April 2008

Dear Friends of the Nehemiah Mission:

Greetings in the name of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!

First and foremost we thank the Lord Jesus Christ for each of you and the commitment you have made and kept throughout the years to support the activities of the Nehemiah Mission in the Ukraine.

I visited the Ukraine in mid-April and I am happy to convey to you impressions, news, progress, challenges, and needs.

Ruthenia/Transcarpathia

This year I visited the extreme western part of the Ukraine, known historically as Ruthenia, and currently as Transcarpathia (Zakarpatska in Ukrainian). It stretches between Romania, Hungary, Slovakia, and Poland, and it covers roughly the north-western arch of the Carpathian Mountains. It is the Ukraine’s only mountainous region, with peaks frequently exceeding 6,000g 6,000
Romanian: Biblia Cornilescu (1921; 2002) - RCB
Štetje svetopisemskih vrstic se za?ne z ¹! Vrstica ⁰ ne obstaja!

WP-Bible plugin feet. To this day Ruthenia has remained largely rural and extremely picturesque. In the Middle Ages Ruthenia periodically changed hands between Poland, Hungary, and the Principality of Transylvania. From 1918 to 1940 it belonged to Czechoslovakia, from 1940 to 1990 to the Soviet Union, and to the Ukraine ever since. In the Middle Ages it was largely populated by Romanian shepherds and farmers and by Hungarian peasants. Over 100 Romanian villages were listed in the ancient chronicles as having existed in Ruthenia. To this day much of the Ruthenian toponimy has maintained its Romanian origins, but the number of Romanians living in Ruthenia has dwindled to around 40,000. Today there is a sizeable Romanian minority in about 17 to 20 villages only.

I first visited Ruthenia in April 2006. By that time the Nehemiah Mission had already planted a Baptist church in one of the Romanian villages, in Dibrovo (known as Apsha de Jos before 1940) in November 2004. Previously there was no evangelical believer in that village. Currently, the village’s Baptist church has 5 members and it plans to baptize 4 persons in 2008.

In 2006 the Nehemiah Mission also purchased land to plant another church in the nearby village of Biserica Alba (White Church). At that time there was only one Baptist family in that village. In 2006 when I first visited it I and one of our missionaries preached the Gospel to a group of villagers and 2 of them accepted the Lord. Construction work began on the sanctuary in 2007 and the church is scheduled to be inaugurated on June 8, 2008ne 8, 2008
Romanian: Biblia Cornilescu (1921; 2002) - RCB
 

WP-Bible plugin. We are grateful to God for
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this wonderful achievement. While visiting this village this year I became acquainted with many families who expressed their joy that an evangelical church will be opened in their village so that they and their children can attend. We pray for an abundant harvest.

As of now, there are 3 Romanian Baptist churches in the whole of Ruthenia.

In 2006 while in Ruthenia I heard rumors that close to Slovakia there are other Romanian villages. So, this year I and three other brethren went on a journey to find them and determine whether we can open another front for the Gospel there. To our pleasant surprise we found 7 Ukrainian villages with a sizable Romanian minority: Dolha (500 Romanians), Visnitsa (300 Romanians), Simeria (50 Romanians), Poroscovo (1,460 Romanians), Kamenetz (Piatra, 50 Romanians), Obava (400 Romanians), and Remeti (50 Romanians). None of these villages had any evangelical churches or believers. The Romanians who live in these villages are segregated from the Ukrainians. Everywhere there seemed to be severe antagonism between them and they seem to despise one another. The Ukrainians refer to the Romanians pejoratively as “Volohi,” not Romanians. Voloh was the name by which Romanians were known in the Middle Ages, meaning a person of Latin origin.

By far, the poorest of all Romanians are those who live in Poroskovo. They live on the outskirts of the village, totally separated and isolated from the Ukrainians. We met with the Ukrainian mayor of the village and requested permission to built a church inside the village. He flat out denied our request stating that he would not allow a Romanian church inside the village. After much negotiating he agreed to donate, free of charge, to the Nehemiah Mission a hectare (2 and ½ acres) of raw land on the outskirts of the village to build a Christian Center for the Volohi. Upon hearing this we rejoiced greatly seeing God’s hand at work and how He turned the mayor’s agenda into His agenda…

The Romanians of Poroskovo are very backward, lack education, hygiene, most of them cannot read or write, their vocabulary is very limited and rudimentary. They live off the land, or make a living hauling timber in their wagons. Their homes are very small and their families extremely large. Each household I visited had at least 4 children, and the largest household had 13 children. I am not aware of any other Romanian settlement anywhere in the world with such an extremely high birth rate. In 10 years the Romanians of Poroskovo will double in size. They all live in one-room log cabins and have no brick homes. They live in abject poverty. There is no running water. They are constantly hungry. About 750 of the 1,460he 1,460
Romanian: Biblia Cornilescu (1921; 2002) - RCB
 

WP-Bible plugin Romanians of Poroskovo are children. Just about every other adult woman looked pregnant. Children hardly have anything to eat. I asked them if they had eaten anything that day and they all said no. Their dwellings are so crowded, that, for safety reasons, the newly born are kept in improvised hammocks hanging from the ceiling. Most dwellings have no tables, plates, or silverware. Stoves are primitive and consist of baked bricks covered by a burner. My heart was moved and we were all on the verge of tears. Never had I seen more poverty among Romanians anywhere in the world. We gave away Romanian Bibles written in the Russian script, went from house to house and prayed with people and over the sick. In several homes we found people on their death bed, or children just a few days old… Their clothes were old, raggedy, and smelly. Many children had no shoes and were
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simply walking around the muddy roads bare footed. A Ukrainian woman on the village council took us to the property which the mayor promised to give us to build a Christian center. There we prayed and interceded for Poroskovo and its people.

From Poroskovo we drove on to Obava. Here, too, the Romanians live on the outskirts of the village. This being a mountainous region, the village stretches along a valley. The Ukrainians inhabit the valley and the Romanians live up the mountain slopes, all in the same neighborhood. When we revealed out Romanian identity they all cheered and huge crowds of people surrounded us. They blocked the road so that no traffic could proceed in either direction. The Romanians of Obava are also poor. There is no church in their village. Rather, in the center of their part of town they erected a cross where they were burning candles and laying fresh flowers. We were told the village has no evangelicals. However, God opened a door for us and we found a house for sale right across the street from the improvised cross. We made an agreement with the owner to buy it for $6,000.00. We hope to finalize the transaction by the end of May and start Bible study meetings by the summer. In addition, we hope to post a permanent missionary in this village that will also teach children to read and write Romanian, the Bible and the story of salvation.

Odessa

I also spent a lot of time with the Nehemiah Board reviewing the progress made in 2007, and setting goals for the near future. In January 2008 the Mission planted a new church in Hlyboka, in the Odessa region of the Ukraine. Until then there was no evangelical church in that village. The church was started with one person and now there are 8 adults in attendance each Sunday. One person has committed to follow Christ in baptism in the summer. It will be the first baptism in the history of this village. Praise God for this accomplishment as well. We have one missionary working in this village. The sanctuary is not yet complete, but we hope to have it finished by the end of May. We still need about $7,300.00 to complete the sanctuary. The villagers have also asked us to spread gravel on the stretch of the road which connects the main road to the church to facilitate their walk to the church. Apparently the road is bad. They are also eager for us to complete the church so that they could bring their children to church. We hope to complete the children’s classroom soon.

Overall we are beginning to see real and tangible progress in all congregations which the Nehemiah Mission has planted or in which it is involved. I was informed that the number of Baptists among the Romanians of the Ukraine is growing steadily from year to year, at a pace higher than the rate among the other ethnic groups. Good organization on our part, perseverance, and the Lord’s blessings are responsible for this success. For this we give Him the Glory and also thank you for having faithfully helped us along the way.

Missionary School

One of the most immediate needs of the Nehemiah Mission is trained missionaries. We are experiencing difficulties finding and retaining missionaries for different reasons. Therefore, the Nehemiah Board has decided to run a Missionary School in Czernowitz from September
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2008 to June 2009. We anticipate the school will have 10 students and will cost about $15,000.00. At the end of the school year we intend to send the missionaries to the congregations we have planted thus far.

Difficulties

As you can see, we are very busy. However, we encounter obstacles, too, some of which are temporary and some more durable. The number of projects in which we seek to become involved increases by the month, as the Lord opens up new opportunities to impart the Gospel. At the same time, however, the available personnel remains limited. Prices for the items we need to promote the projects of the Mission have increased significantly in the last two (2) years and continue to increase, such as construction materials, price of labor, gasoline, paper for our publications, utility bills, permits of various sorts, Bibles, hymnals, tuition for the poor students we sponsor to attend college, the food items we purchase for the poor families, etc.

Coupled with higher prices, the dollar has decreased in value significantly in the last 12 months, by nearly 10%.

Occasionally, we also face opposition from civil authorities. In one village the authorities continue to deny the Mission the permit to build a church, even though the application has been pending for over two (2) years. This will make the construction project much more expensive once the permit is issued.

Opportunities

True is the Lord’s word that those who are faithful in small things will be given charge over greater things. Almost on a monthly basis a new opportunity to promote the Gospel emerges. Some of our missionaries are invited to speak in Orthodox churches and monasteries, some Jehovah’s Witnesses’ congregations are becoming open to our message and are inviting our missionaries to speak, we have initiated children’s ministries where children of the unchurched are taught the Bible, shown Christian CDs, are taught Christian songs, attend Christian sports events, and then bring their parents to church. In one village a family came to the Lord through their children in this fashion. In certain parts of the Ukraine nonbelievers invite our Mission to plant churches in their villages. We are grateful to God for all these opportunities. We are pleased to report that all churches in which the Nehemiah Mission is involved or which the Mission has planted have had regular baptisms at least annually or even more frequently.

Objectives and Needs

In keeping with new opportunities our needs have also multiplied. Here are some of them.
* Currently the Mission has 11 missionaries. Each missionary is paid a salary of $200.00/month. We need to increase the salary to $300.00/month to keep up with the cost of
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living in the Ukraine and the declining dollar. In 2008 we have 2 sponsors less for the missionaries’ salaries than in 2007. As of right now the missionaries’ salaries are in the red by $2,600.00. We have been able to pay their salaries through August 2008 and trust the Lord for the rest.

* Each missionary is allocated $50.00/month for gasoline. This, too, has become a challenge lately, given the increase in the price of gasoline. In one year the price of gasoline has increased by 25% and continues to climb. Annually, the Mission allocates $7,200.00 for gasoline. For lack of funds we have not been able to allocate any funds for gasoline in 2008.

* The property we intend to purchase in Obava to plant a church will cost $6,000, plus closing costs.
* The Missionary Bible School will cost $15,000.00.

* Finishing the church building in Hlyboka (Odessa) will cost an additional $7,300.00.

* The scholarships and books for the four students the Mission is putting through college cost $5,000.00/year.

* The Mission needs a minivan. We have estimated $15,000.00 for this purpose.

* The Messenger is the Mission’s publication. It enjoys a high demand and it is printed in 1,000 copies. In recent years we have imposed a symbolic fee for each copy but the Mission still expends about $750.00/issue.

* We have tentatively decided to ship a container of clothes and food for the Romanians of Ruthenia from Houston to the Ukraine. We likely will write to you again about this matter once we obtain the necessary contacts and information, hoping that you will be able to donate clothes, hygiene products, and nonperishable food items.

Integrity

This year, as in all previous years, I have thoroughly reviewed the finances of the Mission. We compile financial reports every three months, and by the end of January of each year we compile an annual report. Financial scrutiny and accountability are essential. All funds received are used exclusively for the purposes for which they are donated. I never detected any financial impropriety within the Mission and I can certify, based on personal knowledge and my own integrity, that all funds are being used responsibly. 100% of all funds received reach the Ukraine and 99% of them are actually used for the Mission’s projects. Ukrainian banks retain a transfer fee of 1%.

Our missionaries work hard. Each month they write reports about their activities and
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answer specific, standard questions which we ask. Every 3 months the reports are sent to me in the United States. I read them closely. Also, once a month we hold a meeting with all of our missionaries. The meetings are designed to encourage, motivate and reinvigorate the missionaries spiritually, and to determine their needs and challenges.

Greetings

We continue to stand in the gap for those to whom the Lord sent us. We hope and pray for your continued support and involvement. I personally feel humbled as I write these lines. I feel overwhelmed by the support and confidence you have given and shown us in the past and express my deep gratitude for everything you have done for us thus far. I pray for the Lord to continue to bless all of you and your families and to enable you to continue to invest in promoting His Kingdom. We greet all of you with 2 Corinthians 13:142 Corinthians 13:14
Romanian: Biblia Cornilescu (1921; 2002) - RCB
14 Harul Domnului Isus Hristos, ?i dragostea lui Dumnezeu, ?i împ?rt??irea Sfântului Duh, s? fie cu voi cu to?i! Amin.  

WP-Bible plugin. As before, contributions to the Nehemiah Mission may be made by check payable to “Romanian Baptist Church”, noting in the memo section “Nehemiah Mission.” The checks should be sent to me at the address in the letterhead.

In Christ’s love

Peter Costea

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