During
the month of December Edmund and Rulsan came from Lviv to Ivano for two
Tuesdays for the meeting both Edmund and I took part. Before the meeting we met
for a meal with a few others from the meeting.
In both these meetings there were a good number out and some new
people, this is not always the case so it was good to see. One of these new people was one young
woman that I had invited out before but this was the first time she had come,
she came with her mother. She can speak good English but is busy with work, her
mother wants to learn English so she was interested in coming. I do hope that
God will use His word to speak to their hearts and to all that come to these
meetings!
I received a call by one of the ladies that come
to the meetings about a relative of hers that needed some help, it ended up
taking all day. He is an older man and has a home but his brother kicked him
out for no good reason, so he has been living in the street for I think a few
years.
He really needed to go to the hospital because he has been
bleeding from one of his legs and it was very swollen. The hospital was one
were you have to pay but they
would not take him because he smelled so very bad. When I picked him up I had
to put a plastic cover over the seat sto protect it! We look him to the sauna and asked if he could
use the shower, they said he could. When he was done I bought some cheap shoes
and got some clothes for him from the boxes.
I paid the lady for the shower and bought her some chocolate for
allowing this man to use the shower, she did a nice thing! I did have time to
talk with him about the gospel and he had some questions and listened very
well. We finally made it
back to the hospital and will be there for some time, he was very
thankful for the help he
received!
Another lady called me asking if I can take her
friend to the doctors, she had surgery on her foot so I said I would. Heather
from Wisconsin was still here and decided to go with her to help her walk and
keep her company while waiting for the Doctor. The hospital conditions are not
very good and the wait could be very long plus this women speaks very little
English, for Heather to want to do this was very nice and brave of her, do hope
God will use that time for His glory!
Once again another lady called and invited me to a
school we have visited many time which is in the village. I had two invitations
to see some of the traditional holiday plays that the school was to have. The
students do very well with remembering their
lines and poems. The first visit I had to cancel because the van was being
repaired in the shop. The teacher was very disappointed that I could not make
it and said I should try to come. She said I should really try to make it. So the interpreter and I took the bus to the
school in that village. I was able to speak to two classes before the play;
they listened well and seemed to enjoy that time. There were no teachers in
these classrooms so we (the interpreter and I) were like their teachers and
they seemed to have preferred us over their regular teachers.
There was a priest there on both visits and we and
some of the teachers had lunch together and had a good talk. We started talking
about teachings of the Bible that were wrong, I had to be careful about what I
said, so I focused of how some of the things other religions do is not
necessarily bad but they are still in their sins and for some, Jesus sacrifice
is not enough which then leaves them still in their sins. Some did agree and the
priest listened very carefully. This priest was very nice and friendly, and he
was the one that drove us back to Ivano. He asked me what is the focus of our
group, what teaching? I told him Salvation, people
need to know their sins can be forgiven through faith in the finished work of
Christ. He liked it and said that it was very good. This was the first time a
priest said to me" it was my pleasure to meet you" and he also asked if I can pray
for him and his family, he has 5 children.
The Van needed some repairs; there was a strong
smell of gas that was coming through the vents. You really do not know how
dependent you are on these vehicles until
something goes wrong. So far all seems to have been repaired and working fine,
Praise God!!
At the end of the year I bought food packages for
some of those that come to the meetings, some do not come very often but they
still have children. The food package would help them through the holidays so
they can have a New Year's dinner. It also open doors to get to know some
better and brings Christ's
Salvation message to their home! Do pray it can be used for His glory!
I DO WANT TO THANK EVERYONE FOR THEIR PRAYERS THIS PAST YEAR!
ALL WHO HAVE SENT FUND THAT HELPED TO KEEP THIS WORK GOING ANOTHER YEAR! THOSE
WHO HAVE SENT BOXES OF AID TO REACH THOSE WITH NEEDS THIS PAST YEAR, THANK YOU
ALL!!
In Christ our Lord!
Dan.
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