SLAVIC GOSPEL ASSOCIATION

Peter Deyneka and the “Greatest ‘Christian’ Generation”

June 15th, 2009

By Andrew Semenchuk, Senior Associate, International Ministries

It seemed like the most unlikely time to start a new missionary organization – especially a “faith” mission! You see, these were the 1930s, during the greatest economic depression the United States had ever experienced. Millions were without work — standing in bread lines — poor and hungry.  People had no expendable money. And yet, God touched the heart of Peter Deyneka, a young Russian immigrant, to do just that!

But the obstacles were great. In those days, Western missions had no outreach to Russian people. Under godless communism, it was considered impossible — a closed door. Most evangelical missions would not consider a field if they couldn’t send a Westerner there. So God raised up a national to reach his own people with the Gospel, and a new strategy in missions was introduced — trained nationals to reach their own people for Christ! And as a result, a new organization came into being that has become the largest mission to the Slavic world. This miracle came about when the nation was bankrupt — when people had little money – when the church was poor financially, but rich in faith!

It seems that God delights in doing the unusual. It was during those difficult years of the Great Depression and immediately following the Second World War that God raised up many evangelical missions and organizations. Newsman Tom Brokaw called the people of that period “The Greatest Generation.” I believe that this period also produced the “Greatest Generation” of Christian leaders, and Peter Deyneka knew many of them personally, working together with them for the glory of Christ. They were men such as Rev. Paul Rader, evangelist and pastor of Moody Church in Chicago. Author and pastor Dr. A.W. Tozer often had Peter in to speak at his church in Chicago. Dr. J. Vernon McGee of Through the Bible fame was a good friend of Peter’s and a supporter of SGA. And we can’t forget men such as Dr. Clarence Jones of HCJB, or Dr. Billy Graham, who knew Peter and asked him to lead prayer at many crusades. There were so many others, and during this crucial and unlikely period of history, evangelical missions exploded!

What does that tell us today, as much of the world wrings its hands in despair over collapsing economies? As Psalm 50:10 tells us, our faithful God and Father has the cattle on a thousand hills and is not constrained by the world’s economy. We have His sure promise that He will continue to build His church, and we have His command that remains in force until He comes again

. . . Go into all the world and preach the Gospel to all creation (Mark 16:15). And we have you, our faithful partners in ministry. Together, let’s continue to take every opportunity the Lord provides us to help our Russian brothers and sisters win the lost for Christ. The time is short!