November 2003

Praises – Rejoice with us!

v     The new church in St. Petersburg established by BIEM missionary Vitaly Keller has gained a good number of new converts including youth.  They are praising the Lord for being able to meet in a new facility that God has provided.  The project involved purchasing 4 adjoining first floor apartments, tearing down all the walls in order to construct an auditorium, classrooms and outside entry.  Praise the Lord for such a great victory!

v     Praise God for answering prayer concerning the ministry of the Grace Baptist Church in Chervona Sloboda where the local school director and director of the main employer in the area (a liquor factory) had been intimidating people from coming to the new church.  After months of this harassment both have stopped bothering the new church.

v     Another praise from Chervona Sloboda involves a family who were known for their heavy drinking, loud arguments and disorderly lives.  First the son began to faithfully attend the children’s meetings after trusting Christ.  The mother came to a meeting after which Vitaly, our church planter there was able to lead her to Christ.  Later the father and other son also were saved.  Vitaly describes how their conversions have made an impact in the community in one of his reports, “Townspeople who knew that family were literally shocked at their transformed lives.  Some even said that we had hypnotized them or something to make them change so much!”

v     Praise God for the supplying of a furnace for a church in Dubovka, Russia that was without heat.  A church in Kansas gave generously to meet this and two other needs that we had not yet written about.

Prayer – Pray with us!

v     The director of the orphanage where Alexander Shestov has been able to minister has retired.  Since she came to Christ through this outreach, we had a fruitful ministry.  The new director is not saved and has some peculiar ideas.  Please pray that God would also work in her heart for salvation and that the Lord would give brother Shestov wisdom in dealing with the new administration.

v     Please pray for the ministry in Tuchkova, Russia.  Brother Vladimir asks for prayer that God would enable him to locate and prepare a leader to pastor this work so that he can begin a new church in Pavloskayasloboda, a community with no Gospel witness. 

v     Please continue to pray for the safety of Charles and Nina Hoblitz, missionaries in St. Petersburg.  After being robbed of a briefcase containing funds and documents, the briefcase was returned minus the funds.  Crime seems to be escalating around these dedicated missionaries.  Please also pray for the additional building space they need.

v     Please continue to pray that the container bound for Lutsk, Ukraine would clear customs soon.