Fifth Trip To Cuba
April 2017
“…Jesus came and stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you. And when He had so said, He shewed unto them His hands and His side. Then were the disciples glad, when they saw the Lord.”
John 20:19-20 Thanks be to God that even in our days, doing His labor, we can rejoice when we see the blessing hands of our Lord Jesus Christ. From the fifth to the twelfth of April of 2017, God gave an opportunity for a group of eight people from different states of America, to visit Cuba once again, with the purpose of evangelism. The Nedyalkov family that now lives in Matanzas, Cuba, joined the group upon its arrival to the country. The first service was held in Havana, Cuba, with a group of Russian speaking women that meet weekly for mutual prayer and Bible study. The service, which went on for more than two hours, was attended by twenty women and two men from the former Soviet Union, and also by Russian speaking Cubans. All those who were present eagerly listened to the sermons, songs and poems; and after the service they had questions about the Bible. Some of the women desired to have a personal conversation with the pastor, and one of them sincerely repented. Gifts were given out to everyone in the end of the service.
Our next visit was to the city of Matanzas, where our missionaries - Nedyalkovs, live and labor. Afterwards, we visited the city of Colon, and had an opportunity to hold a blessed service in an orphanage. The five children living in this orphanage, come from families were the parents are serving long-term prison sentences. The youngest boy is six years old, and the oldest girl is 18. They were already waiting for us and listened to the whole service with great interest. One little boy, Carlos, was watching how the accordion was played, and marveled at how deftly our brother moved his fingers over the keyboard. The staff members as well as the children, listened to the songs and the word of God with gladness. Our brothers gave two short sermons, and with the help of some visual aids our Spanish speaking sister talked about God’s plan of salvation. At the end of the fellowship little gifts were given out to the children, and they, in their turn, treated us with some Cuban drinks and deserts. On the way back we visited the pastor of the local Baptist church. Pastor Ezdra and his family live at the church. We walked into the church, singing a few songs in accompaniment with the accordion. During friendly fellowship with the pastor, our brothers shared the history of our Baptist Brotherhood, and pastor Ezdra invited us to come again to his church with a program. Despite the fact that we had just met each other, and did not speak the same language, we got to know one another and had wonderful fellowship in Christ. Sunday morning we visited another Cuban church where we met pastor Nelson. After lunch, we had a service in the house where our missionaries, brother Albert and sister Eugenia, live. Five Russian speaking women attended the service, and one of them brought her two sons who understand Russian, but can hardly speak it. Pastor Nelson also attended the service with his family. The pastor shared the testimony of his encounter with the Lord (he used to be an atheist) and sang a wonderful song with his family. Brothers and sisters were singing songs and reciting poems with great heartiness. After the service, a great meal was prepared for us and during the meal, we got to know each other more personally and had good conversations. Afterwards, brothers and sisters went to the oceanside and sang their favorite songs along with the accordion. We also prayed for the spiritual awakening of the city of Matanzas. Locals told us that in the center of Cuba, in the city of Santa Clara, about 200 kilometers from Matanzas, another home church of 13 Russian women was recently formed. We made the decision to go visit this newly formed group; but because it was a weekday, only five people attended. One of them was a Cuban woman, the sister-in-law of a Russian woman present at the service. She was listening attentively to the word of God through translation, and it was evident that she had a struggle within. Following the service she expressed the desire to have a personal conversation with the pastor, after which she sincerely repented. Now we have another sister – Idania, and God has one more daughter. At the end of the service we were heartily invited to have fellowship and drink tea, and were asked to visit this particular group more often so that we could have fellowship and praise the Lord together. SD cards with audio sermons and Christian music in the native language were given out, to which the people were exceedingly glad. Despite the long tiring trip, at the end of the day, we were all glad for this visit. Our schedule also included visiting a nursing home, which houses 140 elderly people. This is one of the places where our missionaries along with Pastor Nelson visit weekly. The sight was heartbreaking, as many are bound in wheelchairs and missing limbs...the overall situation is depressing. During the church service, we sang songs and the word of God was preached, concerning the resurrection of Christ. Many people attended and were listening with interest, some of them even tried to sing along. To all of these people we brought little gifts. Coming back from the nursing home service, we had one last service among our brothers and sisters, and held Communion. Once again, from the bottom of our hearts we were glorifying our God! After the Holy Communion a few local women came to bid farewell, since we were planning to return home the next day. Together we had our last dinner, and spent time talking and getting to know better each other. The word of God was preached again and an invitation given to those who are present to reconcile with God. After the last prayer, in a personal conversation with the pastor, one more person accepted Christ- Ludmila. Glory be to God for His love, and that even in our days He does His work in the hearts of sinners and they are coming to God in repentance. Our God is great beyond a shadow of a doubt
And all he does, he does for our good Great thankfulness now fills my heart, His working miracles are fully understood. He saves the sinners that are bound And pulls them out from darkness For them, the way to heaven is now found And they are granted the eternal gladness. My dearest God, please take my heart For just on You can I depend completely Please help me always do my part So that more souls would get to heaven sweetly Glory and thanksgiving be to God for all the answered prayers and for all those who were engaged in His work. We thank God for His mercy that we experienced during this trip; the blessed services, safe trips, and for all the things that we were able to take there (spiritual literature, clothes, medicine and gifts). May God bless all who take part in the spreading of the Good News, through prayer, physical work, or financial support.
Please pray the evangelism work in Cuba, and for the Nedyalkov family that are laboring in the service. Pray for the souls that have repented, that God may strengthen their faith and keep them from false teachings, and also for those who have heard the word of God, that many of them might repent and follow the Lord after they receive Him in their hearts. There is a big need to purchase a means of transportation for the evangelism in Cuba. By law of Cuba, it is impossible to import a car, and it is very expensive to purchase it in the country. Transportation is much needed as large distances must be traveled between the cities and regions. Public transportation is not reliable and taxi is very expensive. Please pray that God would open a way for purchasing a means of transportation for the evangelism in Cuba. “And this I do for the gospel’s sake, that I might be partaker thereof with you.” 1 Cor. 9:23 |