Russian churches hope to reach 50,000 for Christ

By December 15, 2011

Russia (MNN) — Christians are partnering together to reach kids with the Gospel. The interesting thing is: these believers may not ever meet each other. Why? They're separated by thousands of miles. Today, Christians in the West will be helping Christians in the former Soviet Union reach kids with hope — Project Hope Christmas boxes.

Board Member with Russian Ministries Wayne Shepherd, "A lot of these kids are orphans, and many of them are street children. These children are identified by local churches in the former Soviet Union. They want to reach out and minister to these kids."

When asked how many kids Russian Ministries hopes to help, Shepherd says, "It's almost unlimited. There are thousands of kids who are in need right now, and I think we're hoping to do 50,000 or more if we can. It depends on what the churches can do and what we can equip them to do."

While you may not be able to go to the region and help, you can empower the church with $25. "We're providing the funds so that the churches can purchase what they feel — they're so close to these kids. They minister to these kids. They know what they need. They can purchase what goes into these boxes. And, of course, a children's Bible is the one thing that's going into every box."

The gift of a Bible doesn't end at the child. "Children love having their own copy of the Bible or children's New Testament. They also take it home,and mom and dad are exposed as well. This is a tangible way to help."

While Christmas is 10 days away, you actually have even more time for Project Hope because Russian Christmas is celebrated on December 7. "It does give us an extra couple of weeks to get our act together and make these boxes possible for these kids. So, any gift given now through Christmas and beyond will help a great deal for Project Hope."

Russian Ministries is also doing something new this year, with Shepherd's help. "Part of my contribution this year was to put together a radio special with Sergey Rakhuba, President of Russian Ministries, and get the word out about Project Hope. Many radio stations are actually donating their time to provide this radio special so their listeners can learn about Project Hope, and I hope many more will in the next several days."

If you'd like additional information or would like to help, click here.

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