Struggles of Slavic Third Culture Children

“When we lived in Ukraine we had countless prayer meetings. We would make time to be with the Lord. Our youth services were filled with fervent prayer and the strong presence of God. Back then the youth was spiritually much stronger. But look at your generation now, it’s declining morally and spiritually and moving away from God.” These phrases are often spoken by parents in Slavic Pentecostal families who immigrated to the United States in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s. The parents grew up in the former USSR, in countries such as Ukraine, Russia, Moldova, Belarus, Estonia, Latvia, Poland, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and the like. They were raised in countries where there was much (Christian) religious persecution, while their children were raised in the United States, where there is religious freedom.

 As American Christians were praying for the USSR to open their doors to the Gospel and religious freedom, our parents were doing the same from inside the iron curtain. As soon as communism fell, thousands of Pentecostal families sought refuge from religious persecution and economic hardship by packing their bags and moving to America. My family immigrated to America in the late 1980’s, when I was only four years of age. Even though I was very young, I realized that we had to start a new life in a new country, learn a new language, and assimilate into a new culture. I was a third culture kid.

 Having been born in Ukraine, then immigrating to the US and living here for the past 23 years, I have to admit the journey has not been easy. You may ask, “So what’s the problem? Just live the ‘American Dream’ and enjoy life.” The problem is that the third culture kids, who are now young adults and married folks, face difficulty in letting go of the past and opening doors to fresh opportunities for the future. Many older parents hold strongly to the church traditions from their former life in the USSR. Traditions that today are hindering their third culture kids from expanding their horizons and increasing their potential in ministry.

 Here is a list of what I view as the struggles the Pentecostal Slavic youth face today:

  1. A Lost Identity: Young Slavic people often face confusion and insecurity as to who they really are – Ukrainian and/or American? Young people lack the much needed encouragement from the older generation to pursue opportunities within American ministries or churches without losing their cultural identity.

  2. Church Splits over Language/Tradition: Believe it or not, many churches have split solely because some members wanted only the Russian language or only the Ukrainian language spoken during church service. Some conservative churches are even against preaching in English because they want to conserve their natural language. However, English is the primary language of the young Slavic generation, who are essentially going to become the next church leaders. When language becomes the reason for splitting a church, young people get discouraged in their faith and some join American churches. Apart from language, church traditions like wearing head coverings for the women or having a worship band instead of a choir have become a few of the top reasons for internal church splits.

  3. Lack of Discipleship & Mentoring: Many former and current pastors of Slavic Pentecostal churches never had any formal seminary training or ministry education. As a result, there is a strong focus on holiness, repentance, and prayer within the teaching, but discipleship is often forgotten. This is due in part to many of the ministers having a full-time secular job while being a full-time minister. They literally do not have the time to sit down and disciple members and new believers one-on-one. With mentorship nearly non-existent, many young people struggle with problems such as pornography, alcohol, drug abuse, sexual abuse, and emotional pains. Their parents don’t understand due to the cultural gap, their pastor doesn’t have time for them, so they are sometimes stuck to fend for themselves.

4. Pursuing Culture Instead of Christ: Sometimes when Slavic youth feel a call into the ministry, they choose to “be safe” in their culture instead of stepping out and walking on water like Apostle Peter. Stepping out on water means that they must choose to leave their comfortable, every-day lifestyle and venture into their ministry calling by attending theological seminaries, Christian colleges, establishing Bible schools, and planting churches with a new generation in mind. Many have chosen to go with the flow and not accept their position in Christ because it goes beyond their “cultural realm.” Sometimes parents even push their kids to choose careers everywhere but in the ministry field.

 There must be a shout-out to the Slavic Pentecostal pastors, leaders, and courageous hearts to reach out to the third culture kids through discipleship, encouragement, and prayer. My fear is if this does not happen, many young people will never fully reach their potential in Christian ministry but will pursue careers and objectives of a worldly value. This is not to say that God can’t use other means of rising up the Slavic youth, but maybe it’s just a step in the right direction. Christ must become higher than our culture. We must have a fresh revival of the Spirit, both for the young and old. Please join us in a prayer for revival in the Slavic youth generation of today!