a short time the Lord touched his heart, and since then he has been consistent in being discipled, has sought to participate in all weekly and Sunday meetings, and after more than a year attending our church, he has decided to make his faith public and submit himself to the church as a member.

The baptisms were very emotional, as Marc's friends and family, who are not yet Christians, came to participate and hear his testimony. Not only did they listen, but they also corroborated Marc's testimony of how he has changed and that they cannot believe he is now a Christian. Marc's mother and sister were struck by the symbolism of baptism, as for many years they had been deceived by Roman Catholicism.

Yaima's testimony has also been very impactful for the whole church, as she comes from a very dark, disastrous background but found comfort, peace, and guidance only in the Lord Jesus Christ, in His Word, and in the local church. We hope in the Lord that their lives will continue to impact our lives in the proclamation and expansion of the kingdom of God in Spain.

December was a very special time, because during the week of the baptism we also had the participation of the team from the First Baptist Church of Lake Butler, Florida. They participated in our baptism service and also impacted our congregation by sharing their testimonies of how God was removing them from a place that did not please Him and putting them in another direction. At the same time, brothers Jay and Genna shared the Word of the Lord with us with great wisdom, reverence, and humility. 

It is always so important for our church to receive brothers and sisters who help us see that there are true Christians on the other side of the world who also face many problems with the world, sin, and the flesh, but who depend on a sovereign and gracious God. In our context in Spain, with so few Christians, we are very happy when teams from America visit us and share with us a little of what it will be like in heaven with brothers and sisters of every language, race, and nation. 

What an important month for our small congregation, which is gradually being added to the Lord's people, and that is a cause for great joy and gratitude to God.

We also had difficult moments deciding whether to allow a person who is not living in an orderly and proper manner before society to become a member of our church. This was a very difficult decision for those who want to see more people coming to church, but we do not want to allow those who are not living according to the Word of the Lord to enter our home. This type of decision causes us great fear, because we do not want to prevent anyone from being baptized or becoming a member of Christ's church. We want to welcome everyone who wants to submit to the church and has already submitted to Christ. For that, we need to be wise, prudent, and use the Lord's discernment so as not to bring in people who are bad examples in society.

In our church, we are also very grateful to the Lord for this past year, for the Lord has done wonders among us. He has cared for us in such a special way that we had never thought, asked, or imagined. An example of this is that the Lord sent Brother Marc's father, Mr. Pere, who is not a believer, to renovate our entire building and even install air conditioning in our facilities. God has shown us in every detail this year that we are not acting alone on this earth, but that He is with us and can do much more than we think or ask according to His will. And we desire that the Lord add more people to His flock and that they know Him properly and be free from the bondage of sin and religiosity.

Prayer Requests

Please pray for:

1) Eliane's exam on January 8. If her grades are good, she will be able to do an internship as a teacher at Christopher's school.

2) The challenges at Christopher's school. May the parents understand their roles in educating and teaching their children a righteous and godly way of life.

3) Pray for the young people in our congregation: Marc, Rebeca, Thayná, Julian, Débora, Judith, Irene, Xavi, Alex, Rosario, Gabriel, Jael, Christopher, Evaluna, and Cloe. For some of them, let us pray for their salvation; for others, that the Lord will open their eyes to see His glory and that they may reject what the world offers them; for others, that they may make good decisions in their lives and always put the kingdom of God first. 

4) Pray that my family and I will be wise in managing the resources that the Lord is providing us. May God's wisdom help us to be good stewards of our time, talents, gifts, money, and activities in the church, at work, and in our family.

5) We pray that the Lord will open the eyes of Marc's sister, Judit. She is drawing closer to God because of personal problems, and we hope that during this time she will be able to surrender her burdens and weariness into the hands of the only one who can bring her relief. 

6) We pray for our congregation that we will no longer be carried away by every wind of doctrine that the world wants to lead us astray from the ways of the Lord.

7) We pray that we will be courageous in faithfully sharing the gospel with our family, neighbors, friends, and coworkers.

8) We pray for more men in our church. The Lord has already answered us with the presence of Brother Marc. May more men be added to our church who are willing to serve, care for, and protect the bride of Christ.

9) We pray for Spanish politics, that corruption may end and men of integrity and willingness to do justice may rise up. May they use well the sword of justice given by God.

10) We pray for the brothers and sisters who will come to visit us in Lleida in 2026, that the Lord may prepare their hearts and give them wisdom and courage to proclaim the Gospel in barren lands.

The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. (2 Co 13:14)

Igor Ramos