In Ephesians 4:4-6, we read: "There is one body and one Spirit...one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all." An ACCTS staff member recorded these thoughts about his January mission trip to Russia:
These verses on Christian u
nity were a recurring theme throughout a recent military Christian fellowship (MCF) leaders meeting at "
Dom Cornelius,
" the new offices of the Russian MCF in south Moscow. Fifteen regional and local leaders, as well as individual members of the Russian MCF
"Cornelius
" met for three days to unite in Bible teaching, prayer and praise, worship, informal discussions on military ministry, and an excursion to Red Square. Delegates from outside Moscow came from: Vladivostok, Khabarovsk, the Mari-El Republic/Volga region, Sevastopol/Crimea, and the Tver region. I represented the Association of Military Christian Fellowships (AMCF), and explained how the Russian MCF, the AMCF, and its three principal supporting organizations work together to spread the Gospel in the uniformed services of the world.
Some of the key points discussed were:
- MCF's are not a church, but rather organizations that bring together Christians from many faith backgrounds to focus on their unity in Christ, rather than the differences
- between one confession and another.
- MCF's are encouraged to collaborate with local pastors in praying for military members both within their own congregation, and across the country; to mentor and encourage young men planning military service; and to support military families while the service member is deployed.
- Despite restrictions on meeting with active military members, MCF's are encouraged to build bridges of understanding with local military leaders by organizing concerts, presentations, and other activities to boost troop morale while serving as a Christian witness.
One special blessing of this trip was catching up with old friends and enjoying an Orthodox Christmas. Under their MCF leadership 15 years earlier,
some 25,000 Russian language camouflage Bibles were printed and distributed. Two weeks before Christmas, they had seen a young lady on the Moscow Metro reading one of those bibles - clear confirmation that God is still using those Bibles to build His kingdom.
Another blessing occurred on my flight home. I sat next to a gentleman who worked for United Airlines operations at Newark. When I mentioned my trip to Russia and shared my experiences there with him, he noted that he, his wife, and his church were very interested in missions. I gave him an ACCTS card, and when he messaged back the next day, I sent him my testimony as well as contact information for ACCTS (www.accts.org). He's a pastor, and will be praying for ACCTS, and military ministry in general. We never know whom God will lead across our path, and we must always be ready to witness for Jesus!
