MOSCOW (ANS) -- An aspiring megachurch held its first service in Moscow recently.

Nearly 60 people attended the first service of “Your Church,” held in the Russian Union of Evangelical Christians-Baptists (RUECB) Moscow Seminary.

Referring to the congregation’s unusual name, RUECB President Yuri Sipko said in his sermon, “This is not your church - this is our church!”

According to an RUECB news release, pastoring the small new flock with big dreams is Leonid Kartavenko, for the past six years Director of Missions at the RUECB’s Moscow headquarters.

Kartavenko described his growth strategy in the news release.

He said, “We don’t want church members; we want servants. Every member will receive some task, even if it might be a very small one.”

Every member will also be expected to belong to a small group; the musical offerings are also to sound professional.

“Your Church” plans to use its Internet site as a tool in its anticipated growth. According to the release, the latest news – including the location of services - will always be listed there.

The pastor added, “Interested people will be able to ask questions on the Internet. That will allow personal contacts to happen – which is already the case. We know that people most readily appear in church if they already have contact with a believer.”

According to the news release, Russia's largest “megachurches” have about 4,000 members. Two of the most prominent ones are charismatic congregations located in Moscow and Perm/Ural.

Moscow's historic “First Baptist Church” had 2,719 members in 2005.

For more information go to www.yourchurch.ru 

Jeremy Reynalds is a freelance writer and the founder and CEO of Joy Junction, New Mexico's largest emergency homeless shelter, http://www.joyjunction.org He has a master's degree in communication from the University of New Mexico, and a Ph.D. in intercultural education from Biola University in Los Angeles. His newest book is "The Face of Homelessness." Additional details are available at http://www.HomelessBook.com He lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico. For more information contact: Jeremy Reynalds at jeremyreynalds@comcast.net. Tel: (505) 400-7145. Note: A higher resolution JPEG picture of Jeremy Reynalds is available on request from Dan Wooding at danjuma1@aol.com.