SPECIAL PRAISE REPORT ---- LUMglobal 12/30/11
Posted by: lifeunlimited <lifeunlimited@...>
Even though we just sent a letter to you a few days ago, we have some wonderful news that cannot be held back. There are three items due great rejoicing for the faithfulness of our God, especially as we come to the end of this year and are nearly on the eve of 2012.
1. SPECIAL REPORT FROM "M" ---- Here is a report we received just before Christmas. Since we are sending the other reports, we decided to send this one along as well.
Reaching Iranian Muslims in Germany and Sweden ---- As you might remember, the Lord's been opening more and more doors for us toward the vision of reaching Iranian Muslims worldwide. One of the recent doors is the opportunity of making a mission trip to Germany and Sweden. It all began when "F" moved to Germany and began a ministry there. He also continues doing Evangelism among Iranian refugees and students. Many Iranians have heard the gospel through his ministry. At the same time, one of our Farsi church members ("Ha") that had gone to Sweden has started a home church there, and also leads a weekly Bible study along with his wife. He told me that more than 15-20 Iranians already gather for Bible studies. He is also looking for ways to gather more Iranian Muslims.
So our church in Ukraine (Father's House Persian Church) is thinking about making a mission trip to Germany, and from there to Sweden. I'll be the one going on the mission trip since I have Ukrainian citizenship. The purpose of my trip is to join "F" and "Ha" to reach out to students by playing worship songs on the guitar, preach the Gospel in dorms, campuses, refugee camps and one on one meetings.
"F" has mapped out places where we could go and do Evangelism in Germany. Our goal is to invite those Iranians to the Bible studies "F" is leading during the week and Sunday services he translates.
After staying in Germany for few days, "F" and I will then go to Sweden to join "Ha" in reaching Iranians. In Sweden, we may hold a small concert, do some street Evangelism and go where Iranians hang out and reach out to them. I'm planning to take my guitar with me on the trip, and prepare worship songs to play in meetings in Germany and Sweden.
I'm now in the process of getting my Ukrainian foreign passport and Lord willing, I'm thinking to make this mission trip in mid February or early March. The Lord has already blessed us tremendously because IBC (International Baptist Convention) has agreed to send me an invitation letter for receiving a visa in embassy of Germany.
We are praying about the financial aspects of this trip. If you have on your heart to help us financially with the trip, please feel free to drop me a note.
New Year Outreach in Dorms ---- We are planning a New year/Christmas outreach in 2-3 dorms in Kiev. As part of that, we prepare small gift packages including a gospel of John, a chocolate bar, a gospel tract, a 2012 calendar organizer and a small Christian post card. We then go door by door, and give those packages to students. We are thinking about writing our website URL or email address on the post cards in case people would like to get back to us to hear more about the gospel.
Christmas Concert/Conference ---- Our Persian church is planning a Christmas concert on 24th of Dec. Our talented guitarist "J" and his son are going to be playing few songs. "J", his wife and his son have all believed through our Farsi ministry. "J" used have his own music band in Iran and is a gifted compositor. He's been playing Flamenco guitar for more than 35 years. So as you might guess, it's going to be quite a concert. Two other brothers are going be playing a Persian musical instrument and violin. There would be a short preaching during the concert. Also more than 10 people are going to come up to the stage and share their life story in less than 2 minutes. We are going to serve Persian food and cookies.
"F" is doing much better ---- Thank you so much for praying for "F". He went home from the hospital and is doing much better now. [Because we just received the following report from "F" earlier today, we'll include it rather than what "M" had written. It is more current.]
Prayer Requests:
1- Please pray for the mission trip to Germany and Sweden. Please pray that the Lord would provide the money for the trip.
2- Pray for "F"'s recovery. Pray also that his insurance situation would work out
3- Please pray for the New Year outreach in dorms
4- Please pray for the Christmas concert
At the end, I'd like to thank you our friends for your faithfulness, love, care and support for Farsi ministry. I thank God for the presence of people like you in my life (and the lives of people in our Farsi ministry). May the Lord fill your hearts with His joy as you celebrate the coming Christmas.
His Grace be with you and your family!
"M"
2. UPDATE LETTER FROM "F" ---- We received the following letter from "F" in Germany earlier today, and want to share it with you.
"I removed the burden from their shoulders;
their hands were set free from the basket.
In your distress you called and I rescued you,
I answered you out of a thundercloud;
I tested you at the waters of Meribah.
Hear me, my people, and I will warn you—
if you would only listen to me, Israel!
You shall have no foreign god among you;
you shall not worship any god other than me.
I am the LORD your God,
who brought you up out of Egypt.
Open wide your mouth and I will fill it." Psalms 81:6-10
Dear friends,
I want to thank all of you firstly, for your prayers and material supports for me as i was through the difficult time of illness. As most of you knew,on November 20th i was hospitalized in "Giessen Uniklinikum" because of a serious bleeding (~3 liters) in my stomach caused by a bacteria called "Helicobacter Pylori" (something like this). By the help of God I could be healed fast and survive.
The next problem was to pay the hospital payments without having the valid insurance! As I explained before, my travel insurance to Germany was ran out and i was in the process of finding and making contract with the new private one, [when] this happened to me! The Bureaucracy in Germany is somehow complicated and as a German language student, i was not allowed to have a governmental insurance, and i had to insure my self in a private one.
2 weeks ago i finally received the payment letter from the Hospital and it was 3,750 euros +450 euros for the ambulance(for a 6 Km ride!) [that's somewhere around $5500 US] the deadline was Jan. 10th. [However,] I went to a private insurance (Provisit) and insured myself on 1st of December for the future accidents. But this new one naturally would not accept the payments which had happened before the contract. [Then] a week ago i received another letter from a university in the city of Kassel! that was strange because i was never in that city! The letter was from the insurance office of the university, saying i'm not allowed to have private insurance, only governmental one!
So i was confused and called the person in charge. She told me this: "On Nov. 15th you have made a working contract(assisting in a project which is being done by a professor) in your university(Marburg University) and because of that, you had to be governmentally insured, so i sent you this letter saying that you should not use private insurance but a governmental one; in the meantime as you are studying Computer science, there is a law that allow us to insure you in one of the governmental insurance companies(called AOK Hessen) without even your confirmation! so since Nov. 15th you have insurance in AOK and you need to decide whether to keep your current private insurance or just drop it!"
I was shocked and full of joy, that from nowhere i received a insurance and the time was 5 days before the day that i was brought to hospital! That means that AOK can pay for the hospital bills, not me! I'm really full of joy and gratitude to our living God and this report is mainly to encourage you to pray for the problems and knowing the power which is hidden behind the prayer.
I still have to pay for 2 Professors, who did the operation on me (which is separate from the general hospital bill) , but i'm sure with your prayers and mercy of God i can find ways to provide for this coming ones.
All the glories belong to our Living mighty God!
Praise the Lord
"F"
3. SPECIAL MINISTRY BLESSINGS: As you know, we are spending Christmas and New Year's Day with Cindy and her family in Medellin, Colombia, South America. We will write more about that in our next letter following our return to the States January 12th, but we will tell you that we've had a great time not only with them, but also with local pastors, believers, and other missionaries serving in the area. We've been able to assist Cindy, Kevin, and Christopher in several events (as we noted in our last letter), and Bob has already preached three times in two churches. He will be speaking at an upcoming area pastors meeting next Wednesday, and then will preach in another church on Sunday, January 8th. We've also been able to minister encouragement and insight on a personal level with some pastors and missionaries.
The BIG news, though, is that even while we've been gone, God has blessed us with several substantial financial gifts that have come just in time. This not only includes money that will go to "M" and "F" when we get home, but also a sizable gift toward our upcoming ministry trip to Cuba, and also a significant gift from a friend who had never given financially to our ministry before. These could not have come at a better time.
So, we rejoice, and we look forward to how God orchestrates His plan for our lives in coming days. We are still unclear as to how that will play itself out, but we are still pursuing the ministry opportunity of international church planting in NE Kansas City, trips to Cuba and Poland in the future, and increasing ministry to pastors' groups and local churches.
FINALLY, let this letter be our blessing upon you that God will cause you to prosper proportionate to your soul prospering in everything to which you put your hand in 2012.
"Beloved, [we] pray that in all respects you may prosper and be in good health, just as your soul prospers." (III John 1:2)
"Now, he who sows sparingly shall also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully shall also reap bountifully. Let each one do just as he has purposed in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion; for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, that always having all sufficency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed; as it is written, 'he scattered abroad, he gave to the poor. his righteousness abides forever.' Now He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food, will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness; you will be enriched in everything for all liberality, which through us is producing thanksgiving to God." (II Cor 9:6-11)
That is our sincere prayer for you.
God bless, and have a wonderful beginning to an amazing new year.
In His Bond, By His Grace, and For His Kingdom,
Bob and Jo Ann
The Tollivers
Lifeunlimited Ministries
LUMglobal
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