In his Templeton Award Address in 1983, Alexander Solzhenitsyn explained that the plight of the Soviet Union was not because of poor leadership or bad economics but because "Men have forgotten God; that's why all this has happened." In 1991 the iron curtain fell, and those in the former Soviet Union began to awaken to God. I have seen God's work in Russia preserving Christians through the terrible years of communism and now raising up new believers in a new openness to the message of Christ. God has given me a heart for the Russian people, that I might go there to help build God's church in this critical time of new growth. After traveling to Russia twice and completing seminary, I am now ready to respond to God's call.
I have been appointed by CBInternational (CBI) as a missionary to work in the Russian speaking world in church leadership development. CBI is an experienced organization that has been working in Eastern Europe since 1981. I have found it to be sound theologically, innovative methodologically, and dedicated to caring for and developing its workers.
My goal is to help teach and develop Russian church leadership. Then, these leaders can strengthen the church and go to the unreached areas of the former Soviet Union. It is my vision to help fulfill Christ's commission in the Russian speaking world, especially the last part which focuses on "...teaching them to obey everything I (Christ) have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, even to the end of the age" (Matthew 28:20). I love this verse because it both talks about the need to teach (which I love) as well as Christ's presence with me to the end (which I need).
After graduating from Princeton in 1993, I went on my first missions trip to Izhevsk, Russia. There, I worked at the Russian-American Christian Professionals Institute as a teacher of English and basic computer skills. On that trip, I both learned to love the Russian people and confirmed my love for teaching.
I then returned to the U.S. and began working for Andersen Consulting in northern New Jersey. I also got involved in Millington Baptist Church, and did some teaching in both adult and children's Sunday school. After a couple of years working for Andersen, I began praying about what to do next. On a retreat in southern California (near where I was then working), God answered my prayer for guidance and "released" me from my job to go to seminary. I wanted to teach more than English and computers, so God led me to seminary to learn about teaching the Bible.
In 1997 after working one more year for Andersen to save money, I headed to Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Deerfield, Illinois. At Trinity, I grew not only in head knowledge, but in heart as well. I got involved with an inner city church called Uptown Baptist which expanded my vision for ministry and my heart for prayer. I was also a part of Trinity's student government for two years (as president the last year), and learned more about leadership and developing leaders.
And through all this, Russia stayed on my mind! I did my internship for Trinity in Vladivostok, Russia through CBI in the summer of 1998. In Vladivostok, I reaffirmed my interest in Russia and saw the tremendous need for more trained Russian Christian leadership. After returning to school, I spent four months working with Friends of Israel, visiting and sharing the gospel with Russian Jewish people.
Now having graduated with a Masters of Divinity in May 1999, I've moved back to northern New Jersey to begin support discovery. In answer to prayer, things went very well in my appointment with CBI, and I've found a great place to live.
Yes, the "Russian speaking world" is a little vague. The reason for the vagueness is that CBI's team is still forming and that many parts of the Russian speaking world are a bit unstable, so I need to be flexible! I'll probably first go to either Donetsk, Ukraine, or to one of a couple of cities in Russia. My first term of four years will include two years devoted to language learning (I need to learn Russian well if I expect to teach in it!) and two years getting involved in various Russian ministries. From there, I may move on to other locations to help train Russian church leaders.
For the long-term, I will most likely join "Project 250." This is an exciting plan that seeks to establish 250 satellite training centers throughout the former Soviet Union to train Russian pastors, evangelists, and church planters. This is a cooperative effort between several missions organizations and Russian churches, and has the goal of planting one church for every 5000 people throughout the former Soviet Union by the year 2020. This will take more than 60,000 church planters!
Project 250 is an extremely important undertaking. Several countries of the former Soviet Union already have restrictive laws against certain religions, and it is unclear how long the doors will remain open to the gospel, especially for outside missionaries. Therefore, it is vital that the Russian church is equipped with strong leadership so that the message of Christ can continue to be proclaimed.
I can only go to the Russian speaking world with a team behind me! I need both prayer and financial partners in order to fulfill this vision of equipping Russian church leaders to reach their own people. CBI expects its missionaries to develop their own network of support through partnerships with churches and individuals. Therefore, I would love to talk with you sometime about my future ministry to see if you would be interested in partnering with me. If you're already interested, you can simply send me an e-mail or contact CBI.
Thank you so much for considering this ministry. If you'd like more information, please contact me or CBI.
In His service,
John White