"Tie your shoes and pray for the Hughes" |
Dear Friends,
As we approach the midpoint of summer, it is time to let you know
what has been going on here. So far, we’ve
had a little over a week of uncomfortable temperatures, but most of the summer
has been very pleasant for ministry and work at home. For almost five weeks now we have been hosting a college student as she does her
internship, a requirement for upcoming seniors. Rachel Worman is from a supporting church in
Kansas, but we had not met until she exited the baggage claim at the
airport. She has shown interest in
Moldova, has asked good questions about missions and has been willing to lend a
hand with whatever we have been doing.
By far she has helped the most with preparing for (and later running)
weeks of Vacation Bible School. Would
you pray for her remaining four weeks with us and for the Lord’s direction
after college?
The last full week of June, we held our first VBS in Zastinca at
the Grosses house. While most every
child in Moldova has heard of Jesus, many know very little about His life. Our theme this year is “Jesus: What does His power show us?” In the Bible lessons, the kids have heard how
He demonstrated His power over nature, over sickness, over evil spirits and
even Satan himself, over sin (He is able to forgive) and over death. The kids have paid good attention even with multiple
stories from Jesus’ life being relayed in each lesson. In Zastinca we had between 20 and 27 kids each
day, with a friend bringing a few of those from her village. I think the highlight for me was a quiet boy
answering correctly several review questions, something he had never (to my
memory) done before.
Just yesterday we finished up VBS
in Bulboci. In the past we had used
the village’s library, but were no longer given permission because of
complaints from someone in the village (not because we were noisy in the library,
but because we are not Orthodox). This
year the Lord provided a building for us to use in a good location at a very reasonable
cost. The building was built as a day
care years ago (one of our church members went there as a child) and most
recently it was a store. It has sat
vacant for a few years but it fit our needs perfectly. While not many kids who live in Bulboci came,
we had grandkids of church members and kids from neighboring villages –
averaging 15 a day. We hope it was a
blessing for the kids, but it also gave the church folks out there an avenue to
serve the Lord and others. They opened up
the building each day, planned and picked up the snacks, read the story, taught
Bible verses, listened to kids reciting verses, did registration and helped out
as we led games and crafts. It was a
privilege for us to minister alongside them throughout the week.
Before I close, I’d like to ask prayer for a couple other requests.
This week (July 13-17) we will repeat our VBS program in Soroca. Since we don’t have many kids connected to
the ministry there, we never know who and how many will show up. Also, we have more Russian-only kids show up
there (as opposed to the other two locations), which makes running things a
little more complicated. The other need
is a conflict / hurt feelings between two church folks: “V” and “G.” Would you pray for God to lead them to
restoration and for His direction as I try to meet with them? I am confident that what may seem difficult
to man is no problem for our God.
Thank you for reading our news and for mentioning our requests to
the Lord. May He work in your own
personal life and use you to minister to others! Until the next prayer letter!
In His service,
Jacob and Viola
Hughes
For Prayer:
1. Forgiveness and restoration between “V” and “G”
2. VBS in Soroca July 13-17
3. Folks who have made a profession to be willing to be baptized
For Praise:
1. Good first half of Rachel’s internship
2. Good weeks of VBS in Zastinca and Bulboci
3. Lord allowing Viola to see another birthday and us another anniversary
