Ministering from House to House in the Slums
During the week, some of the team had the opportunity to go house to house in the City of God favela to minister and pray with the people. Jill and Tom, along with two members of an Iris team, and Paulo from Casa de Jesus, walked through the windy and narrow alleys of the favela. We were able to enter five homes to pray and release God’s Kingdom. One of the highlights was meeting Rosa, a strong believer and a real intercessor for the people in the community. She has a son who is addicted to drugs so we prayed for his freedom and healing. Rosa shared with us that she has some financial problems, and a strong desire for a greater release of faith. As we prayed for her, Jill had a vision of her tears being caught in a glass bowl and the Lord was saying that her tears are not wasted; that He is catching every one of them. Rosa was in tears when she heard this vision, and was especially delighted to learn that she is so loved of the Lord that He sent visitors from 5,000 miles away to pray for her.
Our last visit was to the home of one of our truly special children, Gabriel. Gabriel’s parents are both in prison and he lives with his grandmother and at least four other siblings in a one-room house not more than 150 square feet. Gabriel has been with us each day and we have all fallen in love him, despite his many behavioral problems. As we entered the home, four tall young men walked out smelling of alcohol. We recognized a couple of them as being members of the drug gang that basically runs the favela. We were able to release the Presence of God’s Spirit into the very dark atmosphere of that home. We prayed that Gabriel’s grandmother would receive healing for diabetes, and that her faith would be strengthened (she had shared that it felt to her like God had abandoned her). We also prayed for Gabriel, releasing life and the Father’s heart over him.
It was a great privilege to see how God is bringing hope and life into the favela as people whose hearts He has moved are partnering with Him to release His love there.