Iowa missionary recovering

Good news!

Des Moines, July 28th, 2005 -An Iowa missionary continues to recover after being shot multiple times in Brazil. John Leonard just got out of intensive care this week. He nearly died after being shot in the arm and the mouth back on July 3. The closest hospital was an hour away, and then it took six days before he could get on a plane and fly home to Iowa.

"After the service I went out and the guy said whose Pastor John I said 'That's me, how you doing?' He shot me, I can't put a face to him - I've tried to." It only took a second for John Leonard's life to change. He was shot at least two times. One bullet fractured his arm. The other went into his mouth and injured his spinal cord. "I praise the lord for the prayers that everyone's been sending out for us, for our family, for the men who did this to me because I've forgiven them" Leonard told Channel 13.

John has been a missionary in Brazil for 20 years. He and his wife worked in a small fishing village. They started churches and government housing projects, doing whatever they could to make life better for the people who live there. "It's a real dark place, about an hour away on a dirt road to the nearest hospital. A lot of prostitution. A lot of drugs," says Leonard. He and his wife were making big changes in the small village and that, he believes is what led to the shooting. "I don't have any enemies. I would say the only person that would have done this is one of the drug lords."

He's having surgery again tomorrow to stabilize his spine, the article says. Keep praying for him. The church (Saylorville Baptist) that supports him is looking for a place to house his family as well, so that's also something to pray about.

Mission work often gets a bad rap because of the mistakes made by missionaries a hundred years ago (who forced people to Westernize), but nowadays they're bringing hope and recovery to people groups all over the world without forcing them to become Americans in the process. The real, authentic good news of forgiveness in Jesus is one that resonates across all cultures.