“Kyrgyzstan is a Muslim country and we have many restrictions,” says Pastor Dan. “It’s hard for churches to even exist.”
Yet the church Pastor Dan leads in the capital city, Bishkek, is flourishing, with more than 400 regular congregation members. Alpha, he notes, has been key to its success, enabling it to welcome 2,500 people on nearly 70 Alpha courses over the past two decades – an impressive number for any church, let alone one in a context like Kyrgyzstan.
I heard about Alpha and saw that the heart of its message is Jesus.
“When I started the church in 1995 I had no idea how to run a church or what to do,” admits Pastor Dan. “But then I heard about Alpha and saw that the heart of its message is Jesus.
Today, Pastor Dan’s church welcomes an average of 40 guests on each Alpha – significantly more than when they first began back in the early 2000s, when sometimes very few people would turn up.
“Most people in Kyrgyzstan believe Jesus is a prophet, not a saviour. Through the Alpha course, we explain, step by step, why Jesus came and what he did for the world. And we see many receiving this message and accepting Jesus. Thanks to Alpha, our church has grown.”
“One of the most important things I learnt was to be consistent and not stop,” Pastor Dan reflects. “I remember once we had only two guests, both women, and around 30 team members to serve them! Each week we made them delicious food and gave them a lot of care and attention.
Never in their lives had they experienced such love. We
understood that this is
something that people
really need.
“Both became Christians and cried when they gave their testimonies, saying that never in their lives had they experienced such love. And so we understood that this is something that people really need. When we train our team we tell them that the most important thing is to serve our guests as you would serve Jesus himself.”
The practicalities of preparing and serving meals to guests each session were challenging, particularly in the early 2000s, when the church first began running Alpha.
“Our church was really small back then, and there was no money to prepare food,” recalls Pastor Dan. “So we decided that each team member would give a donation, and from that we were able to make a delicious meal each week.
“It’s a tradition that we continue to this day and this has enabled us to keep going with Alpha. This not only blesses our guests but it also helps our team members grow spiritually through service and sacrificial giving.”
Appealing to young people
The church also initially lacked some of the tools needed to create a ‘restaurant atmosphere’, which Pastor Dan felt was important in showing people love and respect, and would appeal to young people in particular. The average age of the population in Kyrgyzstan is 23.
“We didn’t have enough money for things like tablecloths and so on,” Pastor Dan explains. “So we prayed about it and then a hotel in America, which was closing, donated all their tablecloths, napkins and other stuff to us, which we now use. We share these resources with other churches who are also running Alpha.
“Alpha helps us create an atmosphere of love in our church, and it is a very powerful tool for evangelism. We are very grateful for this programme.”
