Four-wheelers are a common mode of transportation in remote villages like of Chalkyitsik.
Loaves and Fishes
How the gift of a few is multiplied to impact many.
By Larissa Zook
The Lord woke me up in the middle of the night. After not being able to fall asleep for a couple hours I rolled out of bed and walked down the hall to my computer. I could not stop thinking about a camp I had recently heard about. Its focus is on training indigenous people of the Americas to walk in closer fellowship with their Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. I looked it up on the internet and was impressed with what I found.
Warrior Leadership Summit invites saved and unsaved youth ages 15-30 to take a week out of their summer to become fully immersed in godly teaching, worship and fellowship with other indigenous believers. All for $35 per person! Incredible! But airfare for our students would be close to $1,000. Not a problem for God though. After sending a newsletter out to our supporters about this camp, one church donated enough to allow two chaperones and four youth to attend!
Fast forward a year and this is what came out of that one donation:
Lorna* was among the young ladies who went to Warrior Leadership Summit. While she was there she learned about Indian Bible College in Flagstaff, Arizona. She prayed about becoming a student and continued to work hard to earn money and scholarships. She attended weekly Bible studies with me and enrolled for the following spring semester. The Lord made it possible for her to attend debt free.
Upon arrival at the college, she met the stranger who would be her roommate. She discovered her class schedule would keep her busy from early morning until late at night. Feeling that she had no control over anything in her new situation, those first couple of weeks were stressful and challenging for Lorna. When she took her concerns to the Lord in prayer, God let her know she needed to trust Him with all of it. She told me she thought about this and “finally agreed to shake on it” and see what God had planned for her.
As a result of her open trust in the Lord that semester, she learned about budgeting, theology, and what a God-centered family is supposed to look like. She also learned how to rely on God when her situation felt out of her control. Lorna even experienced God’s healing from guilt over past sins she’d been carrying. This summer she and her mother were reunited after five months apart. Both had benefitted from Christian counsel and personal healing from the Lord. They were able to spend time together without the hurts of the past getting in the way.
Rhianna* was another attendee who was also part of my young ladies Bible study. After her time at Warrior Leadership Summit, she continued meeting with me each week. Her walk with the Lord has grown far deeper and she senses His direction in a clearer way. She has participated in several prayer and worship revival meetings and visited a village to minister and be part of the baptism of several people. Participating in God’s work and living each day in obedience to Him has yielded a growing excitement in her.
(The picture on this page is of Rhianna enjoying the beauty of Gods creation in the remote village of Chalkyitsik, where she is from.)
*names changed
Two young men who were also recipients of the camp scholarship returned home to the village of Grayling. We learned that earlier this year, they began asking former chaperones about attending camp again. These chaperones were approached by the village council to put in a formal request for funding to send the young people of the village to Warrior Leadership Summit, which they gladly submitted! Praise God, they were given funding to take seven teens to camp this summer!
Only God could do such a thing! He was silently working in the hearts of men and women, saved and unsaved, to accomplish His work. One church’s gift has led to so much blessing.
There are six separate accounts of Jesus’ miracles multiplying loaves and fish in the gospels. The scriptural principle of multiplication proves true over and over, even today. When we invest in other’s lives, whether that be with time, finances, prayer or other resources, God always shows up and multiplies. These investments are eternal and are never lost!
Lorna’s story is an update from the Summer 2020 InterACTION article, “Journey to Redemption,” accessible at InterActMinistries.org under News and Stories. Or, go to:
Sipping Broth and Sharing Life
Discipleship in Siberia
By Lucas Orner
The drive from our city home to Kyzyl, the capital of Tuva, stretches across a landscape etched by the rugged beauty of the Sayan Mountains. It's a journey that unfolds over nine to ten hours, each turn revealing varying views of God’s amazing creation. This winding road not only connects us to a distant land but also serves as a tangible reminder of how the Tuvan people have steadfastly preserved their rich cultural heritage and unique language throughout the centuries.
On one such trip, after arriving in Kyzyl, the local Tuvan pastor received a call from our Russian pastor back home. The request was simple—could they slaughter a sheep and send the meat back with me? Now, I was driving a minivan, but with temperatures plummeting to a bone-chilling minus 30 degrees, the journey back made it more like a natural refrigerator. As the sheep was brought into the warmth of the church building, my thoughts drifted to the culinary "treat" that awaited me.
The Tuvan people have a unique, humane method for slaughtering sheep, a skill passed down through generations of Tuvan men. I watched as two men from the church carefully carried the sheep in and gently restrained it on the floor. It was during my first encounter with this ritual that my spirit was moved—a profound connection drawn between this scene and the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, who died for our sins.
In the days leading up to his crucifixion, Jesus didn’t resist or struggle. Jesus knew His Father’s will, and in submission and love He sacrificed Himself, taking on all sin for humanity’s redemption. That is the fantastic news we desire to share! It motivates us to learn another language and culture and build relationships with people on the other side of the world.
Back to the sheep and culinary surprise. A group of women arrived as the meat was being processed. While the meat was destined for the Russian pastor, the innards were destined for the golden broth, a Tuvan delicacy made by boiling various organs and blood sausage. For a foreigner, it's a dish that requires a discerning palate, one that many never fully acquire.
Eventually, around 10:30 p.m., the meat was wrapped and tucked away in my van's trunk to freeze overnight. The innards and blood sausage, meanwhile, were pulled from the broth and found their place on a serving platter in the middle of the table. Alongside were steaming bowls of "golden broth" for all to enjoy.
As we sipped the broth, we shared stories of life. They pointed out which chunks on the platter were which organs and encouraged me to try most of them. We talked about raising kids and discipling them into adulthood.
The true essence of the Great Commission—the command to share the Good News and make disciples—is not a solitary endeavor, but rather best woven into the command to love God and love others. When we love others, we forge genuine relationships, recognizing their needs and understanding their worldview. We discover ways to serve them and teach them how biblical truth should shape their lives and their relationship with Christ. This gospel-motivated love echoes the words of Paul to the Thessalonians, “We loved you so much that we shared with you not only God’s Good News but our own lives, too.” (NLT 2 Thess 2:8).
Our family embraces the opportunity to share our lives with the Tuvan people. We regularly open our home to brothers and sisters in Christ who are traveling to the city for medical care or attending Christian conferences. Normally the people we host come in groups of three to five. Though our family of six lives in a cozy 800 square foot apartment, we've found a way to accommodate upwards of a dozen from time to time! This open-hearted hospitality builds trust, strengthens our connections and opens doors for us when we visit Tuva. They know us and they trust us, because they see the gospel lived out in our actions.
One memorable instance involved hosting a group of Tuvan youth while they were attending a youth conference in our city. During our next visit to Kyzyl, they invited us to their youth group. Our older children went and had a blast. The invitation was also extended to Jamie and me to stop in and share our perspectives on what the Bible says about choosing a spouse. The experience was heartwarming, a testament to the bonds we've built when we share not only the Good News, but also our lives.
Whether a sender or a sent one, we are encouraged when God uses our gifts of time and resources. This edition of InterAction recounts tales of sacrifice by a frontline missionary in Siberia, lifestyle sacrifices for the sake of the gospel. Having personally shared the “joyful” experience of ram organs and “golden broth” I can better appreciate the thankful heart displayed amidst this “toothsome” experience. We are blessed whenever we hear stories like this from our frontline missionaries serving across the North Pacific Crescent. Thank you, Father!
The full impact of our giving and service is veiled. We give so the gospel can spread the aroma of Christ, but the full return on our investment will not be realized this side of heaven. Larissa’s account of generous donations to Alaska Native youth gives a glimpse into eternal impact that will ultimately be revealed from the graciousness of these donors. Thank you, Father, for putting in the hearts of Your children to advance Your work through their generosity! To God be the glory!
"You will be enriched in every way to be generous in every way, which through us will produce thanksgiving to God." (2 Corinthians 9:11, ESV)