School Without Walls
Creatively Sharing the Gospel in the Workplace
Our School Without Walls (SWW) students are trained and equipped to use creative ways of living out the gospel in their workplaces, even if they are not allowed to share their faith openly. Many SWW students and graduates–like Alina, a young school teacher in Russia–use their vocations as a form of ministry to their colleagues, employers, students, and those around them–they truly see the workplace as a mission field. Alina shared how God is using her as a minister of the gospel in the school where she teaches: “I have been a 1st-4th grade teacher for two years. I really like my job, and I can’t imagine working anywhere else. The director of my school knows I am a Christian, and after I was hired, he told me that he and his family are also believers. There are 28 children in my class, and they are all very different. Whenever I experience…
Elza’s Testimony: The Truth Will Set You Free
Elza is one of our first School Without Walls graduates from Russia. She and her husband planted a church several years ago in the capital city of Kalmykia, Russia and they feel called to minister to the native Kalmyk people there. Elza has an incredible faith story about how God touched her heart and convicted her to renounce Satanic influence in her life. The Truth of Christ has truly set her free! Elza and her husband considered themselves good Kalmyks – they zealously followed Kalmyk traditions, and their tribe could trace its ancestry back to Genghis Khan. They were very proud of their identity and history, studying Kalmyk culture, music, folklore, and making frequent trips to Mongolia. In keeping with Kalmyk tradition they married early, and by the age of 16 Elza was already expecting her first baby. Elza’s husband was a third generation healer – he had inherited an…
A New Family in School Without Walls
After suffering from divorce and a tragic car accident, Fatima felt hopeless and bitter. But God intervened in her life in a miraculous way, just when all seemed lost. Fatima shared her testimony of faith with us and communicated the transformative impact that the witness and love of our School Without Walls teachers and graduates had on her life: “I used to be very arrogant and proud. I didn’t believe in God, and I refused to acknowledge His existence. Since religion in Ossetia is a mixture of paganism and Christianity, many people are very devout, but they also worship false gods and build temples and altars to perform senseless rituals. My family would often reproach me for refusing to take part in their pagan rituals, but I argued that, if there was no God, then it didn’t make sense to do these rituals, and if He did exist, then He…
A Family Transformed by Gift of Hope
“My decision to serve Marina, her husband Sergey, and their five children rose out of my desire to be a doer and not just a listener,” shared Maria, one of our School Without Walls (SWW) students in Russia. “After realizing that there is a great need for evangelism in my community, I started praying that God would provide opportunities for me to share the gospel. And one evening, He moved me to start serving a family in my area. “The next day, I shared this revelation with my fiancé, Rustam, and together we visited the village of Sosnovo, where I had met Marina and her family while distributing Gifts of Hope during the Christmas season. Marina told us that her family was facing very difficult conditions, as they had been living without electricity for two weeks. They had fallen behind on their payments, so their electricity was shut off, and even after…
Mission in Profession: A Young Doctor’s Testimony
“I know that God had a plan for me before I was even born,” shares Naira, a School Without Walls student from Armenia. “My family was very poor when my mother found out she was pregnant with me, so they advised her to terminate her pregnancy. But God had a different plan, and my mother decided to keep me. I know that my birth was God’s will, and I have seen Him work in every stage of my life. I could see His hand in my admission to medical school and my decision to become a doctor. “Difficult life circumstances often make us feel distant from God. Unfortunately, I experienced this in my own life, and I turned away from my faith for a few years. When I wasn’t walking with the Lord, Aram, the local School Without Walls coordinator, invited my sister and I to a youth camp, which…
Regina’s Story: Caring for Young Cancer Patients
Looking back, Regina can see clearly that God was working for many years to reach both her and her husband with the Good News. In 2003 both Regina and her husband gained new coworkers in their workplaces that were evangelical Christians. Regina was a teacher at a vocational school and her husband worked in construction. Her husband’s coworker invited him to church, and Regina decided to go with him. There, they discovered people who were full of life and joy. Fascinated, they continued attending church services and Christian events, and in 2004 they both made the decision to repent and dedicate their lives to Jesus. Since then Regina and her husband have been growing in faith and serving in the church. Her husband is a worship leader and deacon. They also have three small children, which until recently had prevented them from pursuing a Christian education. However, when Mission Eurasia’s…