I had the honor of preaching at a Russian church in Virginia recently, but I really struggled with what to speak on. What burdened my heart was what I was learning about how Russian churches in the US do not support missions in Russia, except for one-off offerings when speakers come through town. I came…
Nastya had two weeks off from work, so my task was to fill it, and full it did get. We had two basic goals: Connect with pro-life and post-abortion ministries for relationship; Connect with individuals interested in such ministry in Russia for prayer and financial support. God gave us lots of new relationships, quite enthusiastic…
People of course ask me often about my opinions on Russian politics. I usually sound half-articulate to most who aren’t themselves really into Russia. One thing that strikes me about this latest talk by Gorbachev is the gradual shift in his rhetoric over the years, from being pro-Putin to mild criticism to bold and systemic…
I’d like to share some more details about all the translation work that we have been doing so that you can get an idea of yet another dimension of our work in Russia. It’s not like there is a shortage of translation work going on, but as it pertains to the Christian world of publishing,…
Since life coaching and coaching is no small part of my work here and the vision I have to transform the city, it only makes sense to clarify what it is. I barely understood the concept before I got trained in 2006. The profession is really no older than the 1990’s in fact, so don’t…
Abortion is not an issue I talk often about, but I have addressed it occasionally in my communications and presentations because of the horrible history that Russia and the Soviet Union have in this regard. There was a time in its history that the average woman had 11 or more abortions in her lifetime. At…
When I first moved to Russia, I didn’t know much about what God was leading me to do. I wanted to learn as much as I could and let God lead. On the other hand, I had a history and a general sense of what God was doing in me, and I knew that being…
I repost this article from the Moscow times, an expat newspaper, to show what the government is trying to do to shape public opinion on this subject. While I was on my back for a week for the third time in three years recently, I had a massage therapist come and work on me daily.…
This year saw some of the most dramatic and significant transformations in our ministry since coming to Russia in 2007. What our life and my ministry look like going into 2013 are radically different from when we started, but it’s not because of any major surprises. It’s actually panning out pretty much according to the…
My friend Bill, who has lived here since the early 1990’s likes to say, “St. Petersburg is real beautiful – if it’s dark and you squint hard.” Well, I found another view that makes it look good. This is an impressive project, taking panoramas of the city from various spots, all on the same day.…
orphan dreams 