August prayer letter

Hard to believe it, but we have just about finished our furlough.  As a family, we feel that

Pic of our last day of traveling for furlough visits

this was the best furlough we have had thus far.  We believe it has been a success in many ways.  We reported to supporting churches, gave out Gospel tracts and witnessed to folks across America, enjoyed good visits with family and friends, had extra time with our sending church, and feel refreshed to return to Moldova and press on in the ministry there.

For those of you who like statistics, here are some of our stats.  We traveled over 13,000 miles in 17 weeks.  We were in a total of 33 churches (25 supporting churches, 4 new churches, and 4 unplanned stop-ins where the pastor

New supporting church! – Our pin on their map

graciously gave us 5 minutes to talk about our ministry during the service).  In addition to the added prayer support in the new churches, one of them voted to start supporting us.  Our travels included 21 states.  Our only car trouble was that one flat tire.  Out of our 25 supporting churches we visited, 13 of them had new pastors since the last time we visited them.  It was a blessing getting to meet these men.

Since our last prayer letter at the end of June, we had several weeks of refreshment

BIMI Enrichment Week—they met Dr. Sisk

between meetings.  Our children enjoyed a week of Christian camp for the first time (family camp week at the Bill Rice Ranch).  We also had a week of vacation with my parents, brother, and his family.  We also experienced BIMI’s Enrichment Week for the first time ever.  That was an amazing week for everyone in our family to remember.  Stephanie and I got away for several days to celebrate our 18th anniversary at some places that offered free accommodations to missionaries.  We enjoyed the change of pace from the first half of furlough.  We just arrived home today from our last scheduled furlough meeting.

Please pray for us as we work on packing and finishing up the last things on our to-do list before leaving next week.  We fly out early morning on Thursday, August 25th.  We will fly from Memphis to Chicago, Chicago to Istanbul, Turkey, then from Istanbul to Cluj, Romania.  We only have a one hour layover in Istanbul.  We appreciate your prayers regarding us making that last flight.  The plan right now is to spend about 10 days in Romania before driving home to Moldova.  While in Romania, we have an oil leak on our van to fix and x-rays and possible wisdom teeth extraction for Caleb.  Pray for a smooth transition back into life and ministry in Moldova.

While things can change quickly in the future, things seem to be peaceful and somewhat stable in Moldova right now, for which we are thankful.  Please continue to pray for the situation in Ukraine.  I am still reading reports that Odessa, Ukraine is the main barrier we have that is keeping Russia from taking Transnistria and the rest of Moldova.  God knows the future, thus we trust in Him.

Thank you for your prayers and support.

 

May 16, 2022 Prayer Letter

Why should you read missionary letters?  Unlike the news or most of what is on social media, you get to read testimonies of how our God is still mighty, working to guide and provide for His children as He has done for thousands of years.  You also get to read about how God uses His children to bring others to Himself.  Reading missionary letters can encourage you, strengthen your faith, and motivate you to live for Christ.  I pray this letter will do just that.

God’s provision for financial needs – Over the last couple months, we have seen God provide for our needs as those needs have arisen.  I mentioned in the last prayer letter how God provided the funds for us to rent the apartment in Romania for those first three weeks and then free accommodations for the last three weeks.  God put in the hearts of churches and individuals to give without me even mentioning the specific needs.  Several churches and individuals even asked me to let them know if we have any other needs come up.  When we had to change our airline tickets to fly out of Romania, my travel agent told me approximately how much it would cost.  I do not usually do this, but I wrote those churches and individuals that has specifically asked, to let them know of this need.  God had already met each need either before or as they came, so I almost didn’t feel right writing them.  About 3 hours after writing them, I received an email from a pastor informing me that the church had decided a couple days previously to send us money to help.  It was almost the exact amount we were charged for changing the tickets.  I had to write back those churches and individuals to let them know the need was already met.  I felt convicted for even letting them know of the need since God knew of it and had already made the provision.

Even after we arrived to the States, there were some others who generously gave, allowing us to cover medical, clothing, and some other needs.  What a joy it was to see our Father take care of us.

God’s provision in our travels – We flew out on April 13th, fully expecting to be pulled aside by Homeland Security for extra interrogating as we were the last two furloughs.  I had applied for a “redress number” with hopes to avoid this inconvenience.  When our boarding passes were printed, I did not have the “SSSS” marking as we had previously (a designation for additional screening), but Stephanie did.  I forgot to have her apply for the redress as I had.  When we arrived at US customs, we passed through without any difficulty this time.

There were also many storms in the States the day we traveled.  By God’s grace, we had no delays or cancelation for the last flight.  Though we had the most turbulence we have ever experienced, we made it safely to Memphis on time.

God’s provision for health needs – Upon arrival, we had some doctor appointments we were hoping to squeeze in before the end of the month.  When I called the eye doctor to get four of our children in for appointments, the lady said they were booked for several weeks.  Before we hung up, someone had called in and canceled, opening up 3 appointments that morning.  While she was checking on our insurance, another appointment opened up, allowing us to get all 4 children in for their much needed eye exam.  I was also able to get right in to the podiatrist and get the treatment that I needed.

God’s working through us individually – We have enjoyed getting to give out Gospel tracts and witness to people in our native language once again.  We have had several reminders that people in America are still open and seeking for answers.  One lady I gave a tract to at a store received it with emotion, saying that she was going through some difficult times and really needed to hear this.  Caleb met two Christian teenagers in my in-law’s neighborhood and has spent time with them in Bible study and prayer.  We look forward to seeing how God will use us during our time in America.

God’s working through our meetings – We have been in the States for a month thus far and have had meetings in four churches, spoke for a Sunday School breakfast, spoke for a meeting at a retirement community, and Stephanie spoke for a ladies luncheon with over 100 ladies present.  We are currently in Oklahoma and making out way out to a supporting church in Cortez, CO before heading to the Midwest.  People’s responses to the messages have been very positive, for which we praise the Lord.

Please continue to pray for the Lord’s provisions and protections in our travels.  Thank you again and God bless you.

 

March 28, 2022 update

We know that all good gifts come from God (James 1:17).  In my reading this morning, I was reminded once again at how serious God takes His name and being recognized for who He is and what He can do (1 Kings 20:28).  With these things in mind, I want to give testimony to what the LORD has done over the past couple weeks.

During the two weeks back in Moldova, God worked wonderfully in providing a place for me to stay in Chișinău while working on documents AND for my family to stay in Romania just across the border.  I stayed with missionary Wes Neill and enjoyed the fellowship and getting to know him more.  On the Saturday I was there, we took up a load of dairy products to Eric Chapman’s camp for the refugees being housed there.  The owner of the apartment in Romania allowed us to stay the additional two weeks, giving us priority, even when others were trying to book that time.  He also gave us an exceptional discount for those two weeks.  God provided.  God provided the money through a couple of our supporting churches which covered the cost for the apartment.

I did end up receiving my residence permit A DAY EARLY (Monday, March 14th).  The next morning, I tried to start the process of getting the tags on the van renewed.  I was not able to work it out at the place I had planned.  After praying, I contacted some Moldovan friends who helped out immensely.  In the end, I was able to get the tags applied for on Tuesday, pick them up on Wednesday, and get the van passport card on Thursday at 2pm.  I drove back to Romania and made it home that night.  God provided the documents, short line at the border, and a safe trip home.

The Thursday I drove back to Romania, the Hughes flew in to Romania.  They had dinner that evening with Stephanie and the kids, and the following morning, I picked them up and drove them to the Moldovan border to meet up with Dan Ford, who drove them the rest of the way to Moldova.  God provided the Hughes a safe trip back.  Please pray for them as they continue to serve in Soroca.

The next day, Saturday, we packed up and headed west in Romania to stay near Cluj, Romania, with missionary Brian Nibbe.  We are now settled in here for our three week stay.  Our travel agent is working on getting our flight rescheduled.  We thank God for His provision of a safe drive here, a comfortable place to stay, and time for the kids to do their schooling.  We were also able to report to the church here (Gospel Light Baptist Church) that supports us.

During our time here, I was invited to join Brian Nibbe and Beni Lariu on their trip to Ukraine to deliver aid for believers and be available to translate for them if needed.  The pastor there has started several churches in the area and has been organizing refugee housing for believers who have fled from the war-torn parts of Ukraine.  Our hearts ached as we heard the testimonies of what the refugees had gone through at the hands of the Russian forces.  The Russian attacks have not been limited to military targets.  Women and children in cars have been gunned down in certain places.  War is such an ugly thing.  The believers who have sought refuge in the area we took aid were very thankful for the food, bedding, and encouragement.  God provided the funds for Bro. Nibbe and a safe trip for us.

Who is like our God?  Who can provide, protect, and guide like Him?  Even with the different challenges and difficulties we have had over the last several weeks, we praise and thank our God for the good and perfect gifts from our Father.

February 2022 Update

Each year I appreciate God’s immutability more and more.  Though life’s changes continue to roll out at an ever increasing pace, God, His promises, and His purposes remain rock-solid.  Here are some changes we have recently been facing and will face in the near future.

We are currently in the middle of two “State of Emergencies.”  The first is in regards to the energy crisis caused by natural gas issues with Russia.  The second is in response to the drastic rise in COVID-19 cases.  Currently, without a COVID pass, we cannot go to most “non-essential” businesses.  Thankfully, we are able to still continue on with our ministries.  At the end of January, some illness went through our family, possibly the omicron variant.  We thank the Lord that most of us are well again with just a lingering cough and fatigue.  Please pray for Stephanie, though.  She may have some sinus infection.

A couple weeks ago, I showed up to lead the evangelistic Bible study with a older man, Vladimir.  Sadly, I found out that he moved to Chisinau.  Jacob and I had been witnessing to him for many months.  There seems to be evidence that his interest and understanding of things has been weak.  Please pray that I will find another open person to take his place.

Most of you probably are aware of the warnings the West and America has made of a possible Russian invasion into Ukraine.  We thank the Lord that thus far, there has been no actions from Russia to validate those claims.  Since Moldova is stuck between Ukraine and Romania (NATO’s eastern border), there has been concern over what would happen to Moldova, were Russia to invade Ukraine.  In response, we have been in contact with our pastor and field director and have an evacuation plan in place were the need to arise.  Please pray for the world leaders and for us to lead a quiet and peaceable life (1 Timothy 2:2).

We have turned in the needed documents to our lawyer in order to renew our residency permits.  Though we do not know of any reason they should be denied, please pray for us to find grace in the eyes of Immigration and be granted another three-year permit.  On February 4th, we celebrated our 12 years anniversary of service here in Moldova.  We pray the Lord blesses us with many more years of service for Him here.

The Hughes are scheduled to return to Moldova from furlough later on in March.  Upon

Family News: Abby got her braces off!

their return, we will have about three weeks together before we head out for our four-month furlough on April 12th.  We are focusing on visiting the churches we were not able to visit last furlough in 2018.  I thank the Lord that the meetings are all booked now.  To those of you that were able to schedule us in, thank you very much.  To those churches we were not able to visit this furlough, we will do our best to schedule you in on our next furlough.  As I did for our last furlough in 2018, I will mail prayer cards to all of our supporting churches and make our furlough video available for you to view and show.  Please pray for us as we continue to prepare for furlough (as it is no small task preparing to leave your home and ministry for months).  Pray that furlough will be a time of refreshment for our family and an opportunity for the Lord to use us in the lives of other believers.  Please also pray for the Hughes as they continue on with the ministries here in our absence.

Thank you again for your prayers and financial support.  We are looking forward to seeing many of you this summer.

December 2021 Prayer Letter

Dear Praying Friends, thank you for all your prayers. We had the prayer letter typed up a month ago, but David’s hard drive died and took several weeks for him to resolve that problem. But in that time God brought several more interesting events into our lives.

We have often mentioned Tamara in our prayer letters, whose life of suffering has only continued.  On October 7th, her husband, Alec, passed away.  In addition to this heartache, her cancer is now attacking her only remaining kidney, requiring her to have further radiation treatments in January.  Please pray for the emotional, spiritual, and financial needs of this lady.

In November, we found out that our village’s mayor and his wife passed away from COVID.  David and I thought we were going to calling hours on the evening before the funeral, but when we arrived, we found out that there would be none.  We were invited in and were able to spend some time with the family and leave them with a Gospel tract.  Please pray for God to use our visit and the tract in their lives.

Over the past several months, David has been trying to witness to the husband of a lady in our Soroca church-plant.  The first discussion with him ended with him saying, “I don’t want to hear any more about sin.  I’m not a sinner.”  After his wife left to spend some time with her daughter in Russia, the Lord opened up other visits with her husband before he left for Russia.  In the end, her husband ended up coming to both the midweek service and the Sunday morning service before David drove him to the airport the following Tuesday.  He heard the Gospel both times.  Please pray for the Lord to work in Vania’s heart and for him to come with his wife to services upon their return in the Spring.

In the beginning of December, a lady called David and explained that her mother was dying and insisted on having a Baptist funeral, even though all of the rest of the family is Orthodox.  Though David had been a part of a couple funerals in different aspects, he had not led one himself.  David and I went and visited the dying lady that day, and she passed away a couple days later.  When David called some Moldovan pastor friends of his for input regarding doing the funeral, one of them offered to come and assist him, which was a huge blessing.  The Gospel was given multiple times during the funeral.  Please pray for the Lord to draw this dear family to salvation.

Caleb, our oldest son, has been taking advantage of his free time in the afternoon to go out and meet people of all ages and hand out Gospel tracts in our neighborhood. An elderly man he has talked to several times is interested in coming to our services. One fifteen year old boy said he was interested in Bible study. We haven’t seen any fruit from these claims, but the gospel is going out through him, too, and we are excited about that.

David continues to pass out tracts in town, looking for opportunities to witness. He continues to do Bible study in town with a couple “V and L” as well as a Bible study out in a village where he led two ladies to the Lord last year. They have gotten a real zeal to share Christ with others but have met discouragement because the gospel has not been received very well. Pray for these ladies that they will continue to share Christ with others and make a difference in their village. Pray the Lord will open more doors for Bible studies, especially with men.

Several weeks ago I (Stephanie) was able to give the gospel to a lady at the outdoor market. More recently another door opened for me to go through the gospel again. With this lady in particular, there is a language barrier. She doesn’t understand Romanian and I speak very little Russian. She speaks some English, and she can understand when I speak about things that are familiar. The gospel and God are not familiar, so David plans to go talk to her because his Russian is better, though he, too, is limited. Pray for “A” to get saved.

Several weeks ago I also got to speak to the lady who works right across from the lady I just mentioned. I asked her if she reads the Bible. She reads Psalms and the Prayer book, but she did not have a Bible. I said I would get her one. The next week I went to take her the Bible that I had promised, only to find she had already bought herself a New Testament. I was shocked and so excited. David was with me that day and gave her some questions to answer as she reads through John. She is Orthodox but very friendly. I am hoping I can continue to point her to the truth of Jesus Christ. Pray for “E” to trust Christ.

Please pray for us to have boldness and Spirit-filled ministry as we go into a new year of serving Christ.

September 2021 Prayer Letter

Ana with Lidia

As Daniel and I sat on the couch in Lidia’s house after a meal of homemade mac ‘n cheese, she told me that she has a gift for Jesus that she is working on. “It’s a song that I plan to sing for Him when I see Him,” the eighty-six year old believer said with a big smile. She then began to sing through her gift for Jesus. A host of emotions and thoughts flooded my heart and mind. I have never heard of someone working on a gift like that. What should I prepare? Am I anticipating seeing my Savior as much as Lidia is? Though we are here to minister to and teach Moldovans, we still have much to glean and learn from them. Here are some other things that the Lord is teaching us.

WORDS MATTER
Thank you for praying for clear leading on Vacation Bible School. While the answer became clear, it was not what we were hoping for. One of the problems was my use of the word “tabără,” which means “camp.” We have always used the term “day camp” for our summer VBS program, since it is the closest parallel that people here would understand. The problem was that in using that word, the health department gave us the host of requirements for day camps here. Even after I went in and met with the director of the public health department to explain it would not be a day camp, he gave us an unrealistic list of requirements. All workers and kids would need to get a health exam, show proof of up-to-date vaccinations, have space of 43 square feet per child, and more. If any child did not come back the following day, we would be required to call and find out why. If they had any symptoms that could be COVID-19, then all workers and children would go into a 2 week quarantine. We ended up canceling VBS.

THANK GOD FOR THE FREEDOMS TODAY
Though the COVID-19 cases had a drastic drop this summer, we have since seen an increase. With this “third wave,” Moldova has been put under a State of Emergency once again and most regions under “code red.” Currently, we are still allowed to do all ministries as we have over the past several months, for which we are thankful. There have been talks and threats by leading health officials of a country-wide lockdown if the numbers keep climbing. Please pray for wisdom for the leadership here and patience on our part.

POLITICAL CHANGES ARE POSSIBLE
Thank you for praying for the parliamentary elections here in Moldova. Despite the coalition between the Socialists and Communists, they did not win the majority seats. On the contrary, the President’s party won the most seats, giving her and Parliament the opportunity to bring about positive changes in the country. Please pray for our president, Maia Sandu, and for wise, positive changes to be made here.

MOTIVES ARE HARD TO SEE AT FIRST
We saw a couple families show an interest in spiritual things but in the end, it seems that either the interest fizzed out or was simply a front to receive materials things. In one of the instances, it appears that we had several items even stolen from us. Pray for us to have wisdom to know how and when to test people’s motives.

On the positive side, my disciples in Bulboci who trusted Christ last year are continuing on faithfully in their walks with the Lord. Ironically, others in the village are assuming that they are coming in order to receive material or financial aid. They cannot understand that people would come in order to learn the Word of God. The ladies are not getting material aid from the studies but joyfully receive spiritual food. We rejoice in having seen the long-term fruit in these believers with pure motives.

LIFE IS LIKE A VAPOR…MAKE YOUR STEAM COUNT
Stephanie and I celebrated 17 years of marriage in August, I turned 40 in September, and our oldest will turn 16 next month. I was once again reminded just how short life is and how each day, each anniversary is special. We heard about another missionary our age who lost the battle after getting COVID-19. We never know when we will celebrate our last anniversary, birthday, or no longer have an opportunity to minister to others. We must make the most of what God has given us today. Please pray for us to redeem the time and be fruitful.

Thank you very much for your continued prayers and financial support.

June 2021 Prayer Letter

Life is like a box of diapers…. it’s always full of changes. Sometimes we fear changes, but change can be a good thing.

CHANGES IN SOROCA

Over the past few months, we have had several visitors join us for services. One lady, “O,” has come a couple times. She had passed our building many times with an interest to visit and finally gained the courage to come. Another lady, “L,” came from a village about 45 minutes away from Soroca, having made a profession of faith in a Baptist church year ago, and wants to be baptized. Another lady, Tatiana, has been coming to our services when in town visiting her parents who live up the road from our house. She is working to transfer from another city and move here to help take care of her aging parents. Two deaf women also visited our service once. Stephanie has been doing Bible studies with a young woman named “O,” too, who has been coming to services. Please pray for us as we do follow-up and seek to minister to these new folks.

A fellow believer in town, Irina, who was not a member of our church plant but often came to special events, went home to be with the Lord in the middle of May. A year ago, she was fearful and troubled as she saw the cancer progress and confine her to her bed. The last six months, though, we saw major changes in her life for the better. She sought to focus on glorifying God even with her bedridden state. She wrote poetry to God, gave Bibles to her caretakers, and had a much sweeter spirit. Stephanie and I visited her a week before she passed away. When she prayed, her words were filled with thanksgiving to God and praising Him for His mercy and goodness to her.

Since December of 2019, a young man, “V,” has been coming to the Thursday midweek Bible studies on evenings he does not work. We have given him the Gospel multiple times and had gone through Jacob’s Thursday series on Romans. Recently I had lunch with him and went through the Gospel again, answering questions that he had. He seemed to understand it. I helped him pick up some large items from the capital city the next day, which gave us all day to talk. He then asked if baptism is the point when a person officially crosses the line from lost to saved. When I told him that comes AFTER the new birth and reviewed repentance and faith for salvation again, he looked at me and said, “Well, I made that decision last year.” He then explained how he had been meditating on what Jacob had been teaching on Thursdays and came to believe in Christ! Please pray for “V” as we follow-up and help him take the next steps for Christ.

COVID CHANGES

Most of these changes have been positive changes over the past couple months. We are no longer under a state of emergency and the number of new COVID cases per day has been under 100 in the whole country. Due to this, we have been able to resume the Bible Club in the village of Cosăuți. Sadly, though, the teen boys I started mentoring before things shut down again have been moved to another facility.

Last year, we were unable to run Vacation Bible School due to the pandemic. With there being fewer cases and regulations, we were hoping to have it in July. Unfortunately, we are at a standstill waiting on the government to decide on whether summer camps can run and what regulations will be imposed. I have talked with our lawyer in the capital and also been in contact with the mayor’s office here in Soroca. I was told that one reason nothing has been decided on yet may be due to the impending threat of the Delta version of COVID-19. Please pray for us to hear soon on something definite regarding VBS in the near future, even if the answer is a no, so that we can make plans moving forward and get out of this limbo.

CHANGES WITH OUR OLDEST

     Thank you to all who have been praying for our oldest and the emotional/mental battles. Though struggles still exist, we are continuing to see improvement and greater stability and consistency. We are thankful for the Christian counselor that the Lord has provided. Please continue to keep this in your prayers.

CHANGE IN PLACES

     If you remember Tamara, the lady battling cancer and a host of other health problems, who trusted Christ a couple years ago, she is actually doing better physically than she has in a long time, though far from being healthy. Her husband, Alec, who walks with two brace crutches all the time, fell while working in the field alone. He injured his neck and was completely paralyzed for several days. He now has regained movement in his arms but still cannot use his legs yet. I have never met a family that has gone through so many trials, one after another. Please pray for their spiritual encouragement and many financial needs to be met.

CHANGE OF PACE

      For the last two weeks of June, Stephanie’s parents finally had an open window to come visit us. What a joy it was to be with family again. We spent the last week with them on vacation for a much needed break from the usual demands of life here. I am so blessed to have not only Christian parents but also in-laws. Their visit was truly a fulfillment of Proverbs 25:25: “As cold waters to a thirsty soul, so is good news from a far country.”

POLITICAL CHANGES

     On July 11th, Moldova will hold Parliamentary elections. Since the newly elected president, Maia Sandu, is limited by the balance of power in Parliament, the possible positive future changes for Moldova hang in the balance. Please pray for a fair and peaceful election and for God’s will to be done.

Thank you very much for your continued prayers and financial support.