New Russian Love Stories
July 31, 2021
What if global nations who oppose the gospel shut down Christian radio in their countries? Yes, it happens.
Recently, THRU the BIBLE president Gregg Harris interviewed Victor Akhterov, Director of Russian ministries with Far East Broadcasting Company, on a Zoom call.
Here’s Victor’s story of what they did when the Russian government shut down the Christian stations.
“A few years ago, our Russian team decided that in light of this possibility we would slowly switch from a radio broadcast to digital in Russia. Then the next year, without warning, the government shut down our stations. We knew what to do, but it was a difficult time. I am forever grateful for THRU the BIBLE sticking with us, telling us, ‘Let's go do this together. Let's use new tools to explore a bit, too.’
“You gave us some breathing time and, today, praise the Lord, we have at least 10 million listeners a month via our new digital outlets. We never had this many listeners before. It is amazing what God is doing, drawing together new audiences and old. We work hard, yes, but it’s obvious that the Lord’s hand is on this. His plan is so much better than ours. So now we try to adjust our plans to His, and it is wonderful to see how many souls are receiving the Word of God. We are depending on God, knowing the Word will do its work.”
We know you like stories of God’s impact. Here is a fresh one from Siberia. Of course Covid-19 has ravaged here, too.
We received this message from a young doctor, who serves in an ambulance. Her crew travels from place to place, serving people. Part of her job is deciding if a patient should be taken to the hospital. She says to us,
“I find myself playing God, deciding who gets treatment and who doesn’t. It’s such a tremendous pressure. To alleviate the stress, I started listening to your programs. I never was interested in the Bible. I am not an atheist, I just didn’t care. I mean, who wants to read the Bible? But this weight upon our shoulders opened a willingness in me.
“Without even kind of talking about it, I put on your broadcast in the ambulance. As we hear the Bible being explained to us, we travel between patients. Sometimes we catch ourselves crying together without speaking much to each other. Sometimes we smile. Sometimes we are hopeful. Sometimes we feel God is in the ambulance, present with us.
“Through these months we have changed. We are not normal Russians anymore. I find myself praying to Jesus every morning, every evening, and at work as we go to patients. Sometimes I can see what kind of work God is doing in the hearts of my colleagues, of the paramedics, of the driver, in my heart. This is just amazing.”