Nov. 3 2005

1) Team Ufa asks that you pray for Grace Church in the Telecenter District of Ufa. The church must soon decide whether to accept a 50% raise in their rent, to search for other worship space to rent, or to simply return to meeting in an apartment with all the restrictions that that entails. There is an outside chance that their landlord might relent and keep the rent the same as it is now. So pray first that the Lord of the earth will change the heart of Murat, Grace Church’s landlord, so that he might keep the rent the same and Grace Church won’t have to give up its current location which has been such a blessing to the church. If instead, Murat hardens his heart, then pray that God might impart His wisdom to Grace Church and Pastor Zhenya so that they might know beyond a shadow of a doubt what God would have them do next, so that His name might be glorified.

 2) Team Ufa asks that you pray for pastor Zhenya and strategy coordinator, Chris Carr, as they venture outside the city of Ufa to an area known for its opposition to, and persecution of, God’s people. The trip is set for the second weekend in November. Pray for God’s protection on these men and their traveling companions. Pray that God will speak encouragement and peace through them to the Christians under siege in this somewhat evil area of Bashkortostan.

 3) Team Ufa asks you to pray for a team from West Side Baptist Church in Sumter, S.C., which will be working with us at Thanksgiving time. The brothers and sisters in Christ at West Side are great mission partners who have not only worked beside us on this side of the Earth, but have rented an apartment in the Sipailovo region of Ufa as a base of evangelism to the churchless area. Unfortunately, only three of their members will be joining us for Thanksgiving. Pastor Mark,  Brother Dean, and another member of their congregation, will be keying on ministry and evangelism in the Sipailovo region and then helping us give thanks to Almighty God for His bountiful blessings. They will also be involved in student and orphanage ministry. Thank God for these three dear brothers in Christ willing to give up Thanksgiving with loved ones in the States to bless us and reach Sipailovo for Christ. Ask the Lord to bless them, sustain them, and give them tangible fruit in Ufa during their sojourn with us Thanksgiving week.  

 4) Team Ufa asks you to pray for an English Language worship service that the team plans to begin soon. Pray that God will bring those who are seeking Him to the worship service and that some might eventually be saved. Pray that a number of Russian believers who know the English language might commit to making the English language service a reality. Pray for God’s blessing on this endeavor as we attempt to join Him where He appears to be working.

 5) Team Ufa asks you to pray for the team’s evangelistic English as a second language effort in Ufa. The team currently conducts an advanced level English class, assists a Russian Sister named Emeliya in teaching a basic and beginner’s level English class, and may well soon start an intermediate level English class. Pray that God will enable us to attend to our students’ desire to learn English and, at the same time, convey the Gospel. Pray that we will be able to hold the students’ interest and that the number of people who quit saying that they want English but not God will be kept to a minimum. Pray that through our evangelistic English classes that God might allow us to reap a harvest of souls and that we might see tangible fruit as the result of this ministry.  

 6) Team Ufa asks that you pray for apprentice missionary Larry Moon as he leads the Ufa Bible Church (UBC) in a study of the end times using prophetic books in the Old Testament and John’s Revelation. As the young people at UBC study what God’s Word promises will transpire in the future, pray that their relationship with God might grow closer and that their commitment to reaching lost souls for Christ before the tribulation to come ensues might increase. Pray that the study might give the members of UBC a sense of urgency, a sense that they were born for such a time as this. Ask God to speak His message through Larry and enable him to teach the prophetic passages in a way that is clear, compelling, and accurate. Thanks to those of you who prayed for Larry’s foot condition. The strange swelling suddenly went away.

 7)  Team Ufa asks that you pray for Victor Bauer, a potential future member of Team Ufa as he recuperates from knee replacement surgery. Ask the Almighty to allow Vic's knee (mechanical though it may be) to quickly and completely heal up. His wife now reports that his pain has subsided somewhat and he is a bit more mobile with each passing day. The swelling around the replaced knee seems to have gone done and he is regaining a good range of motion. Thanks for all of you who have been in prayer for him. Pray now that the Bauers might soon get the IMB doctors' permission to continue the mission board’s application process with an eye towards proceeding to the mission field as Master's program missionaries and members of Team Ufa. An evaluation of his leg will be done very soon.

 8) Team Ufa asks you to pray for the Sipailovo (sea-PIE-lah-vah) district of Ufa. The bedroom district of Sipailovo is home to a populace of some 250,000 souls, several casinos and gambling clubs, a strip joint, and a mosque, but has no Christian church or witness. Church planting efforts there have never really gotten off the ground. The difficulty has been that our Russian brothers believe that before there can be any ministry in Sipailovo, a trained and called Russian brother must oversee the efforts there. But, nearly a year after we rented an apartment in Sipailovo, with donated American funds, to serve as a base of evangelism in the area, no such leader willing to shoulder responsibility for ministry in Sipailovo has been identified. No one feels called to work there. Finally, in the past few weeks, one young man has said that he is willing to work with apprentice missionary Larry a few evenings a week in Sipailovo. It is not quite the response we were looking for, but this is Russia, it will have to do for now. Pray that God might use a timid young man and a westerner with imperfect Russian to make an impact on Sipailovo. Pray that somehow, miraculously, fruit might be wrought from even the rocky soil of Sipailovo. Pray that despite our human frailties, God might glorify himself by planting a church in Sipailovo. 

 9) Team Ufa asks you to pray for the Carr family who will be returning to the U.S. on stateside assignment on December the 15^th. The Carrs have 5 kids, the oldest of which is 9. Pray that the Carrs transit to the U.S. will be a smooth one. Pray that Christmas with their relatives might be a blessed time. Ask for God’s blessing on their stateside assignment as they give Southern Baptists in the U.S. an account of what they have seen God do on the field. Pray that the Carrs time in the States might be a time of re-charging, a time of re-commitment to the task in Ufa, a time in which God reconfirms their call to Russian speaking people. Pray for periods of rest, relaxation, celebration, and joy as they re-connect with loved ones in the States.  

 10) Team Ufa asks that you begin to pray for a summit on ministry in Ufa that will be conducted by Strategy Coordinator, Chris Carr, at Gateland Baptist Church in Richmond from January 13^th until January 15^th. Pray that God will bring a great many new ideas to bear through the summit participants. Pray that those present will learn of a number of new opportunities and/or ways in which they can plug into ministry in Ufa. Pray that as the summit proceeds that God might lead some of those taking part in the discussions to a greater commitment to ministry in Ufa. And pray that they will take their enthusiasm and passion back to their home churches.  

Nov  1 2005

Dear Friends,

 “Team Ufa usually fasts and prays the first Tuesday of every month. This month the prayer will be directed towards God's blessing on and guidance of at least four evangelistic English classes that we are involved in and God's blessing on and guidance of church planting efforts in Sipailovo. This second focus would include a request for God to bear up Alexei, a young man who will help our team in evangelistic efforts in the Sipailovo (see-PIE-lah-vah) district a few days a week. It would also include a request for God to bless the ministry of a few former drug addicts in Sipailovo who are now his children. They are attempting to reach the drug culture in the region for Christ. And so, if you are so inclined to fast and pray with us on Tuesday the 1st for the evangelistic English classes and the hopes and dreams for Sipailovo, then we would thank our God and King for your help.” 

 Blessings!

Chris