The Dean Family

A big part of serving in a foreign country is staying on top of documents. Documents are not the most exciting part of the ministry, but an important part. This has certainly been true lately, as we have had a lot of document work that needed completed. One of the more important documents was Lilianna’s residency that needed to be renewed. The extension process takes a minimum of two months to be approved. Once approved, we flew down to Krasnoyarsk to pick up the residency document. In addition to Lilianna’s residency extension, Cassie’s and Lilianna’s passports were soon to expire. For us, that means a trip to the embassy in Moscow. Since we already had to fly to Krasnoyarsk, it made sense to combine the two trips. We turned in everything that was needed for the new passports in Moscow and returned to Krasnoyarsk to pick up Lilianna’s residency extension. Once her residency extension was in hand, the only thing left to do was fly back to Vanavara to register her place of resi...

God has richly blessed our ministry, and I would like to share with you what God has done. While we were in a mission conference last week, I showed our video and in the video I explained the new legal situation, which requires religious meetings to be held on commercial property. You may recall from our recent letter that we have found such a building, but we needed to raise $25,000 to purchase it. God began to move in this meeting in a marvelous way. In one night, they raised $22,000 for this building. Praise the Lord! That, with what we already have raised, more than meets the need to buy the building. We are praising the Lord for this answer to prayer.  God has also blessed us with some additional funds for the vehicle project. We now have $6,900 of the needed $10,000. Glory to His name. God truly is able.

Thank you for praying for Matt and me as we traveled back to Vanavara on the winter road. We made it back safely, Praise the Lord! Matt and I drove straight through, trading off driving, so that the other could rest. Considering the conditions of the winter road, we made pretty good time. The road was clearly melting. We drove through a lot of mud and slush, but underneath the mud and slush, the ground was still frozen solid. (In the warmer weather, much of the road is marshland, and only a few specially designed vehicles can make it through.) We are glad to be back. Thank you for your prayers. 

I wanted to thank every one for their prayers for our coworkers, the Northcutts. The Northcutts are getting settled in to a temporary apartment while they decide what to do next. They have received some  supplies from the city. (As I understand it, one driver didn't charge them anything for the delivery.) Between that, and what they were able to get out of the old apartment, they have been able to set up a temporary living situation. I am flying out tomorrow  to the city to help Matt Northcutt drive his truck back up the winter road. You may remember from an earlier blog post, that both Matt and I are having trouble with our vehicles. He had to send his truck down to the city on a flat bed for repairs. At the time of this writing, they are putting his truck back together, and it should be ready to go by tomorrow. Please pray for this trip. The road conditions are not the best, as the road is melting away. Our truck driver friends are saying that this weekend will be their...

This year's supply run was quite rough.  On our first trip, I ran into some mechanical difficulties en route. About 255km (160 miles) outside of Krasnoyarsk, the wiring harness caught fire . I immediately hit the kill switch, (a UAZ van has a factory installed kill switch that cuts all battery power to the vehicle) and got it off the road. Matt Northcutt and I cobbled the wires up enough to get it to a nearby city. A few days later, I limped it the rest of the way to Krasnoyarsk. (A special thanks to Kevin Jones and James Pranger for their help in getting it back to Krasnoyarsk.) I had a new wiring harness put in, and returned to Vanavara loaded with supplies.  Upon my return to Vanavara,the van developed some different problems that I am working on now. In addition, Matt Northcutt's truck developed an engine knock. It is looking like he may have to send his truck down to the city on a flatbed for repairs. Because of the problems with both of our vehicles, we were...

The winter road is open! Matt Northcutt and I are getting ready to leave out on a supply trip to the city tomorrow morning. It is about a two day trip there, and another two days back. We plan to drive the winter road portion on day one and drive the rest of the way to the city on day two. From what our truck driver friends have said, it sounds like this year's road is in really good shape. We just learned that the short route is open, which is big news since it normally does not open until after the New Year Holiday. The reason for it opening early is that we had very little rain fall this summer, which in turn means that it does not take as long for swampy areas of the road to freeze over. I have spent the last few days going over the mechanics of my van, as well as going through our emergency gear, making sure that everything is in order and properly working. Also, for safety, we will be taking two vehicles. This way, if something were to happen to one of the two vehicle...

Summer is an important time of the year in the North. We have a short season to get everything done outside before winter hits and everything is frozen. We have been quite busy this past summer. Things are starting to calm down after the frenzy of summer projects. One important part of the summer activities is our garden. I have written about the cultural importance of a garden in the past, but in Vanavara it is even more important, as food from the stores are brought up the winter road or flown in by airplane. As a result, it is more expensive. A garden is an important part of our food supply for the winter, it is not just a hobby for us. We had a few unexpected surprises. There was an old greenhouse on our garden spot. I knew that it would need to be replaced someday, but I thought that I could get a few seasons out of it. As it turned out, it collapsed in early spring. Fortunately it collapsed before the time to plant, and I was able to replace it. Another unexpected surprise...

There is a new law in Russia that affects religious freedom. It is a very serious change and warrants much prayer. I know of at least one missionary who has already been brought up on charges. (The trial is currently pending.) There are still a lot of questions about the new law, and how it will be interpreted. We are working with a lawyer to make sure that we do everything according to the law. The following is a general overview of what we know about the law thus far. (A special thanks to Kevin for writing the following points.) Russian nationals can freely witness to whomever they want to about their personal faith, whether via social media or personal contact. (one on one basis) We as missionaries can freely witness to whomever we want to about our personal faith, whether via social media or personal contact. (one on one basis) Evangelistic outreach (passing out literature or holding meetings in public areas on behalf of a religious organization) is permitted IF you h...

Remodel We have been very busy the last few months with the remodel of the apartment. The remodel is very important, as it communicates permanency. We want people to understand that we have come to stay for long term, we are not just passing through, and that we want to be a contributing part of the village. You may remember from earlier letters, that when buying or renting an apartment, things like kitchen cabinets, sinks, light fixtures, and so on are not included. That said, by default, every time one moves, he is walking into a remodel on some level. This time our remodel was quite a bit more extensive. The floors and walls needed to be made level and plumb. This is not an uncommon problem in regions like this. It arises from the unique difficulties in foundation work due to the depth of the frost line. The result is that things need to be leveled and plumbed on occasions. Our particular apartment was well overdue. We have most of the hard work done, and now we ar...

Our plans for Vanavara are moving along. It has been a very busy few weeks. Between buying the supplies for the Vanavara housing project, meeting delivery trucks, packing our belongings for transit up the winter road, moving my family from the village of Shila to a temporary apartment in the city, and all the other little details that go with such a move. Our plan for the next few months is this: my family will live in the city for a few months while I prepare the flat in Vanavara for their arrival. Missionary Matt Northcut and I will make trips up the winter road. We have met a truck driver who lives in Vanavara. He is going to transport the bulk of our building supplies and we will follow him, like a caravan. This is also the safest way to travel on the winter road, as if one person runs into a problem he is not stranded in dangerously cold weather. We plan to start our first trip tomorrow. We spent most of today packing the truck with building supplies. Please pray for us in the ...

The Good News: First and foremost, I thank the Lord for His protection, things could have gone terribly wrong. Praise the Lord that no one was hurt. As to the condition of the van;  if it was a typical van, it would have been totaled; but because it is designed for off-roading, everything is beefed up. As a result,  the suspension and frame held together surprisingly  well. Prior to the accident, I had went through the engine compartment replacing anything that even looked worn out. (A very important step, as you don't want to break down on the winter road.) Nothing in the engine compartment was damaged, praise the Lord. That work was not in vain. The Repairs Needed: Earlier this week Missionary James Pranger and I replaced some steering components so that we could move it . (We had to bring it in on a flatbed.) Here is what I know so far: - It will need extensive body work. - It will need an alignment done. - It will need two new rims and tires. - A new seat...

Let me start out by saying that I am OK.  Our car is not. I had planned on writing this week to tell everyone about our van. We had bought a van for the purpose of winter road travel. It is a Russian UAZ van designed for both on and off road driving. Its four wheel drive, high ground clearance, and low gear ratio make it ideal for the winter road. In addition to that, its  stout suspension allows it to carry a heavy load. We had planned to use it to transport goods and ministry materials over the winter road. As you may recall, there is no road going into Vanavara during the summer, so most goods are transported across the winter road. This is especially important to us as we are planning to get our apartment ready this winter, which includes some remodel work. Also, we are planning to move our household goods up this winter. This van was key to many of our plans. I had just finished going through the van mechanically. It is dangerous to break down on the winter roa...

Missionary Matt Northcutt and I flew up to Vanavara to buy property. This is a big step towards moving to this village to share the Gospel with them. I want to thank every one who has been praying for our  housing needs. We had a very productive trip. I went up with the intent to secure land, or at least start the document process for securing land to build on.  I was going up on faith; knowing that we had enough finances to secure land, but would need a considerable amount of additional finances to build. The Lord opened up an amazing door.  We found a large village flat for sale. It is a fairly large flat, 70 square meters (750 square feet).This a pretty big deal. You may remember from our earlier letters, that typically  most of the village apartments and flats are too small to meet the legal requirements for the size of our family. Often times they are more like a dormitory than an apartment. Also, the few people who do own the larger ones hold on to th...

In the midst of VBS, missionary Matt Northcutt and I are flying up to Vanavara to buy property. Please pray for a smooth trip, and that the Lord will direct us to the right properties. Pray for the Vacation Bible School this week in the village of Bartsov. The Vacation Bible School last week in the city of Krasnoyarsk went very well, with over 11 visitors the first day. Once again, I covet your prayers as Matt Northcutt and I fly to Vanavara tomorrow to buy properties, our first step towards moving to this village to share the Gospel with them.

VBS is starting tomorrow. We are starting a little earlier this year then usual. The reason is that July marks the 20th anniversary of the Krasnoyarsk Baptist Church and we will be having a special service. We wanted to finish the VBSs before then so that we could have time to focus on preparations for the anniversary service.  Like last year we will be holding VBS in four different locations: the city, three villages; one of which being Shila, where we live and minister. Each VBS runs from Wednesday to Sunday.  This year's VBS theme is "Unto the Uttermost." The focus of the teaching will be on the Gospel and missions. This past Saturday we finished the decorations. To go with the theme, we made the church to look like an airport. Please pray for this summer's VBS. Please pray for souls to be saved and for Christian  young people to see the importance of missions.

Vanavara Trip Dec. 2014 from James Dean on Vimeo . The trip to Vanavara went very well. We arrived back on Saturday very tired, but happy that the trip was such a success. I am thankful for friends like Oganes and Missionary James Pranger. We had a wonderful time of Christian fellowship and were able to accomplish much together on this trip. Conditions of the roads There are two routes,  a longer one and a shorter one. The longer one is made up of both logging roads and winter roads. The log roads are not bad to drive on, as they are well maintained so that log trucks can pass quickly. The winter roads are rougher. The shorter route is almost all winter road. While it is shorter, it is considerably rougher. I included a video of the trip. Building Earlier I wrote a about the building project, and what we hoped to learn from some of the local builders. As you may recall, we had hoped to be able to build on steel piling, as it would be much cheeper than concrete...

Today I will be taking another advanced survey trip to Vanavara. Missionary James Pranger, Oganes, and I will be leaving out on the winter road. Some of you may remember Oganes from some of my earlier letters. He translated for me on my very first trip to Russia, and accompanied me to the northern villages of Tura and Turahansk. He also heads up the village ministry in Atamanova. Brother Pranger is a second generation missionary who practically grew up on the winter roads, and knows the dangers of them far better than I.   A trucker who drives this road regularly said that the trip takes about 24 hours from Krasnoyarsk. This will be the first time we have driven the road. The purpose of this trip is fact finding. Specifically: What are the conditions of the road? We are told  that the road is rather rough, but how rough? To make contacts with truckers who could transport building supplies. Oganes has made contacts already with some drivers.    A better un...

Missionary Matt Northcutt and I are planning an advanced survey trip to the North. We plan to visit the village of Vanavara toward the end of this month (September.) Vanavara is located in the Evenk Municipal District, which is home to both Russian and Evenki People. The total population of Evenkia is 16,284 people. Vanavara represents 3,154 of the population. Vanavara is one of the three major support centers of Evenkya. It supports four other smaller villages. Also, Vanavara has a  Home for  the Elderly and Disabled, a Children's Rehabilitation Center, and a children's home. I first became aware of this village while I was on furlough. It was then that  I learned that one of the faithful church members from Krasnoyarsk moved to this village due to work. She is a single lady with no other believers with whom to  fellowship. Please pray for her as she stands as the lone witness in this village, and for Brother Northcutt and I as we seek direction from the Lord. ...

So far the U.S. economic sanctions have not effected our wire transfer to Russia. It has, however, effected some. My understanding is that a simple wire transfer to a Russian bank is not a violation of the U.S. economic sanctions, however it is scrutinized very closely. Because of this scrutiny, some U.S. banks have chosen to not process any transactions to the Russian banks listed in the U.S. economic sanctions. This is done as a risk management measure. This has left many missionaries in Russia and the Ukraine without money. Some have been able to rely on their credit cards, but it should be noted that Russia is very much a cash based society, especially in the villages.  Fortunately our wire transfer went through this month, but we do not know how long our U.S. bank will continue to process our wire transfers. One possible solution that we are looking into is opening a bank account with a German based bank that also operates in Krasnoyarsk. Such a bank would comply with a...

We had a wonderful week of VBS in Shila, with an amazing turn out! We registered  34 kids, which is an amazing number for our village. 23 of them were first time visitors. In addition to this, we had 2 grandparents and 1 parent sit in on some of the fun. This allowed us to get acquainted with them.   This week was also a great encouragement to our faithful neighbor, who spent much of her time giving out invitations and talking with parents and grandparents about VBS. It was such a great blessing for her to see the fruit of her labour.  Some of this week's highlights were: 34 New Testaments Handed Out! Singing! Games! Bible Lessons and Missionary Stories Snacks! Crazy Hat Day! Prizes! Medals