The end of February Naty and I in conjunction with others from around the International Baptist Convention were honored to be able to partner with our brothers and sisters in Moldova in an Evangelistic effort in the south of Moldova. The project went from the 18th to the 24th of February. During this time many throughout the area we were working were introduced to the gospel for the first time. One pastor from the village of Baimaclia, Moldova said, "During his experience there in that village he had never seen the Lord work in the way He did during that week of evangelistic work." We pray that the fruit that was bore in that week will last and that it will be the beginning of something significant for the Kingdom of God in that area.
Sharing the gospel with the body in Baimaclia
It was a packed house that night
A few weeks later we had a opportunity to take the church in Bucharest to the mountains of Romania for our annual church weekend retreat. We were blessed to have my assistants father, Derek Moore-Crispin a pastor in the United Kingdom with us for worship while we were there. Many from the church attended and once again it was a great time for the church to continue to develop community among each other. This has proven through the years to be a wonderful annual event in the life of the church which has been helpful in encouraging growth throughout the congregation. Please pray for the God's protection on the community of the International Church.
The retreat is held in beautiful Busteni, Romania
Worship During our time in Busteni
A group picture of the church in Busteni
The middle of March Naty and I had the opportunity to attend the pastor's conference of the International Baptist Convention. This was a good time of spiritual nourishment and refreshment. We really considered ourselves blessed to be able join others from around the convention for the wonderful time. While we were there we had an opportunity to evaluate where we are as a couple and a congregation. We are so grateful that God has allowed us to serve alongside each other in the ministry in Romania and Moldova and we want to do all we can to serve the Lord as effectively as possible Therefore, as we made preparations to return to Romania at the end of the conference we were asking the Lord to help us apply the things we learned in the church once we arrived home.
At the IBC pastors conference banquet
While at the conference we came across something familiar
This last Sunday we celebrated our Lord's resurrection at the International Church of Bucharest. This was a bit of a different experience this year because many in Romania will not celebrate Easter till the 5th of May. The reason is that the Orthodox Church of Romania doesn't celebrate Easter at the same time as most churches in the west. Normally the two dates would only be separated by a week or two, but this year was an exception to that. Although many in Romania did not observe Easter we did and it was a joyous time of remembering Christ's sacrifice and celebrating his resurrection. We trust that each of you had a similar time of worship this past Sunday as well.
Easter at the International Church
Finally, we wanted to take a moment and thank each of you once again. We know just how blessed we are to serve the Lord where He has called us too. Each of you play a vital role in the work here in Romania and Moldova as well. We would be unable to do this work without the continued prayers and generous sacrifices that many of you have given on our behalf. So to say thanks we thought we would share a few snap shots of the smallest among us who's lives are being impacted by each of you.
The children of the International church
Children's Church Is a Big Hit Every Sunday
