Donna:

” Abide in Me and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself , except it abide in the vine; no more can ye except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.” John 15:4,5

   It is a pleasure to walk through the vineyards at our place and see them abounding with so many colours and varieties of grapes!  We remember Jesus’ words regarding the allegory of He being the vine and we being the branches.This directs us towards the importance of remaining connected to Christ, the TRUE VINE for maintaining a fruitful spiritual life. We must meditate on His word. An important point to remember is that once the branch is separated from the vine it no longer bears fruit and is ready to be cast into the fire and be burned.  We perform this exercise each spring as we prune the old branches and burn them in the fire. It is an annual cycle to help the vines bring forth more fruit. Lord help us not to be like these old ,dead branches… Spiritual truths revealed in nature!

Thank the Lord we have had an abundant harvest of grapes this year and besides eating them we have been sharing them with friends and neighbors. We also had an abundant fig harvest,  and together with the grapes we are in the process of drying them in the sun. It is a learning process, getting better all the time. We set up a new greenhouse cover as the old one was thrashed after 2 years of harsh weather conditions,  and it houses our dried fruits as well as future planting projects.

It was another warm dry month and we invested a lot of time setting up the irrigation systems. We pumped up the water from the ponds as the water level in the well is getting very low.  We finally had one day of rain, however not enough to keep the baby trees alive!   We still have to irrigate almost daily and we thank God for the water that we do have!

   Joana came from Macau to work with the Macau Roadshow in Lisbon. The center of the event was in the iconic Praça de Comércio, which held live shows and cultural performances. They also had nightly drone shows and an opening fireworks display. Jason also was onboard, talking with people about Macau as was Joana, offering free gifts to participants!  It was great to have family time with Joana again in Lisbon! 

   The birthday congratulations go to Nuno and Selen this month! We are happy to find them both in good health and spirits, challenged in their work situations and life goals. We pray they have a blessed year ahead and the gift of wisdom to handle all of the challenges that life will present to them this year! 

   Jorge and I attended the wedding of Uncle Fernando’s son, João, and his lovely wife Patricia. It was a grand affair and we were able to catch up with other family members during the celebration. What a lovely moment to see two people promise to have and to hold, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do us part.  We pray for God’s blessing upon their union. 

   One of our favorite things about September is that the morning sunrise and evening sunsets are spectacular!   I can’t explain why scientifically, but for some reason around 7am and 7 pm,  the display begins and we are blessed with gorgeous skies! The rays of the sun and the reflection on the clouds produces a  divine colorful display and we have the privilege of front row seats! “The heavens declare the glory of God and the firmament showeth his handiwork”! 

Love

Images of the month:

Farm scenes:

Joana’s visit:

Hope to see you picture here next month.

Love

J & D