Jonathan and Kristy's update

Sometimes it is mind-boggling how quickly another month passes. We are so grateful for all the Lord has done this past month, as well as for your faithful prayers.

 

We are happy to report that Kristy is doing much better. At her postpartum doctor’s visit, the doctor said that she is healing well. He was thrilled to see Cory, and said that if we come again, we need to bring Cory too. :o) The Lord has blessed Cory with good health for which we are grateful. We do believe he has a tied lip, and are planning to see a dentist about this in a few weeks. We have attached a recent photo of Cory.

 

There have been lots of children coming to the children’s classes at church. They were very excited to hear about our Bible school program. Our theme was the armor of God. Bible school went quite smoothly and was well-attended. There were children, as well as adults and teens, and I think the adults enjoyed the puppets as much as the children! :o) Everyone was well-behaved, so thank you for praying! It was good to be able to talk to some of the teen boys that came, as they haven’t been coming to the teen classes at church. Many heard the Gospel during the 3 days of Bible school, and we pray that the Lord will use His Word that was planted in their hearts. Many of the children said the memory verse on the last day, and it was encouraging to see they had learned something. We praise the Lord also for the ladies in the church that were willing to help out with Bible school. We have attached a picture of some of the children helping me with the memory verse during Bible school.

 

There have been some teens that have come to the teen classes recently, which has been a blessing. Rebeca continues to come off and on, and there were some boys that came also. They paid attention very well, which was thrilling to me! They are generally not used to sitting in a class and listening to someone trying to teach them something. Many times, they come and either talk to each other, leave after 2 minutes, or are just totally not paying attention. It is exciting to see them listen and learn the truths of God’s Word! Please pray for the teens in Mosnita (Moesh-neetsa).

 

Thank you for praying for our trip to Bucharest to get Cory’s report of birth abroad and passport from the American Embassy. We went to the Embassy, put in our paperwork and signed in front of the consulate, and in a few days we should receive the report of birth and passport in the mail! While we were in Bucharest, we stayed with some dear missionary friends of ours who also have a Gypsy church. We had such a blessed time of fellowship and refreshment with them. Cory did very well traveling also, and slept for most of the flights. Praise the Lord for a smooth trip and a wonderful time of fellowship! Please continue to pray for us as we start the process of getting Cory’s Romanian residence permit.Often government workers are not kind or very helpful, which only makes the process harder. Please pray that it will go quickly and smoothly, and that we will be dealing with friendly, helpful people.

We also ask you to pray for our reading classes, which we are planning to start up again next week. Two ladies who recently got saved showed an interest in learning, so we hope they will come and learn.

 

Thank you for your continued faithful prayers for us and the Gypsies in Mosnita! We are blessed to have you as helpers in the work here!

In His service,

Jonathan, Kristy, and Cory

Jonathan and Kristy's August Prayer Letter

NEXT GENERATION PREPARATION

„But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty;” I Corinthians 1:27

 

August brought lots of changes to our lives! Welcoming a new member to our family was a thrill, and we are taking on the challenges of figuring everything out and trying to keep up with all of our responsibilities. We praise the Lord that we were able to talk to some of the nurses at the hospital about Him. Kristy has been having many aches and pains associated with the happy event, and we would ask you to pray for her healing, and for sufficient rest and strength for us. The ladies in our ministry like to “ooh” and “ahh” over Cory (when they’re not giving their parenting opinions and advice), and we are looking forward to ministry opportunities that having a child will bring. It is a custom here to spit on babies. Fortunately, most of the time, it is just a pretend spit, and we do hope it stays that way. :o)

 

Getting Cory’s Romanian birth certificate was quite a trip . . . . well, several trips to the Civil Status office in the city. First of all, the document the hospital gave us to get the birth certificate had listed Cory as a girl. Thankfully, I went back to the hospital and got that resolved on the spot. Then, they didn’t like the look of our marriage certificate. It looked different than other American marriage certificates they have dealt with, and they thought it would not be acceptable. I asked, “So, are we supposed to get married again?” They said to leave a copy of the translated certificate with them, and they would send it to the “higher-ups” to see if it was acceptable. After a few days when I went back in, they hadn’t heard anything. So, I just left all the necessary documents there, and they said that if everything was fine, I could pick up the birth certificate on August 27^th. Praise the Lord, everything was fine and I picked it up!Please pray that the Lord would work out all the details for us to go to Bucharest to get Cory’s American certificate of birth abroad and passport. Also, after that, we will need to get him a Romanian residence permit. Paperwork in Romania is not fun, but it is much better if the people we deal with are friendly. This is a big prayer request!

 

During one of the children’s classes, some boys came who are normally badly-behaved. Amazingly, they were very good! They were very cute as they sang the songs and sat through the class. After a bit, several more children came in, and we had 16 all together. They were pretty good too. For another class, the kids were kind of bad, but a few paid attention, even ones that normally don’t. Thank you for your prayers for them! It is fun to watch the children’s looks of wonder as they look at Cory. :o) We pray that soon, many of them will look to Jesus and be saved. We are planning to have a VBS for the children in September. Please be praying that the Lord would guide us as we finish preparing for it, and that He would work in hearts and be glorified through all that’s done.

 

Some teens have been coming off and on. Rebeca came Sunday, and Gugu (whose real name is Nelu [Nellu]) and Ionel (Yone-ell) have come as well. It is a real struggle for these teens in the Gypsy neighborhood to live for the Lord. Please keep them in your prayers.

 

The other day, I asked Casi (Cossy), an unsaved 18-year-old boy, to come and cut down a bunch of weeds behind our house. He does this as a business, and it was good to be able to spend some time with him too. After he finished, we talked for quite a while. The conversation was mostly about everyday things, but it was good to strengthen our relationship, and we pray for Casi’s salvation.

 

I turned 30 years old today (August 31^st), and am very grateful for the blessings the Lord has given me.Sunday, at the beginning of the children’s class, there were just a few boys there, and it warmed my heart to hear them sing “Happy Birthday” to me in Romanian.

 

Thank you for faithfully praying for us, and for your support! You are an encouragement to us!

 

In His service,

Jonathan and Kristy Heisey (and Cory too)

Baby!!

We welcomed Cory Dwight Heisey into our arms on Sunday, August 2 at 7:25 p.m! He was 20 inches long and weighed 6 pounds 7 ounces. We are so grateful that the Lord provided a private room for Kristy at the hospital. Kristy had some extra bleeding, but the doctor got it taken care of quickly. Thank you so much for your prayers! We are working on feedings, and hope to get into a routine soon. We would appreciate your prayers for us as we get all the official paperwork for him, and get things ready to go to the embassy in Bucharest for his American birth certificate and passport. Thank you for rejoicing with us for our little bundle of sweetness!

Jonathan, Kristy, and Cory

Jonathan and Kristy's July Prayer Letter

NEXT GENERATION PREPARATION

„But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty;” I Corinthians 1:27

We are very grateful for your prayers for us this month. We truly believe God works through your prayers! July was full of busy times, ministering, completing the finishing touches on our hall and baby’s room, unpacking and washing baby things, and trying to get everything ready for our little boy’s arrival. Although there were several delays and things that slowed us down on the house work, we praise the Lord that we were able to finish the hall and baby’s room before his arrival. :o) Everyone at church, and even our neighbors, are excited about the birth of our child. He is due August 5th, so we are expecting him to come any day! Please pray for an uncomplicated birth, and for Kristy to get a private room and be able to have the baby room-in with her the whole time.

Ion (Yone) is still admitted to the hospital, but should be getting out soon. He is doing some treatments there for a spot on his lungs. The Lord is working in his life and calling him to salvation. We don’t know why Ion keeps waiting. Please pray for him!

Adi (Oddy), came to one of the services the other week. His unsaved wife, Lusi (Lucy) has been coming sometimes too. My dad was able to talk to her specifically about her salvation. She is certainly thinking. Please pray that she will get saved.

For one of our services, a lot of children came, and they were not being well-behaved. They kept disrupting things and messing with the cars. Thankfully, this doesn’t happen every week, but it is frustrating having to have someone stand guarding things outside, instead of being able to participate in the church service. We would appreciate your prayers about this situation. For another service, the children were very good! :o)

A couple that was living next to the church building came to our services a few times. The woman, Ica (Eek-ah), showed particular interest, staying until the end of the services. After talking about salvation with my parents during a visit, she received Christ as her personal Savior! This couple just moved back to her village, but she said there is a church there that she would like to go to. Please pray for Ica’s spiritual growth.

A few teens have been coming to the teen classes, so that’s a blessing. Rebeca comes occasionally, although she sometimes seems to have an attitude. Please pray that she will grow in the Lord. Romica (Roam-eeka), the son of Alina (Ah-leena) who recently got saved, came to one of the teen classes. He paid attention very well, and seemed to want to learn. Alina has been growing spiritually and has also expressed interest in learning to read. We are hoping to start classes with her after the baby comes.

Please continue to pray for Alin (Ah-leen), Mariana’s saved son who is not living for the Lord. His new wife is only 14. :o(

We asked prayer for Radu (Roddu), one of the drunks in the Gypsy neighborhood. The other week, he got bit by a dog, and his leg was bleeding badly. I let him use my phone to call an ambulance. Although the ambulance didn’t want to come to the Gypsy neighborhood, Radu seemed to appreciate my help. It would be a great testimony if he would get saved and live for the Lord! Please pray for Radu.

We can’t thank you enough for your prayers and support for us and our ministries. Thank you for the encouragement you are to us!

In His service,
Jonathan and Kristy Heisey
P.S. Enjoy the before and after pictures of the hall and baby's room. :o)

Jonathan and Kristy's June Prayer Letter

NEXT GENERATION PREPARATION

„But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty;” I Corinthians 1:27

 

We are so thankful to you for your prayers for us as we serve the Lord here in Romania. June was an eventful month, and we praise the Lord for the way He is working!

 

The last few English classes at Casa Rafa were full of anxious children, seemingly restless for school to be finished and summer vacation to start. They were glad to have us back though, and we enjoyed our times with them.

 

Reading classes have been put on hold for a few weeks, as Ion (Yone), our main student, has been admitted to the hospital. He has been feeling OK, but they want to do some testing and get some papers together for him so he can get disability. He is not sure how long this will take, but he does still get to some of the church services. Several days ago, he said that a Christian man came to talk to him about the Lord at the hospital. This man had spoken at the funeral of one of the ladies in our church. Ion has been hearing the Gospel much, and we ask you to please pray that he will receive Christ as his Savior.

 

Adi (Oddy), the young man who recently got saved, was in Germany for a few weeks. He is now back, but has not been to church. Please pray for his spiritual growth, and that he will come to church faithfully.

 

Sometimes the children in the children’s classes at church can be so different from one week to the next! The one week, they were excellent, they paid attention, they knew answers to the review questions, and said memory verses at the end. :o) Other weeks, someone has to stay outside the church building and try to keep children from disrupting the services and messing with the cars. Often the children who come to the classes seem to be in their own world, and leave within five minutes of coming. Please pray for us to have wisdom, patience, and love as we try to reach them with the truths of God’s Word.

 

It was a wonderful blessing to have two men from our sending church come and help us with some house projects, as well as some church building repairs! With the baby due in just one month, we are trying to get the house ready for his arrival. We are so grateful for these men and the sacrifices they made, for their hard work, and for all that was accomplished. Their fellowship was a breath of fresh air. There are still a few things to be done, such as painting and putting flooring in the baby’s room, but the bulk of the work is done.

 

Speaking of the baby, he is doing fine. Kristy is uncomfortable at times, but is doing well also. At our last doctor’s appointment, the ultrasound showed that the cord is wrapped around his neck twice. This could be a problem, but many babies are born this way just fine. He will be monitored during the labor, so steps can be taken if there happen to be any problems. Please do pray that the rest of the pregnancy and the birth will go well, and that mother and baby will be healthy!

 

We had lots of ladies and girls come to the ladies meeting at the church a couple weeks ago. There were games, crafts, and a lesson from God’s Word. Alina (Ah-leena), one of the ladies that came, also came to church the next service. God was working in her heart, and she put her trust in Jesus as her Savior! Please be praying for her spiritual growth.

 

Mariana’s saved son, Alin (Ah-leen), who has not been living for the Lord, ran off with one of the young teen girls in the village. They have since gotten married (not legally, but according to Gypsy custom), and are living with Mariana. Sin always seems to complicate things and cause problems. Please be in prayer for them.

 

It has been difficult to get the teens to come to church, but a few have been coming. Gugu, the young man who had the brain tumor, came to one of the services recently. I have had several opportunities to talk to him as well. Please pray that the teens will come to the services, especially those that are saved, and that more will receive God’s gift of salvation.

 

We can’t thank you enough for your prayers for us and our ministries. Thank you for the encouragement you are to us!

 

In His service,

Jonathan and Kristy Heisey

Jonathan and Kristy's May Prayer Letter

NEXT GENERATION PREPARATION

„But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty;” I Corinthians 1:27

May was a full month with lots of events and happenings. We are rejoicing in all that the Lord is doing!

The beginning of May saw our last few days in the States. We spent our last Sunday at Ambassador Baptist Church, where Kristy’s father is the pastor. Marissa, Kristy’s sister, had her graduation that day also, and it was nice that we could be a part of that. It was not so fun to say all of our goodbyes to friends and family, but we are blessed to have spent the time with them.

We praise the Lord for giving us a good trip home to Romania with uneventful flights. We even got our gluten-free meals this time! :o)

Everyone was very happy to have us back home, and that is a blessing. :o) The services are going well, and we enjoy our times with our Gypsies, answering their questions, having fellowship, and discipling them. We also had the opportunity to take care of the services while my parents were away for a few days.

Mariana informed us of a recent incident where one of the young men in the village was drunk and smashed another family’s window with a bottle. Alina, the mother that lives there, was inside the house, and the glass hit her head. She was bleeding badly. Several people called for an ambulance, and after a bit, the police came. The ambulance took about 1 1/2 hours to come. The hospital gets prank calls a lot from that area, so they were reluctant to come. In the meantime, Alina almost bled to death. The young man was taken to the police station, and they basically told him to be good, and that was that. The police in Mosnita (Moesh-neetsa) are very corrupt. Thankfully, Alina seems to be doing well now. Mariana also told us that Gicu (Jee-cu), the “man/boyfriend” her daughter Lili (Lilly) lives with, got drunk and beat up Lili and broke the windows in their house. These are the types of things that are happening in this Gypsy neighborhood, and it breaks our hearts. Please pray with us that God would work in their hearts, and that they will turn to Him and be saved.

During one of the children’s classes, there were around 15 children. Ion (Yone) felt the need to come in and help keep the kids in line. They were very well-behaved, and Ion seemed to enjoy the lesson too. :o) Please continue to pray for Ion’s salvation.

After we got back home, Kristy had a doctor’s appointment and everything is going well with the baby. We hope to tour the hospital soon and go over our birth plan with the doctor. Please pray with us that we will get a private room at the hospital. This would allow the baby to sleep in the room with Kristy at night, and I could probably stay with Kristy as well. We don’t feel right about leaving the baby in a nursery for the night, so we are trusting the Lord to provide.

We are looking forward to the coming of a missionary from our sending church. The Davis family has a ministry helping pastors and missionaries with construction projects. Terry Davis will be coming in two weeks, Lord-willing, to help us with a project in the teens’ room at church, and to finish our hall and baby’s room. Please pray that the Lord will continue to provide for all the materials, help, and strength to accomplish this work.

Radu (Roddu), a man from the Gypsy neighborhood who is drunk most of the time, came to church the other night after the service was over. He wanted us to sing a song, and asked my dad to pray for him that he won’t be so sinful. It would be a great testimony to the village if he got saved and would live for the Lord! Please pray for Radu to get saved.

A couple weeks ago, there was a special youth night at the Tylers’ church. Alin (Ah-leen), Mariana’s saved son who hasn’t been coming to church for years, came with us along with a few other teens. The speaker had an excellent message about Hophni, Phinehas, and Samuel, and the importance of serving the Lord. Our teens really enjoyed it. They came with us to that Sunday service at the Tylers’ church to hear the special speaker again. I wish they would come faithfully to our services! Please pray that the Lord would work in the hearts of the young people in Mosnita, that those who are saved would live for Him, and that many more would be saved.

This past Sunday, Gina told us that her mother, who lives a bit of a distance away, received Christ as her Savior! We had been praying for this for some time, and are rejoicing for this answer to prayer! Gina’s son Adi (Oddy), who recently got saved, has not been to church much. He had gone to a Pentecostal church, and told Gina that he doesn’t like how things are done there, and doesn’t want to go there anymore. We pray that he will come faithfully to the services and grow in Christ.

Thank you for allowing us to share our burdens, blessings, and ministry with you, and for taking the time to pray for us and our Gypsies. You may never know until heaven how great of an impact your part in this ministry is!

Serving the Lord,
Jonathan and Kristy Heisey

Jonathan and Kristy's April Prayer Letter

NEXT GENERATION PREPARATION

„But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty;” I Corinthians 1:27

 

What a busy month April has been! With meetings, a wedding, traveling, spending time with family and friends, and different activities, it kind of felt like a whirlwind.

 

First of all, we are very grateful that the Lord provided a vehicle for us to use while we are here in the US. We were able to use one of Kristy’s parents’ cars, and I’m afraid we’ve put quite a few miles on it. :o)

 

The beginning of April, we began our journey to Rhode Island to be with one of our supporting churches for Easter Sunday. We took two days to get there, as the traveling really wears on us both. It was good to finally meet Pastor Stricklin and the people at Narragansett Bay Baptist Church in Rhode Island. They supported Kristy for several years, and continued to support us after we got married; but this was my first opportunity to meet them. We had a blessed time with them. Easter Sunday evening found us at Lakes Pond Baptist Church in Connecticut. The pastor, Douglas Meader, was in Romania for a couple weeks with some men from his church in 2012, and it was good to see them again. We presented our ministry there, and Pastor Meader and I enjoyed sharing what it’s like in Romania with the Gypsies. The Lord blessed us with some wonderful fellowship.

On April 10^th, we again left Pittsburgh to go to a supporting church in Iowa. My cousin, who lives in Michigan with her husband, invited us to stay with them overnight on our way to Iowa. What a fun time we had re-connecting with family!

Liberty Baptist Church in Iowa had us join them on April 12^th for their services. This is another church that supported Kristy before we got married, and I had never met them. It is a breath of fresh air to meet pastors and churches who are faithfully serving the Lord and standing firm on His Word. It was a wonderful blessing to be with them and to be able to share the ministry God has called us to do.

From Iowa, we traveled to Wisconsin to help get things ready for Kristy’s sister, Rhonda’s, wedding. This meant several days of morning to evening busyness! But the wedding on April 18^th was beautiful. It was a wild week, but it was worth it.

Although these busy times have been a bit tiring, we are thankful that Kristy and the baby are doing well. Praise the Lord for His strength when ours isn’t enough! Thank you for your prayers for our health.

Last Sunday, we presented our ministry at Ambassador Baptist Church in Pittsburgh, where Kristy’s father is the pastor. Ambassador has a prophet’s chamber that we have been staying in for most of our time in the US, and it has been a huge blessing. We have greatly enjoyed the hours spent with Kristy’s family and the church family here.

Our last meeting was at Sewickly Lighthouse Baptist Church, about half an hour from where we’re staying. Pastor Gelfand and his people were a blessing to us as I preached and told them about our ministry in Romania.

With less than a week left before we head back home, we would appreciate your prayers for us as we pack up our things and say our goodbyes. Those are never fun. But we are looking forward to going home on May 6^th and being with our Gypsies. Please pray for safety and good travels.

We can’t thank you enough for your prayers for us during our time in the States, as well as for our ministries while we are away. Thank you for the encouragement you are to us!

In His service,

Jonathan and Kristy Heisey