My soul is shaken. I feel deep pain watching what is happening to my country. The war continues. Every day, a huge number of Ukrainians die. I was just informed that another brother from our community has died. A young man. He has a wife and 3 children. Now they are orphans. Please pray for this. Another member of our church was abducted tonight. He is being forced to become a soldier and go to war. But he has no training, no weapons, no food, no shelter. Such young men are sent to die. We turned to a lawyer. The lawyer says that there is almost no chance of avoiding mobilization. It hurts me deeply, and I am terrified that our government continues to send defenseless and helpless people to their deaths. Fear hovers over the country. People fear Russia, and people do not trust our government. The border is closed for men, and this also creates panic among the population. I ask you to pray that we stay alive. I also ask you to pray for me so that I can continue my ministry. I, too, could be forcibly sent to the front line. I trust in God and ask you to pray for God’s mercy for me and my family. Russia continues missile attacks. Last week was very difficult for our region. Twice a day, we have power outages for 8 hours. In winter, it is expected that power will be out for 20 hours a day. I understand that we need to buy batteries so that in winter we can have light and continue our ministry to children. Please pray for this. Thank you for your service to us.
Our team has started 4 more Discipleship groups in prison. We are grateful to the Lord that we can serve the prisoners each week without any hindrance – providing not only spiritual food but also physical food, as the conditions in the prison leave much to be desired, and many prisoners are emaciated or ill.
Last week, we were able to hold an eye clinic in the village of Mamarai. Over 50 people received glasses, and the entire village heard the Gospel! Daniel and his team also conducted a children’s/youth program. For this village, it was unforgettable, and the tribal leaders kept thanking us. For us, it was a wonderful opportunity to tell them about Christ and His sacrificial love for each of them.
Next week, our church is planning a baptism! We rejoice that we can fulfill the Lord’s command: “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.” Is there any joy in this world that compares to living at the center of His will?
The Lord is leading us to open another Promise Land church on Bougainville Island. This is one of the remote regions of Papua New Guinea, which will soon become an independent state! There is already a group of believers there, and one family from our church has received a calling from the Lord to move there for permanent ministry.
Last week, I returned from the Amazon. Together with friends from Germany, we visited indigenous tribes and river dwellers on the Purus River. The work in Crispim, the largest indigenous settlement, is progressing particularly well. Over the past few years, we have trained several leaders there who now lead the ministry, visit other small settlements, and spread the Gospel. They regularly send us photos and reports of their work.
The work among the river dwellers continues. Brother Pita, who lives upstream, started with a small group in his home, which now includes indigenous people from another tribe. The people are very open to the Gospel. Unfortunately, very often they cannot read, but with the ability to listen to the Bible via an app, this barrier is overcome. Thus, they gather to listen to the Bible together.
We visited the Apurina tribe on Puma Island. There we met a very remote group in the Nova Bandeira settlement upstream. The former chief of the tribe asked us to find someone who would agree to move there for a month and teach them the Bible daily. They are already converted but do not know the Scriptures. So, we notice that there is still a shortage of workers.
After the service, another woman approached me and asked to talk. She is often attacked by occult forces. Demons come to her and physically torment her. Before her conversion, she worshipped Satan and actively served among the indigenous people with her occult gifts. Now she is converted but still suffers from the consequences of her previous sinful life.
Please continue to pray for our ministry among the lost people of the Amazon!
It is impossible to convey the suffering and pain that the people of Ukraine have endured over the past two and a half years. Millions of lives and families shattered, hundreds of thousands dead, and every day, innocent civilians perish as homes are destroyed. The devil, in his great wrath, is celebrating an infernal sabbath. We are about to face the most challenging winter, and we don’t know what lies ahead. As long as we are alive, we want to survive and endure these terrible trials.
We desperately need your prayerful and tangible financial support. The needs are vast and constantly increasing. I live and serve in Ukraine and also need support! There are constant bombings throughout Ukraine targeting heat and power plants, and critical infrastructure is being deliberately destroyed, making survival impossible without heating and electricity. We need to prepare for winter. We need to purchase gas cylinders, burners, heaters, and candles that burn for 120 hours each. This requires funds!
We also need a 3-ton cargo truck, which can provide 5-6 times more support than the one we currently have. The price is $15,000. We also need funds for fuel, which costs $100 per trip.
For more than half a year, 18 people have been living in our house. Due to the ongoing bombings, three families will be staying with us this winter. Falling rocket debris and blast waves are destroying homes and apartments that need repairs, including replacing windows and doors, and fixing roofs. We pray that God will move your hearts toward generosity. God has much more than we ask for or need to meet these urgent needs in these difficult times of trials and suffering. God has blessed you abundantly and brought you to a prosperous country, just as He brought Esther to the king’s palace.
The Scripture says, “Rescue those being led away to death!” Dear brothers and sisters, your brothers and sisters in Ukraine need you desperately! May God abundantly bless you and move your hearts!
We organized a big celebration on Children’s Day, June 1st. Over the summer, new graduates from orphanages arrived, and we are actively communicating and working together. Working with children transitioning to adulthood is, in our view, the most important and challenging task. If we don’t reach out and win their hearts, they may start living a life of crime. Two girls gave birth at 16, and we are now helping them to survive. It’s crucial to teach them to choose life over death.
In a previous letter, I wrote about a girl who suffered from epilepsy, and her mother asked for prayers for healing. After our prayer, the child recovered. God showed mercy, and we began to regularly communicate with this family. For two months now, the girl has been rejoicing and praising God! This is a great encouragement for me.
This month, Lera, a girl we had been caring for for about five years, was admitted to the oncology department. Her health had suddenly worsened, and metastases spread to her internal organs. She was in a lot of pain, so our team created a schedule to ensure someone was with her every day to support her. She desperately wanted her mother to be with her, but her mother had lost parental rights and squandered all her resources. Lera was very tired of fighting the illness. We prayed with her, and she understood that she was going to the Heavenly Father. Lera was buried on June 7th. This is a difficult ministry, but we are needed by these children.
One day, I met a woman who shared her difficulties and struggles in family life. She agreed to participate in a prayer marathon for one month, where we would call and pray together every evening. After just a few days, she shared a testimony that changes had begun in her family. I believe these changes were the beginning of significant transformations in her life. But most importantly, she learned to find her comfort in Jesus rather than in antidepressants. She told me that since we started praying, she no longer needed the medications and had thrown them away.
Now, in moments of anxiety or distress, she prays and finds her peace in Jesus. The Lord grants her true renewal. This liberation has become her personal testimony of how the Lord actively works in life. After learning what Jesus did for us on Golgotha, she accepted Christ into her heart. Previously, I had seen many statuettes of various gods in her apartment. But on the day she accepted Jesus, she took a trash bag, gathered all the idols herself, and threw them out of the house. We prayed together that only the Holy Spirit would now live in her home.
I believe that the Word of God will act like a “double-edged sword” in people’s hearts and change their lives.
