How was Finland?

Well, by God's grace we made it back with another three month 

visa! I can't express the bitter sweet this time has been for us. Those of you who know me know that I inherited my mother's skills in planning. Before we left I crossed every "t" and dotted every "i"; we had maps of the Moscow metro system (which we had to navigate early in the morning during rush hour with luggage and children in tow); we had maps and directions to the Russian embassy in Finland as well as all our needed visa papers, money, pictures and two dozen other papers just in case. When we arrived at our housing in Finland we were all exhausted, and Elias and Rayma were just beginning to get sick. 

The symptoms were flu-like and seemed similar to what was going around in Perm and even America at the time.

A couple days later I went to the Russian embassy with all the needed materials to get our visas. When I arrived at the embassy location, it was almost unrecognizable as any kind of official facility except for a dull and grimy Russian flag that waved overhead. I approached the locked, rusty gate and pressed the somewhat grubby button. Sure enough a Russian answered and the gate buzzed as it unlocked. Walking passed the gate I approached the embassy door and again it was automatically unlocked. After walking through the large wooden door, I saw a thick glass window and, of course, a Russian security guard behind it. Once he saw I was no threat he opened the third door for me.

I walked into a beautiful hall with a large red carpet and marble stair case. I suddenly felt like I was in an old black and white James Bond spy movie. My sense was only enhanced as I turned into the waiting area and saw a large shiny silver door standing 8 feet tall and the width of a small car. It looked more like a vault than a door. I couldn't believe the world I had suddenly stepped into. The security guard announced my presence and I was asked to sit in one of the waiting chairs. This was easy to do since I was the only other person in the building from the "outside world."

Shortly after I had sat down in one of the chairs, a small Russian gal who spoke English stuck her head through the 'vault' door. "Can I help you?" she asked with one foot still in the door.

 "I'm here to get new visas for my family."

 She asked, "Are you a resident of Finland?"

 "I am not, but I've called here four times and each time I was told that it wouldn't be a problem."

 "That was on the telephone" she said, "You can't trust anything someone says to you on the telephone. Sorry we can't help you."

 I was shocked, "But you said we could come, please you have to make an exception."

 Feeling bad for us she took our papers and returned after speaking with her supervisor. As she opened the door, the director of the entire embassy came through. "What does this guy want?" He asked her.

 "A three month visa" she said.

 "Is he a citizen?"

 "No"

 "Than there is no way we will do it. Tell him no."

 I understood half of what he said and knew it wasn't good. She explained to me that it would be impossible now that the director had said no and there was nothing she could do. She handed me our papers and began to walk away.

"Wait!" I shouted, "My wife and son are sick, we traveled here all the way from Perm because you said we could come. We spent all our money to get here and have no where to go! What are we supposed to do?"

In my intensity I think I overwhelmed her and she stood there speechless for a moment or two. Finally she said, "Ok. I'll tell you a secret. It's impossible for you to get your visa here because you don't have residency and the director has already seen your face. But in town there is a 'special' travel agency who can help you. They work with us a lot, and if they apply for you we will process your visas."

 "Ok," I mumbled a little confused. "Please can you tell me their phone number?" I asked.

 "I can't!" she said.

 "What is their name?"

 "I can't tell you."

 "Can you tell me your name?"

 "I'm sorry; I can't tell you that either, good luck." And with that she slipped behind the large vault door and was gone.        

 
As I walked passed the marble staircase, the red carpet, and the 3 security doors I tried to recite the instructions I was just given. Find the 'special' travel agency with the 'secret' name and phone number not given to me by the 'secret' 'special' lady at the scary Russian embassy. Right! I'm sure! I explained it all to Rayma and it took her twenty minutes before she actually believed me. We went to the nearest travel agency and asked them, "are you the 'special' travel agency…" they said "No, but we know who you're talking about." The kind lady pulled out a paper and drew me a map. Now our spy story was complete because we finally had a 'secret' map. We found the agency and explained our situation; they took our papers and processed the visas in 2 days for $20 dollars more per person, of course, but that was to be expected.

Eventually, Rayma and Elias came to full recovery and we were able to enjoy the remainder of our time in Finland. 

We had a very restful stay and were blessed to breathe the fresh Finnish air. As I reflected on my visit to the embassy, I thought about the children of Israel. After they were delivered from Egypt, God led them to the Red Sea. It looked like a dead end, and many of them may have thought 'God brought us out here to kill us.' I can now relate to that feeling. But as we know God didn't lead them to the Red Sea to let them die but to show them, and every other nation watching, that He is not only miraculous but always in control. He is bigger than any situation!

Will we stay in Russia? Absolutely! It's obvious we can't go back to Finland to get another visa however this does not mean the door is shut. Kiev, Ukraine is still actively giving three month religious visas to Americans. In May when we need to leave to get another visa we plan to go there. It sounds like it will be less expensive than Finland and more convenient for our family.

Even though we are still able to get three month visas, we realize now that it would be too difficult to continue to do this. Instead, I am planning to look for a job. We know this is Biblical, that even Paul was willing to build tents to support his ministry. As of now my hope is to be brought on as a teacher's assistant in one of the many English schools in town. The plan is to offer my services for 10-14 hrs. a week. I could be used for tutoring, special music, cultural insight, improving accents, or even just mopping the floors. The amount of money I would make is equivalent to about $50 a month; however, I would offer my services for free in exchange for a 5-year workers visa.

From what I understand, many of the English schools in town would do almost anything for a native English speaker. Each of them would like to say that they have a native English speaker in their program because it makes their program more attractive to students. This could also open up a lot of doors to do ministry outside of the church. Please pray for this possibility that the Lord's will be done and that He would speak clearly to us as we test the waters in this area.      

Some of you have asked about Rayma and the kids so she will be putting together a little update on Russian life from the family perspective. Keep an eye out for it. Thanks for all your love and prayers. We will continue to keep you all updated as things progress.

In Christ Love,   

The Barnharts

Hello everyone!

Thanks for your patience. It took us a little longer to get the family settled than I thought. But we're all doing great!

The church was very excited to have Rayma and the kids back and gave them many hugs and kisses. Everything is continuing much as it was after the concerts. There are about 12 new people that have continued to come and we've begun to actively disciple them in the Word. Several of the more mature Christians started Bible studies with a few of the new ones, and we plan to begin a new believers study sometime after the New Year for the rest. It's very exciting to see them each week and know that we'll soon be baptizing many of them. Praise God!

The next several months have a number of fun events were looking forward to. The day after Christmas we're having a special Christmas service at the church. We'll have some special music, a message, food and a comedic performance of the Christmas story. On New Years Eve we all gather at the girl's apartment and celebrate with a white elephant gift exchange, a message, and more music. On January 8th, Max, Peter and I will be going to Moscow for the National pastor's conference. In February, we have the National women's conference in Omsk and Moscow. And we're hoping to have another Baptism in March. As many of you know we're also planning another concert outreach here to Perm in April, but we'll talk more about that after the New Year. God is continuing to do amazing things in our lives, and we ask that you would please keep us in prayer during this next season of our church's life.

We do have good news about the Visas. The good news is that we don't have to come home!! When we were told about the changes the government made to the religious worker's visas there was a good chance it would be the end to our ministry here in Perm. After talking it through with the CCCPM staff in Moscow and in Oceanside, California we all found that there is an alternative to the (very limited) religious worker's visa. It was such a relief to know that we had another option even if it was the only one; however, and unfortunately, the alternative isn't pretty. The only option we could find that would work for us is the three month tourist visa. Although we can only stay in Russia for three months at a time we do not have to return to America. Let me say that again. We do not have to return to America, instead we can exit to any of the nearby countries and get another three month visa in only 10 days. Because of this, our plan is (Lord willing) not to come home to the United States until our commitment here in Perm is finished. The three month visa is extremely good news to us and our church however there are obvious difficulties and challenges. Leaving the country every three months can be exhausting for a family of four as well as financially draining. We don't yet have all the details of what it might take to leave every three months but once we do we intend to let you know.

I understand this might not sound exactly like the good news you were expecting but it really is. In the last two months many missionaries have already left Russia. Alex and Liliya at the Bible College in Moscow are planning to leave ASAP, another family in Moscow is considering throwing in the towel, because it is not feasible for them to stay. Another family in Volgograd has left, as well as some American friends of ours Ed and Karen here in Perm. A lot of missionaries are returning home to America because of this visa situation. WE WANT TO STAY and believe the Lord will provide for us to do this. That is good news! Please pray for us in this area and we'll continue to keep you posted on our situation.

Thanks again for all of your prayers and encouragement! We hope that you have a wonderful holiday season and, on behalf of the Barnhart family, I wish you a very Merry Christmas.

God bless you all and enjoy the pictures.


In Christ,

Dave, Rayma, Elias and Will

God has been doing some amazing things!!

1. Baby Will: As many of you know, in August I returned to Oregon to help Rayma through the last part of her pregnancy. After being in Russia for 2 months without my family, it was so refreshing to be reunited. Our time was just as you might imagine it. Some days were filled with rest and relaxation, while other days we were busy meeting with friends and preparing for the new Baby. Eventually, William ("Will") Joshua Barnhart was born at 1:06 P.M., September 2, 2007; he weighed 8 lbs 2 oz and was 21 in long. Rayma did a fantastic job and had a quick recovery. Our friends and family were all such a delight to us and we thank you for so much love and genuine support. You guys are the best!

2. Organizing the Outreach: 11 days after Will was born I returned to Russia. It was a difficult thing to have to do, but we are confident it was God's will. Upon my return we quickly scrambled to pull together all the details for the concerts. God blessed us with an amazing facility in which to hold concerts. It was the same price as last year's yet it was in a very famous hall in the center of town. When we first spoke to the hall manager about using it for rock concerts, she immediately said "No" and tried to send us somewhere else but instead of leaving Barb (a Russian gal in the church) and I sat down. Somehow the woman completely changed her opinion and at the end of the conversation tried hard to find a way for us to have the concerts there. It was miraculous! We all had a sense that God was preparing us as a church for something amazing. We were right.

3. A Supernatural Outreach: I can say with all honesty that I have never in all my life been a part of an evangelistic outreach that was this powerful and effective. We passed out over 10,000 flyers and people were somehow supernaturally attracted to the team. The musicians did an amazing job and the testimonies were perfect. God provided sunny skies at a time when it should have been snowing. The weather alone shocked the locals. The team was so unified. Our times of worship and devotion were sincere and powerful. On one of the days plans didn't work out, so we sent some musicians to the park instead. A good number of people followed the Americans back to the concert hall. I was shocked. Every night when John or Mike or Peter got up to share their testimonies, the crowd was absolutely silent. In the past after a concert, about 50% of the crowd leaves right away. But each night almost all of the 250 people sat back down and quietly listened to the gospel presentation. On the last night the Americans were ready with gospels of John, invitations to the church, invitations to the follow-up seminars, the plan of salvation, and more. Most importantly the Americans made lunch appointments and meetings for the next week.

4. Fruitful Follow-up: The concerts ended on Sunday. For the next two days we had planned a special follow-up event. John Marr gave a two-part power point presentation on the inspiration of scripture. We had cookies and tea prepared for any that showed up. On Monday 65 people came but on Tuesday 75 people came. Both nights the Russians were confronted by the most powerful evidence that the Bible is the word of God. John covered geography, science, history, prophecy, textual manuscripts, the Crucifixion and especially the Resurrection. We all watched with sheer excitement as our friends who came to the concerts were now hearing undeniable truth about God's word. On the third night (Wednesday) we planned a special mid-week church service. I shared about some of the foundations of the faith. There were 85 people in the room that night! This is exceptional follow-up for an outreach our size. I had many of the key people in the church stand up and we pointed out as many others as we could. After this time of introductions we encouraged the new people to say goodbye to the Americans but to say hello to the Russians that were in the church. The next day the Americans left for Moscow. That Sunday we presented a slide show of photos from the concerts, and 50 people showed up. We expected this to die down but it hasn't. On Monday we had a special men's meeting that 15 guys showed up to, and on the same night we had a ladies' fellowship which 33 women attended (14 of the 33 were not Christians). Sarah and Lisa have been so busy with follow up meetings that they often leave the house at 12 and don't return until 9 at night. They average 2-3 meetings a day. The harvest is ripe and the laborers are few. The church is also doing so much to disciple and reach out to these new people. Barb, Svyeta, Veronica, Peter and many others have found themselves busy with meetings. Several in the church have told me they will be having weekly meetings with two or three wanting to do their part in discipleship. We were as prepared as we could be for this outreach and still it feels like the boat is filled with fish almost about to sink. We have continued to meet in the small hall where we had the seminars unable to move someplace smaller yet.

I chose two young men to meet with Igor and Andre. Andre and I have just started playing basketball together with Max's workmates. He loves it. Last night before I said goodnight he asked me, "Is there Church tomorrow?" I could tell by the tone in his voice that he was excited. Igor and I see each other every other day. I will be starting a Bible study with him in a few weeks. A couple days ago he came over to our house with cookies and snacks. He burst in with such excitement. Once the tea was poured he said, "I want to tell you why I'm here. My father had heart surgery it didn't look like it would go well. I got down and prayed for the first time and GOD ANSWERED MY PRAYER!! My father is doing great! Why would God listen to me?" But He did, and my father is alive!" Praise God!

Let me just list some other names. The twins Roma and Ruslan have come to every service we have. Anya and Olga came with Sarah, Lisa, and me to Igor's house and are doing really well. In a letter they declared, "The Americans brought us truth." Olyesa the Muslim girl is still coming and told Sarah, "I want to keep in fellowship with you." We had the two Lenas over to our house for tea and cookies it was a great time. Barb has been meeting with Natasha, who's husband beats her and can only see her child once a month. Liza said that since she has given her heart to God she has been delivered from alcohol. Aleyona said that she prayed for the first time this week. We don't have time to talk about Luba, Uliana, Ksusha, Olga and Dasha nor does this list include several other believers who rededicated their lives or have been hurt and decided to give church another try.

In all my life I have never seen God work like this. No one gets the credit. It's not a fancy idea or program. God is just doing awesome things. Please pray it continues. While I was back in America several of you mentioned that you have been praying for us every day. Thank you! I hope this report blesses you and shows all of us who are committed to this ministry that our labor is not in vain.

I hate to end on a negative note but there is a threat to the ministry. Not only in Perm but nation wide! I think it's more than worthy of another paragraph.

5. A threat to the Ministry: In yesterday's newspaper the St. Petersburg times published an extensive article on the new restrictions to foreigners living in Russia. We can no longer get one year visas that allow us to remain in Russia the whole year. As of October 4th the new law states that we can stay in Russia for 90 days and then must leave and cannot return for another 91 days. There are no conditions and no exceptions. I received a phone call at 9 in the morning from the international director of YWAM for Russia and he confirmed this. I called our Moscow office and they confirmed it as well. Unlike other laws in the past, this law does not look like it will be reversed. They have already printed new visa forms. Businesses and religious workers all over Russia will be affected and very likely hindered by this new change. To make it worse they may be adding an amendment to this law that restricts us from getting a visa from any Russian embassy except an embassy in our country of origin. We are presently trying to find loop holes and or other options. There is a temporary residency permit that we are all looking into, but we don't know how difficult it is to get. There is a lot of confusion right now, but we hope things will make more sense in a couple of weeks.

You can all imagine how difficult if not impossible it would be to pastor a church in a country when we have to leave for three months every three months. In addition to this, you can also imagine how expensive it would be for us to travel back to America twice a year. This is an obvious threat to the ministry not only in Perm but all over Russia. We all know how things are politically between Russia and the US right now. This stuff isn't just news it's affecting real people and real ministries.

Please pray for us in every aspect of this situation. Pray that God protects the abundant work and harvest we have just experienced in Perm. Pray that God will change the laws in our favor. Pray for wisdom that church organizations would know how best to process these changes. Pray for native leaders to be raised up. Finally, pray that God would continue to advance the gospel in Calvary Chapel Perm Russia. He will take care of us all. He will build His church even still we invite you to join us in prayer.


Your Missionaries,

David, Rayma, Elias and Will

Good News from Perm! 


Hello everyone I hope that you are all doing well. As most of you know, Rayma and Elias returned to the States almost two months ago while I remained here in Perm, Russia. It has been a long and difficult two months, but the Lord has been glorified and I would like to let you all know what I've been doing out here during that time. Of course, much of my time has been filled with studying and teaching the Word along with a great deal of counseling and an incredible amount of preparation for the upcoming outreach in October. I am so excited for this coming outreach and could send an update on this subject alone, however there are several things many of you have not heard about yet, and I wanted to share these with you as well. Please enjoy. 

Boat Trip: Once I returned from Kiev, Ukraine I rested for about a week, then 20 of us set out for the Russian wilderness on our first Church boat trip. We drove 7 hours by bus, assembled our boats and headed down river. I can tell you that Russian camping is nothing like American camping! I got more wilderness than I ever wanted. The weather was beautiful and we had a wonderful time. The water was pure and refreshing and so was the fellowship. However my favorite parts were studying the Word of God next to the campfire. We talked about God's glory! It was awesome to speak of God's glorious character in the middle of His magnificent creation. The river rushing past, the birds and the gorgeous sky were so helpful to enhance our appreciation for God's greatness. When the trip was over we could all sense how much stronger our friendships had become. There was something so powerful about the time; it definitely served to strengthen our church.   

Prison Ministry: Every other Monday we have a men's fellowship that meets. About 10-15 guys show up to eat, encourage each other and talk about how the Word of God applies to our lives as men. I have asked Max and Peter to lead this ministry and they are doing a wonderful job. A prison ministry in town is building a house for recovering inmates and our group of men were given an opportunity to help with the building project. In the rain and mud they worked like true Christian soldiers. We were able to meet several from the ministry who had been in prison for longer than I've been alive, as well as several that were recovering inmates. I'm so proud of our men for their servant hearts.

Week of Prayer: The Lord put it on my heart for us to set aside one week and dedicate it completely to prayer. For one week every message was dedicated to prayer. At the end of the week on Saturday we planned a church picnic to celebrate. The time began on Monday. We walked the city in pairs asking people on the street for prayer requests. We prayed for the homeless, drunk people out partying and anyone else that we saw as we walked. Our two main prayers were "God save our city" and, "God break our hearts for the lost," On Wednesday we had another time of prayer and studied the passages in the Bible where men, "called upon the name of the Lord." On Saturday I talked about how Jesus encouraged His disciples to, "pray and not give up" and we had a wonderful picnic. Finally, on Sunday night we met once again and looked at the passage where Jesus said, "My Father's house is a house of prayer." At the end of the service I gave the church an opportunity to rededicate their lives to God. Although I didn't ask for any hands to be raised, I know of several that took advantage of this opportunity. Praise God!

Service changed from Saturday to Sunday: I remember when George Bryson (the president of CCCPM) called me late one night. We talked about the upcoming outreach in October then out of nowhere he said, "Dave, I want to encourage you to move your church meeting time from Saturday to Sunday." I thought and prayed about it and finally said, "God, if you want us to move please just make it so we have to move." A week later I got a phone call. It was the day before we were going to start our week of prayer. The pastor of the church we are meeting in told me they have 6-7 weddings over the next 3 months and will need to use the building on Saturdays. Could we please consider moving our church meetings to Sunday at 5:00 pm? I thought, "Well that's not a traditional time, but it seems to be the Lord." We are very excited about this new change and several more people have been able to come to our service because we meet on Sunday. God is so good.

Baptism in the River: Just a day ago on Saturday the 28th we had our second baptism service since I've been here in Perm. We baptized 5 people at a spot where two huge rivers come together. It was a powerful time! The wind was blowing hard, the water was rough, and it even began to rain! Because of the weather we had to shout everything we said. So I shouted my short explanation of Baptism as lightning flashed in the background. Each person that was baptized shouted his or her commitment to God and love for Jesus Christ. The people who were baptized were all different ages from 16-45. The last guy we baptized came to Christ several months ago his name is Dennis. Our entire church has been praying and hoping he would come to Christ and now not only did he come but wanted to be baptized! After we baptized him the rain and lightning stopped the clouds eventually parted and the sun came out! We pulled out a bunch of food and had a picnic on the grass in the Sun. It was a day I will never forget! 

One more week: I have one more week in Perm as of today. I will teach two more times and head out for Moscow on the 4th of August. I will be in Oregon on the 6th. Rayma's due date is 21 days later. Please keep us in prayer as I travel and as our second son will soon come into the world. 

We love you all so much and are so thankful for your prayers and support. You are our partners in ministry and we praise God for each one of you. 

May God richly bless your lives!

In Christ,



David Barnhart

Pastor Calvary Chapel Perm, Russia

Hello again from Perm!

I know we just sent out an update about the outreaches, but we wanted to give everyone a picture of some of the other things that are going on in the ministry. So here we go!

When I started writing this update a couple days ago it actually began snowing again. That's right, we're in the month of May and it's snowing!! Just figured I'd start with that to give you a renewed sense of appreciation for your own local climate. However lest you think we are in a constant state of winter I should also let you know that the snow has since melted and today we were able to go downtown to see a Russian military parade. Today is the 9th of May and the day Russia celebrates their victory over the Germans in WWII. Praise God that our victory is in Jesus!

As a church we continue to study the Gospel of Matthew in our weekend service and the book of Acts in our Wednesday night, mid-week study. I've been challenged over and over by other pastors to simply "Teach the word and love the people." At first it seems simplistic but I can tell you that it is effective. Consistently washing with the water of God's Word and a genuine love for the sheep (imparted by the Spirit of God) does amazing things! His Word is living and active, it is inspired and profitable. The hearing of his Word produces faith, without which it is impossible to please Him. As we know Him we cannot help but love Him and from this love flows every good and praiseworthy thing in our lives and ministry. We thank God for the many blessings of His word!  

Having this as our foundation, God has led us in a number of different ministries as a family and as a church. I would love to elaborate in detail but unfortunately time simply does not allow for that now. Instead, I would like to give just a short explanation for each of the key events and ministries that have taken place over the last couple of months.   

Our first business meeting: This was a huge mile marker in our church. It established a high standard of integrity both morally and financially. It revealed to the church that the leadership is sincere, transparent and committed. I can't begin to explain what this means to Russians. I feel this meeting brought a peace and rest that the church did not have before.     

English competition: Rayma and I made a connection with a Russian woman who is an English teacher at a University in town. She was in a competition among other teachers for the best class presentation. We were guests in her presentation as native English speakers in not only 1 but in 3 competitions. She won the Perm City competition among others and almost went to the national level. We were thanked by her entire administration and were able to have lunch with the president of the school. When we have our outreach in October they are excited to have us back to tell their students about our concerts. I love how God opens doors. 

YWAM Coffee shop: God led a new couple to our fellowship several months ago. Their names are Roman and Tamara. Roman was instrumental in starting the YWAM that is now here in Perm. He has since passed it on to someone else and is involved in a number of other ministries. Roman said, "When we came to Calvary Chapel we felt like we finally came home." One of the other ministries Roman is presently leading is a Christian Coffee House. It is still in its beginning stages and is very rough around the edges. Our church feels led to work in conjunction with him in this ministry. It has a long way to go but has amazing potential. We hope to do some ministry in this coffee shop during the outreach in October. Please pray for this ministry.     

Teaching at DTS: Since we're on the subject of YWAM… A month ago I was asked by John (who heads up YWAM's discipleship training school here) to do some teaching at the school. It was a great time. I think I taught for a total of 10 hours on 6 different subjects. My last teaching was on the presence of God. By the end of the teaching we were all in tears. It was a great time. 

Easter: We had a regular Easter service along with a sunrise service. For the sunrise service we met down by the river, read some scripture, worshiped and prayed. It was a refreshing experience. I was surprised to see as many people at the sunrise service as were at our regular meeting. During this time we learned a new Russian phrase: "Christos Vas Kress!" "Jesus is alive!" After it was all over we met for food and fellowship. 
  
Orphanage: As many of you already know Sarah returned to America about a week ago. However, before she left she maintained a very consistent presence at one of the main orphanages here in Perm. It was a wonderful blessing for her to be there to hold and feed the children. Each time she came back from the orphanage, she would share stories with us of the kids. Besides the normal children there, the orphanage also takes care of HIV positive babies and many children with defects. It's so hard to hear of children so disfigured and helpless. We're glad Sarah was able to give God's love to these children.  

Village outreach: A group from our church felt led to reach out to some of the villages in our region. So we sent 5 from our fellowship to some of the most remote villages in our region. It took 7 hrs by truck. The first day they visited a site where many years ago human sacrifice was performed. The team decided to worship the true and living God in that place. The second day their truck got stuck in the mud and they had to hike to a nearby village. It appeared to be a ghost town yet they searched every house and finally, after several hours, found 6 people who still lived in the village. They shared the gospel with these 6. The next day they went to several other villages and despite the rain shared the gospel at over 50 houses. They plan to return in two months to visit these again.   

Last Girls meeting: Rayma and Sarah held their final girls' meeting several weeks ago and over 15 showed up. It's amazing that they began with a group of just 3 or 4 of the girls who got saved after the concerts. It began as an English class and became a great Bible study for the girls in our church. However with Rayma and Sarah leaving for America there is no one who feels called or capable to lead the meeting in their absence. The harvest is ripe but the laborers are few. Please pray that these girls will stay strong.

Elias sick and schooling with mom: For a week or so Elias was sick. Rayma did an amazing job as always in restoring him to health. She has continued teaching and training him in so many ways. In fact several other mothers have even asked her how Elias is so well-behaved and happy. They marvel at his ability to sit through a service.
  
Non-Christians: Rayma and I have been able to make several Non-Christian friends by divine appointments at coffee shops and on the streets. Please pray for these, especially Inna and Sirgay.

Sarah's Goodbye party: We just recently had a goodbye party for Sarah. The church loved her and blessed her. Before the night was done the girls all gathered around her, laid hands on her, and prayed for her return. It was a beautiful thing to see and I think every eye had at least one tear. 


We will soon begin several meetings in the church and would appreciate your prayers for these as well. 

    1) Men's and Women's fellowship: We feel it's time to share the work load and have asked several upcoming leaders to begin a men's fellowship and a women's fellowship. Please pray for Veronica, Olga, Max and Peter.

    2) Servants' meeting: This is a meeting for those involved in worship leading, translating and teaching. Pray that Rayma and I will be able to challenge, encourage and refresh them in these important times of ministry. Please pray for Max I., Max M., Barb, Olga, Peter, Veronica, Alexander, and Victor.  

    3) Prayer meeting: Twice a month the church will be gathering to pray for the needs of our fellowship, personal lives, and lost souls. Please ask God to give me wisdom in leading these times. And please ask God to teach our fellowship to be men and women of prayer.
 
    4) Worship night: We're starting a once-a-month worship night. The Church has been pleading for this ever since we got here. We now have two worship leaders in our church and are able to facilitate these times. Please pray for Victor as he leads us in these times of praise and worship. 

New People: Please pray for many of the new faces who have been coming to our fellowship I don't know many of their names and we are not able to have deep fellowship with all of them. Please pray that the Word of God will do its work in their lives and that they will feel at home in our fellowship. Our weekend services are usually between 30-40 people yet in all the ministry serves about 50 people. It's hard to gauge what work is happening in people's hearts but we trust God and pray for more than surface-level impact. 

Ukraine trip and Family plans: Our plans have changed a little bit and we would like to let you all know what is going on. Rayma and I must be out of the country by June 14th (which is the day before our aniversary) since that is the end of our one-year visa. Rayma and I will be flying out of Perm to Moscow on June 10th, Rayma and Elias will leave for Albuquerque, NM, on June 12th. There she will spend about a month with family and then head up to Oregon some time in mid July. I will also leave on the 12th for Kiev, Ukraine. It is the best and cheapest place I can go to get another visa. About a week or so later, if all goes well, I will make my way back to Perm. Please keep me in prayer. 

In August I will return to the states for about a month for the delivery of our new child. Our due date is August 27th and by the way, IT'S A BOY!! Sorry we don't have a name yet, however the ultrasound showed everything to be healthy and on schedule. After this I'll leave again for Perm sometime in themiddle of September and finish the preparations for the outreach on October 1st. Unfortunately, Rayma and the children will not be able to return with the team in October. We have found out that it takes 8 weeks after delivery to get a visa for the new baby. Rayma will most likely be returning inNovember. Our church out here is so excited for this outreach in October. It will be such a breath of fresh air. Please keep praying for the Outreach team and all of our preparations.  

I hope all of this gives you an idea of what we have been doing and where we feel God is leading us. A majority of the fruit we've seen in our time here is not reflected best through words on a piece of paper, but in witnessing first hand the transformation of people's character and lives. I wish I could email these things to all of you so that you could see with your own eyes the glorious treasures God has placed in hearts and lives. It is so beautiful to see Jesus coming alive in these people, to see their passion for Him and their love for each other. God is being glorified in Perm, Russia, and Jesus is continuing to build His church.   


In Christ,


David, Rayma, Elias and baby brother.  
Perm, Russia

P.S. We'll be posting some new pictures on the web-site soon. www.daveandrayma.com. God bless. 

Hello Everyone!


We hope you're all doing well! Rayma and I are doing great although Sarah leaves us tomorrow morning and we're anticipating her absence. We have wanted for some time to share with all of you about the fruit from last year's outreach concert as well as some of the ideas we have been thinking about for this upcoming October. Let me start by saying we are so excited to have a group of you coming out here to minister in Perm. Tomorrow I will be preaching on Matthew 9 where it says, "The harvest is ripe but the laborers are few." It really is true. We can't begin to explain how much it means to us to have a group of harvesters and laborers coming to join us in the field.

Last year's outreach was amazing! I will never forget my installation service, it meant so much to me, and I know it meant a lot to the church. Before the team came I talked about the McMinnville Calvary as our sister Church but it didn't mean much. By the end of the outreach the church here understood that our connection is real. The team did such a great job of showing love to our fellowship; the impact has continued 'til this day. I know that several from our fellowship still email you and many of your names still come up often.

I asked Max (one of the leaders in the church) what he thought about the outreach last year. One thing he said was that before the outreach the city had no idea our fellowship existed. Now much of the city knows who we are and where we are. This is so true I often meet people while walking the streets who remember me from the concerts. Something else significant that happened during last year's outreach was the unexpected ministry in the schools. The team received 6-8 invitations to come to the schools to share about America and the concerts. Many of the people that came to the concerts were from the schools the team visited. This was amazing! What many don't know is that not too long ago every Christian group in the city was kicked out of the schools in Perm. I heard from someone connected to Campus Crusade that they were kicked out of every school and university in town. Our presence at the schools was the first this city has had in a long time. Praise God! Who would have known?

Most of you remember that several months after the outreach we Baptized 3 new Christians from the concerts. This was a huge landmark in our church. Recently I went to 4 or 5 of the group that got saved at the concert and asked them if they wanted to share how they felt about the concert with you guys. The following are some short comments they made about the last outreach. Enjoy!


"Hi, my name is Tamara and I am a young Christian now. I came to know God through the Christian concerts last fall and I am very, very thankful for that! I can tell you for sure that such concerts are so important to give people who don't know Jesus an opportunity to get to know Him! Thanks." ~Tamara Sherbakova, Perm

"Hi, my name is Natasha. My best friend was a Christian and I heard about Jesus from her from time to time. But when she invited me to the concerts it was so great! I met so many other Christians and I came to know God! I am so thankful for those concerts! God is so good to us!" ~Natasha, Perm

"Hello, my name is Kate. I'm still in school and I'm 16. I met Jesus at the concerts in autumn 2006. The concerts changed my life a lot and now I have God and He helps me in life and teaches me, and I have my church! Such concerts can change a person's life!" ~Kate, Perm

"Hi, my name is Veronica. I think these concerts are so important for youth! I know a lot of people began to think more about God after last fall's concerts. But even for the Christians who want to tell their friends about Jesus these concerts are a great opportunity. I think we need Christian concerts like these in Perm!!!!" ~Veronica, Perm

"Hi, my name is Ruslan. I want to tell you how I met Jesus. I have always loved music: I would wake up with music, then on the bus I would listen to music because it helps me to distance myself from the crowd. But my story is that in autumn 2006 I had just became a student in one of the Universities and everything was so new. I had new friends, new experiences. They were interesting and exciting on the outside and yet empty and lonely on the inside. I would ask people about life and most of them just said, "Don't worry! Just live!" But I didn't know how to live knowing that one day I would die! And then it happened! Everything good in my life happens unexpectedly! One day a friend of mine called me and invited me to go to the concerts, I decided to go. I loved the music and everything was great but I couldn't stop thinking that the concerts would be over soon and I would be back in my empty life…then suddenly they started to talk about God. The soil in my heart was just ready! My heart was opened by music and I received Jesus into my life. I just wanted to say that music is the language that young people understand. Through music you can tell them about God! I am so very thankful to the music groups 'Out of the Ashes' and 'Narrowgate'! God used you guys to give me life; He can use you to give life to others also! We're waiting for you!" ~Ruslan, Perm


I have been talking with some of the leaders in the Church about this next outreach so we can plan our summer in a way that builds excitement in our community for these upcoming concerts. We have decided to look for a new place to meet for our Wednesday night Bible studies and are hoping to find someplace near the center of the city so that when we have the concerts we'll have a great place to invite people on Wednesday nights. Please pray for us, this is a huge step we're taking. We are also planning to double the number of flyers and posters we put up to promote the concerts. In fact, our plan is to put together a number of resources we didn't have last year. Free Christian CD's, some new Russian tracts, new invitations to the church, more Russian Bibles for those who want them, etc. We are also planning to start a new believer's Bible study after the concert ends and thinking about other follow-up events, like showing the Passion of the Christ but in a rented hall, and maybe having a Pizza Fellowship time for those who want to know more. We are also planning to visit the schools again and maybe a couple of coffee shops. Please pray that God will give us wisdom in all our planning and that He will provide for the team that is coming. If any of you have more questions about this outreach or our ministry please feel free to send us an email.

Thanks for all your love God bless,


In Christ,

Dave, Rayma, Elias and Sarah - For one more day...

It's True,
Rayma and I are...

Loved friends and family!

Rayma and I are going to have another BABY!! Many of you heard me announce this news as Pastor Ron (at McMinnville Calvary Chapel) held his telephone up to a church microphone. Through an endless line of incredible modern technological devices, a tall goofy Russian Pastor (that's me) announced the good news. However, for many of you this is new news and I hope you are blessed to hear it this way.

Rayma is 14 weeks along and is due on August 27th. We had an ultrasound taken here in Perm, and everything is normal and healthy. We don't know yet, of course, if it's a boy or a girl, but everything else checks out great. We were surprised to see that they had one of the most modern ultrasound machines we've ever seen and the ultrasound we had done only cost $12!

Our plan right now is for Rayma to return to America in mid June. She will spend a month with her family in Albuquerque, NM then go to McMinnville, OR to complete the rest of her pregnancy. I will return to Oregon at the first part of August and stay for 5-6 weeks. The McMinnville church is planning to send another team of people out here to Russia next October. We will have a series of outreach concerts much like we did last fall. If it works out we're hoping that Rayma (with Elias and the baby) can return to Russia with the outreach team in Oct. As for the medical side of things we have been and will continue to be in contact with several different doctors, Russian and American. We have a health plan that covers the pregnancy and we are all very excited at this new addition to our family. Please keep us in prayer as we step into another new adventure.

Thank you all for your constant prayers and support we love you all so deeply.

Your missionaries,

Dave, Rayma and Elias