Built on faith

Phil Worthington reflects on a mission trip that took Elim’s Ministers in Training to Estonia, and well beyond their comfort zones.

The Ministers in Training (MIT) programme is about developing competent and experienced ministers. Over three years, MITs build a portfolio of experiences that demonstrate learning and growth in eight competencies essential for ministry. One of these is Mission and Evangelism, but not every church has the capacity to offer its MITs overseas mission experience.

As Ministry Pathways Coordinator, part of my role is to facilitate training. So we felt it would be important to create an annual mission trip, giving every MIT the opportunity to step out of their comfort zone, gain valuable experience and build relationships with fellow MITs.

For our trip, we visited Alan and Alice Osborne, Elim missionaries in Estonia, who also lead missions for EKNK, the Estonian Pentecostal Church. Despite Alan’s excellent preparation, we knew that on mission you have to expect the unexpected! Every trip is different, with each country, team and set of circumstances creating a unique blend.

For some of the team, even the decision to go was a step of faith.

Joel Dennis said: “When I felt the Spirit prompting me to go on this trip I was hesitant and reluctant. As the youngest on the team and being in an unfamiliar place with unfamiliar people I felt out of my depth. However, the trip was an incredible experience.”

Andy Bolam said: “When the invitation came… regardless of hesitations and the unknown I stepped forward. The building of relationships during the time was excellent and supporting one another and watching out for the ebb and flow in different personalities was crucial.”

Estonia regained its independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. We might have expected endless cabbage soup and grey brutalist buildings, but in fact we found a modern country of great beauty, with a sense of looking forward.

That was also true of the churches. Shaped in part by its communist history, Estonia is the fourth most atheist country in the world, so you might imagine that we were there to help a struggling church. But while EKNK churches may be small, they are also vibrant and outward-looking.

Our first task was assisting with a Missions Conference as EKNK seeks to raise up and send missionaries globally. A giant map was laid out, and people stood on it to prayerfully seek where God might send them.

Kevin Armstrong said: “As the trip unfolded, I began to learn about and listen to the real Estonia: its history, its lack of faith, and the needs of the nation. I was genuinely glad to be there and to have the opportunity to see beyond my initial assumptions. To be in a country that is sending people out to share the gospel while also welcoming missionaries from elsewhere is a real testament to what God is doing.”

We preached and shared testimonies in churches to bless them, but we also received a greater blessing. The warm welcome both our team and our message of hope received really humbled us. And it wasn’t just in churches. We found people ready and willing to talk about Jesus.

We taught in a Christian school (one of only nine in Estonia), preached the gospel in an older people’s home, where for some residents it was their first time hearing it, and shared our faith with individuals walking through a town square. In every setting, we encountered people open to hearing the good news.

Martin Jacobs recalled ministering to a lady on the streets of Pärnu: “She walked away and within five minutes started shouting across the area where we were that all the pain had gone, her back was healed and she could now move and bend again.”

Yet the last part of the trip was the most memorable. We stayed for two days in the Village of Hope, an entire community in a forest built to rehabilitate people from serious addictions and share the hope of Jesus.

We talk about ministry being built on faith, but there it is literally true. When the vision came 25 years ago to build a village in the forest, it was obvious they needed roads, but there were no funds. In God’s grace, a local quarry donated 4,750 truckloads of stone to make it happen. Years later, there was a vision to open another site in Canada. God led them to acres of forest with a stream running through it, and so, in faith, they made a successful offer of just $1.

This foundation of faith runs through the whole village. There are houses where residents can stay for up to three years. They are not allowed phones, internet access or secular influences, but instead are provided with food, clothes and opportunities to develop employment skills in the lumberyard and on-site fire station. They are introduced to the gospel from day one, with many coming to faith.

Residents share meals, stories and saunas so hot that you’re grateful when you’re invited to jump into the freezing lake afterwards. But they also share duties, prayer and repentance. At one point, with the whole community gathered, individuals are invited to write on a blackboard the things they want to repent of. Then, in a symbolic act of grace, the slate is wiped clean.

The Village of Hope has a 67% success rate in freeing people from addiction, compared with 6% nationally. When the Estonian government asked how they could achieve the same without God, the answer was simple: you can’t.

Hearing those stories of faith, participating in the community and seeing the smiling faces of people whose lives had been transformed by hope was a hugely impactful experience for us all. It will form a lasting part of our ministries.

James Brittle said: “Being part of the mission to Estonia has left a lasting mark on me. Hearing people’s stories and seeing how God is changing lives reminded me that nobody is beyond His reach. Having experienced that in my own life, it was especially moving to see others finding hope in Him.

“The trip deepened my faith and renewed my confidence in the power of prayer. I’ve come home with a greater compassion for people and a desire to be bolder in sharing Jesus.”