Ask a Missionary - Catch The Fire

frozen region. I clearly recall the pressure of demonic forces in
a place as civilized as Moscow, which makes me wonder what
spiritual oppression might challenge me out here, especially
tomorrow, in the prison town of Nyrob. But for now, the crystalclean
air—a balmy minus-25 degrees Celsius—feels thoroughly
cleansing, removed from the grungy uneasiness of the dark spirits
of Moscow. My second relief comes in the faces of my missionary
team, waiting on the platform.
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After a treacherous five-hour drive on a snow packed road, my
team of two missionary friends and I finally arrived in the countryside
village of Nyrob. If ever a forewarning were appropriate,
it would seem necessary for this despairing, seemingly hopeless
town. But the opposite was true.
Our driver grew increasingly excited driving through the
barbed wire fence of Nyrob Prison Sixteen and toward its maximum
security building. “Over there’s the chapel,” he declared.
“We’re almost finished with the renovations. We had to replace
the logs it rests on—sort of its foundation. So we lifted the entire
building on a whole set of car jacks. Pretty exciting!”
He slid to a stop near the prison gate and instructed us to
“bring the books and Bibles.” As we neared the guards, he whispered
to us, “Nyrob Sixteen is where repeat offenders of heinous
crimes are imprisoned. Some of Russia’s worst convicts.” My
uneasiness returned.
Once inside the gate and through a side door, however, we
stepped into the prison’s “prayer room.” No darkness here, just
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