Saturday, September 10, 2011

Home in America

I arrived in Minneapolis August 18th. I am rested and ready to get to work again, but I do not have anywhere to minister or teach, it feels so wrong! I sit at my daughter’s home bored and am getting wasted on TV! Do you ever feel that way?

My last couple of weeks in Ukraine was hectic and nerve-wracking. I had not registered with the Ukrainian government for several reasons and learned that my attorney in Kyiv was sitting in prison for dishonesty in registering Americans. Learning that the government was looking for those who had been registered by this gentleman shook me up!

I knew I was flying out in August and did not want to be apprehended by the airport border patrol. After many complications, trips to the aveer (Russian for government agency) and the courthouse; I received papers stating that I had paid the fine and free to leave the country and return in the future.

Friends, please pray for Ukraine. Because of this situation, friends working with WYAM understand they have to leave the country and WYAM is not allowed to minister there any longer. This is a sad situation. I heard from trusted sources that Ukraine is now open for all Muslim and Islamic peoples. They no longer need a visa to stay in the country.

I was blessed to pay a fine and travel freely. As I was packing personal items; I packed as if I may not return. I would like to return on a short term basis in the future to continue teaching.

 I feel lost at the moment without a purpose in my life. However, I am submitting my resume for jobs but I feel very hopeless. I know I am not the only one feeling this way, but it has been so long since I had to live a ‘normal’ life.

Ministry or mission work (life style) is much different, I lived on faith, but I had an established foundation on which God was able to use, supplying all my needs. Now, I have nothing. I am sleeping on the couch at my daughter’s and am trying to add some value to the family by cooking and cleaning.

God is our supplier . . . and provides for our needs. We are responsible to provide for our wants!

Num 6:24-26 '"May the LORD bless you and take good care of you. (25) May the LORD smile on you and be gracious to you. (26) May the LORD look on you with favor and give you his peace." God be with you always

Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Academic year 2010-2011 is concluded

Dear Family and Friends,

June was my last month for teaching. Graduation is scheduled for July 31 and that will be my last responsibility before I leave for America.

During our last Master and Doctorate classes, I asked the students to pray for the ministry. I also asked them to write a testimony of how the college has affected them personally and their church.

The testimonies were translated for me. I would like to share one very special prophecy for myself and the college. Enjoy reading God’s plans for this ministry!

Hi Kathy,

I prophesied to you according to the Book of Ezekiel. I have written my thesis, where I compared the 3 temples in Jerusalem:
1) The temple built by Solomon
2) The temple restored after Babylonian captivity
3) And the temple of Ezekiel

I saw steps which lead to the outer court, to the inner court and to the temple. The quantity of these steps is different. I compared them with their meanings and I was amazed. It’s very interesting. Proceeding from this, God touched my heart and I prophesied you.

Ezekiel 40:22, 26
Seven steps are leading to the outer court. Seven means the end of all that is human, completeness and perfection. Your past time was this period, when you taught mainly people of the outer court.

Ezekiel 40:31
Eight steps are leading to the inner court. Eight means a new beginning, resurrection. I told you, that in the USA you will get all the necessary knowledge to move to another level. People of the inner court will come to you to study. These are the people, who are Levites and priests. These are the people who dedicated their lives and destiny completely for the Lord’s service.

Ezekiel 40:49
Ten steps are leading to the temple itself. Ten means responsibility, completeness, law, order, restoration. I prophesied to you, that the time will come when priests and Zadok’s sons will study in the college. These are the people, who are dedicated to God, are constantly fellowshipping with Him, coming into His presence and are interceding before Him for the people. They are strong and separated for God. Such people are few and far between, but they are key people. They are going to study in the college.

Tuesday, July 5, 2011

Dear Family and Friends,

This is the last paragraph of the last blog:
We need a miracle and I am expecting one! Please pray and expect that God will quickly put the right person in place. Thank you.

We received a miracle! As I talked to people and asked for prayer, God used friends and acquaintances in church to help the ministry. My pastor, his wife, two of my interpreters and my friend Alyona met today. We discussed positions that were needed and those who could help. We also listed the responsibilities for each position.

Position and person:

Teacher/materials: Anya
Administrator: Alyona
Secretary: Valentina
Finances: Inna
Covering: Pastor Ruslan

In an earlier discussion, the problem of translations was debated. Normally translation cost per page is 50+ grivna or $6.25+. My interpreters agree that the master and doctorate materials are not a complete page and agreed to translate material for 25 grivna.

Anya, our new teacher who is responsible for materials will proof read all translated materials. She has a Master of Theology from America. She is a gifted teacher and author. We are blessed to have her in this position. She will meet with all the teachers, train them and observe their teaching methods and skills.

Inna, a Master student and works in a bank, will oversee the ministry account.
Valentina, also a Master student will be our secretary. She will take care of the office work. She will print materials, work with documents and filing. She will report directly to Alyona.

Alyona is our administrator. She will be in charge of everything, she needs our prayers. She is also the person in charge of Royal Rangers in Cherkasy region and is the Children’s minister in our church. She is very busy and we will be looking for someone to replace her, but for now; she has accepted the responsibility.

All of this is such a relief for me. I cannot express my gratitude for this help while I temporarily return to America. There is another administrator meeting August 12th. This will be an informational meeting. Discussion will cover the changes and who is responsible for what. This will provide confidence for the administrators that the ministry will continue in my absence.

I am truly excited about going home and yet I also dread it. It is such a privilege to be able to study the word all day long and research history for materials. I absolutely love my job here. Then the challenge of using Word for complicated charts! God is good all the time.

Please continue to pray for the ministry. I am working on a plan to present to ministries and raise funds for the Ukrainian colleges.

My dream is to have an office that is more than just education. I see a prayer center open twenty-hour hours a day for worship, dance and prayer. This can be a place where we can invite the students for seminars and conferences. My vision goes beyond a one room office.

God be with you always

Num 6:24-26 '"May the LORD bless you and take good care of you. (25) May the LORD smile on you and be gracious to you. (26) May the LORD look on you with favor and give you his peace."

Monday, June 20, 2011

June Update

Dear Family and Friends,

I hope and pray all is well and you are enjoying the beginning of summer. We have had very hot weather already and it can make traveling in vans and on the trains very uncomfortable, being they do not have air conditioning. The culture here believes that the wind blowing on your (from open windows or fans) will make you sick. Hmmmm . . . I wonder if it is true, what do you think?

It is June already and I am scheduled to fly home August 18th. My office gal found herself unexpectedly pregnant and turned in her resignation about 6 weeks ago! I am sad to see her go, we worked well together. So . . . I have another dilemma; who will be in charge when I leave for six months to a year? Last week I met with my pastor, his wife and several other leaders in our church to discuss the issues at hand. Hey guys, it is hard for me to ask for help!

All the administrators met on Saturday and I needed advice and help. I could not have done this meeting without help. Instead of me complaining or talking about all the issues, my leaders experienced them first hand. However they had solutions! My Pastor stepped up and became a shield for me, it was one of the most precious experiences that I have had here. My faith in Christianity has begun to be restored.

The meeting did not accomplish many details but provided an overview for the administrators. We were able to answer questions and provide contacts for the time that I am gone. I believe this was a relief for everyone. I am sure for them having me gone for a long period of time causes doubt about the ministry and whether it will continue.

After the meeting we enjoyed a great lunch and each other’s fellowship. My pastor now has an idea of what needs to be done and can advise me how to handle issues and people. As any group, we have our differences and I tried prayer when the issues were happening, and used Scripture to quell the squabbling amongst us, but to no avail.

However, Pastor addressed this issue quite well.
There are many changes happening here in the ministry. It is the end of the school year and we are ready to send our paperwork to the home office for our degrees. Hallelujah, the sad part is this is the first time we have had as few as sixty students graduating. Though, I praise God for this many.
Our vision is “to establish and build the body of Christ through education, training and practicum.” Even though we have reviewed the vision many times, not one administrator knew what it was! And it is on the first couple pages of our Administrator’s handbook!

Now that we have an idea of how to begin to motivate our administrators to desire growth in their colleges, we can begin to train them. Also, we will use several people to help with the office. We are praying that God will raise up the administrator for the job! Please pray with us regarding this situation.

I worry about those who have volunteered to help. They are the 10% of our church that does 90% of the work! I understand that they most likely will find the time to help, but time is precious and they need time in their personal devotions and prayer, with family and of course their first ministry.

We need a miracle and I am expecting one! Please pray and expect that God will quickly put the right person in place. Thank you.

Num 6:24-26 '"May the LORD bless you and take good care of you. (25) May the LORD smile on you and be gracious to you. (26) May the LORD look on you with favor and give you his peace."

God be with you always

Monday, April 25, 2011

It has been an Incredible Passover Week!

A week ago Saturday I was teaching the Master class in Dnepropetrovsk, our theme was the Book of Exodus We had a marvelous time and once again, I was able to learn something new and different perspectives. This class has truly been a blessing to me spiritually. I thank God for putting these students in my life.

Monday I spent Passover at the Cherkasy Synagogue. That is right, a Jewish Synagogue. I am impressed of their admiration and love for the Lord. They desire to have God’s will in their lives. The sad part is that they do not know the Messiah! However, Christians could learn to revere God from these wonderful and faithful Hebrew people.

Tuesday, I was invited to teach the Passover Seder in a church with several visiting pastors. Again, I was blessed to be used of God. The pastor of this church is one of the Dnepropetrovsk students. He got up and testified that this Seder was fruit of the college and the teachings. I thank God for the witness of the teachings God has given me. The Master and Doctorate classes have a Jewish theme or a Jewish perspective. Believe it or not, our Messiah is Jewish and he participated in the ‘Lord’s Feasts’.

God brought a new soul into the Kingdom at this Passover Seder!!! One cannot ask for more completion than this.

On Thursday I was invited to teach in Cherkasy at Truth Church. The title of the teaching is ‘The Intent of the Law’. What an interesting topic. I have one question for you, as Messianic believers why should we get upset when the word ‘law’ is mentioned? The Law exposes sin, as Believers we have repented of our sins, so what is the problem? Many of today’s Churches teach we are under grace and not law. But I see these churches using ‘grace’ as an excuse for their sin!

The INTENT of the LAW is to EXPOSE and DEFINE SIN!

Saturday we were in Nikolaev for another Passover Seder. I usually teach the Master class the Passover because they have already had the Bible basics. The students are normally unaware of the types of Jesus Christ in the Seder. I could teach for hours on this topic. If you have not attended a Christian Passover, I would suggest you research the Jewish Passover. I combine a traditional Jewish Seder with a Christian perspective.

For example, there are four cups of wine (juice) served during the Seder. We can find these cups in Exodus 6:6-7. The third cup is the cup of Redemption! This is the cup that Jesus used for Communion. The fourth cup is the cup of Acceptance (I will take you as my people) which is the cup that Jesus said he would not drink again until . . . His Second Coming! Do you see the prophecy? Hallelujah! I am so grateful the Lord is teaching me His Word and His ways.

This brings me home at 3 AM Sunday morning which is Resurrection Sunday! I am amazed at how the Lord takes care of every detail in my life. I praise Him and give Him thanks for being my Savior and my Passover Lamb.

I pray all of you had a wonderful Resurrection Sunday. May God the Father bless each of you in a mighty way.

Kathy

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Interesting trip

My first weekend back to traveling was the end of February. Julia and I traveled to Nikolaev. We taught nine hours Saturday and about the same on Sunday at two different colleges. Love of Christ College is the Master level and Fire of Revival College is beginning their first year.

We taught Mathew chapters one through four at the Master level. I love teaching how Jesus raised the standard of law for us today. Many times we are told we are no longer under law but under grace. However, without the law we cannot recognize our sin. Once we recognize our sin, then grace saves us from our destiny of eternal death.

We taught Old Testament Studies, the Pentateuch, another of my favorites. I enjoy the Old Testament and the types of Jesus Christ that are hidden in various items, such as the Mosaic Tabernacle. I love presenting the High Priest’s heart is the Altar of Incense. If you overlay a priest on the Tabernacle, you will find this relationship! Amazing! God created us to worship and praise Him. He constructed the Bible to prove all the details He has laid out for us, to prove that only a Higher Power or someone out of our time domain could have written the Bible.

For me, I love to find the hidden details that prove only God the Father could have initiated the writing of the Bible. If you have not heard the following statement before, I recommend you contemplate it and present yourselves like the Bereans who readily heard Paul – BUT – searched the scriptures, proving he was teaching Truth!

‘The New Testament is hidden in the Old; and the Old Testament is revealed in the New.’ Augustus

Julia and I had an excellent weekend in Nikolaev. We had great berths on the train there. There was great class participation, prayer and worship. Then we had our trip home . . .

I was given three choices of which the first two were not my favorite mode of traveling. I have traveled many times by bus and it is not unpleasant. I chose to return home during the day by bus. What can I say???

I had to admit I made an error this time and both Julia and I paid dearly for my decision. It was a small van, maybe for 20 people. We did not have heat the entire eight hours, and let me tell you when it is zero outside or less; it does make for a very cold vehicle! Ok, that alone was rough . . . now for the rest of the story.

The vehicle had several issues, mechanical and propane issues. Yes, some vehicles here use propane. We were an hour out of Nikolaev and the driver decided to return. We probably were going about forty miles per hour, if that fast! We stopped at one station and for some reason the driver decided to visit another propane station. When we arrived, we were asked to depart the vehicle and wait. Oh dear! I was so cold I did not think I could move or walk.

To make things even more uncomfortable, the station was on top of a hill and there were no wind breaks. I mention this because of course along with the cold it was windy! Get the picture? Let me tell you, both of us were so cold. Well, we survived and I was so grateful to get home to a warm bath. I will reconsider taking that type of bus again! At least a platzcart is warm! (A platzcart is a train wagon with about 55 people and the beds are open, no doors at all and we are stacked two beds high.)

Praise God, I am healthy and can do His will even with a few setbacks. We ask you pray for us. We are making major decisions personally and for the ministry. We want to be in the Lord’s perfect will. God bless you and may His face shine upon you in love and goodness.


Thank you for your prayers and support.
May God shine His face upon you today
Kathy

Friday, February 18, 2011

Now What? A simple Update

I spent January in Minnesota watching my grandchildren. I thoroughly enjoyed my visit with my family. I was able to relieve my mother from her duties allowing her to take a vacation. My first ten days in America I spent sleeping, I was very ill. Then the three grandchildren I was watching had the flu. Towards the end of my trip, I became sick again and ended up in bed for two weeks when I arrived in Ukraine. This is my third week and the doctor professed my healing! I will begin normal duties in about five days, hallelujah!

My recovery from pneumonia has been a long hard journey. The doctor visits revealed extremely high blood pressure and a tendency for diabetes (borderline). They prescribed medications for the blood pressure and modified diet for the diabetes.

I asked several intercessors to pray for my heart and that it would return to normal size. I have a praise report! The heart is back to normal and though my blood pressure is still high, it is much lower than first discovered! It is now 140 or 80. This is still not great, but considering it was 180 over 100! I get the feeling the enemy was trying to take me out permanently.

My illness has affected the ministry. Every meeting was cancelled and is through Monday. I will have to work overtime to catch up and be creative to make up the time. I also postponed the administrators meeting until March 18th. We will have much to discuss regarding the ministry and what will happen when I take a sabbatical.

Yes, I will take a sabbatical for about a year. I need to be refreshed and renewed. I miss fellowship without using an interpreter! I understand enough Russian to get me into trouble but not enough for great conversation!

This illness has provoked me to think about my life both physically and spiritually. I need to be disciplined in all areas of my health, which I have been unfaithful doing. However, I also need to be even more disciplined in my spiritual life.

Strong spiritual lives require, Bible reading, prayer, teaching and fellowship. How faithful have I been? What areas can I improve? This is a new year will I please God with my lifestyle as it is?

There are many things to ponder in being healthy physically and spiritually. I hope and pray you are encouraged to contemplate your personal walk with the Lord.

I have received several requests for contact information of where to send offerings. If you need a tax exempt receipt, please send all offerings to World Vineyard Ministries (WVM). The address is: PO Box 26, Champlin, MN 55316. Also, please email me at: danceforhim@gmail.com so that I can keep acurate tax records. Thank you for your thoughtfulness and giving.

Thank you for your prayers and support.
May God shine His face upon you today
Kathy