Odessa Mission
May 2006 Newsletter
Ftoroi Den Razhdenya Skora Budet!
(Our Second Birthday is Coming Up!)
As many of you know, KRCC will be celebrating its second birthday [May 23rd]
in just a few weeks' time, thanks to you! Ira and I just can't say enough
about your faithfulness, which has kept this ministry alive throughout, whether
in good times or in bad. And we want you to know that all of us here on this
side of the pond continually praise God for everything you're doing to fulfill
the Great Commission. Thank you for your prayers, for the monetary sacrifices
you're making, and for your example!
Rick Deighton, who has recently written a book on Christian apologetics,
visited us in April and was able to accomplish at least three significant
tasks during his brief stay: 1) He shared some relevant creation evangelism
material with three different classes at Odessa's pedagogical institute,
potentially opening the door for future opportunities there; 2) He also conducted
a similar seminar at a conservative, yet very open-minded Presbyterian church,
which might afford us chances to influence their theology during subsequent visits;
and 3) He delivered a potent message on the power of the resurrection during KRCC's
Easter service.
How's the video program doing these days? Well, since we no longer use
it for evangelistic purposes, we're able to show more Biblically-based
films that are helping our new believers to become more familiar with
the basic Bible stories that many of us learned in junior church.
However, there is one skeptic, Sergei. He has been coming lately and
he and I frequently grab a cup of coffee after the film and just discuss
it a bit, which usually leads to some intriguing dialogue. Sergei is a
lot smarter than your average "Joe" and it's definitely a nice change
of pace for me. Talking to your average Russian Orthodox believer is
often frustrating and the best comparison I can think of is it's like
playing tennis with someone who can neither return the ball nor wants
to play. There are basically two reasons for my saying that: 1)
They're usually too uninformed about spiritual things to understand
or even comment on what we say; and 2) They have been thoroughly
indoctrinated by Orthodox (nationalistic and anti-Protestant) propaganda
since they were small children. Anyway, please pray for Sergei who is
presently wading through Lee Strobel's book The Case for Christ.
Many of you probably remember Vladimir who used to give a weekly devotion
during our worship services until he made the statement: "Salvation comes
at the time of repentance!" If you remember, I immediately corrected him
and subsequently prohibited him from speaking at KRCC until he completes
the required reading task I've given him. Thus, he is reading Baptism:
A Biblical Study by Jack Cottrell who was one of my former professors
at Cincinnati Bible Seminary plus reading Rees Bryant's book on the same
subject. Yesterday, Vladimir admitted that his view is beginning to
change so we certainly rejoice in that and covet your prayers for him
as his spirit continues to grapple with this particular issue.
In April, I visited the local cancer ward and met a Gypsy woman by
the name of Molvina. She is a new believer and has been attending
one of the Charismatic churches here in Odessa. Unfortunately,
her four-year old daughter Faraday has been battling the effects of
a brain tumor lately. However, last week the hospital released
Faraday after a stunning turn of events. A month ago, the doctors
were saying that all hope was lost and that it was only a matter
of time, but that apparently had little effect on Molvina because
she rejoiced in spite of the news. To be honest, I just can't
express to you how astounded I was when I met her. It was just
clear that nothing on this earth was going to steal her joy
despite her daughter's illness. Her faith and overall demeanor
was truly stunning! In fact, that was enough to convince me
that everything would be alright, which seldom happens to me at
the ward. So we both agreed to trust God for a miracle and He
obviously answered that prayer. Prior to that day, the physicians
had been planning to run some additional tests because there
was a lot of fluid in Faraday's head that was causing considerable
concern. Incredibly, on the day after our visit the doctors
discovered that 98% of the fluid had vanished and you guessed it,
things just continued to improve from there. Thankfully,
Faraday wasn't released immediately, which allowed Molvina
to visit all of the patients at the hospital and pray for
them also. Of course, that was quite a testimony since
most of the families at the ward considered Molvina's
"faith" to be more like foolish denial. What can we say?
Our God reigns!
Kind Road Christian Church