Dearest Friends,
AN AMAZING LADY
Each day, we change translators. One friend, Veronica, is often with us to help us communicate, but she does not usually translate. She is an amazing lady who not allows anything to stop her. Veronica is legally blind, but if she is only an inch away from the computer screen and holding a magnifying glass, she can read it. I confess to you that the noise and crowds of the metro are often overwhelming to me, but she seems to navigate through them with ease.
I have never heard her voice a word of complaint. Her sweet spirit challenges me to be grateful to God for all He gives me. She makes me to love Jesus and be more faithful servant. With great difficulty, but greater joy, she serves. Please ask the Father to give her strength.
SPECIAL GIFTS
Our friends have been so very kind to us. They are taking wonderful care of all of us. We have rented an apartment on the 4th floor and are all staying together. There is no elevator in this building, but I believe that the exercise is good for all of us.
We are a team of 4 nations with team members from Brazil, Ireland, Ukraine, and America. Two of our friends do not speak English, so since we are staying alone, we are constantly referring to the dictionary that we have with us.
Oleg makes a great omelet. We spend our meal times laughing as each one of us tries to learn the different languages that we speak.
Mostly, we use the underground subway to travel to our shows. The trains are incredibly loud and crowed. It is quite an adventure riding the metro. The equipment is stored on the other side of town and is brought to us by a van where we do our shows. Our friends have done a lot of organizing.
The schedule remains a problem as we have shows planned and then the person decides it is too dangerous for us to come. Still, we are having multiple opportunities each day to share about the hope that Jesus offers. It’s just that this is a city with millions of people and so few Christians. I ache for them to hear about God! Please pray for this place.
A CANADIAN MISSION TRIP
Some of you have questioned me in the past about the lasting effect on the life of a child when they tell us that they trusted in Jesus at a puppet show. My rule is that I believe a child until they show me some reason not to trust their words. I found it very encouraging to hear the testimony of one of our translators.
When she was 13 years old, she heard about God for the first time. A Canadian mission team came to share their faith. She can not remember exactly what they did, but she remembers clearly that she asked Jesus Christ to be her Savior. God used that one visit to change the rest of her life. Please pray that the children we speak to will have this same experience.
STREET SHOW
The rain poured down at the street show. We moved inside. Someone was unhappy with all of the posters advertising the event and tore them down. Then, they threw the little pieces over the seminary wall.
In spite of all the discouragement, people came. Some had never heard about Jesus before that program. The believers were so encouraged.
When we finished, a lady from Sri Lanka came to speak to us. Her father is Russian. She told me that there were tears in her eyes because her heart was touched. One lady from this puppet show even came to church this morning. She has promised to attend all of the other street shows. Please pray for these up coming programs on Tuesday and Saturday.
YOUTH MEETING
Speaking to young people is one of my favorite things to do. I love challenging them to wait for the person God wants them to marry. I love telling them about my own love story with Mike and encouraging them that love can last a lifetime. So many young people spoke to me after the program, excited about all they had heard. They even gave us a standing ovation. That is a pretty special response for young people. Please pray for all who came to fall deeply in love with Jesus Christ.
ORPHANAGES
Tomorrow, Monday, we will be at different orphanages. Please pray for this time with children who desperately need to know the love of God as a Father.
In Jesus,
Linda for the team
Sam
Silvana
Oleg
Masha