October - November 2006

On Red Square

Some missionary friends contacted us with a request. They were coming from America for a survey trip and would be passing through Moscow on their way to a town in central Russia. Could we meet them at the airport and help them find their way through Moscow to the train station? Of course we could! We visit Moscow several times a year, so we know our way around pretty well. We had a great time of fellowship, a little bit of sightseeing, and then we brought them to the train station. We are so happy to see other missionaries come to Russia with the Gospel.
red square
Irina, who has been coming to our services and Bible studies for a long time, was struggling for many months about her need for Salvation. On a Thursday night, after the Bible study, she asked if she could talk with me. She told me that she finally came to the point where she was ready, and she trusted Christ as her Savior in her home a few days earlier! Praise the Lord! This is what it is all about. She has told me since then that she can see a change in her own life. I told her that in Christ we are new creatures, old things are passed away, all things are become new. (2 Cor. 5:17) Pray for her to grow in grace.

An adult man, close to 50, came to our Thursday English Bible study. His name is Alex. He saw a poster that we had put up near a bus stop, advertising our Thursday lessons. He is a businessman and a truck driver, and he has been to America and speaks English very well. Alex told me that he has found some success in life, materially, but he is looking for something spiritual that is missing. Since then, he has come to almost every Thursday lesson and Sunday service. He convinced his wife, Polline, to come, and now she is a regular visitor, too. Pray that they will be saved. He is a very eager student of the Bible. He often stays after the service and asks good questions. He told me that he reads his Bible whenever he has to wait for his truck to be loaded or unloaded.

Our new church property is such a blessing! We had a volleyball and watermelon get together before the weather turned cold. Alex and Polline came, along with some young people, and a teacher from one of the local English schools. We bought a ping pong table so the youth will have a good activity for the colder months.

You can see pictures of our church property in an online photo album we have set up on our website. Go to www.donossewaarde.com and look for the link to “Russia property photos”. If you would like to have a part in helping us pay off the building loan, please send your gift to Baptist International Missions, Inc., P.O. Box 9215, Chattanooga, TN 37412 and designate it for “Ossewaarde - Project Russian Church Building”.

In the service of the King,
Don Ossewaarde