Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit. And there are varieties of ministries, and the same Lord. There are varieties of effects, but the same God who works all things in all persons.                                     1 Corinthians 12:4-6

Studying the book of 1 Corinthians

We believe that one of the characteristics that describe a healthy church is a church whose members know their spiritual gifts and serve one another with the gifts God has entrusted to them. This is why we believe it is vital for every church member to know all that God’s Word has to say about spiritual gifts.

October 22-24, we organized a training conference with “Spiritual Gifts” as the subject. We studied the Precept’s “Spiritual Gifts” study book written by Kay Arthur, with Bill Grubbs from Gainesville, GA and Neal Walls from Memphis, TN as speakers. The main Bible text we studied was the Apostle Paul’s First Epistle to Corinthians. Before we got to chapters 12, 13 and 14, we did an overview on the whole book to set the context these chapters.

Brothers and Sisters from different cities

As soon as the conference was announced, people from different cities from all over Moldova began to enlist. We had dozens of churches and cities represented at the Conference. Everybody got so excited studying about Spiritual Gifts! The most common request we received was to have a two-week study, not just 3 days! As we were studying chapter by chapter, God continued to speak into the hearts of participants, and as result, a young couple understood they were not using their gifts and decided to go into full-time mission ministry. Another young man decided to get involved in the Radio ministry and preach the Gospel through radio programs.

Another nice thing was that everyone received a work book that will continue the study for four months after the conference. Here is what some participants have said after the conference:

-          This conference was another opportunity to stop on the way and see the importance of using my spiritual gifts to the maximum and the importance of helping others discover their spiritual gifts. -Vasile

- During the study of First Corinthians, I understood how important it is for everyone in the church to accomplish his role, serving with his gift that the Holy Spirit gave him. My prayer is that every believer in our church will understand how we are depending on one another in one body of believers. -Nadejda

- It was like reading First Corinthians for the first time in my life! I decided to fill in the study book till the end after the conference. -Yurii

-          I was deeply impressed by the truths I learned at the conference! I have learned that there are many different gifts. The Holy Spirit distributes them and we cannot earn them. -Paul

-          I want this study to be taught in my church. It is very important. -Tatiana

-          It is such an encouragement to see how our brothers and sisters are applying the truths they just learned in respect to others around them! -Olga

-          The work of Spiritual gifts provides functionality of the church. It will provide a healthy growth for the church. It will save the church from many divisions and misunderstanding. Through the ministry with your gifts you are proving love for God and for brothers and sisters. When you are serving with your gifts it will bring joy, peace, and rest in the body of Christ. -Dmitriy

We thank God for the time we spent in studying His Word, and we thank Him for moving in the hearts of brothers and sisters who are hungry for the Word of God and ready to sacrifice their time and work for spiritual things and for strengthening their relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ!

And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ.                -  Ephesians 4:11-12

From July 27 until August 7, we had our 48th Precept Training Institute in Cupcini for pastors and leaders. Seventy-five leaders from Moldova and Ukraine attended. The training was on a Precept “Lord” study titled, “Lord, give me a heart for You,” based on the Second Epistle to Corinthians. We also studied the subject of Pastoral Work, taught by Dr. Brett Howell.

Precept Training Institute classes in Cupcini

Because we do not have facilities for classes at our church in Cupcini, we rented a local public school’s gymnasium where we moved chairs and desks from several classes to accommodate the room. It made a very large classroom for study with enough light and air. New people joined the training almost every day. Since we had people from different churches, countries and nationalities, you could hear students speak in several languages – Russian, Romanian, Ukrainian and English. But this did not hinder the communication; everybody was glad to be with their brothers and sisters and to spend time in God’s Word.

Dr. Brett Howell teaching

Here are some testimonies from our students:

Prascovia: “I understood that I need to pray regularly for my pastor and to start a correspondence counseling ministry.”

Dima shared that he does not have fear of starting a Bible study group any more.

Ruslan learned how to overcome trials and difficulties in life, and what it means to be adequate for ministry.

Vasile: “During this training I learned to work as a team with everybody that stayed at our place. I learned that I need to come first to God when I need comfort.”

Ecaterina decided to start serving God through giving and teaching.

Nelly wants to spend more time with God, studying His Word and share with other the comfort God gives her.

Dmitrii: “I got experience in preparing teaching plans for the lessons and got boldness to proclaim His Word to other people”.

During Institute classes

Olga can’t wait to put into practice what she has learned and to start teaching this course in the Bible study group she is planning to start in her home!

On the last day of the training, students took an exam and had to write a paper on courses they’ve studied: Second Corinthians and Pastoral ministry. God’s Word touched the hearts of students: When they came to the training, they were leading 22 home Bible study groups with 116 people in seven localities, and after the training they decided to start 50 Bible studies and teach 163 people in 10 cities and villages. Praise the Lord!

The training lasted two weeks, but time flew by very fast as we learned God’s eternal truths. The last day was a sad one when everybody had to leave and go back to his city or village. But the goal of the training was for every student to take God’s Word and proclaim it in his or her locality and to organize a Precept Bible study group to teach the course that was taught at the training. For the next training, in January 2010, we expect these students to return with their disciples!

From January 2-11, we had two Precept Leadership Training Institute sessions in Cupcini. God blessed us with 34 students from seven cities across the country. Young and older, men and women, Russian and Romanian speaking – all of these were united by a passion for the Word of God and the desire to tell everyone.

Lessons started early in the morning and went until late afternoon. They studied in class, and everybody was studying at home till late at night. The next morning everybody was in class, joyful and ready to start another day’s journey through the Bible in order to know his or her Savior in a more personal way.

We taught two different courses. The Russian speaking group studied the Gospel of John, Part Two, that covered chapters 12-21, and they also learned how to study a difficult subject in the Bible. The Romanian speaking group studied the book of James and Homiletics, and each student learned how to study a passage, prepare a sermon and then deliver a message. Two trainers taught in different groups: Pastor Vasile Sanduleac from Balti taught the Romanian speaking group and Pastor Vasile Rusnac from Chisinau taught the Russian speaking group.

Because our church building is not finished, we had to rent two classrooms at a local high school. We thank God for not just opening the door for classrooms for us but also for opening the school leaders’ hearts toward helping us in the ministry of training God’s people and establishing them in God’s Word so that they will know Him and will know how to live accordingly.

Since we do not have a dormitory facility, each student who was not from Cupcini stayed with local families, and we are so thankful to God for every family that received a student or two or even three for the period of training, giving them a place to stay, providing food for them and many times helping the students with their homework every evening. It is truly a blessing to see the unity of Christ’s body working toward the goal of knowing Him and getting the Gospel into every village and home in Moldova.

At the end of the training during the midweek church service in Cupcini, every student shared with the body of believers his or her personal testimony on how God was at work in his or her heart during the Training Institute. The church was filled with church members and guests eager to hear of God’s work in our days. It was a great time of building the faith and encouragement for the ones who had opened their home to students from other cities of Moldova.

Every Precept Training Institute involves a practical assignment when students go door-to-door and teach at least one lesson that they have studied in class. It helps them to catch the vision to do the same in their own cities and villages and to start home Bible studies when they will teach the whole course they studied at Training. As a result, many went home and started more than one study group, and people were saved and wanting to join our churches or form a church if there was none in their city, which was often the case. After this training, God put on the hearts of the students from both groups to start new Bible study groups in their cities where local people will come to study God’s Word right in their own neighborhoods.

Please pray that God will move in a powerful way through our students as they boldly proclaim the Gospel and start new home Precept Bible Studies, and pray that people will be saved and join the church.