Amazing Encounters!

This week Liz and I travelled to Serra Talhada in the State of Pernambuco where I had been invited to speak at an interdenominational Conference for leaders. I spoke on the training and teaching of pastors and leaders. My slot was in the afternoon and later on I also was asked lots of questions by those present. It all went very well.

Liz and I arrived early in the morning to get the feel of the event prior to my afternoon speaking. We had only just arrived when Sister Dunalva, who was one of the organisers of the event, came up to warmly welcome us and thank us for going. I knew her already and she told me that she had got married since we last met to a brother from Luxembourg! I immediately reacted: "From WHERE?" She confirmed Luxembourg and told me her husband had been converted at the Portuguese speaking church there! By this time tears had filled my eyes and I told her that 50 years last month I preached my first sermon ever in Portuguese in a tent evangelistic campaign with IBTI which led to the planting of the church where her husband was converted! She then told me her husband was there and whisked me out to chat to him. It was quite an encounter! "God's Word never returns to Him void" and how encouraging it was to see this indirect fruit of the day I had to first find Portuguese immigrants to go to the service and then lead it, sing and preach as the only Portuguese speaker in the team. My Portuguese was awful right at the beginning of my learning the language - but when we are weak the Lord is strong and does miracles!

But that wasn't the end of the eventful morning! Back in the service after the morning speaker had finished, everyone was asked to go to the front for the official photograph. There a brother came up to me and asked me if I had been in Aracaju State, about 500 km from Patos, leading an inter-varsity camp for Christian students about 40 years ago? I answered yes, and he said that he had seen me walk in and he thought it was me who had led the camp that changed his life! He is a Baptist pastor today. "God's Word never returns to Him void". It had been quite a morning. Thank you Lord! What encouragement!