Prayer
Letter
August 25,
2012
Greetings,
We have
spent a busy summer back in Romania after our short furlough to the USA for
Bradley’s high school graduation. Bradley returned to Romania and will stay
with us in Cluj-Napoca for at least one year.
Each summer
we have a three week long summer school at our church that meets four hours a
day; the name of the school is Bezaleel, after the chief artisan of Tabernacle.
This year we taught them about food as they cooked for one week; and about
creation for a couple of weeks as they did various fun experiments and learned
about the world. Many of the 80 plus children that attended, between the ages
of 7 and 15, had no concept of the Gospel and so we were very careful in
teaching them. The first week I explained the Gospel using John 3:16, but after
5 sermons on salvation there was not one response. But we were undaunted and
continued with a variation on that theme for the next two weeks. The last two
weeks there were over 20 professions of faith. Many of them have come to Sunday
school regularly.
I took 18
people from my young adult’s Sunday school class on a one week “camp.” We did
not really camp since we spent the week in Budapest, Hungary and Vienna,
Austria. We visited the sites in both cities and spent a wonderful week
together in Christian fellowship. Each day we studied the Bible together and
basically just enjoyed the fellowship.
I have
continued to witness to many people this summer. Each week I have soul winning
meetings with men and women from Reformers Unanimous and with their families
and friends. The last man I led to the Lord and baptized is named, Mircea. He
heard about us after he saw the special program about us on TV at Easter. He
rode by our church on his bike but did not know much about the Baptists and so
stayed outside. He finally came in and inquired about Raul Giura, the man who
was the topic of the TV special. I led Mircea to the Lord on a Thursday evening
and then explained baptism to him. He had never seen a baptism by immersion in his
whole life. Yet, he came to church, ready to obey the Bible. As is the custom
with many people in Romania, even though they do not agree, they will come and
support the person being baptized. However, Mircea came alone to be baptized,
completely unsupported by his wife and family, yet he was baptized. So far, he
is faithful to church and the Reformer’s Unanimous program. God is putting
Mircea’s life back together and he is a new creation, old things are passed
away.
I also spoke
to a former ballerina at the Hungarian ballet company in Cluj. She started
coming to church in June. She is a 25 year old woman who made some bad
decisions in her life and ended up dancing in clubs. After one of those times
she was drugged and fell off the 3rd story balcony onto the cement
sidewalk. She was in a coma for 2 weeks and in the hospital for 2 months. She
is a completely different person now…because she is born again and we baptized
her several weeks ago. The family situation is the same with her, her father
vociferously opposed her coming to our church and especially her baptism. But,
Andreea was baptized, and is now absorbing the Bible like a sponge.
I wish I had
good news to report on our RU men’s recovery home. But we have been stonewalled
by the city planning commission. We have done everything they have asked, yet
they have not granted us the papers to build. Because of this I have had to
constantly postpone the construction project. We still believe we are supposed
to build this in order to help more people overcome their addictions and become
productive members of a local, New Testament church…so we wait and pray. Right
now we are simply waiting, according to their instructions.
May the Lord
bless you. Thank you for your prayers and financial support. The ministry is
moving forward.
Sincerely,
Brian J.
Nibbe Sr.
