Edward grew up under the spiritual leadership of Bishop Nikolai Zalutsky in Pskov, Russia. In 1994, he graduated from New Life Bible College in Pskov, which Missionary Ventures established. “Here am I, send me” (Isaiah 6:8) has been his guiding word from God. He began serving in his church’s youth ministry and later became director of the Pskov Bible College. In 2006, the Lord called him to Moscow to serve as Administrator for the Russian Union of Evangelical Churches, and he later became pastor of the Chinese churches in Moscow.

Today Edward is a full-time faculty member at the Moscow Theological Institute and an expert on church-state relations. He is often asked to take part in legal proceedings involving Christian ministers and churches, always on the side of the defense. He also serves as youth pastor at a Russian church focused on reaching young people.

Edward lives in Moscow with his wife, Julia, and their son, Jan. He also has two adult daughters, Angelika and Liana, and two granddaughters, Kira and Maya.

Ministry in Moscow
Edward and Julia minister to Chinese and Vietnamese immigrants who have come to Moscow to work, preaching the gospel and teaching them the Scriptures. They also provide educational support to the Chinese church community in Moscow. They train students from China so they can return home and continue serving the Lord.

Bible Schools
Edward teaches at church-based Bible schools that Missionary Ventures established in Volgograd (southern Russia) and Barnaul (Western Siberia). These schools have grown into mature, self-supporting training centers for ministers.

Luhansk
For more than eight years, Edward and his team have served in the Luhansk region. As a church they stay out of politics and focus on helping people in need. Their work includes:

• collecting humanitarian aid
• supporting orphanages
• running summer camps for children
• assisting local churches and training ministers
• funding bread that is baked and given away free of charge

Nagorno-Karabakh

In 2020, a new ministry began in Nagorno-Karabakh. Two-thirds of this territory became a part of Nagorno-Karabakh because of the war between Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh and Turkey from the other side. There are many human casualties and many refugees. Edward collects humanitarian aid and sends it to Stepanakert – the capitol city of this small country situated between Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh . His team also ministers in the church in Stepanakert.

Author

Edward has written three books in Russian. The most recent, Church and the Mass Media (2018), is a practical guide to help Russian churches build constructive relationships with the media. “In our country, there is no official persecution of Protestants, but still, we have unofficial pressure. There are many bureaucratic barriers and many lies about Protestant churches in Russian mass media. My book tells readers how to counteract it and teaches them to work with mass media constructively.”