Faith Under Pressure Part 3 (Trip To Moldovia)

Pat Took Picture of Gena, Andre and Me

Loved Of The LORD, We paid the porter for our Chi (Tea) then and for the next morning and got comfortable. Pat and I got the bottom bunks and the two young men, Gena and Andre were happy in the top two. There was a fold down table under the window. We left it up all the way, as it was stacked with our provisions for the trip.

We sang to The LORD and laughed about many of the crazy situations and issue involvements that it took to get this far. I have no doubt that they would have made Pat & I hang it up had it happened back home.

We had all just fallen asleep when we made the first border crossing into the Ukraine. The stopping of the train had us almost awake when Immigration banged on our compartment door. Pat understood most of the conversation between the Officer and the … let me just refer to them as ‘The Boys’ for now on. I was catching the gist, by the inflection of their voices and the body language. I knew there was a conflict developing and informed later that the Officer wanted to go thru our bags. This is where Pat put his foot down, because of the effort to exploit a share of anything found as payola to let us pass. Here was a reminder of my several adventures crossing into Mexico again.

After finding out that, we were not to be intimidated and his time to check all the passengers for pass ports and visas running out the Officer move on to the next compartment. It was an hour later after the boys explained everything before we got back to sleep.

Waking up early and taking turns with all the passengers on our car to toilet privileges, the porter had brought our hot Chi and we partook of some of the provisions we had brought. BTW! The bath had a sink with cold water and the toilet itself was a straight hole to the railroad ties below. I took note not to be walking along side of the tracks outside of town when a passenger train was passing.

Later that day we crossed in to Moldova and stopped again for Immigration. Remember that Pat and I did not have a visa for Moldova. The citizens of the former USSR only needed their passports and had access to all the Confederacy of Independent States. i.e. Called the CIS for short.

We opened the door in response to the rap and were in anticipation of anything that could possibly happen. When the, older this time, Officer asked for our passports, he glanced at the other three and when he got to mine he did a double take on mine as he looked back at me a couple times with a smile on his face. My passport picture was of me clean-shaven and now I had a full rap around beard. He wished us all the equivalent of, ‘Have a pleasant trip’, as he handed us all back our passports and then said, Das ve danya, as we closed the door.

The boys were incredulous at Pat and I having skated through that issue so smoothly! Pat & I, aware of the boys un-belief played it for what it was worth and gave everybody the look that we expected it to happen that way. To GOD be The Glory! Later when we were alone, Pat & I discussed how surprised we were too! Nevertheless, we BOLDLY ENTERED Moldova and were inspired to believe GOD for anything. We will talk about some of those things next time. … … © 2008

Faith Under Pressure Part 1

Loved Of The LORD, need to give you a little more of this “Won Preacher’s” Domestic Ministry to lead into the next Story. To preface even this portion, I have to go back three decades to re-commitment to The LORD, as my Savior and making HIM LORD of my life. Remembering seeing seasoned believers watching me (And Helping me grow.) with a big smile on their face. Myself being blessed and basking in the deliverance from Alcohol, Tobacco and a Filthy Mouth partaking of that Real Live Zeal for GOD and HIS Ways, that never shadowed by the neophyte finesse that was always present. I always came forth with a “Praise The LORD!” at Every opportunity, never intimidated by who may be present. Laying hands on and praying at the drop of a dime.

Today I still enjoy being around a Fired Up Baby Christian and love to love them and encourage them, as they Splash all over me, while having that same grin on my face as those present thirty years ago watching me.

No Doubt most of you know about ‘Brother Andrews’ “GOD’s Smuggler”. That phenomenal work “Open Doors” accomplished getting Bibles into the USSR and China since the fifties is a ministry classic. Still going strong and are continuing that ongoing ministry even today, getting ready for the 2008 Olympics. What a blessing for us to have a part in sponsoring a brother who was smuggling bibles into China back in the Eighties.

Said all of that to say this: In that first fifteen years or so being a part with the FGBMFI, when Demas was still alive, (A men’s Global Parachurch Organization) we found ourselves somewhat smuggling food & clothes into Mexico. The reason was that Mexican Customs &/or Immigration wanted ‘Payola$’ or at least a cut of what we were taking in. Enabling us to minister to fledgling churches, orphanages and even just setting up on the street, feeding, and clothing poor people while one of the brothers published The Gospel in Spanish.

On one of our trips, we were taking a Van in to a little Church for their use in the ministry. Something was wrong with it and it was barely making it up the hills on the way to San Diego. We stopped at several Gas Station Garages and trying to fix the problem, put on a new coil, a new fuel pump, filter and several other things to no avail. We were always in a caravan, when the van started to fail the driver and his partner would raise their arms out the windows signaling for prayer, and in turn, the rest of us in the different vehicles would do the same thing as we let them know we were in agreement with them. That must have been a sight to others on the road. They have no idea of who we were or what we were doing.

The van did not have current tags on it and going up one hill a CHP was passing all of us up on this two lane road and got stuck behind the van. No arms out this time, nevertheless, we were all praying and after what seemed like 10 minutes, the CHP passed the van up with out stopping it. Talk about the Praising The LORD!!! As if The Lord put Blinders on him, to never see the expired tags!

This is longer than I thought, so let me finish with this. In San Diego and with all these new parts the van finally quit. I pulled up behind the van and we joined our hearts and minds. With the hood of the van up, I started to jiggle different things on the motor while making the comment, “The only thing I know what I was doing is just laying hands on it and believing GOD would intervene.”

While doing this an experience came to mind about me having a an old Studebaker doing just about the same thing. What I finally figured out after several days of it trying to quit going up a hill was that the fuel line had a tiny pebble it front of the fuel filter. Keep in mind that we had replaced all of those things. I started to trace out the fuel line and when I reached the gas tank I found a kink in the line that only let a nominal amount of fuel get to the pump, but when there was a demand from the pump still only a metered amount would get thru.

That was the day that another verse of Holy Writ became my own personal promise. Let me paraphrase.

John 14:26. But the Helper Himself, the Precious Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My Name, He will teach you ALL things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I Taught you! said to you.

How many times HE has brought to my remembrance things HE has taught me in the mechanics of construction, using the same words again, ministering not in the traditional way and too many more to mention.

Next week our trip to Moldova and how I tie this above to it.

©2008