It has been an incredible week. We have seen things and encountered the Living God in ways we couldn’t have imagined.
As I write this, I don’t know if we’ll get another chance to call before leaving in the morning (we leave at 5 am here, which is 7 pm Sunday night in Texas. We will arrive in Texas around 8:20 Tuesday night.
There are so many things I want to tell you about our trip, so I’ll share a few now and more later. Sorry for all the typos, in a big hurry before we go to church this morning. Please pray for us, that it will be uneventful. There are muslims who have infiltrated the church services at times and caused problems. Most have been caught and imprisoned for radical acts, but there are others.
It’s like we are living out the book of Acts. Our brothers and sisters here live with a passion for God and a love for each other that makes you want to give all of yourself away. After being here, I’m reminded how delicate life is and how much we are blessed in America. At the same time, I wonder how in the world we can experience the kind of intimacy, love and fellowship without placing ourselves into a position where we must be stretched to survive, where we must share everything we have, where we must bring ourselves into community with others, especially the poor in spirit and possessions. This became clear once again as *****, the leader of 18 ministries in Central Asia and the surrounding countries, showed us his bed last night. He sleeps in an outdoor hallway under a mosquito net, the door to which is a 6 foot tall sheet of plywood. He reminded me that he has vowed to never own a house, as in his pre-Christian life he was consumed with money and possessions. His commitment is to live with his missionaries, like his missionaries, and to create an oasis for them to come and rest, be discipled, and encouraged. Every night, between women prisoners just released and the staff and team, there must be close to 100 people living and eating there.
But when they worship together, which is every day, it’s like an explosion of love, passion, and fire. I won’t even try to describe it. Suffice it to say that it’s compelling enough that my mind searches for ways to bring us into the same type of fierce, unbridled abandon in our church and worship.
We spent the first night in Bongay, sharing with a man of influence who is an economic advisor to the president. He was happy to see me again and gave me great hospitality and warmth. We all stayed at his house and built relationship. Then, we traveled up the treacherous roads to the Bongay valley, and were given a great surprise. Near the village of #######, ***** had been planning an aid center, and we were given the privilege of helping dig the foundation. Then, ------ gave me a bible and gave the honor of planting it in the corner of the foundation nearest the river. It was one of the greatest moments; truly a blessing to consider the magnitude of what was taking place there. Once a place of destruction where people and families were run out of the village at gun point, ancient buildings in ruins, it will now be a strategic place of rest, medical aid, education, and hope for travelers who pass through this valley. To give you some perspective, there was 20 feet of snow in this valley for most of the winter, so the mountain passes are cutoff for 6 months of the year. No travel by car, only on foot. No foot transport, no medical aid, and many people die.
On that note, Calisher, the Bongay convert we were privileged to lead to Christ last year, has died. He was about 30. How do we gain understanding of that? That the one villager we led to Christ last year, of all the ones we met, died having accepted Christ? That of all the people we came across the world to see, God moved on the heart of the one who would not live to see us return. And now that we returned, many villagers have been moved to see us come back to this desolate place only to find that Calisher is passed. It gave us an opening that nothing else could have. God is moving on the hearts of His people, and I believe incredible things are in store. And, it’s difficult to mourn Calisher since we know we’ll see him again.
Then, we traveled to the end of the road but a rockslide kept us from getting all the way there, so we unexpectedly had to pack everything the last 2 miles as night fell. It was wonderful to be there again, everything more vivid than before. We camped, and tried to go to bed. During the night, Zoli was feeling terrible and Clay ended up with vomiting all night. The men thought that it was a reaction to the altitude, but we’re not sure. We were at about 8200 feet elevation. Very difficult, and the next day we were all exhausted with no sleep. So, Clay stayed at the tents with two men on the Central Asian team caring for him and we went on ahead to try and story in the villages, two we had been to before and two new ones. We hiked to about 9200 feet. And, as we were walking up the trail and glanced back at the camp, Clay was being attended to by an 8 year old little girl come down from the village with her grandfather. It was like the Lord sent an angel to care for him in our absence. She sat on the rock with him as he washed his face in the icy water, patted his arm, and tried to entertain him. It was absolutely precious. More on that later…
We returned victorious, all getting to share stories, and by the time we came back Clay was a little better but still weak. ^^^^^^, one of our wonderful Central Asian servants, had cared for him and made him a pallet in the shade down by the river to stay cool. What a blessing. And then, of all things, two Bongay leaders from the villages stayed and ate with us, and Clay was able to share a story in our own camp. It was truly a miracle, a staggering move of God’s sovereign power that most people would have missed. So by the end of the day, we all were able to share the word of God, and we packed out to the stranded vehicles and moved on to camp back at #######. Clay is doing great now, all is well.
The next morning, we climbed as a team up the mountain and worshipped as the sun rose over the mountain, warming our bodies and our hearts. We looked down from that vantage point at the foundation we and the team had dug for the training center. That rectangle, 18 feet by 105 feet, received lots of prayer that brisk morning. Thinking about what would happen there was overwhelming.
Traveled back to the city over the treacherous roads for four hours, and were incredibly grateful to make it in one piece. People drive on both sides of a pot-holed dirt road that’s barely wide enough for two cars in most places, and you see the burned out husks of vehicles that have fallen off the mountain. It’s very sobering to think that about 160 people a year are killed on the road we were traveling throught the pass. Several times, it felt as if the vehicle would lurch off the road, or that a overloaded Russian truck would careen into us. Thank you, Lord, for your traveling mercies on us!
Yesterday, we started with a trip to the Men’s prison, which is now up to 2000 inmates from 1500 a year ago. The conditions have improved in many areas, thanks to *****’s ministry. It’s incredible to see the gratitude the guards and inmates have for ***** and his team. Their lives have been impacted. This is wonderful, considering that many were plotting to kill him when he first started coming into the prison. We were also told that some prisoners wanted to kick us out last year when we came. Pretty sobering, and another testimony as to God’s protection over us and this ministry. As we walked around, we came to a prayer room where four of our Christian brothers were praying. Out of the prison, there are 30 Christians, up from 15 last year. They are treated badly by other prisoners, but are growing in number and strength. So, we were able to fellowship with them, and spent much time with our hands on them in prayer. They were very encouraged, and I think there will be several things we can do to support them with materials in Russian for teaching and worship. They didn’t ask prayer for freedom, but for strength in their faith and for their Christian brothers who are wavering. They asked to be effective in sharing Christ in the prison, and for their families.
Then, we went to the training center where the leader of *****’s national sports and music ministry had assembled musicians and athletes to hear us preach. Following, I was to give a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu demonstration and my sparring partner was the three time national champion in wrestling and Judo. We got much of it on video, and God prevented either him or me from harm as I taught and then we sparred (with increasing intensity). I had him throw me to the ground and we started from there with me on my back. It was a challenge for him to admit defeat, and a challenge for me to try and allow him to save face in front of his students gracefully. All was good in the end, and he was very gracious - until he asked his brother to spar. Twice we went, and twice I realized that he would not submit in a choke hold, so I released before he passed out. It was a good day, and we ended before his increasing frustration caused injury.
Then, we swam in the artesian spring fed pool and had an incredible dinner last night. They threw a birthday party for Zoli, showering him with love, prayer, and many songs. What an incredible experience!
There is no doubt that ***** and I have a very unique bond that is growing into a brotherhood. He has shared prayer requests with us that cannot be repeated, as it could endanger his life and others, and I feel deeply honored that he can confide in us. I can only pray that God will allow us to spend more time together so that we can continue to strategize how to maximize our resources and love for Christ in serving together. I want to give myself away for these people.