Departure – Sat-Tue, Oct 20-23

On Saturday, our last full day in Russia, we took a little time to go touring and shopping. Our bus took us to see several sites including St. Isaacs Cathedral, Kaczynski Cathedral (a working Russian Orthodox Church), pictures on the outside of the Hermitage (Winter Palace), and of course the Savoir on the Spilt Blood Cathedral.

That’s a long name, but this is the famous cathedral that looks like the one on Red Square in Moscow called Basil’s cathedral. This one in St. Petersburg is built on the site of the assassination of Czar Alexander II in March of 1881. A group of revolutionaries threw a bomb at his royal carriage on this site. The church was built between 1883 and 1907 and was officially called the Resurrection of Christ Church (a.k.a. The Church of Our Savior on Spilled Blood). The church was closed for services in the 1930s, when the Bolsheviks went on an offensive against religion and destroyed churches all over the country. It remained closed and under restoration for over 30 years and was finally re-opened in 1997 in all its dazzling former glory. This church has a great number of mosaics covering the walls depicting the life of Christ and his disciples. One can enter the church and see many of the stories of the Bible!

Touring was great as there is a lot to see in St. Petersburg! We only had an afternoon to cover the main sites! We ended the day by touring this famous cathedral and shopping at the flee market for souvenir trinkets across the street. This outdoor market is famous and has a lot of variety, but the weather had turned cold and we needed to go inside!

Down the street was a café called the Liama Café. It’s a place I frequently take teams as there is plenty of room and the cashiers speak a little English. Milan, one of our former translators to the Orphanage, joined us with his wife Anya and baby Phillip. It was a nice meal, but it was time to get back to the hotel and pack for the trip home. I also needed to pack as I would be moving to the MIR apartment for the next couple of days.

The team departed early on Sunday. We all had to be loaded on the bus at 4:15am in the morning to make it to the airport for a flight departure of 6:20am. It’s always rough getting up so early! But soon the tem was on their way home and I went back to the MIR apartment to rest a little and meet my kids for dinner that night.

On Monday I had one more appointment with Nadezhda at Child in Danger and needed to go by the Orthodontist to see about my Masha’s braces. She will get the braces off in a couple of weeks!

My appointments ended and I got about 4 hours sleep before the taxi came (earlier than expected of course) and I was off to the airport. The trip home was uneventful as I sat in my small seat in the back of the plane.

On the flight from Frankfurt, Germany to Dallas, Texas I watched a movie I hadn’t seen. It was called “Evan Almighty”. It was about a regular guy living in modern suburban America who was asked by God to build an Ark! Few believed in him. His wife and three boys abandoned him and later returned. His neighbors laughed at him. At first he was resistant but then he became obedient. I would laugh as the movie showed him attempting to build the Ark by himself without help. He would hit his thumb on a nail, get angry, get frustrated, and make all sorts of errors all in his attempt to be obedient. He wasn’t perfect. He was just a regular guy called by God to do a specific task.

God asked me to build an Ark called SAC to encourage orphans and hurting children in Russia to come on board through salvation in Christ Jesus before the coming flood of Judgment. I could relate to “Evan”, his ridicule, his frustration, his imperfections, and his commitment to be obedient. I felt my chin quiver as the movie ended and God’s plan was revealed.

Last Day of Ministry – Fri, Oct19th

It was our last day at the ministry sites! The week seemed to fly by fast as we worked through all the problems and working to bless a few kids with the touch of Christ! It was a great week, but it was about to be over!

It was tough to say goodbye to the toddlers we had come to know and play with during the week. We knew it was going to be difficult for them the next few days as they look for us when they come into the activity room looking for something to do or someone to hold them. They will cry and be unhappy, but we’ll know that at least for a week these kids had felt the love of Christ as He worked through us to minister to those kids. They may forget the activities, but I know they will long and strive for that same comfort again now that the seeds of Christian Love have been planted.

Upstairs at the Lomonosov Baptist Church we had our last lunch. It wasn’t a last supper although the table was long and the fellowship was loving! It was however, our last lunch with Pastor Andre and the ladies who had prepared our lunch all week. One of the ladies the day before had made a little cloth handkerchief for Ansley, age 7. Later that afternoon, Ansley made one of those cross mosaic trivets and wanted to give hers to this lady. She was touched and in tears when Ansley gave it to her. I think that special gift will take its place in a special place in her home somewhere. She seemed to treasure the gift of the cross from a little girl.

At the hospital we told our last Bible story, did our last craft and then gave the kids backpacks that we had prepared for each of them. I think the kids and the staff were surprised to receive gifts. At the end and closing to our hour of time I showed the kids how to play some of the table games that we left for them. The kids had nothing to do during the day and I knew they would enjoy these gifts long after we had departed as a memory of our time together. We hoped that they would remember that this team and these gifts came from the Lomonosov Baptist Church!

Our trip back to the hotel was long. Since I had access to the bus, I needed to deliver the remaining backpacks to the other ministry sites. We had loaded them in the bus the night before and they took up most of the backseat. We had to go to the Fuydor shelter, the hotel to drop off the ministry suitcases, to the Road of Life Transition Home to drop off backpacks, and then uptown for pizza at Patio Pizza, a popular place for SAC mission trip participants. I thought this wouldn’t take too long, but I failed to consider St. Petersburg traffic on a Friday evening. Our trip normally took about 50 minutes, but with all these errands, it took 4 hours! It was a long ride, but I think God had a purpose in that ride. You can see that special article in the next SAC printed newsletter that will come out in a couple of weeks!

The Kids Can Weave!? – Thu, Oct 18th

Today, we brought out the weaving cards so that the 1-2 year old children in the Baby Home could begin this activity. The speech therapist who had been with us and all our activities the whole week began to explain to the translators that this wouldn’t work and the kids couldn’t do that. Susan Bollinger was persistent that we should try and the therapist agreed. The kids immediately took to this activity and the kids were weaving away! One little girl would raise her hand and exclaim “Yeah” each time she finished threading a hole! She was enthusiastic! The speech therapist was… speechless! At the end of the day, she asked for us to leave the weaving boards so that she could practice that with the children! We knew then we had a hit and had won over the confidence of the speech therapist in what we were doing to try to teach the kids. It was a huge success for us and should lead to developmentally better children for years to come!

At the hospital, we had won over the staff with the tea earlier in the week. Now today there were 12 kids that came in! Wow, we were excited, but hoped we had enough supplies and crafts for everyone to do! In addition, we had three young girls from the Lomonosov Baptist Church join us to help. Two of the girls were the niece’s of Pastor Andre! Of course, we wanted them to do the crafts too! As we counted we had enough! It’s amazing after all the planning we do months ahead; God already knows who will be there when it’s time to do a craft!

I was looking forward to today’s craft with the kids. Months ago I had found these wooded cross trivets that the kids would put mortar into and then decorate with mosaic tile and different colored beads. It took up a lot of volume and weight in the ministry suitcases, but I thought it would be worth the effort. Fortunately, Mike Nevil was there and mixed the mortar for the trivets. It was the mortar that made the project look great! Of course, the kids had something to do with it too!

Today, I had Tall Anya, one of the former residents of the Road of Life Family Home; share her personal testimony with the kids at the Hospital. I thought that hearing a young lady not much older that they were would have an impact. She shared in Russian of course and I hope it planted some seeds for these kids that were there. God had already ordained this meeting and had these kids there who needed to hear those words.

I told our team before that we may not be able to measure the success of our mission trip with statistics or a count of the folks led to salvation. Sometimes we don’t know what impact we will have. It’s like what Mother Teresa said to a reporter who asked her about how she would measure the success of the orphanage she was opening that day in India. Mother Teresa responded and said, “The Bible doesn’t talk about success, only obedience”.

McDonalds Outing for Orphanage #14 – Wed, Oct17th

Wednesday was planned with a little different schedule. In the morning we worked with the kids in the Baby Home. Today we had them making tissue paper rainbows with different colored tissue paper. The speech therapist really seemed to like having the kids do this activity as it helped them teach colors.

At the end of our time with them, we were able to spend some time talking with the director. The first two days had been too busy, but we wanted to present her with some of the humanitarian aid and gifts we had brought. One of the gifts was a suitcase full of handmade baby blankets. Mary Arrant, a member of Hunters’ Glen, had worked on these all summer. The director was happy to receive them and they immediately put them on some of the beds for the children. These soft blankets would be warmly enjoyed by the children this winter in this 130 year old mansion converted to a Baby Home.

After a wonderful lunch in the Lomonosov Church we headed back to St. Petersburg to take the kids of Group 2 in Orphanage #14 to McDonalds. Susan Bollinger, one of our trip participants, had worked with us each fall for the past 5 years in this Orphanage and worked specifically with this group of kids. SAC always tries to put trip participants with the same group of kids on return visits so that relationships can continue to be built. Sasha, one little girl in this group, hugged Susan so hard and nearly took her breath away! Sasha (in red coat) loved being with Susan!

It was raining as our group began to walk to a place we could catch a Tramway. This Tramway is an electric railcar that travels’s tracks on the street. They are much like street cars in San Francisco except these have a more industrial feel rather than quaint wooden streetcars. Our Tramway took us over a bridge and stopped near another Metro station near a McDonalds.

The crowds were overwhelming and people in line had their backs against the wall! I thought, “Oh Boy”, this is going to be interesting trying to seat and feed 11 kids and our team and translators! I sent the kids upstairs in this McDonald to try to find seats. Orders were taken and three translators worked to get everything right. It didn’t go as planned, but nothing seems to go that way anyway! It was a nice outing and the kids seemed to really enjoy it. I could tell as four of the boys sitting at a table, who had just finished a McFlurry shake, shook my hand and gave a sincere “Thank You” in English!

The kids headed back to the Orphanage with their group counselor and we headed to the Metro to ride back to the hotel. As we came closer to the metro I could see problems. I hadn’t seen a Metro station that busy in about 4 years and that meant crowds of pushing people. We still needed to buy tokens for the trip. Some of us were swept away in the crowd like a swift flowing river carrying us downstream. Nevertheless, we all stayed together and made it down the escalator. It was still busy downstairs and the subway cars were crowded, but again we all made it on board and several stops later we were back at the hotel. It’s a metro experience I don’t enjoy, especially when you have a team with you!

An Interesting and Busy Day – Tue, Oct 16th

I knew this was going to be a busy day when we started. At the Baby Home our team would be there along with another team from Buckner now called Orphan Outreach with a team of 15 people. In addition, there was one couple that our team members met on the plane that would be coming to see their adoptive child on their first trip to Russia. We were going to be busy and the director would be very busy as well!

Our time this morning with the kids involved paint! It’s going to be messy when you combine two year olds, fabric paint, and active little hands! As you can see by the picture we were having the kids make t-shirts with their hand prints. The activity was a fine with the staff as I was worried that they might decide it was too messy for them to deal with.

That day, they also brought into our group some special kids. About 8 kids they brought in that day had HIV. They needed attention too. HIV is a huge problem in Russia and it is growing. Even little babies at a Baby Home are infected due usually to drug use by their moms. It’s sad and unfortunate, but hopefully we made their day brighter with a little love from caring Christians!

At lunch at the church, we had Natasha play guitar and sing some Russian Christian songs. Natasha is a music major and can play the piano, guitar, and Domra, a traditional Russian string instrument with a rounded back about the size of half a watermelon. The songs resonated the spirit of Russia and were a perfect lead-in to the sharing of testimonies. We had invited the ladies who had been cooking for us to share their testimonies. They did and shed tears along the way. We were blessed again and encouraged one another as we hugged prior to our leaving.

At the hospital, we had our tea planned. We set the table and prepared the tea. Chairs were arranged around the same table we used to do crafts with the kids. We spent an hour talking about our ministry, why we do this, and that we were an outreach of the Lomonosov Church. At the end of the hour I could tell through the laughs and questions, that the staff felt more comfortable with us. The tea was a big success and it allowed us to fellowship and build relationships so they could see Christ working through each of us!

The kids came in a few minutes later and we had a great time of fellowship, bible study, and crafts. We still only had an hour, but I think the staff was better connected with us now that we had the tea.

One of our craft activities was painting bucket hats. These were older kids and it wasn’t as much as a mess, until one of the young girls squeezed too hard on the plastic bottle and the top came off and exploded fabric paint over her t-shirt and freshly painted hat. It didn’t seem to bother her as she kept on working as we attempted to clean up the mess. It also ruined her shirt despite efforts to wash it out. They did like the hats!

One little girl had just come to the hospital that day. She wasn’t in our activity room, but was around the corner in another room. She was homesick for her mom. We made it a point to bring a bucket hat to her and some paint so she could work alone on this without having to come to the group crying in front of others. I never did see her, but I think that painting the hat at least took her mind off her homesickness for a while.

Our day ended and we traveled back to the hotel for dinner. On our mission trips, I plan dinner in the hotel where the hotel prepares the same dinner for all of us. It’s a nice sit-down dinner and is easier than trying to order from a Russian menu! Sunday and Monday nights had been a nice quiet dinner. However on Tuesday, they have a band that comes in to play. It was loud and we could barely hear each other talk! We complained, but they said there was a wedding party coming in to the room and they would need to play for them.

Well, it was too late to change and we tried to make the best of it. We were disappointed as I had invited Maria Grinfeld to come and eat with us to see some of our returning team members. I had also invited Masha Oshkina so I could have a conversation with my kids, Tanya and Dima. We wanted the evening to be a time of conversation.

Soon the wedding party came in and there was more loud music. To our surprise, the groom came to our table and took the hand of Holly McGee inviting her to dance! I think Holly was out of her comfort zone, but she agreed! Several of us stood and began to take pictures. One of the photographers was Mike Nevil. The bride then approached Mike and invited him to dance! He was surprised too! According to the translation of the announcements made by the Best Man after these dances, our flash camera’s made it appear like a CNN news event!

It was an interesting and busy day and what started out as lemons later became lemonade! I guess we learned a lesson and ended up being blessed!

No Colored Butter – Mon, Oct 15th

We were all excited when we got up to experience our first day in the Baby Home in Lomonosov. After breakfast we had a short devotion time and prayer before heading out. Our small bus arrived at the hotel at 9am to take us to Lomonosov. Everyone was ready and on the bus as we headed out. It was about an hour drive this morning due to more traffic today.

A little after 10am we arrived. The director was in another part of the building and met us in her office. She was warm and pleasant and seemed excited to see a 7 year old as part of our mission team! We brought in all our ministry suitcases and shed our coats before taking a tour of the building and the groups. In one of the rooms upstairs we were able to observe the speech therapist working with a couple of children on their language skills and recognition of colors. The therapist was anxious for us to see what she was teaching the children although the kids were a little shy with a bunch of people in the room watching!

Already, our time was running short and that morning we only had about 50 minutes with the kids as time was taken up in the tour. Actually, as we toured, we picked up a few kids along the way as we were told that these kids would be with us this morning. We brought out a few activities, but didn’t get to complete what we had planned for that first day. The kids were taken from the activity room at noon so they could have lunch and a nap. Our team left to go to the church to have lunch as well. Unfortunately, the nap wasn’t included!

Pastor Andre went all out in working to serve us and accommodate us at his church. Three ladies in the kitchen worked to fix us a three course meal which included soup, a main dish, and tea and cookies. It was great, but for most of us it was more than we were used to eating. It was a lovely lunch prepared by loving hands. We were blessed!

After lunch we took our bus to the Children’s Hospital which was just a few blocks away from the church. We made our way into the room and started preparing our activities. Soon there were five kids that entered and a little shy of us. These kids had to stay in the hospital for various reasons, but most had energy and were ready to do something fun! Dasha started off by telling the Bible Study she had prepared from the material we had given her. She did it all from memory without looking at notes and all in Russian of course. The kids listened as small seeds of faith were being planted. Our story theme was about Joseph and the multicolored coat given to him by his father. During the week we planned to tell different portions of the story of Joseph and his brothers.

After this, we began some crafts that the kids seem to enjoy doing. One of the crafts was an activity that served as a snack and a craft activity at the same time. Our craft related to the Bible Study. Making the connection with the multi-colored coat we had planned to have juice along with bread and butter colored with various colors of food coloring. We showed what we planned to do to the head nurse and our colored butter idea was not approved. Haley Nevil, a trip participant who had nursing experience, told us that sometimes food coloring will affect medical tests as this coloring is passed through. We hadn’t realized that. So, there was no colored butter for the bread to be given to the kids. A few of us ate some colored butter so at least they would get the idea.

At the end of our time, we were told by the head nurse that the next day, we should plan on only an hour. Of course, we had planned to spend two or more hours with he kids, but that seemed too much for her and I don’t think she was too sure about what we were doing. She kept coming in and observing. So, maybe we needed to rethink some of our plans.
On the bus one of our volunteers form the Transition Home, Tall Anya, suggested that we have a tea with them tomorrow so we could sit down and discuss why were there and what we planned to do during the week. It was a great idea so we made plans and arrangements on the way home with Pastor Andre via cell phone. After checking with the staff at the hospital, they were in agreement. We were looking forward to a new beginning the next day!

Mission Lomonosov! - Sat-Sun, Oct 13-14

Our team arrived on time on Saturday evening and with all their luggage! Praise the Lord! Everyone was in good health and ready and excited to see the sites of St. Petersburg. As our tradition, after checking into the hotel we all strolled down to the Mouse Café to eat before going to sleep after being up and traveling for 30 hours.

Sunday began with a breakfast buffet in the hotel and then a bus ride to the Lomonosov Baptist Church for services that began at 11am. Pastor Andre and his church of about 30 members have done a lot to the facility since our last visit. Their sanctuary is complete, brightly lit and they have fully remolded this structure built in 1892. Other parts of the building are at different stages including the heaters on the wall in the kitchen. They have been there for 3 years, but it will take 38 pages of documents to get approval to hook them up! The rules keep changing, so they have just continued to use the portable electric heaters.

The service was beautiful with the choir singing familiar tunes, but of course in Russian. I could see all of us trying to remember the words as we would recognize the song. I was invited to share a little about why we were there and how we wanted to be an extension of their church as we serve in the local community. After the 2 hour service, we were greeted warmly by the members as we graciously tried to understand each other. You could tell Christ was in our midst.

They invited us for tea upstairs. They have a small room that has a small kitchen at the end and a long table with benches on either side. The room was about 64 degrees as the electric heater hadn’t been turned on. However, it was a warm fellowship and the hot tea felt good on a cool Sunday afternoon. I can see why the Russians like hot tea so much!

We had a short team meeting and discussed the things that we would do the following week. We were excited about the possibilities of what God could do!

Are the Doors Closing at Orphanage #14?

I’ve said it for a long time, that the doors seem to be closing in Russia and time is short. This week is proving those predictions to be true for Orphanage #14.

This past Wednesday Dasha (SAC Program Director) called Rayisa and Orphanage #14 to confirm our meeting on Thursday at 3pm. In that phone call she told Dasha that she spoke with the group counselors and children and asked them about our coming and they refused to participate. Rayisa said SAC shouldn’t come and that we should cancel the meeting on Thursday. Dasha insisted that we meet and Rayisa agreed.

After hearing that I prayed for God’s guidance and asked, “Was this the end of our 5 years at this orphanage? “ We met the next day. Rayisa was warm and greeted us kindly. We have a great relationship with the staff, but Rayisa told us about the feelings of the group counselors and the kids. They have become tired of the Bible Study and our activities. It sounded like our activities that are VBS based are not interesting to the teens that need more teen activities. Prior to this the kids were positive about our visits, activities, and the gifts we would bring. However, teens change and grow and interests change.

We discussed options for us to change and they suggested movies that could be discussed, outings to McDonalds or other sites in the city, and sports activities outside. Right now these are being considered, but SAC volunteers I’ve contacted fail to see the “ministry” value in much of this. The nature of these activities doesn’t allow much relationship building and opportunities to share the gospel. So, we are praying about what to do next and what to do for the ministry team that has already planned to visit this Orphanage in November.

Over the years, Orphanage #14 has seemed to lean toward the “humanitarian” gain of American teams while only allowing the “ministry” aspects of visits as a means to an end. We’ve watched as efforts to minister to their spiritual needs have taken a backseat to improvements to the Orphanage facilities made by the government and other foreign donors. Physical help is needed and it’s Biblical to provide, however SAC’s philosophy in ministry is to take care of their physical needs so we can then minister to their spiritual needs, while striking a balance between the two. Physical needs are being met at Orphanage #14, but the spiritual aspects are softly being rejected.

Please pray with us as SAC volunteers discern what to do. I also would like to hear from any of you reading this about what you think about this situation. You can e-mail me at jneese@SACorphans.org.

The doors at Orphanage #14 appear to be closing. Several of the kids we have watched grow up have now moved to “The Harbor” and are ministered to there. We may need to move on to another ministry site to expose others to our ministry to orphans. Nevertheless, I’m sad that this door is closing, but I know of others that are opening. I know that is God’s hand is at work. One door closes and another door of opportunity opens. May God bless SAC as we move forward in His name to whatever open door He leads us through!

Weekend at Sosnovo

A train trip to Sosnovo is always interesting. Sergey and I had made plans to go to Sosnovo again to meet with the director of the Day Center. It took me about an hour by metro to reach the train station. It was cold and when I arrived we had about 30 minutes before the train departed. On one of these trains called an “Elechka” which means it goes to a suburban area and is not for long distances. That is good as these trains have no heat, no bathroom, and wooden benches to sit on!

These trains stop every 3-4 miles to pick up passengers at stops along the way. I timed how long the train stayed at several of these stops. Passengers waiting to get on have 10-15 seconds to enter the door before the doors close and the train moves on. I saw some that didn’t make it as sometimes the doors are crowded with people and there isn’t enough time to get on. I guess the folks who don’t make it will have to wait 2-3 hours for the next train to come by!

After several stops, there was standing room only. Sergey and I were lucky to get seats for this hour and 20 minute ride. At one stop a man and wife came on board. They were standing near the f=door. We began to notice that the older man was sick and pale. Sergey offered his seat so he could sit down. His wife, a passenger sitting across from me, and I helped him off with his jacket. He looked like he barely had a pulse or was overheated. We tried to cool him down and fan him. All I could do is pray silently and ask God to help him. Soon I saw more movement and he slowly began to talk a little, but he was still week. Several stops before we got off he and his wife departed the train with the help of the man sitting across from me. Sometimes in situations like this I wish there was more I could do practically for a person, however sometimes the best thing we can do is pray, even though we are sitting right next to them.

Sergey and I arrived and went to a small store to buy some cookies and tea. It’s tradition here to bring something like this when you are invited as a guest to a home. We went to the home of Valentina. She had hosted us last April for a week and again the weekend before this when we visited the Sosnovo Orphanage. She had a big lunch prepared for us. Truly, we have been blessed by her and her hospitality. After lunch we all left to go to the Day Center for a meeting.

I had wanted to find out specific needs of the Day Center, the Church, and their program there. I was asking a lot of questions about how much things cost and to help with estimates on certain things. However, I had to be careful to set expectations. I had to explain that just because I was asking these questions, didn’t mean I was going to get all these things in the next month or two. Sometimes Russians that work in social institutions have the expectation that the American will buy these things for them just because they are asking about it. I had to explain that I needed a list of things and how much they cost, and then maybe Americans will see this need and the cost and want to participate. It’s a difference of perspective and it has to be carefully managed.

Our meeting lasted about three and a half hours. We shared ideas about woodworking to engage the older boys and ceramics to expand what they are already doing with plaster. All these ideas were to help bring light into this community where 80% of the youth are involved in drugs due to lack of positive activities and positive male role models. Sergey translated all the way and did a good job. By the end, everyone was tired of all my questions, but it was an excellent meeting and I learned a lot about the needs of this church and Day Center.

After the meeting we got on a Marchucka bus to go across town to Valentina’s home where we were staying. By coincidence, we ran into Rayisa, the director of the Sosnovo Orphanage. She was on her way to a second job. I had been asked earlier in the week to ask a couple of questions about the boy being adopted from there by an American couple that found our website on the internet seeing we worked in Sosnovo. I had been talking to them over the last several months. I only had moments to ask my questions, but she responded quickly and then got off at her stop. She had told me that the couple’s court date to finalize the adoption was at the end of the month. When I wrote them and e-mail when I got back to St. Petersburg, they told me that just hours later after getting my e-mail, the adoption agency called and told them the court date! I should add here that I don’t believe in coincidence. I think coincidence for believers is where God chooses to be anonymous. In this case, I think God chose the timing precisely and the concerns for future adoptive parents were relieved.

That evening we spent time back at Valentina’s home. Her son Stass had a lot of questions about religion and denomination differences. We agreed to meet later in the week when I could get a translator and someone to help explain those difference is his own language. I hope to meet with him Wednesday or Thursday of this week.

The next morning we went to church that started at noon and ended at about 2pm, which is typical for a Russian church. We also had communion. Bread that looked about the size of a pancake was broken and the pieces passed around by the pastor. We all drank from one cup with real wine, not grape juice as we do in the states. No, the pastor didn’t have to go back to the alter and refill the cup after handing it to me!

Our train left at 3pm. We had enough time after church to make a few greetings, drink some tea and head off to the train station. This time, the train started in Sosnovo, so Sergey and I had our choice of seats. However, it quickly filled up as the train made more stops. Soon it was crowded again and people standing in the aisles. We arrived back in St. Petersburg a little before 5pm where in time to have dinner with three of my four kids. Tanya was working and couldn’t join us that evening.

Yes, a train trip to Sosnovo is always interesting. You don’t know who you will meet, who you will help, or what seeds of Christian faith and deeds will be planted along the way. Certainly, I think in time we will find that our trip was not a coincidence in God’s plan.

It's Russia!

I hear it time and time again from the folks that live here… “It’s Russia” every time something doesn’t work out right or there is a degree of inconvenience. This past Friday, our last day of ministry at Child in Danger, this phrase was said more often than I would have liked to hear. Friday was a tough day in Russia.

That morning began by calling to see when the rest of the backpack we requested would be delivered. I wanted to give away 25 of them to the kids at Child in Danger on our last day. We had teddy bears and little flashlights to put inside as our “memory gift” as they call it here. That call started a serious of calls, call backs, and threats of me cancelling the order. They wanted to deliver the whole order at 4pm on Friday to the MIR office. Well, I was going to be at Child in Danger (across town) and would have no backpacks to hand out. After threats to cancel and them whining that they couldn’t do it, the business agreed to deliver all 140 backpacks to Child in Danger. Well, at least I could hand them out, but then we had to transport them out of Child in Danger and back to the MIR office. Then I heard those words… “It’s Russia!”

We didn’t get the invoice until 1:15pm. I needed to be at the metro at 1:45pm to meet a guest that would be helping that day. I didn’t have time for lunch and needed to exchange money now that I knew the final price. I also need to go to the hardware store to pick up some caulk for their craft project and batteries for their little flashlight gifts. I was supposed to do that the day before, but you know “It’s Russia” and things didn’t work out that day.

I made it to Child in Danger in time to briefly meet with Dasha and Sergey to review our plans for the day, the main part which was to share the Gospel! We were ready to begin at our appointed time at 3pm. Just as we are getting ready to start, the backpacks arrive. I’ve got to delay and unload the car holding 6 large boxes and pay the driver the amount of the invoice. We didn’t get started until 3:30pm. Oh, and then I heard those words again, “It’s Russia!”

It was Friday and the kids were used to us by now. That’s a good thing, but it also relaxed their discipline and chaos was about to begin. We started off with our Bible Study and an activity that has worked wonderfully with elementary kids in Sunday School before, but it didn’t work here. It was the “Index Card Walk Through”. The idea was to cut up an index card in a certain way so that it could be opened up and they could walk through. It was a visual way to demonstrate how what seemed impossible before is possible with God. Well, the kids were anxious to get on with the activity and would think they knew what to cut next. They didn’t and didn’t wait for the instructions. Half of the kids quit out of frustration and began throwing the leftover paper. Then I was told, “It’s Friday and It’s Russia!”

The crafts didn’t go much better and the caulk I had bought to use in place of the grout for miniature tiles arranged on a wooded cross trivet, didn’t turn out as planned. I know… don’t say it… I’ve heard it all day! However the kids loved the spin art project and would line up just to do that. Some did two or three of these, but claiming not to have done one at all! I thought the cross trivets would be their best and favorite craft activity. But of course, “It’s Russia” I’m told!

The day was over and the kids scattered. I now needed to get the rest of the backpacks to MIR. We had requested a Taxi and it arrived at the appointed time, but the driver refused to take the boxes in his car, even though the dispatch was told that we needed to transport boxes. The driver left and we scrambled to find another taxi. About 45 minutes later another taxi arrives and agrees to take the boxes. Sergey rode with the driver as there is no room for me and one ministry bag that also needed to return to MIR. I left 10 minutes later to take the metro to MIR and drag the ministry suitcase through the subway. I arrived at the MIR apartment and called Sergey. They were stuck in traffic. I had given him the key as normally he would have arrived earlier. I waited on the steps for about 30 minutes as the words echoed in my mind, “It’s Russia”!

I was exhausted, hungry, and felt defeated. Satan had His way that day and I never did get to share the Gospel, which in my mind is the whole point in being there. Most of the kids had never heard about God or Jesus before and so they needed a lot more basic information. Seeds were planted, the truth was shared, and God and Christ were introduced. We were “Jesus with skin on” and we loved on the kids and they were anxious to be around us and play. Certainly, we “…visited the orphans in their distress…“, but I didn’t get to share. I was disappointed, but I know I was following what God had wanted me to do… but it still feels like I failed. I’d like to paint a rosy picture of life on a SAC mission trip, but the reality of it is that it can be hard and difficult. After all, “It’s Russia”!

Child in Danger Kids

You know the kids at Child in Danger are comfortable with you when you sit down and have one in your lap and two on each side snuggled close to you. Sometimes fights even break out for that prime sitting position! It’s a sign that the kids see the love of Christ shining through us as we minister to their needs.

We’ve been successful in having the Bible Study at the beginning of our activities. The kids are anxious to sit and hear what we will share. Dasha, our newly hired SAC Program Director in St. Petersburg has been sharing the Bible story directly in their native language. Today Dasha brought a “sheep” puppet as we told about sheep and the Sheppard and how God is our Sheppard. It’s all basic for kids who never have heard of God and Christ. Some haven’t ever seen anyone pray before.

While Dasha is leading the Bible study, Sergey is setting up the crafts for the next activity. Once Bible Study is done, the kids run to the craft table to see what we have brought. Today the kids worked on a scratch art project that turned into a sun catcher. It was a little more interesting that the standard scratch art project. At the same time, Sergey choose a child one at a time to come to a separate table and do a spin art project. That’s where you use a machine that spins the paper and you drop small drops of paint on the paper while it’s spinning. They all seemed to enjoy that.

Soon the kids were restless and ready for another activity. The kids loved playing Duck-Duck-Goose. It’s a run and chase game that’s fairly controlled. Afterwards, the kids were back at the craft tables painting with water colors pictures of sheep in pastures with their Sheppard.

After everyone was done, we were able to take the older kids on an outing to go bowling. These seven kids really seemed to enjoy getting away for a couple of hours even though most had never bowled a game in their life. They wanted to stay all evening as they were having a great time teasing and taunting each other as they threw gutter balls awkwardly down the lane.

Friday will be our last day and our chance to share the Gospel with them. Many of these children are young and won’t understand the concept of a relationship with Christ, but several of the older ones will understand and so we hope seeds will be planted and God will open some hearts as we share.

No Inspection Yet at Child in Danger

We checked again on Monday morning before we left to see if the government inspection that they had anticipated (and would have prevented us from coming) had been scheduled. No inspection was scheduled so we were free to come and minister as planned! Thanks for your prayers for that as I had been concerned over the last few weeks of being able to even come to this ministry site.

Monday was great as we got to meet the kids! At about 3:30pm we began by having a snack time with the kids. We had purchased juice, small rolled torts, and traditional layered cakes. Meta, one of the long time workers at Child in Danger whispered to me with a smile and said, “Banquet?” which inferred that this was much more than they usually had as their afternoon meal. The kids were please and were anxious to dig in. After we introduced ourselves and prayed, the kids dove in and I began to go around the room and get the kids to introduce themselves. They laughed at my Russian and some of them did their best to introduce themselves in English! It was fun getting to know them.

The kids enjoyed getting to paint with watercolor set that we had brought. Our theme for painting was obeying the rules and working together. Of course, that didn’t set-in too much when it was time to play one of our balloon games! We’ll keep working on it!

Dasha is leading the Bible Study and Sergey is leading the craft activities. I help get their attention as they know I’m an American and they are anxious to please me at times. I even showed them a silly puzzle to figure out through the game called “Chinese Numbers”. It drives them nuts trying to figure out what I’m doing and laugh at the simplicity of it all when I reveal the secret! It’s fun for them and helps get the kids focused for Bible Study.

On Tuesday, we had three new kids that had been brought to Child in Danger the night before. So we have an active group! All the kids began by begging for us to give them balloons. Even simple gifts like balloons are entertaining to all the kids. We began today with Bible Study on how light pushes away darkness as comparing the light of Jesus to the darkness of a life without Him. Dasha is leading this directly in Russian so that there is no delay in translation from me. Dasha has done this with group before and I can see her experience as she leads. While Dasha was leading the Bible Study, Sergey is quietly setting up the craft activity. As you can see in the pictures, they are coloring velvet crosses. Sergey explained to them about how the colored parts of the cross represents a likeness of a stained glass window where the light of Jesus passes through the cross. These are all simple messages to introduce them to Christianity and a relationship with Christ.

After a wild game of “BloB” ( a tag type game), the kids sat down to paint bucket hats with fabric paint! With this many kids and two crowded tables, this is a recipe for a mess and arguments. I explained the rules to this and attempted to keep paint on the hats and on the table instead of each other. Mostly that occurred, but I was ready with a roll of paper towels just in case!

We ended with the kids quietly sitting in a circle as we ended in prayer. Now you ask, how does John get the kids to sit quietly in a circle? Well, all you have to do is tell them that they will all get a balloon if they sit quietly! In Russia, we call that a bribe! OK, I know, we do that in America too! But it works with kids. The kids respond and they have been great! I’m looking forward to tomorrow!