December Prayer Letter

December 2013

Dear Praying Friends,

He came three weeks in a row and listened very carefully to my sermons.  His face revealed nothing, as if it was carved from stone, yet his eyes were ablaze with emotions.  I could see the Word of God was having an effect, but could not tell what his reaction to the Holy Spirit ‘s working would be. 

We soon discovered what it was.  He bluntly stated that he would no longer attend services at our church because the pastor declared that there is only one way to a home in heaven – through Jesus Christ’s completed work on the cross.  He believes there are many ways of getting to heaven and flatly refused to attend any more services.  Yet last Sunday, there he was again, listening intently to my sermon from John 10 on “The Good Shepherd who gave His life for His sheep”.   Please pray for Stephen, that he would repent of his pride and come humbly before the Lord of the Universe to accept Christ’s salvation as the complete payment for his sin.

In October, I asked you to continue praying for our church and the ongoing Bible Institute ministry.  It is very apparent that you have been praying!!  We have had 15 first time visitors in our church services the past few months and we are thrilled that some continue to attend regularly.  The Bible Institute now has 16 registered students who meet with us on Thursdays and another 25-35 who tune in live via UStream.  These internet students are from other cities in Portugal as well as Brazil and some Portuguese speaking African countries.  The Bible Institute is now having an international impact!  Thank you so much for your continued and faithful prayers!  I truly believe we are seeing this growth as a direct result of your labors in prayer.

May God richly bless you during this Christmas season and may your New Year be filled with more opportunities to serve our Lord.

Mark Hale