Missing Pieces – July 2017 Update

It has been exactly two years since Romania appeared on our radar screen, and I write this update from Timisoara, Romania where we are on a scouting trip this week for a new church plant to reach students on the university campus. The revolution that freed Romania from communist rule in 1989 began here, and after 28 years of change, the next generation is finally getting on its feet.

However, something remains missing as young people grope for identity and purpose, and this statue in the center of Timisoara is an excellent prophetic picture of this generation. Enter the picture, Pastor Remus Groze, and his wife Andreea. Remus connected with our Every Nation churches in South Africa last year while studying for his Ph.D., and my friends there referred him to us. For the past six months, we have been in dialogue with Remus about starting a campus ministry here to reach the over 30,000 university students, and this trip is the first of many to see that come to pass.

To better understand why reaching the next generation is even possible I must go back in history to a more difficult time, to a generation of tenacious faith in the face of severe persecution. While preaching in the church where Remus is a pastor, I met Steven and his family. This amazing man was responsible for smuggling in Bibles during the most difficult period in Communist Romania, and it was this kind of faith among many heroes that sustained a Romanian testimony that now allows us to reach the next generation. In fact, a book about smuggling Bibles into the Soviet Union first inspired me to reach this part of the world.

We are wrapping up two months of extensive ministry travel that includes Albania, Ukraine, and Romania. A week from now we will travel to the US to see our daughters and extended family, and while there we will complete our summer seminary studies and reboot for a return to Europe in September. One of our goals is to enlist more financial partners to not only help us continue this important work, but to also increase our mobility so that we can better utilize the many open doors before us. Many of you already stand with us, but we ask all of you to consider a special financial gift that will help us to reach our goals.

Contact

cell: 919-348-3884
mike.watkins@everynation.org

Prayer Requests

1. New financial partners for our expanded ministry, and special gifts to help us purchase a vehicle.
2. Continued growth of new projects in Albania and Romania
3. A safe and fruitful trip to the US
4. Peace for Ukraine