Paul Sr. & Sharon Pritchard

Paul Sr. and Sharon Pritchard are missionaries with Baptist International Missions, Inc. (BIMI), serving in the country of Brazil since July 1979. Brother Pritchard was saved at a young age in a little country church in West Virginia in 1963. Sharon accepted the Lord at Hilltop Chapel Baptist Church during Vacation Bible School when she was eight years old. They met in high school and after dating for three years, they were married on September 20, 1969.

Paul and Sharon moved to Cleveland, Ohio, because of his job. The Lord was leading them and preparing them for what He had for their lives. They joined the West Side Independent Baptist Church on West 28th Street in Cleveland, Ohio. There the Lord began training them for His service, allowing them to teach in Sunday school and to work with the youth. The Pritchards expressed that working on visitation, bringing people to church, and seeing them saved were the greatest joys that one could ever experience.

On October 10, 1976, the Lord called Brother Pritchard to preach the Gospel. Being led of the Lord, the Pritchards, now with a family of five, moved to Greenville, South Carolina, to go to Bible college at Tabernacle Baptist College. There in a missions conference in May 1979, the Pritchards were called to the mission field of Brazil.

Paul and Sharon joined BIMI as missionaries to Brazil in July 1979. The Lord has blessed the ministries in Brazil in the churches established and the many souls who have trusted the Gospel. Men have been called into the ministry and are pastoring churches. Many others are serving in churches as teachers, in special services for children, and in nursing homes. Others are working in jails and rehabilitation centers.

The most recent new work was the completion of a church building in Aroreira, São Paulo. The pastor of this new work, Pastor Luis, was saved in their church, Igreja Batista Independente, and he graduated from the Bible college.

Through the ARM Personnel program, Brother Pritchard will continue helping the churches that he has started. He plans to travel to Brazil to assist and train the men whom the Lord has allowed to be a part of the ministry of the church in Jardinópolis, São Paulo, and to assist them in the continuing growth and starting of churches in that region of the country. Paul and Sharon are very thankful to all who financially support and pray for their ministry.

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