Dear friend,

Thank you for your partnership with Mark and I through the work we are doing at Cru. This month, all eyes have been on Ukraine. Our hearts break as we hear about what’s going on there and think of the people caught up in war. 

The International School Project has strong teachers’ movements in both Ukraine and Russia. Other Cru ministries also work in both countries. Below are updates from teachers and leaders in Ukraine and the surrounding countries. These will give you a sense of their situation. Please join us in praying for them.

Natalie, a teacher in Ternopil, Ukraine: Thanks for your prayers. We are scared, but we are strong. We all pray together and believe God will hear our prayers. Pray for us, for the soldiers, the children, for our internal peace and PEACE. (Ephesians 3:20)

Oleg and Galina, ISP’s coordinators in Ukraine: Besides their routine duties, [teachers] are helping our army and thousands of refugees. Our teachers pray daily, encouraging one another. (Psalm 121:1-2)

Sergey, Teachers’ Ministry director in Ukraine: Thank God we are alive, our children are and also our staff. We have temporarily moved closer to western Ukraine, where Dina’s parents live. However, we have 9 people from Kiev who are not yet believers living in our dacha 60 km outside of Kiev. Pray for unbelievers to come to Christ as Christians welcome them into their homes. (1 Peter 4:10-11)

Ala, a teacher in Kamyanets-Podilsky, Ukraine: It’s relatively quiet in my part of the country. The city and surrounding villages are accepting refugees and we are accommodating them in the schools, including in my school. There was an air raid, so we had to hide in the basement. We as Christians are calm; and I believe that it is God who gives peace in order to comfort others who are afraid. (Joshua 1:8-9)

Staff members and teachers in Moldova:  We are receiving refugees and are working 24 hours a day to find shelter, food and clothing for them. We are exhausted.  Tomorrow, we will spend several hours with the women and children in one center and will be looking for opportunities to share with them. Pray for strength to care for the refugees and opportunities to present Christ. (Isaiah 41:10)

Over the next few weeks, when you hear news of the war in Ukraine, please pray for these Christ-followers and others, and for peace to return.

Also, please pray for our health. Mark’s eye surgery is scheduled for March 17 — pray for a successful surgery and a quick and full recovery. I’m doing physical therapy to help solve my arm and shoulder problems.

Thank you so much for the valuable part you play in our lives. We’re grateful for your prayers and gifts.

Sincerely in Christ, Anne Marie, for the Winz family

Last Spring, 900 people live streamed the first Created For event to help them follow Jesus more closely. This year, I’m helping prepare for a second event in the series. They are sponsored by the City ministry of Cru.  

This event will help people discover the influence God has created them to make in the world, and to help them live out that influence through life’s challenges. Nine Christian leaders will speak for nine minutes each on the theme of Being while Becoming. The speakers will help followers of Jesus explore who God created them to be, the desire we all have to belong, and who we and our world could become.

In my new role as a communications team project manager, I meet with the nine people working to promote the event. During the meetings, we decide what needs to happen and who will do each task. Then, I set out a timeline and assign those tasks to each person. 

People on the team already have, or soon will, design a website, create and place advertisements like the one above, promote the event through social media (like Instagram, Twitter and others), and promote the event through email. We’ll start with the 900 people who attended last year and the more than 2,000 people who’ve contacted the City ministry in some way. And we’ll ask those people to invite their friends and coworkers to join.

You can sign up at cru.org/createdfor.

As you think of us in late February and March, please pray about these things.

• Ask God to draw the right people to tune into Created For, and for each person to grow in their faith.  
• Pray for both of us as we work through some medical issues. I’m preparing for eye surgery next month. Anne Marie is working on hand and arm strength — what we thought was carpal tunnel syndrome may be something different. We’re waiting to find out more.    

Thank you so much for praying for us.

Sincerely in Christ,

— Mark, for the Winz family

I just passed a test by getting a negative result. Yes, it was an at-home COVID-19 test. Anne Marie and I are being extra careful this week as we plan to host a friend in our home later this week. She’s visiting to train our writers team in editing.

The reason for this training is a significant change in the work that the writers do. Over the next few months, our team members will take on more editing work. They’ll all still write articles, and will also edit writing by Cru staff members from around the world. Many Cru staff members whose primary work involves evangelism and discipleship want to write about how God is working in their lives and ministries. Our team will help them get those articles published. 

Along with this, my role will change as of February 1. I’ll continue as the managing editor of Cru Storylines while adding a new role. As managing editor, I help our editor in chief by identifying the steps needed to complete each issue, set out a timeline, and then help assign work to get each issue done. Each story goes through about 50 steps from planning through publishing.

Now, I’ll serve as one of the project managers for the whole communications team at Cru’s headquarters. Based on my experience and strengths, we realized that I can help plan a wide variety of evangelism and discipleship communications products. I’ll help team leaders do what I’ve been doing for our digital magazine — identify the steps needed, plan a timeline and assign work to team members.

In order to fit this into my workload, I’ll pass the role of leading the writers team on to someone else. Melissa, one of our current writers, will take on that role moving forward.

As you think of us over the next few weeks, please pray these things.

• Ask God to keep us healthy as we interact with people at this week’s training, in our offices, at church and in other places.
• Pray for my adjustment to my new role, and that I’ll help with a wider variety of communications projects. 
• Pray for Anne Marie as her team continues to help teachers around the world share the gospel and build disciples.   

Thanks for your prayers and generosity.

Sincerely in Christ, Mark — for the Winz family

Although she didn’t study education, Melina Perez and her husband, Joel, teach at a private Christian academy. They are tasked with promoting the spiritual growth of students and teachers.

Last week, as part of my work with the International School Project, I interviewed Melina to hear more about how God is at work in her life in Quito, Ecuador.

“We always wanted to teach,” said Melina, who volunteers with ISP. “Unfortunately, I didn’t study to be a teacher, but it was my dream.”

So, when Melina heard about ISP, she was immediately interested in learning how ISP could help their students and faculty. “ISP has been equipping me with tools to work in the school with teachers,” she says.

Melina attended her first ISP conference in August 2019 when she served as a translator/interpreter. Since then, she has been a speaker for ISP events discussing topics such as trauma healing, and a facilitator for two online conferences.

I get excited when I see how teachers around the world, like Melina, are trusting God to multiply their influence and their opportunities to share the gospel with their peers and in their classrooms.

On a personal note, I recently showed a sample of my writing to an experienced author. It contained devotions I had written for our church community during the pandemic. He offered helpful feedback, and then he invited me to write a book.

If I can finish before Christmas, he will show it to editors at a Christian book publisher. No promises, but what an amazing opportunity. Please pray for me to be filled with the Holy Spirit as I plan and as I write.

Thank you so much for the valuable part you play in our lives. We’re grateful for your prayers and gifts.

Sincerely in Christ, Anne Marie, for the Winz family

In my early teens, I crept through the woods along a narrow river trying to keep a group of other boys in sight. I tried to keep quiet so they wouldn’t find me. I failed. But my attempt was sufficient to get an older Boy Scout’s initials in my Scout handbook. I was completing the tracking/trailing requirement that was then a badge requirement.

I hadn’t thought about that sneaky walk for several years. But when I was in Nebraska earlier this month, I recalled it as my dad and I looked down from the dam that turns the Republican River into a manageable flow. As we drove across the dam, we talked and recalled fishing trips and our family’s one attempt at camping in a tent. (Attempt, as Dad reminded me that my mom ended up sleeping in the car.) 

Dad reminisced as we drove through South-Central Nebraska. We stopped at my cousin’s farm and talked with his family.  We drove by the area where Dad’s family lived before he was born, to a small town where he started school, and through another small town where he graduated from high school. He still brags that he was third in his class, then smirks and reveals that his class had only three seniors.

Due to COVID-19 guidelines where he lives, we couldn’t go inside restaurants. Instead, we used the Runza drive-through. (For those of you not from Nebraska, that’s a fast-food chain with only six sites outside the state.) Dad favored chocolate shakes and fries, something he doesn’t usually get. We ate three meals in the parks in my hometown.

Around times of reminiscing with Dad, I connected with about a dozen friends in Nebraska. Thanks for praying for my trip. And thanks for praying for Anne Marie as she took part in a writers conference. She had a great time, and she has a fun opportunity before her. She’ll tell you more in our next letter.  

In the meantime, we’re getting ready for another trip. During the COVID-19 “shutdowns,” Anne Marie’s nephew got married. Now, at last, we’re planning to celebrate as a family. Anne Marie’s four sisters and brother plus some of their children will be there. During the next week, would you pray for all of us to stay safe and healthy as we travel for this family gathering?

Starting next week, we’ll finally feel fully back into life and work in Orlando. Would you pray for both of us as we continue to play leadership roles on our teams? Anne Marie’s director is on maternity leave. Pray for Anne Marie and the team as they re-organize their work after doing a digital upgrade. I continue to lead the writers working on Cru Storylines. Several stories that we’d begun working on for upcoming issues didn’t work out. Pray that we can find the right stories to inspire our readers to follow Christ closely and to share the gospel with people around them.

Thanks for your prayers and generosity.

— Mark, for the Winz family

I spent most of the week before last editing a group of webpages. It was a sad task, as I had to tell some Cru staff members that they must continue limiting ministry activities because of COVID-19.

Since last March, I’ve been the primary writer for Cru’s COVID-19 crisis team. Initially, we sent a weekly email to all U.S. staff members informing them about the changing situation. As things stabilized, we slowed the frequency. The 42^nd email went recently and I’m preparing the 43^rd.

As we informed staff members of the situation, we also put that information and even more onto web pages. The pages cover health, travel, facilities and meeting-size limits. At first, the tone was about closing things down. We added pages as needed, without an overall plan. We didn’t know from week to week what we would have to say next.  

Then, as we gained some increased freedom to meet and interact with people, the tone changed to “reengaging” with ministry activities. In June, I was hopeful that the day might come when we could remove all of those pages. But as cases continue arise in some places, we had to make a sad decision.

We decided to change the tone to continuing a ministry in a world that contains COVID-19, and that likely will for the foreseeable future. It gave me a chance to review the whole set of pages and to organize and update them.

The virus still affects us daily. Neither Anne Marie nor I go to our offices every day. We’re cautious about visiting Anne Marie’s parents in nearby Clearwater. And we haven’t visited my dad since November 2019 (shown in the photo above). We’ve also avoided other travel.

As you think of us over the next few weeks, would you pray as we both plan to begin to travel once more? In early September, we both have travel plans, but we won’t be traveling together.

• I plan to go to Nebraska the first several days of September to visit my dad and other people we haven’t seen for such a long time. Please pray for good health for me, my dad, and everyone I’ll visit. And pray that there won’t be too many limits on my visits with him due to restrictions in the place where he lives. 
• Anne Marie plans to take part in a writers conference in early September. Pray that she and all the participants will arrive in good health, and that everyone at the event will remain healthy. And pray that everyone there will leave inspired with better writing skills.

As always, we’re grateful for your generosity and prayers for us. And do let us know how we can pray for you.

— Mark, for the Winz family

Dorina, a television broadcast journalist in Albania, invited Djana, an International School Project staff member, onto one of the country’s most watched TV shows to discuss marriage and family life. Before the show, Djana explained her faith to Dorina and gave her a Christian book about marriage and family life.                       

Next, Djana invited Dorina to participate in the English camp   that the ministry organized every summer with teachers and other professionals. During the camp,

participants heard the gospel several times and were invited to accept Jesus.

Dorina hesitated, asking questions about faith like, “Why should we pray, when God knows everything?”

Dorina took part in the camp in 2019, then returned again in 2020 because she wanted to know God more. During the second camp, she prayed and received Christ into her life. She said, “I have discovered that when I pray, God changes me.”

Since then, Dorina has studied the Book of Romans with a group. She prays for opportunities to share her faith with other women.

She also prays for her husband and relatives to accept Jesus. And she regularly takes one of her colleagues to church, and she prays for and shares Jesus with that colleague. I enjoy telling stories about how God is working through the International School Project.

I also want to invite you to join a 30-minute webinar hosted by an ISP leader.  You’ll learn more about ISP’s techniques and how you can be salt and light to your peers. For more information, send an email to info@ISPonline.org

God is at work around the world. Thank you for the invaluable part you play in helping us tell these stories. Please continue to pray for us as we plan, collect and write stories like these to encourage the body of Christ.

—Anne Marie, for the Winzes  

At long last, our family was together the last week of May. We celebrated Christmas together in 2019, but by Easter of 2020, Anne Marie and I canceled a planned trip to visit Michael in Wisconsin.

On our Monday together, we celebrated all four birthdays with steaks on the grill and a berry-covered cake Bethany baked (below). Tuesday, we visited Anne Marie’s parents near Tampa. Friday was declared our Mothers and Fathers Days — the day started with Michael and Bethany making brunch.

It all brought to mind the days when our prayer letters regularly included updates about kids church events, dance recitals and track meets. We no longer update you about Michael and Bethany frequently, so here’s what they are doing now.

Michael continues in his fifth year working for a medical software company in Wisconsin. He likes life there and continues to run year-round and bike. With the fading of COIVD-19, he hopes to rejoin group runs and play ultimate frisbee. He also follows a local soccer team. 

Bethany works from home for a branding company, helping other companies represent themselves accurately to their clients and potential clients. She likes living in Tennessee and recently moved to a house with a large back yard. That’s great news for her two Samoyed dogs, Rhema and Glory (joining us, right).

Now that their visits are over, Anne Marie and I have moved on to planning our teams’ summers. Along with continuing writing and editing, those we supervise will have vacations, take classes and engage in other summer activities.

We’d appreciate your prayers for wisdom as we plan and lead our team through the season. We’re grateful for your generosity and prayers for us.

— Mark, for the Winz family

Last month, our team got some good news. After all the turmoil 2020 brought, the work we did was recognized by the Evangelical Press Association. Cru Storylines was declared the best digital publication that represents an organization. In addition, we won six awards for specific items — articles and photos — that we published.

One article, “When Telling Stories Goes Beyond the Campfire,” won two awards — for Feature Article (combining writing and photography) and for the best Controlled-Light Photo (shown above). Our photo team also won two other awards: ““Taking Sight and Salvation to El Salvador” (Photo Feature) and Best Use of Photography among all digital publications.

Two articles won awards for writing: “How a Trip Across the Street Led to Change Across the Globe” (Interview Article) and “Peace to the Far and Near: How God is Using Digital Ministry” (Evangelism Article). The last article was named the best one in that category. The judge said, “This is both an inspirational and practical article on how to be a fruitful Christ-follower through digital ministry. What’s more, there are links to additional resources for those who want to go deeper, as this article motivates readers to do so.”

The judge’s comments were a highlight for our team. We want every issue to show people how God is at work, and to motivate our readers to build disciples and introduce people to Jesus. And in 2020, we especially wanted to show how to do that digitally. 

Next, I’m helping edit an article for the July issue of Cru Storylines that will show how a new online tool from Cru is especially helping women grow in their faith.

Her.Bible is an online audio Bible narrated by women from many cultures and walks of life. Some women find it especially helpful if they come from traumatic backgrounds.

Becca, my coworker who wrote the story, interviewed one woman who was rescued from human trafficking. Because she’d been treated abusively by men, hearing an audio Bible in men’s voices was troubling. Another woman suffers from a learning disability that makes reading difficult. She’s found that the audio Bible helps her faith grow.      

As you think of us over the next few weeks, please pray that the work we both do will help people everywhere make disciples and follow Christ more closely. We’re grateful for your prayers and generosity.

— Mark, for the Winz family

Recently, I interviewed Elena, an English teacher in Moldova, a small country in Eastern Europe sandwiched between Romania and Ukraine. 

Last September, teachers in her city began teaching in person after being out of their classrooms since the spring due to COVID-19. Elena and six friends had formed an International School Project group, and they wanted to help.

They gave masks to teachers in schools across the city. The masks came with a bookmark, thanking teachers for their selfless work and inviting them to be part of a Facebook group. The teachers were grateful. Some even cried because they’d been remembered. 

When the virus surged, some schools shut down completely and others stayed open half-time. Educators who had never taught using video conferencing were told they must teach online. Some students didn’t have computers but might be able to follow along on a cell phone. 

In December, 20 teachers who wanted face-to-face contact attended an in-person ISP Christmas party. They wore masks and sat socially distanced from each other. At the party, Elena and her friends invited the teachers to a parenting class featuring ISP curriculum. 

Now, every morning at 8:15, Elena and other teachers gather in her classroom to pray for each other, their students, the school and their country. When I asked if they had seen anything happen as a result of prayer, she offered a modest answer. 

She told me while some schools across the city had completely shut down and others had moved to half-time in person instruction because of COVID-19, her school had remained open for the entire school year.

God is at work around the world through teachers, even during a pandemic. This month, please pray for me as I write Elena’s story for our upcoming newsletter.

Thank you for your prayers and generous gifts. You allow us to continue following the call God has placed on our lives. We’re so grateful. And please let us know how we can pray for you, too.

— Anne Marie —