MBC - Love Lift Ukraine

For years, I have been looking for a model that missions could be patterned after.  I think I found it.   For ten years now, the MBC (Minnesota Baptist Conference) has been using a "sister church" model that has had tremendous affects.  This sister-church partnership movement began ten years ago and has since expanded to other BGC Districts.   Presently there are 138 churches involved, with 69 in the United States partnering with 69 churches in Ukraine.

It all began when Paul and Linda Wicklund, members of Calvary Baptist Church in St. Paul, Minnesota had a vision for mission trip development.   Through contacts with Slavic Gospel Association a Sister Church program was set up.   In the spring of 1992 they, together with Truett, the District Executive Minister for the Minnesota Baptist Conference, and his wife, Jill, travelled to the Cherkassy region of Ukraine to visit the first sister church in Zolotonosha.    From that first sister church it has spread not only to the 69 sister church partnerships, but has now spread to other districts of the Baptist General Conference and starting next year the same model will applied in the Philippines.  

Out of all the ministry activities in Ukraine, probably the Adventure Day Camps for children are most responsible for growth in sister churches.    During this past year alone, the MBC worked with more than 12,000 kids in cities and villages across the country.    Featuring crafts, games, skits, and presentations of the gospel, these eagerly-awaited camps reach out to the entire community.  Small, struggling congregations are amazed at the turnout when the Americans come to town.   Through these camps, hundreds of kids and scores of adult helpers and translators have come to know Christ.

The project known as "Love Lift Ukraine" has included projects like sending love boxes of food and clothing, helping the disabled, caring for widows and orphans, touching people with gospel music and  providing libraries for pastors and churches.  In addition they have held conferences for men, women and marriage seminars.   A recent development has been to help Ukrainian farmers and businessmen become more effective in their professions.

But none of this could be accomplished apart from men and women who are willing to "stand in the gap" for Christ and have taken the leadership of this project.    Those men and women, such as Donna Sahlin, Bill Arvan and Diane Wicklund have answered that call to "stand in the gap" and have heeded Christs' Great Commission and have gone and "made disciples" in Ukraine.