Some warmth and sunshine
Greetings from Sochi, Russia. Debbie and I are on a six week, seven city, four nation trip as we continue to help develop church planting movements in Europe. Last week we were in Ukraine, conducting leadership training, preaching in churches, and meeting with key leaders. It was cold, -8 F, -22 C. We did a seminar and had church in a building was not heated, so pretty chilly to say the least. As one friend paraphrased the verse, “Many are cold, but few are frozen.” We were frozen. But these dear brothers and sisters joyfully worship the Lord and dig into the Word without hesitation. Pretty humbling for me. Then, we headed to Kiev, Ukraine to meet with some leaders and continue our growing partnerships and mission opportunities in Ukraine. Debbie and I are amazed at the devotion, beauty, faith, and hard work of the Ukrainian church.
It looks like Debbie and I won the gold medal in couples iceskating. The Church in Dnipropetrovsk was telling us thank you for coming. Standing beside us is Alla, associate pastor, translator, and servant-extraordinaire.
We left Ukraine and headed to Sochi to be with the national leader of Foursquare Russia. Over the last 11 years or so we have seen Foursquare in Russia go from a dream to 14 congregations, 2 Bible schools, two Bible institutes, and an emerging healthy Russian Foursquare Church. National Church Development is a 10-15 year commitment that aims to create a church planting movement of healthy indigenous churches that become mission-sending churches themselves. After Sochi we head to Krasnodar, Russia. Krasnodar is the city where our work in Russia started over 15 years ago. It was by working with a handful of pastors who were hungry to be equipped and connected to a larger family that the Foursquare Church was eventually birthed in Russia. We wrap up our time in Russia visiting Foursquare missionaries Mike and Karen McDonald.
Next, we go to Athens, Greece for the annual Foursquare Europe conference. This is a key time for many of our pastors and leaders from across Europe to gether together for fellowship, worship, time in the Word, and time hearing afresh the purpose of God in Europe.
From there, its off to Romania. We will be meeting with the leadership of a network of Roma (gypsy) Churches who love Foursquare, and who were shaped by some Foursquare leaders, and are asking to become part of the Foursquare family. Be praying for everyone involved that the will of the Lord will be made clear.
Debbie and I are continually humbled and amazed that we get to serve our Foursquare family the way we do. It is because of your prayers and financial support of the FMI Global Missions Fund that we are able to give our time and energy to developing leaders and churches on the front lines of reaching the lost with the Good News of Jesus Christ. Thank you.
Debbie and I serve as the FMI Global Associate Director for MENACA and Europe. We focus on cultivating disciples, leaders, and church planting movements.
