Off the Cuff

Titus is discharged!

Sat, 10 May 2008 22:58:28 -0400

Thank you all for your constant prayers for our family and especially Titus. God has answered above and beyond. This afternoon we received the call that Titus was to be discharged this evening instead of Monday. They still do not know what caused the entire ordeal and all of the tests came back negative. The only thing that we can think of is that the cold which swept though our family also infected Titus. Whereas everyone else’s bodies were able to fight it, Titus’ was not and sequentially succumbed to it. It is similar as to how most people are able to come down with the flu and be alright whereas to others (such as elderly and young children) the flu is a life-threatening illness. The doctor said that Titus has exceeded their expectations for recovery and was ready to be back home with his mom and dad. He is doing very well, as you will be able to see from the photos. He is a able to breathe well, hold his own body temperature, and is eating 2-3 times what the doctors expected him to be able to hold down after such an ordeal. Having Titus come home is the best birthday gift I could have gotten.

I cannot thank you all enough for your prayers, support, and letters that you have sent to us. It is through you and your prayers that we were able to bear up under this trial.

May 9th - Kovach Ministries Baby Update

Fri, 09 May 2008 01:09:06 -0400

Day 3

Thank you all so very much for your prayers for our family and especially for Titus. Today, Titus crossed three more milestones. At 11:30am the doctors felt Titus had made enough progress in order to remove his ventilator tube. During the night he did not have any periods of respiratory cessation. There were times where his respiratory rate dropped, but this was due to the excessive amount of secretions in his lungs. When this happens, the doctors have been able to successfully suction his lungs clean and Titus’ breathing returns to normal. The second milestone is in regards to his body temperature. He is now able to once again maintain his own body temperature without the assistance of a heat lamp and is regaining his normal pinkish color. He is now able to simply be swaddled as a baby normally would be. Finally, Titus is off of the IV’s and is able to eat normally again. Tonight Ashley was able to nurse Titus for a full feeding. He was able to eat about 2 ounces. His appetite is back and in full swing!

The doctors still are not sure as to what initially brought about this incident. All of the lab tests for bacterial infections came back negative as did the viral tests which they ran. The possibility of any form of cancer was also ruled out. With that being said, the doctors are very pleased with the rate of his recovery. He will continue to remain in isolation in the Natal Intensive Care Unit until he is released, but it would appear that the worst is behind us and now we can look forward toward recovery.

Please continue to pray for him as he strives to regain weight he lost through this ordeal. Being a preemie, he did not have much weight to lose to begin with.

From the Photos, you will be able to see how much better he looks. We praise the Lord for his recovery and again thank you all for how you have been upholding and how you will continue to uphold both Titus and the rest of our family before the throne of our Mighty God!

If you have missed any of the updates, we have also been posting them on our blog so people are able to catch up.

Kovach Ministries Baby Update

Sat, 03 May 2008 17:43:42 -0400

Our family wanted to thank you for your diligent prayers for our family throughout Ashley’s pregnancy. God has been gracious and answered your prayers as we were all praying that she would be able to carry the twins at least until 34 weeks, which was April 15th. It is awesome how God answers direct prayer as Ashley went into labor and delivered Titus Luke and Caleb Joshua at 6:38am on April 15th. Ashley did have to have the children via cesarean since both were breech at the time of labor.

For the statistic enthusiasts, Caleb was firstborn at 6:38am. He weighed 4 pounds 7.6 ounces and was 16 ½ inches long. Titus, born at 6:39am, weighed in at 5 pounds 1 ounce and was 17 inches long. I will post photos as I am able and time permits.

We praise the Lord for his wonderful answers to prayer. Both children, even though being born at 34 weeks, were very healthy. One main concern for children born this early is that their lungs will not be fully developed. We are excited to report that both Caleb and Titus had fully developed lungs and their blood oxygen saturation level was at 100%. The second main concern is regarding their ability to eat properly. Again, both Caleb and Titus have hearty appetites and have been eating well and without incident. By the day after their birth, Caleb had dropped to 4 pounds 2 ounces and Titus to 4 pounds 10 ounces. They have since regained their birth weight.

The past two weeks have been very busy with adjusting to a new norm for our family. Caleb struggled with jaundice initially and had to be on a billirubin blanket at home through last week. I have been busy caring for Ashley, who has been recuperating from her cesarean. Unfortunately, she had a minor complication from the surgery. After the operation, Ashley developed a spinal fluid headache which is a result of spinal fluid leaking from the point of the epidural. Those who have experienced migraines and latter had a spinal headache say that there is no comparison of pain. Spinal headaches directly affect the central nervous system. By the third day, the doctors were able to perform what is called a “blood patch.” It is a process whereby they take 15cc’s of Ashley’s blood and inject it into the point of leakage in the spinal sac. As the blood clots it allows the membrane to heal and retain the spinal fluid.

Thank you for all of your prayer support for our family and especially during Ashley’s pregnancy and the healthy delivery of the twins. God used your prayers to bring all this to pass and we cannot thank you enough!

Saved by the Power of Prayer

Sun, 16 Mar 2008 23:34:08 -0400

Life around the Kovach home has been a little topsy turvy lately.

In the middle of March we had a large snowstorm. Because of this, we had to reschedule that following Sunday’s ministry presentation since the majority of Churches were cancelled and roads were extremely dangerous.

Ashley's pregnancy has been progressing along very consistently. We had a little bit of a scare last Thursday. Ashley seemed to have picked up a stomach bug or ate something which upset her stomach. This in turn caused her to spontaneously go into intense labor contractions every 2-3 minutes without warning. We were concerned, due to the intense pain and suddenness of the onset, that this might be a miscarriage. Ashley is 30 weeks along; much too early for the twins to be born, and the survival rate by this time is not much better than 50-60 percent. We got to the hospital as quickly as possible. As we got situated into the room, nurses began flying around the room and medications began to flow. I would like to say a special thanks to all of you who have been praying for her safety during this pregnancy and to those who were part of the numerous prayer chains through this incident. The doctors gave her multiple shots of brethine in order to slow and stop the contractions as well as a steroid to help encourage the twins’ lungs to develop a little bit quicker. In their minds, they said she had a 50/50 chance. By God’s Grace, the doctors were able to get her contractions down to 1 per hour, which is within tolerable limits for a pregnancy. The children were saved by the power of your prayers interceeding on their behalf. Currently, Ashley is on strict bed rest. Please keep me in your prayers as well as I strive to be Father, Mother, and nurse, as well as continuing to line up future meetings for deputation. Thank you again for all of your prayers for Ashley and for you understanding as communication on our end may be a bit slow during this time period.

Two more supporting churches

Wed, 06 Feb 2008 21:56:14 -0500

We are excited to report the addition of two more churches to our ministry partnership. One church partnered with our ministry in the end of January and another church in Michigan voted to partner with us this past Sunday! We praise the Lord for this increase in support. At the beginning of the year we were at 42 percent, and this now puts us up to 47 Percent. Please continue to pray as we will have another church which will be voting this Sunday and some others will be voting throughout February. So far, we have had church meetings every Sunday and Wednesday. Both the Wednesday of the 20th and this past Sunday, the Lord really moved in a powerful way in the lives of the people. We had a tremendous time of fellowship and were deeply encouraged by the missions heart of the people!

Ashley is doing well and the twins are growing well. Thank you for your prayers. They are both in and around the 80 percent tile for where children should be. Please continue to pray for her as her pregnancy begins to enter the third trimester soon and the pregnancy becomes more difficult and for the twin boys as they grow. The doctors have classified her as a high risk case.

Just turned 100,000

Thu, 24 Jan 2008 21:37:06 -0500

Well, we did it! The Van now has 100,000 miles on it. Whew! We had a wonderfully restful Christmas and New Years. Interspersed, we celebrated three birthdays and are now getting ready for Bryanna's birthday. Emilianna had a nice simple 2-year old birthday. Isaiah's was very Spidey with a Spiderman cake and spidersapien robot. Ashley had a hot tamale time with church friends over for fellowship. Bryanna is gearing up for her tea/slumber party. This time of year is most full of activity! A special thanks to all the churches which have sent birthday cards to the various members of the family. You truly do not know how much that means as you consistently stay in touch. Now we are in the full swing of our 2008 schedule with having already been in 3 churches with one missions conference. A main consumer of time at present is preparing for that inevitable day and I don’t mean death. That’s right; TAXES! Thousands of receipts to scan in and tens of thousands of miles to add up. Oh, the joys! Preparing for tax time causes my soul to echo, ever loudly, the sentiment of John, Even so, (quickly) come, Lord Jesus.”

Please continue to pray as we are waiting to hear from many of the churches we have been in as they vote over this winter as to partnering with our ministry!

Where do I sign up?

Fri, 16 Nov 2007 14:06:58 -0500

"Where do I sign up?" As I pointed to our prayer letter signup sheet, I instructed this middle-age gentleman to put down his information and he would be signed up to receive our prayer letters. He looked at me blankly and then replied that he meant he wanted to know where he could sign up to be a missionary and be able to take the gospel to other countries. He wanted to know how he could become a missionary. Observing him, his body had some form of physical ailment which required him to maneuver about with a cane for support and stability. From a human standpoint, one would look upon his appearance and question his ability to rise to the challenge, but God looks upon the heart of a man and this heart was tender and willing. As we talked, he thought out loud of how he may not have much to offer, but he knew how to give the gospel and wanted to see about doing so as a missionary. I encouraged him to talk with his pastor and seek the counsel of godly men in the church as to his fist steps down such a path of life. With a twinkle in his eye he thanked me and walked off. As I talked with others around our display, I noticed he was off in a corner talking with his pastor. After about 5 minutes or so, I turned and was surprised to see him standing right next to me. He said that his pastor had instructed him to find out about a short term trip, so here he was, asking he how he could go down to Brazil to see the ministry there and see if this is where the Lord would have him. As we talked about possible trips, my heart was elated to find such a soul which was tender and willing to go. Who knows? The Lord may or may not direct him into full time missions, but he is sensitive to the Lord's work and was simply willing to say, "Here am I Lord, what would you have me to do."

Pluggin along

Thu, 08 Nov 2007 21:37:24 -0500

Over the past several weeks is feels like our family have been living in our van. We have been able to take part in 4 mission conferences and a Sunday meeting. God has been so very good in meeting our travel expenses and needs. This was a concern for me as I knew the number of miles we would be traveling and hotels we would be staying at. Communication has been a challenge as we have not really had consistent internet access over this period and where we are now, the connection is sketchy, at best. We had a conference in middle Indiana, a Sunday in Lansing Michigan, two conferences in Pennsylvania, and a conference in Holmen, Wisconsin. All said and done, we have traveled thousands of miles over the past month, and God's protection has been there every mile of the way! God would also put little bright spots along our journeys as well. At one hotel we met another missionary family. How often does that happen? At one point we needed to pull off at a gas station and found that they were giving our free coffee for the day!

Thank you for all of your prayers for us and for our safety! Please continue to pray as our schedule does not slow down. Pray as well that we will see fruit for our labors as we have been in so many great and wonderful churches over the recent months. I know we would be proud to have any one of them partner with our ministry. Please pray that the Lord enables them to be able to do so. So many of the churches we have been in have their missions budget and voting time during the months of November and December. Lastly, please pray as I begin to call pastors again now that we are home. Pray that we will be able to find churches which are still having missionaries come and also in a position to partner with missionaries in their work. These are the churches we are looking for right now. We praise the Lord that we have a full schedule through March. God has been good.

Conferences and Museums

Tue, 02 Oct 2007 15:16:42 -0400

The past couple of weeks have been replete with activity as we have been part of a mission conference, a Sunday meeting and a VBS Sunday. The other week we were able to take part in a mission conference in the Dillsboro area. I really appreciated the format the pastor had for the schedule. It truly allowed us to get to know the people of the church as well as provided several opportunities to share our burden and testimonies. There were also several opportunities to relax as well. We, along with the pastor and another group of missionaries had the opportunity to visit the Creation Museum in Kentucky. There were several times I was brought to tears at the sheer splendor if God and His Creation. If you ever have the opportunity, I highly and emphatically encourage you to visit the Museum. Pictures just don't do it justice! On that following Saturday, the women had a shopping trip while the men did a golf scramble. This was my first time in a scramble and found it to be quite different. Following both event s we all took part in their international dinner. We found the people to be very loving and hospitable. CLick here for more photos of the Creation Museum and Conference...

Nearby there is a local pastor with whom I enjoy the privilege of knocking on doors. We go out every Tuesday and Saturday when our family is not traveling. This Saturday we had the opportunity to present the full gospel to a gentleman in the area. He seemed to have a clear understanding, but just was not ready to receive Christ yet. I am praying that the pastor will continue to have the opportunity to water the seed planted. If you think of it, please pray for this man. I always enjoyed these times for they keep me fresh and in remembrance of the privilege of my own salvation.

Yesterday, my wife and I had the opportunity to help a church with a local outreach to the community of children and families. It was a community carnival, held after church services. Ashley had the opportunity to face paint while I did balloons. There were over 300 children and I don’t know how many other families and adults. Throughout the day, the gospel was given and many decisions were made for Christ.

Family Vacation at Houghton Lake

Sat, 08 Sep 2007 19:36:18 -0400

The family vacation was a great success. Our whole family had the privilege of spending Labor Day weekend and the following week at a cabin on Houghton Lake in Michigan. It was a much needed break after a hectic summer and a nice transition as we move into our fall/winter schedule. It felt good to come away feeling refreshes and relaxed. Do you remember that new windshield I mention a couple of entries ago? Well, after only a mile down the road on the way to the cabin, we came across I69 (which was just patched) and a semi threw a rock and cracked our windshield. At least we had the new windshield for 24 hours. Other than that, there were no other altercations as we pulled in Friday night.

Saturday night, our family was awakened by an explosion followed by a hissing noise at about two in the morning. We awoke to find that our hot water heater has blown a few pipes and flooded the kitchen. Needless to say, it was a chore to stay alert Sunday. With the cabin flooded, the owners moved us to a larger cabin across the way. The owners graciously allowed me to use their jet-ski and give all the children rides that afternoon. One of my favorites was the opportunity to have my quiet time with the Lord on the dock while the sun was rising. Please pray for us as we return to a very busy schedule with many mission conferences for this fall. We have included some photos below, but for more photos, see the PHOTO GALLERY

This Windshield is on the Lord!

Thu, 30 Aug 2007 22:26:32 -0400

We kick out so many miles in a year that it is hard to keep track of them. We praise the Lord for a dependable vehicle. One of the problems we have from time to time is a cracked windshield. Invariable it is from a truck or some construction vehicle in front of us as we tool down the road. Once, the windshield got cracked a week after I just had it replaced. This time, I have no idea how it cracked. It just cracked as we were driving. No stone and no other vehicle was on the road. I have not been able to get it replaced because of the cost of the deductible. While at my parents, we found a glass repair shop that actually pays your deductible for you. Today I called the insurance company; they called the glass company, and presto! I have a new windshield and did not have to pay a penny of deductible! God is so good!

The Lord brought the circus to us.

Wed, 29 Aug 2007 22:18:17 -0400

While we were at home in Madison Indiana, there was a circus which came to town. We were planning on attending and even had some coupons for the children. By the time the day cam, we did not have enough money to take the children as we were only half way through the month and needed to make sure we had enough finances to last to the end. The kids were pretty bummed, but had good attitudes about it. This week we came up to visit with my parents as head up to Houghton Lake. While there, we found that their neighbor’s son was having his first birthday. To celebrate, the father blocked off the entire street and hired a circus to come to the block. There was everything there from kangaroos to elephants. Since it would affect the entire block, the families of their block were invited to attend. Before the event began, the police showed up to block off the roads and redirect traffic. The kids just had to get their picture taken with one of the officers and his motorcycle. After the photo-op, he pulled out some plastic badges for the children and made them honorary deputies. When the festivities began, the first thing on the children’s agenda was to go camel riding. Each had a turn. I think it was a little bumpier than they thought it would be. The animal display that we had seen years ago at the Escanaba State Fair was also there. Isaiah especially liked the panthers. There was a full display of crocs and reptilian species, including scorpions. I think there were over 40 different kinds. We moved along and found an ice cream truck camped out at the end corner and found he was handing out free ice cream. Everyone was thrilled as it was near 100 degrees. I think one of the main highlights of all this for the kids was the elephant rides! ...more below...

For more Photos click here

As I began taking in all the sights I found myself a bit overwhelmed. I began to think about what was happening. Here I and my family were, at a birthday celebration for a baby whom I had never met, much less had any idea who the bill-paying father was. I could not help but think how this event mirrored Christmas time. Christmas, an event to celebrate the birthday of Baby Jesus. People around the world, celebrating the birthday, making merry, all-the-while not knowing who in the world this Baby (who paid the ultimate bill) even is much less having any idea of His Father (who made the ultimate sacrifice). They wander around at Christmas time enjoying the party, but never seek out the child of honor, content simply to enjoy the Fathers festivities. I found it thought-provoking anyway.

Helping churches and vice versa.

Sun, 01 Jul 2007 23:35:45 -0400

Today was a very encouraging day. The sequence of events began on Thursday when a local pastor called and asked if we were available to help in their teen Sunday school class since their teacher was gone for the weekend. Further, he inquired if my wife and I would be willing to do the junior church as well and make balloons for them. We had a tremendous outcome. While I taught the lesson, and made balloons, Ashley gave the missionary story. After the service, the pastor asked me if I would return that night and present our ministry presentation to the church family. In the evening service, I had the opportunity to present both the video presentation as well as our personal testimonies of God’s working in our live to direct us to Brazil. After our presentation, the pastor took a vote right there and the church voted to partner with our ministry! What a blessing to find a church so on fire for missions!

Hanover VBS

Tue, 26 Jun 2007 23:21:39 -0400

Over the past several days, Both Ashley and I have had the privilege in helping a local church ministry in their VBS. Tuesday, the pastor and I were able to make several contacts in relation to children. We were praising the Lord that nearly all the children that we saw that morning showed up at the VBS that evening. We saw nearly 20 children come to Christ over the period of the VBS. Ashley was able to contribute on Tuesday by painting all the faces of the children. I was hard at work making balloons for each of the average 75 children. Each night I tried to make sure that I had at least two special, larger balloons for quite seat. See if you can guess what the balloons are!

Refreshment and making contacts

Sat, 23 Jun 2007 10:11:16 -0400

It has been a very active week, but the Lord has been close beside through it all. We spent the week at a revival camp meeting for three days in MO. Ashley and I came away very refreshed and spiritually recharged. I was wondering how I was going to pay for the fuel, but a local pastor was encouraging our family to go. Suffice it to say, the Lord provided an excess of extra finances needed for the fuel costs both to the camp and to the next meeting on the following Sunday. Through this meeting, we were even able to make a good number of contacts for presenting our ministry. Pray that I am able to catch up with these pastors and that I will be able to line up quality meetings.

I once was where they now are.

Tue, 23 Jan 2007 15:05:47 -0500

This past Monday I had the privilege of speaking to the students at Brentwood Baptist School. I shared my testimony with them. I believe that many hearts were challenged towards excellence in the Christian walk. I started of by asking them if they believed that God loved them no matter what came into their lives. Most raised their hands but there were some that seemed unsure. I went on to explain that God’s love does not always mean that we will only receive good things at His hand but also difficult things. God sometimes allows us to fall flat on our faces or even suffer at the hand of sinners; yet His love is always there. I challenged them to set goals for themselves as to where they want to be with the Lord. We must always be striving for purity and growth!! My prayer is that God will use my simple words and His great message of love to remain in their hearts and cause a great revival between the student and faculty body. Once again I was greatly blest to be able to be an encouragement to these students.

As Christs, Ashley Kovach

A weekend in IL

Mon, 22 Jan 2007 16:30:58 -0500

We have just finished with a couple of weekends in IL. They have been full and fulfilling. We started off the stint with a meeting at Bethel Baptist in Schaumburg. It was a blessing to see a growing and thriving ministry which has not compromised to be so. Being there was a true refreshment to our souls. That following week was spent at Brentwood Baptist's Manor house. I had the privilege of holding weeklong revival meetings at the school. It was a blessing to see the Word of God soften hearts and change lives. Please keep these children in your prayers. Pray for Salvation and Sanctification of these potentials.

Kids Klub and Balloons

Wed, 10 Jan 2007 21:34:46 -0500

Tonight we were able to minister in a local church which was starting up their Kings Kids club again. It was good to break out the balloons again. Ashley had a good time face-painting. The day prior, the pastor and I had the opportunity to do some door-to-door and we came across a young girl and her family. It was a blessing to see both her and her brother there as well as on Sunday! We have been gone almost every Sunday presenting out ministry in different churches during their services. It felt good to be able to minister to children again in this fusion.

Brazilian Church Construction Update

Thu, 09 Nov 2006 14:03:26 -0500

We have finished the last missions conference for the month of November. Jeff Thibaudeau Just arrived from Brazil yesterday, November 15, and is planning on being in the States for about a month. He brought back some much-needed supplies, namely Brazilian coffee! We were able to have wonderful time of fellowship over lunch at McDonalds as our children played on the play area. He also brought back some exciting photographs of the church's progress with their new auditorium. They have just finished pouring the roof of the building and are now working on the inside. Please pray as they work on finishing this part of the building. They are at standing room only in their current auditorium and greatly need this addition.

Last Missions Conference of November

Wed, 08 Nov 2006 14:06:19 -0500

We have just finished the last missions conference for the month of November as we are in the midst of our final push before we wrap up the year. Our last meeting for the year is in the middle of December. We had a wonderful time at the missions conference in Lake Mills. While there, Ashley and I orchestrated the Children’s conference during the week. Each day we visited a different country represented by each missionary at the conference. We started off the night by placing John 3:16 in each child's passport, written in the language of that night's country. Then we all climbed inside a plane as we informed the children about the country we would be flying to. I had also asked each missionary there to send at least one representative to share their country with the children and to tell them what the children were like in their country. One of the more interesting ones was Korea where the children enjoy a nice meal of dog for dinner. When we had the children draw pictures in their "passports" of what they remembered most about Korea, one girl drew a dog on the table with an apple in it's mouth! It was such a blessing to be able to work with these children. Ashley and I could not help but remember that these children are the next generation's missionaries. Please continue in your prayers for us as we head into UP country with snow on the way! The first lower photo is that of Ashley teaching the missionary story for the week and the other is that of one of the misionaries showing the children what children in their own country eat and wear.