Featured Missionaries

Florin & Magda Botar

MissioLink International - Romania

Supported Since 2001

Pastor Florin ministers as the only itinerant-style pastor in Brazesti, Ponorel and Sohodol, Romania. He works to plant new churches in other villages and holds multiple services on Sundays. He is also involved in ministry at two orphanages in Abrud and Brazesti together with Pastor Aurel Rodean.

Let’s Pray

Dear brothers and sisters of Grace Church, Normal, IL,

Sunday, September 27, was a special day for the Christian community in Ponorel, Alba, Romania.

Around 50 people, both believers and unbelievers, participated in this Thanksgiving celebration.

I led the prayer time from Psalm 103, blessing God for all the benefits and blessings that each of us has received up to this day. The greatest blessing of all is salvation through the sacrifice of our Lord Jesus.

Afterward, we had a time of praise through poems and songs presented by people from the local church, as well as by a group of singers invited from Gura Roșiei. Following this time of praise, Brother Horea Opruța shared a few thoughts of thanksgiving before God.

In the final part of the gathering, our special guest, Pastor Derege from Ethiopia, brought a wonderful message about giving thanks to God through the Lord Jesus, based on Luke 17:11–19.

Throughout the message, we saw people listening very attentively, nodding in agreement and saying “Amen” with conviction.

It was a special time of drawing closer to God as Father and to the Lord Jesus as Savior for everyone who participated in this Thanksgiving celebration, and we could sense the presence and power of the Holy Spirit. (Photos: Thanksgiving Ponorel .; Thanksgiving Ponorel ..; Thanksgiving Ponorel ...; and me and Magda(2026)

At the end of the gathering, the sisters from the local church prepared a fellowship meal for everyone who attended, including sandwiches, cakes, doughnuts, mineral water, tea, and soft drinks. This time of fellowship is a great “bridge” for reaching those who do not yet believe and also helps believers develop deeper bonds of fellowship and serve together more closely.

Prayer Requests

• Please pray for Mrs. Iulica and Mrs. Viorica, who are unbelievers and were unable to join us for this celebration because of health problems.
• Please pray for Mrs. Ileana, who is also an unbeliever. She loves our church, but she faces strong opposition from her unbelieving family.
• Please pray for the Thanksgiving Celebration at the church in Sohodol on October 18 at 10:00 a.m.
• Please pray for a discipleship program for the younger families in the church in Ponorel, which we hope to begin during the winter.
May grace and peace be multiplied to you. We deeply appreciate your support in prayer and your generosity. Please receive our Christian love in the Lord Jesus.

Missions has been a part of our DNA from the very beginning!

1964 our first full time missionary was sent.

1966 we hosted our first missions conference.

Presently we support over 40 missionaries near and far. They include church planters, college campus ministries, international ministry, and training / discipling / mobilizing.

Who are our missionaries?

First of all we call our missionaries, "Global Partners". We consider our support of them a partnership, and we take it seriously! We pray for them continually and strive to keep in touch with them so that we can remain involved in their work. Their stories are amazing!

Grace Church Global Partners are young adults just heading out on the mission field. They are couples and families choosing to live in other countries to form relationships so they can share the gospel. They are individuals entrenched on college campuses. They are seasoned workers of God who have spent their whole lives in service to Him to share the love of Jesus and further His Kingdom. And they are people who live and work in their neighborhoods and churches to share the salvation of Jesus Christ in their own countries.

How do we support our missionaries?

No money is used from the operating budget of Grace Church to support our Global Partners.

The financial support for all our Global Partners comes directly from the generous family of Grace Church. Pledges are made in the fall of each year to help the GO Team oversee the yearly budget and make decisions on support.

Are there other ways Grace Church fulfills the command of  Matthew 28:19?                                                 YES! The GO Team supports

Short term missions trips (Adult & Youth)

Annual Missions Garage Sale (an outreach to the local community the benefits our Global Partners in a big way)

Conferences & learning opportunities