Pray for Serbia

Charis Bible College (from Colorado) giving Food to Immigrants in Serbia

Week of Jan. 28 - Feb. 3, 2013

IN THE NEWS: BELGRADE -- Serbia has implemented several measures to counter the departure of false asylum-seekers to the EU and improvement of the position of immigrants in the country.

According to the report of Group 484, in the first six months of 2012, 974 immigrants noted that they would seek asylum in Serbia. Most of the asylum-seekers come from Afghanistan, Algeria, Pakistan, Morocco, Somalia and Palestine, and some came from Syria. Among the asylum-seekers, there were 176 unescorted minors.

NOTE: In December 2012, European Initiative (Berlin) along with Charis Bible College (Colorado) conducted an outreach to Northern Serbia and they reached out to the refugees camped out in Serbia near the Hungarian border hoping to be able to cross. All I have heard is that it was fruitful.

1)    Immigrants waiting in Serbia for their future to be decided. As these traveling or displaced people wait may they examine their eternal souls.
2)    Romans 10:14 How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? Lord, because of your love for these travelers You sent the students from Caris Bible College. We pray that their act of love will bear much fruit.
3)    Let us pray that the plight and availability of these immigrants will reach caring hearts of God’s people and money and time will be organized to send preachers (acts of love).

As stated above, Charis Bible College students, European Initiative and an Evangelical Church in Serbia not only reached out to immigrants but also reached out to the poor and conducted street dramas in Northern Serbia. The following is the report from the pastor of the host church in Subotica, Serbia: (Please pray as you read the needs and changes he reports.)

The visit of the EI mission team in December was a great blessing for our church and ministry.
How? - someone would ask.

1.It has mobilized the members of our church and the staff to start looking for ways how can we bless and minister to the outsiders. So much of our focus and energy goes into our routine and church meetings.
2.During this week of ministry we had noticed how little evangelistic material we have flyers, tracts and books.
3.I have learned that trough good planning we can accomplish much in sort time.
4.Several people in the church came to surface as a good helpers and now I count on them.
5.The blessing was of course the ministry itself what they have done ministering to the poor bringing them winter coats and boots.
6. With drama and personal witness they touched the lives of many. Now our young people are working to form a drama team and evangelistic team to do similar outreach.
7.New relationships were made

-    Pastor Viktor Sabo


FROM http://www.eurovangelism.org.uk/news/150 -  Help for women in need in Serbia
Zoli and Tanja at Sombor Christian Fellowship in Serbia have been praying for God to use them more to reach out to their community. They felt it on their hearts to get involved and help the women and children who are in a "Safe House". Tanja has recently visited the "Safe House" she reports:
"As we entered the safe house we gave them our present of carefully made package of Baby Essentials. They were so excited and they loved the special way of how we put it together. They toured us through the House, they have capacity for 26 women, bathrooms, TV room, dining room, kitchen . . . As we talked about their way of working and taking care of abused women we heard some very positive stories how they helped them. One lady got back her self-respect saying: “for the first time in my life I feel I’m alive, that I am a human being. They are getting results of all their efforts toward the Safe House and it is so encouraging. They press forward until something changes."

This is so encouraging to see God at work in these women's lives, bringing hope to hopeless situations. Tanja also wants to provide a children's playground in the Safe House. This is a need for the children in the home to enjoy and play safely and happily.

Please pray for:
1)    Tanja and Zoli as they reach out to help women in this home.
2)    The funds to come in to provide a playground for the children in the Home.
3)    The abused women and children in the Home.
4)    The workers in the Home as the daily help these women.

Please leave a Comment or Reaction so we will know you Prayed.

Pray for Romania - Part 2

Published Jan.20, 2013

Thank you so much for your prayers for our outreach to Romania. As I am writing this, we have finished the outreach. We estimate 200 people were prayed for to receive Jesus. So let me thank you again for your prayers and financial support. This was the third time for me to be on this yearly outreach and the second for Zuzanna, my wife. Zuzanna, being skilled in management and logistics, organized and lead the team. The following is a recap of the 2013 Romanian Outreach to the poor of Transylvania. We assembled a team of 19 foreign workers and joined up with about that many Romanian Christian workers.

1)    We shipped from America donated coats, shoes, hats, gloves and stuffed animals to the host church in Romania (many of you helped us fight the spiritual battle to get the shoes past customs)
2)    Our host church, City on a Hill, rented the community centers in four villages; Ormanis, Augustin, Belin and Apata. Then we organized a system of first going house to house giving out tickets which gave the ticket holder the right to redeem shoes or a coat for each member of their family. (a ticket for each member of the family)
3)    Each day we had one team going house to house inviting the family to a performance and passing out tickets Also we had one team transporting the shoes and coats to that day’s village community center. There was no home we were not welcomed into. We only went to the poor areas where mainly the Gypsies lived. We ask them to be at the community at a set time.
4)    In all the villages they were at the door of the community center an hour ahead of time. When the time came for the program to start, we would let them in, checking for tickets. Problems arose with many people showing up without a ticket and wanting to get in. And by the way, village Gypsies, Romanians and Hungarians do not line up but push forward in mass. I think our door people had the worse job.
5)    Once they were in and seated (in Belin and Apata there was limited seating and many had to stand) the program begin; Introductions were made, there was an acrobatic performance, someone gave a testimony and then the Gospel was presented. There was a blanket prayer invitation for salvation and then those that had prayed the prayer were asked to come forward for personal prayer. We took names and addresses to be given to the host church for follow-up.
6)    Then row by row they would file out (push) to the distribution area to get their gift items. At all venues they had to go out the same door they came in. This was a problem for our door-men because of the dissatisfied ones pressing the exit door.
7)    We would then pack up what was left over and start preparing for the next day.
To our knowledge, this type of humanitarian aid distribution had never been tried in this part of Romania. I would like to say that everything went perfect but it didn’t. We were not ready for a dissatisfied crowd. We saw greed, hatred and real disrespect.

If you are following the Praying for the Balkans, Project prayer directives, you realize we are off track. For four years now I have been doing research on the Balkan countries on a weekly basis and publishing a prayer directive of the important prayers to focus on that week. The directive had two main purposes, 1) to provide news of current and also historic events affecting the weeks’ targeted country, 2) build urgency among intercessors to focus on the spiritual dryness of the countries on the Balkan Peninsula.

1)    Please pray for the past outreach in Romania. First pray for those that heard the Gospel but did not receive Jesus. Pray that the Holy Spirit would continue to pursue them.
2)    Pray for those that we prayed with to receive Jesus. Especially pray for the host church as they go follow up. May relationships grow that will help these new Christians to grow.
3)    Pray that the negative impressions caused by the dissatisfied ones would be smoothed out.
4)    This trip was organized by European Initiative (Berlin, Germany). Having unforeseen things happen, may we be wise concerning future outreaches. (There was levels of warfare we breached that was revelatory of God’s love for Romania and Satan’s determination to stay the course)