10 July 2022

Dear Friends,

The war in Ukraine continues and people are being killed every day, both soldiers and civilians. But our merciful God has spared all of our loved ones to this point. I have no doubt that this is because of your fervent and faithful intercession for them. Thank you for that. Please don’t stop.

The good news is that the Lord continues to use the war to further His own purposes of bringing people to salvation and the build up the saints. Below are excerpts from recent letters

From Oleg, pastor of Word of God Church in Kyiv:

I talked with Andrey, pastor from Dnipro, this afternoon. He is fine, his family is about to come back to Ukraine. They have a lot of ministry to the needy and they do an evangelism with them. Lusya Ustinova started a Bible class for unbeliever kids. All the others from our church are still at the same places as before. Vova and his soldiers are all alive. His car was damaged by Russians twice. Right now it is in a car repair shop.

As for the church we are still having online prayer meetings twice a day and Bible study twice a week, and we have Sunday morning services. As for the war we expect a new attack from the north. The threat is real. Of course, our forces this time are better prepared. But we depend on the Lord’s protection.

From Luda in Poland:

I am grateful for your prayers because they have been supporting me all this time. During the past month I have been involved in ministry a lot. I met with many people, had many conversations, and served at a children’s camp. God is faithful and provides everything I need for my ministry, even when I run out of strength.

Next week there will be another camp near Warsaw. There at a place that provides lodging for about 200 Ukrainian refugees we will have a camp. A sports team from Ukraine will be leading them and we will be helping them. Please pray for opportunities to share the gospel with children and adults personally, and also for the physical and spiritual strength I will need for this work.

Thank you for your prayers and support! Seeing God work here is a blessing and a big encouragement for me. It helps me understand His power and greatness better. Of course, war is evil, but because of it so many people reexamine their life and look for hope in God. This is not just my ministry, but yours also! You are here with me through your prayers and gifts, and I am very grateful for that. Please let me know how I can pray for you.

From Dennis in Poland:

We are fine now in Poland, waiting until we can receive documents to legally live and work here. We decided not to return to Belarus for now because of the military, because I would have to fight against Ukraine.

Our church here is called the “Church of Free Christians.” We are small, but I am using the knowledge that I acquired in college as I preach in the church. Whenever possible I listen online to lectures from the college. I also try to prepare lessons in writing for our people.

My wife and I pray that the Lord will use us. We know that it is not the temporary earthly, but the eternal heavenly things that are important, and we want to live like this. For now we are doing what we can. The college has become an invaluable treasure for the beginning of our ministry for Christ. Thank you for that.

From Jim in the USA:

Phyllis and I are still on the road in the Pacific Northwest, with a really packed schedule for the next 10 days before we fly back to Houston. We give thanks to God the Father for His abundant provision and daily mercies for us. We praise Him for the grace given to us through your prayers, encouragement, and support.

Only by grace,

Jim