Italy Missions September 2012

Ciao a tutti!  It's been too long since our last update and for that we apologize.  We hope our absence does not in anyway indicate a lack of appreciation for your ongoing encouragement and support for this ministry as nothing could be further from the truth.

Although a lot of time has past since our last update, we want to let you know about some of the changes that occurred back home this summer and where we are in our service in Italy.

Summer 2012

Three coats of paint required!

In May, we returned to New York to get our personal affairs in order; specifically with our home.  Last February, our tenant broke contract early leading us to the decision to rent our home on a weekly basis through the summer. 

Prior to moving to Italy in 2008, we sold most of our possessions, so we not only had to repair, paint and get the house ready to rent, but we also had to furnish it again.  By God's grace, it all came together and we were ready for our 1st guest.  The Lord blessed us by filling each available week.  It was a pleasure to meet the families and in some cases we had a chance to share our missions experience in Treviso: in one case we even got to share the gospel.  The success of this past summer, the great guests and the opportunity to repair the house confirmed to us that the Lord guided us in this decision!

We also had a chance to lead a brief four week bible study to a group of friends from Livonia.  It was a wonderful time studying Gods word, worshipping and reflecting on many foundational truths that we as Christians stand upon in all seasons of life.  We also made many new friends whom blessed us greatly.

And in God's great timing, He provided a long term tenant (Sept-May) just before our return to Italy.  We are grateful for His amazing provision in all things!

Annual CC Treviso Conference in Austria.

Worship at the CC Treviso 2012 Conference in Austria

Two days after landing in Italy, we packed our bags (again) and headed north to Millstatt, Austria, the site of our annual church retreat.  This years speaker was Pastor Brian Cambra who taught four powerful sessions on "The Sufficiency of God" as depicted in the lives of Hannah, David, Jeremiah and the man with the withered hand.  Pastor Brian's wife, Maria, taught the children lessons on the fruit of the Spirit.  The kids blessed the adults with a medley of worship songs at the end of the weekend.  It was a great time to be challenged in Gods word, to catch up with the saints, serve the Lord in worship, and overcome the jet-lag.

Change in Seasons (Jeremiah 42:12)
It's time for us to share that we believe God is calling us back to America, thus ending our time and service in Italy.  We are not sure of the details, but we are certain that this season of serving abroad is coming to an end.  It was a decision that was not easy to arrive at as many factors came into play.  After many months of prayer we received confirmation from the Lord.  Thank you in advance for your prayers as we deal with the task of closing out life in Italy and the task of getting our life re-established in America.  Please continue to pray for pastor Mark and Renata as they continue to teach the word of God and reach out to the Italians with the gospel of salvation (Eph 2:8-9, John 3:3-7).

Upcoming events

English Club Class of Spring 2011 

Our service here is not over yet, so please don't stop praying!  We have a few things in addition to our regular responsibilities that we'll be working on this fall and winter at CC Treviso.  We're working toward a 4th season of the English Club, the development of a new website and the midweek bible study will be starting up again soon.


Thanks again for your ongoing prayers and support of this ministry.  We are looking forward to what the Lord has in store for us this new year and your part in praying along with us for His leading is greatly appreciated.

If you would like to help support this ministry financially, a gift can be sent to the following address.  Thanks in advance for your encouragement and support.

Koinonia Fellowship

500 Main Street

East Rochester NY 14445

**Please attached a separate note that says: 'For Bob and Lori Scata, Treviso Italy'

God Bless!
Bob and Lori Scata
Italy Missions

Prayer Requests:

• Praising the Lord for getting us back to Italy safe and sound and for the blessed summer.
• For the Lords guidance as we seek a date to return back to the US and all that needs to happen before then.
• Thankful for the many hands that came to assist us this summer with readying the home for rent, those who helped with the weekly turn over process and for those who helped meet our practical needs throughout the summer.
• For laborers to be raised up in CC Treviso, specifically for Sunday School teachers and message translation.
• Guidance for the new website, English Club lessons, midweek study preparations.
• Other laborers to be raised up to assist pastor Mark and the team in Treviso.

Italy Missions Update April 2012

Ciao a tutti!  As always, we hope this email finds you well.

It has been a while since we posted our last update letter and there is much to report.  I’ll do my best to keep it concise.

Pastor Mark cooking Dinner

Spring in Treviso has seemingly come and gone.  Flowering trees and plants have all but passed their prime and in fact, evidence of the farmers diligent work from the fall is starting to show.  While looking around, you can’t help but think of the new life that a believer has in Christ; the risen Christ as recently celebrated. 

Resurrection Sunday was a blessing for us.  We not only enjoyed the great teaching at church (Luke 23:33-24:12, but we also enjoyed an afternoon of fellowship and the breaking of bread with 14 of our dear friends and family in Christ.  Food and laughter in abundance, challenging conversations regarding theology among other subjects were a part of the day!  A blessed time indeed.

The English Club

The English Club
Three classes completed and two more to go.  April 20th will conclude the third season of the English Club at the new location.  This seasons class is smaller than those in the past, likely due to the change from Wednesday to Friday evenings.  Those attending are those who are truly interested in learning English and are getting a more focused experience than in past sessions.  We were blessed recently to have Emanuela, one of our students from last season, join us for church a few weeks back.  Pray for Dorota who also visited us at church last season and is a returning student.  She has recently voiced an interest in coming to church again.

Teaching Opportunities

In addition to teaching Sunday school, developing the English Club curriculum and teaching English at a nearby Nursery School, Lori will be teaching the women’s study at CC Treviso in April. Lori has been stretched in many ways this year and we are grateful for the Lord’s grace to help her through it all.  Please pray for guidance as she prepares and delivers the women’s study this Saturday, April 14th and for the ladies to be blessed as they join in the study.

Saul attempts to kill David (again)

Midweek Study

We’ve recently finished the book of 1 Samuel; a book filled with many practical examples for the Christian as we study the lives of Samuel, Saul, Jonathan and David.  We’ll be starting a new, interactive study this month called Nuova Creazione (New Creation) inviting those in attendance to be more deeply involved in searching the scriptures.  For some it will be a good review of the foundations of our faith, for others, it will be an opportunity to search the scriptures for the first time!  Pray for Mark, Nino and Bob as they share in leading the lessons each week.


New Friends

We continue to pray for the Lord's help in tending to those whom He has brought to CC Treviso.  We also pray for Him to bring new faces to the fellowship as we reach out to the community.  A few weeks ago, a young mom and daughter were seeking a new church and saw our sign along the road.  They decided to stop to see what we were about and have been joining us ever since. We’re happy to have Alessandra and her daughter Nicole join us each Sunday. We were also blessed in recent weeks with a visit to church by a young muslim man called Mido who works at a Kebab shop in Treviso.  Pastor Mark and Renata has been frequenting this shop since they moved to Treviso.  We are grateful for Mido's acceptance of Mark's invitation to visit the church and we pray that he will come again as God’s word works in his heart.

Trip to the States

Lori and I will be visiting the States for a longer than usual period.  One of the blessings that we’ve experienced while serving in Italy is the ability see the Lord's hand in renting our home.  It has also proved to be one of the challenges living abroad.  We’ve met some wonderful families through this process and our trust in the Lord has increased each year with the need to find new tenants.  This February presented us with a new challenge as our tenant chose to terminate the contract early.  Clearly the Lord has chosen to use this situation as a refining experience for us and we ask for prayer as we work through this situation both practically and spiritually.  As a result, we feel the Lord has led us to rent our house weekly through the summer and monthly through fall, winter and spring.  We’re asking for prayer for all the work we need to do from the time we arrive in May till the arrival of our 1st tenant at the end of June, for safe keeping on the rental guests and neighborhood and that we might be good witnesses through it all.

We hope you are encouraged with what the Lord is doing at CC Treviso.  There is more to report, but we’ll leave that for another update.  Thanks you again for your ongoing encouragement, prayers and support.  May the Lord bless you and we look forward to seeing many of you a few weeks from now.

Koinonia Fellowship

500 Main Street

East Rochester, NY 14445.

**Please attached a separate note that says: ‘For Bob and Lori Scata, Treviso Italy’

Bob and Lori Scata

Italy Missions

Prayer Requests:
Fresh Vision and Filling of the Lord's Spirit on CC Treviso
For an increased desire for the Lord, His word and service to Him 
For lives to be yielded to Jesus, the Author of Salvation
For a revival to take place in the Veneto region of Italy
God's hand upon Pastor Mark, Renata and their children, for sound health, provision and grace.
For the other Pastors and their families leading the other Calvary Chapels in Italy (Craig Quam, Brian Cambra, Brent Harrell, Jim Stewart, Robert Diamubeni, Vincenzo Cotroneo)
For Lori and Bob as they continue to seek the Lord regarding their future service in Italy.

Italy Missions Update - January 2012

Felice Nuovo Anno!  Please find our overdue update from Treviso.  We pray that the Lord is blessing you in abundance this new year!  Ciao!

Please find our January Italy Missions update below.

Hannah laments over her barrenness.

Mid -week Study:  We recently started our mid-week study in 1 Samuel and we're blessed by the core group of people come to hear the word.   Though we’ve only had three studies, it is proving to be challenging and insightful as we see many parallels between old and new testaments and practical application to our lives. Please pray for Nino, Mark and me (Bob) as we rotate the teaching schedule and pray for the Converso family as they open their home for the study each week.  Pray also for Valter and Veronica who attend and are not saved, but are showing growing interest in the truth!

New Believers:  Seeing the process of someone come to Christ by the grace of God is not something that we see often in Italy.  To most Italians, salvation is obtained by the works performed in a person’s life rather than by faith in Christ.  This past month was very different for us.  Two ladies from our fellowship have recently given their hearts to the Lord.  Frances and Rosanna.  Join us as we pray for God’s continued leading in their lives and for protection against Satan.

Christmas Luncheon:  For the second year CC Treviso went to Ristorante Polin for our annual Christmas Luncheon.  A variety of classic and seasonal dishes were enjoyed along with Tiramisu and caffe`!  This year seemed different from last in that the fellowship seemed deeper.  The smaller size of the group offered more intimate conversation while others enjoyed group activities.  In both, new relationships were strengthened.  It was a great way to kick off the week before Christmas and to say good bye to many who will be traveling during the coming weeks.

Mark and his father

Nigros visit to the States:  We’d like to thank you for your prayers for Pastor Mark and his extended family.  Mark’s father has been diagnosed with serious heart disease.  The Nigro's spent Christmas and New Years with their family in the States and returned to Italy just today!  We are thankful that Mark's dad is saved, that his health had improved prior to their returning to Italy.  Please pray for continued peace for Mark, Renata and the extended Nirgro family. 

English Club update:  Although the English Club is not formally meeting, several students gather together on their own to practice their English and we “mother tongue” speakers are invited to be a part of the night.  Recently, Massimo, a professed atheist, began a conversation about God and asked my opinion.  “IF I MUST”, I thought.  It’s exciting to see the Lord’s hand in this outreach to form relationships that lead to this kind of fruitful discussion.  For we know that “Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God” Rm 10:17.  We ask that you would continue to pray for more opportunities to share the love of Christ.


Thanks again for your ongoing prayers and support of this ministry.  We are looking forward to what the Lord has in store for us this new year and your part in praying along with us for His leading is greatly appreciated.


If you would like to help support this ministry financially, you can send a gift to the following address.  Thanks in advance for your encouragement and support!

Koinonia Fellowship

500 Main Street

East Rochester, NY 14445.

**Please attached a separate note that says: ‘For Bob and Lori Scata, Treviso Italy’

Bob and Lori Scata

Italy Missions

Prayer Requests:
For Mark, Nino and Bob as they teach the Midweek, for those who attend.

For the Lord’s favor on the Nigro Family in all areas (family, financial, leading the church)

For Massimo and the others in the English Club group and opportunities to share.

God’s leading and confirmation on a recent direction regarding our home in the States.

For Frances, Rosanna and salvation for Valter, Veronica, Gianni, Sabrina, Deborah, Andrea and Marta.

For our health this winter and for our entry into the Italian Health Care system.

Praise to the Lord for our 3rd and final meeting regarding our documents (2 more years).

Thanking the Lord for our teaching jobs that help to support this ministry and for the support received from Koinonia and other fellowships!

Tentative Missions Trip in May 2012.  God’s leading in all areas (Stateside and Italy).