An Update from the Podgaiskys

Gennady & Mina Podgaisky are missionaries to Ukraine that our church offerings support. They have not been able to move back to Ukraine since Russia began its invasion in February 2022. So they have been traveling, speaking, supporting, and counseling remotely ever since. In July 2022 they spoke in our church services, and we have been praying for them since then. Here is an update they recently posted:

We have relocated to Krakow, Poland!
Current prayer requests:
• Praise God, our move to Poland went smoothly. We will serve the Ukrainian refugees living there and continue other ministries online.
• Pray for our upcoming trip to Kyiv for 2 weeks. We have several items to take care of. Pray for God's protection, for strength, and a productive trip.
• Please continue praying for the end of the war in Ukraine.
• Pray for wisdom and protection for the leaders and defenders protecting the country.
• Pray for big and small miracles in Ukraine.
 
Thanks to you, we can fulfill our God-given call to serve the people of Ukraine! We thank you for your faithful support of us and our ministries.

Contact us over e-mail HERE, or at our new address:
Gennady & Mina Podgaisky
Orla 36A
30-244 Krakow
Poland

To donate to our Ukraine ministry click HERE.
Or send a check designated to The Podgaiskys (05058) to:
CBF
160 Clairemont Ave., Suite 500
Decatur, GA 30030

Bible Study – Inspired by Missionaries: Andy & Jutta Cowie (Haiti and West Africa), John 10:10

The missionaries we learn about this week are doing something great that we all can do: using the specific gifts they have to help people's lives be more abundant. Andy teaches young people how to repair cars, and Jutta helps women setup small businesses to provide for their families. All of the support, encouragement, and empowerment comes from the love of Christ and with the love of Christ. What skills and passions do you have?

Read John 10:10 online here.

Bible Study – Inspired by Missionaries: Rick & Lita Sample (San Francisco), 1 Peter 4:7-11

Unfortunately Pastor Stuart forgot to press record to make a video of the good Bible Study discussion we had this time. But you can still learn about the missionaries we met that our church offerings support.

Rick & Lita Sample work with immigrants in the San Francisco area. (Learn about them here!) Many of the people they serve are refugees from Burma. There are over a hundred different ethnicities in Burma, and the Karen people are an oppressed minority. The Samples help them navigate life in the States and connect with a Christian church where they can worship in their own language. That is true hospitality: one that welcomes, helps, and always respects.

We watched two short videos with some of the Karen people there in San Francisco. Zar Blue Paw talks about what life was like back in Burma and now in the US (watch that video here). Kyaw Soe is the pastor of the Karen church, and he talks about how meaningful it is for them to worship together (watch the video here).

The Samples' ministry is guided by 1 Peter 4:7-11 (read it here), which says that one of the ways we can show God's love is by welcoming people. So how can we, with our mission field of Weaverville, be inspired by the Samples' work in their mission field?

Bible Study – Inspired by Missionaries: Matt & Michelle Norman (Spain), 1 Kings 17:8-16

We take a look at some more great missionaries that we support. The Normans help their community in Barcelona realize the blessings and presence of God that is already within them. Many people there don't think church is for them and don't have a network of support. But by forming relationships, the Normans can minister to both physical and spiritual needs.

Read 1 Kings 17:8-16 online here.
The handout was a recipe for Spanish pizza that the Normans use around their table. Try it here!
To learn more about Matt & Michelle's ministry, click here.

An Update from Missionaries to Ukraine

Last year we were honored when missionaries to Ukraine that we support, Gennady & Mina Podgaisky, spoke at church one Sunday. Their ministry, calling, and determination was inspiring. Recently, Gennady wrote an update on how things are going in Ukraine and what their mission work involves these days. We continue to pray for peace and that Russia will stop its invasion. Here are some things Gennady reports:

Since the war started in February 2022, we have visited Ukraine twice: the first time in August 2022 and the second time in April 2023. Both times the fighting was raging on the eastern and southern fronts of the country.

The war is still going on, but now people’s focus has turned towards the future, which looks a bit brighter and more hopeful. The people of Ukraine understand that victory in this unjust and unprovoked war is possible. Ukrainians know that millions of people have prayed and are still praying for the end of the war and for the restoration of peace and for justice.

We saw signs of hope and resilience as we drove by towns and villages damaged from the war. Streets were cleared of the debris and rubble, many houses were repaired, and fences fixed. Black traces from fires on buildings were painted over or covered. There is hope in the future for Ukrainian people.

Weekly Bible Study – Inspired by Ministries, ABCCM (Asheville Buncombe Community Ministry)

There are many ways people can be in need. One church can't meet each and every kind of need, but a network of churches can. That's what ABCCM is and does. From the support of multiple churches, it helps people in our county with all kinds of needs. We hear about their great work this week, celebrate being a part of it, and learn about other ways to help. Our guest speaker is Mary Messarra, ABCCM's Crisis Ministry Director.

To learn more about all the incredible work ABCCM does, click here.

Weekly Bible Study – Inspired to Be Missionaries (1 Cor 13:1-3; Jn 3:16-17; 1 Jn 4:11-21)

If we truly have a relationship with God, then God's love for us will guide all our actions in love for others. That should be the main force for missions. If we're aren't acting out of love, then it will be pointless and annoying. Instead, all that we do should reflect God's deep and wide welcome of love.

Read 1 John 4:11-21; and John 3:16-17; and 1 Corinthians 13:1-3 online here.
To look at the group discussion questions for each Bible passage, click here.

Bible Study – Inspired by Missionaries, Inspired to Be Missionaries (Eph. 1:18-23; Matt. 28:18-20)

Jesus embodied God's power. And now, as the Body of Christ, we can also connect with God's power. But only if and when we act as the hands of feet of Christ in the world. We think about how to do that this week, what it means, how it's a high calling, and the blessings it brings.

Read Ephesians 1:18-23 and Matthew 28:18-20 online here.
(The handout included questions to help us Track Jesus—where he went, what he did, and with who. Pastor Stuart reads out the questions during the Bible Study video.)

Bible Study – Inspired by Missionaries, Lynn & Mike Hutchinson (Togo, West Africa), John 10:10-15

Every person has value and God-given talents. That belief is what guides the work of Mike & Lynn Hutchinson in the country of Togo, in West Africa. Togo is regularly the 10th or 11th poorest country in the world, so jobs, resources, and training are really hard to come by. But the Hutchinsons know that the people are capable and talented. They find the assets that are already there, nurture them, and build them up so that the Togolese people can have a life with more abundance.
Read John 10:10-15 online here.
To learn more about the Hutchinsons' work in Togo, click here.

Bible Study – Inspired by Missionaries, Brooke & Mike in Indonesia (Luke 14:1, 12-14; Hebrews 13:1-2)

Getting together with a group of people who mutually support each other is a huge help for us getting through life. Whatever the activity is that people come for, the mutual encouragement blesses us in ways too deep for us to measure. Brooke and Mike are making that possible throughout Indonesia, by offering space in the home in the city and by installing lights in rural churches. They are drawing people in, whose lives are then changed. Something we should do as well.
Read Luke 14:1, 12-14 and Hebrews 13:1-2 online here.
To learn more about Brooke & Mike, click here.

Bible Study – Inspired by Missionaries, Rick & Ellen Burnette (Florida), Luke 14:1-6, 12-14

Is every person worth the same, or are some better than others? Jesus said that the people who society overlooks are exactly the ones we should reach out to so they know they're invited into the family of God, to God's spiritual banquet. Today, we rarely think about where our produce comes from, but the workers who harvest it often can't afford food themselves or stable housing. Rick & Ellen Burnette work in Immokalee, FL, to serve that group, which most people overlook.
Read Luke 14:1-6, 12-14 online here.
To learn more about Rick & Ellen Burnette, click here.

Bible Study – Inspired by Missionaries, College Ministry with David Stone

College years are an important time of development in people's lives. Away from home for the first time, they're growing intellectually, socially, and spiritually. So we are very glad that there are good folks like our very own David Stone, who work on many campuses to provide spaces for worship, Bible study, questions, and also fun.
To learn more about Baptist college ministry going on around the state, click here.

Bible Study – Inspired by Missionaries, Welcome Houses: Marc & Kim Wyatt (Eph 2:12-22)

When refugees arrive here, they often have no belongings, no place to stay, and have been through overwhelming trauma. Marc & Kim Wyatt have set up Welcome Houses around North Carolina to provide refugee families a safe place to settle and help them get their lives started strong. By inviting them into the family of God, everyone is blessed and lives are changed.
Read Ephesians 2:12-22 online here.
To learn more about the Wyatts and their Welcome House ministry, click here.

Bible Study – Inspired by Missionaries, Grace & Main Fellowship in Danville (Eph 2:12-14)

Even though Danville, VA, had a lot of churches, there were still many people who were hurting and overlooked. So Grace & Main Fellowship was started to make sure any person could get support in life and be welcomed into a loving Christian community. Through food ministry, Bible study, worship, and a community garden, lives are being changed because life is being shared.
Read Ephesians 2:12-14 online here.
To learn more about Jessica & Josh Hearne's work at Grace & Main, click here.

Bible Study – Inspired by Missionaries, The Beloved Community (Eph. 2:12-22)

The New Testament presents a vision of what a real Christian community is like, and it's starkly different from what the world naturally looks like. Martin Luther King called that vision "the beloved community," where everyone was welcomed and valued, so no one was mistreated or went without. We get an overview of three mission work centers around the world that we'll learn more about later, but they're each trying to build the beloved community in their area.

Read Ephesians 2:12-22 online here.

Bible Study – Inspired by Missionaries: Scarlette Jasper (Kentucky), Matt. 28:18-20

As Christians, we are called to show Jesus and to see Jesus in everyone we encounter. That means connecting with them through relationship, and figuring out how we can minister to their needs. It's what Scarlette Jasper does in the poorest counties of Kentucky, as she figures out what each community needs by getting to know the people there, and loving them as children of God. So how can we do that in our community?

Read Matthew 28:18-20 online here.
To read more about Scarlette and the work she does, click here.

Bible Study – Inspired by Missionaries: Kirk & Suzie (Thailand), Matt. 28:18-20

Surprisingly, there are still some people and groups in the world whose language has never been written down. Not only do they not have a printed Bible in their language, they don't have any books at all. Kirk & Suzie are missionaries that our offerings support, working with the Bisu people in Thailand. Over years of serving and loving, they have produced a Bible in their language, but more importantly, have helped lives be transformed by God's love.

Read Matthew 28:18-20 online here.
To read more about Kirk & Suzie and the work they do, click here.

Bible Study – Inspired by Missionaries – Dianne & Shane McNary (Slovakia), Luke 14:16-25

What would it feel like to never be included, or never understand what was going on? In many European countries, the Roma people are still discriminated against as outsiders, even though they've been there 800 years. But they are kept on the margins of society. Jesus, however, made it a point to reach out to people on the margins, help them with whatever they needed, and tell them they were loved. Dianne & Shane McNary are missionaries trying to do exactly that for the Roma people around Slovakia.

Read Luke 14:16-25 online here.
To read more about the McNarys and the work they do, click here.

Bible Study – Inspired by Missionaries, Project Ruth (Romania), Acts 16:13-33

Our missions highlight this week is a ministry center in Bucharest, Romania. It began as a program to help young Roma (gypsy) children learn to read, and it has expanded into a K-8 grade school that also offers parenting classes, job skills training, minister workshops, and more. We read a story in Acts about people being set free, then hear the incredible things Project Ruth does to set people free, and then think about how we can do that here!

Read Acts 16:13-33 online here.
To open the handout and read more of Project Ruth's story, click here.

Season of Prayer for the Offering for Global Missions

Late October is when Cooperative Baptist churches around the country pray for and give towards incredible mission work being carried out by over 50 missionaries in 18 different countries. The theme this year is "A Place at the Table for Everyone" based off of Luke 14:12-14. One hundred percent of all offerings given will go towards supporting Cooperative Baptist missionaries serving in the US and around the world. For more information and prayer guides, visit their website here. You can give using your normal giving method through the church and designating the funds for "CBF Global Missions."