In case you want to know

Heading west

Tue, 23 Feb 2010 16:14:11 -0600

When asked how long we’ve been in Russia, I’m often surprised at the answer I give. “Six years,” I say. Six years. I first stepped on a plane headed East in August of 2002. Liz joined me on that flight a year later. In January of 2006, after one year of marriage, joining staff with Campus Crusade for Christ, raising up a support team, going through cross-cultural training and packing our bags, we boarded a plane once again for Moscow. And in the course of four years, Moscow has become our home.

But now we’re back. At least for a little while. About ten days ago Liz and I hopped on a plane one more time, though this time heading West. Time for furlough has come again. Every two years we get a furlough for three months. This is time for us to come back to family to rest, to reconnect with friends and supporters, and to eat all the Tex-Mex and Dr. Pepper we can handle. It’s a time we always look forward to.

We can’t wait to see those of you who partner with us to impact the lives of students in Russia. It’s such a pleasure to come back and share our journey with you. Part of our time here will also be spent in casting vision for what God is doing in Moscow. We’ll be sharing stories, showing pictures and rejoicing in all that He is orchestrating. At the same time we’ll be looking for others who would like to join with us by partnering in our life and ministry in Moscow.

And speaking of our life, I think it’s safe to say that our lives are about to dramatically change. Beside coming home for furlough, we are also home in anticipation of the birth of our first child! Sometime around April 27th we will be introducing the world to our baby boy, Graham Christopher. We can’t express our excitement at this tiny blessing that God is giving to us.

So there’s a lot going on, but we’re enjoying every minute of it. It’s good to be back.

Winter bible conference

Wed, 10 Feb 2010 15:34:06 -0600

The banner on the back of the stage reads “We’re behind you.” That was the them of the Winter Bible Conference this year. For four days at the beginning of February, students from all over Russia gathered once again to understand more about the role that each of them will play in seeing spiritual movements spread across the country of Russia. The theme of the conference had several meanings, foremost of which is the idea that as we are trusting God to build student-led spiritual movements across Russia, the first and most important aspect is our own relationship with the Lord. The simple fact is that it is the Lord, and not us, who builds movements.

We also wanted to push the idea of putting students and student-leaders first in the campus ministry. It is very easy for staff to focus on our own personal ministry and activity, and to forget the crucial fact that our ministry is to raise up and empower student leaders. During the course of the conference we tried to clearly communicate to student leaders that they are the very reason that we joined staff – to see students like them raised up and sent as laborers to the universities of Russia. And the success of movements depends not on us, but on them!

By the end of the conference it was amazing to see the response of our students from Moscow. Here’s a little of what they had to say:

“I learned that spiritual movements start with me.” - Dennis, Moscow State University

“I understand that I need to share the Gospel with my family and friends. I shared today for the first time with complete strangers. If I can share with people I don’t know then I can definitely share with people I know.” - Masha, Moscow State Linguistics University

“I learned that God uses simple, ordinary people. Now I want to know what I can do, how he can use me.” - Sasha, Moscow Energy Institute

With this enthusiasm we ask you to join with us in praying for these students as they head back to Moscow to start their spring semester. God is using them to change the landscape of universities in Moscow.

where did time go?

Thu, 28 Jan 2010 16:51:47 -0600

So I know it’s been a while since you last heard from us. We’re not doing a great job these days keeping up with our blog posts. Forgive us for that. I have several reasons, excuses perhaps, that I could lay out for you explaining away our lack of communication, but I’ll spare you. I’m sure you have better things to do with your time than to read about how we have spent ours.

But if you’re curious, I’ll share a little.

November: After our EQ Seminar we found ourselves in Budapest renewing our visas. Visas are something we hate to write about but that continues to come up. Let’s just say we’re still in a temporary holding pattern until something changes. Three months at a time. After that was Thanksgiving and then....

December: We had a week of ministry evaluation to start things off. It was good and helpful. We’re seeing more clearly some of the issues we need to work on. Then we had another City-Wide Believer’s Gathering, our fourth of the year. It was one of the most encouraging nights we’ve had in a long time. God has been working in the lives our our students. It’s simply amazing. Then came the snow and then came Christmas. We really enjoyed the holidays. Then the largest celebration of the year, New Year’s Eve, and then...

January: The first ten days are amazing. The city shuts down. It’s quiet, slow, peaceful and deserted. We enjoyed the snow and the time off before staring work again. We had a couple of weeks in early January to get ready for our trip to Budapest for a Leadership Summit and then Winter Bible Conference comes right after that.

And that’s what’s been going on. We promise to do better in the future. Furlough is coming up soon. Hopefully we can make up for some lost time then. Until, here’s hoping you make the most of your time.