Here is a  ministry report from SGA-supported Pastor Yegori in the vast and mostly unreached region of Yakutsk, Russia. He reminds us in this report of the power of doing good for the glory of God. 

From Yegori . . .

I praise the Lord for His good work in the life of my family, my church, and the Yakutia Churches Association!

I’d like to thank all my brothers and sisters in Christ for your help and support for my family and my ministry. God keeps working in our life showing His mighty hand and His wisdom.

The last three months were full of different and interesting encounters, I have met many people, some were believers and some were non-believers. Not long ago I was walking in the street and one woman came up to me asking for money. She didn’t look like a beggar, she said she needs to buy some medicine and she has no money for it. I didn’t give her money, but I took her to a drugstore and bought her some medicine. She was surprised and thanked me saying that I’m a good man. I told her that I’m not a good man, I’m quite a bad person myself but God has changed me and all I’m doing now I’m doing in the name of Jesus Christ. She was in a hurry, so I invited her to our church service. Now, usually, people wouldn’t come to church if something like that happened to them in my town. But to my surprise, she came to the Sunday service and even brought her husband with her. After the service I talked to them, told them the Gospel. Their names are Alexander and Natasha.

They also told me their story which is very sad. Alexander was drafted into army a year ago although he didn’t want it. He was sent to Ukraine war and got wounded by shrapnel from the explosion. He was at hospital and got back to Yakutsk some time in spring. After his return he started drinking a lot and was close to death. Moreover, there was a fire in their house. It burned down, and all their documents burned as well. They stayed alive, but now they can’t find normal job because of absence of documents. They have to rent a small room in a dormitory and have very little money for survival. Natasha has a weak heart and needs medication. Me and my brother Albert bought some food and medicine for them and visited them in their place. Alexander and Natasha said they want to attend every church service because they liked how clearly preachers spoke about God and life. Please join us in prayer for this family, so that the Lord give them salvation and new life in Christ.

In July, I organized a Summer Youth Camp for youth and teenagers from Yakutia Republic churches. We held it in Oktyomtsy. More than 60 people took part in the camp. Most of the participants were believers, but there were several non-believers too. We had a guest speaker from Novosibirsk city, brother Dmitri Shemena. He spoke about God’s holiness and His calling for holiness to fill our lives. This was a very important topic because there are so many subtle temptations that young generation has to face nowadays. It’s so easy to get into trouble and only close relations with Holy God can help us go through those temptations. Every day campers took part in interesting discussions, there were many good feedbacks on the camp topic. Besides, every day we all took part in volunteer work helping the village community in cleaning streets of garbage. We were also helping some lonely old people and poor families living in the village. It was a great chance to share the Gospel with those people.

I keep sharing the knowledge that I got at the Novosibirsk Seminary (supported by SGA) with my brothers and sisters in Yakutsk. In summer, I have continued the Bible school for women, more than 60 students attend our classes now. This fall I’m planning to form a new group of brothers and teach them Homiletics. Hopefully, they will join our team of preachers next year.

As the new head of the Yakutia Churches Association, I have to travel a lot, visiting local churches in different parts of Yakutia. In summer, I made several trips to the distant villages of Neryungry, Aldan, Nizhniy Kuranakh and Olyokminsk. It was a great chance not only to encourage our local communities but to take part in evangelism in those villages.

In the last three months I was engaged in different ministries, such as Bible study groups, evangelism, preaching, youth ministry, biblical counseling, and Compassion Ministry. My wife Anna continues her work with women, as she holds a weekly Bible study group for them. Our kids are studying at school. Diana is 12, and Mikhail is 10 years old.

Dear brothers and sisters, once again I thank you for all of your support, both spiritual and financial! It’s very important for our family! We continue praying for Ukraine, for the war to stop and for our nations to repent before Jesus. Also, now we are praying for the war in Israel to stop and more people on both sides of the conflict to convert to God. Please pray with us.

May the Lord Jesus Christ bless you richly, and may He continue His work in our lives!

In a time of great uncertainty, God is bringing help, healing, and hope to the people of Ukraine through SGA-supported pastors, churches, a seminary, and SGA-supported Compassion Ministry. Be a part of God’s incredible work with your generosity and prayer support.  

Your gift of compassion helps struggling people with emergency aid that generally includes Scripture materials, food, medicine, warm clothing, and shoes.