• Over a week ago Dan and a team held a “church” service in the town they have been helping to rebuild.

  They had several of their people give testimonies and some preaching. The group started with about 50 people in attendance and there were over 70 by the end. They met in the town building that Dan and team helped clean up at the very beginning. The Russian miliary had used it as their headquarters. They are sharing in the lives of these people as they work to clear debris and then rebuild walls. The stories are sad, but they are bringing Christ in the midst of this.

• Dan and Priscilla’s church team also had a day camp for kids this last week in their town that was well attended and the Gospel was presented many times in many different ways. Between 50 and 65 children attended plus parents. It touches my heart just to think of the joy of those parents to watch their children have fun, like “normal” life.

 

 

Report from one pastor

• One friend, Shane, went to a city towards the east, Mikolaev where Abe has ministered many times to supply one of the churches with humanitarian aid. The Russian army is not that far away and they could hear missiles falling while they were there. The city has already has been ravaged with huge loss and destruction. It has been without power and water for most of the war time, and had only just had their electricity turned on and a ‘type of water’, as the pastor put it, yellow and full of salt. But the good news is that this church which has been despised as a cult (any church which is not orthodox is automatically classified that way) has now become a hub of peace, safety and refuge. Prior to the war, 80-100 people would come of a Sunday, now they have to hold two services each Sunday, both holding well over 200 people.  They are passing out aid to the people, but people are listening intently.

• We also just got good news about our grandson Jesse for whom many of you have been praying. He has been slowly improving over the last two months and is no longer bed ridden even though he has very limited strength. His Aunt Sarah had written about some of her problems and the diet and supplements she uses, and it seems that he is responding to that. Praise the Lord!

• AND we just had a vibrant weekend at a church conference that blew us away! Yes, tiring to always being meeting people (and remembering names and faces) but renewing with the worship, with the speakers and with the vision of moving forward. May God be praised! There were representatives from Hispanic congregations, African, Nepalese and Taiwanese! A special joy to a missionary’s heart

PRAYER

• Dan and Priscilla have someone coming Tuesday to see if they can dig a well that will provide abundant water, and good water. This has been an ongoing issue. They know how to conserve water! I can remember my grandson (Jesse!) many years ago saying, “Why would anyone let the water run while they were brushing their teeth!!” (Whoops! Guilty!!) Please pray that this would be successful. They also have a system to collect rain water, but July and August tend to be dry months and they have been hauling a lot of water—time consuming and backbreaking.

• Russian aggression continues even though there is much less reporting about it going on in the west. Media moves on to other things as they try to keep people’s attention. Our challenge is to keep the need before you so that all of us will continue to pour out the need before the throne of God. There are fears that Russia may attack again from Belarus. Russia have made laws that no one can speak against the government and will be fined or imprisoned for doing so. They have launched multiple missiles across Ukraine again this last week. The carnage continues relentlessly. I would say in your prayer focus for Ukraine, pray right now that people, especially believers!, would not give in to fear. Russia is doing everything they can to instill fear in people. The Ukrainian president warned people a couple days ago not to listen to all the rumors and give in to fear. Easier said than done.

But all of us understand fear. We understand that the Bible tells us over and over not to fear. Why? Because – God. We have hope, and we have a caring and loving and good God. And we can trust Him to walk with us through the fire. He says He will be with us. He does not say He will keep the fire away from us, that He will lead us only on easy paths. Pray that believers all across Ukraine will put these words into practice, and show what it is to have the peace of God in the midst of the fires of war. The pastor in Mikolaev who was mentioned above is living that out. Missiles have hit every adjacent building to their church and the shock waves were so great that it blew out the front door. But he and many people in his church have chosen to stay, even though they could flee. Instead they are sharing the love of God with their community. They have the peace of God.

Published: 18 July 2022

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