My Brother Brian

In America a lot of people ask me if Russia is getting more difficult to evangelize. It is a very interesting question because I myself have never had any major trouble with evangelizing in Russia (other than the cost of getting a Visa every three months). But the real answer to this question is yes. I would say that the most difficult thing in evangelism in Russia is the peoples' hearts. Specifically, discipling men.

In chapter 16 of the book of Acts the Bible speaks about Paul and Silas being imprisoned. While they where in prison singing songs to the Lord the doors opened and their chains fell off. The jailer who realised that he would be put to death for allowing this, grabbed a sword to kill himself. But, Paul waiting patiently called out to the jailer,"Do yourself no harm for we are all here." After there was a call for a light the jailer trembling fell at Paul and Silas' feet, brought them out and said,"Sirs, what must I do to be saved?" So Paul and Silas exclaimed, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household."

Now we know that God requires a person's heart to be turned towards Him for salvation, but Paul and Silas did say that the jailer's household would be saved. Majority of the time, when the male figure allows his heart to be moved toward repentance by God and turns his life to the Lord, his family or household will follow. In fact, Tom Mercer from High Desert Church spoke about the statistics of this before and it was amazing how important the male role in the home is.

Growing up I was truly blessed to be able to have men in my life that loved and served our Lord Jesus Christ. One of those men was an amazing man that truly helped mold my life. I would go to him with questions about God, the Bible and many other topics concerning our Lord. In fact just recently we discussed end times, Revelations and Calvinism of all things. He was my brother-in-law, Brian Patrick Wilberding. His title didn't serve him. He was really my brother. I knew him for more than half of my life. He was so easy to talk to and I knew if I had questions about God I could go to him and he would be studied up. He was the kind of guy that would listen to books on CD in his car so that he could witness to people at his work. He had such a love for the scripture that he even studied books that did not make it into the Bible canon. Being as lazy as I am with reading, I would ask him all kinds of questions about these books. Maybe this is why God saw it fit to have Brian do our scripture reading in our wedding. Sometimes in my life I might have a friend or even a family member that I am close to, but something is missing because it is hard to talk with them about the most important thing in my life (God). I know it shouldn't be like this, but for my brother Brian and I, it was kind of the opposite. I knew that when I saw Brian, we were going to talk about "our first love." I loved our talks and I loved Brian with all my heart. That is why it pains me to say that last night I lost my brother Brian to cancer. Brian just turned 36 and has two boys-Zach 7 and Nate 4. Please pray for my sister Jennifer also. I thank and praise God for all the strength that He has given my sister through this time.

I thank those of you who have been so encouraging, uplifting and supportive. Thank all of you for praying for us too (we need it). With getting married, my brother going home to be with the Lord and moving to Russia, we have had so much opposition from the Enemy. However, God is so good to us and we are overwhelmed with His spiritual blessings.

I would like to encourage all of you to continue to live for the Lord. Although Russia needs men that WANT to lead, I fear that America will have men increasingly not CHOOSING to lead. If there is anything I can do to help any of you, please contact me through email. Also, our Visas are up in December so we should be back early December. I am leaving you with one of my favorite verses, a post from my sister Jennifer and a post from one of Brian's closest friends. Thank you,
Tyler

1Peter 3:7
Husbands, likewise , dwell with them(your wife) with understanding, giving honor to the wife as to the weaker vessel, and as being HEIRS TOGETHER of the grace of life, that YOUR PRAYERS MAY NOT BE HINDERED.
This is the NKJV. In the Amplified version it uses the word intelligent instead of understanding. It's as if Peter is saying the smart husbands give honor to their wives. So that their prayers aren't hindered.

Posted by Jenn:

Last night October 18th, my amazing husband Brian went to play guitar for Jesus. Brian's cousin, Julie, said that B is now in the Almighty's Praise Band.
Prior to kidney surgery, some family visited with Brian at City of Hope. On one of these visits, Brian told my sister-in-law "Whether cancer beats me or I beat it, either way, I win." My sis-in-law looked at him quizzically. B continued "Why have faith if you don't believe?"Brian has won!! He always did like to be successful!
God's Promise
Romans 8:28 "And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose." NKJV
Romans 8:28 & 29a "That's why we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good. God knew what He was doing from the very beginning." The Msg.
My God Rocks! and now He's rockin' with B!!!Jenn

Posted by Jeremy:
"Whether cancer beats me or I beat it, either way, I win." -Brian WilberdingLast night at 11:19pm, Brian Wilberding earned the victory of all victories as he made the incredible, yet mysterious transition into eternal life in the presence of Jesus Christ. As his wife, Jennifer, declared upon his final breath, "He is perfect now." I thank God for the assurance of hope and peace Brian had in Jesus.Thank you to all of you who expressed your love for Brian, Jennifer, Zac, and Nate. For the past several weeks they have been surrounded by those who love them and will continue to be as Jennifer and the boys move forward from here. Please continue to pray for them as they adjust to the next chapter of their lives. It may be difficult to find at the moment, but God's word promises in Romans 8:28, "...we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." It is an honor to have known Brian and be considered a friend. He will be missed by many. He fought the good fight. Now rest, my friend, and bask in the glory that is the love and presence of God through Jesus Christ. Until we meet again, my utmost congratulations on your incredible victory!!! I love you Brother.God is good...Jeremy

October Blessings

So, it is October 12th. Tyler and I have been here for 3 weeks now, and it has been about 2 weeks since our last posting. The days we are experiencing lately are continuing to remind us of how much the Lord is truly with us. We are ever learning not to be dependent on ourselves or in our own power to direct our lives, but on the truth that God is holding us in His hands, and that each moment presents some valuable opportunity given to us to love one another and to love Him.

The Autumn season is dominating Moscow. The city is becoming more and more dressed up in shades of orange and brown as the days pass. The weather has been beautiful, yet unpredictable. The sun still shines at some points throughout the day, but it seems like you can never tell when it is going to rain here or for how long. Because of this, I have learned that it is best just to carry a scarf or a sturdy piece of paper with you when traveling so that you can convieniently cover your head for a moment or two when the clouds decide to leak a little. Since I have been so use to perpetual sunshine-despite the season-I am really enjoying the change. Back home in California, I use to get really excited on the rare occasions when the clouds would come in and I had a chance to appreciate the rain for a time. So, to say the least, I am taking in the clouds and cold here with much love : )

Tyler and I have still not found a place to move to. We are still living at our pastor Dean's apartment. Thanks be to God-we have a safe place to stay right now. Dean is waiting for his 1 year visa to come through, so he is being detained in the States until the end of this month-as far as we know.

We have spent much of our time looking at different apartments. However, circumstances and finances have kept us from making any decision to move into another place. Tyler and I want to be sure that we know the Lord is directing our steps and blessing our decisions in everything we do here. So, we are still in suspension regarding finding a suitable place.

Also, I am still on my venture to find a job working as a dental hygienist. I have personally handed in about 5 or 6 resumes and have sent out approximately 37 email applications for jobs around Moscow. I was blessed to receive an invitation for an interview with one office last week. This was such encouraging news. The dentist I spoke with graduated from a dental school in Boston and has been practicing in Moscow for several years. She has a beautiful establishment. From what I observed, much of the practice is run very similar to American style dentistry-which is an added assurance for me! She said that she has no full time to offer right now, only in 6 months. However, she was going to try to get me at least 1 day a week working at the clinic in order to keep me around. We will have to pray about this for sure! I am hoping to hear from her sometime soon so I can find out if she will be able to provide patients for me. Tomorrow Tyler and I will go with our dear friend, and secretary of the church, Natasha, to apply to more local dental clinics.

Due to the absence of our pastor, Tyler was asked by him to direct the service last Sunday at church . It was such a blessing to have Tyler step up and lead the congregation. He gave such a beautiful and uplifting sermon. It was obvious that the Holy Spirit had blessed and guided his words. I want to share a few highlights from his message:

1. Love and Relationships

(John 15:13, Matthew 6:21)

• All of our relationships demand some sacrifice on our part if we want them to grow. If nothing is invested in our relationships, nothing will be gained.
• Each of us has a relationship with God, whether it be a good one or a poor one. Whether we acknowledge Him in our lives or not. Our reflections on the Lord and our attitude toward Him in our hearts is what can reveal our level of connection and relationship with Him.
• Our hearts belong to God, our Creator and Savior. Our relationship with Him should reflect the qualities of a true and valued relationship. Time and energy(pieces of ourselves) must be put into this for us to have or feel any closeness to the Lord.
• Consider how you can build a closer and deeper connection with God. Consider what personal sacrifice could be offered on your part-a sort of gift of love-given back to Him simply because you love and appreciate who He is.
• Investing our time in learning about God, and thinking often of Him, will move us to fall in love with Him, which in turn will move us to want to serve Him.

2. Why Are We Christians?

( Prov. 22:6, Luke 9:62, 1 John 4:18, Isaiah 1:10-17, Psalms 51:16-17, Job 35:5-8)

• Think about why you came to Christ. What was your motive?
• There are countless reasons people come to God. Among the most common are fear of going to Hell, convenience-grew up in the church, culture, desire to achieve a self-righteous feeling, wanting eternal paradise in Heaven, acknowledging that there is not other Truth, and understanding one's own insufficiency before God.
• Think about why you come to church. For religion? For the pastor? For the congregation?
• Nothing outside of Christ's salvation through His death on the cross will ever be able to provide a growing spiritual life within you.
• God desires our hearts, not empty rituals. Rituals do nothing to please the Lord if they stand alone. Worship is not from the body, in an external form, but has its source in the heart of everyman.
• The Lord does not need glory from us. He only desires worship from us in order to give us the chance to have a relationship with Him, to acknowledge Him, and to fall in love with Him.
• We are the ones who gain something when we surrender ourselves totally to the Lord. We receive the chance to grow spiritually and to experience God's best in our lives.

3. Israel and Us

(Isaiah 30:15)

• God is unchanging.
• His love for Israel is seen throughout the Holy Scripture.
• The book of Isaiah truly depicts God's heart for His people.
• Despite the unfaithfulness of Israel, God remained faithful and demonstrated His desire to have them return to Him.
• God loves us to no end and waits for us to respond to Him so that we might be blessed.

* If you are struggling with feeling empty or far from God, now is the time to consider what you are doing in your relationship with the Almighty. How much of yourself have you been investing? If you are seeing no fruit, find ways to devote yourself to spending time with the Lord. Now is the time for deep and enriching spiritual growth. Be encouraged! The Lord is always there to meet you.

" Draw near to God and He will draw near to you." (James 4:8)

...okay, I think I spent enough time on this blogspot for today. More to come some other day : )