My trip to US: On Thanksgiving I finished my travels in the States and returned to Winston Salem, after covering 9,500 miles and being with 40 churches in 12 different states in 3 months. The next day I flew out of US and arrived safely home on Saturday, Nov. 26^th. I am thankful for the opportunity I had to make this trip and I would like to give special thanks to Grace Baptist Church in Stanleyville, NC who invited me there and covered the greatest part of my expenses. It is just hard to describe in words the joy and encouragement I received by being amongst the Lord’s churches.

    Mission work: I am back home now and glad to be with the church again. Many have called me since I came, wanting to know about the churches I visited, what they believe and how they live. We hope to have a special service soon, in which I will tell about my experience among the churches I visited. Brother Zack, about whom I made mention that I believe the Lord is calling him to preach, preached his first sermon before the church this past month. Brother Peter, from Austria, asked us to visit them, together with Brothers Aurel Munteanu from Filiasi and George from Rosiori.

    Literature work: We continue to have new requests for literature. One was from a man in Bucharest, who found a piece of our literature in the trash. He contacted us and wanted to read more. We sent him three packages of literature already and he is currently studying these materials and staying in touch with us by phone.

    Building improvements: The roof work is done, praise the Lord. We have a new roof over the print shop, the storage room and the service restroom. We also replaced all the old wooden windows and doors with new ones, which will help lower the heat bills this winter. Photo is of new roof over part of building.

     Getting acquainted with Romania: On December 1^st, Romanians celebrate the national day (the equivalent of 4^th of July in the States). On this day in 1918, the people of Transylvania voted to be annexed to the Kingdom of Romania. Their resolution included total freedom for all ethnic groups, complete religious freedom for everybody, uncensored freedom of the press and other such articles. This event was preceded by similar votes in other neighboring regions in which Romanians were the majority ethnic group. It is one of the highlights of Romanian history. The celebration has a strong military tint to it, being marked by army parades and festivities. All this, of course, occurred before the Communist Party took over backed by the Russian Army at the close of WW II.
    Thank you for your prayers, your love and concern, and your faithful financial support!
    Brother Raul

     Dear Ones,
    Greetings from Poteau, Oklahoma!  I, too, like Raul want to thank you for all that you have done for the work in Romania and for the effort here in Poteau.  May God bless you all and enable you to continue to stand with us!

Poteau News:  We have thought it wise to make a change in how we report the income and expenditures of funds sent for the Oklahoma work and so from now on will be reporting according to the dates on the bank statements.  There will be a sort of “lag” but this is the best thing, we think, that we can do in reporting accurately and harmoniously.

I believe the Lord laid it on my heart to order 25 of the Berea Baptist Hymnals and have done so.  This expense should show on next month’s report due to the change in reporting.  I have placed two articles with the local papers to be printed later this month.  I ask for prayer for Larry and Phyllis.  Larry visited with me for more than 8 hours yesterday!  God has opened their eyes to free-grace and they are praying about joining with me in Sunday meetings here in Poteau.  Both have health problems.  He is about 60 years old.  They have been attending a non-absoluter “Primitive Baptist Church” here and are grieved because of the Arminianism preached and believed there.  (The pastor there recently said that he is not sure that God knows what He (God) is going to do tomorrow!  This church does not believe God is in control!)  I have also compiled a selection of Scriptures to be printed as a booklet.  I hope these might be used of the Lord in showing some folk what the Bible really says about God, Christ, man and God’s salvation of sinners. I hope to have this printed soon and begin distribution immediately after I receive them from the printer.  I continue placing copies of the Berea Baptist Banner in the Tribal clinic and Tribal pharmacy each month.  I have been given permission to do this by the clinic administrator.    

Literature: Praise the Lord with us that the Churches have given enough to purchase the new digital duplicator (Risograph)!  It has been ordered and should be delivered and set up within 10 days or so as it has to come from Germany.  Any surplus money from this fund (I think there will be a little) we are putting into a binding- machine fund.  We have a folder-stapler but for booklets of all sizes it would be better to use a glue-type binding machine.  We have been given a price of $6,000 for such a machine.  With such a machine we can produce better-looking and more importantly, longer-lasting booklets.  Please pray with us about this!  If the Lord leads you to help with this, mark your special checks as being for the binding machine, please.  This will help our Church in bookkeeping.

Health issues:  I am scheduled for a colonoscopy to remove some tissue that the doctor said might turn into cancer.  I do not have cancer now!  I am waiting on scheduling to have all my teeth removed in hospital.

I am out of space – again!  Thank you all for your participation in our mission works by prayer and giving!  Your cards, emails, letters and phone calls are all appreciated!    

    In the cause of God and truth,
    Curtis Pugh   
    curtis@abaptistvoice.com