July 26, 2018
Dear Faithful Co-laborers in the Ministry,
What an honor it is to serve the Lord in Brazil! We have much for which to praise the Lord.
First of all, we would like to start off by conveying our utmost gratitude to those that have given toward our vehicle fund. We have found and purchased a 2006 Hyundai H1 Starex, a twelve-passenger (diesel) van in good condition, and with low miles/kilometers.
Thank you for praying for our co-workers, Jon and Hannah Speights. They returned to Brazil on May 9th, and have found a house to rent in Arujá, the city where Jon began the Bible studies back in September of 2016. The Deaf out there are excited about a new church being planted in the near future.
Update on Fran…You may remember reading about Fran, the lady who was watching our services via Facebook in the state of Acre. She and Becky began communicating over Messenger and finally began talking over Skype with video. Becky began talking about church and salvation. She asked Fran if she was saved, and she said, “yes,” so Becky asked her how she knew and what she did to be saved. She told Becky that she had been baptized and became a member of her church. When Becky told her that, according to the Bible, baptism could not save her, her mouth dropped open! Becky then invited her to do a Bible study over the internet via Skype. She was very interested, so they began meeting on Skype three times a week. On March 30th, the Friday before Easter, Fran was truly saved!!
This past February, as a distraction from Carnaval, we held a special day at church with food, games, and a devotion. Marlene, a deaf sister of one of the men in our church, came to our get-together. On that day, Becky was able to talk with her and invite her to a Bible study. She began coming the middle of March and began learning the Wordless Book. On April 22, Marlene became a child of God!
We love how God is using the ministry of Facebook Live around Brazil. Toward the end of March, some Christian ladies in Curitiba, a city six hours south of us, began commenting on our services. We later found out that one of the ladies had taken a sign language course in her seminary up in the northern part of Brazil, and through our Facebook livestream ministry, God had touched her heart to do something with what she had learned. She began a sign language class at her church on Sunday nights after the service. She recently showed a video of her class signing a special music presentation. There were 26 people signing! God seems to be lighting a fire for the deaf and deaf ministry in Brazil. Pray that the fire would burn long and that God would bring us new families to Brazil who are burdened to see the deaf saved.
We appreciate the birthday cards that some churches send to our family. However, our four oldest adult children, Rachel, Joseph, Nathan, and Anna, are living in the United States now, so it is no longer necessary to send birthday cards to Brazil for them. Deborah, Matthew, and Christine are still with us in Brazil, and they love receiving cards, letters, and small packages in the mail.
Thank you for the opportunity to come to Brazil as your representatives in this vast, needy harvest field.
That all may “hear,”
Dan & Becky Bennett