Russia Mission Team Update 6/21

Greetings from Russia!   Today's one-word summary is RESOLVE.   It was a difficult day.  The children know we are beyond midpoint in the English/Bible school.  Now, there is only one day left.  The children arrived with guarded emotions and by the third day were more open, vulnerable, and joyful with us.  Now they are becoming guarded again, creating that emotional distance to protect themselves as the team prepares to leave.   Today was also the day we talked about God's love, grace, mercy, and forgiveness in Jesus Christ.  It was a day to proclaim the gospel.  It was also a day of spiritual warfare.  Several of the children were emotionally hyper or agitated.  Classroom management was difficult.  The children were restless and non compliant, talkative and loud.  It made teaching very difficult, and, many of the teachers were frustrated.   Since it was a spiritual warfare day, all the normal doubts associated with mission work came crashing down upon us.  Am I making any impact?  Why am I here?  Does it really matter?  These questions plagued most of us.    Of course, nothing done in the name of the Lord for his glory is ever wasted.  We hope and believe this to be true.  The seeds of the gospel that are planted in the lives of children, albeit ever so small do often germinate, sprouting great trees of fruitfulness.  However, it takes time.  And, five days is not enough time to see results, only to plant and nurture the seed.  As Americans, we love to see results.  Sometimes, I feel this pressure from our own church family.  How many kids were at camp?  How many children gave their hearts to Christ?  How many lives were changed?  All, I can report is that we were faithful, to the best of our ability, to proclaim Christ and his gospel in word and deed.    These camps possess a built-in tension.  One the one hand, it is a language camp.  We teach conversational English, using the Bible as both text and means by which to generate conversation.  This English is more than introducing yourself (e.g., "Hello.  My name is Jeff") or asking where is the toilet.  This English is about discussing ideas and concepts that shape our understanding of the purpose, nature, and direction of our lives -- very complex and serious topics.  Of course, each student's proficiency in the English language is different, thereby making intellectual conversation almost impossible.   Thus our English instruction is about a few vocabulary words and a rudimentary version of biblical stories, reduced to their most basic sentence structure and grammar.    On the other hand, the camp is theological.  We teach the gospel of Jesus Christ with the hope that the children will come to faith in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.  The camp, thus serves as a type of Sunday School or Vacation Bible School.   Using the story of Joseph in Egypt (cf. Genesis 39-45), we are teaching about trusting in God's purposes and promises and how Joseph is a prototype of Jesus as deliverer and one who shows mercy and forgives the sin of his brothers.  Thus our theological education is simplified so that the children know the basic story, its characters, and main themes.   With the teenagers, who are able to think abstractly, we try to delve more deeply into the intricacies of the text.   But, without me possessing Russian language skills, this more intellectual dialogue is nearly impossible.  My only recourse, is to communicate the basic ideas and challenging questions to my interpreter (Diana), as a whole, instead of line by line interpretation, and then to ask her to communicate these ideas in Russian and dialogue with the students, reporting back to me what they said.  Fortunately, Diana is a confirmed Lutheran and is able for this task, but many interpreters are not.   So, the English/Bible Camp contains a tension, between which we constantly navigate, making constant decisions based upon what is needed in the moment.  Missions is like a dance.  The work is an art form, demanding the teacher to be sensitive to the response and ability of his/her partner (i.e., the students).   Fortunately, EEMN has been in this part of the country for over 17 years and can report the long-term impact of such camps.  There is tremendous fruit.  Children do come to Christ and the Church is growing.  Often, it takes several camp experiences for the fruit to become evident, but the planting of the seed of faith and its growth is real.  We just do not see it.   Mom is doing great.  She is very uniquely qualified for this type of work.  She is energetic, athletic, engages children well, and has a warrior spirit.  You can be proud of her.   She radiates Jesus all the time.  I struggled today.  So much for being a mature pastor of strong faith.  Though I know in my head everything I wrote above, in my heart, I was deeply frustrated.  In our team debrief, I shared all this.  It affirmed at least two other people, who were professional teachers and thought they were the only ones struggling with such feelings of inadequacy and failure.   I'm sure you feel this way at times, too.   I need to remind myself that the same God who was faithful to Joseph is also faithful to us. He has plans and purposes for each one of you.  And, though the way may seemed blocked or unclear to you, be encouraged that the Lord is still at work.  We all need to wait for his perfect will to unfold in his perfect timing.   I am so thankful that you each love the Lord whole-heartedly and seek to serve him with your lives.  As a father, I am so grateful to the Lord that he is at work within you.  Now, I pray that He opens doors for you to proclaim Him and that you are encouraged to new strength and joy.   Love,   DAD and MOM (P. Jeff  & Mim)