Thursday, August 31, 2006


ЛЮБЛЮ ТЕБЯ МАМОЧКА!
LOVE YOU MOM!
TE QUIERO MAMI!


ARGENTINA

Tango

One day i'll get there..


What a day I was 31 of august. I was working with a couple of Argentinean Jews Abraham y Ester. A while ago Iranian Jews, now Argentinean. Ok God You are not taking all the nations to me, You are also taking particularly Your chosen nation. Not too bad. On the way to Petergof (thsars summer residence) I didn’t say a word about the place we are going. All the way to Petergof we’ve been talking about Jews, live of Jewish community in Russia, Israel, Lebanon and all what are deals with that. On the city tour we even visited a Synagogue, where I’ve met a guy I used to go to Israel with. His name is Boris, but as all Jews can choose a Jewish name is their original one is not, Boris chose to be David. (I remember when I was in Israel I decided no to choose Jewish name for myself. God knows my name anyway) So Boris (David) showed us around there and my Argentineans were very happy about it. Boris visited my church once and in Israel we use to talk a lot about God and faith. This time he again tried to get into the discussion that as a Jew I can’t believe in Jesus, but I just decided no to go there, since we’ve talked about it already and didn’t came to any conclusion.
Mean while I also had a chance to share my faith with Argentineans. Serving to His people is an honor, really.
The bad part of that day is that I’ve lost my cell phone with all my dates: work numbers, Latino numbers, and many other telephone numbers, which I wouldn’t be able to restore, unless these people will call me. Bummer!..L
Right the way I had to buy a new cell phone, because without a phone I’m without connection with the world, I can’t work with out it. And even I hated to spend my trip saved money for the new phone, I had no choice. I’ve got a new one. Technically better one, but I have to learn how to work with this yet.
And yeah, before I’ve lost my phone I’ve got a massage from my mom that she is got cold and fells very bad. This night I was supposed to go to Finland, where my Brazilian-Finish friends organizing a goodbye gathering with other Brazilians. And even the day was long and I was tired I was planning to go to Finland anyway. I even had my travelling backpack with me. But… I staid. My mom was in need much more then my Brazilian friends. I remembered how Pastor Lloyd Pulley was sharing on the conference in the church lately.
"Are the people you love convinced, that you love them? What do you do for that?". I knew that very often my mother doubts my love to her, because I’m always busy and have no enough time for her. Now she’s got sick and I’m leaving to Finland for a goodbye party, which is not the biggest testimony of my love and care. But I knew that if I would stay it would be. And indeed she was very happy and encouraged when last night I came to her place with all my travelling bags, exhausted, but willing to bless her and be there for her.

Test Him?

"Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this", says the Lord Almighty, "and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it." Malachi 3:10
During all my christian walk the topic of tithe and offering was one of those I would go around. When I just got to know the church and my mom was extremely against of it, one of the acusement she would use, is that people from the church or the church at self would take my money. I knew that tithe and offering never have been an obligation in Calvary Chapel. And I would always hear the verse from II Corinthians 9:7: "Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver"
So every time when this offering plate would come to me I felt kinda compulsion and so I decided no to give or to give well may be 10 or 20 rubles (less the 1$) just so that my conciseness wouldn’t bother me and my finance situation wouldn’t suffer, because I always had just enough. So I was thinking if I would take of from my just enough, I wouldn’t have enough anymore.
Then when I started to work, I still had just enough, but now I was more willing to bless someone in need if I felt God was leading me to. And if He did I obeyed believing that God would supply any way. But in this case I knew what my money were used for and I kinda liked it more. I lived like this for long time already, but…
Couple of days ago one brother in Christ from Honduras asked me a question without any foundation. He asked me if I tithe. Well….you know…I said. Well…not really. "You should do it, it’s God’s will for us" and then he quoted me this verse 10 from chapter 3 of Malachi. And another one 3:8 "Will a man rob God? Yet you rob me. But you ask, ‘How do we rob you?’ "In tithes and offerings"
Oo.. what does it mean? Have I’ve been robing God all these years or what? But God, way do You need all those money? All I have is Yours anyway…
"Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house."
Food! Very practical need. Church needs finance to be able to run the ministry. God want to bless the church with that through it’s people. Every family has to have a family budget to be able to eat, cover the bills and do things. And if we as a part of the family won’t invest in this family we won’t be able to do many things as a family.
But more, God says: "Test me in this", says the Lord Almighty, "and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it."
God, You want me to test You? How come? You me to set apart some finance for your work in this World and this way see how You will bless me though that even more then I gave You? Wow.
Here is where I need wisdom. Because it’s not a deal with God. Ok God I’ll give You 10$, so You can give me 10 tomes more. But just give knowing that it all for Him, and about Him, all your life belongs to God, so don’t even worry that you wouldn’t have enough for yourself if you would give away. He knows your needs. Don’t depend on money, depend on God, when you in trust your life not to finance which rule in this world, but to God, You’ll se His miracles and His hand in Your life.
The accomplishment of my dreams to go to other countries to minister to people so much depends on finance, which makes me think but if I’ll make an offering to the church. I won’t have enough for my trips. But, if God wants you there, He’ll take you there even without all your money. He has all the treasure of this world.

Sunday, August 27, 2006


VIETNAM and it's people


The second day with Vietnamese. We went to the Petergof, tsars’ summer residence. Once again I was given a second guide. Petergof palace is much smaller then Hermitage museum, so they had to split in two group any way. Tour leader Dennis was running from one group to another adding in his language the most important information from his point of view. Well, what ever.
After the palace visit he gave all the group a free time in the park, meanwhile we went to the café to have some lunch.
Couple weeks ago I was at Calvary Chapel pastors conference in my city and I liked when pastor Gayle Irvin said, that we all are like a book, we all have our unique stories of life. So that mean when we ask someone to share their story of life we can see God’s hand moving though this life. So even though my Vietnamese and his friend are not really walking with the Lord I decide to ask them their lifes stories.
Man, what a dramatic lifes people could have.
Dennis story:
He was born in Vietnam, in the south (the Northern part is communistic part) but when hi was a kid his parents immigrated to France (Vietnam was also a colony of France for a while, so many Vietnamese speak some French). When he was just 8 years old one older lady raped him. He says that he even liked it, so since then pure boy became addicted to sexual relationship until he has got married. He was married 4 times though. Dennis says that he is Catholic and as many catholic (there are exceptions) believes that prayer and good deeds is enough for his walk with the Lord, which is mean that there is no need to read the Bible every day. Read it once all and you are ok.
I shared with him about manna which was given just for one day, because God wanted daily communication with His children, He wanted they come to Him and ask daily, in the same manner a spiritual bread. There is no way to eat for one week, one month and more over all your life beforehand and not to be hungry anymore. It’s like we can survive without food a while, but then we’ll get weak and even could die.
Dennis’s friend Tu also emigrated from Vietnam when he was a kid. There back in South Vietnam his father was a major, he was taken in jail by communists for 4 years. Tu’s mother organized his escape first from jail and then from the country. At night the crossed the border by boat and have got to Indonesia. Tu have an adopted sister who was a prostitute, but have got married if American man (one of her clients), so she sponsored Tu and his family to come to US. Tu says that he is an atheist. I gave him some Christian trucks, which I hope will touch his lifer. One of them is funny brochure, which called: "Atheist test"
I was wondering why Vietnamese immigrate to the country the had a war with. I mean many Vietnamese (all ages) were killed, women raped, and now they prefer US to Vietnam. As Tu explained, Vietnam was separated for two parts, South and the North, like Korea nowadays. The Northern part always have been controlled by communists and the south one was American ally. And because all my tourist group were from the South they all believe that US was helping them to get rid of communism. That why they don’t see anything wrong in immigrating to the country of their allies.
That day I was soooooo tired and even had a headache. At night we went to the Vietnamese restaurant. The food was good, light as many Asian cuisine and not spicy. Good for my pure stomach, heh.
So praise God for everything. For financial blessing…
Why 3 dots? Because, here starts another topic.
God’s will for my finace life…

26.08 TO ALL THE NATIONS

God’s Word says: go to all the nations and preach the Gospel and get baptize them in the name of Jesus. In my case God is taking nations to me right where I am. Yesterday I had to work as a second guide with a group of American Iranian Jews, nice mixture, heh. To be honest I don’t really like work with the tourists who among themselves speak the language I don’t understand. But if He decides to bring me to this lifes I just can’t refuse it. So they happened to be nice people, mostly elderly people, but all kept saying how nice and gorgeous I am. Most part of the group went with Tanya the main guide and some staid with me, mostly the young ones and the elderly who stuck in the line in the bathroom :) . You know this Hermitage museum is really huge and even when I cut a lot of from the route people still gets tired. Not many made I to the end, but those who did were very interested in what I was sharing with them. As I said the are Jews and in the morning they even visited a Sinagoge, so I was thinking that they should know at least spome stories from the Old Tastement. Not at all. You know Hermitage museum has a huge collection of art with a Biblical topic, so I just used the chance and shared about those Bible stories, even explaning the meaning, I mean speaking about God like if I would preach. One fa,ily who made it untill the end were very gratefull and they became even more exited when they found out that I’m also a Jew.

But when I said nations it means nations, today I had so funny and relaxed day I ever had. Yesterday Tanya said that I have to replace a guide who got sick or something. There is one russian expression "throwing to the tanks", which means a big challenge. And it sounded that way when she said, that I’ll have to work two days with 52 american Vietnamese. First I was nervicing, but then I said: "God you have your own reason why You sending me to these people. I know that You love them, give me the same love to them as You have. Let me serve them and bless them, and if you want to bless me though their finance I’m ok with that. I just want to see Your hand in that, I just want to trust it all into Your hands and if I’ll have a hard time with them, You’ll work it out somehow". So here I am standing with a sighn "Saigon voyager" and little by little small Asian people began surround me. They asked in English: "Are you a guide" – "Yes I am" – "Are you in High School?" –"No I’m even graduated University a while ago, I just look young" – "can we take a picture with you" – "sure"
There were about 10 people who would come down to me and ask permission to take a picture with me. I didn’t know what to feel, like if I would be a model or a monument. I was hardly keeping from laughing.
Their tour leader Dennis is nice, he was translating to the Vietnamese all the way though and sometime even doing more job then I did. I would speak 5 minutes, he would translate all 15, and much more then I actually said. Or if he didn’t considered something important he wouldn’t translate it at all. Those who understood, good for them, those who don’t, so well. He made another guide to work for me in the Hermitage instead of splitting in two groups and then He did all the talking in the Isaac Cathedral. More I had his younger friend Tu jumping around me all the time and having fun flirting with me.
I don’t have tourist who wouldn’t ask me if I’m Orthodox Christian. And praise God most of the times it a grate witness opportunity. During the dinner I had a small conversation with Dennis about what I believe and what he believes as a Catholic. And I also shared a bit with Tu who said to me that he is an atheist. Any way, praise God for all.
Oh yeah I’ve learn some Vietnameze words:
Chao kwiwi – hello evrybody
Camen – Thank you
So you can see I have a lot of fun and blessing. I like this job, it’s a grate way to minister to the people, minister to the nations.