Prayer Letter: October 2018

Dear Praying Friends and Family,

We are thankful for the time that the Lord gave us this year to travel and hold events at the church. Now that people are back in school and college, we are beginning our weekly Institute classes at the church. We will continue in verse-by-verse study and survey of the Old Testament. We will continue posting these videos to YouTube, and making a special page on the new website for easy access. We have viewers from Russia, the United States, Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Ukraine, and will have new students as people become aware of how to study with us. We hope to have the new website active this month, as will let you know the address.

We’ve had some good conversations with pedestrians on the street who take tracts and stop to listen to the Gospel. One recent news item has been the break of the Russian Orthodox “Church” from the Istanbul branch of the Orthodox religion. This was due to Ukraine’s request to have an Orthodox church separate from the Moscow “patriarch.” Ukraine’s Orthodoxy had been under Russia’s control since 1686. Since Istanbul agreed to start the separation process, Russia has declared their own independence from the Istanbul patriarch. Each of them see themselves as the true defenders of Orthodoxy. This is a good move, as the more confusing the religious situation is, the more people may be open to receive Jesus Christ, instead of trusting works salvation and a corrupt religious system. One guy I talked to on the street said that if Ukraine moves away from Russia, they move closer to Catholicism. This statement is true, although the young guy did not trust Jesus Christ, he had that insight. He took a tract, promised to read it in his “search” through the murky religion all around us.

We had a good Thanksgiving service, and some visitors came out, including a woman who trusted Christ this month after a Sunday service. Everyone enjoyed the fellowship, food, and thankfulness for what the Lord has done in our lives. Pray for the small group of believers in Berdyansk, for their health, wisdom, and spiritual growth. We are going through the book of Galatians verse-by-verse, and are getting close to finishing. There is very little verse-by-verse teaching among Christians in the former Soviet Union, and another blessing is following along together in the Russian translation of the King James. Pray for the printing of the second edition of the full Bible. We expect another few months of formatting and finalization before it will be ready to print. There is an increase of interest, and we’ve met several people last week to deliver them Bibles and free New Testaments. Pray for the printing and for those who are reading the King James in Russian.

Pray for my father-in-law and I. Bro. Perry was invited to England to teach for a weekend conference on music with missionary Pete Dickens. We will be going for the first week of November. The church has invited people in their area, and we hope it will be a blessing and instructional. Perry was a percussionist, and is familiar with the wrong music, and the downward slide of music, even among Bible believing churches.

We had another expense due to a cracked window. It didn’t appear to be foul play, and thankfully, we were able to get it replaced quickly and with less expense. We are doing well and in health. Naomi and the baby are healthy and active. Continue to pray for wisdom, health, and help. Thank you for your prayers.

Until His return, David and Naomi Lohman