Tag Archives: Missionaries

A Repost from 2007!

Thinking of Retiring?

April 1997 ~ Moisi and Nadia

You’re 74, your wife is 73, you’re retired, what do you do? My parents, Moisi and Nadia decided to sell their house, many of their household possessions and move to Russia to start a Bible study ministry in a small village near Rostov-on-Don. They filed for a one year visitor’s visa and left with suitcases full of Bible study materials on May 6, 1997. They set up shop in a four-room home with no indoor plumbing. My dad is not an ordained minister. His experience comes from many years of following Christ sincerely, Bible study, service for the Lord, sincere love for God and God’s people. My mother loves God, loves my father, and loves to cook. They work together beautifully.

My parents were both born in Russia. When young, (1932), their families separately escaped out of Russia into Iran. They lived in and near Tehran, where they met and were married. My oldest sister was born there. My dad was not a believer when he married my mom. She was a believer and the daughter of a Baptist minister. Shortly after WWII they applied for and received permission to immigrate to the U.S.A. After customs and registering in New York they traveled to Los Angeles, where relatives set them up with shelter and work. Two more of my older siblings, myself, and four younger siblings were born to my parents. Twenty years into their marriage my dad accepted the call from God to follow His son Jesus as his Savior. This took place at the Billy Graham Crusade at the Los Angeles Coliseum in 1963.

My brothers and sisters oldest to youngest. Kathy (who was born in Tehran), Vera, Fred, Ellen, Tim, Steve, Lana, and Leonard ~ This photo taken in 2003 at Leonard and Lana’s 40th birthday party in Downey, California. My parents were still in Russia at this time.

My parents have faithfully followed the Lord in word and deed. On trips to Russia earlier in the 1990′s they felt the need of the lost sheep in this spiritually poor country. While visiting relatives they led a cousin to the Lord. She begged my parents to come and teach her the Bible. My parents prayed, listened, and felt it was time for them to go for longer than a 2-month visit.

A Bible study turned into a small church that met in my parents’ rental home. Up to 15 women started coming to church on Sunday. No men. They did not anticipate the response they’d get from the children in the village. Forty children came for Sunday School.

Many of the children came faithfully each week even though their parents did not come. Some of the fathers ridiculed their children for going. The Sunday School Christmas program brought out a lot of parents. Same for Easter programs. God kept opening doors for the men to hear the gospel, too. My dad was asked to speak at funerals where he always preached the Gospel, the Lord works in mysterious ways. At the end of their first year there were several new believers. My parents had to leave Russia in the Spring. Eight women wanted to be baptized before my father left. The lake was frozen and there was no baptistery in the village. The women insisted my dad baptize them in the largest bathtub in the village!

Cousin Natasha’s Baptism

My mom with her ducks and geese

My parents came home to the States in May of 1998. They had their medical exams and my mother was diagnosed with Breast Cancer. She had surgery to remove a cancerous lump and had radiation treatments for 6 weeks. She recovered well enough to encourage my father to make arrangements for another one year visa. They returned to Russia in October of 1998. They had a great reception on their return and their mission there was confirmed. They bought the house they were renting and turned it into a church with their small living quarters. They built an outdoor baptistery. They have gone back for a few months at a time since 1999.  Their final trip was just last year. They went to  encourage the existing church and make arrangements for a visiting pastor from a neighboring larger city to come in and teach this small group of believers. My parents turn 84 and 83 this year.

Comparing my folks from this 1999 photo in Russia with their 1997 photo above you can see the toll their two years of service, cancer (prostate and breast), and age have taken on them. They do not have any regrets for the time and sacrifice their service in Russia cost them. They are now living in a Senior apartment continuing in service for their Lord.

I leave you with this song, Remind Me, by Aaron Spiro and Carlo Furlan as a fitting close to this story of my parents.

Remind Me

When I’m old, remind me not to get stuck in my ways
When I’m old, remind me not to sit around day after day
’cause there’s a race to run that doesn’t finish at sixty
And I’m not giving up till I’m safe in your arms

When I’m old, let me bring glory to your super name
When I’m old, remind me not to take your grace in vain

When I’m old, remind me who and what I’m livin’ for
When I’m old, remind me not to hide away and double lock my door

I’ll rest in heaven, retire there. Let me run for Jesus ’till I get there.

Moisi (Moses) and Nadia have certainly lived their lives for Jesus and they haven’t stopped yet!

Moisi and Nadia ~ October 2006

ht:  I Am, I Am, Kickin’ the Sky / Aaron Spiro & Carlo Furlan

National Statuary Hall ~ Father Junipero Serra

When I was in Washington D.C. in May of this year I took a tour of the Capitol building. In the National Statuary Hall I was struck with how many of the statues donated by the states in our country were pioneers who were also known for their faith. I really enjoyed how the sunlight rested on the cross that Father Serra is holding in this statue. The statue of Junipero Serra was donated by the state of California. The statues donated by my current state, Washington, are of Marcus Whitman and Mother Joseph. In 1856 Mother Joseph lead a group of 5 missionaries to the Pacific Northwest Territories. She was responsible for the completion of 11 hospitals, 7 acadamies, 5 Indian schools and 2 orphanages. I didn’t get a photo of her statue but it’s one of her kneeling in prayer. It just made me chuckle to think of the climate in Washington and schools these days to forbid crosses, Bibles and prayer when our nation and so many schools were built by pioneers who carried their Bibles across the wilderness and prayed this country and schools into being with Christ and his work on the cross as their motivator. Now some would love to re-write history to suit their unbelief.

When we were living in Ventura California from 1984 until 1988 our sons attended Junipero Serra Elementary School. There is a large statue of Junipero Serra in front of the City Hall in Ventura.

This is the statue of Marcus Whitman donated by the state of Washington. He is carrying a Bible along with his medical bag.  The next quotes on the history of Junipero Serra and Marcus Whitman are taken from the Architect of the Capitol website.

“Father Junipero Serra (Miguel Jose Serra) was one of the most important
Spanish missionaries in the New World. Born in Majorca on November 24, 1713, he
joined the Franciscan Order at the age of 16. He soon gained prominence as an
eloquent preacher and eventually became a professor of theology. His dream was
to become a missionary to America. He arrived in Mexico City in 1750 to begin
this new life.

In 1769 he established a mission at the present site of San Diego,
California, the first of a number that would include San Antonio, San
Buenaventura, San Carlos, San Francisco de Assisi, San Gabriel, San Juan
Capistrano, San Luis Obispo, and Santa Clara. This was a herculean task
considering that Father Serra was already in his fifties and suffered from a
chronic ulcerated condition in one leg. Serra was ascetic and uncompromising in
his zeal to convert the Indians to Christianity and to make his missions self
sufficient. Inhabitants built their own homes, spun wool for garments, and
pursued careers as masons, carpenters, blacksmiths, and millers; thousands of
barrels of grain were kept in reserve supply, and herds of cattle, sheep,
horses, and swine were maintained.

The ulcerated condition of Serra’s leg eventually spread to his chest. At the
age of 71, aware of his deterioration, he made a final visit to his missions.
The well-known and beloved missionary died in Monterey, California, on August
28, 1784; his missions continued to flourish for another 50
years.”

“Marcus Whitman was born on September 4, 1802. At the age of seven, when his
father died, he went to Rushville, New York, to live with his uncle. He dreamed
of becoming a minister but did not have the money for such a time-consuming
curriculum. Instead, he studied medicine for two years with an experienced
doctor and received his degree from Fairfield Medical College. In 1834 he
applied to the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions. Two years
later, Whitman married Narcissa Prentiss. A teacher of physics and chemistry,
Narcissa was eager to travel west as a missionary but, as a single woman, had
been forbidden to do so.

Marcus and Narcissa made an extraordinary team. They joined a caravan of fur
traders and went west, establishing several missions as well as their own
settlement, Waiilatpu, in the Blue Mountains near the present city of Walla
Walla, Washington. Marcus farmed and gave medical attention, while Narcissa gave
classes to the Indian children. Returning from a trip east, Whitman assisted in
the “Great Emigration” of 1843, which clearly established the Oregon Trail.

The primitive health practices of the Indians and their lack of immunity to
diseases such as measles fostered the belief that Whitman was causing the death
of his patients. The Indian tradition holding medicine men personally
responsible for the patient’s recovery led to the murder of the Whitmans on
November 29, 1847, in their home.”

Our nation was built on the backs of people who trusted God and were guided by the Bible. I hope that is never written out of our history.