CLERMONT, Fla. — On Feb. 10, Primeira Igreja Batista em Clermont (First Baptist Church of Clermont – Brazilian) celebrated its one-year anniversary with a moment of unforgettable joy: the baptism of a man named Marcelo, whose story of salvation has already begun to ripple into his family, the community and the nations.

When Marcelo arrived in the United States from Brazil, he had no prior contact with Christianity and had never stepped foot inside a Christian church. But on Marcelo’s first Sunday in America, a mother from the young Brazilian congregation invited his son to attend a church gathering taking place in the community clubhouse. Marcelo, his wife and his young son and daughter went to the gathering — and they stayed.

“They came for breakfast,” said church planter Wilson Cordeiro Jr., “and they never stopped coming.”

As the family became increasingly involved in Sunday services and small group meetings, Marcelo said that God began to stir his heart. He professed faith in Christ, began a discipleship journey and was ultimately baptized on the day the church marked one year of ministry.

But the story doesn’t end there.

“As Marcelo was being baptized, his mother who lives in Brazil watched his baptism through the streaming, called to him and said, ‘I want to be baptized too,’” Cordeiro said. “She had also come to faith in Christ and one month later traveled to the United States, and we had the opportunity to baptize her as well at Clermont Lakefront Park.”

Now, Marcelo is growing in his faith and even leading a Bible study with his mother-in-law, father and father-in-law, who still lives in São Paulo State, Brazil.

A new church with a clear vision

The launch of Primeira Igreja Batista em Clermont began as a whisper from God, said Cordeiro, in September 2023. After sensing a burden for the large Brazilian population in the Oakland/Clermont area, Cordeiro and his wife began to pray.

That burden reflects a growing reality. According to the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey, nearly 130,000 Brazilians now call Florida home. The Brazilian immigrant population in the U.S. rose nearly 50% from 2010 to 2019, reaching more than half a million. The Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford metropolitan area, which includes Clermont, is among the top five metro areas for Brazilians nationwide, with an estimated 34,000 Brazilian immigrants — about 1.24% of the total local population. This demographic growth underscores the strategic need for gospel-centered, culturally attuned churches like Primeira Igreja Batista em Clermont.

This burden and this prayer led to a launch on Feb. 10, 2024, but the journey wasn’t without its challenges.

What started with just two families gathering on Fridays quickly grew. By March, the small group reached 45 people — too many for Cordeiro’s two-bedroom apartment. The group visited more than 35 possible meeting places before an unexpected door opened.

“One day during a house service, someone mentioned First Baptist Church Clermont,” Cordeiro recalled. “We connected with one of the deacons, who passed our contact info to the associate pastor, Pastor Randy. They welcomed us in.”

Since May 2024, the young church plant, whose sending church is PIB Florida, has met at First Baptist Clermont, led by Pastor Ben Bond, which has embraced the Brazilian congregation as part of its wider missions vision. First Baptist Clermont is also home to Haitian and Spanish-language ministries.

The Brazilian church meets on Family Fridays, beginning with fellowship and food at 8 p.m., followed by worship at 8:45 p.m. and Bible studies for every age group until midnight. On Sundays, the congregation gathers at 6:00 p.m. for worship and teaching. Average attendance is about 60, with peaks of 80 or more.

“Our vision is centered on family and the next generation,” Cordeiro said. “We’re investing in children, youth and young adults — and already we see fruit.”

Sending and being sent

Even as a young church plant, Primeira Igreja Batista em Clermont has set its sights on the nations. The Brazilian congregation is supporting missionaries in São Paulo, Brazil, and Guinea-Bissau, West Africa.

Cordeiro sees every step of the church-planting journey as God’s doing.

“My only encouragement to other pastors is this: Rest in God; be obedient, and He will do what He needs to do,” he said. “It’s not because of us — it’s because of Him. I earnestly urge Baptist churches in the United States to embrace what God is doing among diverse cultures. 

“By opening their doors to multicultural Baptist church planters whom God is bringing to this nation, they have a unique opportunity to participate in His mission. This is a chance to use the buildings God has already provided as a powerful tool for advancing His kingdom through cross-cultural ministry.”

(EDITOR’S NOTE — Cody Watson is pastor of Lake Mystic Baptist Church in Bristol, Fla., and writes for the Florida Baptist Convention. This article originally appeared at flbaptist.org.)