For seventy-five years, communism held a stifling grip on Russia. In this atheistic period, others could not tell their children about God and His great love without facing severe consequences. But while God did not have a place in the hearts of the new generations, He was not entirely forgotten.
After communism’s fall, Campus Crusade for Christ held a four-day teachers’ conference in Samara, Russia. More than 300 teachers learned how to teach a biblically based morals and ethics curriculum.
In one of the main conference sessions, Nancy, a Campus Crusade for Christ staff member, listened with earphones to the translation of a Russian speaker. Her attention was drawn to a nearby aisle. An elderly woman slowly made her way into the auditorium and sat down.
The Russian speaker finished. Then an American speaker began. Nancy realized this elderly woman couldn’t understand his message. She took her earphones and placed them on the woman so she could hear the Russian translation.
Immediately, the woman began to weep and thank Nancy profusely. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she listened to the message. Nancy asked the woman, Anastasia, why she was so moved to tears. Anastasia replied, “This is the answer to my fifty years of prayer.”
My heart is so moved by a woman of God who never gave up, who prayed for half a century for her country to hear the message of God’s love. I am so thankful God allowed her to see His answer to her prayers.
The Russian officials didn’t want us to have a conference in Samara, a once-closed military city. But the prayers of one woman moved the hand of God, who in turn moved in the hearts of city officials to invite the conference to Samara. Today, many of the teachers are teaching hundreds of students about the God of the Bible.
“Yet give attention to your servant’s prayer and his plear for mercy, O Lord my God. Hear the cry and the prayer that your servant is praying in your presence this day.” -1 Kings 8:28
By Vonette Bright
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