P.M. WITH JESUS...

PRAYER WHEN YOU CAN'T PRAY. Comes to all of us... a time when we know we need to speak to God and the words are not coming out. Then, perhaps, He is asking us for a silent trust... wordless waiting... silence that is patient... intention that reaches up to God. I remember my precious mom when she was fighting this cancer... when I prayed for her, I would cup my hands together and visualize that I am putting her and all her needs in the wounded hands of Christ. Sometimes, when I pray for people I say: Lord, You know him/her better than I do... I entrust him/her to You... please design a special, unique grace for him/her today... Love that is deep often does not find words to express it... and that's all right!

Remodeling the Children's Center

For the last six months we have been remodeling the Light of Hope Children’s center. It had been a long time coming. The walls were starting to fall apart and the kitchen was not adequate. When we started the project we did not expect it to take so long, but it was hard to find reliable people to do the work, especially with our budget. We finally decided we will have to do it ourselves. We all helped when we could and how we could. Nate helped to do drywall and paint, as well as helping with the ceiling. Valetine, the guy from the church Abner is equipping to become a missionary to serve drug and alcohol addicts has done most of the work. He, with the help of Abner and Nate at times, did the ceiling, the plywood on the walls, the door trim, and so on. Olga and I have decided to bless Valentine with finances to help his family in this economy.

Dearest partners and friends, if it were not for you and your obedience to Christ we would not be able to finish the project. With the money you gave us we were able to buy construction materials, remodel the shelter, order and ship our new kitchen cabinets, and give a financial blessing to Valentine and his family. Thank you so very much for your giving hearts!

Soon Andrey will be putting kitchen cabinets together and installing them.

Unfortunately we have not been able to receive kids during this time. However we soon will be finished and be opening the doors to the kids in the area again. We used time to pray and reflect on how God wants us to move forward in our ministry at the center. And after much prayer and thought we have decided to restructure the entire ministry. We will no longer be focusing on the social-work aspect of the center as much. We have noticed that most of the kids no longer really need nor appreciate the material help we have been giving.

When we started to realize and pray about this, Olga Petrushova was given this verse

“Look on my right hand and see, For there is no one who acknowledges me; Refuge has failed me; No one cares for my soul.” Psalm 142:4.

We realized that we had lost sight of what these kids and their families really need. More than material help, they need someone to care for their souls. Therefore, we will continue to help those families truly in need, while changing our focus to more spiritual needs. We will be trying to teach the kids skills for life as well as instilling in them a knowledge of Jesus, hoping and praying that this knowledge will grow into a personal relationship. Our hours will be different. We will be planning our time so that when the kids come we will be doing something, whether it would be doing crafts, a bible lesson, teaching them how to cook, and so on. We are excited to see the fruit of our new direction. Thank you for your support and prayers. Please continue to join us in this much needed ministry. We need a lot of wisdom and guidance as we take on the spiritual battle for the souls of these kids and their parents.
New walls and ceiling :)

Here are some specific prayer requests: (1) Please pray that we would have the wisdom to care for their souls, (2) that the kids would have open hearts, (3) that we would have the wisdom and discernment to help those in need, (4) that the Lord would bring us people who can volunteer and help with kids, (5) that we would be able to reach and minister to kids' parents, (6) that we would continue to get finances to run the shelter and wisdom to know how we can use the funds effectively.

The new kitchen, I will add more pictures when they are up.
click here to see more pictures

UPCOMING FEBRUARY SEMINAR

Dear partners, friends, and family:

I am writing to let you know that Ternopol Bible Training Seminar is a go. Eugene Zharoff will be sent to administer an IBS seminar at Calvary Ternopol. Olga and I praise God for all the pastors who went though ICM training! They are doing a great job growing the Kingdom of God elsewhere! Eugene is one of them! He pastors Vineyard Church in the town of Kremenchug, Ukraine. For the last couple of years he was able to raise missionaries in his church who know how to teach an inductive Bible study course. Several years ago Alex and I had a privilege to come visit Eugene's church for the 4th Anniversary! We had a blast with the church there! Beautiful people, sweet fellowship, great Ukrainian food too!!!

During the course of many seminars that Olga and I have done, it becomes apparent that there is a spiritual battle raging in the train, bus, even the room where the seminar is being held, this upcoming seminar is no exception. Please pray the hedge of protection over Eugene as he travels to Ternopol and holds the training program there in the city. Sometimes during the first and second days of instruction, a weird thing takes place there; I can only describe it as a spiritual “veil”, between us and the attendees. We are literally speaking to them and it is as if they cannot hear us. For instance, this weird thing happened to me as I was teaching Bible Seminary students in Moscow. I looked at Nate and Sveta and they looked at me and we were completely perplexed, and frustrated, it was as if time stood still and people have become as the dead. I continued to teach because one of the goals of that seminar was to train Nate and Sveta to administer this life-changing course to all denominations and confessions in the former Soviet Union. A lot of people prayed for us and the attendees at that time. I decided to spend more time in prayer and we worshiped the Lord a bit longer before I would get to teach and preach the Word. The Lord was awesome in His Glory, He answered our prayers and gave us a huge breakthrough at the end of the second day of teaching! Hallelujah!

On several occasions though, it was so heavy, I have even considered packing up and going home, but that would be an easy way out; and we are not called to travel through the broad gate, are we?! The Lord called us to become more than conquerors in Christ Jesus! And as we struggle in our flesh, the Spirit leads, He shows us the way through the narrow gate and we pray and exercise our faith. I call my prayer partner Sveta Lukichova sometimes and tell her to send out a prayer requests and after some time, we pass through this trial and the enemy is defeated once again! Hallelujah! As partners in difficult times, we need to remember to pray for each other and to responsibly lead others through the gates of Glory by our Christ-like examples.

Olga and I would like to ask you to pray and support this upcoming event! We thank all of you who had been faithfully involved in our ministry and helping us continue running with the vision! We love you and pray that God would richly bless you in all you do in your lives!

A.M. WITH JESUS...

"The very hairs of your head are all numbered. Don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows." -- Luke 12:7

How easy it is to forget this! Every time the sparrows return to my street, they come to the place they have been fed. To be fed, we as children of God, must return to the Father.

What is the Lord saying to me this morning through this passage Luke 12:1-7? Isn’t he saying, “Igor, the worrying about many things in the ministry and your family does not help. I will find a way both for your family and ministry to prosper. Relax! Live! Let Me live through you!” I sit quietly and contemplate God’s word to me. It is so peaceful and quiet in the room. Silence is one of those riches that cannot be bought with coin... but only by my willingness. It is my opinion that our willingness to silence and solitude will be received by the Lord as a prayer in itself. It says to Him: "Here I am, Lord. Speak to me." Beloved, I learned from the Lord that a lot of good things will occur in my life if I learn to be still in His Presence! Once I read this and liked it a lot: "If you love the truth, be a lover of silence! Silence, like the sunlight, will illuminate you in God... silence will unite you to God!"

TRIP TO REDLANDS, CA

This last week was a week of blessings to us! Our prayers were answered with the approval to go see a doctor in the States! Also this Sunday we visited Packing House Church in Redlands and celebrated communion with the Body here in California. It was amazing to see so many people worshiping God and celebrating His communion! Olga and I were tremendously blessed! Thank you Lord!

I have set up an IBS seminar in Ternopol, Ukraine on February 21-28, please, please, please be covering this upcoming training seminar in your prayers!

TRIP TO TERASPOL, MOLDOVA

“And He opened their understanding, that they might comprehend the Scriptures.” -- Luke 24:45

This verse we shared with our dear pastor friends in Tanzania. Alex Alexandroff did a great job teaching a Bible study from a portion of Luke’s Gospel generally called “The Road to Emmaus”. Being discouraged and defeated after Jesus’ crucifixion, two of Jesus’ disciples met the Teacher who they couldn't recognized, of course on the road of discouragement. Jesus causes their “hearts to burn” in them as He was sharing from God's Word! Like Jesus we travel from town to town doing missions work and we meet lots of discouraged disciples and oppressed people.

During this Inductive Bible Study Seminar Eugene Zharoff met with lots of spiritually starving people, some of them had been walking their road of discouragement for too long... the Lord blessed Eugene with the open door to come and minister to a church which was in desperate need of care and encouragement!

We thank all of you who are praying for us and supporting the ministry out of your own means! The spiritual oppression weighed heavy on Eugene as well as the seminar attendees, but the victory was inevitable and the glory belongs solely to Him, the Lord is glorified in our lives! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!.

MISSIONS TRIP TO USINSK

"More knowledge of God!" These are the words of a young man who attended the seminar that Alexey, Sveta, and Nate just led in Usinsk. This is what ICM is trying to give people around the world. The ICM Russia Crew left January 3rd and returned on the 12th. About thirty people showed up for the three day seminar. Among them was a young man, maybe in his twenties, with Cerebral Palsy. During the seminar Maxim diligently read and participated in every activity. It was beautiful to see a great joy in his face as he was learning how to study the Bible and discover boundless treasure for himself! On the last day everyone was asked to give their feedback. "ICM gives people more knowledge of God," was what Maxim gave as his feedback.
Many people hunger for the word like Maxim and are not getting fed. Unfortunately pastors are not taught how to teach the word in Russia, and many parts of the world. Pastors get up, say some encouraging words, usually related to the Bible, and then step down, not giving anything of real substance to the believers in their church to grow. This isn’t entirely the fault of their own, they themselves do not know how to study and get deep into God’s word. The effect of this is that many people, though physically ok, are in some ways just as handicapped as Maxim. The worst part is they don’t even know it.

There is a lot of ripe fruit in Russia. People want hope, a reason to live, a new life, and the freedom to live it. This hope and new life can only be given through the freedom that comes with the knowledge of Christ. People are hungry for the word, and don’t know it. Our mission in ICM is to give people that freedom of knowledge, and heal the spiritually starving people of the world. This is the reason for the name Intensive Care Ministries.

The seminar was a great success! Alex is now training Nate and Sveta by teaching them everything he learned in the ministry through the years! And I am very happy to see that happening in the ministry! Alex and Nate and Sveta were taking part in leading of the seminar. At ICM Russia we strongly believe this is the way to go if you are serious about training and equipping people of God for the work of service! Nate and Sveta told us they had learned a lot from Alex during this missions trip! Praise the Lord! People were blessed to learn how to break apart and study God’s rich word. Here are some of the comments of the people who attended the seminar:

More knowledge of God. – Maxim.

We express our deep gratitude to Alex, Nathan and Svetlana for leading this seminar. The seminar was very user-friendly and helpful. We learned very much about studying the Bible. Thank you very much. May God guide and protect you! – Larissa Volkova, Hope Misheneva.

Dear friends, our brothers and sisters! Thank you so much that you bring people this knowledge. Thank you came to our snowy edge of the world. Thank you for simple and easy to understand explanation. This is the first seminar that I have been to where they taught me how to study the Scriptures and draw closer to God. I also want to gain strength and power through knowledge of the Lord and through the knowledge of His Word. Everything was veryunderstandable and interesting. Be blessed! – V.N. Nitchenk

I learned many things. I really liked the life experiences. The process of observation, interpretation and application really allows you study the Scripture in a deeper way. – Alexander.

This is the second time I have been to your seminar and I can say that this is really informative. It really reveals the depth of God's word. Thank you very much. Thanks Nathan. We welcome you to visit again. Romman

This is a simple and understandable course on the study of the Bible and not very burdensome. Continue to not turn aside from the simplicity that is in Christ. Thank you. May God bless you. Anatoly.

I thank God for this opportunity that we have received. I have begun to pay more attention to details in the text which previously I had not paid much attention to. And because of this, I have begun to dig into the Word. Through these lessons the Lord has revealed more of Himself to me. Thank you very much. – Alexander Sadovaya.

Thank you for coming to Usinsk. Thank you for you doing seminars of this kind. This study method is very helpful to many people who have come to God. You guys explain the Bible very well. We liked it, and we listened with much care. Irina and Elena Shabelnikov.

Thank you for your service! What you are doing is very important for every believer who loves God's Word. Let the Lord bless you for your ministry and help you in your further work. Your work is not in vain! – Ivan.

Thanks so much for this seminar! I learned a lot from verses that it seemed I had known for a long time. I really like the practical involvement we had during the seminar. I really learned how to break down the word and pull out so much information from just one sentence. The Seminar was very helpful to me. Thank you! Come again! – Irina Melnikova.

Thanks so much for the understandable explanation of the method. At first it was difficult to grasp the material, but soon it became more and more interesting. This is a very useful seminar. May God bless your open hearts and give the spirit of wisdom to the knowledge of His Word and His glory! – Nataliya Andreychuk.

I thank the Lord that He brought you to us. For me this was a new step in the knowledge of God's Word, as well as the Lord himself. I have never thought so deep about the word like this before. The seminar is very understandable and easy to digest. I wish that the Lord will bless you in your ministry and your home. Hope to see you guys again soon. Be blessed! – Alex Camarin.

Thank you very much for this seminar. I really liked the whole thing, I learned many interesting things. I will definitely try to study the Word as you have taught us. Thank you. God bless you! – Ina Ctolyar

Thank you very much Alex, Nathan and Svetlana. This seminar was very interesting. It seems that in the three years I have been a believer, I have missed a lot. I thank God for this opportunity to be closer to the Lord. May God bless you in your ministry. Now I know how to effectively study the Bible. – Rustam Mansurov.

It is a blessing for us to be able to travel to these places and touch people with the word of God. Thank you, our dear partners for all that you do to make it possible to do this work of the Lord! Please continue to pray and support us at ICM Russia as the Lord leads!

click here to see more pictures

SHARING 2011 VISION

Earlier this week Olga and I had an opportunity to meet with dear friends in Cypress, CA and share our vision for 2011 with them. While God is working on our hearts and minds, we as followers of Christ want to refocus and get back on track with God's vision! If anything is excellent or praiseworthy - think about such things! We have the power - vastly underrated in an upside-down world where self-serving values and passions reign supreme - to deliberately turn our thoughts aside and focus on things God has told us about. The Lord spoke to us about us getting busy and making more disciples in 2011, equipping them and sending them out to the mission field. God urged us saying the time is short! Jesus wants us to be around our Father's business even more so, building His Kingdom by planting new cell groups and new ministries in 2011. We will be focusing on traveling from city to city, town to town , village to village preaching and bringing the glad tidings of the Kingdom of God to the lost! ( Luke 8:1,2) He blessed us with the vision to help street children and orphans get right with Jesus and follow His steps. And for that, we thank God! It is huge when we see lives change. It is a precious reward to see people growing in the Lord and taking responsibilities in the Kingdom.

Please join us in prayer so that we might be able to accomplish what Jesus has entrusted unto us! in 2011. Please pray and get involved too! We will receive you with arms wide open!