Odessa Mission
September 2003 Newsletter
Warm September greetings to all of our friends out there!
Many of you know that Husen Amonov, our friend from Crimea, returned to the
United States recently because of some fainting spells he's been having.
Charles and Penny Faust, who did all of the legwork for his first visit to
America, were also successful this time in not only obtaining all the necessary
paperwork for Husen and his interpreter Dima, but also in leading the
fund-raising effort in order to cover his treatment in a Louisville hospital.
They also had a doctor from Southeast Christian Church involved, completely
surrounding Husen with God's presence from every angle. Thankfully, no
potential physical cause of the spells was discovered. The physicians in
Louisville feel that anxiety is the primary factor creating these episodes.
So, we praise God for the good news and ask for your continued prayers for
Husen and his family as he continues to serve our Lord. And, we also
commend Charles and Penny, two of our faithful supporters, for their
ongoing commitment to Jesus Christ and His ministry throughout the world.
We actually got a chance to see Husen recently. We traveled to Crimea, spent
some time with him, and found him in great spirits. We didn't get a chance to
see Alyosha, because he was visiting family in another part of the Ukraine.
We looked into ways we could help him and use the funds so lovingly donated
specifically for his care, and we will keep you informed on what we decide.
We also visited the Crimean orphanage kids from our VBS video, and they
requested some shoes. Thankfully, a Christian friend named Yura, who
owns several thrift stores in Crimea, offered to help us with the project.
First, we visited the orphanage to check the shoe-size of each of the
forty-seven kids living there. Then we went to Yura's stores and found
quality shoes that matched what we were looking for (mostly fall and
winter shoes). Incredibly, with the 50% discount that Yura gave us,
along with an additional free 20 extra pairs of shoes, we were able
to provide two pairs of shoes for almost all of the children. And it
was all done in the Name of Jesus for under $100. You can just
imagine how elated the kids were as they selected their shoes, not
only knowing that the winter will be a little warmer this year, but
also sensing God's imminent presence in each of their lives. Many
of the kids already believe in Christ because of missionary efforts
in Crimea, but welcome reminders never hurt.
"What about our kids at the cancer ward," you ask? Well, there's progress
there too. In Ukraine, finding decent hospital facilities is a challenge.
Sometimes even the sanitary conditions tend to be an issue. In fact, our
hospital doesn't even have screens on the windows, let alone central air.
And we noticed that mosquitoes were becoming a serious problem for the
children. So we decided to buy screen material and, with the help of one
of the fathers in the unit, we attached netting to most of the windows in
the oncology wing. We were also able to gather up a bunch of the kids
and go to a Christian festival in the city. There was a children's
program with games and songs and goodies, among other things. It was
a nice break for the kids to get away from the hospital for a few hours.
It was also encouraging to see that many of the kids were physically
up to going, although our friend Ira was not. Sadly, her cancer
condition has considerably declined since last month, but we're
still confident that God will work a miracle in answer to all of our prayers.
Ira, who is 13 years old, has been abandoned by her parents, and because
some of her friends have been sent home temporarily, she's alone in her
room at this time. So, we decided to purchase a 14-inch television and
VCR for her to use. Several of the kids visit with her often and watch
the Christian videos that we provide. Some videos that we've already
shown are: "The Super Book Series", "You Are Special" (cartoon based on
the children’s book by Max Lucado), and "Barabbas" (a CBN production).
Thus, coupled with the Christian literature circulating throughout the
ward, along with our testimonies, Jesus' love is establishing for itself a
firm foundation amongst the hurting. Although Jesus isn't answering all
of their questions, He is reminding them that He's still here. Furthermore,
in August we not only had the chance to visit with one of the kids from the
hospital (Veta) in her own home, which is a first for us, but we also invited
several kids from the ward into our home for the first time. In fact, we had
at least three separate groups over during the month of August, and several
of the kids are actually from Odessa: Veta, Andre, and Sergei.
Finally, friends, I (John) have decided to write a small book chronicling my previous
adventures in the Ukraine and the lessons God has taught me here. It's currently
entitled: A Dumb American in a Strange Country. We're hoping that it will be a useful
evangelistic tool for any interested newcomers to our worship service. It's bound to
have lots of funnies and some serious thoughts for consideration too.
We'll keep you informed.
We love you and praise God for all you do in Christ's Name!
John and Ira Murphy - The Odessa Mission