Sasha Puzanov

Regional Pastor for Krasnoyarsk

Praise & Proclamation!

"Russians find it difficult coming to a church meeting in a public place. They need to come to a church building. For 1000 years people have in their minds from the Russian Orthodox church that the church is in the building. For people it is very difficult to think about going to a religious meeting in a club. People think a club is for dancing. When they come to a building with a cross, they understand that that is a church. If you purchased a building and remodeled it so you had a sign and a cross, etc., that would work."

SEND missionaries were there to help church leaders develop the program and recruit visiting instructors to teach. Combining their Bible knowledge with their commitment to reach their own country, the students and graduates have done great things as pastors and missionaries all over Central Siberia. Over the last six years they have established over 30 churches and many other "preaching points" through a national missionary society organized by graduates.

Additional SEND missionaries now serve with the Russian pastors and missionaries in evangelism and church planting activities as well as the Bible institute ministry. SEND short-term ministry and construction teams also contributed to the tremendous number of churches being planted and built in cities and villages where no churches previously existed.

There are still many cities, towns, and villages in this vast area without a Gospel witness. SEND is committed to serve the evangelical church in leadership development, evangelism and church planting and with long-term and short-term missionaries and teams.

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MINISTRY STRATEGY

SEND International’s ministry strategy in Siberia has been developed in close partnership with the local churches and their leaders. SEND historically has served the local church where it exists. Siberia is a classic current example.

The strategy has FOUR primary components:

I. Leadership Training

SEND helps the local church train national church planters through a Bible school in Krasnoyarsk. The graduates formed a home mission society as a church planting arm of the church. SEND partners with this group to provide experience and training.

If this area of ministry interests you, simply click here and indicate in the Response Form that you are interested in Leadership Training in Siberia/Russia.

II. Evangelism/Church Planting

SEND missionaries work side-by-side with Russian missionaries to start new churches in places where none have ever existed. These churches often begin as a Bible study or "preaching point" and grow to a fully developed church. SEND missionaries do basic evangelism and Bible studies and then intentionally nurture believers into worshipping fellowships through:

A. Evangelism Explosion

B. Drug rehabilitation centers

C. Special evangelistic meetings

D. Public evangelism, schools, prisons (Venture Teams International)

E. Awana

F. Home Bible studies.

G. Friendship evangelism

H. Prison ministries

I. Jesus Film

J. Orphanage ministries

If this area of ministry interests you, simply click here and indicate in the Response Form that you are interested in Church Planting in Siberia/Russia.

III. Church Buildings

It’s getting more difficult to rent community centers, and in this culture the new church plants need a visible, legitimate meeting place. So we are helping the churches build their "Houses of Prayer", as they call their churches, in a variety of ways. This is a superb way for an established church somewhere else in the world to partner with a newly established church.

If this area of ministry interests you, simply click here and indicate in the Response Form that you are interested in Short Term Trips -- Construction -- in Siberia/Russia.

IV. Strengthening Existing Churches by helping them develop programs such as:

A. Sunday School

B. Children’s ministries

C. Camping

D. Awana

E. Women’s ministries

F. One-on-one discipleship

G. Youth work

If this area of ministry interests you, simply click here and indicate in the Response Form that you are interested in short-term opportunities in Siberia/Russia.

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LESOSIBIRSK BUILDING PROJECT

Click HERE to read the report (Adobe Acrobat format)

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PRESENT SUCCESSES

I. Bible Institute -- Assisting in the operation of a Bible Institute that has 66 graduates, over 30 involved in full-time ministry, 11 in "tentmaking ministry".

In particular, SEND leadership is thrilled that:

A. Four of the teachers that we have now are graduates of the Bible Institute.

B. The Bible Institute belongs to the local church, not SEND.

C. The church has formed a home mission society (Pilgrim Coordinating Missionary Center) to reach the Krai (region) and we’ve been given a facilitating role. We have a good working relationship with them.

II. Church buildings -- SEND is thrilled to have sent many construction teams and hundreds of thousands of dollars to help build:

A. The main central church.

B. Five church buildings currently in process.

III. Evangelism/Church Planting

A. Facilitate and encourage church planting as it spreads from 23 churches to 75 since 1993.

B. Directly involved with three church plants.

C. Sponsor evangelistic teams (Venture Teams International).

D. Instrumental in developing an Awana ministry in the region.

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SEND’S VISION FOR SIBERIA

The vision of SEND International in Siberia is to work alongside local churches where they exist and to help start churches where none exist. This helps the Russian believers accomplish what God has laid on their hearts. They want to see a church in every town and village, with multiple churches in urban areas.

By God’s grace, in the next five years we would like to:

I. Have 10 new missionary couples or singles in Siberia

II. Partner with the church to start another 50 churches, five of those in urban Krasnoyarsk. Continue participating in a church planting movement.

III. Directly work to establish seven churches by the SEND team with Russian missionaries.

IV. Strengthen the Bible Institute as it grows to train pastors and church planters. See another 75 men and women trained for ministry. Develop five key leaders who can teach in the Institute.

V. Help provide buildings for 15 churches.

VI. Help the church understand how to work cross-culturally in the Krasnoyarsk region.

VII. Explore the possibility of a ministry with the New Russians – the newly affluent of Russia.

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OUR FUTURE CHALLENGES

You can partner with SEND right now, without leaving home, by praying with us about these strategic needs that stand in the way of reaching the goals and vision that we feel the Lord has laid before us in Siberia:

I. Pray for more missionaries and their required funding.

II. Pray for financial support for our Russian church planter colleagues.

III. Pray for wisdom to avoid unhealthy dependency by the Russian church on North American resources.

IV. Pray for new meeting places for new congregations.

V. Pray for God’s overruling hand in the economic stability of Russia.

A Lasting Impact!

"Our Bible Institute was organized in 1994 to train qualified pastors and missionaries. At that time in the Krasnoyarsk Krai (a region -- 3000 kilometers by 1000 kilometers), we had four pastors, not one missionary, and 22 weak churches. In other regions in Russia one-year Bible institute programs were starting. Through the leadership of the Baptist Union and SEND and our desires, the Lord made it possible to open a similar institute in our region.

"Krasnoyarsk Bible Institute began in 1994 with 21 students. When they graduated they went into active missionary work in our region where there was a growing need for ministers. The Institute encouraged continued life and service in the churches and a growing desire among other Christians to commit themselves to service for Christ. From 1995 to 1999, we had three more classes of students. In 2000-2001 we have 25 students in the Institute. For the first time this includes nine women who are Sunday School teachers.

"Today the effectiveness of the institute is seen in the establishment of 75 new churches and continued church planting. In the Krasnoyarsk Krai there are now 20 pastors, 15 deacons and 60 missionaries who are actively serving the Lord.

"We ask you to pray for material resources for the Institute, and for the support of graduates. We are asking the Lord for sponsors for missionaries and ministers to work in our massive Krai and in regions of the north.

"Some of our material needs include: money for food, clothes, quality literature, projectors, computers, chalk boards, desk lamps, ten writing tables, 30 chairs, and five bookshelves. Our students working in Sunday School ministries need flannelgraph and musical instruments (guitars, synthesizers, etc.)"

Sasha Puzanov

Regional Pastor for Krasnoyarsk

Our Vision !

"We have a large geographical region and some unique problems. There are certain cities and places where you can only go by car in the middle of winter or by helicopter at other times, or maybe by the river in the summer.

"Recently I went to Angara River Region. There are no churches there. The city of Kodinsk has 40,000 people; Bagoochana, 20,000;and Martiginov, 70,000. These are very large inhabited regions that can only be reached in the winter. In the north the Evenki people have no churches. It is very difficult to work in these regions because the climate is so severe. We praise God we have been able to send two of our Bible Institute graduates there. Times are very difficult, but they are working. Another thing to keep in mind - the Evenki only have a portion of the New Testament in their language.

"In the southern part of the Krai there are many regions that need missionaries. For instance,in the Republic of Toova, it is essential that we send someone there to work full time. We plan to prepare our brothers and sisters here so they can address that need. The Toovinsi people only have part of the New Testament as well, the Gospel of John and a few tracts and the Jesus film. The Toovinsi people have their own ways, but God is working and changing hearts. We hope, with God’s help, to start a church in Toova. These people know Russian, but speak in their own language. They are sheepherders. "