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George, Sarah, Abigail, Matthew & Elizabeth de Vuyst
Serving with Christian Reformed World Missions in Mukachevo, Ukraine
We are working in Mukachevo, Ukraine as leadership trainers and church-planters of a Reformed congregation in the western region of Ukraine. Partnering with this congregation "we are proclaiming the Gospel to more and more people who have not heard it, healthy churches are emerging and the Kingdom of God is advancing" (CRWM vision statement).
Here is the 5 minute video we prepared for our church visitations to give a short overview of our ministry in Ukraine.
Christmas Miracle Two days before Christmas, the papers were signed for the Mukachevo
church to purchase a tiny piece of property. After over 3 years of waiting, endless bureaucratic nonsense, and lots of prayers, the church was finally able to buy a piece of land (with a rundown house on it) to eventually build a church upon. The lot is only 0.16 acre in size, but should be just big enough for a multi-purpose building. The congregation is discussing various building plans and options in order to build a church in phases. They are also investigating how the rundown house, with no running water or plumbing, could be best utilized for the time being.
Home Again After 3 months in the USA, we are happy to be home again in Ukraine. Our home service involved visiting 9 churches in Michigan, Maryland and Florida. We drove over 6,000 miles and met many wonderful people. We were encouraged by all the interest, questions, and support. Now that we are back in Ukraine, it is especially encouraging to know that we are not alone. So many are praying daily for us and for this ministry and we cling gratefully to that partnership.
New Years Trumps Christmas What does a man in a red suit, a decorated evergreen tree, and presents have to do with Christmas celebrations? - Nothing! When controlled by the Soviet Union, people were not allowed to celebrate Christmas and many of the traditions that we associate with the holiday were grafted into the New Year's celebrations. Since Ukraine holds to the Julian calendar for its religious holidays, Christmas falls on January 7 but it is not a big holiday and its celebration certainly pales in comparison to New Year's.
One of the joys and challenges of living in Ukraine is bringing the significance of Jesus' birth to light. It's one thing to have a huge feast, give gifts, and watch fireworks to commemorate the passing of another year. It is much more significant to celebrate the birth of the Son of God, the Lord of Lords, our Savior!
We celebrate Christmas together with the Mukachevo congregation on December 24th with a special children's and youth program complete with Christmas songs, poems, skits, and a sermon. We also celebrate New Years with an all-night party and a viewing of the town's fireworks in the center of town.
George Begins Mentoring Church Intern Robert Shpontak, a student at the Joint-Reformed Seminary in Kyiv, has accepted the Mukachevo congregation's invitation to complete an internship at the church. In a joint-project between Christian Reformed World Missions and the Mukachevo congregation, George begins mentoring Robert with the hope that he will become the full-time pastor within the next few years. Robert and his wife Anett are expecting their first baby in May.
Leadership Training Program Enters Ukraine A very successful leadership training program, the Timothy Leadership Training, organized by Calvin Theological Seminary, is scheduled to begin in Ukraine in April. George is working together with one of the leaders to bring the program here to Ukraine. The training's purpose is "to bring affordable, doctrinally sound and effective teaching to parts of the world where the church is experiencing explosive growth but leadership is woefully lacking." The training gives pastors and church leaders practical training in areas such as pastoral care, stewardship, Biblical preaching, work and worship, etc. Already many church leaders in Ukraine have expressed the need for such training and are eager to begin. You can read more about the program on The Timothy Institute's website.
Come Serve in Ukraine!!
We have three opportunities for you to serve with
us in Ukraine in a short-term capacity: World Missions is now working with the CRC program, ServiceLink, to recruit and prepare volunteers for mission service. To read more about these opportunities and apply, please see this link on CRWM's website: http://www.crcna.org/pages/servicelink_opp_intlind.cfm or click on each of the opportunities above to go directly to the description.
website updated: January 13, 2010
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Mailing address: Ilona Zrini 10/2, Mukachevo 89600, Transcarpathia, Ukraine email: gdevuyst@crcna.org Links to: Christian Reformed Church in N. America and Christian Reformed World Missions |
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