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My life suddenly has a meaning
Valery Zharikov
I was born in the small village of Chesnokovo in the Amur region to a family of unbelieving parents. It was a time of socialism in our country when atheism was preached and it was almost impossible to learn anything about God, there was a ban all around. In such an atmosphere I grew up as an ordinary sinner, I deluded myself and led others astray. I loved sports, didn’t smoke, went for a run in the morning, and began to learn the techniques of hand-to-hand combat. I finished high school, qualified as a photographer, and then was sent by the military commissariat office to the DOSAAF (Russian Army, Air Force and Navy Volunteer Society) in Belogorsk and learned to be a tracked vehicle mechanic-driver. In the army he entered the training part of the signalers, and then in Spassk-Dalniy city, where he served for the remaining year and a half. After returning from the army, he entered and graduated from the Novosibirsk Special Secondary School of Militia. Here in Novosibirsk I got married. After graduating in 1986, my wife and I were assigned to the village of Tambovka in the Amur region, where I served as criminal investigator of the OBKhSS. Then we had two children.
Although he devoted most of his time to his work and family
I tried to take part in the social life of the village, opened a sambo section for teenagers.
In 1991, the secretary of the district committee of Komsomol suggested that I work as a hand-to-hand combat coach in the Military-Patriotic Club, which we called “Cascade. The military registration and enlistment office gave us a manual “hand-to-hand fighting” and I and two other instructors began to prepare teenagers for the army. So seven years flew by. The first “fruits” of our work appeared and, unfortunately, I saw that in spite of the fact that we equally invested in young people, taught them kindness and a healthy way of life, everyone grew up to be different people. Some are constantly drinking, fighting, rampaging, others are cheating on their loved ones, stealing money, and few people live the way they were taught.8
I have a question: how then do we teach our children so that they become decent people? If everyone was taught the same way, and it turned out the way it did. How do you teach a person correctly? Only the One who created him can know. And who is the Creator? Where is He? Where is the proof, where is the evidence, are there witnesses of His existence? Where are the instructions on what to do, how to live, and how to raise children?
These are natural questions that came up for me.
And I wanted an answer to them.
I start to visit to the district library and tried to find books that would give me an answer to these questions, but unfortunately I found only the Koran. I read it, but did not find any answers to my questions. It just so happened that on official business I was in contact with people who happened to be Baptists. They testified to me about Christ, and I became interested. I signed up at the Evangelical Christian-Baptist church library, borrowed books from them, attended their Sunday meetings, and began to ask questions in order to better understand the subjects I was interested in. Then I found evidence that there is a Creator of men called God and His Son Jesus Christ, the Savior of men. I learned about His laws, about Heaven and Hell. I realized that I had to start with myself. Although I did not like drunkards, I drank on holidays myself, and in all other matters I was not a model. I stopped sleeping properly. I realized that if I went to trial before God, He would not justify me, that I was the very first sinner and urgently needed repentance, the remission of sins and faith in His Son of Jesus Christ.
After a week of sleepless nights, I came to the Prayer House on May 8, 1994, to a minister of the Church and told him that I wanted to repent and live a new life. The minister told me that he usually suggested at the end of the meeting that anyone who wanted to be reconciled to God could go out and pray. So I did. After that, my life took on a very different meaning and a very different purpose. I received a peace in my heart that I had not had for a long time, the joy of forgiveness of sins and acceptance by God, and the hope of eternal life.
I trained on courses for people to be baptized and received holy water baptism on July 23, 1994.
I also began to study the Bible with my children.
Then the devotion began to the Church. In 1995, my wife came to God. Devotion became a blessed part of our family life. For four years I continued to study, tried to apply my knowledge to the ministry, studied preaching, evidence, visiting small groups in the villages of our area with brothers and sisters. In 1998 I was ordained to the deacon ministry, and then I was invited to study in the Far East Bible College, where I was a correspondence student for four years while I also attended missionary training. In 1998 the church deployed me as a missionary. I served in the village of Gilchin, in the village of Novoalexandrovka, and in the village of Tolstovka, Tambov district, Amur region. From 2001 to 2003 served as an elder in the church and was ordained an elder in Tambovka village church.
In 2003, at the suggestion of the Regional Ministers Council my family and I moved to Novosibirsk. In Novosibirsk we chose to serve in the Evangelical Christian Baptist Church “Salvation”, where I continued to serve to the present time.
Thank God who gave answers to all my questions, forgave all my sins, gave me peace in my heart and gives me the opportunity to joyfully do ministry for His glory.
