Tuesday, June 28, 2005
From the Field -- 4 - from Ken
Sent: Tuesday, June 28, 2005 3:50 AM
Subject: From the Field -- 4
Ministering in Russia is both very easy and very challenging.
On the one hand, the Russian people are no different from anywhere else in the world. They want and need what everyone wants and needs. They want to love and to be loved. They want to be able to feed their families. They want to talk and to be listened to. They want to be understood. They want to be accepted and encouraged. As we take food into their humble apartments, they welcome us with open arms and warm hearts. They are so very grateful (and even humbled) to have American visitors in their homes and in their lives, if even for a short time. They are so very thankful that we are there to listen to them and to sympathize with them. One trip to Russia, and one visit into a Russian apartment, makes most Americans realize just how much God has blessed those who live in America.
The challenging part comes in the communication, and I'm not talking about English to Russian and vice versa. For 70 years, they lived under a communist government that told them there was no God. However, during that time the Grandmothers and Grandfathers did what they could to keep God alive in the hearts of the young people. It was dangerous to own a Bible during this time, so the elder generation did what they could and told stories from the Bible. Consequently, the older generation of Russians learned from the stories, traditions, and myths. Their religious knowledge does not come from the Bible, but from what they have been told.
Russians have always been under the control of an authority figure, and that authority figure, when it concerns their spiritual life, is either their priest or their pastor. Unfortunately, as I have been told by many people, Russian Orthodox priests do not encourage their people to read the Bible. They tell them what they want them to know. Even in the Baptist church here, the people are fairly well controlled and dominated by the pastor.
Some of the myths can be listed as follows:
There is a belief that if a person is baptized as an infant, they are saved.
There is a belief that if a person wears a cross around his neck, then he is saved and protected from all evil.
There is no assurance of salvation. When you cross death's door, your good deeds had better outweigh your sins.
There is no personal relationship with Jesus. The Russsian Orthodox people do not know how to pray. All of their prayers are read or recited.
Orthodox believers feel you must make the sign of the cross after a prayer. If you don't, then you must not be a Christian.
I walk a thin line in talking to the Seniors here. On the one hand, I don't want to offend anyone and be critical of the ROC (Russian Orthodox Church), and yet I want to speak with truth and clarity. Probably 95% of the people listen with rapt attention, apparantly grateful that someone is taking the time to explain various things to them. There are a few others who challenge what I either said or did not say. I welcome the questions. I didn't come here to argue or to spread confusion. I came here in Christian love, and they respect that.
Tomorrow (Wednesday) we begin a Bible study. We are never sure how many will respond to this invitation. The room where we meet will hold no more than 40 people, maybe 50 if they are very good friends, and we are prepared for the maximum. We will talk tomorrow about how to have a personal relationship with Jesus and how to pray to Him without having to read the prayers. I will also answer whatever question may be asked. Please keep these Bible studies in your prayers.
It's good to have our team altogether now that Debbie and Gary have arrived. They are doing a great work with the youth, and I will let their e-mails describe their work. In the meantime, I send my love from the other side of the world. Thanks for supporting us through your prayer, gifts, and e-mail.
Ken
Subject: From the Field -- 4
Ministering in Russia is both very easy and very challenging.
On the one hand, the Russian people are no different from anywhere else in the world. They want and need what everyone wants and needs. They want to love and to be loved. They want to be able to feed their families. They want to talk and to be listened to. They want to be understood. They want to be accepted and encouraged. As we take food into their humble apartments, they welcome us with open arms and warm hearts. They are so very grateful (and even humbled) to have American visitors in their homes and in their lives, if even for a short time. They are so very thankful that we are there to listen to them and to sympathize with them. One trip to Russia, and one visit into a Russian apartment, makes most Americans realize just how much God has blessed those who live in America.
The challenging part comes in the communication, and I'm not talking about English to Russian and vice versa. For 70 years, they lived under a communist government that told them there was no God. However, during that time the Grandmothers and Grandfathers did what they could to keep God alive in the hearts of the young people. It was dangerous to own a Bible during this time, so the elder generation did what they could and told stories from the Bible. Consequently, the older generation of Russians learned from the stories, traditions, and myths. Their religious knowledge does not come from the Bible, but from what they have been told.
Russians have always been under the control of an authority figure, and that authority figure, when it concerns their spiritual life, is either their priest or their pastor. Unfortunately, as I have been told by many people, Russian Orthodox priests do not encourage their people to read the Bible. They tell them what they want them to know. Even in the Baptist church here, the people are fairly well controlled and dominated by the pastor.
Some of the myths can be listed as follows:
There is a belief that if a person is baptized as an infant, they are saved.
There is a belief that if a person wears a cross around his neck, then he is saved and protected from all evil.
There is no assurance of salvation. When you cross death's door, your good deeds had better outweigh your sins.
There is no personal relationship with Jesus. The Russsian Orthodox people do not know how to pray. All of their prayers are read or recited.
Orthodox believers feel you must make the sign of the cross after a prayer. If you don't, then you must not be a Christian.
I walk a thin line in talking to the Seniors here. On the one hand, I don't want to offend anyone and be critical of the ROC (Russian Orthodox Church), and yet I want to speak with truth and clarity. Probably 95% of the people listen with rapt attention, apparantly grateful that someone is taking the time to explain various things to them. There are a few others who challenge what I either said or did not say. I welcome the questions. I didn't come here to argue or to spread confusion. I came here in Christian love, and they respect that.
Tomorrow (Wednesday) we begin a Bible study. We are never sure how many will respond to this invitation. The room where we meet will hold no more than 40 people, maybe 50 if they are very good friends, and we are prepared for the maximum. We will talk tomorrow about how to have a personal relationship with Jesus and how to pray to Him without having to read the prayers. I will also answer whatever question may be asked. Please keep these Bible studies in your prayers.
It's good to have our team altogether now that Debbie and Gary have arrived. They are doing a great work with the youth, and I will let their e-mails describe their work. In the meantime, I send my love from the other side of the world. Thanks for supporting us through your prayer, gifts, and e-mail.
Ken
