The Grog and The Light

A game we played at Child in Danger was called “The Grog”. A blindfolded “Grog” would try to freeze tag kids coming into a room with a hidden flashlight. The flashlight was in 3 pieces. They had to find the pieces, put them together to make the flashlight work, and shine it on the “Grog” to make him melt away. The kids loved being chased and it reinforced our Bible lesson about how light can make a dramatic effect on a dark place.

This week, we are making a dramatic effect in a dark place. We have experienced some unusual hardships, changes, and disruptions. Our newly formed SAC Prayer Team is activity praying for us while we are on mission. Many that receive the SAC Prayers Request e-mail update are also praying for us. These prayers are making a difference!

On Friday, October 16, we made plans for a tea for the older children at Child in Danger. It gave them an opportunity to be more grown-up with and activity that interested them. After an hour of talking I asked them if they wanted to know why we had come. They all responded yes. I told them about our missionary work and then I asked if they would like to know the simple story of how to have eternal life. Again, they all responded yes. I gave a simple presentation of the Gospel. I asked them if they would like to pray and receive Christ and have eternal life. They all responded yes! Four kids were saved that evening at Child in Danger! The light of Christ made a difference in a dark place.

At Lomonosov Children’s Hospital on Wednesday, October 21, when doing crafts with the kids. I shared the Gospel beginning with a flashlight. I asked them what it was. “A flashlight”, they all said. I then tried to turn it on and it didn’t work. I asked them why it didn’t work. After some investigation, they discovered it didn’t have batteries. I picked up a pencil and asked if I put that in the flashlight would that make it work? They responded noooo! I picked up some coins and dramatically tried to put them in the back and I asked would that make it work? They responded noooo! So I reached in my pocket and put in the batteries. It worked! The flashlight needed the right thing inside to make it shine its light. I then explained in the same way you need Jesus to allow God to shine His light in the world. I explained how they could receive Jesus and carefully explained that a prayer would be the start of a relationship with him. I prayed and 3 of the 6 kids said they prayed to receive Jesus. Again, the light made a difference in a dark place!

At the Boys Home in Petrohof, the week has been an attempt to tame the wild. Probably it’s better to say it’s something like herding a school of fish with a couple of little nets! These at-risk boys at this school have never been visited by a foreign team. Nothing went right on the first day. There was more cooperation in the comedy classroom classic TV drama called, “Welcome Back Kotter”! Our approach on Tuesday had to be changed radically. The Bible Study lessons I had written were dismissed. We had Pastor Andre explain the Gospel directly to the kids using bead bracelets. A grab of bracelets lead to some older kids have 4 or 5 bracelets on their wrists. Other kids had none, but the message was shared despite a very disruptive environment. Wednesday was a bit better. I had made up a schedule of rotation between Games, Crafts, and Bible Lessons. I split the older kids from the younger kids, but some still floated in and out and with other groups. In the Bible class, I had brought on of the guys from the Drug Rehab Center to give his personal testimony. The kids were surprised. In the younger group, I had about 16 kids listen intently as he shared his testimony of drug use, prison, and a messed up life until he found Jesus. His testimony was in Russian, but you could hear a pin drop as he shared. The boys sat quietly for 20 minutes! After he finished, several of the kids surrounded him and shook his hand or gave him a hug thanking him for coming to visit them. It made an impact. Most of the older boys didn’t show up, but one boy did and Victor shared. This one boy was amazed listened and asked many questions. Slowly, the light of Christ is beginning to make a difference in this dark place!

At the same time, the peace of God has come upon me and I feel that things are going well and we are doing what God has set before us.

More Changes!

Our first day of ministry in St. Petersburg brought more changes. Why should I be surprised? It’s a mission trip and you are supposed to be flexible!

We all went to Children’s Hospital #15 this morning ready to meet kids and do ministry. After several delays, we were finally in the activity room to begin a craft at 11:45am, however we would only be given until 12pm and then we would need to leave. Our team was able to minister to 8 kids with a craft project that took most of the time. However, as we were making plans for the next day, we were told that Americans need to have a ten day quarantine! They were afraid that some of us would be carriers of the swine flu and they wanted to make sure their children didn’t catch it. It seems that the hospital had a bad experience a couple of weeks ago that caused them to make this new rule in the past few days. So, since none of us have been here for 10 days yet, we are ineligible to come back. Again, it seemed that we were knocked out of our planned morning activity. Two weeks ago the Crimson Sail Shelter canceled due to government activities with the kids, and now our back-up plan to minister at the Children’s Hospital has been thwarted. Change and flexibility… that’s the essence of a mission trip!

Later that afternoon, we all ended up at Child in Danger. There were 13 children waiting on us to do activities. They were a great group! We were able to do a craft together, play some games, and lead an age appropriate Bible Story with the kids. We attempted to get them to memorize the focus Bible verse, but only one child was able to memorize the Russian verse from a small poster. Of course, more kids became much more attentive once I gave two Dum Dum pops to the one boy! We explained that we would be there all week and ended our time together in prayer.

During our craft, I was able to talk to the director and found out that 7 of the younger kids are at an age where they don’t go to school. So, with that we decided to come to the Child in Danger Shelter in the morning, play with the younger kids, go to lunch, and then go back and minister to all the kids with crafts, stories, and Bible Stories. So, now all is well and we will be spending all our time with the kids from Child In Danger. That a change I can do!

The other major change is the weather. Today it began snowing as we arrived at the Children’s Hospital. As we came in the snow came down harder and harder. By the time we had to leave, the snow was almost blowing sideways and was beginning to stick on the grassy areas. The sidewalks were full of slush and our coats were getting wet. It snowed for more than 5 hours! It was the big thick flakes that are great for making snowballs. Of course, you know what happened next!

Certainly there are lots of changes here. I’m sure there are more to come!

Last Day in Sosnovo

Time goes quickly and the last day was upon us too soon! We started off with our Bible Story, but today it was going to be a Gospel Presentation. Lots of kids in Russia have seen the Gospel Bead Bracelets as a way of presenting the Gospel, but only a few from the Day Center knew the meaning behind the colored beads on bracelets they would make later in the hour. I’ve done this presentation before know that I have to be simple and quick as there are always distractions. This was no different, but the kids were attentive and listened as I spoke and Pastor Slava translated for me.

As I was explaining all the beads, I was praying that the Lord would give me the right words to say that would be translated in a way they could understand so that they could know Jesus. I also tried to determine if it was right to lead them in a prayer at the end for those that wanted to be saved. Sometimes I don’t as I don’t feel the attention of the group is right or if the hearts don’t seem to be open. However, this time the stage seemed to be set just right and I sensed the kids having an open heart to hear the message. I prayed a simple prayer and then asked if any of them had prayed that prayer for the first time. I was glad to see six hands go up! I felt these were honest confessions and that they had wanted a relationship with Christ! I was so pleased!

After our presentation, the kids made Friendship Bracelets with the color beads as a reminder of the meaning behind the beads. The kids also memorized the verse from John 3:16 and were awarded prizes for memorizing the daily verse. Then we added up the number of stars each kid received during the week and who would win prizes. Winners were selected and presented at the closing.

We were treated to a short show of songs, dance, and a cute skit! Then it was time to award the winners of the week of competition. Five winners were selected and the kids got more that a piece of candy for their accomplishment! Four of the winner received a framed picture and the winner of the memory verse competition won a soccer ball! That soccer ball was very treasured and he had all the SAC Team members sign it as a memory of the event!

After this the kids were presented with t-shirts that I was able to round up. They were leftover from a previous mission trip and there was enough to give to the kids at the Day Center as I had no room in my bags to bring t-shirts like I normally do. In each bag I placed a copy of the ‘Book of John’ in Russian that Pastor Slava had on hand in the storage room. The kids seemed pleased, although it was not as much as what we had given before. But no one complained… even when the t-shirt wasn’t their size. Nadezhda, the Day Center director also presented us with hand-made gifts from the church.

A few days later after we had left, Pastor Slava had stayed in Sosnovo to attend Sunday services. He told me that 4 of those 6 had come to church that morning! They were seeking! The young preacher who had come to Sosnovo to preach was surprised by the number of youth that had come to the service. Pastor Slava told me that he adjusted his message to address these youth that had come! They are now talking about starting a youth ministry at the church!

The long term work of a dedicated Day Center director, noticeable building improvements, the happiness they felt participating in the events of the week caused hearts to change and the fruits of Christian labor to be manifested! “Slava Bogum” (Praise God!)

Sosnovo Improvements

In the four years we have been coming to the Day Center, it has always been cold inside. Often the kids and all of us would keep our coats on because the electric heaters could not keep the drafty old building warm enough. It was also very costly to run these electric heaters. Well, that all changed this week!

Recently the city of Sosnovo had been given money from the central government for the region that was used to make improvements to the city infrastructure. This included remodeling several city building, making street improvements, and connecting building to a central heating system operated by the city. In Russia, it’s more normal for public buildings to be connected to hot water pipes that run throuogh radiators in the buildings. This is how they heat most of the buildings. In Sosnovo, the public building had not been connected to the city hot water system and therefore had none of this heat. The week we were doing ministry there, city workers were installing hot water radiators in each of the rooms in the Day Center! Now the kids can truly come to a safe AND warm place and not have to keep their coats on! This will also allow Nadezhda to open up other connecting rooms that has a ping pong table (that SAC purchased a couple of years ago) and she can monitor all rooms with doors open. They couldn’t keep the doors open before as they couldn’t afford to heat those rooms. In addition, this will save the Day Center in electrical costs and reduce some of their expenses in a troubled economy. The new heaters should be turned on this week!

Another problem was the huge mud puddle around the entrance to the Day Center. The small area in front has always had poor drainage and when the snow melted or it rained, it would always pool up in front of the Day Center. Pastor Slava said that a couple cubic meters or gravel would be a big help and cost only about 1000 rubles ($30) per meter. Lenoid, the deacon at the church, ordered the gravel and it was dumped just about the time we needed to start the Bible Study… of course! But the kids once they saw the gravel they all jumped in and began to help spreading it. We only had four shovels and a couple of buckets, but somehow everyone got involved and helped. One boy named Igor had a shovel was asked by another boy for his turn to help. Igor said, “Not on your life!” He wanted to keep that shovel and help!

Two other boys in school uniforms (as some public school require) were asked to join in, and they said they had just finished working hard at school on some cleanup. Nevertheless, after putting their backpacks inside, they quickly joined in the spreading of the gravel. Within about 15 minutes all the kids had spread the gravel and there was now a path to walk on without getting your shoes wet!

The kids take great pride in “their” Day Center and were encouraged by the improvements!

Sosnovo Games!

I was a little worried about this trip regarding games. Usually on a mission trip I can bring some supplies and things to play with and leave with the Day Center, but on this trip I only had one bag that I could pack and take with me overseas and this would need to hold all the crafts, Bible Study material, and anything else I could fit in. I didn’t have room for a lot of games, so I was concerned things wouldn’t work out… but I was wrong!

There are many games that can be played without supplies! One game we played had all the kids sit at a table in a circle and place their hands on the table. But their hands had to crossover the person next to them. Then they had to slap their hand in order around the circle. Sounds simple enough, but visually the order is confused when you have the hands crossed. I think the kids could have played this game for hours! They loved it and there was no supplies needed.

Then we had them in a room and we had them mill about. We would call out a number (in Russian) and they would have to make a group according to that number. Well, that game got pleasantly violent as kids grappled for one another to create a group. You will see on the pictures the kids in a clump on the floor having the best of time!

One of my favorites is a game I call “Head Plant” although that’s not the real name… its just the name I gave it! The kids are in two groups of five or more. We would call out, “5 hands, 4 feet, and 2 heads” and the kids in each group would have to configure themselves so that their group had only 5 hands, 4 feet, and 2 heads touching the floor. It’s a crazy game and again no supplies were needed!

Lastly, Tina and the translators worked on a game for several days that we would do on Thursday. We had two teams and each team would roll a dice to see what number they would get. The kids in each group would run to find a paper pinned on the wall that matched that number. We placed 50 of these numbered games around the outside of the building in various order. On each numbered paper was an activity that the team needed to complete before they could go on to the next numbered game. Each of the 50 games were things like, “count backwards from 50 (in Russian of course), wrap a group member in toilet paper head to toe, or take a bite from an apple hanging from the basketball hoop.

Again, this took little supplies and required only a big imagination! A BIG thanks to Tina who led the games and created a lot of fun for all of us!

Sosnovo Memory Verse

At the beginning of the week, we told the kids that they would have an opportunity to memorize the Bible verse that we would be discussing that day to be eligible for a prize. Surprisingly, most ALL the kids joined in this competition. All of them had a great memory and they all would do this each day with eagerness! Of course, the treasure box full of candy like M&M’s, Twix, and other Russian candy that was available was certainly an enticement for all ages.

After the Bible Lesson, the kids would see the Memory Verse that Nadezhda would put on a poster so they could memorize. Pastor Slava and Sergey would manage this and get the kids to say and memorize the verse. The first day was easy… they only had to memorize Monday’s verse, but on Tuesday they had to memorize both Monday and Tuesday’s verse! It seems I had t make a couple of trips to the store to buy more candy!

At the end of the week, we had a competition for those that memorized all five verses and would be the first to recite them. We also had prizes for those who helped the most, showed the best servant attitude, and several other prizes. I was pleasantly surprised that the kids would participate in this so well and show so much enthusiasm!

Bible Stories at the Day Center!

After a couple worship songs in Russian led by Pastor Slava, we would start with a short Bible lesson that involved a game or some devise to make them think. Sentence by sentence I would read the story and Pastor Slava would translate. The first day we talked about the Napkin Story and the resurrection of Christ. Then the rest of the week we studied the book of Samuel with topics of “Fear and Courage”, “Trusting God”, “Vengeance and Mercy”, and then the Gospel presentation using the Friendship / Bead bracelets.

There are always a lot of distractions when teaching a Bible Lesson. A small game to drive home the point of a Bible truth always helps. Despite the long-winded minister (me!), the kids listened. They knew that I would play games with them, help them with crafts, and that I was the one responsible for bringing this week of activity together. If I could get them to see one Bible truth through our lesson, then I felt that they were getting the message.

On Monday, I used a purple ribbon and two paperclips as a devise to show them how God wants a relationship with them. I had the kids write Jesus in Russian in the center of this ribbon. I held up one paperclip and said this represents God, and the other paperclip saying this represented each of them. Then I placed the paperclip over the ribbon in a certain way that when the ends were pulled, the paperclips would be joined together. The ribbon, representing Jesus would join the paperclips representing God and each of them together. It was a way to introduce Jesus as the key that tied us together with God. The kids thought the little trick was interesting and I hope held their attention as I talked about what we were doing there that week.

One day, we were talking about Trusting God and I remembered a story I heard from the Director last April 2008 when we were there. Two boys broke their neighbor’s door at their apartment. The boys (about 10 years old) were worried that the police would be called and they would go to jail. They went and talked to Nadezhda, the director of the Day Center, and they all prayed together. They were depending on God and trusting in Him to help them. As I retold this story, it probably embarrassed the two boys there, but they remembered the incident and remembered that they sought after God in their hour of need and trusted in them. I told the boys and the group listening that I was impressed that they went to God with their problem and trusted in Jesus first!

On Friday, I shared the Gospel and explained the meaning of salvation. The kids listened intently. I went through each of the beads as a devise for explaining that God wanted a relationship with us. I did my best to keep it simple and short so I wouldn’t lose their attention. In the end, I asked them if I could pray a prayer and then if they wanted to, they could pray a prayer too to ask Christ into their lives. After the prayer, I asked if this was the first time any of them had prayed a prayer like that. Five kids raised their hands. I was so pleased. I’m careful not to just pray a prayer and take names and numbers for some ministry statistics. Sometimes Russian kids will pray the prayer just to please the American. I felt the moment was right and the attention was there. They might not understand all things, but I thought that the hands that were raised were honest confessions. I told them all welcome to the family of God and that one day we will all spend eternity together, along with Pastor Slava and members of my team in heaven together and remember this day!

Crafts at the Day Center!

On Monday our time together with the kids from the Day Center started at about 3pm. They would come from school to the center and Nadezhda would have sandwiches made of a piece of French bread, a slice of cheese, and maybe a slice of pork. They would also have tea or juice if it was available. A few months ago the Day Center lost their funding to feed the kids. Pastor Slava had set up an arrangement for the kids to eat a meal at local café that would feed them yesterday’s leftovers. Now, Nadezhda the director goes and buys about 300p of food (about $9) and feed about 18 kids when they came. I’ve been told for some of these at-risk kids, it is their only meal of the day.

After some songs, prayer, and a Bible Study, we would lead them in several crafts that we had planned throughout the week.

Our craft on Monday directly related to the Bible Lesson I taught that day. Since it had been Easter in Russia the day before, I talked about the resurrection of Jesus and the burial cloths… specifically the napkin that was placed over the face of Jesus. According to John 20:7, “…(Peter) saw the strips of linen lying there, as well as the burial cloth that had been around Jesus’ head. The cloth was folded up by itself, separate from the linen.” In Jewish tradition and in current table manners etiquette, the napkin that is folded means that “I’m coming back”! I talked to the kids about the subtle message regarding the folded napkin and then we decorated cloth napkins as a reminder of the resurrection of Jesus. In the pictures you will notice that many of the napkins show the initials “XB”. In the Russian alphabet, these letters translate to the phrase “Christ has Risen!”

On another day, we had the kids make denim bookmarks. The kids attached foam pieces of cutouts in a western theme to create their own bookmark. The kids seem to really enjoy some of the crafts that we brought. Thanks to Linda Howell for putting this craft and many others together!

One of the more complicated crafts was the foam Log Cabin. This kit had 25-30 small pieces that had to be placed on the project in a certain order. Tina, our volunteer that is living in St. Petersburg for a year from Sweden, is an experienced children’s’ minister. She took them through step by step to construct this cabin. The kids seemed to love the project as they just don’t have crafts like that here. By the end of our time, we had a whole town of log cabins!
Another hit was the friendship bracelets that they tied using the color beads. IN the Bible Story time before that on Friday, I explained the meaning of the beads and then they made their own bracelet as a reminder of their relationship with Christ. The teens seemed to enjoy knowing how to make these and this is something they can make after we leave. We left extra supplies so the kids could make their own. For the smaller kids, we gave the Gospel Bead kits with the leather string as this was easier to construct than the friendship bracelets.

The crafts are great relationship builders. It’s an opportunity to work together, to create something new, learn a new skill, help each other, and have fun together. That feeling of fun will stick with them as they learn more about the Christian faith as they grow older. It doesn’t have to be perfect, they just have to try. It’s like the Christian faith… you don’t have to be perfect or successful… just obedient.

Sosnovo Meals Provided!

At dinner on Sunday night, Lenoid (the deacon), told us that all our meals would be provided for us this week. We were stunned! We had planned to feed everyone at the local café, but they offered this as a ministry of their church. So, each day during the week, Lenoid would pick us all up and talke us to his “Dacha”. A Dacha is an individual home usually outside the city. Usually it’s anything that is not an apartment and is individually heated. The pictures of the home and the table inside are of Lenoid & Galina’s dacha about 10 minutes from the center of town.

On Monday, they asked us if we liked BBQ. Being from Texas, the answer is a simple YES! They cooked outside on a little BBQ using birch wood as starter and then coal (not charcoal) for fuel. In addition, we heated tea using a “Samovar”. This is a Russian Tea kettle that is stuffed in the center with hot coals to heat the water. As the water is heating, a stove pipe is placed on top. This is a very traditional way of making tea in Russia. You can’t tell it from the picture, but the temperature was in the 20’s and it was cold!

Russian hospitality is wonderful and special. We were guests and we were treated with honor. Despite the economic hardships, Lenoid and Galina sacrificed their time and money to feed us. I think Pastor Slava told me that Lenoid said something to the effect of serving in Christ requires a degree of sacrifice. Each meal was a three course serving. It always started with a large bowl of soup, then a dinner plate of potatoes and some kind of meat, then tea or “comport”. Comport is a drink that is made from either berries or fruit added to a large jar with water to make a fruit flavored drink. When I’ve had it before, it wasn’t very good, but Galina’s was excellent! I preferred that over tea most evenings!

Lenoid teased us one evening by saying that we needed to chop some wood before we could eat! So, I think we surprised them when Pastor Slava, Andre, and I all went down to chop some wood. It was a birch wood and it split easy without a wedge. Of course, it was a photo opportunity!

Afterwards, we went in to wash up for the meal. In the kitchen was a yellow sink with a device I hadn’t seen before. The small bucket above the sink contained water. The metal rod coming below the bucket was lifted up to allow the water to flow like a faucet. The Russians all laughed when I couldn’t figure out how to use it. They laughed more when I took a picture! Our meals during the week were a highlight. It was a great time of rest, fellowship, and sometimes singing some Russian hymns if Pastor Slava brought his guitar. Before each meal we would all stand and pray. Several languages were spoken at the table. That week we prayed in English, Russian, Czech, Norwegian, and Swedish. It was great to pray together with Christian friends around the world and come together as old friends. After the meal and just before Lenoid would take us home, we stood in honor of Lord and prayed again. Certainly it was a special time for all of us.

Trip to Sosnovo, April 19

On Sunday afternoon, April 19, we all met at the train station to take the hour and forty minute trip to the town of Sosnovo, just north of St. Petersburg. The train trip is interesting and it makes several stops along the way. Vendors are going through each car as it travels selling everything from crab flavored potato chips to ice cream. I opted for the ice cream bars!
When we arrived in Sosnovo, Lenoid, a deacon of the Sosnovo Baptist Church, picked us and our luggage up and took us to our hotel. Shortly after we settled in, we walked to the Day Center which was close by. This Day Center is run by Youth for Christ and the director is Nadezhda, one that we’ve worked with for the past 4 years.

Dinner was waiting for us at the Day Center and we had a great time of fellowship that evening when we arrived. Pastor Slava, who used to be the pastor there, had arrived earlier that morning.

The hotel is basic, but comfortable. Even though we had made reservations several months ago and they knew we were coming, the heat wasn’t working in the large room, the hot water faucet was broken in one room, the vertical blinds were missing about half of their blinds, and we were told to keep the doors closed so the four cats that also resided there wouldn’t enter our rooms! Once there we were asked to pray for Andre’s mom. Andre is the assistant to Nadezhda for the Day Center. Due to the global financial crisis and a reduction of funding for Youth for Christ, his position was eliminated. In addition, his wife and he had recently separated. But far worse than that, his mom disappeared two weeks ago without a trace. The police are involved and haven’t found any clues. Unfortunately, Baptists are looked upon here as a “sect”. Rumors in this small town have flourished as they had heard that Andre’s mom recently joined the Baptist Church here in Sosnovo. Some have even speculated of the Baptist “sacrificing” her. Pastor Slava said that it’s sometimes hard to believe that we live in the 21st Century and people are thinking in ways that they did in the 1600’s! Please pray for Andre and that his mom would be found safe and sound.

Camp Gideon, Estonia - April 17

This camp is on about 75 acres on the coast of the Gulf of Finland about 20 minutes north of the town of Johvi. The camp used to be a Pioneer Camp in Soviet times where kids learned about communism and atheism. Currently the camp is under major reconstruction, yet they still have summer camps out there each summer attracting more that 200 youth at a time!

The Guest House can hold 30 members of a mission team in a private area with 2-3 per room. There is a big church that they are renovating on the inside and their large worship center overlooks the Gulf of Finland. It has a beach, a wooden basketball court, a soccer field, an outside stage, and a swimming pool that they hope one day that they will be able to repair.

Near the rest of the camp buildings they have an area set aside for Scouts. The multicolored “A” framed buildings in the pictures is that Scout Camp.

This property is owned by the church in Johvi and is a great location for a camp. Folks are in the USA now to raise support for the reconstruction of this camp. Pastor Artur told me that this camp is the only one of its kind in Estonia. There is a lot of potential for ministry at this camp for any mission teams!

The Orphanage at Kohtia-Jarva - April 17

This orphanage is also about a 20 minute drive from the town of Johvi. It’s in the center of town with about 50 kids living in this orphanage ages 6-20. There are 5 family groups in this orphanage with about 9-10 kids per group. About 50% are teens with about two-thirds being boys.

I spoke with a lady named Svetlana Kritena that was very happy to take us around, although she was not the director. The director was unavailable at the time, so we took a quick tour and I asked her some quick questions to get a feel for their receptiveness to groups coming. They do have a large stage and can set up a large screen and a laptop projector so the entire orphanage could attend an event or movie. They have received other groups in the past from Sweden, Finland, and Holland.

The kids’ normal schedule is to come home from school and then do homework in their family groups. Many assignments are sent via computers as the kids in this orphanage have 3 or more computers per family group. This homework goes on until 6pm. Svetlana said that it would be better for groups to visit after that time.

The orphanage is set up for family groups and for each child to have a room of their own as well. In a way, it seemed like a college dorm. Many of the kids are social orphans, meaning they have parents but there is some problem at home. The church in Johvi visits them occasionally and they seemed to get visits from the three other countries on a regular basis. My initial impression is that they are better taken care of than some orphanages, but they seem to be very open to a group coming.

The Orphanage at Kohtla-Nomme - April 17

This orphanage is about a 20 minute drive from the town of Johvi and where we were staying at Pastor Artur’s church. His daughter Liana and church volunteer Andre escorted us for the day to these places we needed to see.

After driving through a row of cottage homes, we turned and there nested in a forest of tall pine trees was this small orphanage for about 36 kids. Although the building is older the orphanage itself was begun in 2002. All the kids are Russian’s and range in age from 6-20 years old. Older children are allowed to stay longer if they continue their education. Like all other orphanages I’ve seen in Estonia, this one was based on a family setting as well. There are 4 family groups in this orphanage, each with about 7-8 kids in each group. Each group has 4 staff members that rotate on duty every 24 hours.

We saw a very large pile of cut wood near the orphanage and we were told they used the wood for heating the whole orphanage. I’m sure there is a lot of wood chopping that goes on there! They are also in walking distance of a small hill that they use for downhill skiing. There is no lift, so I’m sure one would walk up the small incline and then ski down. There was still snow on this slope!

I met with the second director of the orphanage, whose name was Mait (pronounced “Mite”) as the first director was on vacation. They were very open to us coming and sharing the Gospel and doing activities with the kids. They would be willing to do a cultural performance as they have a dance instructor. They even offered for us to stay at the orphanage for the week with our team. They even have wireless internet access that would allow us to connect.
I was very impressed by this orphanage. I could see a team of 4 making a great impact here during a week of ministry.

Pastor Artur's Church in Johvi, Estonia - April 16

After visiting the Narva Orphanage and driving by a Shelter in Narva that we didn’t have time to see, we drove westward to Sillamae, about a 25 minute drive from Narva. There, Milan and I were going to be passed off to Pastor Artur who would drive us back to Johnvi (pronounced “Ickvey”). There was a Children’s home in Sillamae we were hoping to see, but Pastor Artur needed to get back to town as he had a meeting. Pastor Artur is very influential in Johvi with his outreach to the community. He is a member of the City Council and that was the meeting he had to attend.

Artur took us to his church and gave us a brief tour. Then he showed us where we were staying. It was a very comfortable room that has a separate bathroom and even internet access. That gave us some time to rest from the trip as both of us had to wake up at 5am to get to the bus that left for Estonia at 7:15am. So, the two hours did us some good.

Artur returned at about 6pm and members had fixed us dinner. We spoke for a while and then went to a service that begun at 7pm. Artur asked me to share a little about the SAC ministry and what we were doing. In his sermon, Pastor Artur talked about seed planting. I spoke about the same things with regards to our seed planting among the orphans we minster to.

After the service we made plans to visit several places in the surrounding area of places that their church was directly involved in or where they visited often. On the schedule for Friday was to visit two orphanages, a camp, and a Day Center for Disabled Children that is due to open in September. All this was planned before heading back to St. Petersburg on Friday afternoon!

The Orphanage in Narva, Estonia - April 16

We arrived at the Narva Orphanage within about 10 minutes from being picked up at the bus station. Daniel, our driver and escort who knew the director of this orphanage, introduced us to the director and we talked about the orphanage and the challenges they have.

These orphanages are a little different that the ones in Russia. The first thing I noticed is that all the orphanages are arranged in a family setting. So, one wing or portion of a floor is set up more like an apartment with a room as a family dining room and kitchen, a living room, and each child has a room of their own. Depending on the orphanage and their capacity, they may share a room, but I didn’t see that happen too often. About 50% of the 31 kids in this orphanage are teens. About 80% of them have parents, but have been turned over to the orphanage due to alcoholism or drug addicted parents.

Narva, Estonia is about 80% Russian and the rest Estonian. 96% of the city speaks Russian, but more of the city government is employed by Estonians. The officials want them to speak Estonian as there is political tension between Russia and Estonia. The orphans in the facility are all Russian and there is additional stigma attached to these kids as they are living in Estonia where the preference is given to Estonian speakers. They are trying to integrate by trying to get funding for Estonian language teachers, but the motivation for speaking Estonian among Russians is low.

The current economic crisis and the collapse of the Soviet Union in the early 1990’s have made living in Narva difficult. Main industries have dried up and funding for orphanages is minimal. The orphanage only gets about $110-$120 per child per year for their needs beyond food and shelter. Nevertheless, they are all friendly, and open to us coming and sharing the Gospel freely.

Trip to Estonia, April 16-17

On Thursday, April 16, I had made plans to make an exploratory trip to Estonia to investigate the possibility of SAC doing mission trips to this country. It’s been on my heart for about a year that SAC needs to expand to other areas and other areas within the former Soviet Union. A few months ago I looked into going to the Ukraine. However, the doors to possible contacts never seemed to materialize. In contrast, the doors seemed to be wide open for possibilities in Estonia. This trip seemed to come together easily and we were able to visit 7 different possible ministry sites in several cities, easily arranged transportation, translation, and people to connect with. We were also offered a place to stay at a church in Johvi, Estonia (pronounced “Ickvey”).

Milan, a long time friend and translator for SAC, and I took a bus from St. Petersburg to Estonia. It was a couple of hours before we began the process of crossing the border. Our passports and visas were checked on the Russian side before we passed to the Estonian side where our documents were checked again. The whole process for our bus took about an hour or more. The border crossing is right at a river where there are two opposing medieval castles on each side of the river. I would have loved to tour those castles, but it indicated to me that this has been a border for a long time.

Once we were across the border, it was a short drive to the town of Narva, Estonia. At the bus station, we were met by Salvation Army Captain Daniel Henderson. Daniel was happy to pick us up despite his busy schedule. We were fast friends and he took us to the first orphanage who was expecting us.

The Crimson Sail Shelter, April 15

On Wednesday, Anya and I went to shelter that she and Nancy Durrett visited when Nancy was here in March. Anya had made connections with this place and it was right around the corner from one of the Road of Life Transition Homes. It’s a small shelter called “The Crimson Sail”. They are a part of the ministry started in 1971 called “Mission Possible” begun out of Denton, Texas!

Quickly we found the place and began our visit. Vadim is the director and he and his wife are the house parents for this shelter that looks more like a family home than anything else. They have a capacity for 8 kids, but at that time had just 5 school-aged children. We visited a while and then we all sat at the table for a snack and some tea while Vadim and I continued to talk about the ministry. Since our time was short, I could see that the kids quickly finished their snack and were listening to the English being spoken at the table. I used that opportunity to engage the kids in some quick crafts.

In my satchel I had planned a few crafts depending on how the time went. I introduced them to a little eye opener and little trick with a ribbon and a couple of paper clips. Then we did some scratch art crosses and I gave them some Gospel Bead bracelets and explained the meaning of each bead as I shared the Gospel. The kids seemed to really enjoy the visit and they were happy to see Anya return. I will return to this shelter hopefully one more time before I go back to the USA. This was a great shelter with a sweet group of kids and staff that I look forward to doing ministry with in the future!

Pastor Andre’s Drug Rehab Center

On our visit to the Lomonosov Baby Home, Pastor Andre of the Lomonosov Baptist Church was there to greet us and had lunch prepared for us when we arrived. While there, we discussed his plans for the summer which include a family camp, a children’s camp, and a camp for the Drug Rehab Center residents. We also discussed plans for our team that will come in October. We will continue to work at the Baby Home, the Children’s Hospital, and the Drug Rehab Center. In addition, Pastor Andre told me that the director of the Orphanage in Petrohof that we visited briefly last fall are waiting for our arrival. So we are looking forward to a great trip this coming October.

Pastor Andre has continued to work on the renovations inside the church. We noticed that he had put new walls up in the staircase area and had finished the staircase. He was just finishing installing some new flooring when we arrived. The biggest news is that the wall heaters in the kitchen and the rest of the building are now working! They had fought with the city for over 3 years on getting the proper documents before the heaters could be connected. Now there is heat in the building!

I visited the ladies from the Drug Rehab Center that we had worked with for the first time this last fall. They were anxious for us to come again! They had been using the leftover craft materials to make gifts for friends and continue to create things from what we taught them last fall. Several of the residents had graduated from the program and a few that we knew from this last trip are still there. Two of the girls who were residents last year, will become the directors this next year beginning in June. I could tell that they were encouraged by our visit on Friday and even the new girls seemed to know about our planned visit in the fall.

Lomonosov Baby Home to Stay Open!

On Friday, April 10th, Vica and I went to the Lomonosov Baby Home. Currently there are no children at the Baby Home. They have a staff of 10 of the 100 people they had before. Most of these 10 are financial personal. The Baby Home is currently under renovation to comply with the fire code issues identified by the local fire department. There are a lot of worker doing construction, replacing ceilings, linoleum floors, and many other things. All things are due to be mostly complete by June 1.

Due to the media reports, TV interviews, and the outcry pleas of support, local businesses have volunteered materials, workers, and money to make the needed repairs for the home. Private and Commercial support was given and they are fully funded to make these renovations. The staff has been notified that they will return. This 90 day period to comply with the fire inspector will be their “vacation”. Antonia reported that in the meantime, these same staff members have “volunteered their time to help with the Baby Home remodeling. Some of their workers and their husbands helped pull down the old ceiling so a new one could be installed. Five volunteers also spend the night each night so looters do not take things from the building. The Baby Home plans to open with a celebration on June 1st.

Antonia said that none of the children that have been moved will return back to this orphanage. She said that until June 1, children are being held in local Children’s hospitals and cared for there until the Baby Home is complete. So, the hospitals and some orphanages are full and are awaiting the opening of the Baby Home.

Later this fall, the Lomonosov Baby Home will celebrate their 60 years as a Baby Home officially on October 29. The celebration will occur on Friday, October 30, 2009.

Front Page News on Baby Home

The following article was reported in the St. Petersburg Times, on March 27, 2009. It give a good background as to what the Lomonosov Baby Home has been going through these past few weeks. The post following this will give an update from our meeting on April 10, 2009.

Lomonosov Orphanage Appeals for Aid to Prevent Closure
St. Petersburg Times, on March 27, 2009

The staff of the Lomonosov orphanage in the St. Petersburg suburb of Lomonosov are calling for help to save it from closure.

“If we meet the demands of the fire inspectorate by June 1 of this year we’ll be able to save our children’s home,” said Antonia Petrova, head doctor of the orphanage.”

“In order to do that we need to raise about 2.5 million rubles ($75,000) or for someone to donate the necessary construction materials to us,” Petrova told The St. Petersburg Times on Thursday.

If we don’t manage that, we won’t be able to look after children here anymore, and we’ll have to lay off 100 staff from our orphanage,“ she said.

The work of the orphanage has been temporally stopped for a period of 90 days by a court ruling made on the basis of a report of the Petrodvrets District Fire Inspectorate.

The inspections found numerous safety violations in the wooden building, which was built in 1892. The majority of those violations can be resolved within the time period set by the court and the Fire Inspectorate has said that it is ready to assist in eradicating the violations in order to prevent the orphange’s closure.

Earlier the Leningrad Oblast Health Committee ruled that the orphanage be closed and that its children be distributed among other orphanages, the decision being made in the belief that the Fire Inspectorate was certain to close the institution down.

As a result, all 95 children under four years of age were moved to various other orphanages in the Leningrad Oblast. They include 22 HIV-positive children who were receiving special care at the Lomonosov Orphanage.

In interviews on Thursday, the orphanage staff and volunteers said that the removal of the children would have a negative impact, especially upon those who have been diagnosed HIV-positive. Lomonosov Orphanage is the only specialized establishment in Leningrad Oblast tailored to meet the needs of children suffering from such illnesses.

“If we remove the fire violations we won’t be able to return all of the children that we had to transfer to the other orphanages, but we’ll be able to get our HIV-positive children back, received new children and keep 100 staff at the orphanage,” Petrova said.

Petrova explained that in view of the current economic crisis it would be “a tragedy” to lose the orphanage’s staff and leave such qualified individuals without jobs.

In order to conform with the fire safety regulations, the orphanage needs to replace it’s linoleum flooring with a more fire resistant material and fit its kitchens with fire-proof windows and ceilings, among other works.

The staff at the orphanage are appealing for money, building materials and labor fromk those who are willing to help.

They hope that construction and repairs companies will respond to their appeal.

If you would like to provide assistance the orphanage’s phone number is (7-812)-422-3759.

Arrival at St. Petersburg Apartment

My flight was great and it was not crowded which makes flying overseas a lot more comfortable. I arrived in St. Petersburg on Tuesday evening with all my bags and no problems with customs. As a matter of fact, I was off the plane, through passport control, and had my bags in the lobby within about 15 minutes! That’s a new record!

In the last 45 minutes of the flight, a snack lunch was served that included a small chocolate bunny. I thought, should I dare ask… but I did. I asked the stewardess if I could have any extras or if anyone on the plane was not going to eat them, I could give these as gifts to the kids at the orphanage and day center in Sosnovo and use it as a lead-in to explain the real meaning of Easter. When I got off the plane, more were given by the Lufthansa stewardesses. I was thinking… “how am I going to explain this to customs if I’m stopped!“

My son Sergey and his brother-in-law Misha were there at the airport to take me to the apartment/office I usually stay at. Misha has a car and uses it as a taxi. When we arrived, Vica, the Program Manager for SAC was there to open the door and give me a key.

After getting my bags to the room, we all went to dinner at a little café around the corner. The pictures are of the building and street I live on. By 10:30pm I was in bed after being up for 30 hours! I was awake at 3:30am due to jetlag. So, finally at 4:30am I decide to get up and work on my computer and check e-mail.

When I checked e-mail, I learned from a letter that a friend of mine had passed away on the previous Sunday. Homer Reynolds was an attorney in Plano for the last 20 plus years and he helped me develop the legal documents to make SAC an official non-profit and tax-exempt organization. He did all of this free of charge as a way of helping out the SAC ministry. Homer wasn’t that much older than I was. I was shocked and sad to hear of his passing. I’ve know his wife, Sandra for many more years. Sandra went with Hunters’ Glen on our first mission trip to Russia in July of 1999. She saw the seedlings of what would later become SAC starting on that trip. Both Homer and Sandra have been dear friends and supporters of the SAC Ministry. It made my first day in Russia sad and difficult. Please remember to pray for Sandra and her loss of her husband Homer.