Kherson Church Celebration

Nikolayev

Kiev Victory Church

Kherson Celebration

Kherson Celebration

Kherson Celebration

Kherson Celebration

Kherson Celebration

Tsurupinsk Evangelism

Nikolayev Evangelism

Nikolayev: praying for the local pastors

Nikolayev Evangelism

Kiev Messianic Congregation

Kiev Messianic Congregation

Kiev Victory Church

Kiev Victory Church

Kiev Victory Church

Kiev Victory Church

During February David held a series of meetings in Kherson, Nikolayev, Odessa, and Kiev, Ukraine.

In Kherson, despite the treacherous sheet ice and snow, the facility was packed, and the people attended not just from Kherson but other regions including Crimea. The inviting pastor, Vitaliy Shaluhin, received a new vision and strategy through David's ministry in the great revival meetings in Mayaki 1992. He began his own church and, since 1994, he has worked together with David  in evangelism in the city of Kherson and the region round about. During the visit, the church gave David a special, traditional Ukrainian celebration in recognition of his 60 years in ministry.

After two days in Kherson, David travelled to Tsurupinsk. Until that point there had only been one small Baptist church and a cell group of just 15 people - there had never been evangelism before. The plan of the Kherson church was to start a strong daughter church before the Ukrainian government turns Tsurupinsk into their own 'little Las Vegas'.

Following this evangelism, David ministered in Nikolayev for two days. Oleg Sherbakov, the inviting pastor, was only a young man in David's meetings in Kiev in 1992 and 1993, when the freedom first came. Oleg, as one of the prayer team, personally saw miracles of healing for the first time. In 1994 Oleg joined David's team in the pioneering 3-month summer evangelism in Siberia, then immediately afterwards for one month in Ukraine. As a result of the evangelism in the stadium in Nikolayev, a new church was planted and Oleg became the pastor. Today he is responsible for 30 daughter churches, 6 prison ministries, 4 Jewish congregations, and 3 rehab centres. On the first night of this trip, the majority in the theatre stood to receive Christ, said the sinners' prayer and were counselled. Afterwards more than half of those present claimed to be healed. One woman had a damaged eardrum and had become deaf as the result of a botched tooth extraction. Not only could she now hear perfectly, but all the pain in her body had gone too! But the most precious testimony came on the second night. A small twin boy, critically damaged with cerebral palsy at birth: he had never walked at all, but now after prayer, he is taking his first wobbly steps, holding his mother by only one hand!

After holding a meeting in Odessa, where David has minstered many times, he preached in Kiev for two churches. Boris Grisenko is the pastor of Kiev Messianic Congregation. His testimony to his people about David was this: "David is not in the top five most popular names in the world - but there are more living, active, growing churches after his meetings than any other ministry." Boris joined David's team for the 3-month Siberian evangelism in 1994, then immediately after for one month in Ukraine. Fifteen years ago, Boris founded his church - now one of the largest Messianic congregations in the world.

On the final day of ministry, Pastor Henry Modava invited David to speak twice on the Sunday. Henry was a student from Zimbabwe and studying in the former Soviet Union when he acted as David's interpreter in the pioneer Kiev meetings. Henry said of David to his congregation: "People want the power - but it is not a one-off, people don't want to pay the price. In my life, David was an example to me. I thought if God can move through an Englishman, He can move through me, a black student from Zimbabwe." In 1993 after David's crusade, Henry opened his first church, Kiev Victory Church, and within one year he had 1000 members, all new converts, not one of them older than one year in the faith! Today Henry has opened churches all over the former Soviet Union, and he evangelises in Asia - in Pakistan and in Thailand!