LUMglobal #084 ---- 9/30/09
Posted by: lifeunlimited <lifeunlimited@...>
Bob and Jo Ann Tolliver
Life Unlimited Ministries
"Touching Nations Here and There"
Number 084
September 30th, 2009
Dear Friends, Family, and InPact Members:
We greet you today from Johnston, Iowa, where we are visiting our oldest daughter, Cindy, and her family, Kevin and Christopher. We needed to take a load of personal possessions to them that had been stored at our place for the past several years, so here we are. The weather is beautiful "typical Iowa Fall" . . . blue skies, billowy white clouds, brisk nights, cool days, and Fall colors coming on. We'll be here for a few days before traveling on to our youngest daughter's, Deanna, and her family where we'll "child sit" JoyLinn and Michael while Jim and Deanna take a couple days to tour Wisconsin Fall colors for their 15th wedding anniversary coming up.
We have again been reminded of just how blessed the two of us are, and one of those very special blessings that we never forget is how so many who have supported us continue to do so during this time of ministry transition. Many people would have stopped months ago because we couldn't show "statistics and numbers", but most of our supporters have remained faithful. How can we thank them enough? We really can't. We've had some "tight" times during this ongoing transition, but we have been both blessed and humbled by the sacrificial way people have stayed with us. The only losses we've really seen have been primarily because of someone's death or financial crisis. We are grateful beyond words. To those who sacrifice in such ways, we bless you and pray God will pour out His abundance upon you.
What's Been Happening:
+ We continue enjoying our new sun room; it gets used almost every morning as our breakfast place. We sit and watch a red squirrel and a gray squirrel (mortal enemies) chase each other and compete for the acorns, our two resident does and their two offspring nibble on grass shoots and missed acorns, and gaze in futility at the tens of thousands of leaves relentlessly falling to the ground as they challenge us as to who's going to win the "Leaf War". We've already surrendered.
+ Bob finally finished work on our new "business" cards and tri-fold brochure. We needed something for a statewide conference next month, so decided we should just go ahead and get them done. So far, the few people who have seen them like what we did.
+ Our friend in Ukraine, Valya, is remaining strong in the Lord over the sudden death of her husband. The many missionaries she has served over the years have all come to her aid to comfort and encourage her. We hope you'll continue praying for her.
+ We've been extremely busy doing lots of work outside in preparation for the reclamation of our yard following the construction work. Unfortunately, it seems to take several days a week just to mow grass, rake leaves, and pick up limbs and rocks. We're hoping that the landscaper will begin work in fertilizing, spreading top soil, and seeding while we're gone . . . but we're not holding our breath. It will take between eight and ten dump trucks of top soil, several hundred pounds of lime, and a significant amount of fertilizer and seed to cover the area around the house. It's a major project . . . and costly.
+ Jo Ann has continued working on several rearranging and redecorating projects in the house, as well as doing lots of leaf raking and keeping the entry area of the house looking nice. Bob spends much of his time mowing the two acres of grass, using a walking mower to do it all. His attempts to get the riding mower operating have been unsuccessful. He's had the carburetor boiled out, has dismantled and cleaned it himself twice, has checked fuel lines, and most recently dismantled the pulse fuel pump, all to no avail. The idea of spending $1,000 for a new mower is simply not workable for us at this time, so we're hoping for an early frost to kill the grass.
+ After resisting for several years, Bob has finally decided to do Facebook. He's not on often, but he has made contact with several people he'd lost contact with over the years. If you want to be his "Facebook Friend", let us know. His e-mail for that is lifeunlimited@pobox.com. Jo Ann will open an account in the next few weeks, and her e-mail will be grandma12@pobox.com. Those addresses are used ONLY for Facebook, and NOT for regular correspondence.
Ministry News:
We never cease to be amazed when we see the principles of multiplication and reproduction take place in ministry. Who would have ever dreamed that the small work we started four years ago in Kiev, Ukraine, would continue to bear much fruit long after we were gone. It's like we planted the tree, and the fruit just keeps coming! Three reports from Max, "M", and Olya illustrate that phenomenon. We give God all the glory and praise!
+ We recently had the opportunity to preach at a nearby church who endured a heart-wrench experience of losing a pastor. The church had recently built a beautiful new building and was growing dramatically, when some significant conflicts developed and the pastor left. The church, as could be expected, lost a number of families. However, those who remained seem to be open to God's Word, and graciously received us as Bob preached during the morning service. At the last minute, Bob thought the people might like to hear about our work in Ukraine, so we showed our PowerPoint presentation during the evening service. After a 45 minute presentation, the people just kept on asking questions. It was a great experience both for them and for us. There is a possibility that we might be asked to come back as often as we can to encourage them, and we'd love to do that.
+ Maxim, "our missionary" in Thailand, recently sent the following report indicating his intent to pay a visit to friends and family in Kiev before returning to Thailand for a new phase to his ministry. Max was one of the first seven people Bob baptized on August 10th, 2003, just a few months after we moved there. When we first met him, he was quiet, sullen, and seldom smiled. Today he is outgoing, confident, and happy. He became part of Bob's discipling group and immediately chose to join with us as we planted the new international church.
August 10, 2003 September 28, 2008 October 5, 2008
Max, as he prefers to be called, is a teacher by profession, specializing in teaching English as a second language. He became an "apprentice" on the Pastoral Leadership Team, and often part of the preaching cycle in the church. A year later he sensed God calling him to become a missionary, and in a few months we commissioned (September 28, 2008) and sent him as our second missionary from the church. We haven't had much of a chance to bring you up to date on Max's ministry, so here's how he summarized it:
It has been almost a year since I arrived in Thailand. Id like to share what I have been through all this year, to make it like a short summary. More than one year ago I got in contact with a missionary from Ghana, who was in charge of developing an English school and was looking for foreign teachers. We'd talked and discussed the details and everything of what was going on at that time. I agreed on that and felt like God was leading me on.
When I arrived in [city], the only thing I got was disappointment. Everything what I had planned in advance was useless. I had in mind like doing sport activity, home Bible study, teaching English as a part of sharing the Word. Nothing of those things seemed to have happened. And, to be honest, I was questioning myself so many times like "what a heck I am doing here?" Besides visa problems, relationship problems, getting flat broke, struggling with various infections, I didn't have anything else left. But I felt in my heart I had to wait a little longer and adjust to god's timing. It took me around three months to adjust and only at that period I had my first teaching job.
Since we didn't have many students at our school I had only a few hours per week. But I still was waiting on the Lord. For the first four months I was part of a Baptist Church. I never had a chance to preach or even invite people to my place for worship. . . so I was very discouraged in terms of ministry since none of my plans were fulfilled. I prayed to God again asking what would I do? At that time only one thing came to my mind, and went like: "You must join Me where I am already at work. Not your will be done but Mine. I am gonna use you as a tool according to My Will."
So [I] decided to take it easy and just wait on god what He had in store for me. I began to go around and make more friends, building relationships with them apart from my school. My financial situation improved a little bit as there were more English centers in my area and people were interested in me and asked to come teach. I began to see stuff through God's eyes and feel how special I was for Him.
The breaking point was when [the pastor from Ghana I worked with] decided to leave the school and move to Australia. i was the only one to be in charge of ETC. ETC is a weird place founded by a pastor from Philippines as an English center where I am a part of, and also used as a Philippine church where I am not a part of. I am going to stay at ETC till the end of November. I've been praying a lot about my future and the way God would lead me. He put a desire into my heart to rent a house (houses are cheap here, around $150 per month) and use it as a tutorial center and also use as place for worship and Bible study. Tutorial Center will help me have my own finances, place of worship and Bible study will be a fulfillment of what I had planned before I arrived in Thailand.
I am really looking forward to next year and see how God is leading me. He has always been faithful. I've made a few personal mistakes, and at the moment I am struggling with my faith. God never changes His attitude to me, but I feel like my attitude is changed in a wrong way. I am praying God would bring me back on track.
Besides other things, I am going to attend a Christian conference . . . in October, then I am flying back to Ukraine for three weeks, and then another round of adventures begins . . . .
It's good to be a part of God's plan and see things through His eyes.
My prayer requests are:
+ To Be strong in the Spirit of God.
+ Not to be led by temptations, but by the Power of Holy Spirit.
+ To be able to influence more people.
+ To see things through God's eyes.
+ To realize that I am loved, taken care of, forgiven.
+ Visa Iwhen I come back from Ukraine, I am going to apply for business visa; it'll help me stay for longer period of time without exiting).
+ Health (still struggling with cold -- I hate air-conditioning).
Thank you very much for your time reading it. Hoping to hear from you soon. For those who are in Ukraine -- see you in two and a half months!!
May God bless you all!
+ Pastor Feng, who pastored our Chinese work in Kiev, is still in the States with his wife, and is trying to enrol in seminary. Bob has written one reference letter to one school, and has been asked to do another one for a different school. The work in Odessa continues to grow, now in excess of 300 people.
+ We recently received word from "M" concerning the Farsi work in Ukraine that four more Muslim young men have recently come to Christ in the past three weeks. We anticipate a more detailed report soon, and will pass it on to you. In case we haven't told you, "M" and Iryna are expecting their first child.
+ A few days ago, Bob received a special message from one of the members of the Spanish church we helped plant in Ukraine. Because it is so exciting, we want to share it with you, but in "edited" form in order to not divulge people or location. Enjoy it.
From "O" ---- Two years ago one guy ("Mf") from soud arabia came to [city]. he was visiting our spanish church. it was dangerous for him but he did. he was studying for one year and suppose to stop because of his parents. he was working all year long to get money to come back here. one week ago he came to ukraine. today he visited our church. he told me that he suppose to change his directions all the time to avoid the spy to know that he is going to the church. their government pays money for spies. if they will know that he is visiting our church he will have problems with embassy as minimum. i am so happy that he has this desire to know about God. He needs our prayers,your prayers.God brought him back with purpose. . . . we can not write him anything about God for not to get him in trouble. thank you.
How we rejoice to see how God continues bringing the harvest in all of these ministries, even after we are long gone. You cannot imagine how this thrills us beyond words. God is so incredibly awesome!
Special Needs:
+ We'd like you to consider helping undergird the ministries of both Max and "M". We have means through Life Unlimited Ministries to get financial support to them, and both of them are facing significant financial needs. If you'd like to help on a regular basis, or with a one-time gift, drop us a note at lifeunlimited@centurytel.net and we'll tell you what to do. Your investment will reap great dividends.
+ Robert and Jennifer Morris are members of the church where we belong in Bolivar, MO. Their son, Isaac, is a first grader in school, and suffers from spina bifida. Earlier today we received the following prayer request from the church office: Isaac's infection at the surgery site on his back seems to be healing well so no further surgery will be required there. However, the surgeon gave them some troubling news concerning the other surgery that Isaac needs on his neck. The doctor says that without the surgery he gives Isaac approximately a year to live. However, the surgery itself is so risky that he is very hesitant to even want to proceed with it. He told them yesterday that Isaac's chances of surviving the surgery are very slim. He will see Isaac again at the beginning of November and evaluate further, but he told Robert & Jennifer yesterday that he will leave it in their hands whether or not to have the surgery. They are, of course, in a position that no parent would want to be in. Please pray for them at this time and for Isaac's healing. Our God is able!
+ The Current Condition of America is frightening. We try very hard to avoid things that seem to be political in nature because we know each individual has his or her personal views. However, the trend the past few years, and especially since January, is terrifying. And, it is obvious that the vast majority of Americans are not in agreement with the way Washington is handling just about everything from economic bailouts, to health care, to the situation with Iran, to the handling of the need for more troops in Afghanistan, to the "club of corruption" surrounding the White House and Congress. We indeed are living in unprecedented times that clearly fit the pattern of Biblical predictions made thousands of years ago.
The fact is, however, that it isn't these things that concern us most, but rather the absence of vocal expression from many Christians still unwilling to stand up, speak up, and take action. According to many conservative but still objective voices, the United States is on the verge of catastrophic consequences for its current course of action. We personally feel that three things are desperately needed. First, "clean house in Washington", get personally involved in the political process (by voting, speaking, running for office, attending local governmental meetings, asking tough questions, and holding representatives accountable), and finally, pray passionately and fervently for a powerful outpouring of God's presence onto every situation where something is wrong, corrupt, or broken. So, we ask you . . . be a "doer" of the Word,out and not just a "hearer", "thinker", "opinionator", or "mute". We may be entering the time of a major spiritual breakthrough in our country. As a result of a number of recent events (TEAparties, town hall meetings, ACORN fiasco, values-oriented public outcries, etc.) momentum has built that could literally change America's course. But, that won't happen if "values" people just sit still . . . and only complain.
What's Ahead:
+ This coming Sunday we're on the road between Cindy's and Deanna's, and aren't sure where we'll end up for services. We're seriously considering taking a day or two along the Mississippi River to enjoy the Fall colors.
+ Upon our return home October 9th, we'll greet four of our favorite missionaries who served with us at KIBC in Kiev. Brent Holt, from West Plains, MO, was our worship leader and part of our Timothy and Esther Fellowship groups for about a year and a half. Becky, Katy, and Joanie Jorash (sisters) were part of the worship team. Brent and Becky fell in love and married, and have been attending Bible school in the Kansas City area. Katy and Joanie have joined them there as well. So, we are filled with great anticipation as the four of them come to spend the week-end with us. Words cannot contain the special feelings we have for them. The Jorash family was part of the original group that began KIBC in September, 2005.
+ It is likely that we'll be helping the pastorless church we mentioned earlier, but don't know any specifics. Our heart goes out to the church, so we hope that opportunity arises.
+ We'll be attending the annual State Convention in Raytown, MO, the week of October 26th for a few days, representing not only our own ministry but also the state evangelists' fellowship.
+ We're still in various stages of scheduling meetings and proposed trips both stateside and overseas while we look forward to a bit more time at home to finish more projects (yard, flagstone patio, workshop renovation, etc.), and time for Bob to get some more writing done. Then, before you know it, Thanksgiving and Christmas will be upon us. It looks like only Cindy's and Deanna's families will be with us for Thanksgiving, and hopefully all the girls will make it for Christmas.
Prayer Requests:
+ Pray for "M" and the other Farsi leaders as they continue courageously sharing the Gospel and mentoring leaders in the four Ukrainian cities where the work is planted.
+ Pray for "Max" and his ministry in Thailand that God will make clear His plans for Max when he returns.
+ Pray for financial support for "M" and "Max" and the work they do. Their base is miniscule and creates hardship on their work.
+ Pray that the remainder of our trip will be safe, enjoyable, and successful.
+ Pray for son-in-law Bob as he undergoes prostate surgery on October 6th. Pray for Cindy and family as they travel speaking in churches and raising support for their missionary work.
+ Pray that we can get the yard work completed while there is still time to water and cultivate the new grass seed to be sown.
+ Pray that God will provide finances to replace the loss of ministry support caused by deaths and financial hardship. Pray that God will bless those who support us.
+ Pray for future ministry opportunities to open, and that we will have clear understanding as to what God has planned for us.
+ Pray that we will have wisdom in discerning where we need to minister territorially beginning next February, both stateside and internationally.
+ Pray that we both continue losing weight and improving health through good nutrition and activity.
Finally:
As we face uncertain times both in the States and around the world, we face them with certainty. Isn't it amazing how turbulence and crisis need not shake the world of those who truly trust in the Lord as their source for peace, confidence, material need, and purposed direction. We have something the world knows nothing of. So, in closing, we invite you to rejoice with us, share the blessing of reward for your faithfulness in kingdom ventures, and look with joyful confidence and unabated hope to the days ahead. While the road may get rough and the journey tiring, the destination is sure and the view is awesome.
In His Bond, By His Grace, and For His Kingdom,
Bob and Jo Ann (the Tollivers)
Life Unlimited Ministries
Touching Nations Here and There
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