Bible School #18

SEMINAR, SOULWINNING MEETINGS AND OPENING OF BIBLE TRAINING SCHOOL No. 18 IN UKRAINE! Volume XXXXIII No. 12 Marge and I knew that we would be busy in Ukraine but we had to do even more than we had anticipated. Walter Zygarewicz of Global Vision, asked us if we would open Bible School #18 in Zaporizye. We went first to Kharkov where Marge and I conducted a Seminar with several hundred workers. We were joined for a session with Bishop Vitali of Kiev. He is now the head of a fellowship with almost a thousand churches. He was a blessing. This is the same brother, 14 years ago, who was 23 years old. We had held a great soul winning crusade along with my brother and his wife.
Tony and Marge Abram hold Soul winning services in Ukraine
There were about 250 converts that wanted to form a local church. We appointed Brother Vitali to be pastor. We were told by some of the older ?traditional? pastors that he was just too young. I said, ?God has called him". God did bless him. In 4 years he opened over 100 house churches. Pastor Cho from Korea saw his leadership and brought him to Korea to personally mentor him for a month. Where are those older pastors now?
Wonderful altar call, many coming to Christ in Ukraine
Most are sitting idle in some large immigrant church in the USA. In Kharkov, we held several soul winning meetings where God saved many and confirmed His Word with signs following. Both Marge and I were received with much appreciation and testimonies. This is the area where 13 years ago there were only 2 churches in the district. Now there are 107 churches and 103 of their pastors have been trained in one of our Schools of Ministry.
Tony Abram anoints with oil and prays for workers in seminar.		Marge prepares people to receive the Word of God!
It was good to meet ?spiritual grandchildren? in the Lord. It was wonderful also to hear many testimonies of people who were healed in previous ministry and in the present. ?Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever!? From Kharkov, we traveled 5 hours to Zaporizye to begin the school the same evening. The school began with 103 registered students. These students, as in the past, were very thrilled to study the Word of God.
Tony leads souls to the Living Christ!		PRAY FOR UKRAINE!
We believe that God will raise up many soul winners among them. According to Walter?s records, more than 90% of those who have gone through the Basic Bible Training Schools are in ministry. As Marge and I both taught, I thanked God for helping us and also for all the anointed teachers that will teach in the schools. We are all pouring our ministries into these students.
? Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest.?
The Word tells us in: (Eph 4:11 KJV) And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; These are the 5-fold ministries that come and teach in each school. Why the 5-fold? The answer is found in the 12th and 13th verses: For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:
Marge with long time friend, Rose.	Joe Aksenchuk greets the School!	Joe and Rose, our friends and fellow-workers for over 40 years.
We thank God for the fellow ministers who have taught in the Schools. They all pay their own way and assist in the support of the school. This is truly a work of ?Love.? They not only give of their ministry but help in the expenses of the school. For example; for the last couple of days we were at the school, we were joined by Joe and Rose Aksenchuk of Edmonton, Canada. They have been in the ministry for over 40 years. They have also been our friends for over 44 years. They invested two weeks of their ministry in the school, teaching on the ?Principles of the Kingdom of God.? It was a joy to renew our fellowship with them and give them an idea of the type of ministry we were impart to the students
Marge surrounded with workers dressed in Ukrainian costumes.		Marge Abram teaches at the Bible School.
Please continue to pray for the schools and students. Although Marge and I have directly planted 66 churches in the former USSR, the students we have trained and supported from the schools, have planted hundreds of local churches. At this writing, we have, with your help and prayers, been able to purchase 113 buildings, (houses, stores, theaters, restaurants, a post office, civic halls, etc.) in the past 14 years. These buildings are given for local churches in towns and villages. None belong to us. Thank you for your prayers and faith in standing with us over the years.
Bible Training School Number 18.		Pastor Vitali tells how we planted his Central Church. (sorry picture not good)
SOME HISTORY: Ukraine was the center of the first Slavic state, Kievan Rus, which during the 10th and 11th centuries was the largest and most powerful state in Europe. Weakened by quarrels and Mongol invasions, Kievan Rus was incorporated into the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and eventually into the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. A new Ukrainian state, the Cossack Hetmanate, was established during the mid-17th century after an uprising against the Poles. Despite continuous Muscovite pressure, the Hetmanate managed to remain autonomous for well over 100 years. During the latter part of the 18th century, most Ukrainian ethnographic territory was absorbed by the Russian Empire. Following the collapse of czarist Russia in 1917, Ukraine was able to bring about a short-lived period of independence (1917-20), but was reconquered and forced to endure a brutal Soviet rule that engineered two artificial famines (1921-22 and 1932-33) in which over 8 million died. In World War II, German and Soviet armies were responsible for some 7 to 8 million more deaths. Although final independence for Ukraine was achieved in 1991 with the dissolution of the USSR, democracy remained elusive as the legacy of state control and corruption stalled efforts at economic reform, privatization, and civil liberties. "Orange Revolution" in the closing months of 2004 forced the authorities to overturn a rigged presidential election and to allow a new vote that swept into power a reformist slate under Viktor Yushchenko Pray for Ukraine! Tony and Marge Abram.