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Grand Junction Church of Christ
2893 Patterson Road
Grand Junction, Colorado 81506 970-245-4210
My trips to Russia began in November of 1992 when I went with a group of 7 others to begin a church in Yekaterinburg. Yekaterinburg is a city of almost 2 million people located 1,000 miles due east of Moscow in the Ural Mountain area. There were 52 baptisms on this first trip with many to follow on my 14 subsequent trips until the present time. The initial receptivity to Christians has given way to general apathy among the populace as a whole where we have been going.
However, over the years these first generation Christians have reached out to their friends, family and neighbors. I go back annually to help them build up their faith and share their faith with others.
A church was also started in Degtarysk, a small town of about 15,000 about 40 miles west of Yekaterinburg. We conduct a Vacation Bible School here annually with anywhere from 40 to 100 children attending. We also conduct evening Bible lectures for the church and the community.
In addition American Christians have sent a lot of money with me to distribute to poor families in the church and help the many children in orphanages there.
There is an American family working with these churches who lives in Yekaterinburg and also a Russian preacher and his family. We pray that God will continue to bless this work and these fine people of faith.
John Cooper