As promised, I would like to add a few closing thoughts and remarks to my blog. First, thanks to all of you who have faithfully read and dropped me lines on the site. Some of the comments really lifted me up when I was a bit down. I only hope that my comments were worthwhile reading. I have never considered myself a great writer. This is sort of sad since I very well may be teaching English by the end of the year.
Concerning my return, it has been difficult coming home. After an experience like this, it is hard to know where home is anymore. It is also hard to have to come home and face the hard decisions I have to make. Having been a student off and on for a long time, life as a none student is a lot to swallow, although I must say I am very ready to work. And then there is the hard decision to leave Dallas.
Concerning Russia in general, colloquially speaking, it is a cool place. The language barrier and cultural differences are at times annoying, especially Moscow in general, but I found that in many ways I like life over in that part of the world. I like the simplicity of life. Although Moscow is a bustling city of more than 15 million, I never felt the stress of life while there that I do here in America. I had no car (for those of you who don't know, I do not like driving.), I had few possessions, I did not always have access to a computer, food was cheaper, etc. These were the things that made life in Kazakstan great almost 6 years ago and still make life great in that part of the world today.
As far as the church is concerned in the former USSR, although there are more freedoms to worship there than before the collapse, and although there has been lots of missionary activity, there is still lots to be done and lots of folks that have no clue what Christianity really is and what it means. I would encourage all to pray for the church in this part of the world. Things are cushier, but still difficult, especially if you are a protestant pastor trying to open a church. The powers that be still resist the church due to old Soviet hang ups and Eastern "Orthodox" influences on the government and Eastern European society in general. One church that I went to for a bit moved 3 times over the course of 4 months and was expecting to move again when I left. They are currently meeting on Saturdays instead of Sundays due to the fact that they have to share a building with a couple of other churches who have first pick for Sunday service times. Needless to say, this change has reduced attendance by half due to schedule conflicts with many of the parishioners.
I don't know what more to say other than this. I don't know if this will be the end of my blog since I am interested in finding work over there for a little while, but that is in God's hands at the end of the day. So I am here for now and life in the wild wild east continues without me. Would you believe that it is a chore for me to re-adjust to life in the more stable West? Maybe moving so much all of my life makes it hard for me to plant my roots. I don't know.
Concerning my return, it has been difficult coming home. After an experience like this, it is hard to know where home is anymore. It is also hard to have to come home and face the hard decisions I have to make. Having been a student off and on for a long time, life as a none student is a lot to swallow, although I must say I am very ready to work. And then there is the hard decision to leave Dallas.
Concerning Russia in general, colloquially speaking, it is a cool place. The language barrier and cultural differences are at times annoying, especially Moscow in general, but I found that in many ways I like life over in that part of the world. I like the simplicity of life. Although Moscow is a bustling city of more than 15 million, I never felt the stress of life while there that I do here in America. I had no car (for those of you who don't know, I do not like driving.), I had few possessions, I did not always have access to a computer, food was cheaper, etc. These were the things that made life in Kazakstan great almost 6 years ago and still make life great in that part of the world today.
As far as the church is concerned in the former USSR, although there are more freedoms to worship there than before the collapse, and although there has been lots of missionary activity, there is still lots to be done and lots of folks that have no clue what Christianity really is and what it means. I would encourage all to pray for the church in this part of the world. Things are cushier, but still difficult, especially if you are a protestant pastor trying to open a church. The powers that be still resist the church due to old Soviet hang ups and Eastern "Orthodox" influences on the government and Eastern European society in general. One church that I went to for a bit moved 3 times over the course of 4 months and was expecting to move again when I left. They are currently meeting on Saturdays instead of Sundays due to the fact that they have to share a building with a couple of other churches who have first pick for Sunday service times. Needless to say, this change has reduced attendance by half due to schedule conflicts with many of the parishioners.
I don't know what more to say other than this. I don't know if this will be the end of my blog since I am interested in finding work over there for a little while, but that is in God's hands at the end of the day. So I am here for now and life in the wild wild east continues without me. Would you believe that it is a chore for me to re-adjust to life in the more stable West? Maybe moving so much all of my life makes it hard for me to plant my roots. I don't know.
posted by moskovki inastranets at 2:28 PM
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