July 6, 2008

Dear Brothers and Sisters of our Blessed Lord and Savior Jesus Christ:

This is the first letter we are writing from Lexington, Kentucky, in the USA. We - Marie, Asa Mark and I - left Manaus at 5:00 p.m. on the 12th of June. We arrived at the Lexington airport at 8:30 p.m. on the 13th. We were welcomed by our son, Stephen M., and our grandson, Stephen Mathew, by Pastor Mickey Hyder, and his son, Matthew, by my brother, Charles, and his wife, Reva, and their daughter Caroline Sue, and their granddaughter, Amy Lowell, and Brother Patrick Prather, member of Calvary Baptist Church, Richmond, Kentucky.

Since arriving, we have been asked more than once, "Did you have a good trip?" Yes, we did. We estimate that four hundred people from ten or twelve different Baptist churches of the Amazon told us "Boa Viagem" - thus wishing us a good trip.

This Mission Sheets month began June 10th and finished today, July 6th. During this period I preached three sermons. On Wednesday night the 11th of June, I preached my last sermon in Portuguese at the 24th of March Baptist Church.

We were expecting fifty people to be present, and behold, there were one hundred-sixty present! The New Jerusalem Baptist Church rented a bus and made the trip from Parana da Eva to Manaus. Some forty-four people came on the bus. It took them three hours to make the trip. There were perhaps nine more Baptist churches represented at our final service.

Several special numbers were sung by members of the New Jerusalem Baptist Church, at least one solo by one of the male members of the 24th of March Baptist Church, and two other sisters in the Lord sang - one member and one non-member. Then I preached. After that, supper was served to all who stayed. While we were eating supper, it rained and some of those eating got wet and then the lights went out for about thirty minutes. We got home and to bed around 11:30 p.m.

We are indebted to many of our brothers and sisters in the Lord, especially my co-pastor of the church, Ediberto Rebeiro da Silva. Pray for him as he now has the responsibility of the 24th of March Baptist Church and the interior church, the New Jerusalem Baptist Church.

The first sermon I preached in English was on Monday night the 16th of June, during the Bratcher-Porter reunion held at Rough River Dam Park in Grayson County, Western Kentucky. The leader, Charles Bratcher, also asked me to bring the second night's program to a close with a ten-minute sermon and a short prayer. I did as he asked.

The third sermon was this morning at the Heritage Baptist Church of Lexington, where Dr. Greg Waltermire is the pastor. He and nine other members left yesterday to visit missionary A.J. Hensley.

Besides us five Bratchers, some thirty-five more Bratchers or Porters attended the four-day reunion.

We five Bratchers arrived back in Lexington around noon on the 19th. On the morning of the 19th, we five drove to Richmond, where we were received from the Ladies Prayer Group of the Clarksville Baptist Church, at the home of Mrs. Ella J. Casey, a good supply of groceries to get us started.

During this Mission Sheets month, we heard seven sermons preached. Two of the seven were delivered by Asa Mark. On the 15th, at the David's Fork Baptist Church, Mickey Hyder, pastor, and on the 22nd at the Clarksville Baptist Church, Bradford Johns, pastor. On the 18th, we heard at Heritage Baptist Church the pastor, Dr. Greg Waltermire, preach. On the 25th, one of the laymen at Trinity Baptist Church brought a devotional message after supper and before a time of prayer. On the 29th, we heard both messages at Ashland Avenue Baptist Church, Pastor David E. Prince. Tonight we heard Dave Parks at Thompson Road Baptist Church. We are arriving at the end recording events not mentioned as yet.

On the 21st, Stephen M. and Stephen Matthew [both were a blessing to us], left us to return to their home in Ocala, Florida. On Sunday night of the 22nd, the three of us attended the Glen's Creek Baptist Church, Dr. Mike James, pastor, where I gave a report of our work in Manaus and then Asa Mark gave a more detailed report. On the 24th, Asa Mark, who helped us during our flight from Manaus to Lexington and here in the US as well, left us to return to Manaus. On the morning of the 26th and again on the 2nd of July, Brother Lewis Markham helped me buy groceries and medicines. On the 27th, Ann Burris of Heritage and Mrs. Nancy Hunter visited us. Ann Burris has several times been a blessing to Harold and Marie Bratcher. On the 30th, Pastor Ediberto da Silva phoned us from Manaus and informed us that Sister Aurea Belem Fragosa died on the 15th. She is now "absent from the body, present with the Lord." On the morning of July 1st, Dave Parks - the Lord bless him - spent more than two hours with us filling out our insurance forms and personal information for Marie and myself in preparation for our consultation with Dr. Grigsby [cardiologist] and Dr. William Reynolds [optometrist].

We thank the Lord and all of you readers of the Mission Sheets for the blessings we've received.

Yours in the Service of the Savior,

Harold and Marie Bratcher