WORD OF THE DAY - Friday 23 October 2009

Let not your heart envy sinners, but be fervent in the fear of the LORD all the day long. For surely there is a hereafter, and your hope will not be cut off. (Proverbs 23:17)

Да не завидует сердце твое грешникам, но да пребудет оно во все дни в страхе Господнем; потому что есть будущность, и надежда твоя не потеряна. (Притчи 23:17-18 Russian)

Great and Mighty God, Our Dear Heavenly Father ~ Thank you for this day on which we receive numerous blessings and opportunities to do good deeds that honor and glorify our King of Kings. Give us wisdom and strength so that we will not look longingly at the so-called ‘good life’ that many people chase after at the cost of their own souls. We pray in Jesus name, Amen.

Here are some photos of our visit to the Nikolaev Pedagogical University on Wednesday, 21 October before we left on Thursday to Rostov, Russia. We returned to Nikolaev safe but exhausted, and our mission was accomplished to leave Ukraine and re-enter, thus achieving a new stamp in our passports and extension of our stay. I plan to tell more about this not uneventful trip tomorrow.

WORD OF THE DAY - Wednesday 21 October 2009

“And I say to you, ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and it will be opened to you.” (Luke 11:9)

И Я скажу вам: просите, и дано будет вам; ищите, и найдете; стучите, и отворят вам. (От Луки 11:9 Russian)

Almighty God, our Dear Father in Heaven ~ Thank you for the numerous uplifting benefits that greet us on this new day. Give us wisdom to recognize what is pure and holy so that we will concentrate our energies on things of the greatest value to ourselves and others. Fill us with your Holy Spirit as we obey Jesus as Lord. In Christ name we pray, Amen.

Our Tuesday night Bible study went very well. It is truly remarkable that these dear people will come out under such difficult rainy weather conditions. We even had two more come in late to check us out. After my lesson dealing with 'what it means to be a Christian', Evgenia had an excellent question about the Lord's Supper.
We spent the majority of the day dealing with a problem regarding our visas. In the first part of this month, we visited the office of local police that deals with foreigners and other visa and passport issues. She said to come back five days before the date when we would be in Ukraine for 90 days, and she would extend our stay. That is why we were there first thing in the morning yesterday. We know from many similar experiences that things can change suddenly. And they did. This person who was in charge of the Nikolaev office decided she needed to consult with a higher up and that person told her that we must have our landlady appear with us to vouch that we indeed have rented that apartment and are living there. We came back to the flat and talked to our neighbor the landlady, and she did not want to go to the police about anything. That is not uncommon in countries of the former Soviet Union. The only option we have is to leave Ukraine and then return. Hence, late today we will catch an overnight bus to Rostov-na-Donu, Russia. We chose Rostov because it is the shortest bus ride - 15 hours. Even though my multi-entry visa to Ukraine does not expire until 2012, the problem lays in the fact that Ukraine law only allows us to be in their territory 90 days at a time on this type visa. So, we leave and when we return we will be given a new immigration card for another 90 days. It is a complication that many travelers who stay for extended periods have to deal with. We chose to go to Russia because we both have multi-entry religious work visas to Russia. We thought about taking a train to Moscow and visiting some people there, but that is a 30 hour train ride and a stay in Moscow for one night will eat up much of our expenses. We considered Moldova or Romania that are closer to Nikolaev, but both of those countries require that we have a valid visa. We will try to make the most of this short visit to Rostov. Igor Egirev helped our campaign group as an interpreter when we began the church in Magadan. He was born in the northern Magadan region, and converted to Christ there in Rostov and served the church as a preacher for several years. Even though we will not get to see him since he now lives and works in St. Petersburg, we will at least have some connection to the brothers and sisters there in case we have any spare time to visit with them. Our main mission is to get a stamp in our passports showing that we left Ukraine, entered Russia and re-entered Ukraine. Jesus didn't say we would be without complications when He said, Go! However, we have boldness since we are promised His abiding presence. We hope and pray that we will be back in Nikolaev in time for our dear children who come to the Saturday Bible Class. We sincerely appreciate your prayers for our safety and success.

WORD OF THE DAY - Monday 05 October 2009

Another parable he spoke to them; “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast, which a woman took and mixed into three measures of flour, until the whole batch was leavened.” (Matthew 13:33)

Our Dear Heavenly Father ~ Thank you for the startling abundance of blessings on this new day that arrives with new challenges to our faith and perseverance. Give us wisdom to perceive and apply the truth that Jesus teaches regarding the powerful influence of the church when we eagerly carry the message of salvation to all people of the world. Renew our confidence in the belief that when people sincerely obey the gospel, their lives are positively changed forever as they follow Jesus as Lord. In Christ name we pray, Amen.

Иную притчу сказал Он им: Царство Небесное подобно закваске, которую женщина, взяв, положила в три меры муки, доколе не вскисло всё. (От Матфея 13:33 Russian)

We had 20 people in our worship services yesterday! Afolabi gave up his seat and stood for most of the service. This was the first Sunday that we had that many to assemble to worship God and hear the message of the gospel. Yuri and Sveta the owners of a small dairy farm about an hour's drive away were with us again. Before our worship, Yuri told about their experience at a seminar conducted by a church of Christ in Donetsk where Alexander Prokopchuk preaches. The seminar was held in the historic city of Feodosia. That is in Crimea. Alexander also has a weekly TV broadcast that goes to all of Ukraine. Natalya, whom we met at our old location, came with her husband and they brought her friend Evgenia. Zhenya 'came forward' at the conclusion of the service and we studied with her for almost 2 hours. This young woman recently read all of the New Testament and the Psalms and is sincerely seeking the truth. We have another appointment with her this afternoon. Before the worship services, we had 4 children that attended our Sunday morning Bible class. They asked if they could stay for the worship. They assured us that they have their parents’ permission. Prior to the service, each one of them recited their memory verse for yesterday. It was a moving moment. We have much activity planned for this week. Your prayers are very important.

WORD OF THE DAY - Friday 03 Spetember 2009

Blessed is he that considers the poor: the LORD will deliver him in time of trouble. The LORD will preserve him, and keep him alive; and he shall be blessed upon the earth, and you will not deliver him unto the will of his enemies. (Psalm 41:1-2)

‘Начальнику хора. Псалом Давида.’ Блажен, кто помышляет о бедном! В день бедствия избавит его Господь. Господь сохранит его и сбережет ему жизнь; блажен будет он на земле. И Ты не отдашь его на волю врагов его. (Псалтирь 41:1-2 Russian Synodal Version)

Almighty God, our Eternal and Generous Father in Heaven ~ Thank you for the abundance of blessings that we enjoy on this new day that dawns with increasing evidence of you supreme kindness toward all creation. Give us wisdom to discern the true needs of the poor that are living in all societies – often surrounded by people with great wealth. Help us to realize the constant benefit of helping those who are poor and beaten down. In Jesus name, Amen.

The vast fruit and vegetable markets around Ukraine offer an abundance of fresh produce for those with available cash. Not all people have ready and available money when they need food, so they go around looking for scraps. We witnessed two young men in pitiful clothing at a well known restaurant where diners were enjoying themselves at sidewalk tables. These boys would watch from a distance, and when a group got up to leave they would rush over and grab the leftovers and drink what was left of the sodas and eat the remainder of the fries and pieces of the burgers. It was disturbing, and we approached them and bought them something fresh to eat. They were so accustomed to this kind of poverty that they were very suspicious of our attempt at kindness. We think we might have eventually got through to them. Some elderly here and in other parts of the world are often forgotten or ignored by those with the means to help. Often the only thing we can do is to offer some small kindness since many of the elderly resent people looking at them with a pitiful attitude. Last night at our Wednesday night service, two young female students who recently moved to Nikolaev to study at the Nikolaev State Pedagogical University showed up for our meeting. They were looking for a church to attend while living here as students. Both came in with their own Bibles in hand. This is an obvious sign that they are from good homes. We hope to get to know Nadya and Anya better in the days ahead. Thank you for the many prayers!