After working with students for seven years, God called us to the peninsula of Kamchatka to work with indigenous reindeer herders. The locals were aloof but curious, and they often spoke with disdain of other foreigners who came for a brief spell but never stayed. We lived on the edge of the village on a camp property.

These camps were about spiritual growth and fostering a sense of community and understanding between the volunteers and the indigenous people. We often took the volunteers who came to assist with the summer camps to a small museum that displayed native artifacts. The museum required one fee for locals and another for foreigners. I still vividly recall the day we went to the museum, and the cashier said, "You are now myestne. Locals. You no longer have to pay the foreigner fee." I almost cried as I paid the local fee.

However, the full realization of the villager's trust came about after an incident with the director of the reindeer co-op. Our sending agency had sent a small team out to shoot videos of our ministry. My husband arranged to take the team out to see the reindeer herd. The ride was long and cold as the team rode out to the herd on snow machines. When they arrived, there was no reindeer herd in sight. The director demanded an exorbitant fee to film the herd hidden in a valley. The team returned without any video.

A month after that incident, we were down at the little store, and someone asked us, "Did you hear about the reindeer director?" We said, "No," and then the person told us he was fired. We asked why, and the friend explained that he wasn't doing a great job managing the herd, but there was another reason. "We fired him because he shouldn't have treated you like that – you are one of us."

Yes, building trust takes time. Results in these types of areas are slow. However, our commitment to living among this people group, participating in their daily activities, and adapting to their way of life made a profound difference. After all, Jesus set this example in His ministry as He walked and lived among the people.

Jesus was a "myestne."