Dear SGA Partners,

As chairman of SGA’s board of directors, I thank our Heavenly Father for this rare opportunity for me to write to you—our faithful partners in ministry. For 83 years, our Lord has blessed your prayers and generous support to help advance the Gospel across Russia and her neighboring countries. God answered our prayers to bring atheistic Soviet communism and the Iron Curtain crashing down, and since then He has blessed your support for all of SGA’s ministries.

Michael Johnson President, Slavic Gospel Association

SGA president Bob Provost has served with distinction in his post for almost 22 years. Last June, he informed our board that at 76 years old, it was time for him to relinquish the reins of SGA to a younger man with more energy. We then prayerfully began the process to find that man. In March of this year, Bob wrote to SGA supporters and asked for prayer that the Lord would reveal the man that He has been preparing for this important responsibility. Just one month later, He has gloriously revealed that His man to lead SGA forward is Michael Johnson, who served between 1996-2004 as our vice president of advancement.

For Michael and SGA, this is truly coming full circle for the glory of Christ. In 1996, Bob Provost was visiting a sound Bible church partner in New York City where he encountered Michael, then a young Madison Avenue advertising executive who was enthusiastically teaching God’s Word to an Adult Bible Fellowship. Michael and his wife, Erin, accepted Bob’s invitation to serve Christ at SGA. During these years, Bob mentored Michael, and Michael helped develop SGA’s Orphans Reborn and Immanuel’s Child ministries, and assisted in the growth of our training and church planting ministries.

To provide the resources for his sons’ college expenses, Michael accepted a business position in 2004. He has served for the past several years as senior vice president of the highly respected firm, Douglas Shaw and Associates, located in Naperville, Illinois. Through these experiences, our Lord has been equipping and preparing Michael to return to SGA for such a time and place as this. He assumes the SGA presidency effective May 1, 2017. Michael desires to build on the solid biblical and ministry foundation laid by our founder Peter Deyneka, and strengthened even further by Bob Provost.

In addition, the SGA board desires to honor Bob for his many contributions over the last two decades. We have asked him to continue as President Emeritus and serve as an advisor to Michael. Please continue to pray for our Lord’s great blessings upon Michael as he assumes this vital responsibility.

Sincerely,
Warner Tillman
Chairman