We are pleased to know that you are waiting for the news from the Christian mission Hope to People.Praise God that in spite of any difficulties, you participate in the events through your prayers and involvement. Each of us can become an answer to prayers and a participant of God’s work happening in Ukraine and among other nations where the Gospel is being preached today.
Luke 18:27: „… what is impossible with men is possible with God…“
About the Ministry in Italy
Yaroslav Dovgyy, our missionary pastor who you pray about, does street outreaches. Italians show great interest, but unfortunately our people are closed. Please ask the One Who can open and change hearts. Quarantine restrictions for public meetings affect Yaroslav’s ministry because they do not have their own building. They are thankful to God for home groups and online training, fellowship and counseling on telephone. It will be very helpful if you pray for the Lord to give wisdom how to work with teenagers in these conditions.
Relocation of Missionaries in Asia
God has lead the Asian ministry in a strange way this year. One family comes from Central Asia. For almost five years they had been serving the unreached Uyghur people in Eastern Asia. But the government created such conditions for the family that it has become impossible to legally stay in the country. Thanks to your prayers, the family is back in their home land. Before that, they had done a serioud exploratory trip to the Uyghurs living in West Asia. The ministry prepares to relocate there as soon as the quarantine is relaxed in that country.
At the same time, one Ukrainian missionary family in Central Asia went to a neighboring country and suddenly they found “open door” in the place where they had not been allowed several years before. Conditions were so favorable that a short-term trip has turned into a relocation. It is a blessing that the ministry there is in good hands of his disciples and it is developing successfully even without his presence. Please, pray for a smooth settling and adjustment for the family in a new place.
Ministry on the Peninsula
Ministry among non-Christian native people is being fulfilled little by little. Weekends and holidays are used to visit families in the villages. There have been more than ten trips since the beginning of the year. They delivered literature, sweets for kids, groceries for needy families. When hosts invite to their houses, the ministers accept invitations. If the conversation goes well, they are not in a hurry to leave. They spent half a day in several families and a whole day with others. It is not missionaries’ desire to visit as many homes as possible, but they wish to strengthen relations and friendship with those who want to listen and know about God more. The Lord blesses them with such people. Some people were forbidden to come to such meetings. Please pray for these souls. We are very glad that you were able to serve with the finances to purchase groceries. This help is very timely for many poor families on the peninsula.
Ministry Among the Nations of the Middle East
The family of our brother who preaches in Persian language faced serious trials during their Covid19 sickness. When they needed additional oxygen, there were no beds in hospitals in their town. It was impossible to find them even in private hospitals for big money. Brother and his wife are thankful to God for the Ukrainian friends who organized a search in many hospitals, for their transportation to another town where they received all necessary treatments. All are healthy now and the ministry continues. They need your prayers about preparation and baptism of the Iranian brothers and sisters who believed thanks to the media ministry in Persian language.
Arab Ministry is Expanding
Minister who served Arabic speaking nations in Ukraine has decided to spend more time and efforts to develop media ministry. He plans to use the existing TV studio which is used for the ministry to broadcast in Persian. He began to study the Gospel of John in order to prepare for a TV program. Pastor thanks God that a small Arabic community has been able to find a new place for the church. It is so good that together we are able to participate in the development of the Arabic media ministry and to pray for reaching Arabic people in Ukraine and around the world.
Graduation in the Bible College
We are thankful to God for the final session on Systematic Theology which was greatly taught by Andriy Rezunenko from Kharkiv. The material was very practical and useful for personal growth and ministry. Eleven brothers and sisters who successfully finished the whole training program, received their diplomas. Several young brothers got recommendations to continue their study at the School of Biblical Preaching. Thanks to good reviews and comments given by the graduates in their churches, a new group of expected 30 students now consists of 45 people. Therefore, we need to pray for additional financial support for their training.
SALT Ukraine Project
You are invited to share the joy of blessings experienced by all the participants of a new SALT project. A team of ministers from the McLean Bible Church trained Russian speaking ministers on planting new churches. It had been done through Zoom from January through March, 2021. More than 200 brothers were able to study and receive practical pieces of advice about how to effectively plant new churches.
Finale of the online training was a meeting of the SALT project participants in Rivne at the Hope to People mission. It was a useful fellowship for pastors and church planters. Some have already started the process and others prepare to start it.
A Poll About Bibles
Christian Ethics teachers from two schools in Rivne came to the Hope to People with a request to supply their schoolchildren who take Christian Ethics classes with Bibles. Schools #19 and #3 have 130 kids who take Christian Ethics (grades 2, 3, 5, 9) and most of them do not have the Bible at home. Praise God we were able to give them Bibles and some other literature.
A telephone poll of the Christian Ethics teachers has showed that there is a great need in the Bibles, Children’s Bibles, spiritual literature, books. We are working on this as we need a lot of literature. Please, join us in prayer that the Lord’s name is glorified in this work.
Magazine for Teachers News
Nadiya Dolya worked in two traditional directions: distribution of the magazine and preparation of the next issue. After we received printed magazines Word to a Teacher #1/2021, it was necessary to distribute/deliver/send and work on the next issue. It is often necessary to contact addressees and sometimes these calls are short and sometimes they turn into real spiritual conversations. People need both a printed word and live cocommunications, especially during distant and online learning and when Christian Ethics lessons are not in priority for schools administrations. This is what happens thanks to your prayers!
Teacher of the Year Contest
We would like to thank God for the people who work not because of necessity and earnings, but because it is their calling and dedication. We mean organizers and participants of the 15th Ukrainian Contest Teacher of the Year among Christian Ethics teachers. We had an online communication on March 20 and 27-28. Those teachers were going through contest auditions, they showed parts of lessons and master classes. We plan to invite them to cooperate in the magazine. Praise our God, Who makes it possible to continue serving teachers!
They Lasted by God’s Mercy…
Christian floor ball club SKY celebrated its 6th anniversary. All friends gathered to celebrate, had a great time playing games, having tea and a cake. They discussed what a successful team is. They checked in God’s Word that a team can become successful when players support each other, pray for each other, and listen to their coach. Jesus Christ is our best supporter. He is always with us, He gave His life for us to be able to live. We are thankful to our great God for the possibility to exist for 6 years, for the young people who accepted Jesus. We are grateful that by His mercy the Lord has been bringing and keeps bringing fruit for His glory!
Why do We Need Christian Soccer Tournaments?
Praise God! After spring arrived, He allowed us to have three tournaments outside for the boys of different ages. Christian Soccer Club Nadia (Hope) hosted friends from Christian Soccer Union of Ukraine for opening of the 2021 season. Those were the teams Triumph from Radyvyliv, Baptist church from Irpin, Orlan from Kovel, Power from Rozhyshche. We thank God for the possibility to deliver the Word to kids and teenagers. “Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth” (John 17:17).
Tetiana Arterchuk, Angela Cochran
