Turko-Russia Area Director - Makhset Djabbarbergenov

Serving: Central Asia and Russia

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Serving with Global Teams Since 2019

Makhset grew up in Karakalpakstan, an autonomous region of Uzbekistan bordering Kazakhstan. As a teenager, following the breakup of the Soviet Union, he attended classes at a local mosque. After a friend shared with him that God loved him, Makhset accepted Jesus as his Savior and Lord. “From this day, I had joy, peace and hope. I became a new creation!”

God gave Makhset an evangelistic gift and an apostolic heart. “From this day I shared with my friends. A lot of my friends came to Jesus.” He became involved in an underground church that experienced exponential growth. God also provided an opportunity for Makhset to study at a Bible seminary in Russia. Despite ongoing arrests and harassment, he chose to remain in Central Asia, where he discipled believers and planted churches. In 2012, Makhset was jailed and threatened with years of imprisonment. Miraculously he was freed, and he moved, with his wife and four boys, to Sweden. There, he pastors refugees from all over the world.

Makhset speaks several Turkic languages – Kazakh, Karakalpak, Uzbek, Kirgiz – as well as Russian, Swedish, English, and a little Chinese and Dari. He has a passion for seeing the church multiply throughout Russia and Central Asia, and we are excited to have him on our team!