Leadership

Pastor: Paul Afanasiev

My name is Pavel Afanasiev. I was born on July 23, 1962, in the ancient city of Taraz, Kazakhstan. I am the fourth son in the large family of 12 of Nikolai and Maria Afanasyev. My father was in the ministry for most of his life- first as preacher, then he was elected to the deacon’s ministry, then to the pastoral ministry.

I turned my life over to God, realizing my sinfulness at the age of 14, received baptism at the age of 16 and began to preach at the age of 20, became youth minister at the age of 21.

Not long after marriage, my wife Irina and I emigrated to the United States in 1989. Our first son David was born in Rome while we waited for asylum. We arrived in Minnesota where the Lord blessed us with two more sons, Timothy and Matthew.

 I was called to the pastoral ministry in 1998.  My favorite Bible text, the words of Jesus Christ – “Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” John. 8:32.

 Deacon: Andrey Afanasyev

Hi my name is Andrey. I was born in Kazakhstan to a family of 8 children. When I was 10 years old my family moved to Minnesota. I was raised in a Christian family where we learned about Jesus and the Bible. At a young age I accepted Jesus and always wanted to participate in church services. When I was a teenager I struggled in my walk with Christ. However, a verse from Joshua 1:8 “Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful” kept reminding me to keep reading the scripture and not give up my dedication to Jesus. As years went by, my love and devotion to Christ grew stronger. Together with my wife Diana we enjoy serving Christ in our local church. After 5 years of marriage God answered our prayers and blessed us with twins, Benjamin and Eve. It is an honor for us to be used by God to serve in our local church.

 Deacon: Vadim Brukhis

I was born in Ternopil, Ukraine. In 2001, together with my wife Lyudmila and two children Mikhail and Valerie, we moved to the United States. Four years later, I began to attend Grace Church and later came to Christ. It was a long journey to faith, but God had his plan. I actively participate in church ministry as a deacon and lead home bible study.

My favorite Bible verses are Psalm 103, “Praise the Lord, my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name. Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s…”

Deacon: Dmitri Mironov

Hello, everybody. My name is Dmitri Mironov. I came from Siberia, or rather from the city of Tomsk. Our city is not very big, but there are a lot of universities. I attended Polytechnic University and studied philosophy which touched upon the meaning of human existence and worldview. Many of my questions regarding human morality and behavior remained unanswered. I understood that science cannot explain concepts of justice, love, mutual understanding, kindness and many other things that touched human relationships. Later in life, I realized that the Lord already had begun his work in me. He was preparing me to accept him as my true Savior. In 2002, I met my future wife Oksana. She grew up in Christian family and helped me to find out more about Jesus. In 2004, the Lord sent me to America where I was baptized and began to open and discover the Lord more and more in my life. In the same year, I got married, and the Lord gave us our son Max. I serve as deacon and have a passion to evangelize about the work Christ done in my life and the transformation I experienced.

One of my favorite verses from the Bible is Proverbs 3:5-6 “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your paths.”