Greeting from Brazil

Dear Friends,

Greetings from Campinas , Brazil ! I trust you are doing well.
Praise God for technology that allows us to communicate, even though we are thousands ofmiles and five time zones apart!

Thanks for your prayers regarding my trip to Brazil. The Lord blessed me with a safe,
smooth flight; but, I have to tell you.......It was a long one! But, nevertheless, it was safe and smooth, and, for this, I am grateful.

Thursday was a busy day. I arrived in Sao Paulo at 730am (2:30am your time). It took a long time for me to make my way thru Customs. I finally got out of the airport at around 930am. I was met by Pastor Eneas (host pastor), along with his Superintendent and 4 other Pastors from his District. They have really welcomed me with open arms. Their hospitality is awesome!

From the airport, we drove 2 hours to the city of Campinas , which is were I am staying at a hotel. The hotels over here are decent. However, its certainly not the Hilton or Marriott.However, I am grateful for a place to lay my head down. The weather is very warm, sticky and humid. The only air-conditioning is inside of my room.

We arrived in Campinas around 1130am. At 12 noon, we went to a local bible college that also serves as a local radio station. It is there that we did a live radio interview for the conference and leadership workshop. We had 12 people who called the program to say that they would be coming to the Pastors Leadership Workshop on Saturday morning. The Dean of the Bible College asked me to please come back to his college on Friday night to address 100 of his students, and to personally invite them to the Leadership Workshop. I was very humbled by the invitation. I look forward to this opportunity.

After doing the radio interview, we went and ate at a Brazilian restaurant. The food was great! Brazilians really like to eat a lot of meat. It’s Friday, and I still feel very stuffed.

From there, I went back to the room to sleep for a few hours, before going to the first service (Thursday Night) that I had to preach. There were about 100 people present. The worship was awesome! Even though I couldn’t understand their language, I could sense the presence of God in our midst as the people cried out to God in passionate, intense worship. I suddenly came into a profound awareness of the fact that worship is a language that unifies the Body of Christ in powerful ways. Even though we could not understand one another without an interpreter, we connected with God and each other thru a heart that was passionate about worshipping God, who is Father of us all.

After worship, the pastor introduced me to the congregation. I preached the Word as best as I knew how. It’s hard to explain, but, as I preached, I felt an intense love begin to well up in my heart for the people who were present. It was definitely not a human love. It was God’s love that was flowing out of me towards His people. To make a long story short, the message was well received. The altar was jammed packed. I must have laid hands and prayed for everybody in the whole church. Six people gave their hearts to the Lord, and several testified of how the Lord ministered to them in powerful ways. Praise God!

From the service, we went to eat dinner at the Pastor’s house, which was in walking distance from the church. Again, great food and great hospitality! We enjoyed ourselves, and, once again, ate very much. I am sure I have gained at least 10 pounds since being here. You may not recognize me when I return home.

Today is Friday. I’ve been resting for the greater part of the day. I am glad I didn’t have to speak at the conference today or tonight. I will be going back to the bible college this evening to address the students, as well as to invite them to tomorrow’s leadership workshop. I really look forward to my time with them. I pray the Lord encourages them thru my words. After my time with the students, I will be returning to the evening service at the church.

Tomorrow is Saturday. Saturday will be a busy day. I have to lead the leadership workshop for the Pastors and other Christian leaders in the area, which, for me, will probably be the best part of my trip. I am also scheduled to preach at Friday evening’s service as well. Please pray the Lord bless our time of ministry. Pray that His presence and power will be mighty in the services.

Sunday morning will be my last opportunity to minister while here. I’m told that the church in Brazil usually does not meet for worship on Sunday mornings. Their custom is to worship the Lord on Sunday evenings. However, they have planned this special service to hear the Word of God thru this young pastor from America . Pastor Eneas says that he expects his church to be packed with people. So, once again, I solicit your prayers.

In any case, I will be returning home on Sunday after the service. My flight leaves Brazil Sunday evening, and is expected to arrive in Los Angeles Monday at noon. Please pray the Lord give us a safe and smooth flight.
Thanks again for your prayers and support while I’m away. I really didn’t intend on writing such a long email. However, I guess my heart is really full right now. This has been a great experience, and I wish all of you were here with me.

Thanks again for your prayers and support. I look forward to seeing you soon and giving you the rest of the details concerning my time of ministry here in Brazil .

Have a blessed day of worship on Sunday. Give God your best, and God will bless you and our church in powerful ways.


I love you, and I’m praying for you.


Pastor H