Minsk, Belarus - Friday, March 6, 2009 – 7:52am local time
It’s so good to be back in Minsk again. It would be even better if I had clean clothes to wear! Unfortunately, my luggage didn’t arrive with me from the States, so I’m now wearing the same clothes for the third day. Yeah. Our very first flight from Norfolk to DC was delayed by more than 90 minutes on Wednesday. That necessitated a mad dash across two terminals in Dulles to make the flight to Frankfurt. They literally closed the plane door behind the two of us and off we went before we even got good and strapped in our seats. As you might guess, however, our luggage decided to amble across the tarmac and didn’t make the flight. We got to Frankfurt, ready to transfer our bags to our Minsk flight (no straight check-through this time), only to find that they weren’t there. Jim, my traveling partner and I, had a sneaking suspicion that would be case. It was only that much more frustrating to find it true. Our first shot at the bags arriving would be today on the 1:20pm flight into Minsk from Frankfurt. The great Lufthansa baggage tracing website has shown nothing so far, though, so we are a little anxious. Yet another reason to pray for this trip!
In some ways, I find that I’m struggling with things to write about this morning. It is so exciting to be here again and to have the opportunity to minister and share with these dear brothers. Yet, our relationships have grown so close with the Belarusians that they really are extended family to me now. And what do you write about family?! One doesn’t really blog about family and their everyday lives, do they? We’ve settled into a routine in Belarus now and our work is building upon prior trips, so there is not so much “new” to talk about. There is no way, however, that I can adequately express all that is happening here and what a great thing that God is doing in these people. It is an incredible privilege to be called to this work and to be able to travel here to teach His principles on a foundational level. You can feel a new tension here this year. The economic crisis is affecting things greatly in Eastern Europe, and Belarus has not been immune. The tension, though, is not just that. There is a spiritual tension here in the sense that something huge is about to break out. The believers here know they are on the edge of a great revival and new move of God. I sense that they feel all of the preparation they’ve put into being ready to reform society when the time comes is about to come to fruition. Things are moving here. Persecution remains great; the government is still oppressive; there is little true liberty, and Christian reformation of society is still but a vision with no legs. At the same time, though, the time is coming soon. It’s palpable.
So, there is not much to write so far today about details and new sites seen, but there is much happening. We attended a praise and prayer service last night, and the strand through all the music and words spoken was an encouragement to the believers to “thrive, not just survive.” As believers, we need not fear the churnings on the present day. As Psalm 46 says, nations are in an uproar, but we can rest on the Lord. Jesus said, “…take heart, for I have overcome the world!” Now is the time for Christians to demonstrate the love and great plan of God for mankind!
More to come.
Scott
From: Scott B. Walter [mailto:scottbwalter@gmail.com]
Sent: Wednesday, March 04, 2009 5:57 PM
To: 'scottbwalter@gmail.com'
Subject: It's that time again...
Virginia Beach, VA – Wednesday, March 4, 2009 – 10:31am local time
Hard as it is to believe, I am preparing to head for the airport in a couple of hours to leave for Belarus once again! It seems like just a few weeks ago that I returned from my fall trip. I’m excited because our teams will be traveling to Belarus twice this year, once in the spring and once in the fall. That means we’ll be able to do twice the amount of teaching as we have previously, and we’ll able to take two professors with us with different perspectives and specialties in biblical worldview topics. A team will also travel to Belarus this summer to help with practical things like repairing a house and meeting place for our Belarusian friends, talk about Christian education and its practical implementation, and discuss effective pro-life ministry. I won’t be traveling in the summer as we’re expecting Wee Little Walter Number Four around that time, but it looks to be a great year ahead for our International Reformation ministry.
I am very encouraged and blessed by the outpouring of support I’ve received from you and others. My support funds have poured in. I have enough for this spring trip and am on my way toward my goal for the fall already. In addition, so many of you have asked about the trip and its preparation and assured me of your prayers. That is both humbling and encouraging. What a blessing you are!
All my bags are packed, and my stuff is ready. I’ll be flying today from Norfolk to DC and then on to Frankfurt, Germany, to connect to Minsk. The forecast in Minsk calls for highs around freezing with snow each day while we’re there. Interesting! As always, I’ll do my very best to post updates each day.
Please be praying for my family while I’m away. This is a short trip compared to previous years, but it’s still difficult for Karen. Pray for her peace and good rest. I’ll be presenting a session on the current global economic crisis as a part of our seminars. As hard as the economic downturn has been for us here in the States, it is even more pronounced in other parts of the world and especially Eastern Europe. I anticipate some difficult questions, and I covet prayers for wisdom, clear thoughts, and clear communication. A great opportunity is here to talk about God’s economy and the biblical ideals for economics, but our world is so complex and the problems so deep that it can be confusing. Please pray that God will make Himself known through me and that I can bring the truth while also being encouraging to them.
I’ll talk to you from Minsk! More to come.
Scott
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