This last week ICM Russia Crew and Light of Hope Church Cherepovets were blessed to receive a team of our friends and partners from Severodvinsk . The guys had a great time serving Jesus together!! As you may remember, Pastor Victor partnered with ICM Russia in 1995 and now we have great and close friendships. Olga and I have been going to his church to teach the Inductive Bible Study seminars for many years. The team from Severodvinsk consisted of their worship team, dance team, Alpha team leaders. The alpha team leaders did a seminar on the Alpha program and we hope to start using in to evangelize and disciple new believers. On Sunday the worship team lead us in a time of deep, exciting, and Spirit filled worship, and pastor Victor lead us through the parable of the sower and the different type of ground in Mark 4, teaching how the fruit of the Kingdom of God can be produced more abundantly in our lives. Monday was a holiday in Russia and no one worked, which allowed Victor to continue teaching about what the true fruit of the Kingdom of God is. The church was full and people were blessed by Victor’s deep yet simple and understandable teaching of God’s word.
We are continually blessed when we get to spend time in fellowship with pastor Victor and the people from his church. It is a great example the effect the solid, balanced, and inductive teaching of God’s word can have on people. The people in his church are strong, well founded, understanding, and fruitful children of the Lord. This example is encouraging to us and is what we hope Light of Hope will become for the city of Cherepovets. People are hungry for this kind of teaching of God’s word. Teachings like freedom in Christ, Grace, true fruit, true worship, and the basic foundations of the Faith, are in really short supply! People are beat up and tired from the legalism and unbalanced teaching that is prevalent in Russia today. However the people’s faith is strong, real, and waiting to be fanned into life by the Spirit moving through the word of God!
Sunday night there was a great time of fellowship as the team form Severodvinsk and many people from Cherepovets, totaling about 28 people, crammed into Nate's apartment for a time of tea, fellowship, conversation, and even an impromptu worship season. A full band was put together. A transformer was found for Nate's amp, which we were able to use to plug in a base guitar and a small drum machine, once Alexey was able to rig a way to plug it in. There was a guitar player, base, drums, a shaker (made from a plastic water bottle filled with rye grains), and someone on the spoons. It was a great time. We partied way into the night as only good Christian folks can.We look forward to more times like this as we work together to further the Kingdom of God. Please keep both churches in prayer that the Spirit would continue to work through His word as pastors teach through the Bible. Pray that we would be able to implement the Alpha program here in Cherepovets. Join us in praising the Lord in all He has done for us, and ask that we would be open and responsive to His boundless grace. Thank you!
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