Hidden Treasures

    "My son, if you receive my words
        and treasure up my commandments with you,
    making your ear attentive to wisdom
        and inclining your heart to understanding;
    yes, if you call out for insight
        and raise your voice for understanding,
    if you seek it like silver
        and search for it as for hidden treasures,
    then you will understand the fear of the LORD
        and find the knowledge of God." Proverbs 2:1-5

Search for wisdom as if it is as valuable as hidden treasure, it has great worth! This has been the focus of the last week here in Zaporozhye. I do not want the knowledge or wisdom of the flesh to consume me but I want the Holy Spirit to fill me and spill out of me. For what God speaks is of more value than any silver or gold that we can find here on earth. His mind is so great and so wise that he thought of the design of the universe, the earth and all that is in it. He thought out precisely how I shall be made, how my heart will beat, how my blood will flow, how many hairs are on my head...his knowledge is greater than any earthly wisdom. This has especially relevant to me as I preach. I never want to speak out of the knowledge that has been tainted by the evil in this world, the earthly wisdom that promotes impurity, pride and self-reliance. I desire for the words that flow out of me to be prompted upon by the Spirit of the LORD.

But how could I ever be able to obtain this wisdom from above... I must receive the words of God and treasure them, incline my ear to His whispers of knowledge, cry out to the LORD for his insight and SEEK it! I have been convicted of not having spent enough time with the Christ in silence and solitude, I had been asking and calling out for the wisdom of God but I have not been earnestly searching for it as if it diamonds, gold or silver. So that has been something that I have changed and will need to continually work on in my walk with Jesus. I have not been devoting time in the evening for God just to speak to me, I have been trying to tune my ear to His still but ever so present words. I feel comfort and a security more than I ever have before in my God. He has been telling me to just continue to pray...that when I feel that the puzzle of pieces of life just don't seem to be fitting together, he spoke and said "Relax, remember who made the pieces".

These last few weeks have gone by so quickly, and now we only have 5 days left. Five days to be confident that we left the mark of Christ on all of the land that we walked on and all the people that we met. The devil has been persistently attempting to place doubts in the mind of myself and my team in these last days. In the name of Christ these doubts have not right to be believed, be gone Satan and be bound by the blood of Jesus. I am a servant of the LORD, I have been called by the Almighty God to be here in Ukraine for the last 3 months, and our ministry is not and was not in vain. The truth in the Bible and the wisdom of God is able to give me this assurance.

Orphanage 3 Final Bell Ceremony

In these last weeks we have attending the graduating ceremonies for the two orphanages that we have been heavily involved with and landscaping a lot at one of the local dental clinics. David and I were also blessed to be apart of a Bible study held by one of the friends that we have met through our Friday night English Clubs. We have been meeting with people and inviting them to go for coffee and talk about the love that Christ has for them. Our friend Kristina is still very hungry for the power of God to fulfill her life. We have given her a new testament copy of the Bible in Russian and she has been reading through the Gospel of Mark and we are meeting with her a few more times this week. Please pray that the blinders that Satan has placed upon her will be broken off and anything that she is holding on too from the past will be destroyed and she will have no doubt in the love that Christ has for her and that she is a beloved daughter of God.

Please Pray for our final barbeque this coming Thursday. It is our final goodbye and chance to really share the gospel with all the people that we have met, there are going to be lots of people attending, pray that the presence of God will be evident and that people accept His love and relationship! For the healing of Alona's tailbone. We have been trusting and praying that she will be healed before we leave. For the New Hope Church, they have a baptism classes this week and pray that the people that have accepted Christ in the last year will attend these classes. For the Christians that have been attending the church for a long time but have not yet accepted Christ, they are continually in the community but have not made a decision to enter into relationship with Jesus. For our team, please pray for peace and trust as we are leaving our new friends and family in Christ, that we will REJOICE in all things no matter what happens that we will stay focused on our remaining ministry.
Blessings!
-Mitch