In Search of the Khanti

We arrived in Surgut this morning just after 4am and were met at the airport by Senior Pastor, Sergei Kubata who took us to our hotel to get settled into our home-away-from-home for the week.
After a couple of hours of much-needed rest we met at the church for a light supper and learned much about the work here among the Khanti. Of the 20,000 Khanti there are only about 70 believers – that’s 4-thousandths of a percent! They are scattered throughout the region mixed-in with Russians in different churches and groups. Right now there are no Khanti churches.
A difficulty of reaching the Khanti, we learned, is their semi-nomadic lifestyle. We are hoping to visit a reindeer herd while we are here. As we are told, the problem is that this time of year the herders are deep in the forests far from any roads or civilization. We are looking for some snowmobiles, and permission to go out into the forest, but even then, the temperature is to the point that reliability is a real concern. It is minus 30 Celsius (or minus 22 F). And even if we can find the snowmobiles, and someone to take us, there is no way of knowing where to look for the groups, they could be anywhere. How do you plant churches among a field that is constantly on the move across the frozen tundra?
We don’t know either!
Pray for the work among the Khanti. Pray for the local Baptists as they reach out to the Khanti. Pray for our trip Thursday to the village of Ruskinskaya, a modern day trading post for the Khanti.
S’Bogum
Tim for Team Engage Russia

The Khanti-Mansian Call

No, it wasn't a vision. In this case it was a Senior Pastor saying "Come over to Surgut to help us."

Several months ago, Pastor Sergei Kubata came to our IMB offices here in Moscow. He came with Pastor Alexander Popov from Udmurtia. We have had a stateside church partnership with Udmurtia for a few years already, and the two had been talking.

"Can you find us a partnership like the one with the Udmurt?"

"We need help reaching the Khanti people in our area."

As we talked, Pastor Sergei shared about their church planting efforts among the people group of 20,000. Scattered throughout the region in remote villages, the Khanti have had little or no chance to hear the Good News of Jesus Christ. The Russian Baptist churches have one Russian missionary trying to reach them.

They have asked for our help.

This week's trip is designed to learn more; more about the Khanti and more about the efforts to get the Gospel to them. We are hoping and praying that what we see, what we learn, and what we experience, will lead to a partnership between some of YOU and the Khanti People of Russia.

Follow this Blog, sign up for our Twitter, and join us through your prayers as we follow the Khanti-Mansian Call!

S'Bogum

Tim for Team Engage Russia

Engage Russia Now Twittering

The Engage Russia Team has now began Twittering!
What is twitter and how does it work?
I am not quite sure how to answer that, but basically it is another internet based communication tool for updating others about what you are doing, when you are actually doing it.
For example - next week Marc, Tim and Jimmy will be traveling to Surgut, Russia to learn more about the work among the Khanti People of Russia. During their trip they will be posting on this blog daily (depending on internet capabilities) AND Twittering every few hours, using Marc's iphone.
There is a box on the right hand site of this blog site that will be updated with frequent, shorter updates about where we are, what we are doing, who we are talking to, etc. in almost real time.
Following us on twitter will be like being there on the trip with us, almost.
So, follow the blog, the twitter, the upcoming website, as we together continue to ENGAGE RUSSIA!
S'Bogum
Tim for the Engage Russia Team

The Official Engage Russia Refrigerator Magnet

Engage Russia-Chuvash People Group Prayer Guide

Engage Russia-Chuvash People Group Poster

Engaging the PGs of Russia

Over the last few weeks we have been praying over the vast number of cities and People Groups (PGs) in Russia that we have yet to engage with the Gospel. With the reshuffling of the IMB into Affinity Groups, rather than Regions, there is an increased emphasis on the many Unreached People Groups (UPGs).

A recent revisiting of a list of the PGs in Russia revealed that of the 10 largest non-Russian, non-Muslem UPGs in Russia - we are currently engaging only one of them with any type of personnel or witness (way to go Jack Gilliland- our VSC with 2nd largest - the Udmurt).

We currently have a serious campaign taking shape to engage the Chuvash (the largest of these groups with 1.8 million). This initiative will expand over the next few weeks and months to include others of these UPGs.

Right now, we are asking you to pray. Pray for the UPGs listed below. Pray that the Lord would send a key partner or an onsite M or whatever to help share the Good News with these many peoples. Pray that the Lord would make it clear how He would have YOU join HIM in Engaging Russia.

Chuvash 1.8 million -- Udmurt 770,000 -- Mordvin-Erzya 612,000 -- Low Mari 525,000 -- Ossetian 462,000 -- Yakut 439,000 -- Mordvin-Moksha 428,000 -- Komi-Zyrian 345,000 -- Tuvin 312,000 -- Vlach Romani 180,000 - - - -

S'Bogum

Tim