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- TeamUfa
- We are a team of people trying to reach people in Ufa and Bashkortostan in Russia. It is no small task and we want your support!
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Saturday, May 23, 2015
Practice
7:50 PM | Posted by
TeamUfa
I was recently asked to be a part of an ethnic festival with
the university I attend here in Ufa. When they asked me to be the host, I had
thought to myself that there was no way I would be able to speak Russian in
front of an audience. So it was to my relief when they assured me that my part
would be solely in English. They wanted me to announce for each performance
that would take place on the stage and then thank each participant as they
finished their performance. I was excited to have such a role in their
festival!
However, what if they had needed me to announce in Russian?
What if they needed me to be at a certain level of knowing the language, so as
to aid them in speaking in the language I am learning? Would I have volunteered
to do such a daunting task? I honestly
am not at a level of knowing the language that would be fully prepared or even
capable to deliver whatever speech I would need to. But would this inquiry
actually push me to strive harder to know the language better? I think it would
have.
Even the apostles Paul and Peter both talked about being
prepared and ready with a defense for the faith of believing in Jesus Christ as
Lord. In the book of Ephesians, Paul
talks about putting on the armor of God and becoming bold and full of courage
to join Christ in the fight against the Enemy, by having faith that it is God
who truly provides. But even here there
is still the level of actually doing and allowing God to provide and how this
idea must join the reality and belief that He will provide. Also, in the Old Testament, there are several
times when God asks someone specific, or even an entire nation, to join Him,
stand still, watch, and rejoice in the victory that would all take place, just
as He said it would. The people simply needed to believe and obey.
Should I be so different from any of these stories? What if
it is God Himself that is asking for me to step out and be a part of something
so much bigger than what I could imagine? What is it that stops us from leading
forth in obedience and ultimately puts in our minds that there could be no way
for us to accomplish the task at hand? Because, honestly, we cannot do anything
apart from Him, whom orchestrates the very fabric of space into His will. This is not about who we are, but who God is
and how He works through us to accomplish seemingly impossible tasks.
Therefore, come, be still, watch, and rejoice in the victory at hand.
Kevin S.
Sunday, May 17, 2015
I’m Not The Same As Before
After spending four months in Russia, I have three practical
“takeaways” that I will always carry around in my back pocket and use as a
resource whenever I can. I got these from rereading my journal entries this
semester and I feel like these particular topics came up multiple times:
1.
God cares about the details. Principle numero
uno. I cannot tell you how many times I repeated this phrase to myself while
being here. Things that normally shouldn't be hard were so emotionally taxing.
For example, in America going to the store is second nature and normally takes
only one trip. In Russia, it’s stressful because everything is foreign. You
almost can never find what you want when you want it and when you do find it
you have to decipher the Russian to make sure it is exactly what you want. Or
walking. Walking is a hard task here, too. Every step is a risk of falling on
the slippery, cold ice (in the winter). I was even fearful of the airport
security upon my arrival. But through it all, the Lord reminded me that He
cares about the small things. The things that are out of my own control are
perfectly controlled by Him and in the palms of His hands. All he wants me to
do is come to Him. He delights in my helpless prayers of “help me get to the
store” or “help me walk to class” or even “help me to finish this Russian
homework.” The point is my dependence on Him is growing and He wants that for all
of our lives! In the Beatitudes, Jesus says, “Blessed are the poor in Spirit,
for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.” (Matt 5:3). Being dependent, or “poor in
Spirit,” was the first thing on Jesus’ list as He was talking to the disciples.
So it should be first on ours, too.
2.
Nothing is ever meaningless. Part of the
experience of living on the field is doing the day-to-day mundane things:
getting up, going grocery shopping, doing homework, using public
transportation. Getting through the “normal” tasks of life has been the hardest
part of the trip for me. Because in those things, I wasn't doing anything that
would make an outward difference in someone’s life like sharing the gospel or
hanging out with friends would. The result wasn't tangible. But looking back
now, I can see that doing those things had an effect on me. I learned
perseverance through difficult situations. I also learned that the seeming
small things, if done in obedience to the call of God, were never meaningless.
“This light, momentary affliction is producing for us a weight of glory far
beyond comparison.” (2 Corinthians 4:16). The pain has a purpose and through the
providence of pain God perfects His plan in us.
3.
At the times I felt like God wasn't around or
doing anything, He was always was. I would say this was my struggle for most of
March and April. There was a long stretch of time that nothing was happening. I
wasn't hanging out with my friends, there wasn't any bible groups going on, I
wasn't doing anything, or so it felt like. Many times things here get slow:
people cancel, team members go out of town, life happens. So I'd just go to
class, go to the grocery, maybe get some coffee at a café, and go home and hang
out with my roommate Jennifer. It’s pretty much exactly what I'd do in America
on any normal given day and that bothered me. Many times I'd think “why do I
even need to be here if I can do this all in America?” Jesus has been gracious
to me through the process of questioning. I had vacation time to take this semester
and my roomie and I went to London for a week at the end of April/beginning of
May. In London, the Lord answered my question. I realized that although I felt
like He didn’t hear me, or wasn't doing anything, He was there the whole time
preparing and changing people’s hearts in the matter of a few months. It’s like
I had new eyes and I could see so many changes in my friends here through the gospel
related conversations we have had. It was such a peaceful realization. Through
this revelation, this passage of Scripture came alive to me:
“Blessed
by the Lord, for He has made marvelous His lovingkindness to me in a besieged
city. As for me, I said in my alarm, ‘I am cut off from before Your eyes’;
nevertheless, You heard the voice of my supplications when I cried to you.”
Psalm 31:21-2
My semester ends in two weeks; 14
days. It’s overwhelming to think that I'll be coming home. I've been to Amsterdam,
Russia, and England on my trip and every place feels so different, so foreign.
It’s been a blessing to see all the places and people I have. God has given me
a new perspective for cultures, countries, and people in these 4 months that I'll never forget. I’m not the same as I was in January. And once I get back to
America, I'll still be progressing and reshaping my worldview. Just because the
semester is ending doesn't mean my understanding for the commission of God is.
It never will. Looking back on my
semester, there were things I’ve done right, others I've done wrong,
opportunities I took, and others I wish I would have. But regardless of it all,
Jesus has been faithful to reveal to me exactly what He intended to.
Toni F.
Monday, May 11, 2015
It’s Not About How I Feel
The past two weeks have been a whirlwind. Last week I was able to spend the week in London with friends. This week I’m back and going to classes again. London just felt like a time of restoration. I was able to spend time with some good friends from my university and talk about our ministries and just reminisce. Even getting lost in the city was fun—there’s so much history and so much to see that every corner you turn is a new adventure.
I’ll admit that it wasn’t easy coming back—I had a little less than a month left here when I flew out to London, and spending a week in an English speaking country only made it that much harder to return. (I accidentally forgot that most people don’t speak English here and I started to order in English while at a café. The poor waitress looked so confused.)
The Father is teaching me a lot. Ministry is hard. It’s really difficult. I have a lot of respect for people in full-time ministry, and I’m so grateful for the people I work alongside here. They’re just normal people following the call of God on their lives and that is a beautiful thing to see. Truthfully, I’m having trouble focusing on the work still to be done here instead of looking ahead to going home in three weeks. It’s hard to think about language homework and not what I need to pack or buy before I go home. It’s even more difficult to not think about what is going on back home while I’m still here. My little sister graduated from UCF last night and my best friend gets married next week. Missing events like these breaks my heart. I still want to be involved in life here, but missing important events for the people I love doesn’t make it easy.
Also, I am missing the Florida sunshine. I complain about the heat while I’m living in it, but oh my word do I miss it when I’m gone. It’s hard to want to go anywhere when it’s cold, windy, and dark. I’m fighting to not base my motivation on outside circumstances, but some days that easier than others. I want my time here to end well, and right now that means forcing myself to get out of bed and walk to class even on days when the weather is awful and I would rather stay home. I realize a little more every day that what I’m called to do isn’t really about me. It’s not about how I feel, it’s about more than that and something bigger than me. And that’s a difficult realization, but in a way, it’s also a really good one. God is bigger than my feelings or my (constant) failures, and in spite of how I feel or what I’m capable of, He is more. He gives grace and He gives strength and I trust Him.
Jennifer G.
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