Jan. 2010

Please take a moment and visit this web site http://www.stirmyheart.com and click on the link Get ready to VOTE FOR "ARISE" in Tate Music Group's Artist of the Year contest!

"Arise" is the first song on Joel's new CD which will be released soon.
Joel Strahan, former pastor of Ingram Baptist Church and now singer, songwriter, missionary has written several new songs and will be releasing a new CD in Feb. The link will allow you to listen to the song “Arise” and view some video footage from Esso and Northern Kamchatka. Please take time to pass this link on to others. Joel’s desire is for this to help make others aware of the needs in Kamchatka and for the Lord to use it as a tool to open many doors. Thanks for your vote Feb. 1-5, 2010.

Psalm 61:8 So will I sing praise unto thy name for ever, that I may daily perform my vows.

Isaiah 6:8 Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me.

Matthew 9: 37-38 Then saith he unto his disciples, The harvest truly is plenteous, but the laborers are few; pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth laborers into his harvest.

How you can become “HANDS ON” in Kamchatka? Just ask and we will begin to plan your trip.

Family: We had a great first month of 2010. We experienced very cold temperatures and snow this month. We were also able to meet and spend time with some new friends in Esso. Please continue to pray for further contacts to be made during the long winter months. Please pray that we would be wise to every opportunity that is given us.

Family time this month was spent in local activities around the village. We swam in the public hot springs many times, did some snowboarding and cross country skiing. Lee and I also took part in some men’s volleyball at the local school. Volleyball is a very serious sport in the village and they are good at it.

The family also spent some time planning our trip to the USA. Below is our schedule for our time in the states. We hope to see many of you while we are there and we are very excited about getting to see our families again. Please pray for us as we travel and speak at several different locations while in the states. We will also be meeting with a couple of the mission teams for 2010.

February – March
• Feb 11, travel to USA for visa renewal and vacation
• Feb 14 am – Preaching at Light House Baptist (New Albany, MS)
• Feb 14 pm – visiting our home church – Wheeler Baptist
• Feb 21am & pm – preaching and mission team meeting at Malesus Baptist Church (Jackson, TN)
• Feb 28 – Woodland Baptist Church (Pontotoc, MS)
• March 7 – (Journey) Church plant in Olive Branch, MS and mission team meeting.
• March 9 – preaching at Food Pantry, (Baldwyn, MS)
• March 11 - Back to Far East Russia

How long does it take to travel from Esso to Mississippi? First 8 to 10 hour drive from Esso to PK. Overnight in PK, fly from PK to Moscow (9 hours in air), overnight in Moscow, fly from Moscow to Stockholm (2 hours in air), Stockholm to Chicago (10 hours in air), Chicago to Memphis (2 hours in air) and then a 2 hour drive to MS (total 76 hrs with all transfers and layovers). Pray for us as we travel in just a few days.

Ministry Opportunities: Thank you for continuing to pray for the new church plant in the village, Путь к Источникy (Poot k Ee-stoch-ne-koo) - The Way to the Source Church. The Church grew spiritually this month. The nationals wanted to start meeting on Thursday nights in the village for prayer. It was very exciting this month to watch God work in the hearts of the few believers in Esso as they prayed for one another and for their lost friends and family. Many prayers were also lifted up for you. The believers here are very excited that people around the world are praying with them. For that reason we started emailing the Thursday night prayer requests to our prayer representatives at each church. If you would like to get these requests and have not been just ask the prayer representative at your church and he or she can forward them to you. Please keep holding the rope for us and with us.

We were able to travel to a village north of Esso this month and hold service there. The small village “K” has a handful of believers who meet weekly. There are about 10 women, 3 grandchildren, and one man who regularly meet. They were very excited to have us come and fellowship with them. Zhenya and his family traveled with us. Zhenya and I (Marty) preached while Suzanne, Emma, Lee and Sveta sang. After the service we shared a meal with them and then drove back to Esso. Please pray for village “K” as we learn how we can be a partner and help mate to them.

We were also excited to have several English, Russian speaking Germans in our home this month. Most of them are college age students and are currently in Esso on an exchange program working with the nature park. Pray that this bridge will become stronger, that they will fully understand and believe the Gospel, and that it will open up other doors to minister to the natives of Kamchatka.

Language: As some of the “old timers” use to say, “We just keep plugging along.” Suzanne and Marty study with a tutor 3 hours a day, 3 times a week. Our tutor has also started staying late and helping Lee and Emma for an additional 30 minutes each day.

School: Lee and Emma have been doubling up on some subjects this month in order to be ahead once we travel to the states. They will have school while we are in the states but have worked ahead enough to only take about half of their books to the USA. Pray that they stay focused the next couple of weeks and are able to work ahead as planned.

Prayer Request:
If you are not receiving our Thursday prayer updates please let your prayer representatives at your church know this and he or she can forward them to you.-Pray for {Путь к Источникy (Poot k Ee-stoch-ne-koo) - The Way to the Source Baptist Church} a church plant happening in the village of Esso.
-Pray for Alexander (Sasha) and his family as God continues to use him in Petropavlovsk.
- Pray for the new believers in Kamchatka as they continue their walk with the Lord.
- Pray that we will be faithful to serve the Lord on a daily basis in the midst of __________ (just fill in the blanks).
- Pray for laborers. (We invite you to join us physically in the work – for more information about bringing a mission team to Kamchatka…..just ask!)
- Please take time each day and pray for the new law that is being pushed through Russian congress. Pray for the speed and spreading of the Gospel. (You can read more about this law on our blog at http://robertsinrussia.blogspot.com)

Thank you for holding the rope!!! We would love to hear from you!