A Long Road to Discovery
Ludmilla Osmakova was born in Russia during the 80 years of Communist suppression. She says her upbringing was typical of many Russians, passing through the ranks of its social education program—Young Pioneers, Young Communist League, high school. She went to university, where she built a career as a lecturer in literature.
“Life seemed good,” she says. “I was happily married, I mixed with the stimulating academic crowd, and we had sufficient income for pleasant living, so I had no reason to complain.
“But there was just one thing—I didn’t know God. For years I’d lived quite comfortably without Him until I raised my eyes to the stars in a great thirst for Him. He responded, setting my feet on the road to discovery.”
At that point in her life, her interest in religion was mainly one of curiosity—an academic interest without a strong spiritual dimension. “There was no vitality in my Christian experience—and no satisfaction,” Ludmilla admits. “My thirst for truth, friendship and satisfaction led me from one church to another, from the traditional Russian to the smaller Protestant denominations. Being a woman, I wan’t allowed into the Muslim mosques or Jewish synagogues.
“Then one morning, I found myself on a street near Pocrov Gates, in Moscow. It was a place I loved to be. The birds were twittering, the sun was shining and the winter snow sparkled. It was Saturday, and all was quiet in this old Moscow street. The street was lined with two- and three- storeyed, dilapidated houses, but there were no people and no cars.
“On the other side of the street I noticed a building whose door was open, which is quite unusual in Russia, so, intrigued, I stepped inside.
“To my surprise, I realised I was in a church. Architecturally it was unlike other churches I’d visited. There was a podium at the front on which stood a pulpit; the seating was of old brown timber. But the place was warm; it was as if it radiated the warmth of the breath of all the many people who’d been there before me. It seemed it bid me welcome.
“There were a number of people, who were singing a beautiful melody, the sound of which I’d not heard before. Surprising myself, I sat down to drink it in.”
Ludmilla soon made friends among the Saturday-morning Seventh-day Adventist congregation and continued to come back until, she says, she “felt like part of a family.” But she was also excited by what she heard preached from God’s Word, so she felt she’d found the place He wanted her to be. Then one day it was announced that an Australian evangelist, John Carter, was to run a major spiritual revival rally in the city, which she attended with her family, and soon after, Ludmilla was baptised.
“It was the happiest day of my life,” she says, “although none of my friends could be at the ceremony. A lady spoke to me sympathetically, saying. ‘It’s such a special day for you, but you are lonely.’ ‘No,’ I answered, gratefully but with conviction, ‘no, I’m not lonely; I’m together with my God.’
“That was the truth; I felt so close to my heavenly Father, and sensed as never before that I was His child. Since that time, I’ve put my life in His hands, and He has led me each step of my way.”
That included finding her way to Australia, where, although just four months after arriving, her husband died of a heart attack. “But God supported and comforted me in those painful, distressing days. He helped me to get through the despair of loneliness, through the hopelessness that surrounded me when I was so isolated. With His help, I made friends.
“But not always did I follow Him easily. Sometimes I protested. I didn’t want to take His advice; sometimes I didn’t understand Him and held my own way; and, sometimes I couldn’t see reason in His plan. But He’s always been patient and loving, and He’s always been right!”
She recalls one occasion “of many” such times, soon after her husband died.
“I had no place to live, but one option was a retirement village. Oh, no! I thought. Anywhere, but there. Now, six years on, I’m happy in my Kings Langley [Sydney, NSW] retirement village home. I can’t think of a better place to be,” she says.
“There are flowers all around and birds flying above; it’s a peaceful atmosphere, and I have such friendly neighbours. There’s also a small chapel, where I worship each Sabbath, with its spiritually uplifting services. So, whenever I pass through the gates of this place, I pray, Thank you, God, for all You’ve done for me.
“Now I count my blessings, for what more could I dream of? God has been good every step of my way. I delight in the present and look eagerly to the future—a future with God.”
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