Life As A Missionary in Russia

Six weeks of my three months in Moscow have now passed at the Church of God Eurasian Seminary. There is plenty of noise; someone practicing the piano in the room below me every night, traffic all day and night on a major boulevard in front of the building, small children of some married students running down the hall with a toy, etc.

Missionary Cravings

Russian food is nutritious here at the school but the budget does not allow for a lot of creativity and the menu is repetitious. It is normal for me to start thinking often of American food after I have been in another country over a month. Funny thing is that I crave things that I rarely order in the U.S. because of awareness of eating healthy. But at the moment a big fat hamburger with everything on it and a chocolate milkshake with real ice cream would taste mighty good.


Ministry Trips

My teaching is scheduled during the middle of each week so that I have long weekends for ministry/teaching trips to cities where I have established relationships during the past 16 years. The first one was in mid-February. I went to Izhevsk near Siberia, my adopted Russian town since 1995. Four days were filled with fellowship, church services, dinners in my honor and much tea drinking and food.

Church members wept on my shoulder, hovering around me with hugs and Russian kisses. These expressions of love come from the closeness developed during seven years there, living like they live, helping them be established in Christianity and teaching the Bible. I am now introduced as the spiritual mother of the people, a title I feel humbled to hear.

The Need to “Own”

The current situation for all denominations in Russia has been hard on the growth of Christianity. The Russian Orthodox Church has much clout in the government and has always objected to evangelical growth. They pressured the government to issue an ordinance preventing any public building to be rented to a religious organization.

Of course this did not affect those with their own building, but those are few, and churches with sizable congregations that formerly rented a large cultural hall or theater were forced into small places rented by private individuals. Attendance has declined greatly everywhere. The seminary building is presently being used by three different congregations.

~ Jeanette Chesser (Missionary to Russia)

Until All Have Heard

Church of God World Missions approaches the beginning of its second centennial with thanksgiving and optimism. We are indeed grateful for our past.

On January 4, 1910, our first missionaries, R.M. and Ida Evans, joined with Edmund and Rebecca Barr in beginning the first overseas work for the church in Nassau, Bahamas. Today, we have over 28,000 local congregations in 168 countries (not including the United States of America and Canada) with over six million members.

But our task is not finished. Christ commanded us to go into all the world and make disciples in all nations. We cannot stop … until all have heard.

As we look at the future, World Missions envisions five particular goals:

*Unreached People Groups (We have targeted 70 unreached people groups to introduce the Good News of Jesus.)

*Local Church Missions Involvement (We want every local church praying, giving and sending. Missions flows out of the local church. World Missions is committed to assisting every local congregation in getting personally involved in fulfilling the Great Commission. This involves everyone – the young and the old.)

*Communicate Specifically (We will provide information and tools to share the message of Christ and what His Kingdom workers are doing).

*Training (We are committed to making disciples and training workers and ministers. We want to provide educational opportunities for anyone fulfilling Christ’s mandate.)

*Helping the Poor and Needy (Christ told us to care for the less fortunate. We will provide ministry and resources to touch the lives of those who are impoverished and lonely.)

Together, we will finish the Great Commission assignment.

Douglas LeRoy

The Great Commission

World Missions Director Douglas LeRoy says, “Great Commission Christians are missional in vision and actions. Winning souls and discipling believers is the mission and priority of every believer.

The supreme task of the church is the evangelization of the world. We must fulfill the task assigned by Christ before He ascended back to the Father. It is described in Matthew 28:18-20; Mark 16:15-20; Luke 24:47-48; John 20:21; and Acts 1:8. The heart of World Missions is to fulfill the Great Commission. Every ministry that flows from World Missions is related to a proper response to this command from Christ. We are committed to fulfilling it ‘until all have heard.’

Our General Overseer has set three goals for the church during 2008-10. We in World Missions embrace them. Our projections flow out of these three goals:

Prayer

Great Commission
* Initiate ministry among the 60 unreached people groups targeted.
* Win one million souls to Christ, and plant 1,000 new churches.
* Increase World Missions receipts to $40 million and reduce administrative costs by 10%.
* Mobilize LMRs in 30% of our 2,100 churches and mobilize a short-term missionary movement of all age groups.

Trust
* Improve the communications of World Missions so that current information is quickly available to all.
* Celebrate World Missions Centennial.
* Establish a training program for field directors, regional superintendents, national overseers, and field reps.

By joining hands we will create a team united in action and spirit to do God's work in these final hours. We invite you to join the team. Together, we can make an eternal difference.”