| When Sveta first joined our team, she was a self-described “hedgehog”—curled up in a protective ball, a vulnerable,”cowed puppy,” as I called her. Today, Sveta is a “tigress,” a confident leader and an incredible mentor who is equipping a new generation of leaders. How does a change like that happen? Sveta’s journey of transformation is the story of everything we believe and practice at Novo. Pictured left with her new fiancee and below with members of our team, she has been by my side the longest of anyone on our team, and boy, she is valuable! We trust it will inspire you. |
| Meeting Lyle in 2009 My transformation began not with a search for healing, but for a job. In 2009, I met Lyle in a St. Petersburg cafe, and he shared a vision that resonated deeply with a place in my spirit I didn’t even know was listening. He spoke of serving people in a new way and of building a genuine team. My response surprised even me; I told him, “I will pray for you. Send me your letters; I want to support this.” That simple offer of prayerful partnership became the foundation of a journey that would completely reshape my life. A Job Description of Four Words When I later joined the team, reality clashed with my expectations. I was an economist by training, wired for tasks and metrics, but my first “job description” was a shock: “Your first job is to pray,” Lyle said, writing just four points on a piece of paper. The shock deepened when the entire team conducted an “intensive” for me—a form of focused, group ministry where I was the sole recipient over two weeks. They served me, prayed for me, and invested in me, all while I was already on the payroll. My entire paradigm, built on the principle that you must “earn” love and care, was shattered. This unconditional, practical love was the first crack in the wall around my heart. Learning How to “Real Talk” the Talk This environment of grace was the soil, but the specific tool God used to till the hard ground of my soul was the “Real Talk” course. I discovered my communication was, in fact, deeply selfish, despite being quite sociable. In conversations, I was often a “Historian,” waiting for a pause to insert my own story, or a “Thief,” stealing the topic toward my own concerns. Real Talk taught me to shift my focus from my own wounds to God’s voice in the dialogue. I learned that the goal wasn’t to defend myself or prove a point, but to discern what God was doing in that moment and join Him. I began to listen—not to my internal monologue of anxiety, but to the Holy Spirit’s gentle promptings. The constant, draining conflicts and misunderstandings began to dissolve, replaced by a hopeful confidence that any relational dead-end could be navigated with God’s guidance. From Hedgehog to Helper The fruit of this journey became visible to those around me. My pastor noted the change without any prompting. A close friend told me, “You used to be a prickly hedgehog, but now it’s easy to talk with you.” The most telling testimony came from Lyle himself, who saw my journey from the beginning. He once remarked on the transformation from that timid, “cowed puppy” to the woman he now jokingly calls a “tigress.” Today, the very wounds God healed have become the foundation of my ministry. In 2015 Lyle turned over leadership of our Transformation Prayer Ministry (TPM) training to me. Having once been trapped in my own defensive conversations, I now coach others through the Real Talk tools. My long journey to emotional freedom allows me to patiently walk with those who feel just as stuck and vulnerable as I once was. |
| The Next Step: Raising Up More Leaders Like Sveta Sveta’s story—of being discipled, healed, and empowered—is the blueprint for our entire ministry. As a ‘Barnabas-type’ encourager, she is now a key player in our vision to expand leadership development. Our goal for 2026 is to start or significantly expand several new leadership programs—including courses, an outreach to pastors, and increased mentoring for struggling leaders |
orphan dreams 