June 2010 Update

Dear Prayer Family,

There is an old saying “April showers bring May flowers.” Though generally true, this year the phrase could have been rewritten “May showers bring June flowers.” Just as blessings in the natural world are sometimes delayed we see in the Bible that expected spiritual blessings can also be delayed. How should the believer respond in such times? James, the brother of Jesus, exhorted his people: “Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain.” (James 5:7). Faith and patience are keys to receiving the promised blessings of God. Below are some ways that patience has recently been paying off in our lives.

Ever since seminary days David has dreamed about visiting the Holy Land. Over the years David has collected photos and gathered much information about the places of the Biblical stories. But, finances, responsibilities and circumstances have always hindered him from going to Israel. After much patience God opened the doors for David to go to the Promised Land. Someone donated a significant portion of the expenses. Not only did he see the Promised Land, he also learned about various religions such as Catholicism, Orthodoxy, and Islam. Since he was with a group of nationals he also got to practice Russian and Ukrainian language. Furthermore, there were opportunities to share the gospel with a Palestinian guide and a Bedouin salesman. David has already started using the photos taken to enhance seminary classes that he teaches.

April came with another spiritual blessing. That month David was invited to teach the Old Testament Minor Prophetic Books in a newly established seminary named Ukrainian Evangelical Seminary. David had nine students. The students were either full-time pastors or work full-time jobs while serving in the church. This seminary concentrates completely on modular classes. The students travel to Kiev for intensive classes before returning to their regular routines. Please pray that the course I taught them would be a blessing to them and their church communities.

May came with a visit from our director at CrossWorld. This being his first visit to Ukraine, David gave him a personal tour of some famous places, monuments, and monasteries. They also worked together on some future ministry points and ideas. With the warmer weather God has also given us some more opportunities to build relationships with neighbors. We decided that we would join and become involved in the local Bortnichi church. So, pray for us as we become more involved in our neighborhood and local church.

Over the past couple of months God has also blessed our family. This week Austin finishes exams. Not only did he smoothly transition from home schooling to Kiev Christian Academy, but he also transitioned well from the middle of the school year move to Bortnichi. Karyn will soon finish home school work. During the summer she plans to continue piano and Russian language lessons. Both are excited about summer camps in June. They also look forward to our trip to Poland in July to renew visas. We are also blessed in that David was able to get rid of the vehicle that needed many repairs. We are still waiting to hear from God about future transportation provisions.

In conclusion, we wanted to say thanks for your continued prayers and support. Please continue to pray for the things mentioned above. Pray also for people that we are trying to evangelize and disciple. Pray for our neighbors to receive the gospel. Pray for the Bortnichi church to grow. Pray for those we are trying to disciple, Ivan and Vitalic.

Blessings,

David, Kim, Austin, Karyn, and Kaitlyn