“Here I Am Lord. Send Me!!”

“Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?” And I said, “Here am I. Send me!” ~ Isaiah 6:8

MARIA YERMACHENKOVA Our partner in Aalen, Germany

Several weeks ago I introduced you to our partner in Germany, Maria Yermachenkova. Masha, as her friends know her, is a one-person-dynamo. You may recall that she moved to Germany last year and discovered a burgeoning Ukrainian community in Aalen, the small town where she lives.

She currently is working part-time as a caregiver for a handicapped patient who suffers from cancer. The rest of her time is spent with her friends pulling together and shipping parcels containing humanitarian aid to Ukraine. That should tell you a lot about her heart for serving.

Masha is hearing the Father’s calling question; “whom shall I send?”. Like Isaiah, she is answering Him saying, "Here I am, Lord! Send Me!"

You see, recently, Masha expressed a keen desire to go to Ukraine - to make the most of her life, to see for herself the opportunities for ministry God has in store for her, and to encourage others along the way. She said,

"I want to go [to Ukraine] because I know for sure that there is more that I am able to do for these [Ukrainian] people."

Interestingly, when Masha and I were together in Poland at worship, Pastor Rick Correlli prophesied to Masha that she would share the Gospel all over the world. Perhaps these are her first steps.

“Make the most of every opportunity in these evil days.” ~ Ephesians 5:16

We also would like for her to visit some of our partners in-country such as Lyudi Poruch/Dobryi Obid in Berdychiv and perhaps other ministries with whom we work. She also has the gift of encouragement and we share many friends in Ukraine who desperately need to be encouraged. Masha's energy, smile, and laughter are contagious. She said,

"God has blessed me with his spiritual gifts and I want to use these gifts to spread his kingdom on the earth. Our world needs his love and his light."

So I am asking for several things on Maria’s behalf...

First — pray that the Lord places opportunities to serve squarely in her path.

Second — pray that He protects her all along the journey and back to Aalen.

Third — pray that he provides for her every need.

Last — for your help in providing for her travel.

Jesus sent His disciples out and instructed them not to take even an extra cloak but only a staff and sandals on their feet. John, the disciple “whom Jesus loved” says this —

“You will do well to send them on their journey in a manner worthy of God. For they have gone out for the sake of the name... Therefore we ought to support people like these, that we may be fellow workers for the truth.” ~ 3 John 3:6-8

The disciples' journeys were difficult and even dangerous. It will be a long and arduous journey to Kyiv and other points for Masha. Ninety percent can only be made by overland transportation (busses, trains, etc). She will need to go to Poland or Romania in order to cross the border. That can take hours sometimes. She will then travel by train or bus to other destinations in the central interior.

"I don’t know what I can do…I just want to be an instrument in his hands and let him work through me."

We want to fund Masha’s Journey and we are seeking $1500 for travel expenses. If you are led to do so and would like to help with this please go to www.1231ministries.org/donate to see how you can partner with us to send Masha to Ukraine.

CLICK TO SUPPORT MARIA!

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Joel Butts

Executive Director

Twelve3One Ministries