September 2020 Prayer Requests

Dear Friends of Estonia!

We are so grateful to everyone who keeps us in their prayers!

We thank God for a great Summer Conference in the beginning of August. It was a great time of spiritual renewal, worship, fellowship and great summer weather! Because of the restrictions, we were able to have just a little over 100 people, but many watched conference sessions over internet.

We also thank God for a good Annual Conference that took place just last weekend. All of our clergy and lay delegates from different congregations came together. It was great to fellowship with each other, discuss matters of the church, and worship our Lord.

Please pray for the newly elected Annual Conference Council, who has the responsibility to guide the life of the Estonian Methodist Church for the next three years.

Please pray for the children’s and youth work in our congregations, as the Sunday School programs and youth events start again for the Fall season. Pray that there would be a lot of children and youth coming to know Christ!

Recently there has been an increase in the COVID-19 cases in Estonia. Please pray that the situation would not spin out of control and no new restrictions would be necessary.

May the Lord bless you all!

Last week, Baltic Methodist Theological Seminary marked the beginning of the new school year with second- and third-year students. We also had our graduation ceremony for students from the class of 2020! We were blessed to have such a fine class of students and, while we were glad to celebrate with them at graduation, we were sad to see them go. Pray that they may put into practice what they learned in school.

September 3^rd, we will begin a new year with our first-year students. We are thankful that we are able to have this class session mostly in person (some students in Finland are watching their first classes via Zoom). We were concerned about what the beginning of the year would like in light of the coronavirus. We ask for prayers that this school year will go smoothly in comparison to last semester and that coronavirus cases will not increase in Estonia or beyond.

Read and Signup for the BMTS Prayercain 

I am thankful to God for the wonderful summer camps.

Estonian youth were rebuilt and blessed in a Russian speaking youth camp.
The Youth Board organized a camp for teenagers the first time. We will remember the camp as a wonderful, cohesive, bright-eyed bunch of crazy young people who don’t give up and do everything they can.

I am very grateful to God for the special team with whom we have organized and led the youth work of EMC during the year. It’s been a bright year. This team loves God and loves young people and we see it in their actions. Let’s pray for the strategic continuation of youth work. We need God’s wisdom continuing as we work with teenagers, starting new youth groups in local churches, and growing as a team.

Let us raise before God all these challenges of the new school year asking for wisdom, the leading of the Holy Spirit, sensitivity to hearing God’s voice, and plenty of God’s Grace.

Thank God for all blessings during the summer time!

• Pray for our children and youth, most of them started the school year this week. Pray for their safety, and for teachers also.
• Pray for Sunday school and youth activities, that they all will grow in faith and wisdom.
• Pray for our pastor and his family, that they are well and safe ( and that they learn to take time for themselves also), that he and his wife will be anointed for all work they do in our congregation.
• Pray for our country, that the economy will be better again.
• Pray for all leaders, inclusive church leaders.

I am grateful! God has been good! A few days ago, I graduated Seminary! Thank you for the prayers and gifts!

I am making some new steps in my life. I am moving to Paide to be able to do more for the church and people of Paide. All the prayers needed for this new life, for new relationships, and for the new job as well! May God lead and be glorified through all of it.

Thank you for your prayers and support!
We thank God, that the school year started normally for children and they are all back in school. Please pray for a safe school year and for wisdom and patience in the learning process.

We also have some new kids in Children Center. Please pray for them and for that God would give us the skill and wisdom to help them in a better way.

We keep you in our prayers!

On September 5, there will be a teenagers meeting “Ice age”, bless us for non-believers to come.

On September 6, a new season of Sunday school and teenage ministry begins, pray that the children will accept Christ as their personal Savior and grow in Christ.

The situation in the world with coronavirus is very unstable, pray that the work of children, adolescents and youth does not stop, that the Spirit of God will be with us and support us.

On September 5, the new 6th season of the “Year of God” project starts, this year there will be two participants, bless us in conducting and organizing a new season. Pray for internship finances.

Please pray for the start of the school year for Lívia and Mark. Pray that God would give us strength and peace to deal with all the challenges. Pray especially, that we would be able to continue meeting in person and not have to return to online teaching or be forced into doing online for some and in person for others (which would greatly increase the workload).

Pray for our ministry plans for teaching and discipleship in the new Corona reality. Pray that God would open the doors He has for us and give us the wisdom, strength and resources needed to fulfill His calling.

I am grateful for the Estonia annual conference this past weekend – it went smoothly and we had a great fellowship. It was really a blessing to be together again in person, rather than just looking at the computer screen.

Also, I thank God for the opportunity to visit our daughter Liina in Hamburg, Germany. We had not met her or the grandchildren since last Christmas! In May we had a ticket to fly to Germany but then it was all canceled. Fortunately in the middle of August, we could fly and visit them with Meeli.

Please pray as we have the major transition in Global Ministries – General Secretary Thomas Kemper who was in the office for 10 years, has ended his service and returned to Germany, and from September we have a new leader, Roland Fernandes. We are all eager to see what kind of plans he has for us. Pray for our ministry in mission, please pray for the new leader.