By BosNewsLife News Center
MOSCOW/BUDAPEST (BosNewsLife)– Christian missionaries say they have stepped up efforts to spread the “Gospel pf peace and hope” in Russia’s volatile North Caucasus after revelations that the suspected Boston Marathon bombers arrived from that region.
Russian Ministries, a major mission group, said the apparent acts of terrorism by the Tsarnaev brothers underscored that “radical Islam is making every possible effort to capture the hearts and minds of the younger generation.”
Last week the U.S. Embassy in Moscow said it has sent a team to Dagestan, a province in southern Russia where the parents of Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev are staying.
Information from the parents is seen as crucial in the investigation. The Tsarnaev brothers are accused of setting off the bombs on April 15 that killed three people and wounded more than 180 others.
Yet, “The gospel continues to go forth in the Northern Caucasus, changing lives and helping to raise a Next Generation of peacemakers, rather than terrorists,” Russian Ministries said.
BIBLE CAMPS
The group plans to sponsor summer Bible camps, which it calls “one of its most effective, life-changing ministries for children and youth in the Northern Caucasus” and throughout the former Soviet Union and Eurasia.
“At camp, children have the opportunity to discover God’s love through Jesus, learn from His Word, and grow in their faith.” In addition to the summer Bible camps, student teams of its “School Without Walls” programs try to encourage youngsters to be involved in evangelistic activities it said.
The activities include, “Distributing spring and winter gifts and evangelistic programs for children and families that tell the story of Jesus” as well as “Presenting Christian puppet shows to Muslim villages by young people,” the group explained.
Additionally, youngsters and other missionaries are involved in “Distributing humanitarian aid, including food, shoes and clothing for people displaced or impoverished by war” in the troubled area.
That are also involved in “Starting Bible studies and churches in unchurched communities” and “Teaching youth about the dangers of drug abuse, promiscuity, HIV/AIDS and how Christ offers hope.”
CHRISTIAN COUNSELING
Russian Ministries told BosNewsLife that it is also providing “Christian counseling in the midst of war and terrorism; Reaching out to orphans and abandoned children.”
The group has also published a special New Testament for those from a Muslim background called ‘The Message of Glory’ which contains the testimonies of former Muslims who it said “have embraced Christ as their Savior.”
Russian Ministries said it has urged its supporters to pray for the missionaries and people of the Northern Caucasus, “whether they still live in the region or have immigrated to other countries including the United States.”
The group claims prayers are crucial “so that they would come to faith in Jesus Christ and begin to grow in their faith with the help of God.”
Additionally, “Pray that God would bring repentance, revival and reconciliation to this part of the world, and that it might flow to people who live in other countries, but who call this region their ancestral home,” the group said in a statement obtained by BosNewsLife.
(BosNewsLife, the first truly independent news agency covering persecuted Christians, is ‘Breaking the News for Compassionate Professionals’ since 2004).
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