Earlier this spring, Ben and Greg's school choir received 3rd place honors in a city wide choir competition. Here is a glimpse of them in action:
Trimming the Tree
Here is a short video clip of our family's tree trimming party in Chisinau, Moldova.
Prayer request
Dear Friends,
As you are watching the election results tonight and tomorrow morning, please say a short prayer for the Overtons in Moldova.
On Wednesday, Jim will be presenting a Nation-wide Missions Strategy Plan to the leadership board of the Moldovan Baptist Union. Please ask the Lord to help Jim give a clear and compelling presentation. Pray also that everyone at the meeting will be filled with a sense of God’s passion for the lost.
Thank you for being partners with us through your prayers. We are also praying with you for our nation and its new leaders.
Sincerely,
Ruth, Jim, Greg, Ben and Leeza Overton
As you are watching the election results tonight and tomorrow morning, please say a short prayer for the Overtons in Moldova.
On Wednesday, Jim will be presenting a Nation-wide Missions Strategy Plan to the leadership board of the Moldovan Baptist Union. Please ask the Lord to help Jim give a clear and compelling presentation. Pray also that everyone at the meeting will be filled with a sense of God’s passion for the lost.
Thank you for being partners with us through your prayers. We are also praying with you for our nation and its new leaders.
Sincerely,
Ruth, Jim, Greg, Ben and Leeza Overton
August '08 Update
Ruth and I are in need of your special prayers this week!
Since returning from our vacation and travels earlier this month, Ruth and I have been actively studying the possibility of moving our family to Chisinau, Moldova. (Moldova is a former Soviet Republic located between the Ukraine and Romania, Chisinau is the capital city). We have been in communication with our Pioneers Regional Leadership and they have affirmed that a move to Moldova is strategic in light of the following circumstances:
a) The leadership crisis at the Russian Baptist Union,
b) Our difficulty in achieving long term residence status in the Russian Federation, and
c) The growing ministry opportunities in Moldova.
Since school is starting next week, we are investigating the possibility of an immediate move. Tonight (Wednesday, August 27), our family will to fly to Chisinau to look at schools, housing, and meet with local evangelical leaders. If we are able to establish the necessary ties, we will move in time for our children to begin the new school year (right away).
We are seeking God's wisdom and courage to face these changes.
In our conversations with Pioneers leadership have also affirmed that a move to Moldova would allow for us to continue in service as Russia Area Coordinator. Similarly, the focus of our personal ministry would remain unchanged: “Mobilizing mission commitment amongst Russian speaking Evangelicals”.
Trusting Him,Ruth and Jim Overton
(Ben, Greg, and Leeza)
PS. Here is a link to a map:
http://maps.google.ru/maps?f=q&hl=ru&geocode=&q=Moldova&ie=UTF8&ll=50.035974,29.882813&spn=14.661529,28.300781&z=5
July 2008 Update
You are a blessing to us!
Thank you for your prayers regarding PIONEERS Russia Area Retreat in Krasnoyarsk, Siberia (June 25-30)! The Retreat was very encouraging and unifying. We were amazed at the diversity of people we have among our colleagues – 4 Germans, 3 Australians, 6 Americans 2 Finns, and 1Canadian!
The two highlights of the retreat were hearing how the gospel is being taken to unreached Siberian peoples and praying extensively for one another's personal and ministry needs. Other blessings were a beautiful forest setting, good food, and warm weather. Did you know that in the summer, it's warmer in Siberia than in Moscow?
MORE TRAVELS!Once again we are sending you an update on the eve of a major family travel event. Tomorrow morning we are heading out for family vacation and mandatory exit from Russia. During our travels we will be applying for new Russian Visas. The longest visa we are able to get currently is for 90 days. We are continuing in the application process to receive a longer-term resident permit. Please to pray for us regarding this question.
As you pray, please ask the Lord for safe travels, rest, and fruitful ministry meetings in the former Soviet Republic of Moldova.
Thank you for standing with us as we are serving the Lord here in Russia.
With Love in Christ,
Jim, Ruth, Ben, Greg and Leeza Overton
June 2008 Update
We are so thankful for the privilidge of being partners with you in ministry!
Wishing you were here!
There are days when Ruth and find ourselves just wishing that you could be here with us. Saturday June 14th was one of those days. On that day our church held an outdoor baptism in one of Moscow’s large city parks. It was such a blessing to see our church growing and young people publicly proclaiming their faith and allegiance to Jesus. Here is a picture of our family standing in front to the “baptism” lake. Please go to http://faith-and-mission.blogspot.com/ to see a 90 second slide show of the baptism.
Tonight our whole family is headed out to Krasnoyarsk, Siberia. Yes, SIBERIA! And we wish that you could be there too! I know that sounds cold, but we are not so much excited about the climate as the people. (By the way, current temperatures in Krasnoyarsk Siberia are: highs in the upper 70’s and lows around 60).
What is happening in SIBERIA?
June 25th – 30th we are hosting the first ever PIONEERS Russia, Retreat. We will be meeting at rustic Mountain recreation base with 15 other men, women and children who make up the PIONEERS ministry teams in Russia. Slightly more than half of these people live in Siberia, so we decided to host the retreat in their neighborhood.
We are very proud of these people and wish you could be there with us to meet them. They are amazing and have such commitment to the Lord. Their missionary reports are full of deeds of living faith and bone chilling adventure. We will do our best to capture the essence of the retreat and share it with you in our next update.
For now, please take a moment to join with us by way of your prayers.
Pray for:
Spiritual refreshment,
Encouragement of families,
Safe travels for all attending
Fun and high quality child care program
Wisdom in strategy and decision making
With Love and appreciation,
Jim, Ruth, Ben, Greg, and Leeza Overton
Wishing you were here!
There are days when Ruth and find ourselves just wishing that you could be here with us. Saturday June 14th was one of those days. On that day our church held an outdoor baptism in one of Moscow’s large city parks. It was such a blessing to see our church growing and young people publicly proclaiming their faith and allegiance to Jesus. Here is a picture of our family standing in front to the “baptism” lake. Please go to http://faith-and-mission.blogspot.com/ to see a 90 second slide show of the baptism.
Tonight our whole family is headed out to Krasnoyarsk, Siberia. Yes, SIBERIA! And we wish that you could be there too! I know that sounds cold, but we are not so much excited about the climate as the people. (By the way, current temperatures in Krasnoyarsk Siberia are: highs in the upper 70’s and lows around 60).
What is happening in SIBERIA?
June 25th – 30th we are hosting the first ever PIONEERS Russia, Retreat. We will be meeting at rustic Mountain recreation base with 15 other men, women and children who make up the PIONEERS ministry teams in Russia. Slightly more than half of these people live in Siberia, so we decided to host the retreat in their neighborhood.
We are very proud of these people and wish you could be there with us to meet them. They are amazing and have such commitment to the Lord. Their missionary reports are full of deeds of living faith and bone chilling adventure. We will do our best to capture the essence of the retreat and share it with you in our next update.
For now, please take a moment to join with us by way of your prayers.
Pray for:
Spiritual refreshment,
Encouragement of families,
Safe travels for all attending
Fun and high quality child care program
Wisdom in strategy and decision making
With Love and appreciation,
Jim, Ruth, Ben, Greg, and Leeza Overton
