Dear brothers and sisters,
We hope you are doing well! Thank you for taking the time to read our newsletter. It is a great honor to share with you what God is doing in Serbia. Please leave some comments and blessings in the comments section, we would be glad to read them and reply!
Ministry Updates
We are officially members of the church in Bačka Palanka and we are very excited to see how God is going to use us here. We are also part of the ministry called Duhovna Biblioteka (Spiritual Library), this ministry is focused on printing, translation, and distribution of tracks and Christian books, as well as weekly evangelism. Stefan is in charge of all the media and design for the ministry at this point. Also, He is in charge of communication with the public.
Stefan had the opportunity to preach in our church on the Thursday service that happens every Thursday. We are also leading the worship in the church and will start teaching and including our youth to play instruments in the worship time of the service.
Another ministry that Stefan is part of in the Church is more connected to Spiritual Library but is happening during the church services. It is a ministry with multimedia. More precisely, recording Sermons and posting them on Youtube.
Biblical Counseling Seminars
We were able to welcome, at the end of April, a pastor from the US that has a master’s in biblical counseling. He gave daily intensive training in different churches to pastors and members of the churches and was able to preach in two churches as well. It was a blessed time when he could encourage and equip even more of our fellow believers.
Stefan’s parents hosted and took care of him since they live closer to more churches that he was going to visit and it was a true blessing for them. We spoke to them after his departure, and they really loved the time they got to spend with him, and are looking forward to next year when we are planning something even bigger with him.
For next year, we are hoping to make a conference about Marriage and Family. Serbian believers really need that. Many churches do not talk about what a Biblical Marriage and Family looks like and we are hoping that this can be the start of something big that God will be doing in Serbia.
Sofia has arrived
We would like to officially announce the birth of our precious daughter Sofia. She was born on May 20th to complete our family even more.
Sofia is already growing and has changed a lot! It was an amazing experience for Stefan to be present with me during the labor and praise the Lord I am almost fully recovered.
We want to thank everyone who prayed for us and showed us love!
Podcast in Serbia
For a long time, Stefan has been dreaming of an opportunity to have a group of people that are willing to start a good Christian podcast that will produce sound teaching, quality Christian material, short answers to tough questions in Christianity, and much more.
This dream has finally happened with a group of people that are theologically educated and had the same desire for a long time. There are very few people that create any kind of Christian content in Serbia and Christian content in this world is very important.
Now there are people, but we still need good equipment to start this podcast the right way. Things we need are: Camera, Microphones, cables, lights, and some other minor equipment.
How can you help with this project?
First and foremost, we need prayer. Pray that God will give us wisdom, humility, time, devotion, and the correct mindset.
Secondly, we need financial support. This project is costly, and we cannot finance everything alone. Please consider giving to this ministry because it will be useful to reach not just the Christian community, but also the non-Christian community through social media. This will all be part of Spiritual Library and will serve to reach non-believers with the Gospel of Christ.
The information on how to give is on the button at the end of the newsletter, send with a message that the support is for the podcast. If you would like to know more information on how you may help, please contact us through email.
Possibilities for Master’s Degree
One of the major events in our life is also the next step in Stefan’s theological education. At the moment, Stefan is finishing his Bachelours degree but hopes to be able to study and get a master’s degree as well. There are many possibilities but most of them require us to have enough support to be able to be full-time in the ministry so that we can focus also on Studying. Right now, that is not a possibility since we do not have enough support.
Please pray that God will provide wisdom and the right place for Stefan to study. If you would like to know more, please contact us through Stefan’s email or simply by responding to this email.
prayer requests
We are grateful for your prayers and for partnering with us in our ministry. Here are our prayer requests:
Praise: The delivery went well and Sofia is healthy.
- Our Ministry – keep praying for our ministry and that God can use us for His glory in this ministry.
- Parenting Journey – pray for us as we start this parenting journey with Sofia, that God will give us wisdom and that we will teach her always in the Lord`s way.
- Language learning – pray for Mari as she is learning Serbian.
- Support Raising – pray that God will continue to provide for us. We continue in the process of raising support so that we can work full-time in the ministry. Pray as well if God is putting on your heart to be partners with us in this ministry. Stefan has to work on the side to be able to support our financial needs, but we pray that in the future we will have enough support to go full-time ministry as we continue to give all our needs before the Lord!
- Auto-immune Disease – as you know Stefan has a chronicle disease called Ulcerative Colitis, there is no cure but it can be controlled. He had some exam results that came high so the doctor had to readjust his medication. Pray that the medication will keep it dormant for the rest of his life and that he won’t have big problems with that in the future.
Thank you for taking the time to read our newsletter. We are very thankful for all of you amazing people who encourage us and pray for us!
Please let us know how we can be praying for you!
God bless,
Stefan and Mariana Vika.
Hello Dear Ones!
It’s so good to hear how God is using you to minister in Serbia.
Congratulations on becoming a Dad and Mom!!! You have a precious treasure from God to teach to walk in the way and truth of God.
So glad Stefan to see you continuing to minister to your people. I’m praying God will give you His wisdom and insight to the direction He wants you to go. Be patient to wait on the Holy Spirit to lead you.
Praise the Lord that everything went well during the delivery and arrival of Sofia. I will be praying for your physical health and that the medication will be effective.
So sorry to hear your Grandpa passed away. I’m sure you miss him a lot. One day, you will see him again and it will be for eternity. This is our Hope.
I will be praying for your needs and that God will use you and your team in a Mighty way. Praying you move mountains!
Love you much,
Grandma
Congratulations on your new baby Sophia and your newsletter of how God is working in Serbia .I will be praying for your family in those areas .God bless Dennis