Gypsy Pastor Mareks Ignats shares the Gospel with Gypsy children in Tilza

By Maureen Blackmon and Paula Hewitt

    TILZA, Latvia – For some time we have been on a quest and have offered much prayer to understand the Gypsy culture better because we have a significant number of them at the boarding school which is a big part of our ministry outreach here in Tilza.

    An exciting answer came in April at the BBI/Partners-sponsored Prayer Days. There, two others on our team, and I met Mareks and Aija, a gypsy pastor and his Latvian wife. We sat for a long time with them,

asking our million question about his people and thoroughly enjoying their company. They were as enthusiastic about our ministry among gypsy kids as we were about theirs.

    God led them to bring another believing gypsy family and to travel clear across Latvia to join us in ministry at a special concert at the boarding school (end of May – with the whole school in attendance). They sang (in Latvian, Russian and gypsy/Roma languages), spoke about their own life lessons and shared the real differences God makes in their lives. It seemed to go over well and the gypsy kids especially enjoyed the special attention.

   

Our Tilza team experienced again that sense that we are becoming increasingly a welcome part of life in this school. Praise God!

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    Maureen Blackmon is a missionary to Latvia with Greater Europe Mission, She and he husband, Wes, specifically live and serve in Tilza.

    Paula Hewitt, who also lives and serves in Tilza, is a missionary to Latvia with Bridge Builders International, in partnership with her home church, Calvin Presbyterian Church, Corvallis, Oregon.

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