Church Planters Retreat in Southern Russia

The purpose of this meeting was to inspire, support and mentor pastors who have taken on a very important but difficult ministry. The program included seminars, training, a prayer walk, rest and a lot of good communication, where pastors were able to share their experiences openly and the challenges they face on their ministry path.

The main speakers of the retreat were: Yevgeny Kokora (Novorossiysk),  who spoke about the phenomenon of “Toxic leadership” and  Pavel Tokarchuk (Moscow), who raised a very important topic for leaders “The Art of Servant Recovery.” At the end of the meeting, everyone received books on leadership as a gift for further development.

Feedback from participants:

Valery (church planter in Krasnodar)                                                                                

The first thing that impressed and encouraged me in this meeting is that the Lord continues to work to expand His Kingdom, and I am not alone! The Lord has many faithful, daring, innovative minded servants in preaching the gospel!  

Second, this was quality training from professionals, people whose experience of working in secular institutions and ministries in the church, for many years is associated with leadership and planning (for example: “Modern Leadership Trends” by Evgeny Kokora, Novorossiysk). This is a very valuable and practical resource that provides skills in building a mission team. In fact, you see, the church planting ministry is the front line in the spirit world. And each mistake can be tragic as a personal one for the leader or participant of the project, and maybe even for the local church from which the ministry team is formed.

And third, was the spiritual component. In the seminar "The Art of Ministering Restoration" (Pavel Tokarchuk, Moscow), I enjoyed several tasks related to physical health (planning time and staying in shape), and the issue of family relations (How to spend more time with children and wife). We will try to implement this in reality! I would like to express my gratitude to the organizers and teachers for a perfectly planned and beneficial time! Special thanks to Vladimir Zhilenkov, curator of the M4 project on planting new churches in Russia. 

Victor, (Church planter in Akhtyrsk - Krasnodar Territory)

“I liked the communication process, I felt we could all openly share our ministry struggles. Teachers brought to us quality material in the seminars; it is clear that much of what was said was experienced by the speakers themselves. Along with this, morning prayer and the prayer walk, created an atmosphere of trust and brotherly support. Time flew by quickly, we got to know our friends better and received encouragement for further service."

Mikhail (Church planter in Simferopol - Crimea)

“I enjoyed everything: the atmosphere, accommodations, meals, meeting new people, open dialogue, etc. I received helpful resources and experiences from other church planters. Our team was blessed to plant a new church in September 2020, so we are now in the early process of growing. Such meetings help to expand understanding of how to start a community and what mistakes are best avoided. I liked the seminar from Eurasia Mission, “The Art of the Restoration of the Minister”. This topic is now, in my opinion, as relevant as it used to be. Thanks to all the organizers and those who donated to help make this meeting happen.

We are grateful to everyone who prayed and participated financially so that such a meeting could take place. This is a very important step in supporting and developing leaders who are starting new churches.