Dear Pastors and Praying Friends,
Behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which shall be to all people: We have raised enough support to head to the field!!! We are thrilled to see how God has provided for us over these last four months. He has heard your prayers (and ours) and has met our needs time and again. Just in the last two months, God has raised our support nearly 30%. What a miracle! Now begins a time of busy (read: frantic) preparation and transition. Through these coming months, though, we know that God will be with us and that He will take care of every detail, just as He has over the last twelve months. Allow me to give a summary of this past year.
-The entire year was spent in the U.S. raising needed support to get to Brazil.
-During this time of deputation, we were able to personally see over 50 souls trust Christ.
-There were at least 7 of these who followed the Lord in believer’s baptism.
-We traveled over 50,000 miles by van and over 16,000 by plane with nary an accident.
-We welcomed our second daughter Mahaela into the world.
-We coordinated the 40-day door-to-door campaign for the God Bless America Crusade in Charlotte, which saw us distribute over 600,000 pieces of Gospel literature and see 300+ people saved.
We thank each of you for your involvement in our ministry. We strive to be good stewards and represent the cause of Christ well. One brief soul-winning story: A few weeks ago, I was privileged to preach the Sunday morning service at a church. There was a seventeen-year-old first-time visitor that morning, and after church I was able to lead him to the Lord. With tears streaming down his cheeks, he told me he couldn’t understand why God would love someone who had messed up as badly as he had. Yet he gladly received the free gift of salvation and forgiveness. What a great Christmas present to get—eternal life!
Would you please pray with us for some specific needs we have over these next 4 weeks: (1) our visas to get approved, (2) a quick solution to our housing needs down there, (3) grace in learning the language—our goal is to be competent in six months, (4) churches that have pledged support over the past year to officially begin sending their support, (5) God’s leading in where to start our first church, (6) safety, and (7) peace that only God can give as we say goodbye to friends and loved ones.
Thank you so all so much for making a positive impact on our lives and ministry. We want to be and do the same for those in our sphere of influence in Brazil. We pray that you have a Merry Christmas and that your New Year will be blessed and productive.
Declaring His glory,
Wesley Palla
Psalm 96:3