Elder
Curtis Pugh
Missionary
to Romania
sent
by the
Berea
Baptist Church
P.O.
Box 39
Mantachie,
Mississippi 38855
(601)
282-7794
PRAYER LETTER FOR
JULY, 2003
Monday
August 11, 2003
Dear
Pastors and Churches,
"...
the
joy of the LORD is your strength." (Nehemiah 8:10)
In time of trouble, discouragement, failure and just plain old everyday
"plodding" the joy of the LORD enables us to go on! May that joy which
is a part of the fruit of the Spirit (and differs from happiness) fill
each of us making us strong in the Lord.
Since our last report we have not had any 'special visitors to the mission
services here and so our attendance has been down. But the "regulars" show
their interest in the Word in spite of opposition from family members and
acquaintances. We continue to have contact with others; laboring with them
in the truth. Two that attended regularly have had marital problems and
missed some services, but they have attended again the last two Lord's
Days. One young lady, a university student, whom we have been trying to
help, received with thanks several of our "forbidden books" - her "Baptist"
pastor has publicly forbidden all of our literature and stated that the
teaching of salvation by sovereign grace is "dangerous" and that we in
the mission are "not Baptists" because of it. This is just some of the
opposition we face as we stand for Bible truth in Bocsa.
Lord willing, next Monday (18th) Janet will fly from Budapest, Hungary
to Chicago (via Munich) to be with Anna for the birth of her third child.
In familiar surroundings Janet does very well in spite of her handicaps
and can be a help to Anna in caring for the other two girls at this time.
However, in order to make this trip Janet must have assistance in the form
of airline personnel and a wheelchair, as she cannot negotiate the terminals
alone. She is quite concerned about this trip, so we ask for your prayers
especially for her. Janet hopes to be in the States for about 3 months
and to visit her father and my mother also.
As in most of Europe, so also here in Romania we have been having record
breaking heat. Temperatures around 100 F -are frequent in our area
of late - and air conditioners are not to be found except in the cities
and then usually only in the homes of the well to do. Those Romanians who
live in small apartments in huge communist era apartment blocks spend much
time out-of-doors as a rule (to escape the cramped conditions), but are
now out-of-doors most of the day and long into the night until things begin
to cool somewhat. Some of our friends have told us that inside their apartments
the temperature is often above 100 F before mid-day and long into the night.
God has increased the Romanian literature ministry of Berea Baptist Church
in these last several months. As the work has grown, we have increased
our record keeping. In mid December of last year I initiated the use of
a standard "literature distribution report" form that we fill out for each
request. As there are now 25 printed titles that we produce ourselves and
5 that we have hired out (besides the CDs we produce and those books we
purchase or otherwise obtain) we needed a better system and one that would
help us with our inventory. We now have in place a computer program which
we use to keep track of who receives the materials, how much is distributed,
where the material goes, what titles are requested, and those who request
our materials more than once, etc. Thus we have a "running inventory" that
enables us to know how many pieces of each title we have in stock and when
we need to reprint. By the grace of God, since December 12, last year (c.
8 months) to today's date we have distributed a total of 9,586 pieces of
literature. (This figure does not include the materials we took to Siberia
last spring nor does it include the Bibles we have distributed.) Of this
9,586 total, 9,337 pieces are books, brochures and tracts that we have
translated ourselves. A total of 25 out of the 30 titles that make up these
9,337 pieces we have not only translated, but have also printed, collated,
folded & stapled, trimmed and packaged ourselves. In addition we now
have produced a "catalog" - a brochure listing our titles - in Romanian,
of course. We have also distributed more than 300 CDs since last December.
As I write two or three literature requests are being filled and new titles
are being completed. Last Thursday we received a request for 40 sets of
CDs (total 80 CDs). When "burned" these will go to pastors and preachers
in the western part of Romania near the Hungarian border.
Brothers and Sisters in Christ, we could not do any of these things apart
from your help for God has chosen to use means in the work of the kingdom.
Your financial gifts and earnest prayers are vital to this work! If there
is to be a doctrinal revival and sound Churches established among Romanians
we believe it will come through the Holy Spirit using the truth and that
truth must be taught. With your help we are working daily - spreading the
truths of free grace in salvation and scriptural churches as the only acceptable
place of worship and service. Thank you for your financial help and more
importantly for your prayers on behalf of this missionary effort! Please
pray for the Pughs and the Romanians whom we seek to evangelize!
Pray for the Pughs!
In the cause with you,
Curtis and Janet Pugh
curtis@xnet.ro
CURTIS PUGH
str. Izvor nr. 3
Bossca 1, jud. Caras-Severin
1725 Romania
Preaching Baptist
Baptism, the Blood, the Book, and the Blessed Hope
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