MY CONVERSION AND CALL (97)

by Jesse Fitch (Russia)

Coming from a large Pentecostal family the fear of God was instilled from youth. My father taught me to diligently work hard and from my mother I received good discipline from doing wrong. I learned that sin was sin and it deserved punishment. If the consequences of sin were escaped, then I knew effects of bearing a guilty conscience. At the age of twelve I recall doing wrong and asking myself how mercy with God could be found.

In my early twenties, death was confronted on several occasions and God used these events to stir my thoughts about the need for salvation. After graduating from a religious college in 1963 I began teaching in an elementary school. It was during this time that I visited the home of a Christian and heard the testimonies of several young people. They spoke of what Christ had done them by dying for their sins on Calvary’s cross and how God had saved them. This bothered me; although, I knew the facts of the gospel and told others I was a Christian, I had neither peace nor assurance of Heaven.
Awaking very troubled on the morning of June 1, 1964, I acknowledged to God that I was only a lost sinner and I wanted to be saved. I began to think about the verse, “Who His own self bare our sins in His own body on the tree...,” 1Pet.2.24. It seemed so clear, if Christ took all my sins and suffered for them, then that was enough. I needed no more and the burden of my sins was gone. I rejoiced that God had saved me.

A search began to find the “right church.” After being introduced to, and attending meetings where Christians professed to be gathered to the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ, a brother asked me, “If the Lord is there, should not I also be there?” That settled the question of where to attend, and two years after conversion, I was baptized and received into fellowship at the Omaha Gospel Hall. I joined with my brethren in distributing gospel papers, helping in children’s work, and other gospel outreaches.

In 1990 my family had the privilege of entertaining in our home a young communist youth leader, Igor by name, from Tobolsk, Russia. A Russian Bible was presented to him and an extra one for his grandmother. That fall Igor wrote that his grandmother loved this Book, but no such Book could be found in the city nor did any one know about it. (For seventy years the Bible had been outlawed). Immediately a letter was written to the City of Tobolsk Administration requesting permission to bring 5,000 New Testaments and 100 Bibles to their city in the summer of 1991 for free distribution. Permission was granted. My son Andrew accompanied me and we had many encouraging engagements to speak the gospel of Christ and then give the Word of God to all who listened. We were granted permission to return the next year with 20,000 New Testaments and a 1,000 Bibles and the Lord’s work in Russia commenced.

In the following years, and with the help of other Christians, many trips have been made to Russia. (Details of the commencement of this work are found in the book entitled “TO SIBERIA WITH BIBLES” by Louie Smith and Doug Yade.) God has blessed His Word, precious souls have been saved and gathered to the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
In 1996 I obtained early retirement from my employment so that I might invest more time in the work. In 2000, Russian authorities questioned me why I was doing missionary work with a cultural exchange visa. In 2001 two assemblies gave letters of commendation to the service of the Lord. I spend about six months each year in Russia and continue to work on the language.

Currently there are five assemblies in the Ural Mountains and western Siberia. Brethren from North America and Europe share in the work and are able to make frequent visits to teach the saints. We seek to be like John the Baptist, our desire being to glorify God in bearing a faithful witness of the Light that all men through Him might believe. “The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe. He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light,” Jn.1.7,8.