Armenia (MNN) – Armenia recently served as a meeting point for teachers with the Slavic Gospel Association.
Eric Mock with the Slavic Gospel Association says, “Armenia was a central point for us as teachers from SGA-supported schools in Russia, Poland, Moldova, several countries in Central Asia, even as well as Israel, gathered together to mutually encourage each other, to strengthen one another, to teach one another.”
Mock says that rather than feeding that competitive spirit that can exist between different schools, the members of the conference were able to learn and grow together. They came together on their common goal of effectively training up more church leaders. SGA helped foster a time of learning and growth as well as solidifying basic Biblical foundations.
Training for Gospel Outreach in Difficult Places
After a week of intensive time in the Word for teachers, a second conference was held specifically focusing on pastors and church leaders in Armenia.
Of the 100 men who attended, 20 were pastors in Armenia. This training served not only to refresh their hearts in the Gospel but as an encouragement as they face the many pressures of living in an area often plagued with unrest.
(Image courtesy of SGA)
Mock says, “The tensions are fairly high in Armenia. They have always struggled to try to sort where their future is going to go. You have the war between Azerbaijan and Armenia that is always on the edge of reigniting. You have the pressure from Turkey. Then the southern border of Armenia is Iran. So they are in this sense, surrounded by a sea of those who would not want them here. So there’s always that tension. Yet in this constantly changing world for them, they are a group of faithful ministers, pastors, missionaries and lay leaders.”
This constant onslaught of outside pressures weighs on the Christians as they serve their congregations. So SGA’s goal is to point leaders back to Christ and serve them as they minister to the Church. “We love God’s Word,” Mock states. “We exalt God’s word, but we also love the Church. We’re not beside the Church or in the distance of the Church. We want to serve the Church that God has raised up. Then finally, God has raised up the Church to be His ambassadors of the gospel. So it is these churches that have been here for generations and generations who are faithfully taking the gospel.”
A Call for Prayer
The Church in Armenia can feel distant for Christians in the West. However, the Church must stand together, even across the world. Mock asks that people get involved by praying for leaders in Armenia and other parts of Asia.
(Image courtesy of SGA)
“Pray that the pastors would stay on task, that they would continue to be focused on the gospel – focused on bringing the gospel to their people. It’s easy to be overwhelmed with all the events, and some of the pastors express that they’re fearful that their sons are going to be dispatched back to the front lines and to the border to prepare for possible other hostilities that could come in the future. So there’s this constant tension. All of these things can serve to wear out pastors and ministry leaders. So ask them to pray, first of all, for the pastors to be focused and resolute in caring for their congregations and advancing the gospel. The second is we would pray for a balance and peace in Armenia.”
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Header Image courtesy of SGA.
