Dear Partners,
It has been a month since I have invaded your inbox and we are
realizing how fast time is flying here. I want to take a minute and
add a little explanation to the 90 day law I told you about that is
in effect here.
First of all, the law applies to everyone with a business visa. All
businessmen in Russia as well as missionaries and humanitarian
workers. It is not something specifically against church workers.
It is in response to similar laws in both the US and Europe that
affect Russian businessmen. The Minister of Religious Affairs here
in our city has collected a petition signed by people who invite
church workers and has sent it off to the legislature requesting an
exemption for religious workers or a special visa. We have quite a
few Korean pastors here and their churches now must be without a
pastor for three months out of every six as well. We have absolutely
no idea what the likelihood of any change is, however. We have
scheduled our year to accommodate this law and are comfortable with
it. However, in the fall we will need to seriously reassess our
situation both through prayer and meeting with key people at The
Mission Society. God has a plan and it will unfold. Please keep the
situation in prayer for all of Russia and the impacts this law has on
thousands of ministries.
We have had a very good month here and our personal ministries
continue. There are a few stories about people in our lives included
in a "PS" if you are interested in reading them. We have had very
successful trips to Komsomolsk and Vladivostok and Steve's wonderful
work with the pastors continues. Next month Pastor Valentina will be
coming here from Vladivostok for their mentoring session! He is also
working very hard on material for a seminar on `Growing Disciples'
that he is planning to present to the pastors and key lay people of
all the churches he mentors. It will be a one day seminar held here
in Khabarovsk on April 5. You will hear more later about it.
I am continuing with my English Club with the university students and
we are having a ball practicing English. I have also accepted an
opportunity to teach English to a first and second grade class at the
Christian School at Pastor Roma's church. I go there one day a
week. The woman who has been doing it has returned with her family
to the US and will be going to another country due to these new
laws. It is the very first Christian School in this city of 600-
700,000 people!! The kids are delightful, really want to learn
English and I am blessed to have the chance to work with them. The
Women's group is going well and last meeting I invited a young
university friend to come and share her experience as a missionary in
China! Power Point and all! She was so enthusiastic and she is only
a two and a half year old Christian! She is actually there as an
exchange language student but God has given her this opportunity to
share her faith as well. She speaks excellent English and very good
Chinese. I am hoping that she gave the women in our group a new
perspective about what some other people are doing with their faith.
And hopefully it will help them think outside their boxes about their
own ministries.
As always, we continue to keep you in our prayers every day!! You
know our prayer wall is over our table so not only are you, very
often individually, in our personal morning prayers but almost every
night collectively also in our grace. You give us such strength
through your support – both financial and through your prayers. We
do hope to see as many of you as possible during our home break
between the end of December and probably late February or early
March.
Grace and Peace, Blessings and hugs,
Pastor Steve and Carol
PS I want to ask for special prayer for one woman this month. She
lives in Vladivostok and is a member of Valentina's new church
group. Natasha's husband has forbidden her to attend church, read
the bible or tell her children (two and four years old) anything
about the church or God. He claims that religion is just a crutch
for weak people and since she has him she does not need the church or
God anymore. He says the church comes between them and he is very
controlling. She went to church regularly – and he drove her – for
the four years they dated before marriage and he never objected. She
was sure she could help him become Christian over time. She has
strong Christian parents but they live thousands of miles away and
only visit occasionally. Last Sunday her husband was on a trip to
China to play pool with friends and she came to church - drowning in
guilt and confusion the whole time. Steve preached about God's love
and she cried almost the whole way through it. She says she reads
the bible when he is not home. She asked for Pastor Steve's advice
and I think she was hoping for a miracle cure. There is no such
thing. She has a hard road ahead of her with some serious choices.
She has a wonderful Pastor and some strong church friends to help her
through but if you saw her face and body language you would know that
this is a woman under serious attack. Please pray for Natasha.
I am still enjoying individual women here like my neighbor down the
hall. Her name is Ludmilla and she is 55 years old. Last fall she
had a heart attack and spent a few weeks in the hospital and then
about a month in a sanatorium regaining her strength. I believe she
has congestive heart failure. She works a split shift as a cashier
in a nearby cafeteria. Her husband died when her only son was young
and she raised him alone living in an apartment on the first floor of
this building for the next 17 years. Her son married and he and his
wife lived with her. The apartment was turned into a meat market and
deli about a year ago and her son and wife now live downtown in their
own apartment. She lives alone in a one room apartment down the hall
from us on the 12th floor. She has some friends but does not have
tons of energy and most of her strength is spent going to work. She
is very lonely. We have talked for months in the hall and elevator
and she has been over for tea. One Sunday a couple of weeks ago,
when we came home from Red River church, she came down the hall and
knocked on our door. When I answered she invited herself in for
tea. She said she had enjoyed Saturday off, cleaned her whole
apartment. Then she went to work in the morning but was now bored to
pieces. So we talked for almost three hours!! She speaks no
English. My brain was dead. But she is so sweet. She says she is
Christian but as she works every Sunday morning she does not go to
church which is apparently the Russian Orthodox church a couple of
blocks from here. She has told me she will retire the end of this
month. Please keep her in your prayers and pray that she truly has
received Christ or that we can help her before her heart gives out.
Much of my work here is building relationships, one person at a
time. Whomever God puts in my path. My manicurist, my special
friend Anya, Anya's mother Tanya, the individual women in Komsomolsk,
a woman named Emma who runs a right to life program here, women in
the Women's Group and now my neighbor to name a few.
I want to share a special praise with you! Anya has prayed for a
couple of years that when she finished college she would be able to
get a job. She tells me that everyone in Russia believes that the
only thing handicapped people can do is make boxes. Many other
people have confirmed this attitude is prevalent here. Pastor Roma
has helped her secure a real job! She is translating books for a
publishing company from English into Russian!! She is thrilled to
pieces. The first one is an old History of Christianity in Russia
and quite a challenge but she is definitely up to it and making good
progress. Please continue to pray for her that this work will
continue long term.
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