Comforting Those Who Mourn – August 2007 – Part 1

YHWH Is a Refuge for His people, and He”s a Stronghold to the sons of Israel ! ‚   ‚   ‚  (Joel 3:16)

7/22/07, Sunday: Went to the AM fellowship, and was so happy to see Alla there! (Alla lost her younger son in the terrorist attack; her older son, Khetag, survived the attack.) That was the first time I”ve seen Alla in a church service” ¦ may it not be the last! After the service ended, I talked some with her and gave her an Ossetian New Testament. ‚   ‚  

7/23/07, Monday: English and guitar classes…

7/26/07, Thursday: At the internet club, I spoke on the phone with the internet club owner’s friend, Luda . She is an English teacher and wanted to talk with me, and The Lord gave me the opportunity to share about hope in Jesus Christ, reading His Word, and so forth. Luda seemed very interested, and said she wants to talk more ” “ not only about English, but also about spiritual things. Yah, reveal Yourself to her, and help her to surrender to You! Taught English and guitar classes ” “ man, there are soooo many flies on Nahzee’s back porch! (Our neighbors have cows, so that helps draw even more flies to the neighboring homes! Bsln is a small town, and several people have their own chickens, cows, and so forth. Hearing roosters, barking dogs, and loud “moos”  are all quite common sounds in this small town.) Mairbek came to English and guitar, and then I visited him and his family at night. (Mairbek is the 11 year old boy who survived the attack, but lost his mother there.)

7/27/07, Friday: Went and taught English to George and his cousins. (George is a quiet little kid who survived the Bsln school massacre, but lost his whole family there ” “ mom, dad, brother, and grandma. His aunt, Marina, and her family now take care of him.) I’ve attached a photo to this document, and from left to right are: Tamik and Angelina (who study English with us), Alina and Asik (George’s cousins whom he lives with), George (in the red jacket), and the family’s big dog! And as you can see in the photo, kids making ” ˜bunny ears’ is a universal thing! George is a precious kid, and when you look at the photo, you are seeing a real miracle. It’s a miracle indeed that anybody survived the chaotic and barbaric third-day battle between the Russian forces and the terrorists. Pray for George often” ¦ he will live the rest of his life never again seeing his mom, dad, brother (and only sibling), or grandma.

7/28/07, Saturday: Glory to The Lord, had a very good day in Vladkavkz. Taught the English group there at the church, and there were several new students. We are going through Psalm 23, as well as general Bible stories as part of our lessons. The sister who helps me, Tamara, envisioned the group as being mainly an outreach to the lost ” “ she herself came to The Lord through reading The Bible in English” ¦ it motivated her to then read it in Russian, and she gave her life to Jesus. Please pray that the class is not only a blessing to the saints, but that God will use it to bring the lost to Him as well. After class, I gave Tamara lyrics to my songs for the new CD, and she’ll be translating them into Russian for me. She also said she can help translate letters for me when many of you send them for families here, and so I praise God ” “ that is a huge blessing! To His glory, I can translate, but of course my grammar is far from perfect. So what I was doing was translating to the best of my ability, then showing friends here what I wrote so they could correct the mistakes, then making the adjustments, and so forth. Tamara’s help will be a real blessing as it will help free up more time for me. Praise be to You, O Great and Mighty Yah! ‚   ‚  ” ¦After coming back to Bsln, I visited with Madina and her family. (Madina lost her ten year old brother, Marat, in the attack.) Madina got all her acceptance papers to begin college this fall! She actually tested out of her last year of high school. Madina likes music a lot, and often watches MTV and so forth” ¦ one of the videos that came on while I was there was from the Notorious B.I.G. ‚  (I’m assuming that most of you probably don’t know who he was, so I’ll explain. B.I.G., or ” ˜Biggy,’ was a rapper who was really popular several years back. He, like many other rappers, was shot and killed.) Anyway, in the video that was on, there he was boasting of his success, money, girls, and the like. But as I shared with Madina, all of that was for nothing. Then, B.I.G. was bragging of his success and possessions” ¦ but now, he’s dead.

7/29/07, Sunday: Went to the AM fellowship; I had asked my friend, Valya, to order two DVDs for me of Christian songs in Russian, and she gave them to me after service. Some really good ones ” “ Russian songs, as well as English ones which were translated into Russian. (One of which was, “You’re All I want,”  a song which I really love.) Went and visited with my friend Batik and his family. (This is how small Bsln is: my cousin, Jody, had sent a package of snacks and supplies, and when it reached here, one of the post office workers who’s good friends with Batik’s dad called Batik’s family and said, ” ˜Your American son got a package,’ and their family picked it up for me!) Had a good visit and fellowship with their family, who are strong believers. (Thanks so much for the supplies and snacks, Jody and family!) ‚   ‚   ‚  ” ¦Back at home, Yah blessed me to finish and burn off the title song for the new Truth Proclamation CD! Glory and thanks be to You, YHWH my God!

Please pray for:

• Alla, to draw nearer to Jesus;
• Jesus to reveal Himself to young Mairbek;
• Luda , and opportunities to share The Gospel with her;
• Jesus to refresh and strengthen Pastor Taimuraz and his family;
• Soslan, Mairbek, Madina and her family, Alina and her family, and Aslan and his family” ¦ these people are on vacation ” “ ask that The Lord would give them safe and refreshing trips, and that He would speak to them through the beauty of His creation;
• God’s blessing on, and guidance for, the English lessons;
• Jesus to grant Batik and his family favor, as they’ve been waiting and hoping for so long to buy their own home;
• Repentance, revival, and more laborers for Bsln;
• Valiko and Fatima, to come to Jesus. (Nahzee is the grandma I live with here, and Fatima is her daughter. Fatima’s teenage daughter, Sofia, was killed in the terrorist attack. Sofia was a very strong believer, and prayed sincerely and passionately that her parents would come to Christ. And so I gladly pass on this request to you all. Our sister, Sofia, is already with Jesus, but may The Lord soften her parents’ hearts so that they’ll be with Him too!);
• God’s help for the new music CD i’m working on.

Thank you for being part of this outreach! What a Wonderful God we serve, Who gives us the tremendous privilege of building into others’ lives. All the glory be unto Him!

Jesus Is our Peace,

jason
[email protected]

YHWH Is a Refuge for His people, and He’s a Stronghold to the sons of Israel ! ‚   ‚   ‚  (Joel 3:16)