PRAYER UPDATE  August 2016  Romania

Dear Prayer Partners,

Once again too much time has passed since I last wrote a PRAYER UPDATE.  At the first of the year, I was finishing 3 months in Israel.  Messiah Yeshua was my helper.  I am thankful for so many opportunities to witness there and to fellowship with believers.  I visited several churches.  In Jan., in Jerusalem, finances were provided for 7 implants in my upper gum.  I pray to return to Israel in early Nov. 2016 to complete these implants.  Then in Feb. 2017, I plan to return to RO to complete the 1 implant I received there in 2015.  Just as I got settled in France in Feb., I went for 2 weeks to RO and then 3 weeks in Crete.  I ministered in the Independent Baptist Church of Cluj, RO and taught on fasting.  The pastor is Benjamin Lairu.  His wife, Laura, is my dentist.  She put in an implant on my lower jaw in 2015.  I had a 3 day conference in the Mioveni church.  It was planned that we would not eat for the 3 days.  I delivered 2 messages a day on fasting.  The time was blessed.  It is planned for Feb. 6-12, 2017 that we will have a 7 day conference with no food.  The inspiration for a 3-day conference with no food came as I taught Is 58 in the Mioveni camp in Aug. 2015.  I taught on Matt 15:32 where Jesus had a 3 day conference with no food.

I had not been 5 years in Crete, so the time came to return.  Pastor Soritis Karalis said no one had ever contacted him as a response to literature distributed with his phone number on it.  There were 2 calls from my distribution.  There are new people in the church, so I was glad to meet them.  I stayed with Sotiris during my extended fasts on Crete, 1988-2005.  How I miss the long fasts.  I was blessed to return to Crete, and I probably will return in 2017 from RO.

I am always happy to return to France. Here is my home church with its Wed. morning prayer meetings. I enjoy the Wed. night service held in Frantz Norbert’s house not too far from my apartment. Frantz is originally from Martinique, FR. He is a great help to me. Br. Zo from Madagascar is our Wed. eve teacher.  The pastor is Leon Mondesire who helps me with my Power Point presentations. Every place I go I receive help. God will never forsake His own. Heb13:5

My 2 suppliers of Biblical posters for France have ceased printing posters.  I ordered about 1000 from IMEAF, a Christian printer in FR.  I am spending less time in France where I have 3 special burdens: reaching Jews and putting up Christian posters and distributing tracts.  In 22 years of postering in FR, I recall in only one city finding Christian posters on the free poster boards.  Before the summer tour to Romania, I took the tour in France & one night in Switzerland-CH.  In CH, I met Pastor Hans & Syvie Rufenact.  His church helps me financially for my summer tour.  On this tour in FR, I put up posters in several cities in FR.  I visited retired pastor Kurt & Mireille Ruegger in Montellimar.  IMEAF is nearby.   In Orleans, FR, I enjoyed catching up to Walter & Marry Christine Streiff and their pastor Louis-Marie & Aurelir Lemofac .  This is an evangelistic church.  It is a blessing to hand out tracts in my town and especially the Muslim women take.  I think they are Muslims born in France.  I continue to eat at the subsidized lunch of my city which gives me contact with the French people and language.  I went into Paris and gave out tracts.  Br. Guy Brami, who lives in Paris, is a FR Jew saved in Israel around 1972, and has an apartment near the beach in Normandy in Caburg.  This is in the area of the June 6, 1944 invasion by the Allies.  Guy encourages me to go there before my summer tour.  I enjoyed being there this year and I was able to give out tracts and visit the Ind. Baptist Church in Bayeux, FR, pastor Eric & Eliane Hossac.  I gave a sermon there.  Being in the area and visiting some of the remembrances of WW 11 is inspiring. We are in a spiritual war and we are soldiers of Jesus Christ.  In 2 Tim 2:3-4 Paul calls us to be good soldiers of Jesus Christ.  Paul in 11 Cor 10:4-5 tells us our weapons are not carnal but spiritual.

I was the month of June 2016 in the USA.  I visited 4 churches between Tulsa, OK & Chattanooga, TN, and 1 church in Addison, IL.  I was due to visit a supporting church in Cleveland, AR, but the day before the meeting the pastor died.  I attended my Mom’s brother’s funeral in their hometown, Glen Ellyn, IL.  David V. Miller died at age 96.  I am thankful for yet another chance to see my Uncle Dave’s 2 daughters, Nancy & Ginger, and their husbands.  My Aunt Marianne Miller is still alive.  My brother & sister came.  While in the Chicago area, we visited also the graves on my father’s side.  We visited also Coralie Williams, Uncle Bob Bentley’s daughter.  Bob died at age 91.

I started a month late for the summer tour.  I am thankful for yet another visit in Germany.  I had 3 nights in Austria and tracts were distributed.  In Germany & Austria-A I received things to distribute on my summer tour.  My Saturday at the synagogue in Budapest, HU was different this time.  It was complicated by rain.  But I had opportunity to offer literature to 3 individual Jews and to 3 groups.  No literature was taken.  I felt the meetings with the Jews was preplanned by Jesus Christ so I am thankful for the hours spent in the old Jewish area of Budapest.  During WW 11, it was the Jewish Ghetto.

I am thankful for 2 meetings in Independent Baptist churches in Beius, RO & Hunedora, RO.  The week camp with the Mioveni church was again a blessing.  We were about 45.  After 15 plus or minus years, I finished the book of Isaiah.  I was blessed in the preparation and delivery of the messages.  I leave the results with Christ.  Apparently next year it will be The Life of Christ.  I will go to Bucharest, RO on Aug. 16 then to Bulgaria ono Aug. 25.  I will have a short visit in Greece then a meeting in Sofia, BG Sept. 4.  Then I will begin the trip back to France.  I delivered one load of 380 kgs. potatoes in RO already & I will pick up 500 kgs. in Sept.  On the return trip, I will visit HU, Crotia-HR, Slovenia-SLO, Italy-IT, A.  Greetings from the churches I visited.  11 Cor 13:11

Your prayers & financial offerings are appreciated,

Michael Bentley 

Isaiah 62:1  My concern for Jerusalem.