Ryan and I stayed together at a house a ways away from the actual village of Brusilov. We were definitely taken out of our comfort zone at this place. Without going into details, our bathroom consisted of an outhouse just big enough to fit a bucket underneath a bench of sorts with a toilet seat covered by shag carpet (it gets cold in the winter). However, at night we could use the bucket by the entrance, as our host Arthur demonstrated for us, with actions because there was no one in the house who spoke a word of English. We had a comfortable room, however, which was well heated (beside Ryan’s bed was a panel behind which there was apparently a log fire. He says it was so hot it burned his hand. I decided not to confirm that.) In the morning we had to be ready to leave by seven thirty for a prayer meeting at Pastor Sergey’s church. We were graciously served breakfast consisting of several fried eggs (sunny side up), bread, and not surprisingly, pickles. As ignorant foreigners, we of course weren’t aware that you were meant to dip the bread in the egg, instead of eating the egg on the bread.
We were saved from any more embarrassment when the van arrived to pick us up for the prayer meeting. This service only lasted two hours, and again John Tucker was asked to share a word with the church. But however long these services may have seemed to us who were used to carefully planned one hour and twenty minute services, it was a memorable time. We didn’t understand most of what was said or sung, but we did feel the presence of God in everything. To all of us it felt like the early church, when it was on fire and growing. There is a great sense of community among the believers, which was extended to us. They were so grateful to us for leaving our own life behind to come and meet with Christians we had never met. At the same time we felt we should be the ones thanking them for their hospitality and all there was to learn from them.
Following the prayer meeting, we had our second breakfast of the day. After this, Pastor Sergey showed us some of the places where God is at work in and around Brusilov. As I mentioned before, there are serious drugs and alcohol problems in Ukraine. Our first stop was a rehabilitation centre for men. It was led by a man who had been addicted to alcohol for seventeen years before coming to Christ. It currently houses eight men from the area, and is hoping to double that number as soon as bunk beds arrive. We prayed for a man there who was at that very moment struggling with his addiction. We then visited a house where they were building a similar centre for women, and prayed for it. Before they bought the run-down place, it had been used as a shelter by addicts. At the moment, they are in need of new doors and windows. It is incredible how these Christians respond to events. As soon as a need arises or if God prompts them to do something, they start praying about it. They do not wait until they have enough money or resources to continue the ministry, they simply start building and totally rely on God to provide for them as they go along. Everything they do relies on expectant prayer and utter reliance and faith. They believe that “he who began a good work in [them] will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.” (Philippians 1:6) We also visited and prayed for a place in a different village where they were building a new church. There was rubbish and beer bottles scattered across the floor, yet one day it will be a church. Lastly, we visited a lonely blind man who used to be a teacher. Before he was blind, this man discovered a World War II vehicle nearby his house. When he inspected it, a landmine exploded and blinded him. Pastor Sergey told us that this man loves to hear people sing, so we sang for him and then prayed for him. It was incredible how much we could do for these people simply by praying for them and the projects they were working at. Our team’s views on prayer seemed so limited, when there it really was a way of life.
Rob van Leeuwen
No comments:
Post a Comment