April 2020 Latvia, Israel, Cuba, Spanish App
We strongly recommend you download the
"Bible Companion" app, from where you can access
Carelinks messages, daily Bible readings,
Bible Basics, commentary on every verse of the Bible and audio exhortations on every chapter of the Bible.
For Android / Google Play at
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.carelinks.bc and on the App Store for Apple / iOS at
https://apps.apple.com/us/app/bible-companion/id1475914490 You can see the list of exhortations at
http://christadelphia.net/audio.htm We are continuing our online breaking of bread on Facebook on Sundays at 10:00 a.m. GMT, on our Carelinks Ministries Facebook page. And there is an Australian online breaking of bread on Tuesday evenings Australian time using PalTalk.
ISRAEL We're pleased to tell you of the baptism of MARIA in Israel. This was a direct result of the Google Ads advertising. She lives in view of the Sea of Galilee near Tiberias, you can see her in the photo standing by her home.
Maria is from Hungary and became a Christian there, but then went to Israel and married a Muslim Arab, living now surrounded by his extended family in an Arab village in the hills above the Sea of Galilee. She fell away from her faith in Jesus but then decided to return to Him- and being unable to attend any church, she got our app and now has really came to the Lord Jesus, in spirit and truth. These are exactly the kind of sheep which the Lord Jesus is leading us to.
We have had very much correspondence and contact, finally resulting in the happy day when she was able to baptize herself. As it happened, at the last moment, her family members were wandering in and out of the bathing area. They know English, and WhatsApp on her phone is her only private way of communication. So we had to cut the audio and ask her the question
"Do you believe?" as text message, and
"Say" at least one prayer through text messaging. Afterwards she texted:
"I'm so grateful that I could do it. I know I belong to Jesus now. And my life will change from now on . That He will never leave me or forsake me. And to obey Him right way not doubt Him. Glory be To God Almighty in Jesus name Amen". She's obviously in a very difficult position, in a very controlling domestic situation, and now with ever clearer commitment to the Lord's culture which is so different to the way of those around her.
Sister Maria asks us to pray for her family back in Hungary to come to the Truth, and all her husband and his family; and for God to keep her strong in her difficult spiritual path. A recent message says: "Tomorrow is Ramadan and i dont want to be part of that dinner".
Reviewing our earlier correspondence, it was so clearly of God that we were able to get the app out there before the shut down due to the pandemic. Maria earlier wrote: "... And I become so worldly and worst than before ever in my life.. Now I'm so grateful for your prayers and your App. I do have one King James but its so small letters and almost no space between the verses. And one in old Hebrew. Actually my first Bible in Hungarian i received it from missionaries from your country... Keep in touch... I want to be sure to become the daughter of Jesus and His follower to be serious in the mission and not a coward any longer. Sorry i write a lot".
So again, thank you to all who contributed for the apps and also the ongoing donations which enable advertising of the apps in places like Israel.
CUBA / SPANISH APP The Spanish version of the
Bible Companion app has now been released, and already has over 7000 downloads worldwide.
You can download it from
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=es.carelinks.bc Even if you don't speak Spanish, you could download it and give us a 5 star rating to boost our visibility. And do share the link with Spanish speaking friends.
The Spanish app had 1140 downloads in the first 24 hours, 403 of them from Cuba. The accompanying YouTube video had over 50,000 views in 50 hours. Obviously a great hunger for this kind of thing in the Spanish speaking world. We are delighted in the interest in Cuba, that is about the only part of the Americas which didn't quite have a chance at the true Gospel. Internet is now allowed in Cuba, and access to some Android apps is allowed. Apple [iOS] apps aren't allowed, nor is any app which has adverts on it or seeks to sell something.
Our Spanish app is Android and not Apple; and has no ads nor anything for sale. So, we have as it were 'got in' there, by God's providential hand. And what's more. The audio of the
"Bible Basics" on the app was read by brother Pedro, whose baptism we reported a few years ago. Brother Pedro lives in Florida, USA, but is from Cuba. When we were beta testing the app, one tester commented that the
Bible Basics audios were read by someone with a very strong Cuban accent. And now... we see the app enjoying huge popularity in Cuba, and given limitations on downloading other Bible apps [given that most include adverts and offer things for sale], it is likely to soon become the most popular Spanish Bible app in Cuba. The Lord is clearly at work here. Users will find to their pleasant surprise that the
Bible Basics audios are read in their own Cuban dialect of Spanish.
LATVIA Thank you for enabling so much to go ahead in Riga... this week it seemed about everyone who came for food was vulnerable. Blind, using sticks, elderly, homeless... it really felt we were able to take the Gospel and appropriate help to people, and this did put a few smiles on some sad faces. You can see a video of the work this week at
https://youtu.be/1NFis2rUSmQ 
Here are some of the blind:
We continue working hard on enforcing the 2 meter distancing rule for the line up for food, and also for eating it in the surrounding streets. We've put up some signs as required. Visitors have doubled in the last 2 weeks, with Cindy having to dash around a lot to keep the food and coffee flowing:
The pandemic and associated economic crisis has particularly affected our Indian student brothers and sisters. They are nearly all supported by families back in India who sacrificed a lot for them to come and study in Europe. But the families can't send them funds, and they can't work whilst on student visas; and there is no work for them anyway in Latvia. Some of them are actually hungry, and we have been buying food for them. One sister literally wept with gratitude when we took her a large shopping bag of chicken, rice, pasta etc. There are several in this situation.
Please do pray for them. They can't return home even if they had the funds, as the borders of Latvia remain closed.
PRAYER POINTS - For all the Spanish speakers now studying the Bible's message with the app
- For those recently baptized, especially those in difficult domestic situations which are so much worse with having to stay at home
- For the Indian brothers and sisters in Latvia
- For those who now know the Truth from studying online to have the courage to bapitze themselves
With love from your brothers and sisters of Carelinks