Grace and peace to you from your missionary friends in rainy Brazil. Although it is now springtime, the rains continue to bring us cool temperatures. We have some bright, sunny days in between the rainy ones which I consider a wonderful blessing! The rain is making everything a lush green and the grass is growing like crazy.
Paul spent a good deal of time on the phone today, making contact with each family who will open their home to receive their invited guests for the televised Billy Graham crusade Thursday, Friday and Saturday. These programs will air at 9 p.m. (5 p.m. CST) on one of the major Brazilian TV networks. Rather than preaching in a huge stadium somewhere, thousands of Christians have been challenged to invite their family, friends and neighbors to watch with them in their home. Please join with us in prayer as our people reach out to the ones they love with the message of hope through Jesus Christ. Sunday we have planned special services in our churches to welcome new people who we hope will come as a result of this evangelistic outreach.
Last Friday night a group of twenty “missionaries” from Bateias travelled to the “back 40” to share Jesus with the people who are far from church and modern conveniences (a four-hour trip on dirt roads from Bateias). Most of the people do not have electricity and the water is drawn from homemade wells. The missionary team, led by Yara and Pastor Joel, divided up and visited many homes, sharing their testimonies and inviting people to the afternoon and evening programs. Men, women and children appeared from the simple houses hidden off the beaten paths. The team brought food and clothing to distribute and had special programs prepared to share the Gospel through drama, song, testimony, film and preaching. On Saturday night the film of the Bateias Passion Play was shown. Afterwards during the altar call almost everyone went forward to pray and receive literature to help them in their new relationship with Jesus. The missionaries returned home in our trusty mud-covered bus late Sunday night, tired but exuberant, as they realized that God had used their lives to impact others for the Gospel.
We stayed home this time to take care of other responsibilities. Paul preached at the Friday night Reformation service in São Braz, two weddings on Saturday, church in Bateias on Sunday morning and in Campo Largo Sunday night. The ARCA also hosted a camp with meals this weekend so there is extra work involved there as well. I have been feeling sick for ten days now with laryngitis and a cough but manage to keep going even though everything seems to drain away my energy. Yesterday the doctor encouraged me to rest and not talk (oh no!) Pray that I will be healthy soon.
Next week we head for Campo Mourão again, this time for the graduation. We will go a few days early so that I can practice with the choir (I need my voice!) A group of fifteen friends will travel to Campo on the weekend to be together for this momentous occasion in the lives of Adriano, Janicleia e Edival (our students from Bateais). The following weekend (Nov. 22) we head to São Paulo for our nephew Freddy’s wedding.
Through an unusual contact we have been ministering to a family over the past month. Yesterday we prayed with Adriana and Jessy to become Christians. Pray with us for them and for the millions of Brazilians who will be watching the Billy Graham programs on TV this week. We want our hope to be the hope of countless others as they learn to trust in Jesus.
God bless each one of you as you live out your daily lives in the hope of the life to come! “Those who seek the Lord will lack no good thing.” Ps. 34:10
I’ll try to send some pictures sometime soon!
Love in Christ,
Paul and Becky Abel
P.S. Just thought I’d let you know that our good friend Edson was re-elected mayor of our city by a large margin. We are very thankful! We are also remembering the U.S. in prayer as a new leader steps up to the presidency. It is a blessing to know that God is in control and works through earthly leaders to accomplish His purposes.
