By Maylou Holladay

Brant and I have been on many mission trips, but one of the most exciting ones for me was this trip to Oryol, Russia, and on to Siberia, because my “big brother” Dan was able to accompany us for his first trip to a mission field. His life had been very busy as a businessman in Christian publishing and as president of Standard Publishing and Berean Christian Bookstores, and yet he had not been able to visit a mission field. God so graciously answered my prayer and we took Dan for his first mission trip with us half-way around the world to pass out Bibles!

By Dan Miles

Leaving Chicago on my first foreign mission trip…

I had feelings of excitement, anxiousness, and adventure as we headed for Siberia. The first stop was London, where we spent the night to adjust a bit to the time changes.

Then it was from London to Moscow and an overnight train ride south 250 miles to Oryol. This was not the Zephyr Limited, but we arrived safely at 4:30 AM (8 time zones from home), a bit sleepy but none the worse for wear.

My first "missionary" experience was handing out Bibles at a bus stop. At first I was a bit apprehensive, with thoughts of police harassment or even arrest, but Russia was surprisingly "free" of intimidation. The people were open to receiving the Bibles and we went through two big cases in a relatively short time.

The train trip back to Moscow was uneventful, and then it was on to an Aeroflot plane for the over-night trip to Siberia (thirteen time zones from our last stop in America – Chicago).

My expectations were all wrong about Siberia. I thought of snow banks, below zero temperatures and a generally hostile climate. In fact, I never put on my "long-johns" and left my parka in the relatively modern hotel room. The city, Krasnoyarsk, turned out to be a Boom-Town where real estate speculators are becoming millionaires every day. Our missionaries have the challenge of not only competing with the State Church, but also the temptations of a booming secular society that has no time for God. My impression is that the most favorable time to reach this part of Russia will never be greater or harder than it is today. God has given this mission team one of the greatest opportunities in the history of missions work.

We visited several back-country villages in Siberia. The village scene was right out of “Fiddler on the Roof,” like stepping back in time. I could almost see Tevye walking down the muddy village street. Here we were able to participate in a church service in a house. Attending were adults as well as a number of teenagers. Again some great opportunities to reach hungry hearts.

We were also able to touch base with missionaries from Romania and from western Russia who respectively work with orphans and Muslim men whose lives are being impacted with the Word of God.

Returning home, crossing thirteen time zones, was exhausting, but the memories I have of how God is now working in the former Soviet Union gives me the desire to pray more diligently for the men and women on the front line of this exciting mission work.