Gospel Expedition

On May 28, our team of cyclists, and their “Gospel to the Nations of the World” flags, entered the central square of Kobrin for a short stop. Local Christian brothers and sisters offered us some ice cream, while pedestrians looked at the cyclists with curiosity and asked what was going on.

That evening there was a worship service in the Central Kobrin church. All the way from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean, the teams will make stops in different towns through Poland, Germany, Ukraine, Belarus and Russia, taking part in worship services and telling people about the Lord Jesus Christ. It is a great joy to praise the Lord together with our brothers and sisters in each place, to pray for unbelievers, and to be spiritually encouraged. Kobrin was no different.

As we arrived at the church and saw the Kobrin believers (and unbelievers) gathered there to meet us, we were struck by their cheerfulness and desire to serve the Lord and other people. The joy of meeting with brothers and sisters in Christ, and an opportunity to share our testimonies with unsaved people, was invigorating for the young cyclists and surpassed the heat and our weariness.

Vladimir Shares His Testimony

Many people attended the worship service in order to see and hear the accounts of those who are performing a very hard labour in the field of the Lord. The group Living Water took part in the service while brother Vladimir shared his testimony. As you remember, he used to be a professional sportsman and now he is the father of 10 children. Vladimir will be with the team all four months of the Expedition. His wife and his kids, who live in Klintsi near Bryansk, Russia, will be praying for him and all other members of the Expedition. Vladimir based his message on a paragraph from 1 Corinthians 9:24-27, where the Apostle Paul compares the Christian life with a race run by sportsmen. Vladimir used his own sports experience to illustrate the truths of the Scriptures.

After Vladimir spoke, we gave a photo presentation showing our visits to the towns visited by the Expedition thus far. Andrew, a cyclist from Nizhniy Novgorod, made comments during the presentation. He talked about the people whom they met, about the churches they visited, about the meeting in Germany with police, who were so happy about the team’s visit that they asked them to stay for a while and tell local TV journalists about the Expedition.

Responding to the Call

When the time came for the message, Leonid Kartavenko preached on from Luke 9:18-20, where Jesus put forward an important question — a question that is urgent for each person to answer. “But whom say ye that I am?” Leonid called on believers and unbelievers, burdened by sins, to appeal to God and repent. And only God knows what happened in the hearts of people that day. But we could see one girl praying, tears running down her face, asking God to forgive her. Praise God that His Word reaches all whom He intends to reach!

After dinner, the young people who remained in the church asked Living Water to sing several more songs. They especially liked the song about Belarus, which members of the ensemble composed themselves. Then bikers went to the nearby UECB camp at Kobrin for a night’s rest.

The next morning at 10, the cyclists prayed and then set off for the town of Pinsk. Many miles are still ahead of them, and they need our prayers in a special way. The teams are unanimous in that request. “Pray for us!”