My Students: An Introduction

Here are some highlights from getting to know the students I had in the Systematic Theology I course I taught in Russia. Again, we all stayed in the Dacha, a summer home out in the country near Chekhov, about an hour south of Moscow. The sunsets were beautiful (and occurred very late at night!), and we got some great photos. Edna, Emmy, and the boys were also very helpful to the staff and students in food preparation, clean-up, and "getting to know you" games. Our family donated some recreational equipment for the students (current and future ones).

I hesitate to name all the students, but I will describe them to you:

Two students were from the Ukraine. One of them spoke incredible English and had been a translator. He is in his late 20s and has only been pastoring since last November -- a church plant in Ukraine. Because he spoke English and was new in the pastorate, it seems we bonded rather quickly and had lots of conversations on the basketball court, at lunch, and during breaks. He shared that he was converted through a Baptist fellowship in Ukraine when he was a teen. His mother at that time did not attend church, since she worked for the Communist government and would have lost her job. His father was an alcoholic. So, his grandmother took him to a small Baptist fellowship where he received Christ. Later, as a university student, he encountered the Church of the Nazarene through the CIS regional director and became involved in helping plant the church that he now currently pastors! A couple of years ago, he said he witnessed a real miracle: both his mother and his father became Christians, and his father, through prayers and rehab, is now alcohol-free! This young man was a great student, and very eager to hear of books that would help him in his growth and development. I will stay in touch with him and will be sending him some books for further studies.

One student I had, from Armenia, became a Christian at age 16 and spent some time preaching in Pentecostal fellowships in Armenia. He is also in his late 20s and spoke no English; however, through "St. Petersburg Olga", he shared his story with me. He said that through a friend he sought more opportunities to minister to others than he felt he was able to do in the fellowship he was part of. This friend had recently become a Nazarene and introduced him to the local director of the Nazarene church. His current pastorate is, in his words, a group of "babushki," or "grandmothers," all of whom secretly met during Communism -- at risk of their freedom and lives -- in a Bible study that has now become one of the six Nazarene churches in Armenia! He said he felt both loved and a bit intimidated to be pastoring such spiritual giants.

Finally (although I could tell you about more students), I'll tell you about the only woman in my class. She is a mother of grown daughters (one just got married, and she showed me the photos!). She was the only student in the course NOT seeking ordination. She said that in her church in Southern Russia, the needs were so great that she and other older men and women in the church were often called upon to help counsel and disciple people with great needs, and she wanted to take some courses so that she could be of more help to her pastor and to her community. She is quite a "prayer warrior" and has a tender heart. She was so glad to be there, and she often teared up as she responded to questions and class discussions about God and God's love.

The course I taught was one of two being offered in the dacha that week. The other was a Church History course taught by a Russian man who is soon pursuing PhD studies at the University of Manchester in England. He and his wife (also Russian) are among several who have been nurtured through the Church of the Nazarene and are now giving back to the church with their time and talents.

God bless,
Charles