Praising
Through the
OMS: What is your ministry focus in Russia? MT: After that first year, I returned to Russia as a church planter. I helped start the Blagovest church in Rybinsk. I did everything from women’s ministry to English evangelism, but my heart and passion has always been children. In 2004, God gave me a vision to start a specific ministry to orphans through the local church. The ministry, called Rainbow of Hope, is a Russianbased church ministry that focuses on reaching orphans for Christ. OMS: How do people respond? MT: People tell me, “You’ve done more than enough, Michelle. No one would blame you for giving up and going on disability.” But that’s not my nature; it’s not who I am. Until the Lord tells me I’m released from Russia, I’m not going to stop going, and I’m not going to give up on this work. OMS: How do you praise God in the face of these difficulties? MT: I think you can choose to be in an attitude of praise. None of this is a surprise to God. He didn’t cause me to get sick, and for a season, he is allowing my life’s challenges to bring him glory. People who have been following my journey from the beginning will tell me they are encouraged by my life. I praise God for that; I praise him that he is glorified through this. I believe in making it an attitude of praise, making a deliberate effort to say, “Okay, Lord, I want you to be glorified. I want to be deliberate in making you known, either through circumstances or opportunities, through a smile or through building relationships, help me to be a blessing to others.” For me, it’s a win-win situation. If I die, I’m with Jesus; if I live, I still get to do what I love, which is to serve him.
Storm
We have a lot of missionaries within the world of One Mission Society. Some I know quite well, but others can sometimes just be a name attached to a ministry. Until recently, this was the case with Michelle Taylor, an OMS Australia missionary to Russia. I knew she was involved with an orphanage, and I knew she had been ill. But it wasn’t until we ‘met’ via Skype that I really got to hear—and be inspired by— her story.
Jessica Hollopeter, Missionary, One Mission Society
OMS: What physical challenges have you experienced?
OMS: How did God call you to the mission field? MT: God called me to Russia through a dream back in 1992. In the dream, I was standing in Russia, holding a Bible and telling the Russians about Jesus. From that point on, God gave me an overwhelming love for the Russian people. I went to Russia in December 1995 with CoMission for a year. I was only on the field a few months when I knew I wanted to do this for the rest of my life. So, I applied to serve full time with OMS.
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MT: My life verse is 2 Samuel 24:24, “I will not give to the Lord that which costs me nothing.” I went to Russia with that verse in my heart. Soon thereafter, I became sick. I was diagnosed with sarcoidosis, which is extremely rare in Australia. It’s an autoimmune disease, and there is no cure at this stage. It started in the lungs as I was already an asthmatic. It then caused heart difficulties, and two years ago, I started having seizures. It’s now in my bones. Last year, it began playing havoc in my spine. I’ve had two operations in the last year, and I was just told I need to have another. photos page 24, top: Russian orphans at Rainbow So, yes, I’m facing ongoing health battles of Hope bottom: Michelle and a friend photos page 25, left: Kids showing off their crafts as well as an immense amount of pain.
right: Michelle hugging two Russian boys
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