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October 25, 2019, Moscow Russia For the past week, Carol and I have ministered at a

conference center just outside Moscow, Russia. I was teaching the conference on “Identifying and training the next generation of leaders in the church” and Carol was serving behind the scenes. We were working alongside John & Naomi Musgrave and Marc Fournier. John & Naomi are missionaries sent out by Crossroads Bible Church in Bellevue, WA, and they lead a ministry called, Mentoring Matters, which focuses on mentoring pastors and elders in Russia. Marc serves on the staff of Crossroads and heads up their young adult ministry. John & Marc were elders at Crossroads during the time I was on staff at the church. We have known each other for many years.

What follows is my account of our ministry trip. Pour yourself a cup of coffee or your favorite beverage and read what God did over the past week. It is a direct result of your prayers.

Mark Wheeler *************************

Carol and I left Boston on Wednesday evening, October 16, and flew overnight (six hours) to Amsterdam, arriving Thursday morning. We took the shuttle to our hotel and arrived by 9AM. Unfortunately, no rooms were available and we had to wait in the lobby until 1PM to check in. After getting to our room, we napped for an hour. We then took the train into Amsterdam Centraal and took a one-hour tour of the canals. We saw the sun go down and the lights come on. It was a beautiful and

relaxing evening. Afterwards, we took the train back to the airport and then waited an hour for the hotel shuttle. We eventually had

to take a taxi (all Amsterdam taxis are Teslas) to the hotel.

We enjoyed a late dinner at the Traverse House. We had an interesting conversation with the owner who asked where we were going and what we were

doing. As it turned, he remembered another couple who also went to Moscow to do church work (the Musgraves who had eaten there on previous trips). Small world.

We’ve found that staying overnight in Amsterdam helps to break up the travel and minimize the jetlag, or at least begin the adjustment process earlier.

On Friday, we flew (three hours) to Moscow. All our luggage arrived, for which we were thankful. Our driver, Sergey, was waiting for us, and drove us into town to the hotel where we met John & Naomi Musgrave and Marc Fournier. We

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reconnected over dinner at a Georgian restaurant.

On Saturday, John gave us an insightful tour of Moscow. John & Naomi lived in Moscow for many years and know the city as well or better than some Russians. We visited the Kremlin, toured the Kremlin Armoury (Russian equivalent of the Smithsonian Institute where you see gowns, jewels, carriages, and treasures from the era of the tsars), walked through Red Square, and visited the Church of Christ the Savior. The church was one destroyed by Stalin and later rebuilt by the previous mayor of Moscow. Considering the relationship of our countries during the Cold War, we were all amazed where we were walking and visiting.

On Sunday, we toured the WWII Museum, dedicated to those who fought in The Great Patriotic War. It is an incredibly sobering and moving experience. You enter the museum through the Hall of Tears, which remembers the 26 million Russians who died in the war (compared to 417,000 Americans). Six dioramas depict the key

battles fought on Russian soil and in Berlin. As John explained, the war defines this country. Not one family was not touched by the war. Everyone lost a husband, father, brother, or family member during the conflict.

After visiting the museum, we went to Arbat Street, known for its souvenirs and tourist shops. In the evening, we had dinner at the Musgrave’s favorite Georgian Restaurant in town. (Georgian restaurants are known for their khachapuri (bread), fresh vegetables, and grilled meats.

The tours and siteseeing served two purposes. One was to adjust to the time change and walk off the jet lag. It allowed us to rest and recover before the conference. The second purpose was to become better acquainted with the history and culture of the country. It is difficult to minister to a people if you don’t know their background. It was time well spent.

On Monday, our drivers picked us up and we headed to a Costco-sized grocery store where we purchased snacks and supplies for the conference. It was almost like a scavenger hunt as John and Naomi gave us a list of things to find. Seven shopping carts and $600+ later, we loaded the vans and then stopped for

lunch at Burger King, one of the eateries in the food court.

We drove another hour to the conference center. It is a former Pioneer Camp just outside Moscow. The Pioneer Camps were where the youth went in the summertime during the Soviet era. We unloaded the

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luggage and supplies. We then started setting up for the week of camp, moving boxes from the storage area, unpacking, printing schedules and name tags, and getting everything in order for when the pastors and wives arrive on Tuesday. After dinner at 7PM, we all retired to our rooms to rest.

There were 52 at the conference. Five Americans, three translators, and 44 Russians—18 pastor and wife couples, and 8 single pastors. The pastors and wives come from several cities in Russia including Moscow, Anapa (near the Black Sea), Krasnodar, Krimsk and Kropotkin, both near Krasnodar, Kazan (900 miles east of Moscow), Astrakan, Elista and Tsagan-Aman in Kalmykia, and Volgograd; Dushanbe in Tajikistan; Bishkek in Kyrgyzstan; Tashkent in Uzbekistan; and Almaty in Kazakhstan.

People started arriving on Tuesday, some before lunch and some afterwards. It was encouraging to see them greeting one another like lifelong friends. Many of them had never met until they started attending

the seminars, but now they greet another heartedly.

Having taught in some of the early seminars (2002-2004, 2006) and also taught classes in Anapa and Elista (2011-2019), I knew many of the people—Sasha & Olga, Vanya & Tanya, Sandzhik & Elza, Badma & Julia, Kolya & Valera, Viktor & Luda. This allowed me to build on previous relationships. When Elza greeted Carol and me, she told Carol, “I love your husband,” to which Carol responded, “I do too.”

One of the highlights of the conference was the interaction during the mealtimes. Carol and I and Alexei, our translator, ate

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with one other couple. It is an opportunity to get to know the seminar participants on a deeper level.

On Tuesday, we ate lunch with Kostya and Marina from Bishkek. They have been married for 17 years and have four boys ranging in age from 15 – 2. Kostya has been pastoring

a church for five years and is trying to change the culture of the church. He recently identified five men to serve as elders and John Musgrave recently met with the group to help in their training. They asked us many questions about how to raise children and especially how to nurture their faith. We shared about what we did and where our children are today. We had the opportunity to pray with the couple.

Tuesday evening, Sasha Kim led the group in a time of worship. It was encouraging to listen and sing along with these other believers.

John planned an ice breaker activity to kick off the conference, The Adzhika Challenge. It is a type of condiment they have with meals. It might be the equivalent of salsa. The group was divided into three teams and each one was given the basic ingredients plus additional ingredients by answering questions correctly. When they were completed, Carol, Marc, and I were the judges to determine the winner. It was a fun activity to get them working together.

Dinner was a barbecue with sausages, fresh vegetables, bread, and Coca-Cola. We prepared the dinner the first night and the conference center did the rest of the meals. At our table, the people asked Carol and I about how churches choose pastors and what our experience has been. They were surprised to hear I had been pushed out from one church.

During the first session of the conference, I taught on “Why? The biblical mandate for mentoring.” Prior to my talk, John played a video put together by the AV team at Crossroads. It featured interviews with three men I mentored during my time at the church—Daniel, Mark, and Tedd—along with greetings from Keith Krell, Crossroads’ senior pastor.

I used Ephesians 4:11-16 to explain that the pastor is not to do all the work of ministry but that he is to equip others for service. I also used 2 Timothy 2:2 to explain that our task is not to make disciples, but rather to make disciple makers. I ended with

There is a strain of bamboo that grows in Malaysia. You plant the seed, water and fertilize it, and for the first year it does nothing. During the second year, you water it and fertilize it, and it does nothing. The same is true for the third and fourth years. During the fifth year, you water and fertilize it, and it grows 90 feet in 30 days.

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the story about bamboo in Malaysia. It was not in my notes but God brought it to my mind. It served as a good illustration of the potential of mentoring.

Wednesday morning, we had breakfast with Badma and Julia, who lead the church in Tsagan-Aman, near the Caspian Sea. They have attended many of the classes I taught in Elista. Rather than

a conversation with friends, it was a ministry presentation. They had a file folder with pictures, charts, and explanation of their ministry. As I’ve known from previous trips to Elista, the Kalmyk group is by far the most evangelistic of any church I’ve been around. Their goal is to reach every person in Kalmykia with the gospel. Their team pauses at 9:38 each morning to pray, following the instruction of Jesus in Matthew 9:38 to pray to the Lord of the harvest to send more laborers.

During the morning session, Artyom led the group in worship. He brings a great deal of energy which is infectious and draws people into the worship. I had the group study several passages on mentoring—how Jethro instructed Moses and how Moses and God trained Joshua. The first two sessions were designed to lay the biblical foundation for the topic. It seemed to be well received.

At lunch, Carol and met with Kolya and Valera from Elista. We talked about family and ministry. There are 15 believers in a city 70 km from Elista. They are praying that

God will raise up a team so they can plant a church in that city. They would also like to move to that city in order to minister more effectively.

During the afternoon, the group went shopping with “seminar money.” Most of the items had been donated by people at Crossroads. The group enjoyed the thrill of the hunt and came away with many valuable items.

We had dinner with Sandzhik and Elza, whom we have also known for some time. Sandzhik leads the church in Elista and is one of the most effective disciple makers I’ve come in contact with. I’ve been in their home and taught classes for their church for the past several years. We had a warm conversation about family and ministry. We had the privilege of praying with these friends.

During the evening session, Carol shared a bit of her testimony and talked about a mentoring ministry she is part of. The folks appreciate hearing from her.

During my session, I focused on what to look for in a trainee. I used the example of Jesus. He taught the multitudes. He sent out the 70. He chose the 12. He invested even

more in Peter, James, and John. It seemed to be an uphill battle and I did not feel like I connected well and that they did not buy what I was selling. John said later that they resist anything that speaks of selectivity. One pastor said that it might work in a large church and a large city, but in a small church everyone is precious. I felt like I had lost the group with that comment. During the talk, however, several nodded in

agreement with what I had said. After the session, John had them do a

creativity activity, using colored pencils to color a diagram page. They did it in groups

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of four and seemed to enjoy it. We served them ice cream as an evening snack.

We met one young couple, Ruslan & Faina, from Almaty, Kazakhstan. They had recently been in the USA, including Springfield, MA, and Bellevue,

WA. They were surprised to find out where we lived in Chicopee, and where Crossroads was. They are an energetic young couple with a passion for evangelism and discipleship. They are planning to move to Bishkek with a team of 10 people to plant a church.

On Thursday morning, we had breakfast with Viktor & Luda Semukhin, whom we have known for many years. They are in the beginning stages of planting a church north of Anapa. Again, it was the chance to catch up with old friends and to pray for their

family and ministry.

During the morning session, I taught on 1 Timothy 4:6-16. Paul instructed Timothy to grow in four key areas—content, character, competence, and call—and to be a lifelong learner. I had a sense it was the most helpful

session for the group. It was both biblical and practical as I tried to give them concrete ideas about what to teach and how to model it.

As we were walking to lunch, Vanya from Anapa told me that the sessions were very helpful. He said he had read and studied mentoring in university but he didn’t know how to do it. What I was teaching was both biblical and practical and he felt it was burning inside him. It was a very encouraging comment, especially after the sense the previous night as to whether or not I was connecting with the group.

We met with Sasha and Olga Kim for lunch, whom we have also known for several years. Sasha leads a church in Bishkek, Kyrgystan. Sasha recently had a sabbatical after 20 years of ministry in his church. Olga is the children’s director at the church. The church is doing well, as evidenced by how they led during Sasha’s sabbatical.

The afternoon craft had the women making pillows. Naomi brought fabric they could sew together and use to cover the pillows. It was a good opportunity for the women to talk and chat while they were working.

During the evening session, I shared about what I have done over the past 25 years to train and equip people for ministry. I started with the single adults at Crossroads and brought it up to what I am doing today at First Central. I tried to be specific and gave numerous examples of how I have

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taught classes, met with people in small groups and individually, and took people on ministry trips to illustrate a variety of ways to mentor and train people.

We had dinner with Vasily and Lena from Kropotkin, near Krasnodar. They have four sons, one of whom is married. We had the privilege of praying for their family and ministry.

On Friday morning, we had breakfast with Mikhael, Alexei, and Adelia from

Kazan, about 900 miles east of Moscow. They face a unique challenge as they minister in a strongly Muslim region. We had a greater

understanding of what they face and prayed for them as well.

During my session on Friday morning, I shared about failures. I explained that if Jesus had Judas (Matthew 10:1-4) and Paul had Demas (Colossians 4:14; 2 Timothy 4:10), they would also have people who deserted and/or betrayed them. I wanted them to see reality and to know that we have experienced the dark side of ministry. I shared about what has happened to me over my years of ministry. I shared about how much I love the church but also that my heart has been broken by the church. I tried to be as transparent as possible. Several commented afterwards that it was the most helpful of all the sessions. It gave them perspective about all the principles and let them know that we have experienced the pain of ministry and broken relationships.

For lunch, we met with Yadgar and Karina from Dushanbe in Tajikistan, near

Afghanistan. Russians are leaving their city to find work in larger cities and Tajiks are moving in. The government allows them to minister to Russians but frowns on them ministering to Tajiks. Their church is primarily senior citizens and children, with not many young adults who tithe. Karina supports the family by giving lessons in physics and mathematics since Yadgar only receives about $100/month from the church. It was a sobering conversation with a couple with sacrifice much for the gospel. Once again, we had the privilege of praying for these dear folks.

The evening session was a Q&A with John & Marc joining me to answer the questions. The questions started with mentoring and quickly shifted to elders, which is significant because John has been teaching the topic and doing elder retreats for many of the pastors.

Following the session, we had a time of worship and communion led by Alexander Sakarov, a pastor in Krimsk.

I closed the conference by giving each of the participants two batons, which were inscribed with “2 Timothy 2:2” on them. I encouraged them to take what they learned this week and to pass it on to others. I explained that they were to keep one as a reminder and the second was to be given to someone that they trained. John, Marc, and I gave

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the batons to the men and Naomi and Carol gave them to the women. They were touched and grateful for the gift. It was a fitting end and a wonderful takeaway from the conference.

During dinner, we had a conversation with Vanya and Tanya from Anapa. It was a good time of reconnecting with friends, since I have spent many days in their home teaching the classes in Anapa. I had the privilege of praying for them and Vanya prayed for Carol and me.

On Saturday, we headed back to Moscow where we will enjoy a celebratory dinner. On Sunday, John & Naomi, Marc, and Carol and I will head our separate ways. John & Naomi and Marc will head back to

Seattle while Carol and I will stop in the U.K. for a week of vacation.

Thanks for praying. We’re in your debt. Mark & Carol Wheeler

The furthest participants traveled from Dushanbe, Tajikistan, and Bishkek, Kyrgystan.

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If you’d like to see more pictures from the trip, visit my blog https://wheelsms.wordpress.com/ from October 18-26.