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Since our last newsletter, I (Karen) traveled to Russia for a brief yet full visit (November 20th - December 1st). The primary purpose of my visit was as a member of a 7-woman team from the Atlanta Vineyard. The Perm Vineyard invited us (Vicki, Nancy, Nancy, Celine, Heather, Anastasia, and me) to lead a women's retreat for women from Vineyard (and a few other) churches all over Russia, alongside a wonderful team from the Perm Vineyard, who did a superlative job in organizing every detail. Over 100 women attended the retreat, and God did more than we could have imagined, in and through each one of us. Our time there was simply unforgettable and life-changing, in so many ways.
Ephesians 3:20 (The Message) – “God can do anything, you know—far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams!”
This verse aptly summarizes our time in Russia, including the weekend women’s retreat on the theme of "Sanctification." Vicki, our wonderful leader, along with each member of our team, shared a testimony of how God has changed our lives, brought healing and restoration, personally and in our families. I had the privilege of teaching the final session of the retreat – “For what does God sanctify us?” I challenged the women to lay down their pasts, their regrets, their futures, their preferences, their sins, their pain . . . and receive restoration and God’s Kingdom-sized perspective for their lives. God wants to give each one of us generational fruitfulness that goes beyond our personal lives to the lives of those to come. I invited women to stand with hands on hearts as an outward symbol of their inward commitment to surrender everything to God. Every woman stood as we invited the Holy Spirit to come as sanctifier and beautifier. We commissioned them to go out as agents of transformation to radiate the fragrance of Jesus Christ in their spheres of influence. When God changes me, He changes my family, my work place, my school, my church, my city, my nation, the world. He heals our histories to propel us into our destinies. We closed the retreat with the women gathering in groups to pray with others from their local church.
Elsa, a talented artist from the Atlanta Vineyard, created our theme painting depicting a clay pot broken open with jewels inside – it was a powerful focal point. At the retreat, through the intertwined messages and testimonies, we talked about the process of sanctification, brokenness, and freedom from sins . . . to become transformed by the power and presence of God. We worked with wonderful translators for our messages, testimonies, and ministry times. Women received healing in the areas of abortion, broken relationships, abuse, hopelessness. We saw women open up, their outer shells were cracked open, and God released them to reflect His light and glory, just like the jewels. God continues to do more than we could ever imagine . . .
Personally, the Lord reminded me that the time is short – He impressed on me the importance of making the most of every opportunity for Him. If I will only make myself available, He will accomplish more than I could ever dream, both in and through me. Jesus is so precious – His presence sustains me in all circumstances. To God be all the glory!
God had much more in store for each of us than the weekend retreat. I had the pleasure of meeting with 40+ friends in Nizhny Novgorod, riding the train with 25 Nizhny women (17 hours each way between Nizhny Novgorod and Perm - much fun!), staying with two wonderful Russian families, worshiping God with dear friends at the Nizhny Vineyard Church and the "Healing" Church, and seeing some of my favorite places in Nizhny again. It was such a joy to bring greetings and little gifts from women of the Atlanta Vineyard to each woman at the Nizhny Vineyard, connecting hearts of my sisters on one side of the pond to those on the other. It is always thrilling to me to distribute as many dozens of Russian books as I can cram into my luggage (thanks to your generosity in providing these!) . . . this time I brought Pilgrim's Progress (John Bunyan), The Gift of Love (Dr. Charles Stanley), and my favorite devotional, Streams in the Desert (Mrs. Charles Cowman).
While I was there, I sent almost daily email updates to our home church, the Atlanta Vineyard . . . here's an edited excerpt from one of them, to give you a glimpse into not only my time there but some of the red-tape challenges that Russians face on a regular basis. The usual processing time for the exit visa I needed is 20 days, but since I was in Russia for less than 2 weeks (only 6 business days), I needed a miracle. Here's how the story began . . .
I want to tell you the story of my day, not to just go on and on about the way things are, but to give you a glimpse of what everyday life is like here for the Russians, and to help you to enter into what I'm experiencing so you can join me in prayer more effectively. Plus I hope it makes you smile - I am truly full of joy in the midst of the difficulties - God is so good!
Today Gyena, Galina, and I set out to obtain my exit visa. At 9am we went to the visa office way on the other side of the city, waited as is customary in all govt offices around the world, then were "assisted" by a very impatient administrator. She informed us that we first needed to obtain registration papers (it is not clear even to experienced Russians what the precise process is, nor is it easy or sometimes possible to find out). Off we went to the registration office to wait, fill out more paperwork, and be interrogated about why my husband and children weren't with me (since they all have current Russian visas). The story had to be told over and over, examined from every angle, and then we were told that we needed yet more paperwork at another location. By now it was lunchtime when all Russian government offices have their obligatory break. At 2pm we went to the 3rd location, along with the accompanying landlady in whose apartment I am being registered - this office is where all residents (including Russians) must register whenever they move to a different apartment or house. We waited for several hours before reaching the front of the "line." Thinking that reaching the front of the line means being processed isn't exactly a realistic expectation of what happens here. I guess they only check the paperwork up until the first mistake or omission, then give it back to you. There isn't a clear list or process of what is required, so you don't really know ahead of time what you need. We were sent away an incredible 7 times to fill out another form or write a letter. Each return to the tiny window requires muscling your way in through the tightly packed bodies. During our almost 4 hour experience in that 7 x 9 room crammed with about 20 people, I made a few observations:
* There were lots of minor spats mostly between older women jostling for their place in line (trust me, there was no line by any definition), trading "clever" insults with each other.
* A large uncollared dog wandered in, seemingly to no one's surprise. He received lots of attention from each person he approached.
* An adminstrator angrily reprimanded the crowd for leaving a door open into the hallway "because of the flu" - after sealing the room off, the air in the already overheated room was even stiller and hotter than before. For such a highly educated nation, it's surprising how many old wives' tales prevail. One woman, who apparently had the flu, coughed regularly into her half-tied face mask.
* The interminable waiting finally got to one young man, who began to rough up an older woman. All the women around him began shouting at him to stop, but Galina, with her sweet spirit, calmed him down by showing him some practical kindness.
But finally we received the proper stamped paperwork around 5:30pm, so we had some time to get back to the previous office. We had to talk to the same interrogation woman, who giggled on the phone with her boyfriend while marking on my paperwork (the little I understood made me blush). The moment she hung up, she became disdainful and impatient, shaking her head, tut-tutting, sighing deeply - sadly not an unusual attitude for government workers. If anything is non-standard, there is often deep resistance accompanied by many delays and redos as we experienced today. Thankfully there was a kindly older worker nearby who was very helpful. Galina was sent out several more times to fill out more paperwork, and we were down to the last minute before the 7pm closing time but praise God, we got my registration completed!
I thank God for Galina's perseverance and Gyena's cheerful disposition and encouraging attitude all day. We are so grateful for our Russian friends who give up entire days or afternoons to help us. God's peace enveloped me the entire day - not once did I feel any anxiety or even annoyance, just sadness at the brokenness I saw.
After we left the registration office, we dropped into a corner store, and as though a touch of humor from God, Bing Crosby's "Let it Snow" was playing, followed by the Beach Boys, which is ironic since the H1N1 flu that is causing the city-wide quarantine is called "the California flu" here! (Flu is the #1 topic of conversation here at the moment.)
My closing philosophic statement of the day - The iron curtain may have come down, but to deal with "the system" here, you need an iron determination (and an iron bladder)!
Thanks again for your prayers - you have no idea how much we depend on them . . . you have many dear friends here even if you never meet on this side of eternity . . .
And how did the visa saga end?
We spent another 3 hours the following day (Tuesday) submitting the proper paperwork, and then waited . . .
On Friday, when our team gathered with the Perm team to pray together before the retreat, one woman prayed something like "Lord, I ask that you would get the attention of a worker in the visa office right now, and that they would walk around the office and pick up Karen's paperwork and process it right now." This was somewhere around 5pm Perm time that we were meeting. When I got back to our friends' place in Nizhny Novgorod, Gyena said that the visa office called him at 3:15pm Friday (i.e. 5:15pm Perm time) to say that my exit visa was ready. Woohoo!
A very humorous incident occurred that following morning when we picked up my visa. Gyena accompanied me. Gyena speaks no English. The administrator speaks no English. The administrator explained some things to me, including some technicalities that she felt needed to be addressed (I understood, but dutifully sat silently as is wise for all foreigners when dealing with really important paperwork like visas!). After a few minutes, she remembered that I didn't speak Russian fluently, so asked Gyena to translate. So Gyena dutifully repeated what she had said, but in slower Russian. These offices are nerve-wracking places even for our calmest and most experienced Russian friends. Gyena tried his best to comply with her request as respectfully as possible. He continued to "translate" several more times before the administrator realized that Russian-to-Russian translation was going on :) At that point, she dismissed the technicalities and sent us on our way with my exit visa! God is good and has a great sense of humor!
We trust that God will show us the next steps for our family regarding ministry in and to Russia . . . Paul and I have the privilege of serving on the missions board at the Atlanta Vineyard, and one of our roles is to plan how our church can serve Russia in the coming year. Please pray with us for God's heart! I continue to send daily email encouragement to about 50 Russian families (currently - Oswald Chambers' "My Utmost for His Highest", a devotional that encourages me daily, too). Meanwhile, the Lord has opened some doors for us regarding developing resources for Russians . . . please scroll down to see how you can partner with us.
Brief family news . . . P is doing very well in his electrical engineering studies at LeTourneau University, and we're enjoying having him home again during his winter break. J is finishing his last year of high school at Sculley Academy and preparing for several advanced placement exams. He surprised himself (but no one else) by making an almost perfect score on the math section of the SAT (the American university entrance exam), missing only one problem. M, C, E, and K are doing great at Sculley Academy along with fellow classmate, our good friend, A. Paul continues to contract for Georgia Pacific, and we're so grateful for God's continual provision. I enjoy all my various roles, and am so thankful for the many opportunities God brings to love Him by loving others. God continues to amaze us at how He provides for all of our needs and despite the inevitable difficulties of life, He showers His mercy, blessings, and grace upon us in every area of our lives. It is such a joy for us to serve God together with each of you!
Thanks for all your prayers, encouragement, and support! We love you and appreciate you!
Financial Partnership Opportunities:
We'd like to offer you a variety of opportunities each month . . . let us know if you'd like to partner with us in any of these ways. THANK YOU for your support . . . it is a joy to walk this road together with you!
Resources for Russians
We're investigating some translation projects to get more resources into the hands of Russian believers, mainly in the area of Bible study tools, something we're passionate about. Please let us know if you'd like to invest in any of these projects.
We trust God to provide everything we need to do all that He wants us to do in and through us. If you would like to invest what God has given you in Kingdom activity, through financial partnership, here's how (all financial contributions are 100% tax deductible in the U.S.A., and are processed through the Atlanta Vineyard, our sending church to whom we are accountable):
* automated giving (automatic monthly deductions from your checking or savings account - click here for the form - be sure to write "Sculley - Russia" in the space under "recommended giving"). Once you print out and fill in the form, please mail it to the address indicated at the bottom of the form.
* online giving via PayPal (www.atlantavineyard.com — just mention “Sculley - Russia” on the online giving comment line)
Praise Reports:
* We thank God for the amazing time our team experienced during our 12 days in Russia. It was life-changing for each of us, and from the feedback we received, also for many of the 100 women who attended the retreat. God has totally blown us all away . . . in every aspect, from the smallest detail to the most life-changing transformation, God showed Himself to be strong, mighty, beyond anything we could ever ask, imagine, think, guess, or request in our wildest dreams. There were also many other encounters along the way with others. I am especially grateful to God that He gave me grace to meet with every person I had hoped to meet with in the brief time I was in Nizhny Novgorod.
* We praise God for the partnership of our generous supporters, whose provision enabled 25 women from Nizhny Novgorod to attend the women's retreat and one from another city.
* I am so grateful to God for giving me what felt like even better Russian language skills this time than before - it makes no sense apart from the grace of God because despite all my good intentions, I did not study Russian at all in the last 4 months!
Please pray for us:
* Please pray for each woman who attended the retreat, and each church represented, that God would complete the work He began in them
* Please pray for God to open doors and bring the connections needed in order to get some much-needed resources translated into Russian
* Please pray that we would hear God's voice clearly regarding how we and the Atlanta Vineyard can serve Russia in the coming year
We pray for you, too - please let us know your specific prayer requests. It's such a joy to pray for one another! We have all of our email and facebook friends' names written on our prayer wall in our home.
Our vision:
* mobilize prayer
* promote unity in the body of Christ
* encourage and equip leaders
We appreciate your prayers so much! Thank you!
“The share of the man who stayed with the supplies is to be the same as that of him who went down to the battle. All will share alike.” (1 Samuel 30:24)
With love,
Paul, Karen, P, J, M, C, E, & K Sculley
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year 2010!
