Mission (12)

We met again.

Jefferson was a few months old when we came into contact with this family in São João del Rei. His life was in danger. He had a hard time breathing and eating, which was a problem. Medical action had to be taken quickly, otherwise there was no hope. Gerrit and Lenie van Dalen were also with us in Brazil during that period and together we campaigned for an operation in Belo Horizonte. That worked out very well and today the family came to meet us again. Now Jefferson is 15 years old and wants to go to university after high school. He learned English and he was able to have a conversation with us in English. Together with his parents and sister, he is active in an Evangelical church. What a blessing to see him now and to enjoy a boy full of enery and love for God and His Word.

Pedro and Salia.

He played and sang in bars and was more drunk than sober. Until he came into contact with a Dutch missionary in Brazil. His life changed. He got rid of his addiction and became a pastor and a pillar in missionary work. They were an example for many people and we spent years with them and their children in Brazil. Now they have been married 60 years this month and life has become very difficult physically. When we came to serve the Lords supper, together with Luis, Salia got out of bed. Her son Joao helped her with this and after a while I found a dusty guitar...and the fire of God was certainly not extinguished....there were some very old beautiful songs we were singing together. What a blessing they have brought to their lives in so many different areas in Brazil and how nice to have met them.

Grupo ELO

In the first period that we lived in Brazil we had a youth group that met every week. Together we were engaged in Bible studies, evangelism on the street and we started a children's club. In the meantime they have all become grown men and women and we have lost touch with each other. But it was precisely this period in Brazil that suddenly contact was made again and a WhatsApp group was created. That's what the ELO Foundation is called... well, that has its roots in this group.

It is special to hear the stories of each other and to see how God has moved on in their lives. Some have become pastors, others are active in a church in a different way and meanwhile they have spread across Brazil. God continues with people, even though we have lost sight of them. An old photo even surfaced. Once we went to evangelize with this group in Ritápolis. A sound system on an old truck and singing and witnessing about Jesus together. At the end of this activity, a few people gave their lives to Jesus. There was a little church of Filadélfia, but it had been closed for a while. This action with grupo Elo made the church open again and has remained open until today.