The below prayer request was sent out on Dec 20th.
First the praise. Today was the first day that the Chengeltei church met in their new building. For Sunday School they had 37 children show up for this service. The adult worship service had attendance of 78. At their old location they were averaging attendance between 29 - 35. Pray that these new faces will return and accept Christ as their savior and help turn Mongolia upside down for Christ.
Now for a special prayer request. Many members from Chore had traveled to UB to attend Bible School this past Friday and Saturday. They had left an individual that they believed to be a responsible person in Chore to keep the boilers going in the Church Building and also in the parsonage. This person left and did not keep the home fires burning. The temperatures in Chore ranged from -33 to -17F. Both of the buildings froze solid. All the water in the radiator lines are now frozen and we will not know the extent of the damage to the radiators until we can get some kind of heat in the building. In Mongolia this is a very serious condition. Once a building has froze it is a daunting task to get it warm again. Even if they took torches to the radiators they would freeze again before the hot water could start flowing. Please keep this in prayer, the church had to meet in a ger on the property which is a person's home.
This update was sent three days later on Dec 23rd.
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Last Sunday night I sent out an email explaining that our Church in Chore had froze. Even though we have lived here 2 and half years I did not realize how devastating this situation was. This is Wednesday and they are still a good distance away from having heat. The highs in Chore this week have be well below 0F and the night time temperatures have been in the -30F's. This is also the temperature of the inside of their church building and parsonage. They have removed the radiators and have used a wire to clear all the ice from the water lines. After replacing the seals of a radiator they would install it and try sending hot water from the boiler thru. It has turned out that many of the radiator fins have small crakes that are not detectable until water is ran through. This has become almost an impossible task in such temperatures. They have tried to test several radiators to get one complete unit, with the water freezing in no time as they try to disassemble and reassemble. We have decided to purchase and send all new radiators to get the heat back on as quickly as possible. Next spring we will test the frozen radiators and hopefully be able to sell a few of them. We have all agreed we needed to get the heat restored as quickly as possible, so we could get the parsonage livable and the church building useable. Aagii and his wife Olsii live in the parsonage and it is frozen and they are now living in a 18 foot ger with another family. We do not know what effect these temperatures are doing to their refrigerator and other appliances.
This is an appeal! So far it has cost almost 4 million tugrugs ($2800) to purchase what we believe it will initially take to get the hot water back flowing. We still are not aware of all the other damage that has been done to the plumbing. We did not have much money left in our building fund, but because of the seriousness of the situation we have borrowed this money from our translators fund. We need to replace this money, if any of you have a Sunday School class, men's or ladies group, or youth group that is looking for a worthwhile project may I suggest helping this new church in Mongolia with this repair. This has been devastating to the Pastor, his wife and this small congregation. Whether you can send money or not please remember this church in prayer as they see the hand of God taking care of them.
The attached PDF of Chore Christmas update was next to be sent out on Dec 25th (read attached file)
The below update was sent out on Sunday Dec 27th
Dear Brethren,
I hope this makes it to you before your Sunday Services. It is Sunday evening over here, and we have had a wonderful day in the Lord. At evening time Saturday night I had not heard what the outcome was at Chore. This morning, as I approached our Church sanctuary, I saw one of our two workers that we had left in Chore to repair the heating system. As I approached him I asked if they had got the heat back on, and his answer was yes. Wanting to know more I found a translator and begin to ask how it went and when did they get finished. I cannot tell you how proud I am of these two men from our Church and the men members at Chore. They worked none stop from Friday morning until Saturday evening. They were able to get the Church building's heat operational about 6PM Saturday. They had worked in unbearable temperatures, and in horrible working conditions and were happy to do it for the Lord. As we concluded our conversation the other worker showed up and as I looked at their eyes they both had that glazed look of exhaustion. They did not get back to UB until very early Sunday morning , yet both were at church in time for Sunday School. They still did not get the heat working in Aagii and Ulzii's home because of needed parts that are not available in Chore. They will be going back after Jan 1st to complete this task. But praise the Lord the church met in their church building with the heat working. From what I was told the building wasn't 70F, but it was not below freezing. Please keep this church in your prayers.
We want to thank everyone who has lifted this church up to our Lord in prayer. We would also like to thank all the churches and individuals who have said they will be sending money to help this church. Please know that these funds will be used to complete this repair and help them finish their building. Your concern for this church is an example to everyone in that village. An example of God's people's love for one another. Thank you so much. I am confident I will be receiving a thank you note from Brother Aagii and Sister Ulzii that I will have translated and will send out to you all.
Continuing with the radiator saga on Jan 12th.
Dear Brethren,
I wanted to send a short update about what all has been happening with Chore. On Monday of last week our men were able to get the parts they thought were needed to repair the parsonage heating system. Tuesday they arrived in Chore and began reinstalling new radiators throughout the house. Brother Agii had felt the house needed more heat so they added a few extra fins on the radiators. This turned out to be a big time consuming mistake. By Saturday they were able to get the hot water through each radiator without it freezing. The boiler system that was designed for the house was built so it would flow through the system without the need of a pump. As the water would cool the hot water behind it would push it through the lines. Unfortunately with the extra radiator fins the water began to freeze before it made it back to the boiler to be reheated. We have sent the professional plumber, who installed the system, and his crew to Chore to put the system back the way it was. I will keep you updated as to when the heat is back on for good.
Everyone here, and especially those in Chore want to say how amazed we are at the outpouring of prayers and offerings for this young church. We have received or have been told of offerings that have now exceeded $8000. We will be using the extra to help the church in Chore to complete their building. I want you all to know what a witness this is for the village of Chore. It is now common knowledge who paid for the repairs of this disaster. Thanks again to all who have prayed for, and given to this work.
The Mac Med Team is going to be coming to Mongolia this summer and Chore will be one of the stops on their trip. Pray for this town that it could be turned upside down by the Lord's church there.
PS. The churches system is working great and services continue in the warm. We have read of the cold weather going through the US and in other parts of the world. We also are having record low temperatures. The city of UB was -40F last week and there is a forecast of -50F next week, this is unheard of in the city. Chore is even colder, we praise God for a warm building.
This update sent out on Jan 16th
Dear Brethren,
DISASTER IN CHORE averted! As of my last update the church building was repaired and warm, and our crew was in Chore working on the heating system for the parsonage. Wednesday afternoon at 4PM we received a frantic call from Sister Olzii telling us the roof of the Church building was on fire and the fire department had been called. This was all the information we got for the next hour. With our hearts in our throats we waited for more news. In all of our mind's eye we saw a fire gutted building with only the concrete and brick walls still standing. At 5PM Brother Egii was able to reach Chore's pastor, Agi. The new vent pipe that had just been reinstalled in the church building had not been correctly insulated where it went through the roof. As it turned out no wood caught on fire, but the Styrofoam insulation that was used under the metal sheeting had ignited and melted. It ruined two 24 inch wide metal sheets of roofing. The building sustained only minor damage and can be quickly and easily repaired. We praise God that this was not worse.
As it has been reported before, all of our churches are not registered churches with the Mongolian government. We have tried to comply with the government in UB about registration, and report each year about the church. We have been told in UB that there are too many churches in our district and we cannot register, but they have also not tried to close us down. In Chore we have tried also to comply with the government regulations but have seemingly been ignored. Calling the fire department brought also the police department along with them, and with them also came many questions. Brother Agi was taken to the police station and for the next 4 hours questioned and reports taken. There will be a fine for the fire but now the validity of the building is being called into question. All paper work had been submitted to the Chore government about the church, its activities, and intentions. The blue prints for the building are also a part of these papers. You cannot get permission to build a church building without being a register church, but we had been informed that a person can build anything they want on their own property if the property is in their name. The property in Chore is in the name of Brother Agi and it was on this information we went ahead and built the building. This we are finding out is not technically correct. Brother Agi has met several times with those in Chore who make the decisions about matters like this and has been ignored and brushed off as an outsider to the community. We have learned that if this situation goes really sour it could come to the point that they could seize the church building. Our NGO has done much in the community of Chore but Brother Agi is not being recognized as our representative. In the past few years our NGO had brought the Mac Med Team to Chore in 2006 and treated over 1000 people. Our NGO also built and refurbished an autopsy room for the hospital, also the Mac Med Team is scheduled to work at Chore this coming summer and is bringing a contain full of medical equipment for the Chore hospital. This next week a meeting with the governor of the district is being arranged. Brother Dennis, Brother Egii, and Brother Agi will be in attendance. The hope and intent will be to inform the governor that Brother Agi is our NGO's representative in the village of Chore and his recommendations have great influence in our help to the community. It is also our hope that this will also move along the process of being registered in that village so all of the church work can be done in the open and with much publicity.
We are asking all who receive this report to lift this meeting up to our Lord, that He will touch the heart of the governor. Pray that this matter can be quickly resolved and the congregation can see God's hand in the answer of this prayer. After the fire they required that the heat be turned off of the building and as of yet have not allowed it to be turned back on. The system was drained of all water so there will be no freezing damage and the restart will not take much more than a day.
Satan does not want to see a Baptist Church in Chore. This is a dark and foreboding country, Buddhists are very superstitious and with the frozen building and then a fire they will believe an evil spirit is against it. I spoke to Brother Agi today after Bible School, he stated that he knew it would be a battle to pastor a church in Chore but he had not prepared his mind for this. He is determined to continue and fight the good fight. I gave him what we had of the offerings that have been received for the building repairs and this was a great encouragement to him. We ended our conversation talking about our God, that he is more than a conqueror and will provide.
The heat has been restored to the parsonage and is working great.
The update below was sent out on Friday January 22nd
Dear Brethren,
What a joy it is to watch our great God work. Today Brothers Dennis, Egii, and Agii meet with the officials of the state, called an Aimag, that Chore is a part of. Fervent prayers have been going up to God to have his sway with those who make the decisions in this Aimag. No one was prepared for just how much God had paved the way. The Aimag has 25 elected representatives that meet at different times to handle Aimag business. These 25 representatives elect a leader out of this group and he heads all meetings and has influence on what is brought before them. This was the first person that they met with Friday afternoon. After a short discussion about all that our NGO had done he stated he remembered the visit of the Mac Med Team and the autopsy room that we built for the hospital. He was very happy about the plans for the Mac Med Team to come this summer and also volunteered to help with getting the container of medical supplies through customs. Throughout the meeting Brother Dennis emphasized that Brother Agii was the NGO's representative to Chore and we highly respect him. The official then mentioned he was aware of Agii's work with the Alcohol Abuse classes and complimented his efforts as being the only group that had come into Chore and was actually trying to accomplish something. God's timing is impeccable, the Representatives have a scheduled meeting Monday and he promised that the Chore Baptist Church would be brought up and discussed. Plus he would recommend that they accept all their paperwork and register them as a Church. This will then make all the issues about the property and building go away. We are all thrilled with this turn of events but we are holding our full celebrations until the vote is taken on Monday. Our team could not have been better received then they were by this official. As a side note, he bought the team lunch and invited Brother Dennis to come as stay with him for a couple of days so he could show him some sights.
This summer the Mac Med team is bringing in a container of medical equipment and customs is a big issue when items like this come into the country. Custom fees can be extreme as well as having to pay taxes on the item's value. After their initial meeting this official took the team to meet the head of customs. It just so happens that they have opened a new customs in Chore and items that enter into Chore do not have to be stopped at the China boarder but can be taken directly to Chore. With this official's recommendation the head of customs provided all the numbers and sequences to get the items to Chore. He also said to let him know when it arrives and he will make sure the taxes will be taken care of. God had already been working on this before we even scheduled the container. But that's not all.
The next person that this official took the team to see was the governor of the aimag. Dennis had met the governor before but this was the first time that he had ever smiled at him. After briefing the governor about the situation the governor spoke highly of Mac Med Team. It just so happened that during the 2006 visit by the Mac Med Team he had broken his leg and the team treated him and he was well pleased with their work. He was very supportive of Brother Agii and the church and the help coming this summer.
How great is our God! He had been preparing this path since at least 2006. There are no coincidences with God. We thank all of you who have been bringing this need to the Lord. We can literally feel the power of your prayers, it is such a joy to see how God has everything in his control. We do ask that you continue to pray for the meeting and vote next Monday.
Also remember our NGO audit Monday. Pray that God will receive glory from whatever happens.
The update below was sent out on Wednesday January 27
Halleluiah! Praise the Lord! It may have taken three days for the representatives of Chore to finally vote on the registration for the Chore Baptist Church, but the vote was passed. Chore is now recognized by the government of Chore and many issues have vanished and have gone away. As I am writing this email a city plumbing inspection of the church building is being conducted. After this inspection the approval to re-fire the boiler will be given. They will be able to now advertise in the open, put up a church sign, and openly declare about our Lord and Savior without fear of the government.
Thank you to all of you who have prayed for this church. With all that had happened there were times when we wondered HOW will God be able to receive glory from such bad situations. The frozen pipes, the fire, the officials talking about the illegality of the whole operation gave cause to wonder, yet all the time God was in control. These events actually expedited the registration process and also brought Brother Agii before the eyes of those in charge. Brother Agii, as he reported the events to Brother Egii, told of the completely different attitude that all the officials now have towards him. We are so thankful for God's blessings.
(Eph 3:20) Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us.
We had sent out a plea for churches to help this young church with the repair of the frozen radiators. 14 churches and individuals responded to this call. Several Churches and one individual sent enough money each to completely cover the radiator repairs with their offering. In total we have received $16, 794. This is absolutely above and beyond anything that we asked for or imagined. This is such an encouragement to all the churches in Mongolia and especially to Brother Agii and the congregation at Chore. Through you, God has provided them with enough money to complete their building. Thank you seems so small in expressing the joy, and appreciation for all you who pray and support the work here.
With all that God has accomplished in the past month, we can't wait to see what he has in store for this the rest of this year. We still desire your prayers for our NGO audit. All paper work was turned in for the years of 2005 through 2008 on Monday. As of yet we have had no response from them. We will keep you informed.