Prayer Letters

November, 2025

Bom dia! (bone GEE-ya). Literally, that means “good day”, but we use it as “good morning” here in Brazil. If someone’s grumpy they might ask “What’s good about it?” but it’s a wish, not a question. There’s an understood “Have a…” before it.

And with that I wish all of you a good day.

Our days have been a bit warm of late. We’ve hit 103 a couple of times. I confess production efficiency drops a tad. I don’t really mind hot days but stuffy nights where you always feel a bit sweaty are a bit more straining. And the wind stops on these hot days, though that’s probably a good thing unless you want to live in a convection oven. I visited the Amazon once and the temperature wasn’t as high but it was much hotter. I worked up a sweat taking a shower. But if you believe the old adage “it’s a dry heat,” just ask the Thanksgiving turkey how that worked out for him.

And speaking of turkey, nobody’s going to be around this year. Since Michele’s birthday is on or around T-day she’s decided we’re taking an overnight trip to a nearby historic site. I’m just afraid they might try to keep us with the other antiques when it’s time to leave.

Thing’s have stabilized in the Lage work. We are seeing some new families come and there is slow but steady growth. We’ve started men’s and women’s groups and they are well attended. Youth group hasn’t done as well. Unfortunately, we are alone there now as the mother church and both couples have left. Since we can’t do the work of 4, a lot has gotten pushed to the back burner. The one couple stepped back for health reasons, but hope to return. In fact they started coming one day each week to help with the soccer school which is rather out of my class. However his mother may have cancer and they have gone to visit. I suspect they may stay. Anyway, when the church pulled him out it seems they lost interest because there wasn’t a Brazilian at the head and when the church pulled back the other couple apparently looked at their bread and saw more butter on the other side and quietly stopped coming and eventually stated they were going to work with the mother church.

Most of the opportunity from the big group that came in July is lost but we found some medicine they left and a doctor who likes to help and we had a “clinic” in the small community where we bought a house. These kinds of projects show God’s love in a tangible way and open ears, but someone still has to speak the Word for it to lead to faith. I just don’t have enough feet to stick in all the open doors.

And then yesterday when I went to buy window glass a young woman with a little boy kept staring at me from across the street. Finally she asked “Are you pastor Byron?”. Then she pointed to a house down the street where she had lived and said that long ago I used to come to her house with Bible study books. She was in a hurry so we didn’t talk long but she is still in church today. It was no more than a narrow shaft of Sonlight beaming through a crack in the dark, heavy clouds but it brightened my day.

Thank you, Lord. And thank you for listening.

Byron

Baby dedication day in Lage dos Negros in October