November Prayer Letter

 November 2024

 

Dear Praying Friends,

 

It was the most highly anticipated occasion not just of the year, not just of the

decade, not just of the century, but of all time! Prophets had prophesied

hundreds of years before, angels announced it to the shepherds, later, wise men

from the east came looking for the Son of the King who had been born! The

birth of the Savior had taken place in Bethlehem, just as the Scriptures had

declared. Surely, the nation of Israel would stream into the small town of

Bethlehem to see their King! Surely rich and poor, men and women, Jew and

Gentile would seek to find the new born King!

 

But as we know, the birth of our Savior was ignored by almost everyone. In

spite of the testimony of the shepherds, no one in Bethlehem sought out the

Savior. In spite of the prophesies, the religious leaders ignored the star in the

east and declined to accompany the wise men in their quest to find the

Messiah. Today, we have the same attitude of ignorance. Most cannot be

bothered to even think of why Christmas should be celebrated. Others

substitute the Savior with invented characters and imaginary stories.

 

Oh, how vital it is for us to remember that Jesus Christ is the reason for this

season! He came to be the Savior of all mankind! We, of all people, should

focus our attention on the Lord Jesus Christ, who left His home in heaven to

be born in a smelly stable, wrapped in burial clothes and laid in a manger.

Who left the worship of angels to be rejected by those He came to save. Who

loved us so much that He died to save us all. Praise the Lord for the greatest

gift of all – Jesus Christ!!

 

May you have a blessed Christmas remembering our Savior,

 

Mark Hale

October Prayer Letter

October 2024

 

Dear Praying Friends,

 

He got a copy of our prayer letter from his pastor and for the first time in his

life, he wrote a missionary. He had read our prayer letter a few months before

in which I had asked prayer for five ladies who had heard the gospel for the

first time. He had been praying for their salvation and requested an update.

 

He had no idea what a blessing and encouragement he was in writing that

email! His diligence in contacting us let us know that not only was he reading

our monthly prayer letters, but that he was also personally involved in praying

for the people God has called us to reach! What a deep encouragement this

man was to us!! What a blessing to answer his questions so that he could pray

more effectively for us and the ministries here in Portugal!!

 

We have a group of people we call our “prayer warriors” because we KNOW

that if we ask, they will pray and keep on praying! This group of men and

women labor in secret, they labor faithfully, they labor for God’s glory and

they labor for the salvation of souls. Only in eternity will we know what these

mighty prayer warriors truly accomplished in their ministries of intercession

for their missionaries. THANK YOU for your faithful prayers!!!

 

Thankful for you,

 

Mark Hale

September Prayer Letter

 September 2024

 

Dear Praying Friends,

 

“I love my mother-in-law” I tell people with a big grin, “because she lives on

another continent!” But the truth is, I really do love my mother-in-law and highly

respect her. For the past 60 years, Deloris McClure has been a missionary to Brazil

with her husband, Dean McClure. After a long illness, God recently called Dean

home and Deloris was there every single day, caring for him for better or for worse.

Deloris has spent the last few months in Brazil sorting through all of her possessions. She gave away the majority of her things to church folks, neighbors and friends. She sold the rest and moved back to the US. She is 81, in good health and plans to continue ministering to Portuguese speaking people through video classes and missions trips.

 

Now, she is facing life without her best friend, husband and partner. When asked

how she is doing, she will reply with a smile on her face but tears in her eyes, “I am

doing alright, God has been so good to me!” No self-pity, no anger nor frustration.

How can she have this godly attitude after suffering the loss of her husband? She

embodies 1 Thessalonians 5:18 “In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of

God in Christ Jesus concerning you.” Yes, she mourns the loss of her husband, but

she rejoices in the hope of a heavenly reunion. Yes, she is sad at the prospect of a

solitary life, but she rejoices in the presence of her Savior. She is thankful for what

God gave her and still is giving her.

 

No one may know what you are suffering, no one may even care. But you can

rejoice in knowing that God cares and is with you every step, in storm and in calm,

in prosperity or in poverty, in sickness and in health. Our Savior will never leave us

nor forsake us and is one day coming back to take us home to be with Him! May

each of us have a heart of gratitude for all God has done and is doing for us! No

matter what comes, we know God is in control and we can be thankful to Him!

 

Giving thanks,

 

Mark Hale

August Prayer Letter

August 2024

 

Dear Praying Friends,

 

He has five mouths to feed and things are tight. He knew tithing was biblical,

but he had to make this decision himself. If he paid his tithe, it didn’t look like

he would have enough to pay their bills and he was struggling to find work. It

was a real test of his faith in God’s promise. He made the decision to trust the

Lord and paid his tithe at church. What happened next was breath taking!

 

The next day, his work van broke down and the repair bill was going to be

almost $2000. They did not have that kind of money and he immediately

wondered if he had made a mistake in paying his tithe. Instead of doubting, he

simply prayed and surrendered the whole impossible situation to God. This is

when God began to do the miraculous. He found a used part for much less and

the labor took a fraction of the time they expected, so his van repair bill was

only $200!

 

But God wasn’t finished yet! A man had his car in the shop at the same time

and saw J’s advertisement on the side of his van. He called him up and had

him come and give an estimate for a large job. Within one week of paying his

tithe, this young father had his van repaired for 1/10 of the original cost and

now has a contract for work for the next nine months! He said with a huge grin

on his face that they received more than their tithe and he has more work than

he can handle! God ALWAYS keeps His promises!!!!

 

Pressed down, shaken together and running over,

 

Mark Hale

July Prayer Letter

July 2024

 

Dear Praying Friends,

 

He gravitated to the “bad kids” group, was constantly testing the camp rules, got called down for talking during services and was not receptive to the word of God in our daily lessons together. He scowled at everyone and complained about everything. Ten year old, L. was doing his best to be “bad” but God was working in spite of the boy’s plans.

 

As the week progressed, he got in trouble a few more times but he became more serious as he heard the Word of God taught and preached each day. Finally the last night of camp arrived and God worked in a miraculous way. After a powerful message was preached, the invitation was given and 20 children and teens came forward. L. was among them. 

 

I took him aside and asked why he came forward and he said, “Because I want to be saved, I don’t want to go to hell!” I went through the Scriptures with him and asked if he wanted to confess his sin and trust in Christ alone to save him. By this time, tears were rolling down his cheeks and he just nodded. For five minutes in prayer, this repentant boy listed every sin he could remember and asked God to forgive him of those and any he forgot. Then he said, “I sure hope you keep your word, Lord, because I am trusting you to save me.” God saved that boy that night. The next day, instead of a scowl, there was a huge smile. He ran over and gave me a hug as he prepared to leave. “Thank you for telling me about Jesus!” he whispered. 

 

In total, 17 precious souls were saved at camp this year! Praise God!!!

 

Rejoicing in the Harvest,

 

Mark Hale

Morning service.

Evening service.

Working the camp store.

Mark holding Michele's coffee.  🤣

The campers' tents.

 

June Prayer Letter

June 2024

 

Dear Praying Friends,

 

He had worked hard all day and was looking forward to getting home to his

wife and children. His thoughts drifted to the warmth and comfort of home,

that is, until the flashing lights got his attention. Why was the police officer

pulling him over? He had not been speeding, nor driving erratically, what had

he done to be stopped?

 

The police officer stood at his window and asked for the typical identifications

and documents. Then the policeman informed him that the rear lights on his

van were not “functioning properly” and it would be a 300 Euro fine. Money

was tight with four mouths to feed and this was not welcome news, the pain

was evident on his face. The police officer paused and then said, “Look, I will

write this down as something else and it will only cost you 50 Euros, you just

have to sign this ticket.

 

He paused for a moment, it was tempting, all he had to do was sign the

officer’s paper and save 250 Euros. But then he shook his head, “No, officer, I

cannot do that, it would be lying. I am a Christian and I cannot lie, even if it

costs me the 300 Euros.” The policeman was stunned, he had never

encountered this before. Finally, he looked at this strange man and said,

“Never mind, just go on home, no ticket today.”

 

Thanking God for a young Christian’s honesty and testimony,

 

Mark Hale

May Prayer Letter

 May 2024

 

Dear Praying Friends,

 

I had been invited to speak at a church that we had helped to establish 35 years

ago and as I preached, the congregation listened closely. I could tell there were

some there that day who were not saved and whispered a prayer that the Holy

Spirit would draw them to Christ. As I ended my sermon and gave the

invitation, a lady came forward and received Christ as her personal Savior!

Two others were saved and we rejoiced for what God had done in their lives!

 

Only the Lord knows the future and whether a person will ever have another

opportunity to accept Christ or not. This young wife and mother who had

come forward and was gloriously saved found out just a month later that the

cancer she had fought off years before had returned and spread into her bones.

The doctors are not optimistic about her chances of survival, but we thank God

that whether she survives this battle or not, she will be with Christ for eternity!

 

Thank you for making it possible for us to minister on your behalf and see God

work His miracle of salvation in so many lives! Please join us in prayer for this

young woman, that whether in life or death, the Lord Jesus Christ would be

glorified!

 

Thankful for God’s salvation!

 

Mark Hale