Rejoicing In Blessing, Trusting In His Strength
A little over a month ago, we said goodbye to some friends who were an inspiration to us all. Approximately four years ago God brought Mba & Nelly Ama to the International Church. Mba served as the country of Nigeria as the Ambassador to Romania during that time period. For the last two years he also served the church as an elder as well. Over this period they both proved to be tremendous diplomats of Nigeria and examples of our Savior, Jesus Christ to the country of Romania. As they prepared to leave the country we were invited to a diplomatic celebration of their time in Romania. While we were there we rejoiced as Ambassador Ama took advantage of the opportunity to share with the other diplomats attending just how important Christ was to him in his life. It was a moving testimony that no doubt challenged the others attending. We are grateful for our time with both the ambassador and his wife and we pray that God will continue to use them in mighty ways for his Kingdom as the return to Nigeria.
Saying goodbye at church to the ambassador and his wife
As we move forward with the work of ministry at the International Church we continue to rejoice even in small victories. One of the core values of the church is 'Intimacy With Christ'. One of the most productive ways that they church has been able to foster this over the years is through small group bible studies. We praise God for the continued growth of small groups in the city. We are praying with the Lord's blessing that this ministry will expand even further as we close out this school year and prepare for the coming school year. Please pray that God will continue to bless the small group ministry of the church and use it to challenge more in the expatriate community of Bucharest to seeking a deeper relationship with Christ.
Preparing to teach a small group bible study
A few weeks back Naty had the opportunity to coordinate a conference for the women of the International Baptist Convention in Varna, Bulgaria. During the conference women from many churches in the convention representing many different countries, such as Romania, Germany, Great Britain, The United States, Jordan and Indonesia to name a few, attended. We were thrilled by the response to this retreat for the women of the convention. Almost everyone who attended commented that they would love to do it again this next year. Ultimately we rejoiced in the testimonies we heard concerning the work that God did in the lives of those who attended. We pray that in the days to come that God will continue to strengthen the women's ministry of the International Church.
Lana Packer was the main speaker at the retreat
Naty and the women enjoying a festive Bulgarian meal
Last, we have a few prayer requests that we ask you to please add to your prayer lists.
1) First, we would like to give you a quick update concerning Naty's dad. We still are waiting to hear a final word from the doctor's in Italy as to whether they will allow him to receive the liver transplant he needs to save his life or not. We ask you to continue to pray that God will prevail upon the hearts of the doctors there and that God will give the family the grace to patiently wait as God reveals his will to us. Pray that God will physically give strength to Andrei as well as he waits.
2) Next, we need to update you concerning a financial challenge that we recently have encountered as the result of a law change in Romania. Over the years we praise God for his more than sufficient supply to our need for transportation. In 2005 we were able to acquire an automobile in Moldova that has served us very well over the last seven years. Since we have worked both in Moldova and Romania the car has been titled in Moldova, which the law allowed at the time. As of a few weeks ago this has changed. The Romanian government has changed the law to stipulate that your car must be registered in your country of residence. In addition to that change the law continues to state if you wish to register the car now in Romania you can only do so if the car is no more than seven years old. This has put us in a bind. Our car was new in 2001, therefore, making the car 11 years old. As a result, in approximately 6 - 8 weeks we will have to return the car to Moldova and try to sell it for whatever we may be able to receive from the sale of it. Once this has transpired we will need to obtain another vehicle in Romania. We ask you to pray that God will provide all the necessary resources to make provision to obtain another car here in Romania. In addition, please pray that God will give us wisdom in selecting another car. Pray that he will guide us to one that will be both sufficient and reliable. (Last, after prayerful reflection if you believe God is leading you to assist us with this need, please feel free to contact us; williamtully@hotmail.com).
As always we thank you for your continued friendship, interest in and sacrifices for the ministry God has called us too here in Romania and Moldova. We are very aware that times are challenging everywhere. As a result, your sacrifices do not go unnoticed by us. We thank you for your continued faithfulness to this work and pray that God will continue to enrich your lives by blessing you with everything you need (Philippians 4:19).
