Team Kharkov Requests January 1st-7th

"No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him - but God has revealed it to us by His Spirit.  The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God."  (1 Cor. 2:9-10)

For many, the start of a new year brings thoughts of what has been, and hope for what may be in the coming year.  As Team Kharkov, and representatives of IMB, we begin the new year prayerfully asking the Father to reveal to us individually and corporately the plans He has for us, that we might live each day of this new year in a manner that will bring glory to Him.

At the same time, while most of the western world is busy putting away their Christmas decorations and preparing to return to work following the holidays, Ukrainians are just beginning their holiday celebrations.  The New Year's tree stands in the center of Freedom Square, surrounded by carnival rides and all manner of activities for children and adults alike.  This year, a large 3-headed dragon fills a significant space in the square, to commemorate the Chinese year of the dragon.  

Pray for Amanda as she spends New Year's eve (Saturday) with the youth from Christian Life church.  Ask the Lord to strengthen their fellowship with Him and with one another through their time together.  Pray for safety in travel to and from their time together.

Kharkov Freedom Square Ready for the New Year

Christmas will be celebrated by most believers on January 7th, according to the Orthodox calendar.  It is a time of worship and fellowship....a time for remembering the gift of Christ.  Thank you for joining with us in praying for the people of the Kharkov region in Ukraine.  May 2012 be the year when "those who love Him" will experience what "no eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived" as He reveals Himself by His Spirit, and we choose to obey!

Sunday, January 1st  We give thanksgiving and praise for the opportunity to serve our Lord in the Kharkov region of Ukraine.  One of our responsibilities is to prayerfully prepare individual, measurable ministry goals for the coming year.  Pray for Amanda and I as we seek His face, asking Him to lead us individually and corporately according to His plans for us in 2012.  

Monday, January 2nd  Pray for me (Linda) as I begin preparing for a conference on prayerwalking in the Donetsk region later in January.  Intercede that I would know and understand His will and way to cast a vision for covering communities in the Donetsk region with prayer.

Tuesday, January 3rd  Pray for Amanda and I as we meet this week to fellowship together, as well as discuss plans for our volunteer teams and team ministry.  Ask the Lord to continue to bind our hearts and minds together that we might be used by Him for His glory.

Wednesday, January 4th  One of our young believers, Yana, is spending the holidays with her family who live in another city in Ukraine.  Pray for Yana and her brother, who is also a believer, as they witness by their lives to their parents.  Ask the Lord to cause their hearts to be drawn to desire a personal, intimate relationship with Christ.

Thursday, January 5th  Our annual "Book Club" Christmas party will be held tonight during our regular meeting time (5:30 to 8:00 p.m. Kharkov time - 9:30 to 12:00 Central time).  Petition the Father to fill our mouths with His Word as we complete the final week of Advent, sing Christmas carols, and share the Greatest Gift of All - Christ!  Pray each person who attends will be convinced in their heart that truly Jesus is the Son of God.

Friday, January 6th  Pray for me (Linda) as I prepare to give an overview of the Celebrate Recovery ministry to a group of students in Zhenya Molodchy's "School Without Walls."  This will be a 3-session teaching, seeking to cast a vision for this ministry to those attending these classes.  

Saturday, January 7th  While New Hope International Church celebrated Christmas on December 25th, we will celebrate Christmas today with New Hope International girls.  Most of these young women have just completed their exams for this term.  Pray we can be an encouragement to each of them as we gather together for food, fellowship, and fun.  Intercede for these young women to choose to follow Christ when confronted with temptations and tests of their faith.  

Thank you for taking the time to pray for us, and for the people of the Kharkov region of Ukraine!  We do not take your faithfulness in prayer for granted, but are continually blessed and encouraged by your willingness to undergird our lives through your prayers.  May our Father fill your new year with His presence, His power, and His joy!

Team Kharkov Requests December 18th-24th

The Gift of Love

   "In the beginning the Word already existed. He was with God, and he was God.  ² He was in the beginning with God.  ³ He created everything there is. Nothing exists that he didn't make. ¹⁴ So the Word became human and lived here on earth among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the only Son of the Father."

John 1:1-3, 14

     The third week of Advent brings to us "The Gift of Love," come to earth in the Person of Christ Jesus.  How easy it seems to be in our materialistic world to forget our celebration is for His birth, through which we have each been given the Perfect Gift.  In the busyness of the days that lead up to the celebration of His birth, may we take time to allow Him to renew the wonder of that Gift within our hearts, and cause our lives to be a reflection of His love to each one we see!  Please join us in praying for the following requests over this coming week.  

• Pray for Amanda as she goes with youth from Christian Life church to an engagement celebration Sunday afternoon.  Ask the Lord to continue to deepen her relationship with the youth, and to draw more young people from the community into this fellowship.  
• Pray for Linda as she flies on Monday from Kharkov to Kiev, then on to Yerevan, Armenia for a week of fellowship with the Wofford family.  Ask the Father to grant good weather for travel, and no delays in any of the flights.  Intercede that this would be a week of refreshment, encouragement, and renewal for her as well as for the Woffords.
• Petition the Lord to grant Amanda opportunity this week to meet up with a friend from the states who is beginning a Peace Corps term of service in another city in Ukraine.  Pray they would be able to spend the days of this week together as they celebrate the coming of our Lord and Savior.

• Praise Him for enabling the men of the Zmeeov church to get a roof on the church building before winter weather sets in (seen in photo).  Pray the Father would grant Pastor Yuri and the church members wisdom in continuing construction through the winter months.  Praise Him for financial provision through brothers and sisters in Christ in Mississippi with a heart for the people of the Kharkov region of Ukraine. 
• We praise Him for drawing Yana, Marina, and Natasha to know Him through study of the bible and discipleship with Amanda.  Intercede for Marina as she confronts her fear of entering into a personal relationship with Christ.  Pray the opportunities He has given Amanda to work with each of these young women would encourage and renew her heart and spirit, even as He uses her to disciple them.

Internet service in Armenia may be a little sporadic, prohibiting me from getting our requests next week out before Christmas.  Should that be the case, Amanda and I would like to wish each of you and your families a 

Team Kharkov Requests December 11th-17th

The Gift of Joy

             At that time the Roman emperor, Augustus, decreed that a census should be taken throughout the Roman Empire.  ² (This was the first census taken when Quirinius was governor of Syria.)  ³ All returned to their own towns to register for this census.  ⁴ And because Joseph was a descendant of King David, he had to go to Bethlehem in Judea, David's ancient home. He traveled there from the village of Nazareth in Galilee.  ⁵ He took with him Mary, his fiancée, who was obviously pregnant by this time.  ⁶ And while they were there, the time came for her baby to be born.  ⁷ She gave birth to her first child, a son. She wrapped him snugly in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the village inn."  (Luke 2:1-7)

     The second week of Advent brings the gift of joy - the joy of the appearance of our Eternal Hope in a stable in Bethlehem!  As I look around the room where I am writing this, I am asking myself if I have made room for my Lord here, in this place, or have I filled it with so much of the world that there is little room for Him?  Where do I find my true joy - in the things I have, or the Savior living within my heart?  

     Pray each one of us would allow the joy of the Lord to fill us to overflowing, washing away anything and everything else that might take our eyes off of Him.  May the days and weeks to come be days filled with moments of opportunities to share the Reason for our joy - our Living, Reigning Lord Jesus!

Freedom Square Christmas in Kharkov 2010

Sunday, December 11th  Praise the Lord for Amanda's return to Kharkov following a check up in Budapest that gave her some answers.  Pray for her as she visits with the youth at Christian Life Church today and seeks to know how He would desire to use her to encourage the youth there.  

Monday, December 12th  Several weeks ago we asked you to pray for the Ukrainian congregation at New Hope in the Saltavka region of Kharkov.  Give praise to the Father for working in the lives of the members and leadership of this church to continue to meet together each Sunday.  Pray for Pastor Vitaly Sorokun as he seeks to encourage, teach, and lead this body of believers to reach the Saltavka region of the city of Kharkov.  Ask the Lord to draw many from the surrounding area to enter into fellowship with this church, and into relationship with Christ.

Tuesday, December 13th  The Father has drawn 3 women, Yana, Marina, and Natasha, into fellowship with Amanda to meet at different times throughout the day on Tuesdays.  Praise Him for the desire He has given to Yana, a young university student who became a believer while working in the states as a nanny.  Pray she would continue to seek Him, and His plan for her life.  Pray Marina would choose to trust Christ as Lord and Savior as He opens His Word to her through the time she and Amanda fellowship.

Wednesday, December 14th  These weeks of Christmas, New Year's, and Orthodox Christmas celebrations are filled with many opportunities to spend time with our Ukrainian friends, Christian family, and new acquaintances.  Ask the Lord to grant both Amanda and I wisdom in using our time in the best way.  Pray we would choose the opportunities He has for us to encourage those who are believers, and to witness to those who have yet to receive the gift of eternal life through a personal relationship with Christ Jesus.

Thursday, December 15th  We continue to see the fruit of your prayers for The Book Club that meets each Thursday night not only for conversational English, but also to discuss the book of Romans.  Pray the seeds that have been planted and watered by the washing of the water of the Word would cause a harvest of not only new believers, but even a new church start through this group.

Friday, December 16th  Pray for us as we seek to put into place all that is needed for volunteer teams coming in May and June of 2012.  Most of what we are doing is new for both of us, but we are thankful for the patience of the volunteers coming, and for the direction others have provided.  Ask the Lord to begin even now working in the hearts of the Ukrainians who will receive ministry through these teams.  Pray He would cause everything to fall into place according to His perfect will and plan.

Saturday, December 17th  We praise Him for the excitement the International girls have expressed concerning the study of Breaking Free.  Intercede for these young women, and for us as we meet with them today to discuss unit 1 of the study.  Pray the power of His Word would work in each of our hearts to tear down any strongholds in our lives that may hinder our walk with Him.  Pray the power of His love would transform all step-by-step into the image of His Son, Jesus!

IMPACTing the Kharkov Region with the love of Christ!

Team Kharkov Requests December 4th-10th

"The people who walk in darkness will see a great light--a light that will shine on all who live in the land where death casts its shadow.....For a child is born to us, a son is given to us.  And the government will rest on his shoulders. These will be his royal titles: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.  His ever expanding, peaceful government will never end.  He will rule forever with fairness and justice from the throne of his ancestor David.  The passionate commitment of the LORD Almighty will guarantee this!  (Isaiah 9:2, 6-7)  

Advent, meaning "coming" or "arrival," is the celebration of the first advent or coming of Christ, and also a reminder that we are anxiously awaiting His return! It is this hope of His coming that compels us to tell those who "walk in darkness" that a child has been born - Christ Jesus, the Lord!

This is also the IMB Week of Prayer for International Missions, reminding us we are "His Heart, His Hands, and His Voice" in a world that even today has almost 3,800 unengaged, unreached people groups.  We thank you for joining us in prayer to move the mountains of lostness, and tear down the strongholds  that have held multitudes in bondage.  Your prayers and your gifts to Lottie Moon Christmas Offering are instruments in the hands of the LORD Almighty to reach the ends of the earth!  (Information for the Week of Prayer is available on www.imb.org)

December 4th  HAPPY BIRTHDAY, AMANDA!  Give thanks to the Lord for granting Amanda a heart to follow and obey Him.  Pray for her as she celebrates her birthday today in Budapest with colleagues, asking Him to fill her heart, mind, and spirit with evidence of His love for her.

Pray for me (Linda) today as Zhenya Molodchy and I visit Spring of Life Church in Rogon.  Ask the Lord to use this time as an encouragement to our brothers and sisters in Christ in this church.

December 5th  Please continue to pray for an opportunity for Linda and Natasha Molodchy to meet with Alexander Dubka about leading a weekly bible study in the women's rehab center for women coming out of prison.  Alexander was in the hospital this past week with some health issues.  Pray the Lord would grant him restoration of health physically, and refreshment emotionally and spiritually.

December 6th  Amanda is scheduled to return to Kharkov either today or tomorrow, but will not know for certain until after a doctor's appointment this morning.  Pray the Lord will release her to return according to His perfect will and plan for her days.  Ask the Lord to make her journey uneventful and without delays (her departure from Kharkov was delayed 5 hours last week).  

December 7th  We praise Him for His provision of funds to enable the small church in Zmeeov to put a new roof on their building.  Pray for us as we schedule a time to meet with Pastor Yuri Poshtak to take pictures of the construction and make plans for a team coming in May to help with some of the interior work as well as provide health clinic for 2 days.  Ask the Lord to make His plans clear to all of us for what He desires to accomplish through the volunteer team in May.  (This building was purchased by the church after being almost totally gutted by fire, leaving only the shell.)

December 8th The Book Club continues to meet on Thursday evenings in Linda's home for an hour of conversational English and an hour of reading through and discussing Romans in English.  This past week we had 6 new folks - 4 of them non-believers who were a little "surprised" by the discussion of the Bible.  Step by step we are seeing the Father remove barriers to His Truth in the hearts of our group.  Please continue to pray as we share the reason for our hope - the first coming of Jesus - through the reading of Advent passages during the month of December.  

December 9th  We praise Him for how He is working in the lives of some of the young women in The Book Club, granting them a desire to be discipled more deeply.  Pray for Amanda as she deepens her relationship with M (who is not yet a believer) and Y (who wants to be discipled).  Petition the Holy Spirit to take the truths M is learning and open her heart to understand and receive salvation through Christ.  

December 10th  Pray for me (Linda) as I share with the New Hope International Praise group concerning true worship today.  Ask the Lord to lead me in the way He desires as I make preparation for this time throughout the week.  Pray our hearts will be led to recognize that true worship is all about the One we worship - not about us!

Most of our winter days are gray, with little sunshine during the week.  Night falls around 4:00 p.m. each day, deepening the "darkness" of the days.  Pray the Light which is Christ in us will shine brightly, drawing many to Him throughout each day.  Thank you for joining us through prayer and through your giving to Lottie Moon Christmas Offering!

IMPACTing the Kharkov Region of Ukraine with the love of Christ!