Our FIRST VOLUNTEER mission team!
07 Dec 2007

 Although the team had spent a day or two in Moscow, they had traveled by the most economical route to Ufa, the dreaded 1:30 A.M. red eye flight from Sheremet’evo-1 Airport in Moscow. And so, we took them to a local hotel for rest while Chris and a Russian brother took care of visa registration issues. In the evening, Josie and Eileen stuffed our guests with some of their delectable cuisine before we all settled into Chris’ living room for a get-to-know-you orientation briefing. Half of our visitors were wearing "I love New York" T-shirts that they had bought enroute, because their luggage, which they thought was also enroute, somehow took another route and would not catch up with them until day four.  Led by pastor Mark Bordeau (not in the picture), a veteran of many mission trips to Russia and other far flung locales, the team hailed from West Side Baptist Church in Sumter, S.C. and consisted of:  Lauren, the Pastor’s teenage daughter; Rachel, a  student at Liberty University; Alan and Jessica, a young newlywed couple from Columbia (S.C.); and three grand dame seniors, Janet, Barbara, and June, whose wit and vigor belied their whitish gray hair. For all of you with excuses as to why you cannot live out the Great Commission, June is just shy of 80 and just buried a much beloved husband of over half a century less than a year ago. She could have claimed that she was too old or have allowed herself to be crippled by her loss, but there she was and we were honored to have her. Mercifully, the briefing was an unusual one, in that the brief was, well, brief. It was a short night because everyone was still feeling the effects of their globetrotting.

 Early the next morning, after downing some of Josie’s famous cinnamon rolls, we set out to prayer walk Sipailovo (sa-PIE-lah-vah), a bedroom district of Ufa home to 100,000 souls, two mosques (under construction), and a McDonald’s (under construction), but nary a Christian church. We mustered on the corner of Gagarin and Bikbaii Streets. Larry gave everyone their street assignments, we prayed, and then according to plan broke into three mini teams. For some of us, it was our first real prayer walk. Others were old hands at it. The mini teams had different strategies, but one goal – to glorify God one day by the planting of a church in the Sipailovo region.

The weather at first was cool, but it warmed up significantly. The sun beat down, but our hearts and souls were refreshed as we walked along calling upon God to take Sipailovo as His own possession and to glorify Himself by calling unto Himself a body of believers in the region. We looked at the scores of mammoth apartment blocks that comprise the region and saw only opportunity.  Pray that we might be able to convince the Baptist Association here that the time to plant a church in Sipailovo is now. Pray that God might glorify Himself by the planting of first one, and then several house churches in the Sipailovo region.

On day three, our plan was to prayer walk Nizhegorodka, a low lying area in south west Ufa, inhabited mostly by Bashkirs and Tartars and known for its high crime rate and alcoholism.  But, the morning was not without its excitement even before we reached the "Low Town".  We headed for our bus stop with Alan and Jessica, Janet, Barbara, and June in tow.  When we were still some 50 meters from our stop, Bus 31 roared to a halt up ahead. Missing a bus here often means waiting for at least another 40 minutes. So, Larry sprinted ahead and called upon the other six, three of which qualify for AARP cards, to make a break for it.  From the bus steps, Larry shouted encouragement to them while pleading with the driver to wait. The grandmotherly June was bringing up the rear of the pack. One by one, our guests dove into the bus gasping for air, leaving June alone in pursuit of the bus door. With the bus engines firing and the mammoth hulk of the tandem bus beginning to lurch forward, believe it or not, June leapt the final six feet to the bus and in mid air grasped Larry’s arm, and pulled herself safely inside. As she sunk into one of the chairs, Miss June said in her southern draw, "whew, I think this is just a little bit too much excitement for me." Everyone laughed. And from then on she teased Larry about running the group all over town. We rode the five miles to a bus stop near Chris’ apartment and then walked a half mile to his flat. Chris, Eileen, and their five children live on the fifth floor. In Russia, if your building does not have more than five stories then you do not have an elevator. As we were walking up the steps to Chris’ house, Barbara remarked that she was having some chest pains. When Chris and Pastor Mark learned of it, they decided almost immediately that she would not be going on the prayer walk that day and that they themselves would accompany her to a clinic for some tests. And wouldn’t you know, that sweet woman was practically in tears wanting to confront the darkness in the Lower Town with the rest of the team. She may be on beta-blockers, and have to swallow more pills than food, but we think it takes quite a heart to fly an ailing body to the other side of the Earth in answer to God’s call. We can only pray that we will see more like her.

While Chris, Pastor Mark, and Barbara sped to the clinic, and Josie cared for the Carr children, the remaining missionaries divided themselves into two groups and prayer walked Nizhegorodka, the Lower Town. Many of our Russian brothers tell us that it is a dangerous area. It is, so to speak, the wrong side of the tracks. Instead of the mammoth, concrete apartment blocks that one finds in much of Ufa, Nizhegorodka’s maze like streets are lined with small wooden single family homes with tin roofs, often in bad need of repair. Larry, Alan, Jessica, June, and Eileen walked along the street. Our almost immediate first impression was that this was not Sipailovo. This was not the residence of the up and comers, but of the underclass who had come to Ufa from the villages seeking a better life. We found people in this lower, flood plain area to be more suspicious of outsiders, more closed to conversation. Here people were of a darker complexion and we could see in the glaring eyes of particularly the men that we saw on the streets that we were not all that welcome. And we were told as much as we walked up to a ma and pa store to buy something to drink. A Tartar man told Larry that if he was not the president of the company, then he was not wanted. And down one dusty side street, we happened upon an old codger who claimed to be the nephew of Stalin. He warned Larry again and again to take care of those he had with him and not to trust anyone "down here." We told him that there is one that he can trust and gave him a book called, "Is Christ God?" He was incredulous that we were giving Him the book and not asking anything in return. But he soon returned to his solemn warnings. "People down here will draw a cross on your chest with a knife," he said, while demonstrating with his finger on Larry’s chest.

Still, these negative impressions were practically wiped away by a "chance" encounter with a rather friendly Tartarka. A Labrador puppy ran out of a fenced in yard to greet Alan and Jessica, with a Tartar woman in hot pursuit. The newlyweds bent down to pet the pooch and began to speak to the dog’s owner. Only, they didn’t know Russian and the Tartarka only knew a few words of English. They called upon Larry to interpret, and he did so until Eileen and June caught up with them from down the street. The two women knew the Tartarka’s heart language, which wasn’t Russian, or Tartar, but flowers, food, and children. Soon they were conversing as only women can. And Larry wisely stepped out of the way and became a spectator.

 F. had never met any Americans before and was tickled pink to make our acquaintance. She apologized profusely for not being able to invite us in for tea. She did, however, take us back into her garden where we talked for about twenty minutes. We gave her a small New Testament and told her that we were followers of Jesus. Larry told her that if she would like to study the Bible with us, we would be glad to have her. She declined for now, but left the door open, saying that first she needed to read what we had given her and then she would be open to talking about it. She was interested, though, in having us over for tea sometime in the near future. We parted cheerfully with F. kissing all the women and thanking us for our visit.

More than an hour later, on the same street, Larry gave a copy of "Is Christ God?" to a man sitting out in front of his house. And then 20 meters down the road he gave another copy to a man who was drawing water from a roadside water pump. The first man called to the second, "I see you also got a copy." The second one yelled back, "Read it, read it!" And we said a silent prayer that the Tartar man would do just that. As we passed by F.’s house on our way out of Nizhegorodka, she came running out, insisting that we come in for tea after all. We, unfortunately, had to decline. F. called to another Tartarka who was just returning home. "Come and meet our friends from America!" But the woman shook her head and literally ran through her gate as if from fear. Even in a moderately Muslim society, some women are beaten if they speak to those their husband doesn’t approve of. We said our good byes, caught a taxi, and ascended out of the Lower Town for a debriefing at Chris’. There we received the good news that Barbara was okay and that all her tests were normal for someone with angina problems.

Larry led in the discussion about Nizhegorodka. He noted Psalm 36:7, which says, "How precious is your unfailing love. Both high and low among men find refuge in the shadow of your wings."  Nizhegorodka is the Lower Town. It is considered of lower status, lower importance. But even there, along the streets made of river sand, one can find refuge in Christ. Everyone agreed that planting a church in Nizhegorodka would be more difficult that planting one in Sipailovo, but that because of the One whom we serve, it was not beyond the realm of possibility. The prayer walkers thought that if a church were to be planted at the bottom of the bluff, it would have to begin with women then spread to men along family lines. That evening we teamed with Stas’ church and visited the apartments of some of those who responded to the Feel the Power of Change campaign, before dragging ourselves home for some rest. Pray for a church to be planted in the Nizhegorodka region of Ufa.  Pray for the continual protection of Christians who will work there.  Pray for the salvation of the two Tartars who will be reading "Is Christ God?" Ask the Lord to touch their hearts as they read. And pray for the Holy Spirit’s conviction to fall upon F. as she reads the New Testament. Thank God for His heaven sent encounters with unbelievers.

Day four was a day of much mixed emotions. Team Ufa had planned to have a cook out on the beach in Ufa and then do evangelism work amongst the hundreds who would be celebrating The Day of The City (June 12^th) along the river bank. Those plans did not come to about. And so the evangelism picnic was transformed into a fellowship picnic with graduating Bible students and their families. After a ceremony for the graduates at a local hotel and a long wait, we finally got under way.  We headed for a branch of the White River in the Ufa suburb of Zatonskiii, west of the city. Russian priroda (nature) is always breathtakingly beautiful, and our venue for the picnic was no exception.  Our party area was down a 50 degree, 50 meter embankment. "Yes, the priroda here is beautiful," we told the Russian brothers, "but we have seniors with us." "Don’t worry, it’s normal’no," (OK) they said.

 Not only was the climb down perilous, but the 90 degree weather that we had been having went south in a hurry. Weather Underground on the internet said that we were supposed to have 80 degree weather and sunshine. Instead, we had 45 degree weather and gale force winds. The Russians were all prepared, but none of our people were. It took us over an hour to coax our women out of the vans. And even then, we had to search along the embankment for a place with sure enough footing along which to escort our seniors. At the bottom of the embankment there was a 300 meter wide field with luxurious green grass which dead ended at another embankment which fell sharply down to the river. It was indeed beautiful. But the howling wind was to rule the day.

 We found a rather bumpy path that led to the field below and had our drivers move the vans down. We then positioned the vans bumper to bumper to form somewhat of a wind break so that we could eat without having our food blown away. Some wrapped themselves in blankets and towels. Others opted for simply waiting out the picnic in the vans. Predictably, the Russian brothers played football (soccer) and the Russian sisters sang, while Pastor Mark, Chris, and Larry tried to serve up "American" picnic food without the wind blowing out the charcoal. There we were between the gorgeous Belaya (White) River and a picture postcard Russian Orthodox Church that sat up on the embankment, and all many in our group could think of was when we could leave and not lose face. True to form, Larry’s chili was so spicy, that most could not eat it. "Gospodi!" (Lord!) many of them said after tasting Larry’s concoction. Yet, some of them had a few bowls anyway, explaining that they would rather have indigestion than freeze to death. At least the hamburgers, hotdogs, and coca cola, were a big hit. After some feasting, we gathered in a circle next to the vans for a short message. Pastor Zhenya from Grace Church spoke, raising his voice to be heard over the whistle of the wind, while shivering brothers and sisters huddled and jumped up and down from the cold. Finally, the time came to say our good byes, and this time, the vans and cars were loaded in five minutes. The day was nothing like what we had envisioned and the only word that we can find to describe our experience is, well, "memorable." Pray that the Lord might give us the grace to shoulder the disappointments.  Pray that He might give us patience, yet steadfastness, a cooperative, humble, loving spirit, yet truthful resolve.

 On Sunday, the team split up and spoke at various churches throughout Ufa.  Larry took Alan and Jessica to the Light of the Gospel Church, while the others had the opportunity to experience worship at the Grace House Church. Then, after a few hours of praying, worshiping, and hearing the Word preached in a foreign language, Chris took Pastor Mark and Janet to the Good News Church led by Petr Ivanovich, the Senior Pastor of all of Bashkortostan, where they got to do it all again.  In the evening, the entire team went to Dom Molitvii for the evening worship service. At about two hours, Russian worship services are shorter than they once were. Still, Russian believers are not as time conscious as are American worshippers. The service is over when it is over. The Holy Spirit, they say, will determine when it’s time to end a service. Praise God for multinational services that give us a foretaste of what heaven must be like, with believers from every tribe, and nation, speaking every known tongue, corporately worshipping the Ancient of Days.

Day five of West Side team’s sojourn with us was perhaps the most enjoyable and most fruitful. Mark and Lydia, a Russian couple who have pioneered their own independent orphanage ministry here called The Children’s Fund, set up an opportunity for us to visit an orphanage in the town of Dyurtyuli (dyourtyouLEE), a two hour drive to the northwest of Ufa. West Side Baptist had donated a sizeable amount of money which they entrusted to Mark and Lydia, who used the funds to buy clothing and new sandals for the children at the detdom (orphanage). Team Ufa, for its part, brought 10 Kg of candy from the candy factory in Ufa. The children expected visitors and the faces of the smallest of them filled the windows on the bottom floor of the detdom

 We met with the director who gave us a tour of the facility, showing us the kitchen, the common areas, and the various wings and divisions of the orphanage. In the quarters for the smallest children, tiny beds were lined up in a row like a military style barracks. The facilities seemed quite nice as detdoms go. After a briefing about the orphanage and its operation in the director’s office, we got the opportunity to witness the orphans putting on their new sandals. The children were so excited. It was somewhat like Christmas in June. Everyone at the detdom was genuinely grateful for West Side’s gracious gift.

 Pastor Mark, through Irena, a Russian sister in Christ, told the children that we love them, because each one of them is special and beautiful. He said that they might not feel like they are special or particularly beautiful, but in God’s eyes, they are. As he went on to tell the children why we were there with gifts for them, he weaved the story of the Gospel in to his remarks, saying that because God gave the gift of His Son, in response to His love, we were now giving these gifts to them. The entire orphanage and its staff were present. Although the detdom is a government run facility, because of the staff’s long standing relationship with Mark and Lydia no one raised an eyebrow at what Pastor Mark had to say. It was a precious moment – children hearing the Gospel, a Gospel that was backed up with tangible expressions of love for them from people whom they will likely never meet. It was a wonderful thing to behold.

 After the gift presentations, we were given a few hours to interact with the orphans. Lauren, Rachel, and Jessica were a hit with the teenage girls at the detdom. The Russian girls’ English was limited, but somehow they were able to communicate. It seems that girl talk is an international language. The Americans were invited to the girls’ rooms and made fast friends as they shared about life in their neck of the global woods. Having visitors their age from overseas was a real treat for the detdom girls and everyone could sense the excitement of the moment. The young missionaries came equipped with their testimonies written out in Russian in a brochure format replete with their addresses and e-mail addresses. The Russian girls received these life stories with great interest.

 After touring a room decked out with art work and crafts the children had done, Janet, Barbara, and June loved up on the youngest orphans as if they were their own grandchildren. They could not communicate much orally, but love too is an international language. And the little ones understood well that our "grannies" cared for them and came running from everywhere just to sit on a lap or receive a hug and a kiss. Josie and Eileen were simply in their element. Josie, a long time nanny turned missionary, and Eileen, a missionary with five children of her own, transcended all the groups and were everywhere at the same time, savoring every moment with the kids.

 Chris chatted with the orphanage director and staff, while Larry and Alan played basket ball with some RA/Youth aged boys on an indoor court in the orphanage. Larry has slowed some with age and weight, but the old man’s arm span is still feared by anyone trying to take a shot in the paint. After 30 minutes on the court, he was covered in sweat, but earned the respect and ear of the boys. Pastor Mark also showed some fluid moves on the court before stepping off to pass out copies of his testimony and Gideon New Testaments. When it was time to leave, we can safely say that no one on the team wanted to. It was an all around good experience. In the Book of James it says that pure and blameless religion is to look after orphans and widows in their distress. After our experience at the Dyurtyuli detdom, we can’t imagine why anyone would not desire to do so. Pray that the seeds that the West Side Baptist team planted at the Dyurtyuli orphanage might take root and blossom. Pray that the Lord might bless the Children’s Fund ministry of Mark and Lydia who minister to the physical and spiritual needs of scores of orphanages here in Bashkortostan. Pray that the orphanage’s director might come to possess a saving faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Thank the Lord for access to a government controlled orphanage and for the acceptance and thankfulness of the orphanage staff. Pray that the Lord might give Mark and Lydia and Team Ufa continued favor in the eyes of orphanage directors and staff.

 Day six was set aside for souvenir hunting, sight seeing, and goodbyes. We took the team to the Salavat Yulaev monument. The statue of the man who led an 18^th century revolt against Moscow has come to symbolize Ufa. Moreover, the monument area affords one perhaps the best scenic view in the city. Afterwards, we visited the Monument of friendship before walking down to the river for some shashlik (shashLEAK) which is somewhat akin to shish kabob. The Armenian owner of the tent pavilion there and his family really do a nice job of cooking the meat. Then we were off on a world wind tour of souvenir shops before having a farewell dinner at a local eatery. Pastor Mark passed a miniature tape recorder around the table and asked each person to recall their most meaningful experience in Ufa. And then we hurried off to a farewell fellowship with the Grace church.

 The Russian brothers and sisters of the small house church took turns expressing their appreciation and love for their American brethren. Our oneness in Christ was a theme that was echoed by many. And then it was the Americans’ turn to express their gratitude for the hospitality, fellowship, and open armed acceptance of their Russian brethren. Chris Carr and pastor Zhenya then led the assembled group of believers in the Lord’s Supper. And after the bread and common cup was passed, we shared in song and prayer before saying our teary eyed goodbyes. At O’dark thirty the next morning, we were on our way to the airport again to see our West Side friends off.

So why do we spend many kilobytes retelling, in some detail, the visit of our first mission team? The answer is simple. As precious as those brothers and sisters from South Carolina are to us, they are not super saints. They are just ordinary folks doing extraordinary things by the power of the Holy Spirit. A pastor, a young couple, a college student, a teeny bopper, and three grannies from a small provincial town came in obedience to the Great Commission and its Author in order to change lives and have theirs changed. And they succeeded. And you can too, if you’ll only step out in faith and obedience. Through Matthew 28:18-20 the Lord still beckons you to join Him in His work. We’ve had our first team. A second one is scheduled for later in the year. Will you be part of the third? Here on our bluff, between two rivers, between two continents, we will certainly pray that you will be. And as always, we’ll keep the light on for you.

Pray and ask the Lord how you should be involved in the work of Team Ufa. Ask Him if your involvement is prayer, the meeting of financial needs, the sending of care packages, or actually working alongside Team Ufa for a week or so on the other side of the earth.  Pray and listen to what the Lord tells you.  Perhaps He will lead you to one avenue of service.  Perhaps His Spirit will lead you to several.  Thank the Lord for the faithfulness of West Side Baptist Church in Sumter, South Carolina, and for the eight missionaries that gave of their time, money, and very lives to serve the Lord with us here.