Too Long

A blog is something that is supposed to be written often so that a person comes back and knows there is something to read. I certainly fail in that part! I'm hoping that my life gets so that I can sit here more regularly and blog.

We are settled into our home for the year. God has blessed us in amazing ways. The girls are in school and loving it. It wasn't their first choice for school, but God knows and He put them in the place that is great for them and they are doing so well there.

This past Thursday and Friday I went to the Women in Ministry conference in Minneapolis. It was an amazing time. Amazing seems to be my word today, but I just feel like it is what God is doing in my life. Amazing things. Amazing works.

My heart was moved in a new way for the women in Moldova. Not just for the women who are trafficked, although my heart is so much there. But my heart is also for the women who are abused or who are left to raise children alone. My heart is for the women who have a call to minister to their community, but they can't figure out what that looks like because they are in a church that won't ordain them as pastors.

Don't misunderstand me. I'm not wanting them to become pastors of the church. I want them to see the need around them and touch that need.

You see, the biggest thing that spoke to me those few days is that we are different from men. HUH? Yes, we knew that. But for too long, although we've known we are different, we are still trying to do ministry as men do it. God wants us to touch our world as only we can as women.

So, I want to help my Moldovan friends and the Moldovan pastors wives answer the question of how they can minister to the community and church in a way that their husbands cannot. I want to help them become the leaders and ministers God has called them to be but they are frustrated thinking what they do needs to look like what their husbands do.

Something is brewing in me. Will you pray for that brew? Will you pray that it comes out just right? And pray for the Moldovan women I know who God is calling them to more, but they aren't sure how to get there. Pray for Floarea, Sveta, Natasha, Mariana, Tania. There are more names I could list. They are all different names from what we know, but God has called each of these women to do His plan and purpose. Pray that they can fulfill it.

Opposition

Last night we recieved an e-mail from a pastor in Moldova, Victor. He had been working to do his second Convoy of Hope outreach and has had nothing but persecution from the Orthodox Priests in his town. They did all they could to shut him down legally for the past 2 months, but the mayor said the church has legal rights to give out food to people. They were told they had to do it without the preaching.

Saturday morning the Orthodox priests came with a dozen people and made all the noise they could and blocked the distribution of food. The police stood by and watched but would not step in and allow Victor's church to do what they were allowed to do legally. The picture shows the Orthodox priests tearing down the fence while the police stand by and watch.

Please pray for this church in Nisporeni, Moldova. The Orthodox church does not like the gospel going forward and is trying to stop them in every way. Pray that the commotion yesterday will draw attention to this small Pentecostal church and people will begin to go there to seek the truth and seek the people that love and care for them.

Pray for this persecution throughout Moldova. People often ask me as we are in the states if the government gives us problems. It is really not the government, but the established church. It reminds me of the Jews in Jesus's time who did not like the thought of losing their control and power over the people to a Man of compassion and love. We have seen churches burned, torn apart board by board and blocked in every way by the Orthodox church.

The Bible says, "the gates of Hell will not prevail." Let's pray that this persecution in Moldova would make the church in Nisporeni grow and that the Evangelical churches throughout Moldova would grow.