The third month in Tajikistan – fffit! – flashed like lightning… God, help us wisely manage the time that you give, do not run ahead of the engine, but also do not sit idly by.
«So look, be careful, not as stupid but as wise. Cherish time because these days there is much evil» (Ephesians 5: 15-16).
We learn to cherish time. But not in order to do more, but in order to do everything ON TIME, precisely at the time that God saw. As one of the preachers said: the right thing with the right motive at the right time – only then there will be the right result. Therefore, we are in no hurry.
We are in no hurry to resolve bureaucratic issues «quickly». This month we went to the border (every three months we restart to Tajikistan), there was a huge queue, the cars stood for 5-6 hours. We went to another customs – there is a smaller queue, but also for a few hours. You could try to resolve this issue through connections, but we decided not to rush. They prayed with such simple words: «Lord, send us an angel!» – and God sent. The man just sat under a tree, saw us in a Ukrainian car, talked with my husband and – called us behind him. It turned out that he was a customs officer. So we went through all the procedures at the border, went out and went back into Tajikistan in just an hour!
After restarting, we need to update the registration within 10 days. To do this, you need to go to a state institution with the owner of the apartment, but our owner lives in another city. This issue could also be resolved «as usual», but we do not give bribes, so again we decided not to rush. As a result, on the 9th day, the owner of the apartment came to us, and the very next day we took our registration. If the Lord slowed down for one day – there would be a huge fine again… But God is good and gracious, He did not condone these problems for us, because we have not yet moved away from the previous fine.
Passing through customs, we met a couple of tourists from France. It is amazing how God brings people together, choosing the time to the minute! We met the guys in line, were in no hurry, waited for them at the exit and – took them to their home. We really love to receive guests!
«Be jealous of strangeness» (Romans 12:13)
It turned out that the guy had been looking for God for a long time and even went to study at a theological institute to understand religions and find the truth. We talked with them all the rest of the day and evening, learned a lot of interesting things about France, and also told the guys our testimonies how God found us. It was a useful time for everyone, thank God for such meetings!
We are also in no hurry with our playing club. This is completely God’s work, we see how He Himself suits everything and directs as He pleases. Every Wednesday we gather in cafes and play the boards we have.
There was no question of buying new games yet, because good boards are not cheap, but we have just figured out a huge fine. But God is so wonderful! It is at a moment when we do not have any opportunities – He Himself sends us a new game from TOP-10 world ranking. And then it also transfers our meetings from a noisy crowded cafe to a cozy pastry shop with an ideal separate hall with a large table! We did not even think about it, but God Himself sent us the owner of the confectionery and placed his heart. We boast of the Lord!
But there is one game in our arsenal that we will most likely have to get rid of (and here we are in no hurry, at least it would be worth it). «Secret Hitler» is a great game, involving a lot of communication, discussion, logical and not very arguments. Everyone immediately liked this game, the rest of the boards just pale against its background, in addition, up to 10 people can participate. But the task of half the participants is to skillfully pretend to be «good». And here we feel inside a denunciation of the Holy Spirit: we teach people to lie and not trust each other. We pray that God will give us wisdom not to accept what is «tastier», but to be a light to this world and to seek purity and holiness.
We also have a lot of experiences about young people from the local church, but in this direction we try not to rush to make any decisions.
From the very first visit to the church, we learned that there is no youth pastor here for more than a year. During this time, the guys became independent, some of them are already faithfully serving God, a good leadership team has been formed. But still it’s not good to be young people without a mentor… There is a special place in my husband’s heart for young people, although he himself is modest and says that he cannot communicate with the guys, but many feel and notice his calling.
The pastor offered to pray for my husband to become a youth leader. But we are not in a hurry again… On the one hand, there is a need, and we can close it, besides, it responds in our heart. We can, we want, but on the other hand – what does God want? Will his blessing be upon us in this ministry? After all, this is a great responsibility for human hearts, which need to be given spiritual food and Love, and not just hold interesting events for them…
We do not want to go human ways and jump into the first empty trolley that comes across, and then push it on our own. Therefore, while we communicate with young people without any official posts and wait for what the Lord will do.
«Betray your way to Jehovah and trust in him, and he will do it»
(Psalter 36:5)
So our third month in Tajikistan passed – slowly. Please support us in prayers for the game club for non-believers, for the service of believing youth, as well as for the Tajik people. And of course, for God’s guidance for our family. In Central Asia, there are many opportunities, many ways and directions for service. And time flies very quickly, and often it seems that we are standing still. But we only want to go where God goes ahead of us.
«Moses said to God, If thou shalt not come with us thou shalt not bring us out of here»
(Exodus 33:15)