So here we are at the last chapter of my faith adventures in Ukraine. I hope the many woeful tales of mechanical problems and break-downs hasn’t bored you too much - you can't say I didn't warn you :-)

If you had expected more religion and theology, I am sorry to disappoint. It seems the older I get the less dogmatic I become.

If you take a look at my website you see the many different articles and postings from all kinds of people and sources. Some contradict each other and some supplement each other, but the reason I chose to post them is because I found something valid in all of them.

However when all is said and done, the way we live speaks louder than what we say. After all, the early followers were called "the way.” I have started to grow tired of arguing about interpretations and doctrines. I have been reading my bible for almost 50 years now and it's still a source of amazement and wonder, but it didn't speak to me until I had a personal encounter with Jesus. There is enough magic and mystery in that book, so none of us can claim to know what it all means.

It's mostly a waste of energy when denominations fight and criticize each other. Evangelicals could learn a lot from the Baptists, and the Baptists could use some of the gifts of the Spirit, and Catholics and Orthodox all contribute to the faith. They are all branches on the same tree as long as Jesus is the root, so why not just accept that each have their special calling and appeal.

You could put it this way, if God is the composer of a symphony then the different flavors of Christians, whether they are the intellectual or doctrinal or emotional kind, can be viewed as different sections of the orchestra. The woodwinds, brass, percussion, and strings section. They all take their turn in the play, they are all part of the orchestra and if one part is missing the performance would be incomplete. As St. Paul so aptly put it in 1Cor.12:4-18 comparing the believers to a body with different members that are meant to work together in harmony.

They say Love is a Many-Splendored thing, and so are people! Each person is a unique individual with gifts and talents and faults and frailties, and it's up to us to make the best of what we have been given.

I've heard it said that life is a voyage where you have no control over the wind or the weather, nor of the vessel you've been given to travel in, but much can be done in the handling of the rudder and the managing of the sails, and I might add, as far as I am concerned, it gets a whole lot better when I have Jesus with me at the helm.

I am not saying that theology cannot be helpful at times. I just tried my best to follow Jesus, and I think I found God on the way. You might say I did my theology on the run - since I am more of a down to earth practical kind of fellow - the "hands-on" experience worked for me. It seemed more real than reading about it in a book.

I do have my convictions, like Jesus is the door to the Kingdom. He is my best friend who speaks to me (when I stop long enough to listen!) The rest is details. Or as the New York taxi driver said to N.T. Wright, "If Jesus rose from the dead then all the rest is rock and roll."

In the US there's a debate going on between liberal and fundamentalist Christians, "is the bible the inerrant and inspired word of God - or not?" Personally I believe that Jesus is the Word of God! (John 1:14) The Old Testament was written by believers in the God of Abraham, and they were sometimes inspired and anointed by God's spirit, other times not so much. But time and again they were pointing to the coming Messiah.

In any case, as I said, it was not until I met Jesus personally that the written word was able to speak to my heart, and from there I learned to listen to the living word - Jesus, an ever present friend and treasure - a pearl of great price ~ Mat.13:45-46.

I have been interested in Eschatology - the predictions in the bible about the Endtime, when it was promised that Jesus would return. It is mind-bending to see the many "signs of the times" that are being fulfilled. Those things could happen in our lifetime, or it could be far into the future. There are supposed to be specific events to look for that hasn't happened yet, so at this point I am not going to speculate on when it might happen.

I have come to the conclusion that it's prudent to keep interpretations and theories and whatnot at arms length, because I believe it's a bit presumptous to say we understand all of these things for sure - and do we really need to know everything right now?

The last year in Ukraine the Lord had given me a picture of a field being ploughed. There were only a few more furrows left to plough. I took that as a hints that perhaps our time in Ukraine was coming towards an end.

The young folks, who had stuck with us for the long haul, had grown into a capable team in their own right. In fact I had to realize that it was most likely to their benefit if I stepped out of the way. It was now their turn!

The team now had their own vehicle - as well as their own car troubles :-) and they were perfectly able and capable of handling things without the old dude.

I told you I turned 50 while in Dnipro, and how the tough living conditions had taken its toll on my health, so it became time for me to step out of the picture.

We went from UA to UK where we lend a helping hand for ten years, but that’s another story.

I have lost contact with some of the folks in Ukraine. Some have passed on to their reward. Some we are still in touch with. I am grateful for all the things I learned there. I also made plenty of mistakes, but I suppose that's how we learn and grow.

In hindsight I think that I often fell into the trap of living "for" God - trying to earn merits by my "good works" - rather that simply living "with" God and letting Jesus do the work. For folks as self-reliant and bull-dozing as me that will likely take a lifetime to learn.

Yes, Ukraine may have been the toughest field I have encountered so far, mostly because of the bleak and depressive atmosphere - and as I pointed out in the introduction, I've been around and had some pretty hairy experiences in different places. - On the other hand Ukraine was a great opportunity to experience "living by faith." (Heb.10:38) When you are out there on a limb, you are utterly dependent upon God, you can feel He is there holding your hand and carrying you across the chasm in spite of everything.

I shall always treasure the experiences we had in that fruitful field, at that opportune moment in time, when the Lord led us to go.

Postscript ~ Why I moved on   ( Or...back to Table of Contents )