Team Brazil Update: A Time for Reflection, Gratitude, and Thankfulness

“I thank my God always on your behalf, for the grace of God
which is given you by Jesus Christ.”
(I Corinthians 1:4)

Greetings from Taubaté, Brazil! Last week was Thanksgiving, a time for reflection, gratitude, and thankfulness expressed to our Lord and Saviour. I am so grateful to each one of you. I’m thankful to be part of the same family in Christ. I’m thankful for how God is using you to reach your Jerusalem. I’m especially thankful for your love, prayers, and support towards me, my family, and our ministry. When I think of your sacrificial giving and your love towards us, I am humbled and motivated to continue marching against the gates of Hell on our Saviour’s behalf. The Lord continues to be good to us. Here is an update of what He has been doing in our ministry:

Brief Stay in the States

This summer, my family and I went to the States to be with my mother-in-law, as she had surgery and was going through several difficult things in her life. While we were there, she got COVID, and then my family and I all got it as well. Thankfully, we all recovered well, and my family and I returned safely to Brazil.

New Life Baptist Church Youth Evangelistic Conference

In the month of July, our church had its first Youth Conference. It was a six-day evangelistic conference, reaching out to the youth in our city. The Lord blessed with 30 – 45 teens every night, 62 visitors throughout the week, and 12 decisions for Christ. Several of those teens have continued coming to our youth meetings and regular services.

Wings Bearing Precious Seed Trip

In September, a group of 21 people came from the States with my brother Allen Johnson’s ministry, Wings Bearing Precious Seed, for the Bibles 4 Brazil campaign. During their time here, they helped distribute John and Romans, as well as invitations leading up to a Youth Rally on that Saturday morning and our 6th Anniversary Conference on that Saturday evening and Sunday. Leading up to the conference, our church, together with their group, passed out over 40,000 John and Romans and invitations. That Saturday morning, we had over 60 teens come to the Youth Rally, and there were 10 decisions for Christ. That Saturday night, we broke our attendance record with 211 people present and saw several decisions for Christ. During the conference, we had 3 of our 4 highest attendances ever and had over 70 first-time visitors! All in all during that week, there were 24 professions of faith! To God be the glory!

Day of the Dead

On November 2, Brazil has a Catholic holiday called Finados (“Deceased”). Thousands go to the cemeteries to visit deceased family members and relatives. Our church also goes out to the cemetery, but we go to pass out John and Romans and to testify. We were not able to go last year because of COVID restrictions, but we were there this year. We had a large participation from our church members. We were able to distribute thousands of John and Romans and saw three professions of faith.

Camp/Youth Conference

This past weekend, 50 people from our church went to a yearly family camp we usually participate in. It was a great blessing, with many decisions made. I also had the opportunity to preach at a Youth Conference. There were over 150 teens present, and I preached on the theme of “The Call of God.” Nineteen teenagers surrendered their lives to full-time Christian service!

Nehemiah Project

We are very thankful for the new larger space the Lord has provided for us to rent. It has allowed us to continue to grow while we continue trying to raise funds to purchase a piece of property. Right now, the dollar is at an all-time high, and it is a great time to invest. If you would like to contribute towards this need, you can make out a check payable to BIMI. Specify that it is for the Nehemiah Project in Account #1293, and send it to P.O. Box 9, Harrison, TN 37341.

Keep on Keeping On

Our church had a Thanksgiving service the last Sunday evening of the month of November, where all we did was thank the Lord for Who He is and what He has done. Our church family is very thankful to God for you, and we are anticipating that day where we will be all assembled together as the bride of Christ after the Rapture! Until then, there is a lot of work to be done. Let’s keep on keeping on.

In the service of the King,

The Ed Johnson Family
Church-Planting Missionaries in Brazil Since 2008