DBI in the Churches

"How many books in the New Testament?"

- Silence -

"No one knows?"

Suddenly a voice from the silence, "27."

"Well, at least the Pastor knows... [chuckle chuckle]"

Although this is not life changing information it is part of the biblical information so many of us have picked up along the way through Sunday School, Bible clubs, etc. This is totally missing for this first generation of new Believers in Ukraine.

The truth of the matter is that with the majority of believers either new or quite young in their faith in our churches, the level of Biblical knowledge is very low. DBI has an awesome opportunity to help change that. Every Wednesday I have the opportunity to teach Colossians at Word of Life Church here in Dnepro. It is incredibly exciting to see these 8-10 believers coming every week to add to what the Lord is teaching them. We see this as an important opportunity to build into the Lords church here. There are a great many people that can't come to Bible School full time. This lends an opportunity to those people to also have some Biblical study classes.

We hope and pray that this ministry will continue to grow and spread to other churches in and around Ukraine. We look forward to being involved in such discipleship style courses more often in the future. Pray with us for the spiritual growth and maturation process among our young churches.

The "New" DBI

It is hard to believe that we are already four weeks into the semester [five if you count the orientation week]. So much is new and exciting. It looks to be shaping up into an excellent year.

There are some significant differences this year over the past years here at DBI [Dnepropetrovsk Bible Institute]. The first major difference is that we are in a place of our own. It is quite small and cozy [or should I say squishy :)], but adequate for now. With one of the mission families leaving the field, we were able to take up temporary residence in the mission owned home that they lived in. It has shaped up very nice and is conducive to good study. It also enables us to set the surrounding atmosphere. There is a much greater air of freedom and openness as we study God's Word.

The second major difference is that enrollment is down significantly over the past several years. Bible Schools all over Ukraine are faced with the same trend. Even large Christian Schools and Universities are faces with dramatically declining enrollment. Much of this is due to increased opportunities for work. While this in itself is a good thing [more work being available] it is reducing the amount of students willing to take two or more years of Biblical Studies. Another reason is the "backlog" of students is now caught up. When the Iron Curtain came down Bible Schools sprang up all over Ukraine seeking to train the pastors who had no training. This need has primarily been filled. All this goes together to create a situation where there are fewer and fewer students for the schools that remain open.

Praise the Lord that He is still working at DBI and is still providing students. We have four returning students this year and two new students. We were reminded recently of the song, "Little is much when God is in it..." and God is definitely still in DBI. He continues to touch the hearts and daily lives of our students, staff and faculty, alike. He has given no indication that His plans for DBI will change in the near future. We already have three or four prospective students for next fall and so continue to look for Him to provide all that is needed for His work here.

Thanks for your continued interest and prayer on our behalf and for DBI.