Dear Family & Friends,
The holidays are upon us! All around us celebrations are taking place. What a joyous time of the year! Recently at Union of Christians Church we celebrated Thanksgiving. This was a tradition that we started last year. Soon Christmas will be here, and then New Year, and then Russian Orthodox Christmas, and then the celebration of the Old New Year!
Holidays are always such a special time. A time when we reflect on our lives, on the many blessings that the Lord has given, what He has brought us through, where He has taken us; and to remember family, friends and loved ones - truly, treasured gifts from the Lord.
Of course, YOU have been in our thoughts lately. We have been fondly thinking about you and reflecting on the experiences that we have shared together - how the Lord brought us together and caused our paths to meet. Our personal lives, as well as the ministry of Union of Christians Church are richer because YOU have been a part of it.
2011 will be a Jubilee year for our church, Union of Christians. We will celebrate 20 years of ministry! For us, this is a significant spiritual moment. This may not seem noteworthy for the history of the Church, but it’s a whole 1% of 2,000 years! Therefore, it is our desire to celebrate this momentous event not just one day, but throughout the year. It is our vision to hold special celebratory services every month, complete with all the necessities for a good party: good friends, good food, good fellowship – sharing a good time with an evangelistic twist.
The preaching of the apostles was a testimony of what they had experienced and witnessed. That is the most effective communication of the Gospel. At these celebratory meetings we want to dig through the archives and resurrect the story of Union of Christians, share different experiences from the history of the church and how God brought us through each situation; share about how God brought people, even from different countries, to us to assist us; and we'd like to bring these people together to testify and share.
Of course, no birthday celebration is complete without birthday wishes, congratulations, and gifts. Our birthday wish is to complete the ground floor on the main building at Faith Farm. Each month at our celebratory services we will be giving all our guests - family, friends, members of Unions of Christians - the opportunity to give special gifts and offerings toward the materials and work, to help make our wish come true. The ministry of Faith Farm is a gift that will keep on giving to others for years to come. If you’d like to join us in this, we welcome your participation.
We expect this to be a very special time and we would like to invite all our brothers and sisters in Christ, as well as unbelievers, to be part of this birthday celebration. Of course, we want to especially invite YOU to come and share our joy. We praise our Father for all of you, for your love, care, and support. This is YOUR celebration too. So please come and be our guests of honor! We will let you know the schedule of events, so that you can plan your schedules accordingly. Be blessed and have a joyous Christmas and New Year!
With love,
Dmitri and Anya Poliakoff
Pastors, Union of Christians Church, St. Petersburg, Russia