February 2009

“Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His love endures forever. Who can proclaim the mighty acts of the Lord or fully declare His praise?

Psalm 106:1-2

Dear Family and Friends,

Greetings to each of you in the precious name of Jesus! We thank Him for His faithfulness, provisions and for each and every one of you. Without our mighty God and your support, prayers and help, it would not be possible for us to be able to do what we do!

Many ministries took place both before and during the Christmas season and we would like to share some of the highlights of how the Lord used many of our Christian brothers and sisters to show the Love of God and to be able to bless many!

The Lord in His goodness continually provides what is needed to be able to bless others who are less fortunate! One provisioning came from a group of American Christians from Germany enabling the celebration of an American Thanksgiving last November with the families of the children who come for lunch each school day, as well as several of the families from our church and community. Though Polish people do not celebrate Thanksgiving as a holiday, it was a unique opportunity to be able to show even the poor, just how much one can be thankful for! A full course Thanksgiving meal was prepared and served to all of the families who came to the Mission to take part in this special time. They also provided a type of ‘meals on wheels’ and transported meals to the homes of many families as well. Over 300 people were either served or provided with a full meal that day!

During the Christmas holidays God gave another opportunity to bless again the families of the children who come to the mission for lunch. A special evangelistic program was held for them where the spiritual significance of Christmas was shared, followed by a time where the children were able to each receive both a ‘shoe box’ type gift as well as being able to choose a toy from tables filled with many gift choices. It is a joy for us as a Mission to be able to minister to these families in such a special way. They not only had the opportunity to hear the significance of Jesus coming to earth as Savior and what that means in their own lives, but also a special time of one-on-one fellowship was enjoyed afterwards so that the church people could meet and share with the families.

In addition to these children God opened other doors to minister to other groups as well. Many Christmas packages and gifts were given from various caring groups giving opportunities to bless others. One group was able to go to the Children’s Home and distribute around 270 gift bags to the Children there.

Another group gave special gifts for Christmas Eve at the Children’s Home. These particular children had no family or home to go to over the Christmas holiday. They were a small group of children who had to remain at the Children’s Home during the entire Christmas break! Though all of the children there need to know they are loved (both humanly and spiritually speaking)…these children need to know it in a very special way as the reality of not having family to spend this time with must hit them especially hard at this time of the year!

We also had ministry opportunities to be able to take gifts to those in the Home for the Elderly and Needy (it consists of all ages of those who are not able to take care of themselves on their own), as well as the hospital and Hospice on Christmas Eve. The Home for the Elderly and Needy is part of an on going ministry of a group that has been going weekly from our Church to meet with and encourage these dear people. They are able to learn about the Lord’s love for them throughout the year…and get a special blessing from Him at Christmas through a party, complete with dinner, where they can be shown this love they have been learning about! These people, as well as many of the children from the Children’s Home, do not have a lot of physical contact with the outside world. Our desire is for them to know they are loved…by those who go to minister to them and more importantly by the Lord Himself who loves them much more than we are able too!

One additional group has ministered for several years now in providing food packages for around 35 poor families. They bring cars full of food that has been donated through their military base, and after it is separated into packages for specific families it is then transported that day to many of the families. This is a very special ministry for many families who were able to enjoy nice food over the Christmas season!

Ministries through the Church and the Mission has continued during the year into the community through the various regular programs. Some of the people who have been coming to the Mission for meals are now coming to either a cell-group or to church. Please pray for the friendship evangelism through meals to continue to change people’s lives, “…praying at the same time for us as well, that God may open up to us a door for the Word…” (Col. 4:3a)

Thank you once again for the love, encouragement, support, friendship and prayers that you so generously bless us with!

We appreciate each of you and the hearts you have for the Polish people that we are able to minister too!

Blessings on each of you!

The Staff of Elim Christian Mission
Lwowek Slaski, Poland

 

Praises/Prayer Requests

Robert and Aneta’s twins, Daniel and Jonatan just turned one year old! They were born two months early with a lot of initial concerns. Both boys are still going through physical therapy and Daniel often is not sleeping well at night time (which keeps Aneta from getting the sleep she needs) but all in all, they are both doing quite well!

That the Lord would give wisdom and direction to those who lead the mission. That He would guide us in the weeks and months ahead in the direction He has for the work He is doing here.

There are several groups scheduled to come starting in March and then through the end of the summer. Please pray that the Lord would bless their time here…whether they are here to give of themselves, and/or for physical/spiritual renewal.

That anyone (whether Polish or another nationality) who come here to the Mission will be able to sense the Lord’s presence, and that they will experience Him in such a way that their lives will never be the same.