Cheryl Bear & First Nations Team in Russia

The Barnestson Family
ministering in a local church called "The Vine"

For the last week we have had the privilege of hosting a team of Indigenous, First Nations people from North America. Randy and Cheryl Barnetson, their three sons and two other women have joined us and are ministering in local churches, rehab centers and will be presenting several evangelistic outreaches.

The team has already spoken at two churches, a drug rehabilitation center and done one evangelistic outreach with a team of Russian church planters.

For the next 10 days we will all be busy sharing the Gospel through First Nations culture, meeting new friends and learning about Russian life and culture.

Cheryl Speaking at the local Messianic Congregation

The Barnetson Family ministering in Song

Pastor Evgeny Blinov local Messianic Pastor

Cheryl and her boys rocking out at an evangelistic outreach

Foursquare Leaders from Holland Visit Russia

Ministering in Song

Ap and Anita Verwayen, Foursquare leaders from Holland, recently visited us in Nizhny Novgorod. Karen and I helped to facilitate the publishing of their book, The Art of Marriage, into the Russian language and Ap and Anita decided to present a marriage seminar in conjunction with the release of the book.

While they here we also had the opportunity to take them to several of the ministries of Cornerstone church where they taught and ministered.

Ministering at the Seminar with our friend Anya

Teaching at the Homeless Center

with our Co-worker Sveta

Praying with a Young Woman as she repents and comes to Christ

This homeless man, now living at the Social Center also repented and submitted to Christ

Karen, Sveta and Anita praying for a sister

Teaching at a rehab center

Praying with a former drug addict

Praying for one of the leaders, Dima, a great young guy

Group photo at the rehab center

Another Russian Adventure.

Today while showing Dutch friends a bit of our city we seemed to have parked in a no parking zone and as a result our car was towed away by the police! This was distressing as we had friends whom we needed to be with, it was raining, and we needed to take our friends to teach at a marriage seminar in just a few hours.

Having never had our car towed before we had to call several Russian friends and ask what to do. We were told that first we needed figure out which lot our car had been towed to, go to the storage lot (by bus), identify our car, prove that it was ours with multiple documents and then we would receive a piece of paper from them. We would then have to cross the city to take this paper to the central police department, show them all our identification, passport, drivers license, car documents, etc. and they would complete some more paperwork, stamp it with an official stamp, we would of course pay a fine, and only then could we return to the storage lot and present this paper and retrieve our car. We apologized to our friends and showed them how to walk back to their hotel and off we went to find our car.

We had an idea where it may have been taken so we took a local bus to the general location, but had to walk for a while trying to find it. It was amusing when I stopped one young man and said, "excuse me, I am a foreigner and I don't speak Russian very well, can you help me?" He laughed and said, "I don't speak Russian very well either." He was from one of the southern provinces himself and wasn't a native Russian. We asked several people on the street to help us and finally found someone who knew where we needed to go and so off we went again by foot.

We found our car, received the necessary paperwork and then had to find a way across town to the central police station. It was evening rush hour so we decided for the sake of expediency to hire a taxi. The driver was a nice guy and interested that we were Americans. He drove us across town and when we arrived he said to us that he would wait for us and then drive us back to get our car.

At the police station I asked one young police man to help me and he just laughed and asked for my documents when he realized my Russian was terrible. After reading everything and asking me where I was from, he took us into the station, gave our papers to someone else and said, "wait here." In about 10 minutes another guy came out, handed us the completed paperwork and told us we could go. No fine, no payment, no trouble. We were surprised.

So, back in the taxi and an amazingly quick trip across town during rush hour we got to the storage lot and the taxi driver says, much to our surprise, that he would wait to make sure we got our car. The reason we were so surprised is because in this culture strangers simply do not help each other. The storage lot manager was another nice guy helping us to fill out all the forms (Russia loves paperwork) and then asked me to sign my name and we were free to go.

We were astonished. In a country that thrives in bureaucracy and making life unpleasant for its inhabitants we were able to retrieve our car in a little over two hours and didn't have to pay any fine for the towing. Life in Russia is always challenging, sometimes stressful and then you get some really interesting breaks as you see the favor of God working for you. So, happily, ended another Russian adventure.

Teams, Books and Baptisms

Tonight Karen and I will take an overnight train to Moscow. Tomorrow morning we will meet some friends, Ap and Anita Verwayen who are Foursquare leaders from Holland. They have authored a book, "the Art of Marriage," which we helped to get published in Russia.

Ap and Anita are coming to Nizhny Novgorod and this weekend they will teach a seminar for believers based upon their book. We are looking forward to this time.

On Sunday at church we had 15 people receive certificates of baptism upon completion of a course, and then obeying the Lord by being water baptized. Most of these believers are brand new in the faith. It is exciting to watch the church continue to grow.


On the 15th of this month we will meet another team in Moscow, Randy and Cheryl Barnetson, their boys plus two other ladies. The Barnetsons are coming to Nizhny Novgorod to evangelize using native Indian culture and music. It promises to be an interesting time.

Amazing Grace - Another Changed Life

This week we sat and talked with one of the brothers who found freedom from drugs through the ministry of the church and rehabilitation center. This is his story.

By the time I was twenty years old I was a hard core drug addict supporting myself primarily by pick pocketing and stealing the cash. One day while riding a bus a young woman and I realized that were trying to steal the same wallet! We thought that was pretty funny so we got off the bus together at the next stop and began to talk. We discovered that we liked each other and started living together, stealing and doing drugs.

After some time my girlfriend became pregnant. We had no desire to change our lifestyle, and neither of us wanted the burden or responsibility of a baby, so we decided to simply end the pregnancy with an abortion. Before we were able to do this we were both arrested. In Russia the law gives a lesser sentence to a pregnant woman so my girlfriend took all the blame, received a short jail sentence, and I was set free. Although the prison sentence was short, by the time she was released it was too late for her to get an abortion so we were stuck with an unwanted baby. Soon a little girl was born, but as unrepentant drug addicts we had no use for a baby so we left it with my mom and continued in our life of crime and drug use. I see now that even in my life of crime and addiction God was watching over me and today I thank Him for His mercy by not allowing me to murder my daughter.

I was arrested a second time and because of the long sentence my girlfriend decided to not wait for me. Instead, she started living with a good friend of mine. While in prison I remember burning with anger at her unfaithfulness and planning my revenge, how I would stab her to death after I was released. Fortunately, I never carried out my plans and we just went our separate ways.

I continued in my drug use and crime for years being utterly self absorbed; totally uninvolved with my little daughter. Her mother had also completely abandoned her. Since I persisted in using more and more drugs I was in and out of prison several more times and I understood that someday I would die from an overdose, but that was just the way life was. I had no hope for life; no hope for freedom from addiction. While my life continued to spiral downward my mom had been faithful to raise my daughter who was now 10 years old.

I began selling drugs to support my habit but I got caught and arrested. I was afraid because I knew that this time it would mean a very long prison sentence so I began to pray and said, “God, I don’t know if you are real, but if you are and you get me out of this mess, I will serve you." All I can tell you is that God in His grace and mercy works in mysterious ways. Not only was I able to avoid serving this long prison sentence, but the conviction for this particular crime disappeared from the court records. In my limited way I was sincere in this prayer, but sadly, as soon as the crisis was over I forgot about my promise to God.

One day a young guy, who could see that I was a drug addict, came up to me and handed my a small yellow flyer which read – Real Hope – Freedom from Drugs. He told me to call the number if I was tired of my life as an addict and that the people there would help me. As low as I had become in life, I still hadn't hit the bottom so I wasn’t really interested but I stuffed the flyer in my back pocket.

It wasn't long after that encounter when I resigned myself to the fact that my life was no longer worth living. I decided to hang myself and get it over with. I climbed up on a chair, tied a rope over a pipe and around my neck, and was about ready to kick the chair away when I stuck my hand in my back pocket. By this time I had completely forgotten about the yellow flyer so I can not explain why I did this, except to say that God was with me and remembered my prayer. I recalled that this young man had said I could find help, so I decided to call the number.

I spoke to a very kind brother, named Zhenya, who told me that they could help me. He seemed like a nice guy who was genuinely interested in me so I decided to enter the rehabilitation program and it was there that God finally got a hold of me and began to really work in my life. It was there in the rehab center that I learned about Jesus Christ and it was there in the center that He set me free from drugs. The first stage of the rehab course is four months long, but after only two months, with good intentions, but bad judgment, I violated one of the rules and I had to leave. During these two months I had become a follower of Jesus Christ and the work that God began in my life had really changed me. I started going to church and trying to serve God. I reunited with my daughter, who today is 14 years old, and now we have a good relationship. I have been completely drug free for three years. I have my own small business as a long distance truck driver and own my own truck. I love my new life, I love my work, I love my daughter and most of all l love God and thank Him for the great things He has done in my life.

Dmitry

We hear testimonies like this every week. God is doing amazing things as the Gospel brings hope and life to hundreds of ex-drug addicts. At the same time, every week on the local news, we see young men and women without hope who have ended their lives Thanks you for standing behind us as we serve the churches who minister to these young men and women.