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October-November, 2000 Bible Institute We started up our Bible Institute again on October 3rd, after we got settled in from our recent move, and all is going well. The students were all anxious to "hit the books" again and despite the interrupted schedule they all passed their mid-term exams. I just finished teaching the book of Romans and will begin the book of John after final exams. Susan started teaching the students how to play the piano and I have been giving them lessons in evangelistic song-leading. Please continue to pray for the students as they are all very hungry to learn the Bible and about working in the ministry. Church Planting Since arriving here in September we have been able to start two churches. We have a home church near where we live and another one in a village about a 30-minute drive from here. In the village we showed the film, "Armageddon" and 150 people came out for that first meeting. Praise the Lord! Many have been faithful and many new people are starting to come out to both churches. We are in the process of making arrangements in other areas for meetings after the Christmas holidays, Lord willing, we would like to get more churches going. The Lord has given us a vision to see a number of churches started in one year. Medical Supplies I handed a tract to the grandson of a woman, and while he was reading it, Susan and I struck up a conversation with her and found out she was a doctor at a regional hospital for children with epilepsy and mental retardation. That was the open door we needed to get into the hospital and to be a real help with the medical supplies. Later we were able to give the hospital some much needed medical supplies from what was sent to us by our supporters. You never know how the Lord will work. Right now we are also helping an orphanage and a small clinic with some medical supplies. We hope to be a blessing to other hospitals and orphanages in the surrounding communities in the near future. A Cup of Cold Water Recently we have been able to buy and give out some much-needed articles of winter clothing to the poor people in the village where we have started a church. We have given out woolen scarves, gloves, hats and socks. These people do not have any heat in their houses. In one case we gave an old man, Ivan, who helps us set up for our meetings, a brand new hat and a winter coat. He was thrilled. We were told that giving gifts to people you don't know is unheard of in this country. Tract and Printing Ministry We have printed and begun to hand out gospel tracts again. Praise the Lord! We have seen some responses in the mail already, many from young people. We are teaching one of the young men in our Institute to help with the printing. We have also printed off some of the old-fashioned camp meeting hymns in the Russian language. The people in our churches love to sing and these songs are a real treat for them since all they have ever been exposed to is minor key music. Many of the young people know enough English so we are able to sing the hymns in both languages. Salvations Susan led two young girls to the Lord after I preached a salvation message at our newest church. These girls came up to Susan afterward and told her that they were sinners and they needed Jesus Christ. Unfortunately the girls mothers are opposed to them attending church since they got saved. We visited one of the mothers and I tried to talk with her but she would not change her mind. Please pray for Svetlana (age 13) and Alona (age 11) that they will be able to come out again like they want to. Needs Due to closing of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant the electricity may soon be shut off across the country during the late afternoon and early evening hours affecting our services so we are looking to purchase a generator to keep us up and running. Also, if anyone has any information on video projectors as to what would be a good deal we would appreciate knowing so we can get one for our evangelistic outreach. Prayer requests Permanent meeting places once we get churches established and regular meetings going. Right now we are renting large houses of culture that are unheated. We thank God for the people that come, but they do get very cold. The salvation of our friends: Natasha, our translator for the Bible Institute; Sergei, Andrei, and Alex our regular taxi drivers and their families; Valentina, the lady doctor at the children's hospital. Opportunities to present our Christmas pageant and to tell people about Christ this holiday season at hospitals, orphanages and wherever else the Lord would have us to go. Surrendered godly men to help in the ministry. There is great opportunity here and a great need for men who will be helpful and a blessing in the work. Our Sincere Thanks Many of you have requested an updated prayer card or picture of us. We are doing our best to accommodate you. We hope to be able to have some pictures sent out around the Christmas holidays. We want to thank you for your patience in this matter and hope that this will be a blessing to you. We are truly grateful for all the prayers on our behalf during these past months. We really needed them and we want you to know they were appreciated. Please continue to pray that God will give us an open door that no man can shut while we are here. Reminder ALL correspondence should be addressed to us and sent to our home church, First Bible Baptist Church, 949 Lincoln Avenue, Lockport, New York, 14094, and they will forward it to us. Please keep us informed of any address changes so we can update our mailing list ensuring that you will continue to receive pictures and prayer letters from us. Thank you so much for your cooperation. Sincerely in Christ, |