by Bob Spencer,
CinA Vice President
Latin America Director

As a former missionary to Brazil, my antennae went up when I heard that Fort Lauderdale, Florida, has over 100,000 Brazilians. In March, I scheduled a stop there on my way to Brazil. I had no more than the name of a Brazilian and hopes of an opportunity to share our vision for world evangelism.

When I arrived in the Deerfield area I felt like I was already in Brazil; Brazilian signs and restaurants besides people everywhere speaking Portuguese! Then I met my contact, Pastor Noe Rosa, who oversees thirty-six Brazilian-American churches on the East Coast. After a brief introduction, he realized the purpose of my visit. “This is God!” He said. “Tonight our church is beginning a week of personal evangelism among Brazilians and I want you to lead us!” The next day Altair and Roberta, Brazilian missionaries from the Boston area, joined me. Their heart’s desire and ministry emphasis has been in the area of personal evangelism also. I couldn’t deny that God had sent us to Ft. Lauderdale, nor I could have imagined the blessings that awaited us.

Each morning and evening we met for prayer with Pastor Rosa and his church, then immediately headed for one of several public areas the church had planned to reach. So many people were prepared by God’s Spirit to make a life-changing decision for Christ! We listened to the crises in their lives, simply told them how Jesus Christ could make the difference, and God did the rest.

Nearly every day we went to a shopping area where hundreds of Brazilians were hoping to meet with contractors and find work for a day or a week. Their stories were very similar. Most had been smuggled into the USA by a Brazilian mafia with promises they would soon have great jobs and more money than they could spend. In reality they were abandoned by those that brought them illegally to the USA, except for continuous threats that they must pay the $15,000 fee or suffer the consequences. These men and women know they are dealing with serious criminals, so they fear for their lives and for their families back in Brazil.

Roberta (in white blouse), a Brazilian friend from Boston, talks with a woman in the same predicament as the men.

At the end of the week, Pastor Rosa’s church held a friendship dinner; 41 of the men and women who had prayed to receive Christ with us during our week of evangelism came to have fellowship. I spoke with Pastor Rosa recently and he said many are continuing to come to church and some are becoming strong converts as a result. Several church members remarked that they had never realized what a great mission field they had in their own backyard.

There are over 100 Brazilian churches in the Deerfield area alone. Pastor Rosa told me that although these churches have the resources, they often do not have the motivation to get involved in missionary work and world evangelism. The icing on the cake was during my last service in Pastor Rosa’s central church. As he introduced me to preach that evening he said, “Let’s pray God will open the doors for Bob and Lottie to move here soon and I promise to personally go to California and help them make the move!”

Bob Spencer (brown jacket) with several Brazilians who are listening intently to the Gospel.

Home | Ministry News | Newsletter | Short Term | Ministry Resources | Training
Sister Church | Prayer Bulletin | Ministry Needs | Donations | Contact Us | Privacy Policy