[SENT VIA EMAIL FROM RUSSIA]
Hi friends,
We like to get the ball rolling pretty early here on K2 mission trips. Our day started at the crack of 11 AM. Gven the fact that the sun sets at midnight, rises at 2 AM and we finally arrived at the “hotel” close to 3 AM, I think we did well.
I only mention the “hotel” because I am sitting, quite comfortably, with 70 year old lead pain on the walls, new and improved curtains straight out of the disco era, and a 12 foot crack on the ceiling that I’m pretty sure extends straight to the roof of the building. That being said, there is no place I’d rather be. We have nothing but praise to be given to our God as we discovered that the rules imposed on us wth the children did not apply. We were told previously that we would not be able to interact with children under the age of 12, ask the children about their lives, nor take pictures of the children. But since Yurievets is not explicitly a social orphanage but a educational center, these rules did not apply. Woo Hoo!!!
We were greeted by the children who IMMEDIATELY invited us in. For those of us returning from last year, this was a marked change and an increadible answer to prayers. We are seeing the fruit of the previous two years’ work here in Yurievets and the children are the evidence. Smiles, hugs, high-fives and laughs welcomed us to the orphanage. The greatest extension of God’s goodness was perhaps when the director of the orphanage said that Andy was family. Andy said he cried when he saw a picture of he and Beth on the wall in her office. I would have cried too. Our extended family just got a whole lot bigger with this warm welcome.
We are planning a boat ride to a local island in the next few days. I hear a crazy voleyball tournament is in the mix. Hopefully team America will triumph.There is also the annual sail boat race on the Vulga river this week. This is awesome, I think. Last year there was no wind so the boats didn’t go very fast, or far, or at all. I hear it’s great though. This is an awesome chance to hang with the kids and see what they like to do for fun. Most of the coolest conversations are on the walk to and from these adventures so keep praying for those opportunities.
A huge praise also to God for our YoungLife leader John the Blonde. Minor typo. He’s John, Not Tony. He has been annointed to teach these kids about how free they can be in Christ. John is a stellar guy who said some of the greatest words that blessed my heart. He said, “You guys are real, like Paul (the apostle), you are crazy by Jesus.” Pray that God falls on him heavily tomorrow and that the enemy has no hold on him. He has such an increadible opportunity to effect these children for eternity.
Thanks for listening to my update. I am so overwhelmed by His coolness.
Ian
