Odessa Mission
November 2004 Newsletter
Bog Otvechayet Na Vashe Molitvi!
(God Is Answering Your Prayers!)
This month we'd like for you to meet Dima, a twelve-year old boy who was baptized
at Kind Road Christian Church on October 17. A few years ago, after his father
abandoned their family, his mother slowly developed a drinking problem that left
Dima almost on the brink of despair. Somehow, though, by God's amazing grace,
someone from our church met him along the road one day and invited him to our kids'
program. The rest is HIStory. Like most of us, he has a few habits that need
some refining, but he also has a really good heart. In fact, for a boy that
has been through what he has, he is incredibly polite and even pleasant to be
around. Of course, we realize that that is just a sign of his maturity level,
which is far beyond that of his peers due to his circumstances. We sincerely
thank God for Dima, and we hope that the Lord will continue to work miracles
in his life, despite his many difficulties. Two weeks ago, during another one
of his mother's drinking binges, their old black and white television mysteriously
disappeared. When Mom finally woke up the following day, she stumbled upon an
eviction notice. When I heard of this latest situation, I contacted the
Odessa police department and told them Dima was a member of the Kind Road
Christian Church, and with their help, he was transferred to a special
school for homeless kids here in Odessa where he will be living and studying.
Although his mother seemed grateful for our help, we are pretty sure that
she is just glad to be on her own again. Hopefully, the Lord will work
in some miraculous way through Dima, not only to eventually reach his
fellow students, but also to reach his mother before it's too late.
The question now is, "Will Dima still be able to attend KRCC services?"
With the resilience this young man has shown under the circumstances
he has lived with for years, I think the answer will be, "Yes!" In
fact, when I talked to him on the phone recently, he seemed to think
that coming to church would not be a problem. Please pray for Dima
and his situation.
We would also like to introduce Oxonna, an eighteen-year old English student
at one of Odessa's universities. Rick Deighton actually happened to be our
initial link to her since he speaks at the university as a guest lecturer
in May and October each year. He and I met up with Oxonna at the university
when Rick was here in the first part of October, and invited her to our
English classes at the church. Fortunately, she not only showed up for
the English class but also came to hear Rick preach at our church. Well,
she’s been a regular ever since and it is clear that, spiritually
speaking, she's growing leaps and bounds. We just can't get over the
amount of spiritual growth she's exhibited over the past three weeks and
can't wait to see what the Lord has in store for her. In fact, we are
almost as excited as she seems to be. We are also thrilled to announce
that on October 31, after our worship service, she too buried the old
life by being united with Christ in the waters of Christian baptism.
She also has even begun teaching one of our English groups at the
church for those studying beginning English. So, the Lord is already
using her talents, and we have a sneaking suspicion that she will make
it into subsequent newsletters. It is definitely clear that the good
news is getting out and making its way into people's hearts and lives,
and we really want to thank all of you for giving us the opportunity
to be in the right place at the right time with the right message;
the only real message of hope with the power to change lives forever.
We had our first official Christian festival at KRCC in October and it was a
booming success. Aside from having Lena Osipchuk perform a concert for us,
we had Rick Deighton preach a series of messages concerning relationships
on October 8th, 9th, and 10th, allowing us to meet lots of new people.
Even a mere peek at Rick’s written reflections of the festival speaks
volumes:
"God is definitely working here! On Sunday we had about 34 in church and last
night (Friday) we had even more (standing room only in the sanctuary). John
thinks there were about 50 because they only have 38 chairs and all were filled
and some were standing and sitting in the windowsill. God worked on hearts in
the music and through my message. Then about 30 stayed to see "The Passion of
Christ" and hearts were touched more deeply. Many were sobbing. Saturday was
a smaller crowd than Friday, but they were very open and receptive to the
message. One woman later told me that my message really spoke to her and
answered many of the questions she’s been struggling with. Some others
were very appreciative also. During Lena's concert there were many tears
(including John Murphy's). He felt overwhelmed to see how God is using
her now, when just six years ago she was a skeptic in his class at
Crimean-American College. Praise God for His power to change lives!"
As was mentioned in last month's newsletter, Lena Osipchuk is planning to go to
Macedonia on a mission trip. So, on October 10th, after speaking to our church
about her goals and desires, we took up a special offering for her and actually
raised close to $90 for her trip. To say that is a lot of money for a tiny
Ukrainian church less than six months old is definitely an understatement.
So, another encouraging month for the Odessa Mission has passed, but friends,
as we look toward the future together, in full assurance of faith in His
goodness, let's just praise the King of Kings for involving all of us in
His perfect plan. Halleluiah! May God’s richest blessings be yours as
you faithfully continue serving Him!
s Bogum (go with God),
John and Ira
From Al: Plans are being made for a group to travel to Odessa next May
(leaving the U.S. about May 17) to help celebrate the first anniversary of KRCC.
A current passport and a visa to enter the Ukraine will be needed.
Processing time is about two months (unless you pay extra) and depends
on whether you have a current passport or need to start from scratch.
Application forms and requirements can be obtained at http://travel.state.gov/passport/.
Please contact me for more details or if you would like to go with us.