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Two ACCTS staff members recently traveled to Khabarovsk in the Russian Far East on a mission trip. This long journey marked the first time in 12 years that members of the Military Christian Fellowship in Moscow had visited this remote city. Here are some excerpts from his report.
Upon arrival in Moscow on Tuesday, 17 January, a longtime friend took me to his new apartment. On Wednesday morning, we headed to the airport to meet our new ACCS staff from Moldova.
On Thursday evening, 19 January, we had a very comfortable 7 1/2 hour flight across 7 time zones to Khabarovsk. Pastor Alexei met us at the airport, and after a group photo, with temperature at -25 degrees Celsius (-13 F), we drove to his church for a late lunch. We had to stay in an "official" downtown hotel for registration purposes; the others stayed within the church complex. 
The main event -- a seminar on military Christian activities for members of churches in the region - was held on Saturday morning, 21 January, Pastor Alexei and members of his congregation hosted the event at the Central Pentecostal Church in downtown Khabarovsk, The agenda included ministry to the military at the local, regional, national, and international levels, as well as how to re-start a Military Christian Fellowship in Khabarovsk after twelve years of inactivity. Eight members of Pastor Alexei's church attended, along with representatives of the Russian Military Christian Fellowship (MCF) in Moscow ("Faith and Courage"), the Russian Bible Society in Vladivostok, and the ACCTS Staff.
The seminar started with music and prayer, followed by a presentation from the Moscow MCF on the goals and vision of military ministry, noting the importance of partnership with other MCFs and the worldwide Association of Military Christian Fellowships (AMCF) for accomplishing God's work in the military. The ACCTS staff then offered concrete examples of the MCF at work in Moldova assisting the Ministry of Defense with Ukrainian refugees, and a more detailed description of how the AMCF links MCFs around the world to build God's kingdom, the role of ACCTS as one of three principal supporting organizations for the AMCF, and specific cooperative efforts in Russia such as Bible distribution.
We had a coffee break around 2 PM -- an ideal time to engage in informal discussions and answer individual questions. Following the break, another of the Moscow MCF members spoke on the biblical basis for Christians in the military. He provided numerous examples from the Old and New Testaments, as well as illustrations from today's military. He closed with a challenge to work together - and with churches to encourage their young men to view military service as a mission field, and preparation for ministry following their service.
A third Moscow MCF member then gave a short history of the MCF, and described the work of a former MCF member recently promoted to the rank of general, who now serves as a Deputy Minister of Defense for MOD coordination and oversight of all traditional religious confessions within the Russian military; and presented documents signed by President Putin that afford religious freedom to military members of all faiths. A discussion on chaplaincy followed, focusing on the differences between a pastor and a military chaplain. The military chaplain is endorsed to the military by a particular denomination, but ministers to military personnel of all faiths -- even nonbelievers.
Pastor Alexei summarized the challenge: "There is a need to equip young people to go into military service; to become self-reliant in their faith, to fully trust God. The pastor should encourage young people to put the question of military service before God. Because the Russian cities have a preponderance of older people, with the younger ones living in the outskirts, pastors of these village churches need to actively address this issue with their young people."
The situation in Moldova was cited as an example. Believers who serve in the army have a strong testimony, and need to teach honesty, and serve as an example for others who are prone to engage in graft. Unfortunately, the majority of Protestants oppose army service, and there is great resistance to serving in the military -- especially in Siberia and Eastern Russia. Pastors should encourage their young people to pray for the Holy Spirit's guidance about military service as a mission field. The seminar was closed in prayer at 4 PM. Following the conference, we joined the Bible Society representative from Vladivostok for dinner to discuss the next steps for development of a viable MCF in Vladivostok.
On Sunday, 22 January, we attended a three-hour worship service at Pastor Alexei's church. After an extended praise and prayer portion, the group from Moscow was introduced, and I had the opportunity to share some of my military background, briefly describe ACCTS and AMCF and our relationship with the Russian MCF, and then present a homily on AMCF's motto (Galatians 3:28- - "All one in Christ Jesus") and our own unity in Christ, based on Ephesians 4:4-6. .Later, one of the women from the Moscow MCF met with several of the ladies to begin the process of forming a prayer group to pray for the military. That afternoon we returned to Moscow for our flights home
Special blessings on this trip to Khabarovsk:
* In November 1997, I helped lead the first MCF Russian Far East conference at the former KGB school, directly across the plaza from our hotel.
* This was the first time in 12 years that a delegation from Moscow had visited Khabarovsk in an effort to encourage the MCF there.
* Pastor Alexei's willingness to host the seminar - he and his church are real prayer warriors, fully committed to the leading of the Holy Spirit. This seminar was the first step in asking the Lord to provide someone to organize and lead an MCF in Khabarovsk.
* The unexpected opportunity to help develop an MCF in Vladivostok through the Bible Society representative.
* Pastor Alexei was led to Jesus by one of the Moscow MCF members when they were both on active duty several years earlier
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