Wooden Doors & Greenhouses—Portals to the Gospel “Where’s that in the Bible?” you may ask ... “How do wooden doors and greenhouses provide entry to the Good News of Jesus?” In Moldova pastors often struggle to make ends meet to feed their families, pay their rent, and do ministry at the same time. Jobs are few, wages are low, prompting many to depart to Moscow or Italy to earn money to support families. And since church members are in the same situation, most congregations can’t pay their pastors a salary. So they must work. Vasilii, an LDI graduate, is an expert carpenter, crafting beautiful wooden doors using old, temperamental and dangerous power tools—he recently lost the tips of 3 fingers on one hand. Yet his skills allow him to continue to be a pastor at two small churches in the area of Moscowvei, Moldova.
Oleg has 2 greenhouses in his backyard, currently filled with cabbages. He sparkled with joy as he recalled the challenges of coming to his village as a missionary and stranger. He and his wife slowly made friends and have made a positive impact for Christ. He sees a twofold advantage of his greenhouses—first he earns money to support himself, but even more importantly, they provide outreach as people come to buy his vegetables. When asked if he could put in more greenhouses, he said he has room for six, but more than two takes away from his time to pastor and minister to the community. He says a drip irrigation system would allow even more time to minister. What a blessing these two men are to their villages! Please pray that others would have business opportunities that help them feed their families, but also allow time to serve the Lord in ministry!
Posts
