Dear faithful partners in the ministry,
With heartfelt gratitude, we want to convey to you our sincere appreciation for the part that you have in the work and ministry here in São Paulo, Brazil. It is a tremendous honor to serve the Lord in such a needy place, and your prayers and financial support allow us to continue to work at the Igreja Batista da Bíblia (Bible Baptist Church).
Our family has experienced quite a bit of sickness over the past several weeks, and I (Dan) even had to take my wife and kids to the emergency room to try and get them some medical attention. Becky was on antibiotics, but after the prescription was gone, she still was not at 100%. The kids here have had cold-like symptoms for a long time, but the doctors told us that a virus is going around São Paulo. With a city this size, that’s no small virus!
Even with sickness, Becky continues to homeschool five children. Since we only have three children at home now, you may be wondering about the others she is helping. Deborah (age 10) and Matthew (age 8) are doing well in school, and Christine (3 years old) likes to color and write her “letters” while the others do school. Our recently arrived colleagues, Jon and Hannah Speights are going to language school Monday through Friday. Their two children, Joanna and Jason, come to our house during the day to do school. There is also a teenage boy that is coming over for Becky to help as he is doing his senior year of high school using the A Beka Academy curriculum. Becky stays busy, but helping five kids with a good, quality education is worth it.
Our four oldest children are doing well at West Coast Baptist College, and they are having a wonderful time. We miss them greatly, but we are thrilled that they have a desire to serve the Lord. Please keep them in your prayers regarding their physical, spiritual, and financial needs. Having four kids in college is costly, but we are trusting God to supply their needs as He has done in the past.
The Bible Baptist Church in São Paulo is going well, and we have recently seen three people make professions of faith. One young hearing boy came to church with his deaf aunt, and after hearing the Gospel, he put his faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. A few weeks later, an elderly deaf woman that has been coming to church had her eyes opened as she watched a DVD with the Gospel presentation done in gestures and pictures. She, too, was ready to pray and ask for God’s free gift of salvation. Becky and I later went to the home of a hearing lady whose daughter is deaf, and also a faithful member of our church. This lady had heard the Gospel many times, and we were told that she had a hard heart. However, the Holy Spirit had softened her heart on that day, and she was ready to repent and put her trust in Jesus alone for her salvation. Praise the Lord!
With God working, you know that the old devil will also get busy. We have seen some of our church people struggle with faithfulness, marital problems, family problems, and financial difficulties. However, with those that are coming, we are seeing spiritual growth, and that is always encouraging. I have been going through the book of Joshua, and also began to teach Baptist Distinctives. The people, for the most part, are eager to learn, and we praise God for the growth we have seen.
We are thankful that the Jon Speights family is here to help us in the ministry. As was already mentioned, they are in language school, but Jon has been eager to help Dan with doing some typing and helping to prepare the PowerPoint for the services. They, too, have had struggles with their health, so please pray with us for the Speights family.
We have some special activities coming up, so we would like to ask you to remember these things in your prayers, as well.
October 27 – Friend Day
November 10 – Special service with some being baptized
November 24-27 – Anniversary of the church with Revival meetings
December 15 – Christmas Banquet
December 26-28 – Camp
Once again, thank you for allowing us to be your representatives in São Paulo, Brazil. May the Lord continue to bless you there in the USA as you shine for Him!