Passing on the Hope

When Renata da Silva Moura learned that she had cancer, she thought her life was over. But God used the circumstances of that diagnosis to give her the hope of a new life and a way of passing on that hope to others.

Renata, who lives in São Paulo, Brazil, came to know the Lord through the Disque Paz (Dial Peace) Portuguese-language outreach of Back to God Ministries International. You may have read her story in the July 2007 Banner. At that time, Renata’s prognosis was unknown, but she had found peace in Christ.

We asked Banner readers and those who use the CRC Prayer Guide to pray for Renata and her husband, João, who at that time did not know Jesus as his Lord and Savior. God heard and answered your prayers!

Renata wrote to us that João has since committed his life to Christ. “It was thrilling, because he is now living the process of conversion. Each day the Lord has been molding his heart and I believe a lot more will be done, because he seeks to be in the presence of the Lord.”

Renata’s sister Maria, who had moved to São Paulo to help care for her, went into a deep depression. “She didn’t know anyone, she hid from people,” Renata reported. “But the Lord Jesus performed a miracle in Maria’s life as well. Today she is teaching 5th- to 8th-grade students in a country school near our hometown three times a week.”

And what about Renata? All the tests reveal that her cancer is in remission. “The doctor congratulated me, but I said all the honor belongs to God.”

Renata is now working as a volunteer for Disque Paz, the very ministry that led her to the Lord. “I have a feeling of love for others and a realization that others suffer because they don’t have God to walk with them through life. I want to be able to give a word of hope to those who suffer.

“I go to the hospital where I was treated and talk to people about my difficulties—about how I felt when the doctor told me the result of my biopsy, and how I started listening to the Disque Paz messages. I tell them about the hope that grew in my heart because I found that there is a God who loves and cares for me. When I talk about Jesus, it lifts their spirits and gives them hope.”

Renata thanks all those who prayed for her: “Jesus freed me from the hands of death. Today I am a new being. Sometimes I don’t feel so well, but I know it’s temporary. I ask that you keep praying for me.”

Renata dreams that someday God will allow her and João to have children, but trusts God’s will for her life. For now it is enough that, “the Lord Jesus transformed my sorrow into victory” and that he is using her to pass on the hope of Christ to others.