Dear faithful co-laborers in the ministry,
We have had a mild winter here in Brazil, and now spring is upon us. We are grateful to the Lord for the much-needed rain that we have finally gotten these past few days. As I sit in my office listening to the rain coming down, I would also like to convey to you some of the “showers of blessings” that God has poured out upon our ministry.
I mentioned in our last prayer letter that we were having a special get-together at the church to celebrate a Brazilian holiday on July 9th. Fifty one people were present, and once again the Gospel was presented to all in attendance. The Seed was planted, and we continue to pray for a bountiful harvest of Deaf coming to Christ.
We also had “Friend Day” in July, and the Lord blessed us with 48 people in attendance, with eight first-time visitors. I preached a message on Hell, and although no one made a profession of faith, they did have an opportunity to get saved.
In August, we had a Men’s Retreat at our home. Some of the men had asked me about having a Men’s Retreat since the ladies have a Women’s Retreat every year. It was a good time of fellowship for our men, and we had one man that came who used to be a member of the church a number of years ago. We will work to make the Men’s Retreat bigger and better each year.
On September 7th, we had a churrasco (cookout) at our home for the entire church to celebrate Brazil’s Independence Day. Fifty two people were present and although it rained off and on, everyone had a good attitude. We thank the Lord for sending the rain as São Paulo has been in a drought for a couple of years. We had some visitors on this day, and as customary, we had a time to preach the Gospel. I had to stop about half-way through the message to move the service indoors when it began to rain again. Please continue praying with us for the work here as we believe that it will not be long before we begin to reap from the field that is white already to harvest.
Becky has started a new, separate evangelistic class for some Deaf people that are not saved. She is using the “Wordless Book Visualized,” and is slowly and simply teaching one color each week to some Deaf that have no religious background. It’s exciting to see these young people come faithfully to church to learn from God’s Word. Please pray for the salvation of John Gabriel, Valter, Wellington, Leandro, and Edna.
We are planning to take our furlough next year. If you are interested in having us stop in and give a report, please contact me with a possible date in mind, and, Lord willing, we will fit it into our schedule.
We appreciate you all so much for holding the ropes on our behalf. May God continue to bless you all!
Your missionaries to the Deaf in Brazil,
Dan and Becky Bennett