Reports: The Elijah Challenge in Brazil
The town of Bofete (about 10,000 in population according to 2010 census) is nestled in the hills of western Sao Paulo State. Roman Catholicism, mixed with heavy dose of idolatry, is strong there. Discrimination by Catholics against evangelicals is evident. We were told that one Catholic woman refused to sell bread to a believer. Evangelical churches are relatively few and small. But the Lord began to work there. With the encouragement of the ministry of the Visitation of God, pastors of different evangelical churches came together in unity for the very first time to pray and to minister together.
At the first Elijah Challenge Training, we felt a spiritual coldness and a relative lack of receptivity. Nevertheless the Lord was gracious to touch two ladies with heart conditions. Both were able to run/walk normally after being ministered to and without getting short of breath.
Present while the two women were being ministered to was a local Assembly of God pastor named Regis who according to his doctor was suffering from a degenerated hip joint. He was in pain and walked with difficulty. Elaine, our Visitation of God host, was sitting next to him during that demonstration of healing. Elaine stretched out her hand, laying it on Regis’ hip. She rebuked the infirmity in Jesus’ name and commanded the hip joint to be healed in Jesus’ name. Regis then discovered that the pain in his hip joint had vanished and he was able to walk normally.
Following the morning training sessions, the disciples went door-to-door in Bofete to heal the sick and proclaim the kingdom of God. Below are two striking miracles among others which were reported.
Very unusual miracle of deliverance
A woman had been unable to open her mouth and therefore could not talk for two years. During one of the home-to-home visitations in the afternoons, a team of trained disciples showed up at her door. They ministered to her in Jesus’ name. Her jaw began to loosen, but she was still unable to speak. Strangely, the next morning she discovered in her house a frog with its mouth sewn completely shut. She caught the frog and removed the stitches from its mouth. That evening she came to the service and the trained disciples ministered to her again. This time she was completely set free and delivered, testifying in rapid-fire words. (We believe this woman may have been the victim of a curse via witchcraft.)
The disciples also visited a man who had lost his eyesight because of diabetes. His lower leg was discolored black and there were open sores on his feet. When they ministered to him, his vision was restored, the color returned to his leg, and the sores began to heal.
Sharing at radio station before evening evangelistic healing service
On the second evening people gathered to hear the gospel and to be healed of their infirmities on the basketball court of a local school gymnasium.
We preached the gospel from Mark 2, and boldly ministered to the sick to demonstrate that Jesus Christ has authority to forgive sin and grant eternal life. The first two people were ladies who suffered from heart conditions. One could not run without running out of strength and breath. The other was forbidden by her doctor to pick up anything over 5 kg in weight. After the sisters ministered to them, the one was able to run back and forth across the court several times without feeling tired or out of breath. The other woman picked up a young adult woman twice, the second time for five seconds. She looked and felt fine afterwards.
God had demonstrated through the miracles that Jesus has authority to forgive sin and to deliver from the power of sin.
After that many more infirm people came forward to be ministered to by the trained disciples. Many of them testified that the Lord healed them as the disciples laid hands on them.
People accepted Christ during the evening—including the owner of our hotel and her worker.
During this Visitation of God in Bofete, approximately fifty people were healed and thirty people accepted Jesus Christ.