Prayer: Evangelical Teacher/Missionary to Former USSR Requests Prayer

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Your prayer requests have been lifted up, and may God bless your work.

bump for monday

Prayers from this house. Remember, if the anointing is on the mission, so is the Grace and divine Protection.

Maybe you should establish some cooperation with Latter Day Saints and Jehovah Witnesses in converting the pagan lands of Eastern Europe.

You need to update your "about" page -- it may assist your endeavors and encourage more prayer.

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Thanks for the "heads up" I never thought about doing this!

Do not be absurd.

"What fellowship has light with darkness?"

As one who proclaims and teaches the eternality and deity of our Lord Jesus Christ and salvation by grace through faith in Him alone, totally apart from works, along with a literal hell,... among other things. The gospel and doctrine I boldly teach and preach has absolutely nothing in common with the cults you have mentioned. Granted, they have been and are actively involved in "missions" within the former USSR (When I first taught at two evangelical Bible colleges in Kiev, way back in 1994 I ran into 24 Mormon "missionaries" one night at the only pizza place that existed in the entire city at the time), however this influx of the cults into ripe harvest fields is nothing new. Throughout history Satan has perpetually promulgated counterfeit "ways to god" in order to keep people from coming to God.

"What fellowship has light with darkness?" the answer is NOTHING!

Thanks for the advice, my "about" page has now been updated, isn't technology and communications wonderful?

Long live Free Republic!

Excuse me - the Russians/Ukrainians have aalready established Christians native to those lands - why are you plowing someone elses already plowed fields?

Excuse me - the Russians/Ukrainians have aalready established Christians native to those lands - why are you plowing someone elses already plowed fields?

It is much easier and safer than to go on mission to the Muslim countries. But I would suggest starting with Turkey a country which is supposedly "a model country in terms of freedom and democracy".

Going to the Ukraine to convert Christians in an historicaly Christian land is like going to Poland to convert the Poles - the diff being one is Catholic and the other Orthodox. But you can't raise money for conversion trips to Poland from blue haired old ladies.

Destro and A. Pole, with your posts, you both belie your ignorance of history and reality. For nearly 70 years the communist government throughout the former Soviet Union/Eastern Europe sought to destroy Christians and Christianity within it’s borders. Churches, and theological institutions of higher learning were systematically decimated, (For example 70 churches, were destroyed in Kiev alone) and pastors and teachers who faithfully taught and proclaimed the Word of God were either killed or shipped off to a multitude of gulags were they were subsequently destroyed. By the time communism fell in the late 1980’s there weren’t any theologically sound theological institutions of higher learning in existence, let alone Christian teachers qualified to train up future national pastors, teachers and Christian workers.

Since the fall of communism literally hundreds of thousands of people have come to Christ and God himself has been causing the church to flourish. The Baptists alone have planted over 2000 churches during this period. These thousands upon thousands of new churches and theological institutions of higher learning that have come into existence need trained pastors and teachers who are qualified to minister, lead and teach those God has placed under their care. Those who once provided that training no longer existed by the time the iron curtain fell. The greatest need the church has throughout Eastern Europe has been facing is for qualified teachers to come and train up national pastors and teachers so that they can carry on the work of the ministry. That is the ministry God Himself has called me and a multitude of others to. As for my qualifications, I possess a BA in Biblical Studies, a Masters in the New Testament and a Ph.D. in Biblical Studies.

A. Pole you presume to know my reasons and motivation for going to Eastern Europe, you said, and I quote: “It is much easier and safer than to go on mission to the Muslim countries. But I would suggest starting with Turkey.” Sir, what are your qualifications to make such a statement of omniscience and sovereignty and who made you god over me and my ministry? As for my ministry, God has not called me to Turkey, if that is your burden, than feel free study/prepare, put your money where your mouth is and go. As for me, I will continue to pursue the call for which He has prepared and continually sends me.

As for not “plowing in someone else’s fields,” the premise of your post; and the logic of your argument, i.e. that Christians should not minister or conduct missions within “Christian” nations, is faulty. The United States (of which I am a citizen) can serve as a prime example. While claiming to be a “Christian” nation it is however in dire need of evangelical missionaries and qualified/theologically sound pastors and teachers to minister within it’s borders, churches and theological institutions of higher learning.

In regard to your vile assertion that I “can’t raise money for conversion trips to Poland from blue haired old ladies,” if you had read my original post you would have learned that I have been going to Eastern Europe since 1994 in order to train those who have already come to Christ and have sensed God’s call upon their lives to prepare in order to go into full-time ministry. Since that time I have taught thousands of these students’ pastoral, theological and Biblical studies courses on both the graduate and undergraduate level. While it has been my privilege to lead many to a saving knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ, that is not the primary purpose for which God continues to send me to the former USSR.

A. Pole and Destro, with your posts, you both belie your ignorance of history and reality. For nearly 70 years the communist government throughout the former Soviet Union/Eastern Europe sought to destroy Christians and Christianity within it’s borders. Churches, and theological institutions of higher learning were systematically decimated, (For example 70 churches, were destroyed in Kiev alone) and pastors and teachers who faithfully taught and proclaimed the Word of God were either killed or shipped off to a multitude of gulags were they were subsequently destroyed. By the time communism fell in the late 1980’s there weren’t any theologically sound theological institutions of higher learning in existence, let alone Christian teachers qualified to train up future national pastors, teachers and Christian workers.

Since the fall of communism literally hundreds of thousands of people have come to Christ and God himself has been causing the church to flourish. The Baptists alone have planted over 2000 churches during this period. These thousands upon thousands of new churches and theological institutions of higher learning that have come into existence need trained pastors and teachers who are qualified to minister, lead and teach those God has placed under their care. Those who once provided that training no longer existed by the time the iron curtain fell. The greatest need the church has throughout Eastern Europe has been facing is for qualified teachers to come and train up national pastors and teachers so that they can carry on the work of the ministry. That is the ministry God Himself has called me and a multitude of others to. As for my qualifications, I possess a BA in Biblical Studies, a Masters in the New Testament and a Ph.D. in Biblical Studies.

A. Pole you presume to know my reasons and motivation for going to Eastern Europe, you said, and I quote: “It is much easier and safer than to go on mission to the Muslim countries. But I would suggest starting with Turkey.” Sir, what are your qualifications to make such a statement of omniscience and sovereignty and who made you god over me and my ministry? As for my ministry, God has not called me to Turkey, if that is your burden, than feel free study/prepare, put your money where your mouth is and go. As for me, I will continue to pursue the call for which He has prepared and continually sends me.

As for not “plowing in someone else’s fields,” the premise of your post; and the logic of your argument, i.e. that Christians should not minister or conduct missions within “Christian” nations, is faulty. The United States (of which I am a citizen) can serve as a prime example. While claiming to be a “Christian” nation it is however in dire need of evangelical missionaries and qualified/theologically sound pastors and teachers to minister within it’s borders, churches and theological institutions of higher learning.

In regard to your vile assertion that I “can’t raise money for conversion trips to Poland from blue haired old ladies,” if you had read my original post you would have learned that I have been going to Eastern Europe since 1994 in order to train those who have already come to Christ and have sensed God’s call upon their lives to prepare in order to go into full-time ministry. Since that time I have taught thousands of these students’ pastoral, theological and Biblical studies courses on both the graduate and undergraduate level. While it has been my privilege to lead many to a saving knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ, that is not the primary purpose for which God continues to send me to the former USSR.

Thank you all for your prayer and support.

Then why no missions to Poland which spent many decades under brutal communist and Nazi repression as well? Because Americans raised on the Cold War have invested a sort of mystique behind missionary work behind the Iron Curtain. Poland was just as behind the Iron Curtain as the Ukraine but Americans no longer think of it as part of the Eastern Block but they still hold residual Cold War feelings for the Ukraine/Russia.

You want to be a true Christian? Why don't you raise money and organize aid for native Catholic and Orthodox churches that suffered under communisim rather than trying to steal them to your brand of soup kitchen Chrisianity.

You can't compare the USA with the horror the native churches suffered under the evil of communisim - a system that nearly eradicated religion via the use of torture and executions and destruction of churches.

My heart for the Lord goes with you. Praise God for this open door, and I pray He meets you and that you can sense His presence in those trying times that come with steps of faith.

God is so obviously good, and will make a way for your fruitful ministry.

May God richly Bless you!

Thank you all for your continuing prayers in regard to this missions trip, God is mercifully answering them.

By way of praise I received a check over the weekend for $777,77! The Christian couple who donated it like to use the number 7 because it is the number of perfection in scripture :o)