Day 10: Just the beginning

          Our time in Moldova is drawing to a close. We fly to Romania tomorrow, but we’re so glad for how much the Lord has accomplished during our time here. The Russian Sign Language Bible translation team has established a better work schedule to move the project along at a faster pace, the future of Deaf International’s short-term mission work in the area has been discussed thoroughly, great relations have been developed with Bisceria Baptist Church and its pastor and deaf congregation, five people have started a new life with Christ during our evangelism and God-directed worship services, seeds of the Gospel have been planted in countless others, and temporary relief has been provided through hygienic and clothing supplies.

          We feel like God has done so much already and we still have a whole other country to visit! We’re excited to see what God has in store for the people of Romania, so please continue to check back into our blog and continue praying for us. We’ve been encountering a lot of spiritual warfare, but it’s comforting knowing how many people we have battling alongside us.  

          Firstly, we want to give an update about the woman we asked for you to pray for at around 2:50 central time yesterday. It ended up not being possible to meet with her last night, but we knew that this would not deter Christ’s work in her life. We continued praying for God’s work of salvation, knowing Him to be faithful. This morning, she came to our room to talk to Nadea and Dusia. While they were talking, the three of us felt led to pray, and the Holy Spirit specifically prompted us to pray for her non-Christian husband.Later, Nadea gave us an update about their conversation. The woman was reluctant and having second thoughts about accepting Christ because she felt that there were too many problems associated with her husband who is an alcoholic. She shared with us that he is verbally abusive to her & her son, and accepting Christ might make life even more complicated. Pastor Noah told her that even though life is understandably difficult with an alcoholic husband, Jesus can help her thrive, not simply survive, through this hardship. He explained that God’s word through the Bible and Holy Spirit can offer her wisdom and comfort as she tries to deal with this difficult situation. Then, he shared with her the Parable of the Lost Sheep from Luke. Jesus used this parable to illustrate that just as a shepherd cares for each one of his sheep & will tirelessly search for even one that goes astray, so Jesus constantly longs for every single one of us to accept His free gift of eternal life. Jacob & I were praying while Pastor Noah talked with her, & when he finished his brief message, she wanted to accept Christ as her Savior! We are thrilled at this one woman who came to Christ! She is important to us, but she is even more important to Christ. It’s so great that both mothers of the two little boys came to Christ. We pray that this will help both boys develop relationships with Christ and have the opportunity to go to church. Since the two boys are good friends, we also pray that the two mothers who are both without Christian spouses will be able to help support each other in their walks with Christ. We could really see God working through these friendships.  

           Earlier today, we took diapers to one deaf apartment here, & the moms were really happy to receive the donations! It can be hard for children of deaf parents whether they’re hearing or deaf. We also visited two shut-ins today, gave each a bag of supplies (including a knitted hat, scarf, & two gloves), and prayed with them. It was such a blessing to see their gratefulness.

           While we were talking with one of them, she pulled out the Gospel of Luke. She told us that she wasn’t able to read it, and asked if we could explain it to her. We talked to her about the Gospel, and then she shared with us that one time on television there was a special where people signed praise songs, but she has never seen anything like it since. This really impressed on us how important it is to continue quickly with Bible translation work. So many deaf people around the world cannot understand the Word of God and need a Bible in their heart language. We can’t tell you how many people have told us on our trip that they simply cannot understand the Bible when they read it. Please just continually pray for this work around the world.

Prayer Requests:
1. The husband of the woman who just received Christ today. Pray that satan will not use this abusive relationship to hinder this woman’s walk with Christ. Pray that she will rely on Christ to give her strength and wisdom to deal with this relationship. Pray that her strength and the joy of Christ inside her will make an impact on the man, and not allow satan’s wickedness to impact her. Pray for the husband’s salvation.
2. Pray that all the people who were excited to go to our worship services because we were Americans will continue to seek God in church and through the Bible after we leave. Pray for the leaders of the deaf church here in Chisinau as they step in to help these people in the process of their seeking.
3. We saw so many people who appeared ready to make that last step towards accepting Christ. Please pray that they will continue seeking and that our God who is mighty to save will help them to taking that final step towards accepting Jesus as their Savior. Pray for people in their lives to encourage them.
4. Pray for everyone else who accepted Christ. Pray that they will continue to go to church and immerse themselves in God’s Word. Pray for their spiritual walks, that they continue on the path everlasting in spite of satan’s attacks.   

God Bless,Jacob and stacie*-1 Corinthians 3:5-8