The biggest project of the month was the Camp for Christian Medical Students (CCMS) we have organized in Kursk (Central Russia) together with our coordinators, partners and volunteers from the region. Students from several medical schools of Central Russia gathered there for 7 days of the camp. The group of the youngest from of our team (included my daughter Zhenya) was providing technical support, workshops, worship and music, discussion groups during the camp. It was a great experience for the students in training to practice and defend their faith and stand for the Biblical truth in every aspect of it.
We have finished now with the camps we planned for this year and beyond the current projects and work our main focus is preparing the fall symposium and the summit.
The greatest production news is the completion of ‘Science and the Bible’ multimedia distance learning course. Having it done, we have issued a powerful ‘Study materials’ DVD-ROM which includes:
– Science and the Bible distance learning course lectures (12 hours)
– Systematic Apologetics distance learning course (the one we made couple months before) lectures (24 hours)
– Electronic library on apologetics
– The Rocks Cry Out video in Mpeg4
– Complete copy of our web-site
– Bibles of the World free Bible software (Bible text in 60 languages).
After some hardships, we have quite a progress with the video production. The shooting of the ‘Urok’ (the lesson) video for teenagers is completed finally. We are doing the cut and voice record currently. The documentary on paleontology ‘Walking thru the past’ is almost completed and about to be released in couple weeks. Also we systematize the materials we shoot during Kiev Science and the Bible Lectorium – the workshops by leading Russian and Ukrainian creationists. We have 25 hours of it recorded in total and plan to make it available in 3 forms – video on five DVDs; video in Mpeg-4 format with all of them on one DVD-ROM; audio CD-ROM in MP-3.
Another great development of our work in Russia thru the regional coordinator is publishing there ‘How Should We Then Live’ by Francis A. Schaeffer. This is a classical book on a Pragmatical Apologetics (evaluating the worldviews by the fruits they produce) that gives comprehensive comparison of the biblical theism and secular humanism influence on European culture and the outcomes of these worldviews in the various areas like philosophy, science, arts and society. The book is extremely valuable tool for the dismantle the secular humanism for people of former Soviet Union who for several generations was indoctrinated in this most ancient false religion that teaches that humans could be their own gods who themselves could decide what is good and what is evil.
We have completed the translation of another book extremely useful for demolishing the strongholds of atheism in the society where people accustomed to worship science. This is ‘Refuting Evolution 2’ by Jonathan Sarfati and Michael Matthews. The book pulls together the most powerful arguments that Christians are likely to hear from today’s leading evolutionary scientists. An aggressive crusade against Biblical truth is going on in the media with the use of the rhetoric of Scientific American collection of the best arguments in a combative cover story, ‘15 Answers to Creationist Nonsense.’ As a sequel to Refuting Evolution, the book refutes the latest arguments to support evolution as well as very idea that creation is ‘nonsense’, ‘a religious view that has nothing to do with science.’
It is always a great joy to have a feedback from the people we serve to in various area of post-communist society. Very encouraging messages are coming usually right ion time we need them. Here is the letter we receive from a prison where we send a supply of creation evangelism materials recently:
“We are so thankful to God for your care and for the work you do that helps people to find answers to the question “Is there a God?” I and other Christians that are here want to tell you how highly we appreciate everything you are doing for us. May the Lord be praised thru people, who follow Him and spread the resources that prepare the soil for His Word. Thank you that regardless of the fact that we are criminals, you find time and the funds to send us so valuable materials. We praise the Lord that your work makes our faith stronger and enables us to demolish the strongholds of atheism. You and other Christian authors help us, people who live in a secular world, to spread the teaching of our Lord – the teaching of life based on the Scriptures and supported by scientific facts. I would like to let you know that as soon as I received materials from you, people got interested in it, even non-believers! Thank you again for your work that makes our faith stronger, helps to get closer to God, and provides the understanding of God’s world. Thank you very much that you have a time to answer even to such people like we are. There is no other way for us to express our gratitude but through only words of appreciation. May the Lord help you! May He bless you with love, joy, peace, strong health, happiness and many years of life! Please do not forget us and may the Lord be praised!” Alexei Kalashnik, penitentiary jail, Poltava (Central Ukraine)
Please pray for our ministry and all the projects mentioned above. Pray also for my family and for our team.