December 15-29, 2009

Bringing Christ to Prisoners Everywhere

“..you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1:8)

It was only by the Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ that he gave us the opportunity to have another mission trip in the last month of 2009.  Sorin Iacoban, from Bethel Church (Detroit) and I, from Golgotha Church (Chicago) decided to spend the last days of 2009 in the mission field.  We arrived in Bucharest when the snows fell heavily.  This made the traffic very bad and the people got stranded on the roads for long hours because of the weather.  Some had to be carried off by helicopters because they ran out of gas or food and needed to keep warm.  Our driver, Daniel Ursulean, who came from Suceava to Bucharest with my father Vasile Lupancu were blocked for 18 hours on the road before arriving to Urziceni.  Despite the circumstances, we were not completely stopped from beginning our mission in the prisons.  On Tuesday, we met our contacts; Constantin Gramada, Tamara Ulmeanu, Potop Ioan, and other volunteers, in Bucharest.

On Wednesday, we visited Prison Jilava where we went to the hospital inside and held a meeting with each patient in their cells individually.  We brought them gifts and words of encouragement and we prayed for them.  After visiting the hospital we held another meeting with other inmates in their main conference room.  There was a great response from the inmates.  Majority of them decided to give their life (and some rededicate their lives) to Jesus Christ.  A former inmate was one of the volunteers that assisted us in our mission.  He dedicated his life to Christ years ago while in prison.  He shared the testimony of his salvation and many of his former friends [inmates and guards] were affected and impacted by his testimony of how his life was transformed.  There is power in the Gospel of Jesus Christ who transforms lives from inside out and people that are coming from nowhere are getting somewhere with hope, dedication, vision and purpose.  This motivates and fuels us in the mission field because we see the results and transformations are real!

On Thursday, we ministered in the Prison of Rahova where I was not allowed access because the approval was denied that day but our volunteers from Bucharest were given access and continued to minister the gospel of Hope and brought gifts for the holiday season to the inmates.  We were planning to go to another prison around Bucharest but due to the weather conditions were unable to go.  After 18 hours, the roads were cleaner and traffic was permitted and my driver was finally able to arrive in Bucharest with my father after a day.

On Friday morning, we left Bucharest and went to Tirgu Ocna Prison, where Sorin Iacoban was an inmate 22 years ago and he had a desire to see this place.  On our way to Tirgu Ocna, we stopped at Focsani, where we ministered to the inmates there.  We did not have material gifts for them but we brought the greatest gift which is the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ who came to seek and save the lost.  We arrived at Tirgu Ocna in the afternoon and the directors together with all the staff welcomed us.  They were very impressed to see someone changed by the Gospel of Jesus Christ and they gave us access to minister to the juvenile inmates.  The testimony of the life change of Sorin impacted the guards and the inmates.  They granted us access and showed us all of the facilities.  It is now a modernized prison compared with what it was 22 years ago.  We headed north as the night approached.  We visited Botosani Prison but we were denied access because of the swine flu threat.  We were able to deliver bibles, gifts, and supplies.  We had one of our old friends, Severin Tcaciuc incarcerated and we really wanted to see him to bring him encouragement but we couldn’t.

During the next few days, we ministered in churches from the north part of Romania.  We visited the churches of Radauti, Voitinel, Suceava, Mitoc-Prut, and others.  One church that we our mission helped to build years ago, was a church in Darmanesti and I was able to minister in this church on one Sunday during the time of communion.  The Spirit of the Lord revealed to an elder brother that never met me that I was an ordained minister and to come and do the communion service.  Also, we visited poor families and helped them with gifts.  In the village of Mitoc-Prut, we began a church construction project 2 years ago, and is currently upon completion.  This village is very isolated from the city and not a lot of people have access to it since it is very close to the Ukrainian border.  During this time, God planted a desire in my heart to build and kindergarten school and a recovery home for the future of the children in Northern Romania.  This is a vision which can only be materialized by God’s providence because we believe where God guides he also provides.  The words from the Lord through the gift of prophecy confirmed that this is God’s will to do this Christian project.  My cousin, Petrica Moloceniuc from Radauti, and I were deeply moved by God’s desire that sought to use us for this plan.  For this purpose, we contacted other brothers and pastors that were involved  in education fields.

Pastor Ioan Badelita had built such a project years ago in Suceava, RO.  He has been successful in educating and making a big difference in the lives of a lot of children with a Godly principle.  He has encouraged us and promised us that he will give all of his support.  Another brother, Orest, who is involved in government and was even proposed to be a minister of agriculture also encouraged us and agreed to support us and make the arrangements to begin.  Launching this vision was received by other businessmen and teachers that we got into contact with.  Our prayer now is that the Lord will provide the land where to start the construction.  Since then, Petrica Moloceniuc with other brothers, continues to communicate and search for the interest of the vision to be accomplished.  It is also our prayer that God will connect with serious and holy people and establish the mission board for this project.  We encourage others to unite in our prayer and seek God’s guidance and providence in fulfilling this vision which is far beyond our abilities.

With this mission, we conclude 2009 and thank God for what he has done through us through our weak vessels and we believe that as we walk in obedience to his calling, he has greater things to accomplish for the future.  This is only appointed by the grace of God.

As we are on the long trip back from Pakistan we started gathering our thoughts and writing down some of the great experiences God brought upon us.  FG and I went on one of the riskiest trip we have taken so far in our ministry years, but with great risks God brought great fulfillment.  Going to a Muslim nation with the Gospel was a very hard decision to make, especially with the country of Pakistan being ravaged by war and suicide bombers.  However, where there is an element of risk involved only faith in God compels us, and calls us to conquer our fears and go for His glory.

We had an open invitation for Pakistan for a couple years and after getting in contact with a brother from US, who had to leave Pakistan because of persecution, I was compelled to go.  Soon we read in our newspapers about the tragic attacks on the Christian community in Gojra, Pakistan where 8 people were burned to death in their homes.  This amplified the call of God to answer to the cry of the Christians in Pakistan.  Proverbs 21:13 says: “Whoever shuts his ears to the cry of the poor will also cry himself and not be heard”.

After seeking God with prayer and fasting we received the confirmation and confidence from God to go.  Our trip began November 12, questioning in our hearts if we will see this return day of November 23, 2009.  After a 13-hour flight we reached Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE).  Another 4-hour flight took us into Lahore, Pakistan.  We have never seen our contacts before but a big welcome sign together with the smiles and friendly manner of our contacts made us feel comfortable and well received.

Our first night we spent at Christian Fellowship of Pakistan Church in Lahore.  After having lunch at a local Christian family we headed towards Shantinagar, where the bulk of our ministry in Pakistan was prepared.   Shantinagar is a village of about 10,000 in which many Christian families reside.  This attracted an attack in 1997 from a Muslim sponsored mob of 20,000 to 30,000 people.  They burned over 300 houses, 16 churches, 270 vehicles, etc. thus affecting more than 1,000 Christian families.  We made a short stop at Shaiwal and because it was getting late, and travel during the night is dangerous, we stopped to sleep at a family in Khanewal.  That same night we visited a Christian bible college sponsored by FCBC, the organization we worked with in Pakistan.  We meet the principal Elvin Wilson who gave us a tour and answered our questions regarding the curriculum and the student body.  Under Wilson’s watch the college is doing a great job at preparing the new pastors, evangelists, and leaders for the expansion of kingdom of God in that area of Pakistan.

Because of the time change; the next day was Sunday already.  Half an hour trip took us from Khanewal to Shantinagar.  As we were entering the village group of 3 motorcycles approached our van while the people where waving their guns.  We thought we might be under attack but our host assured us this is just our escort into town, to provide more security.  The local church waited for us with big celebrations, which included gunshots fired into the air, flowers and some of the local festivity traditions.  We were introduced with great delight and respect to the local people, pastors, and music leaders.  Above all, we felt the presence of the Holy Spirit uniting us in one accord.  Still we were uncomfortable, and did not have the full liberty in the spirit because of all the guns and security precautions.  We trusted in God’s protection as our life insurance.  A lady from the church called our translator and said she had a dream to share with us.  She was in charge of preparing everything for us and was expecting our arrival the previous night.  She had food and accommodations ready and was afraid something happened to us on our way since we did not come.  After midnight she went to sleep worrying, but God gave her a clear vision.  In the vision she saw our faces and before us flames of fire which spread into the church.  Psalm 97:3 says: “Fire goes before Him”.  Psalm 104:4 also says: “Who makes His angels spirits, His ministers a flame of fire.”  As she was telling the vision a big anointing from the Holy Spirit came down, broke the spirit of fear, gave confidence, and increased our strength so we can minister with boldness and courage.

Because of limited time and to avoid exposure we were lead by the Holy Spirit to have a seminary with all the pastors in the area.  This way we were able to reach to more people than it would have otherwise been possible.  Nayyar Asghar, the national director of FCBC, and a true man of God, arranged this 3-day meeting.  He got in contact with all the pastors and students in the area, set up housing, food distribution, and accommodations for about 150 people who attended.  Our seminar was from 10 AM to 4 PM Monday through Wednesday, including lunch and tea break.

The title of the seminary was Supernatural Living Through the Power of the Holy Spirit, but we tailor our messages for the needs of the local churches through the guidance of the Holy Spirit.  People were blessed by the impartation, the presence, and the anointing of the Holy Spirit and leadership teaching.  We were encouraged by the testimony of many pastors and students who came to thank us for this opportunity and to tell us how much they were inspired by the seminary and the presence of God.  Last day we issued certifications to all pastors attending.  These were received with much joy.

The nights were spent in evangelistic meetings. Those took place in a big tent, which was set up especially for those gatherings.  Every night police surrounded the tent to discourage retaliation, but many people from the village did not come for fears of attacks.  Nevertheless, The Spirit of God was not afraid of attacks and was present there.  I was inspired by God to give the testimony of how a Hindi police officer, which I meet in India, came to Christ.  The police officers outside the tent listened very careful and the next night came to talk to us on our way to the meeting.  First came a chief of the local police and asked to pray for him as bad spirits, noises, disturbed his house and there was fear.  He sought help from Muslim priests to no avail.  I told him the solution for his problem is Jesus who can destroy the work of the devil; I explained him the Gospel and prayed for deliverance.  After the meeting another police officer came.  He had a tumor on his throat and wanted healing, as the doctors could not help him.  I presented him Jesus who has the healing power and we came in agreement to trust Jesus and believe in a miracle.  We left the results to God as we were departing the next day, and believe the presence of God was there to do the work he has promised us will do when we call upon him.

Wednesday afternoon we went to Gojra where we had our long time internet contact.  He had joined us at the Seminary.  In August a mob of 10,000 attacked the Christian community in Gojra, destroying over 100 homes, killing by burning 8 people (including children) and injuring many more.  Through our contact we were able to visit the 3 houses of the most affected families.  They were terrified by fear and the discrimination they had to face daily.  The government started rebuilding some of the houses but for the families who lost the loved ones this was no consolation.  We encouraged them to have faith in God, who can give comfort and by whom we can overcome anything that comes our way.  We also reminded them of the hope we have that the dead are not dead but alive with Christ, and that one-day we will see them again in glory.  Together with our condolences and comforting words we gave them some financial support.

We were then guided to the tent camp, which was set up for families who lost their homes, which were now in a slow rebuilding process sponsored by the government.  It was night and chili outside and these families lived in tents with no real protection from the cold, no bathroom, no running water.  The situation was heart breaking, and we felt the need to help somehow as we went from tent to tent.  The news of us being there spread quickly and soon found ourselves surrounded by a large group of people.  Because it was night and the crowds were pushing, just like they did in other times with Jesus, we together with our host felt this could quickly become a problem.  The best solution was to leave quickly before any trouble escalated.  We left with the pain of these people deeply imprinted on our hearts.

From Borja we headed toward Youngsonabad where FCBC has a children school for about 400 students.  They also provide housing, food, and clothing for 40 orphans.  As we arrived there at midnight we were exhausted spiritually and physically but God rejuvenated us the next day through the excitement of the children as they filled up the schoolyard, and they prayed and sang together.   Somehow their innocence contrasted so much with the dullness, fear, and evil we had experienced the previous night.  After speaking to the students we spent a blessed time with the founder of the school, Rev. Nathaniel Barkat who shared with us many testimonies of how God has worked in his life.  Despite the persecution and discrimination that runs rampant in that country we could see the rivers of living water flowing out of his love for Jesus Christ.

After being strengthen and encouraged by such a man of God we headed back to Lahore and from there to Abu Dhabi which is a city close to Dubai, UAE.  God prompted on old contact from India to tell us he is in Dubai and invited us to have fellowship with some of the churches in Dubai.  There we attended a house meeting of about 30 people, where we saw the glory of God come on the faces of the congregation.  It was yet another way God was strengthening us after an exhausting trip.  Besides great buildings built by men, in Dubai God has built a powerful church, made of great men and women.  We also shared the word of God at Emirates Christian Pentecostal Church where we connected spiritually with our Indian brothers and sisters in Christ.

Even though this mission trip required great sacrifice, great physical effort, and difficult spiritual warfare, now looking back we are thankful for what God has done through our weak vessels.  Instead of being discouraged and ungrateful we have a great spiritual joy and fulfillment.  This mission trip changed and revolutionized our life and brought spiritual vitality that will help us to live the spiritual life to the fullest.  We experienced the power of God in the name of Jesus just like the disciples experienced in Luke chapter 10.  We thank God who gave us the opportunity to minister in this hostile environment as lambs among wolfs, and for the work he did among the people of Pakistan. This reenergized both our and their commitment to live ready to go where the Lord will send us and to do what he wants us to do.  We want to encourage you to live a life with passion for souls and to lead other to spiritual life.

Constantin Lupancu

My name is Pastor Ken Murayi. I pastor a congregation of about 100 people in Kenya Africa . My wife Judy and I have been blessed with one child.

I happened to come across your contact on the web and was greatly touched and ministered to as I read through your Mission . God bless you great for obeying his Voice to minister this kind of healing to the Body of Christ.

While reading the inspiring articles from the internet the Lord led me to your website. It was so blessing to see how God is using you to be a blessing into the Body of Christ. I want to let you know that because of this I will be praying for you and the ministry God has given to you. May He give you favor before the people you lead and and give you great wisdom that people will come to be helped by you. These are the last days and the devil is out to fight the ministers of the word as he knows his time is so short, but be assured of our prayer support. When we pray for one another, the devil has no room at all. We will go winning.

Would you please pray with us about the possibility of Coming to Africa some day if the Lord allows and may be do some ministry in this area. I look forward to hearing from you.

May God bless you.

Pastor Ken Murayi

Receive our love and greetings in Jesus name. May the lord bless you so much for obeying his voice to minister to the body of Christ in all the nations. Jesus never leaves us nor does He ever forsake us. During moments that we may have wherein we feel such love and compassion for another person, it is wise to realize that God’s love and God’s compassion for that other person surpasses our best efforts on our best days. This includes our love and compassion for our husband or wife or children or father or mother or sisters or brothers, etc., etc., etc. Our love and compassion pales to a pale of the smallest proportion when compared to the great love and great compassion of The Almighty God and LORD Jesus Christ. Oh, how He loves us. Oh, how He loves us.

As I said in my last mail to you, we are believing God to begin a children’s home too. Ministry here has many challenges among them meeting the orphans on our mission work who can only see hope in the men of God. I have sent you pics of my family, church congregation and some kids in our care.

May the Lord bless you abundantly.

Pastor Ken Murayi

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I was born on 23 August 1953, but gave my life to the  Lord [got born again ] in 1978 when I was a young man.

Dear Brother

Greetings and blessing from God to you. Today, I write you to inform you that we have a new program for the Children of the Church and this program is open also for all the children in the area where the Church is. We call this program: CHILDREN CHURCH CLUB.

Every saterday at 3 PM to 5 PM , we have a special whorship service for the kids of the Church and also we invite all the kids who live around of the Church come and participate in our program .

We create this program for the Children in the gaol to evangelize the Chilcren and bring them to Christ. We started the program last September 19, 2009. The first day, the attendance was 40 kids, the second day 60, the third day the attendance was 70. The house where the Church meet, it’s litle, we don’t have enough space inside, now we meet them at the Church yard. This activity start to be a succes for our Ministry in Gonaives. Please, we ask you to help us by your prayers and so that God can help CHILDREN CHURCH CLUB grow up for the extension of His kingdom. Attached I send to you some pictures from the Church in Gonaives .Thank you !

May God in His love bless you, your family and Ministry.

Pastor Joseph Jules Jasmin,

Ruelle Yvon # 24, Gonaives, Haïti

Phone : 509 37528635

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Hello Rev. Pastor Constantin Lipancu

Greetings from New Covenant christian Church, Gonaives, Haiti. Today, I write you to ask you if you already come back to USA. Last sunday moring we had six new baptisms and  I send you some of thier pictures.Thank you!

Your Brother in Christ:

Pastor Joseph J. Jasmin

DIRIGEE  PAR  PASTEUR  SANON MEDIT

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On march 8th 2009 a group of brothers and sisters made up of 7 people led by Reverend Sanon Medit laid the foundation for the congregation to be known as the church of Christ in Orangers. The blessings are multiplying every day in our young assembly. The highly anticipated arrival of Pastor Dade Iriel and Pastor Carlo Jerome, breathed even more energy to the congregation and brings local youth to join us to praise the name of the Lord. After three months the growing numbers of people attending begin to worry the pastor because of the lack of space in the church. Through the collaboration of everybody and thanks to the help of God we were able to get through to that point.

We do believe in the invincible inspiration of the word of God. Recognizing that law was a tutor to lead us to Christ, salvation agent (Gal:3) We avoid every cult, but we research every unity in the essential knowing of the freedom of everyone in opinion by exhorting with love in everything.

JACMEL,HAITI (W.I)

TEL :  (509) 3671-5947

My name is James Hmun Kam Lova. By the grace and help of God, I with
my family have been serving as volunteer missionary and church planter
in Buddhist communities in our native country, Myanmar where the
Theravada Buddhism takes deep roots. God has been blessing our Call
and commitment and our ministries. By the help of God, now we can
start small body of Christ at two Buddhist communities- Shansuh
village, and 133 Ward. We have now just start serving. We have been
serving by only Faith now for five years. Faith is our strength. Many
times I was confronted with Buddhist monks and authorities because of
our sharing testimonies and the Gospel. Many times I was warned not to
share my testimonies to other people and even not to say the name
“Jesus Christ” to other people. Under many kinds of hardship, we serve
God with a heart full of praise because we have clear Faith. Our Faith
has always produced us Hope.

Let me tell you about Shansuh village. It is located in Yangon
countryside. It is the most undeveloped village and the poorest
village among the villages in Yangon countryside. There are sixty
seven families living in this village. They are very poor, uneducated,
very common, and very pitiful. There is no any school, government
office, phone, and well water supply in this village. It is a
neglected village- Neglected because of low living, bad
transportation, and poverty. Shansuh village only received electricity
only in 2006. But now only about ten families can get the electric
supply. I entered into this village in 2004 and shared my testimony
and the Gospel. When the nargis cyclone hit the village on the first
three days of May, 2008, many houses were corrupted. As it is a
neglected village, no relief group reached this village. They are
struggling enough to find for their daily food. As most are uneducated
and have low intelligent, they have no any permanent job. They work
possible job to support for their daily living. They have no Hope.
They want to do ANYTHING to get money for their living. God is
blessing our sharing testimonies and the Gospel to some people. Now,
we could start a small, but strong, body of Christ in this village.

We have also been serving in 133 Ward in New Dagon (East). We entered
to this Buddhist communities to share the Gospel. We rented house. We
were banished from our rented house because of the worship service and
Bible studies we held in. But God has been working to Buddhist people
behind the problems. We have clear Faith. Our clear Faith gives us
strength, joy, and hope. So, under many kinds of hardship, God gives
me and my family an inexpressible joy. And God has revealed His glory
to some Buddhists, and some soon came to know Jesus Christ, and
accepted Him as their personal Savior and Lord. 133 Ward is also
undeveloped village. It is a big village. About 85 percent are very
poor. When the nargis cyclone hit this big village, many houses were
destroyed. By the grace of God, some relief teams reached the village.
But, only the high persons or village authorities and their relatives
got the relief helps. The poor people had no any privilege to get the
helps. So, many families could not build their houses and so moved to
another village to find some helps. Till today, many people are living
in and under very bad houses. Especially, six families, who are now
true Christians, are very pitiful. Their houses were destroyed by the
nargis cyclone. They could not build by themselves. They are very
pitiful. Whenever I see them, my tears come down. We love them. But we
cannot help them to build their houses and to give them food because
we are also living with a very limited income under our rented house.
We are also living, moving, serving, and having being only by the
Grace of God. So, 133 Ward also needs your prayer.

Presently, our ministry focuses on these two Buddhist villages. In
these villages, there are many hopeless families and many many
hopeless people. So, most Buddhist hopeless people commit to suicide,
prostitution, thieves, and murder. Most of criminal persons,
prostitutes, thieves, beggars, in Yangon are from the background of
poor living and mostly are from these two villages. It is sure and I
am clear that these people need salvation (save from both their
present and future lives) and are hunger for the Gospel. Till today,
there are many poor Buddhist people who have no privilege to get help
and to hear the Gospel. With my family, we love our country and
people. We love them. We don’t want them living in hopeless and not to
hear the Gospel. So, We have helped some poorest people and help them
build a very small bamboo houses as much as we could. And we looked
after some parentless orphans. At this present time we have just
started and have only 4 children and running in our rented house.
There are hundred of children turning out on the streets, at bus
stands and train stations begging for food because of the Nargis
Cyclone, trauma of Unemployment, much poverty and numerous terrible
diseases. We do not have an adequate welfare system to be able to care
for those in such poverty. You know the poverty is very great and
every where here in Myanmar. Also they go daily to the dustbins trying
to salvage a morsel of rice and sleep in the walkways. When they don’t
get the food everyday in the dustbins, beside the roads and streets
they will die from starvation. What a terrible situation for a child
to be alone to survive on the streets. Many children cannot go to
school. Here in Myanmar, especially in these villages, some of the
parents who do not have job to earn money, take their precious
destitute children and let them to steal something from others. The
female children are also being pushed out to be prostitution by their
parents for making money in order to get daily food for daily living.
We pray and ask you to pray and save these poor Buddhist people and
children from these terrible situations and from their terrible
eternal life, and show your compassion and love upon these poor
Myanmar, especially in 133 and Shansuh village, to have for a better
life. Poor Myanmar Buddhist people are in need of salvation to both
present life and for future life.

Our Faith, vision, mission statement and goals are: To bring hope for
the hopeless; to fulfill the Great Commission of our Lord Jesus Christ
in Myanmar; to reach out the unreached with the Gospel of Jesus
Christ; to provide help and encouragement for desperate people; to run
Myanmar Christian Literature; to meet the people needs, to run
orphanage and to restore livelihoods for people who lost the means to
earn an income for their families.

Please pray for us and our ministries and the very poor people and the
orphan kids in Shansuh village, and in 133 Ward at Yangon countryside
in Myanmar. Please pray for us and our commitment to God for His own
Glory.

The very purpose of our lives is to accomplish the very Great
Commission of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and to fulfill the very
Great Commandment of our Lord to Shansuh village and133Ward and to the
whole Myanmar by practicing Matt.5:16 and by applying Joshua 24:14-16.
I send you my family picture, and some of our current pictures of our
ministries. We just start serving. We need your prayer.

Please keep on contact with me.

May God bless each you and your ministries.
Thanks
In His love and faithful service
James Hmun Kam Lova
No. 871, 36 Ward
Bosunpet Street or Sittaung Street
New Dagon (North)
Yangon, Myanmar

June 21-July 1, 2009

You will stand before governors and kings for My sake, as a testimony to them.
Mark 13:9

I, together with Bryan Revor and William Ripple, have just returned from an unforgettable 10 days in China. Since I have returned I have been pondering on the experiences in our trip and especially on what God is doing in that part of the world, despite decades of communist regime. For the three of us it was hard to comprehend some of the things happening in China thus making it very difficult to fully describe and unpack it all in one letter. With the help of the many notes I took and the post research I did I hope to paint for you an accurate picture of the growth of Christianity and the role of the Communist regime as we saw and heard. First, I would like to take you on the journey with us and then take a few steps back and reflect on how I understood what was happening.

Our trip was a follow-up trip to the one Rob Brown, William Ripple, and Constantin Lupancu did in 2008, which resulted in 1,000 bibles being distributed in rural area of China. We left Chicago on June 21 and after 14 hours of flight, we reached Shanghai. We were only allowed off the plane after people masked in white confirmed there was none with high fever on the plane. 4 hours later, we took another 2 ½ hour flight to Xi’an, in the Shaanxi province, from where we took a taxi towards Baoji. That took another 2 hours. From the moment we landed into China I was impressed by the friendliness and respectful manner of the people and the advanced stage of development. Our hotel room in Baoji was small with hard beds but was nevertheless well taken care of. We used this hotel as our home base, taking our trips to various village churches to distribute bibles and fellowship with the local believers.

Because of dire experiences in the 2008 China trip and other grim reports on religious persecution in China I was very disturbed in the morning to find out we are sharing the hotel with over 200 policemen in training and that our Christian hosts who came to pick us up in cars were loudly talking about how the Bible distribution would occur. Among the people who accompanied us was the lady who kept the bibles in her apartment until our arrival (seen at the bottom right corner) and Xie Gong (lady with the purse) who was instrumental in founding and growing many of the churches we visited in the Baoji area. Pastor Xie Gong is 67 years old and has dedicated her life for the churches around Baoji. There were other ladies in the leadership of the churches who came with us daily in our 2 rented vans, for which they arranged.

Baoji is surrounded by hills, mountains and lots of small towns where people make a living by agriculture. For many generations they have cut large parts of the hills and transformed them into flat agricultural land. Caves are cut into the high side of the mountain and transformed into homes where some people still live. It was harvest time and most believers were in the fields. We were told that it sometimes takes hours before they could descend and ascend many hills to get to the nearest church. Therefore, we met only with the leaders/pastors of the churches and some people who lived in proximity. We worshiped, prayed, laid hands on the sick, and most importantly gave them the word of God: The Bible.

Description of some of the churches we visited:

Shuang Baiyang Church started with just $5 and 48 people. Now they were numbering at about 180 and growing. They were very grateful for the Bibles as they could not afford to buy literature for the new believers. In 1998 they bought land and started working on building their place of worship. By 2002 they had finished their building all by volunteer work. They had built a house for people that came from far away so they could stay for a couple of days and study the bible together. As most peasants have only crops and no money, they had to borrow money for the church construction which they are repaying quarterly. Their love for Christ was evident in their singing, praying and hospitality. They did not let us leave until we received their gifts in nuts, beans seeds, and cucumbers. The Bibles and small gift we brought were received with great joy and thankfulness.

Xinjie (New Street) Church began in 1978 with 10 people in an old English church which was later tarred down by the government. They received a new property on which they built the current church which had 250 members. Because their old church was torn down, we asked them about persecution, they answered that there is none and that they could worship freely. They also said that the people in the mountain get together in their houses during the week and on Sunday they come down to the church for service and to eat together. I rejoiced at their smile and strong, YES we believe, after we read from Acts 2 – the day of the Pentecost.

Ganyu (Mountain) Church is well deserving of its name, as it is right in the heart of the mountains, almost at the very top. The small parcel they received from the government was not big enough to build a church so they cut the mountain over a period of 3 years and then built their church. They numbered over 100 members. About 20 lived in the town at the bottom of the mountain where they meet during the week in a small house of a lovely sister in Christ. We left a box of Bibles at the church and one in the small town where they direly needed them for the new believers.

Guchuan Church started in 1995 with 2 people when our host Xie Gong went to pray with another believer for a sick person in that town. The sick person got well and some people believed. Later someone came to Pastor Xie Gong who had inflated hands. They were hurting so bad she could not touch anything. When Pastor Xie Gong washed her hands she did not hurt at all, and two days later the hands were back to normal. Some turned to Christ. Later, another 15 families believed after a diabetic was healed. A local lady told us another story about how she had cancer and only had 3.5 yaunn (50 cents). After a dream she had she gave 2 yaunn to the church and used the 1.5 left for one piece of medicine to treat her cancer. Right after taking the medicine she was healed. Pastor Xie Gong continued visiting this town twice a week until the church grew stronger and a local leader was established.

What a joy to see the gospel of Jesus Christ go forward with power and penetrate in places that otherwise would have never opened to Christian beliefs. They brought forth some other sick people and we prayed for them. The presence of God was there. Later we visited a family where Willie prayed over the wife who had cancer. Even still, we pray God will receive her tears and accord her healing because of our Lord Jesus. Later we asked them about governmental interference in their church activities or beliefs and they said there is none as the government itself sold them the land to build the church. They laughed when we mentioned pastors being imprisoned for being Christians. Praise God for the liberty he accorded!

The people seem to be living well by working the land. They have very good food. For each lunch we got about 10 different kinds of foods: all kinds of vegetables, chicken, pork, wild plants, noodles, and rice of the highest quality. All this food for only $30 for about 25 people.

Baofu Road Church in Baoji started in a house with 5 members (first lady from the right was one of the founders) 15 years ago and now it has over 500 people. Our hosts told us this church meets every night, and we should visit it while we were in the city. When we got there they were having bible study on the first level and choir practice on the second level. The choir was singing so beautifully about their love for Jesus, how good of a friend He is, and how they will never let go of Him. I was so much reminded of the days when I grew up in Romania. It was the same atmosphere, only the faces and the language were different. One of the leaders, Sidney, who was holding the Bible study, came to talk to us when he was done. He spoke English so we could talk without translation. He had become a Christian through a professor at a university and now he had given up his job to dedicate himself fully to the ministry.

We had a long conversation with him about their church belief and the needs of the churches in China. Sidney showed us some of the Christian books he bought from US; specifically a Chinese version of The Moody Hand Book of Theology. It was clear that Sidney and Baofu Road Church had a clear understanding of the Bible and a strong belief in the Father, The Son, and The Holy Spirit. What a delight to see that God has His “seven thousand in The World, all the knees which have not bowed to Baal.” Sidney told us that the church around China is in dire need of qualified ministers that could teach in local small churches, many of which have no pastors. After the last earthquake in southern China, Sidney with a group from his church went there to help and pass out Bibles. Those who believed were coming the next day to their church to stay awhile so they could be taught in the Scriptures.

Sidney reiterated that in general there is no persecution or governmental interference in the church. Furthermore he stated when it comes to getting a job Christians tend to get the upper hand because they are thought to be better trusted. He also assured us we would have no problems buying Bibles within China and passing them out in the churches.

Shijaai Church was founded and pastured by a family who has been Christian for the last 5 generations. There was a 79-year-old lady (I will call her Grandma) whose grandparents converted to Christianity when the British arrived. Since she was 15 she helped her father spread the Gospel. She said she would cry because people will not listen nor believe, when told about Jesus. They made fun of her and told her she was crazy because she did not wear earrings and bond her feet like everyone else. When communists came to power they took her Bible away and told her not to believe. Because she did not give in, they did not pay her for work and would not sell her anything. But God took care of her needs through other people. With a heartbreaking expression on her face, Grandma said those were such bad times she does not want to remember them.

The Cultural Revolution ended in 1976 and in 1982 they called her to a 3-day meeting to inform everyone about the new religious policy. She was very sick and told them she can’t go. They insisted because she was famous in that area for her strong belief in God. Grandma went but could not talk because she had throat cancer. That whole night believers prayed for her and the next day she could eat rice. While walking up to the meeting on the third floor, she spat a clot of blood in the garbage at each floor and afterward she was fine. The meeting promoted the Three-self patriotic movement in which the religious believers were called to self-governance, self-support, and self-propagation, in order to remove foreign influences and assure religious believers would be patriotic to the Republic of China. Grandma declared that after the meeting in 1982 they did not have anymore trouble with the government.

She was such a sweet lady. While she told us her story she sang the songs in the story, she recited the poems in the story, and at the end she sang Oh Happy Day in English. She showed us her Christian material she had kept hidden. Some were as old as 1935. Grandma had 6 sons who were all believers. They built a building behind the church where they could hold Sunday school classes and host a children summer camp. Later we ate at one of her sons houses. The food was delicious and the friendliness was wonderful. As we left there were tears in Grandma’s eyes as she asked us to not forget them and return.

More travel:

From Baoji we took a 15-hour train to Ling Shi, Shanxi province, an area which was visited in the 2008 trip to China. We were able to transport cases of Bibles in plain view. The cardboard boxes that contained the Bibles had large Chinese words: “Chinese Bibles” on the outside. The government workers at the train station inspected the boxes and passed them. The local believers in Ling Shi waited for our return with such a great joy that some could not even sleep at night.

Official Meeting:

After a friendly welcome and some breakfast we were told by our translator that we have to go to meet the local Minister of Religious Affiars, Mr. Ma. He was the one involved in the interrogations that took place in the 2008 mission trip, and now we were going back to sign in with him before any activity. Because he was aware of our coming he invited Mr. Cheng, his boss, and officials from 3 other counties to meet with us. I felt intense pressure as we walked in the meeting room with the 7 governmental officials and 3 church representatives but as soon as we started talking I felt very peaceful. Mr. Ma wanted to know what our itinerary was, and what interests have brought us back to that area. Willie explained that we were there to give more Bibles and help the local churches progress and grow, which will work for the benefit of the entire area. One of the projects Willie discussed with him was his plan to bring two young Chinese men he had met on his previous trip to China, to study at Moody Bible Institute. Willie showed them the application and discussed with the officials what it will take for these students to come to the US.

Bryan shared how we minister in a large jail in Chicago, and that the Bible says that if any man was in Christ they become a new creation. Bryan explained how Christ can change a person’s heart and that only He can give them a new heart. He told the story of the “Son of Sam,” a mass murder who terrorized New York City. He is now a new man in Christ and is completely changed from the inside out. He told them how we have seen Christ deliver people from drug addiction and alcohol abuse and that this would help the people to become better, more productive citizens. Willie gave Mr. Chang a Bible and the church representatives showed him Romans chapter 13: “Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but from God; the powers that be are ordained by God…” When asked about the possibility of a Jail Ministry in China they did not seem open, but they brightened up a bit when Willie suggested we could train the pastors how to minister in the jails, rather than go into the jails ourselves. Who knows? Maybe the Lord is opening up the door for Chaplains for Christ to start a training program in China!

After the meeting the officials treated us to a grand dinner during where we were able to get very friendly with Mr. Cheng. He was very nice and well educated. I really believe God had been and is working at his heart and the King of Heaven is ready to enter his life. Because our translator knew the former mayor of Ling Shi, and the great help he gave during the last trip’s interrogations, we went to visit him at his house and brought him encouragement as he was sick.

In the Ling Shi area we fellowshipped with some of the churches visited in the last trip, plus others such as: Yuchen Church, Yanan Church, Zhangjazunag Village Church. It was encouraging to hear again the stories of God’s work and to see the growth in the numbers of believers. Constantin and Willie had made a donation last year to Yanan Church and now they were very excited to show us how the money was used to improve the place of worship. It was quite amazing what they did. The Ling Shi Christian Church was numbering over 400 believers, but the building they were meeting in was not fit for more than 100 people, if even that. The government was tearing down the entire area where the church was because it was very old and the coal industry left its very big marks of pollution on it. A new land was reassigned to the church on a top of a hill with very nice view. The leader of the church asked us to send architectural plans so they could build a nice church for the Ling Shi people. We brought Bibles to all the churches and encouraged them to stay strong in the faith.

The Trip Home

Another 3 hours of driving and we were in Tai Yuenn. From there we took a train to Beijing. Luckily the train was traveling at 150 miles an hour and we got to Beijing in just 3 hours. There we visited some of the attractions and then took our plane which brought us back to the US in 13 hours.

Reflections:

One of the first things we were told when we started our work in China was: everyone is in the fields because its harvest time. And yes our brothers in China are busy working the fields of souls. The church is growing and encompassing old, young, intellectual, and peasant. How? Chinese Christians are encouraged to demonstrate Christ’s love in the way they live. Most evangelism in China takes place in one-to-one contacts, by telling the neighbor about Christ or inviting him to church where he/she finds a loving community.

After a period of complete ban of religious life, in 1979 China restored the right for Christians to hold their own religious beliefs and to engage in regular worship. Many of the churches we visited where started within couple years of 1979 and now there are new churches constantly being organized and built. These are the so called “registered churches”, which have chosen to comply with the government regulations for registration of places to worship. There are churches which choose not to register - the underground church. Most if not all churches we been to were registered therefore it is hard to understand the reason for not registering. It seems that it has to do more with a theological disagreement of any civil registration which may be due to the long time hostility between the government and church. A similar position was taken by many Romanian believers who had lived through the harsh times of communism there. Sadly, the unregistered seem to still be a target for the Chinese government.

The unregistered (underground) church is not to be confused with the “House Church” or “House Meeting”. As described above most of the churches started as house churches. One believer told us “it’s just a Bible study session, nobody will stop you for it”. In other cases House Meetings are just supplementary to the church meeting, and those Christians also join congregations in churches.

As we have seen believers in Baoji are living their Christian life with no interference but this is not to say there is no persecution at all in China. The laws in China protect the people religious rights, but China is a country of 1.3 billion people. The interpretations of local government may differ from province to province or city to city. If in Baoji the officials did not worry of us being present there, in Ling Shi we had to go register and explain why we are there. The Communist Party is very suspicious of any activity against them therefore foreigners are not allowed to proselytize. As we were told, the Catholic Church is having more trouble than the Protestant Church because of their outside allegiance to the Pope. Other religious groups like Falun Gong are being shut down, the reason being a lot more than simply religious belief; hence please use discernment when reading/watching the news.

I pray the information found here would open many eyes as to what the situation is in China. It may not be the freedom we find in US but God has opened the door enough for His gospel to go forward just as it went for all the centuries before: through a life well lived, and one-to-one. The great challenge for the Church in China is not freedom anymore, but the lack of leadership and Bibles. During the Cultural Revolution many leaders were put in jail and no training of new leaders happened. The current training of pastors does not sustain the great growth of the Chinese church. Even more many poor believers in China’s rural areas simply cannot afford even the cheapest Bible. So scarce is God’s precious Word that any one Bible distributed may eventually be used by hundreds of people. Some churches don’t even have one Bible for their entire congregation.

God is not calling us to change the whole world, He is doing that, but He has split His work in portions. Our portion in China has to be in Bibles and sponsoring the training of pastors. Are you doing your portion?

“He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he who is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still.”

(Rev 22:11)

– FG

La sfârşitul luni Iunie am petrecut zece zile de neuitat în China, împreuna cu Bryan Revor şi William Ripple. Călătoria noastră a fost în urma unei alteia făcută în 2008, în care s-au distribuit o mie de Bibli în zona rurală a Chinei. Aceste călătorii au fost posibile doar pentru că William Ripple şi-a arătat ospilitate faţă de o baştinaşă Chineză, Ms. Lee, iar apoi Domnul a lucrat ca ea să devină traducătoarea şi călăuzitoarea noastră.

Vizita noastră s-a axat în jurul a doua oraşe: Baoji din provincia Shaanxi, şi Ling Shi din provincia Shanxi care a fost vizitat şi în 2008. Aceste oraşe sunt înconjurate de dealuri, munţi şi o mulţime de sate unde oamenii îşi fac traiul prin agricultură. Oameni sunt harnici astfel având cele trebuincioase traiului de zi cu zi, dar ei nu câştigă bani. Mulţi credincioşi, pur şi simplu nu-şi pot permite chiar şi cele mai ieftine Bibli. Din cauza zonei muntoase lipsesc modurile de transport public iar călătoria la biserică devine un drum obositor de câteva ore. De aceea, ne-am întâlnit doar cu liderii/pastorii bisericilor şi unii oameni care au trăit în proximitate. Ne-am închinat împreuna cu iei, i-am încurajat din scripturi, si cel mai important le-am dat cuvântul lui Dumnezeu, Biblia.

A fost timpul recoltei şi ni s-a spus: fraţii sunt în câmp la lucru. Aşa am şi găsit, fraţii noştri Chineji lucrau cu aceeaşi hărnicie pe dealurile şi munţii Chinei ca şi în ogoarele Domnului. Biserica este în creştere cuprinzând oameni din toate nivelurile societăţii. Chiar dacă China încă nu dă voie evenimentelor religioase publici, creştinii sunt încurajaţi să demonstreze dragostea lui Hristos în modul în care ei trăiesc. Evanghelizarea are loc prin contact personal, prin a spune despre Hristos aproapelui şi învitându-l la biserică unde el/ea găseşte o comunitate primitoare şi iubitoare. Pe alocuri ni sa spus de mari minuni care Dumnezeu le-a făcut ca oameni să vină la mântuire. Dragostea creştinilor pentru Hristos, era evidentă în felul cum cântau se rugau şi în mare lor ospitalitate. Dacă feţele şi limba nu ar fi fost aşa de diferite desigur m-aş fi gândit ca sunt la una din bisericile Române.

Din cauza interogărilor care au avut loc în călătoria din 2008 şi altor rapoarte de persecuţie religioasă în China, mare nea fost mirarea că am putut transporta Bibli în plin văz public. Mai mult, de fiecare dată când am întrebat de persecuţie creştini zâmbeau şi spuneau că nu există la iei. Confuzia noastră sa risipit dor după multe ore de conversaţie cu păstori de la mai multe biserici, şi mai ales după ce am întâlnit credincioşi care au avut parte de suferinţe multe pentru că au iubit pe Christos şi s-au încrezut în Dumnezeu. Am avut oportunitatea să stăm la masă chiar cu oficiali ale guvernului, unii fiind cei care au participat la interogarea din 2008. Unul din oficiali, cu cel mai înalt grad de la întâlinre, a primit bucuros o Biblie, iar tuturor le-a fost spus de marea puterea a evangheliei de a schimba vieţile oamenilor.

După o perioadă de interdicţie totală a vieţii religioase, în anul 1979 China a re-stabilit creştinilor dreptul să-şi deţină convigerile şi să se întâlnească la închinare în biserici. Majoritatea bisericilor pe care le-am vizitat au început doar cu câţiva membri imediat după anul 1979 iar acum numărau în jurul câtorva sute de persoane pe biserică. Noi biserici se formează şi construiesc în mod constant. Aceste e aşa-numita “Biserica Înregistrată”, care a ales să se conformeze reglementărilor guvernamentale de înregistrare a locurilor de închinare. Există biserici care aleg să nu se înregistreze, aşa-numită “Biserica Subterană”. Cele mai multe, dacă nu toate bisericile, la care am fost erau înregistrate fiind greu de înţeles motivul pentru care unele biserici nu se înregistrează. Se pare că are de a face mai mult cu un dezacord teologic cu privire la orice fel de înregistrare civilă, care poate fi cauzată de îndelunga ostilitate între guvern şi biserică. O poziţie similară a fost adoptată de către mulţi români credincioşi care trăiseră prin timpurile dure a comunismului. Din păcate, biserica neînregistrată este în continuare un obiectiv a guvernului chinez. Biserica neînregistrată nu trebuie confundată cu biserici sau întăliniri din case. Cele mai multe biserici au început întâlnirile lor în case, iar după ce au crescut guvernul le-a vândut pământ unde au putut să-şi construiască o casă de închinare. Mulţi credincioşi se întâlnesc prin case pentru studiu si rugăciune în timpul săptămânii ca şi suplement la congregaţii în biserici.

Disigur libertatea din China nu este în aceeaşi măsură ca şi în USA dar Dumnezeu a deschis uşa pentru evanghelie deajuns ca vestea bună a mântuirii să se răspândească aşa cum sa dus de secole: de la om la om şi prin o viaţă exemplară. Cea mai mare problemă a biserici din China nu mai este libertatea, ci lipsa de conducere şi de Bibli. În timpul Revoluţiei Culturale mulţi lideri au fost puşi în închisoare şi sa stopat formarea de pastori, lideri noi. Nivelul actual de instruire a noilor pastori nu susţine marea creştere a biserici, astfel multe biserici nu au pastori. Pe deasupra unele biserici din zonele rurale ale Chinei nu au nici o Biblie pentru întreaga comunitate. O Biblie distribuită poate ajunge să fie folosită de sute de oameni.

Dumnezeu nu ne-a chemat ca noi singuri să schimbăm lumea întreagă, El o face aceasta, dar El a împărţit lucrarea în porţiuni. Porţiunea nostră în China trebuie să fie în Biblii şi sponsorizarea de formare de pastori. Îţi faci tu partea ta?

FG

By the grace of God we had the privilege to visit the country of Haiti between the dates of May 30 and June 5, 2009. It was an answer to an email received through our website, but not only that, we believe it was an answer to the call of God for us to visit Haiti. Brother Constantin received an email from a pastor with which there was no previous contact. Previously we made plans to go to El Salvador, but the doors did not open for ministry there. The Spirit of God in pulsed Constantin’s heart to go to Haiti.

Introduction to Haiti:

Haiti is located in the Caribbean on the island called Hispaniola and it shares it with a wealthier neighbor: the Dominican Republic. It is the most densely populated and the poorest country in the West Hemisphere. After Columbus discovered the island in 1492 it became a Spanish Colony. The hard work and new diseases brought by the Spaniards killed most native Indians: Arawaks. In 1697 it became a French colony and it brought more wealth to the French empire then India to England. Slaves imported by the hundreds of thousands from Africa did most of the work. The atrocious treatments of the slaves lead to a revolt that resulted into an independent country called Haiti in 1801. It was the first independent black republic.

The revolution wrecked Haiti’s economy and it was succeeded by years of strife between the light-skinned mulattos who had all the wealth and the majority black population. Later dictatorships and AIDS epidemic caused more havoc to the weak economy and specially the tourist industry. From 1904 to 1941 Haiti accepted U.S. customs receivership and the presence of US Marines brought stability. US left Haiti just to return in 1994 as the leaders of the UN keeping forces that reestablished democracy and peace. In 2000, the UN keeping forces left only to go back in 2004 during a full blown armed revolt. The revolt was followed by Hurricane Jeanne, which ravaged Haiti and killed 2,400 people. 2008 brought multiple hurricanes that destroyed parts of the country and killed hundreds.

Literacy rate is less then 50%, 60/1000 babies die and people live on average 57 years. The Catholic population of 80% is decreasing with the Protestant believers increasing rapidly, but more than 50% of the country still participates in

Voodoo practices.

Our Trip:

We read in the book of Acts that the disciples of Jesus Christ acted as they received guidance and leading from the Holy Spirit. This is true today as it was at that time because God is the same yesterday, today, and forever. This trip to Haiti was a proven testimony that the Holy Spirit empowers, gives guidance to all that obey Him. In Acts 16 we read that Paul was led through a vision to go and help people from Macedonia. The same Holy Spirit that worked then, impulsed my spirit when I received an email from pastor Joseph Jules Jasmin who I never heard of or met before. I sensed in my spirit an urge that I need to go there on the day of the Pentecost. I did not understand all this guidance but by faith in God, I rushed to buy the tickets and made all the arrangements to arrive there before the Pentecost day.

When I arrived at the airport on May 31^st and our contacts waited for us in a 4Runner truck and we headed to Gonaives. We arrived in a city close to Gonaives around midnight and rested that night. On Sunday morning, the day of remembrance of Pentecost, we left early in the morning to reach the church service at New Covenant Christian Church in Gonaives, Haiti. The church was located in an area that was greatly affected by last year’s hurricane storm. Even the old church was demolished and now the church held a service in a rented home. The leaders of the church welcomed us and the pastor who speaks Creol, French and English, introduced us to the church and translated our message. The church was established and founded a couple of years ago. They were very open and sincere people. They worshiped God with all their hearts and know His Word but they did not have experience of the event of Pentecost, which means manifestation of the baptism in the Holy Spirit.

There we were on that special day to inspire them and teach them that the experience of the baptism in the Holy Spirit can be real to them as it was real for the disciples of Jesus in the upper room. There I could understand why God prompted us to go there on that special day because God knows their spiritual desires and needs. We prayed with them and asked them to seek the Lord’s face and not give up until the Lord Jesus will baptize them all in the Holy Spirit. The pastors and leaders were touched by the message and a fire burned in their hearts. After the church service, we went to the local prison from Gonaives City. The deacons had already purchased cold drinks, food and hygienic products for about 300 inmates with the money that we gave for that purpose from the mission. We arrived at the prison that was surrounded by United Nation police from Pakistan that was very friendly to us and to the local people. One prison cell had about 140 inmates. We ministered to them from the Word of God, prayed for them and encouraged them to seek the Lord; the only way, truth, and life. Some of them were very sick and laid down at the gate of the prison with wounds on their bodies which broke our hearts. We ministered to about 300 inmates and about 6 guards and gave them goods and food. In the afternoon we visited pastor Jasmin’s family and gave them a love offering.

In the morning, we visited the part of the city that was very devastated by the hurricane. Families that lost their homes or had their homes with many feets of mud lived there in less damaged homes. We prayed for them and encouraged them to seek the Lord who can help them and keep them healthy. We see the youth’s desire and need to have a school in that community but we could not accomplish that need. Instead we prayed for them and asked that God would supply them with a school because many of them were completely illiterate. They looked at us as an answer to their needs but we told them we are simply messengers to show them that God cares for them and loves them. At night, we had an evangelist service in open air outside the church and invited all the people in the area to come. Over 100 people and children attended and listened to the messages and worship team.

Tuesday morning, we had a seminar where we presented the chaplains for Christ materials for inspiration and information about jail ministry to provoke them to reach people in the prison. Also, another part of the seminary was a presentation of the Holy Spirit baptism and manifestation. The purpose of this was to ignite the fire in them and especially in the leaders and pastors that they might continue the ministry with passion and full of the Holy Spirit. After the seminar, we visited pastor Jean Inera’s home and prayed for his family. We had an evangelistic meeting at night at the church of Marose where Jean Inera is pastor. It was a blessed night where God presence manifested in that crowd of adults and many children. They were singing to God with all their heart in the same way that the crowd was singing when Jesus entered Jerusalem. Jesus said, “…Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings you have perfected praise?” [Mathew 21:16]

Early Wednesday morning, we drove to visit the prison of St. Marc in the state of Artibonite, Haiti. There we went from cell to cell to minister to about 250 inmates and guards. We purchased about 148 bibles and distributed to them along with other necessary products. The guards and director of the prison were very friendly and invited us to come again. There were a few inmates that committed to change their life. One of them was a young boy and he stayed there for 4 years and now they want to release him but there was an amount of money to be paid and I asked the director of the sum and if it was true. He answered, “If $60 can be paid this inmate can be free today.” And so we freed him. A former chaplain was also incarcerated for another sum of about $2,800 but we could not honor that and the director said the sum is only to set him free sooner, and not a requirement. This reminded us about our salvation, we were all prisoners of sin; deserving eternal punishment, but Jesus came and paid the penalty for the wages of sin. We don’t have to suffer the consequences of our sin, because Jesus has paid for it so that we can be free and whom the Son makes free, is free indeed. “For the redemption of their soul is precious, and it ceases forever” [Psalm 49:8]

After this we headed to the capital of Haiti, Port Prince. At Port Prince, George and FG lodged at a hotel built by an American Missionary. I continued my trip to Jacmel, Haiti. In this area, brother Ionel Negrila from Sacramento was involved with R.A. Ministry in helping churches this area. I met with him in 2000 when he told me about this mission. Now the time came and I remembered that his heart was moved with compassion to help churches in Haiti. In my time of preparation for the Haiti mission, I contacted him and he gave me some contacts in Peredo, Jacmel but he did not have the names or phone numbers. So we contacted the local pastor from Jacmel and he researched for us and found the women pastor (that was about 60 years old when brother Ionel Negrila was involved) was still alive. The church was named by Ionel Negrila “The Remnants of the House of David” and is still in function today. On the way over there I encountered road problems due to the mountain area. Our car broke down just before reaching Jacmel. Pastor Sanon Medid of Agape Church from Jacmel answered our call and came with a mechanic and towed our car. On that night pastor Sanon brought us to his home where we had dinner. After dinner, Pastor Sanon engaged himself to bring us to Peredo (a village in the mountains). The road was flooded just before we reached Peredo and we got stuck in the water around midnight where I told the pastor to turn around. Unfortunately, we could not see the church in Peredo for which purpose pastor Ionel Negrila gave a love offer of $200 to help the orphans in that church. But I gave the money to pastor Sanon Medid and he was going to go back when the weather permitted and complete the task.

Early in the morning around 4 am, we left Jacmel now with Pastor Sanon Medid our driver to Port Prince where our flight departed at 11 am. His car broke down on our way to Port Prince and we had to hitch another ride to catch our flight. A small caravan vehicle stopped and took pastor Jasmin and I to the airport. I arrived there just in time to check in and the other two team members came at the same time from Port Prince where they stayed overnight.

Conclusion:

The results were worth all of this effort. Our Lord said in Matthew 25:40, “I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me”. Although the rest of the world may view the poor as the least among us, they are precious in God’s sight. Psalms 138:6 says “Though the LORD is on high, he looks upon the lowly, but the proud he knows from afar”.

As we look upon the needs of the poor in Haiti and around the world, the size and scope of the problem appears overwhelming. But there are those who do not forget that we serve an all-powerful and sovereign God. We know His heart and passion for the “least” among us, and we simply need to follow Him and trust Him for the results. He has provided the means; it is our job to act. And, we look forward to great things in the days ahead as we witness the fruits of our obedience to “make disciples of all nations”.

Please join us in our support for Haiti and remember that “He who is kind to the poor lends to the LORD, and he will reward him for what he has done” (Proverbs 19:17)

Impact: Letter from Gonaives

Hello Rev. Constantin

Greetings from Gonaives, Haiti. Today, I am very happy to write you and tell you : your visit in Haiti is a blessing from God for my country Haiti, specially the City of Gonaives ,After your visit ,last Sunday ,5 people added to the Church in Gonaives. we appreciate the work you and your group have done in Haiti.

Before I started the church in Gonaives, I did work in Church called: Dessalines Church of Christ .The leaders of this church don’t believe in the manifestation of the Holy Spirit, they even says: someone cannot be baptize in the name of the father, the son and the Holy spirit. Sometime they get confusion among them. That was one of the reason l did oblige to leave them. Now I can tell you that, It is God by His Holy Spirit who lead you to come in Haiti to help us to spread the Good New of Jesus-Christ in Gonaives, Haiti.

Since you came in Gonaives I feel the Presence of the Holy Spirit in my heart who give me a big desire to go and reach people to the Jail and everywhere for Christ .I would like you pray and Continue to pray the Lord for me and my church and so that the Lord can continue to be with us, help us to live a Holy life and make a difference in the Community of Gonaives, Haiti. Also, I would like my Church become a part of your Pentecostal Church because me Pastor Joseph I believe in the day of Pentecost.

I Would like to learn more about the word of God, specially the manifestation of the holy spirit, the day of Pentecost .In this case, if you know any kind of seminaries or trainings who could be good for Pastors or Preachers, Please, if it is possible, help me to have them and so that I could have enough to share to the Church of the Lord and to the others.

I send Hello to you and all your family. Thank You!

May God bless you and continue to bless you more and more.

Sincerely in Christ:

Pastor Joseph Jules Jasmin