RUSSIAN PASTOR VISITS SISTER CHURCH IN CAPE

For many years the only god Russians worshiped was the Communist Party, but after the fall of communism people began seeking God.

Valentina Biryokova was one of those people. She related her story through a translator during an interview Thursday afternoon with the Southeast Missourian.

"As I grew older, after 30, I asked myself Where am I?' and What is my place in life?' and What was my place in life in regards to God?'" she said.

There were few places to turn for answers, and no Bibles in Russia. Only a few Orthodox churches had remained open and active.

But Biryokova kept seeking. "Jesus Christ says in the Bible that if you knock, he will open the door for you."

Eventually she found a Bible with Scriptures translated into modern Russian. "I was reading without understanding at first," she said. By the early 1990s, Russia opened its doors to new churches, including the United Methodist denomination.

"People were seeking God and could see God's hand. It was attractive to go to church," she said.

When Biryokova first began attending, the church was small, and often considered a sect because it was so unlike the Russian Orthodox Church. There were only three churches in Russia, all of them in Moscow. Today there are 29 in Moscow alone and 80 throughout the country.

"I could see God answering my prayers and my problems, and I could see other people struggling," she said, adding that she felt a call to leave her job and help others.

Today Biryokova is a pastor, and visited Cape Girardeau this week. She will be attending worship at La Croix United Methodist Church this weekend. Her church in Vnukova, Moscow, has a partnership arrangement with the church.

The Rev. Ron Watts was one of the first Methodist pastors to visit Russia and helped lead a seminar for lay leaders and adult leaders of youth. A group from the church has been invited back to lead a similar meeting in October 2002.

It's so important for the youth to have programs, she said. "They are at the beginning of accepting God and the values that Christianity brings."

Biryokova is hopeful that as the youth change and hear the word of God, they will change the country as well. "The youth and children are the future of the church and our country."