last weekend the Baptist churches in our area were having a conference, and we had a few extra folks stay in our home while they attended. On Sunday evening, one of the ladies - who we didn't know very well - was chatting with Tonya in our kitchen. She suddenly asked, "what is repentance?" Tonya answered, "that's when you make peace with God; would you like to do that?" The lady wanted to do that, so they prayed right there. You just never know when the Lord might use you.
Today is Thursday, and that means Movie Night. Every Thursday we show a good, spiritual movie at Hope Center. After showing a movie we have snacks and tea time. There was a newcomer there tonight, and after tea he asked for prayer. I asked him what he wanted prayer for, and he said, "cleansing from my sins." Since I didn't have a translator with me tonight (Tonya was home with the girls), I asked one of the older ladies at the table to lead him in prayer. With her help he repented of his sins right there. You just never know when the Lord might use you.
A lawsuit was brought against a church in Khabarovsk, accusing them of "psychological manipulation." They were found guilty, the church charter has been dissolved, and the church property is being confiscated by the government, and the pastor ordered not to pastor any more. It is one of the largest churches in the city, and the property is of some value, so someone in the government will be profiting from this. The basis for the decision seems rigged, since it cited examples such as sometimes the lights would be turned low during services, sometimes people would cry, people would "hear from God" (interpreted as the church caused people imagine that they hear voices), and such. This is the first time in Russia that a church has been dissolved for such a reason. Since the definition of "psychological manipulation" seems to be very broad, almost any church could be accused on those grounds. If this case stands, we expect a flood of lawsuits. The decision has been appealed, and the local churches have declared a fast for Friday (tomorrow) to pray for this issue. Your prayers for this would be appreciated.
In partnership with a local church, we have ordered a case of materials for doing an anti-drug, anti-smoking program for schools. The materials have become held up in customs. They are demanding fees that will more than double the cost of materials, as well as proof of why the materials have been ordered and what they will be used for. The entire situation has become quite confusing. Please pray that the the Lord will give us wisdom, and the materials will be released.
On Saturday we will be hosting and presenting a half day seminar on how to minister to kids in the orphanages. It will include sessions on forming foster families (a new concept here in Russia), and taking kids for week-ends or day visits. One of the speakers is being provided by a local government center for helping families. We've had contact with them several times, and they do wonderful work. We have speakers from a number of other organizations as well. Please pray that it is well attended, very helpful to the attendees, and that all the many details come together.
The government center that is providing a speaker for our seminar asked us to go on TV as a family. They are trying to promote adoptions, and since we adopted Deanna, they wanted to do an interview. So we've done a family interview, and the show is scheduled to be aired in a week. We just pray that the Lord is able to use it for His sake.
We continue to do monthly birthday parties Hope Center for the orphans. Here's Tim holding the cake for the last party we had.
We sure appreciate your prayers and support for the Lord's work here. God bless you.
I'd like to end with a quote:
Mark Batterson writes: “When did we start believing that God wants to send us to safe places to do easy things? God wants to send us to dangerous places to do difficult things. He will lead you into the shadowlands where light and darkness clash.”
Because of Him,
Cecil, Tonya, Timothy, Vera, and Deanna
