Monday, November 29, 2010

Thanksgiving and Other News

Sorry we haven’t been updating in a while, there has been many changes for us and for me with the arrival of Sebastian in late September. Now we are in Horodok which I think is one change that will definitely be for the better! Not better because it will be easier, because it will be harder, and not better because there will be a better place to live, because it will be more difficult and still needs much work. However, it will be better for us to minister to the people in Horodok. This is the city where we have been working year after year for the past 6 years. Many of you have spent money, given of your time, or offered prayers for our work here. Now we are living here. We walk here. We take the bus to and from here. We shop here. We do many things here and we are more a part of their everyday lives, which is really great. Already I have seen friend’s parents in the bazaar that recognized us. Even if it is a little more difficult to live here and we have to take an hour to an hour and a half on a couple buses to get to L'viv I still think it is best that we are here in Horodok, a place that has become like a second home to me and many others at Calvary.

We have also been very, very busy. On top of trying to settle into our apartment in Horodok, which includes cleaning, installing furniture, and shopping for things we need, we have been teaching many English classes. Our schedule right now is two ESL classes on Monday, one at 230 and one at 6:30, a class on Wednesday at 2:30, and we teach kids on Friday from Andriy in Alona's apartment in Horodok at 4:00. Soon we will be adding two more classes in the number 3 school in Horodok, so please pray for these classes that we have and will soon have. Pray that we would develop a good relationship with these kids and that we will live a life that shows them Jesus and His love for them. Pray that we would be bold to speak the truth whenever we can and that we would make an effort to tell these kids about Jesus at every opportunity. Also pray that we could get some small bible study group started. I really want to start some sort of group where we will get the kids simply reading the Bible. I would like to start with some kids from camp this summer that I already have a pretty good relationship with. I'm not thinking any deep study of different books, but I think it would be really great, and effective if they were just reading God's word...something they probably have never done. So pray for us that God would give us wisdom and show us what will be best to do.

Thanksgiving was a few days ago, and we had a wonderful opportunity to spend some time with some other Americans here. We really had an awesome time of fellowship and food and it was truly a blessing for us. We spent our Thanksgiving with the Blessings, and Ledfords, some missionary families that have been very good to us and a great encouragement. Please pray for the Ledfords as they need to get some papers to stay in the country and are having some difficulties. Pray for the Blessings as they renovate their house and turn it into a house for Jews migrating back to Israel, where they will minister to them and share with them about Jesus. Once again, thank you all for your prayers and support and we will update you again soon. God be with you and bless you! Your brother in Christ - Joey

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Finally an update. But first an introduction.

Hello my name is Sebastian Harris. I’m sure if you are reading this post then you probably already know who I am, but I feel the need to introduce myself to those who may not know me. I joined Calvary’s Ukraine mission team in 2007 and have been returning every summer. This year though God opened a door for me to stay longer in Ukraine and allowed everything else in my life to be put on hold.

He has provided abundantly for me to come here. Besides the material aspects, He has also provided circumstantially. Anything and everything that could have prevented me from going on such a trip for a year didn’t hinder me at all. What about school? It isn’t going anywhere. What about my scholarship? I can take up to two years off without losing it. What about losing my job? My bosses assured me they would hire me the day I got back and even give me a pay increase as an incentive to come back. What about family obligations? I have none, as my parents are self sufficient. What about money? I figured if God wanted me to go then He will provide. And He has. All this goes to His glory for providing in every way.
I will boast in the Lord some more. I cannot explain how great God is. For the first time in my life I flew by myself. I left TPA and flew to JFK. From JFK I flew to Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. Then finally from Kiev I flew to L’viv where I was picked up by my friends. For the most part of my 24 hour journey to Ukraine I was lost and very anxious. Get this, I got lost in JFK where everyone speaks English, so imagine how lost I was when I was in Ukraine where next to no one speaks English. Again it was because God intervened and guided my every step that I arrived at the L’viv airport.
Now more than a month has passed since my arrival. In this time Joe and I have been teaching ESL at Central Baptist Church in L’viv. After each class we have there is a bible study for any who want to stay.
This last Monday we had nine students come for ESL and eight stayed for the bible study afterwards. Please pray for those who stayed, for the person who didn’t, and for those teaching the bible. We will be starting another ESL class that will be on Mondays and Wednesdays beginning next Monday the 15th. After the class we will invite them to a club called JAM that meets every other Friday. During JAM they play music and perform other activities that are fun for youth. At the end of the night Oleg the pastor at Trinity speaks to them. Pray that many will come to the club and that they will believe the gospel preached to them there. We moved to Horodok about two weeks ago and we are glad to finally be where we have been desiring to work. We will be having a meeting to discuss which new ministries we will start in Horodok, as we have already started a couple. Pray that God would lead us into what ministries He wants wants us to start next, and what ways will be best to reach these people for Christ.

Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Ukrainian Independence Day


On 24th August 1991, the declaration of independence for Ukraine was adopted by parliament establishing Ukraine as an independent, democratic state. This day is now celebrated as the day of independence in Ukraine. It was interesting for me to experience this in another country. In many ways it was similar to our independence day: many flags displayed, people wearing clothes to support their country, in America red, white, and blue, in Ukraine Вишиванка which are cultural embroidered shirts unique to Ukraine and handmade, even I was wearing one as the guy I am living with had an extra one. Also, just like in America, they had many concerts and then fireworks later in the evening. L'viv, where I am living, is like the cultural center of Ukraine, so there are always many interesting things going on. I know for this day there were at least 6 concerts spread out in different places in the city. I went to one of these concerts with some friends I met at camp. There were popular ukrainian rock bands, singers, and even some dancers. It was pretty cool. There were Ukrainian flags everywhere and they kept passing out blue and yellow balloons to everyone. Some very nationalistic Ukrainians might even say the true capital of Ukraine is here in L'viv because all the regions surrounding here speak Ukrainian and are usually pro-Ukraine politically. All the regions near Kiev, the actual capital of Ukraine, and to the east are usually more pro-Russia and they speak Russian as well, so being here I did get a feel for some of the political turmoil or tension Ukrainians have had to face, and continue to face. Even at the concerts they showed the President's speech from Kiev and many in the crowd were "booing" him because the new President is pro-Russian. It was just very interesting for me. I could just feel this tension or really just the deep pride of the people here in L'viv for their country which has now been free for 19 years. They are really very proud of that, and for many in the newer generation, most of the student population for example, it is all they have ever known. It was definitely a unique opportunity for me and I learned a lot about this country and the people's love for it. It truly was a great day. I just pray that God would bless this country and continue to put people in charge who have Ukraine's best interests in mind, and that the people would support their leaders even if they don't care too much for all their views. And above all that the people would be receptive to God's word and the truth of His Son. For these things I would ask that you also pray! Thank you so much for all you have done for me. For your prayers and continued support. Well, I’m off to enjoy the nice weather here on August 31, the last day of summer for the kids, with a high of 14(57F) and low of 3(37F), and rain all day. It will be great! Talk to you later. Miss and love you all! God Bless!- Joey Kader

Thursday, August 26, 2010

Village Life


The other day the guy I am staying with, Andriy, took me to work with him. I had the unique opportunity to experience a day of village life here in Ukraine. We woke up at 5:oo and ate some cold borsch for breakfast. Then we took one bus to the bus stop which would take us to the village. We went to a small village southwest of L'viv, which was about a 45 minute ride from the bus station, then a 15 minute walk to get to the place where we would work. Through broken English, broken Ukrainian, and a few dictionaries, I already knew, from the night before, that we would be working with hay. So we got there about 7:30 and prepared the barn for the hay we would be bringing in. Then we waited for another young Ukrainian guy to start the tractor. It was an old model from Belarus made some time during the Soviet Union, and it took about 20 minutes to get started, but it was a good model and finally started. Then we jumped in the trailer and headed out to one of the fields to pick up the hay. It was maybe 10 minutes away, not too far. When we got there I saw maybe 11 or 12 large stacks of hay so I figured it would take only a few trips. My job was to stay in the trailer and keep packing down the hay so we could fit as much as possible. It was very tiring and after an hour or so my pulse was racing like I had just run in a race, but it was good, hard work. Imagining doing it every day on the pay they would receive in Ukraine for such work hardly seemed worth it though! After 6 stacks were in the trailer, and I was now easily 10 or more feet off the ground, I slid off the stack and we went back to the barn to unload and then come back for more. I can definitely relate more now to people I see on farms or working in the fields as I pass by them in many of the villages here in Ukraine. It is not an easy life, and you can see why some of the people look much older than they are sometimes. I still had some energy left, however, and the 2nd trip was much easier because I already knew what to do this time. We finished then rinsed ourselves off. I had hay all over me, in my hair, and I was filthy, but it was great.

After we worked in the field we scooted the horses in the stables and put a saddle on two of them to go horseback riding. My horse was a stubborn guy named Caesar. And I really felt like a cowboy... had the leather leg guards (don't know what they're called) and the cowboy hat and everything. After a "crash course" in Ukrainian horse riding commands (and a little help from one of the other workers) I finally got him to go out of the barn. So we started riding down the road and ended up going into the forest. It was really cool. For me it was the first time riding a horse that you yourself had to steer. I had only gone maybe 1 or 2 times on a trail horse who followed all the other trail horses. I didn't really trust my ability to control him though, so I pretty much thought I was going to die. No... I am only kidding, it wasn't that bad. It was actually pretty fun and exciting, even though I did get smacked in the face by some branches. We tried to make our way up the hill but all the paths were blocked from the previous winter when ice had caused a lot of damage to the trees. We decided to turn back and went out and eventually headed back to the stables. I was very glad to be back because I had become quite sore by the time we finished. Riding horses is not the most comfortable thing to do. In conclusion, I think, to be perfectly honest, it is easier to work with hay than to ride horses! I appreciated this day though, and I think it really does help me to relate with the lifestyle of many of the people of Ukraine...even if for me it was just for one day! Thank you all again for your continued prayer and support! I love you and miss you. God Bless!!! - Joey Kader

Sunday, August 8, 2010

Camp, Camp and more Camp!

Sorry to keep all of you wonderful friends, family, and supporters in the dark for so long but I was at three different camps in the last few weeks and did not have internet access. So I will try to sum up the camps in as few paragraphs as possible, but I am afraid if I start writing I just won't be able to stop!



Camp 1 - With GrapeVine church in the Carpathian Mountains

The mountains are only a couple hours from L'viv where I am staying, and they are very beautiful... Similar in altitude to the Appalachians, but more rural, and of course much colder in the winter. I was working with a Canadian team this week. It was great to get to know them even though we often joked about Canada vs. America stuff, but only in love :). This camp was a student camp, but unfortunately very few students signed up for it for whatever reason... but God really blessed it anyways! When we got there, there was already about 50 kids there from a boarding school, so we decided to include them in everything.It was really amazing how God worked in this... the school they go to is for kids with no parents or with parents who didn't take really good care of them (alcholics, drug addicts, etc.) So it was truly a blessing just to spend time with them and to love on them and play games and stuff. It was sad just to see some of them. They looked like they were 6-8 years old but they were 12 or 13, due to a lack of both nutrition and nurturing they looked much younger and many cases than they actually were. It was really heartbreaking but rewarding to get to spend time with them and give them love and attention that they probably have never had before. It was great to minister to them and to be involved with the Ukrainian team in telling them the gospel, the people from GrapeVine did a wonderful job! The mountains were pretty fun, although the 100 or so steps from the main level to our cabins sometimes got old when you ran all the way up to the top and forgot something! Also, we went swimming in the nearby river 3 or so times it was cold but the weather was hot so it was very refreshing. All in all it was a great week and it was hard to say good-bye to those kids.

Camp 2 - With Trinity Church past Horodok by some lakes.
This camp was about an hour past Horodok (the town we have been working in for the last 6 years) by a lake and pretty much in the woods. It was good that it was far away because the kids are away from some outside influences...parents, priests etc., but it was also difficult in some ways just because it was in the woods. There were about a trillion mosquitos and it was very wet all the time so it was hard to stay warm and comfortable, and hard to dry things...often times we bundled just for warmth which is something I am not used to in the summer. I kept telling people this is winter weather in Florida and they would just laugh even though I was serious. In this camp we had many great activities. The Texas team has been coming for a few years also and they have some great ideas and programs. They brought a whole band for one thing which was great. Also we had English class, a Hobby class (photography, survival, dance, crafts, etc.) and of course time for sports (mostly football(soccer), ultimate frisbee, dodgeball). Most importantly however we had bible discussions, testimonies, and a message every night. My group was all people from Horodok so we had a very difficult group for bible discussion... probably the most difficult in all the camp because Horodok is much more strongly dominated by catholicism than nearby L'viv where young people are more likely to think for themselves. It was difficult, but still an amazing time as we went through some important issues and had our group thinking about some things they never have had to think about before. Also each small group had 3-4 Americans and 1-2 Ukrainian believers so it was a great thing to have different testimonies and stories to share, plus a pool of knowledge and wisdom to draw from. Overall it was just a great time and very encouraging and I hope that it will cause some great things to happen in L'viv and Horodok both!

Camp 3 With Trinity church...Day camp in L'viv

Now this camp we ended up having at a private school in L'viv where Trinity church meets every Sunday. We were supposed to have it at the same place as the previous week but for certain reasons I will partially explain we had to change plans. It was going to be the same place but different people, but an unfortunate thing happened which I would still ask you to pray about because it hasn't really been resolved. I am not going to talk about it here really so if you want to know more that is fine but basically the money for both weeks of camp was stolen... just a bad situation is all I will say, but I think God also used this for his Glory and He knew everything would be fine. It was a little stressful going from a camp that had been planned over a 6 month period to planning a new camp and schedule in one day with the ukrainians the Sunday before the day camp started but it all worked out. It ended up being a real blessing though because a lot of the kids from the first camp came to the second. They heard the gospel again, discussed the bible further, and developed more and better relationships with us, each other, and the ukrainian team.It was amazing to see and today like 20 of them from the first camp by the lake who had been coming this last week as well came to church with us and then to the Airport to say good-bye to the Texans. It was really cool to see these relationships that had been built, and I know of a few of the kids who did repent who will be continuing to come to church...Please pray for all the kids who were at camp... they did hear the gospel and often times they said they understand but said it is just a lot to take in... so pray that the Holy Spirit would move in them and that they would continue to seek God, and that he would just keep tugging on their hearts. It was a truly amazing 3 weeks, and although tiring, sometimes I think it would just be great to do summer camp non-stop! Thank you all for your prayers and support and know that I love you and miss you!

Your Brother in Christ - Joey Kader

Wednesday, July 28, 2010

Ukraine 2010 Video

Well we have been back for a couple of weeks now and it sure is fun to think back on the good times and remember all that we were able to do. One of the team members, Justin, was gracious and talented enough to put a video together to capture the trip and allow all of you to enjoy it as well.

So without further delay...here it is

http://justinhall.us/ukraine2010

Saturday, July 10, 2010

First short video...

You are the God of the City...You are the King of these people...


Last time when I wrote a comment on the blog, Did I mention that I like the team...yes I really do like them. This time I want to say I love them and I dont want to let them go. This time I am happy that they are leaving a part of them here in Ukraine...Joe will be staying.


One body in Christ, separated by oceans and many different parts of the world, I still feel as though we are all close family when I am with them. I am thankful and honored for letting me be an interpreter and helping them with Ukrainian life. The week flew by as if it were only a day.


They did a great job, I mean really great - (Doosza Dobray) as some like to say like Tom. Their enthusiasm for teaching the kids this week amazes me. It is fun to watch Joe, Justin, Tom, Seb, and Hikaru playing fubtbol, ultimate frisbee, etc. with the kids. The girls...Laney, Tanya, Ningning, Merrie, and Maureen are always surrounded by both girls and boys. Merrie's smile always cheers me up. Tom keeps everything under control and is willing to help everyone. He takes care of what is needed and he really helps all team member grow and feel indespensible.


But the main thing I see here in this unified team - their desire to share God's love, serve the Ukrainian people, and help them to understand their need in Christ as their Lord and Savior. I hope that this time was not the last time they will be in Horodok. Praying that the seeds sown in the children's little hearts will grow and bring fruit of repentance. Maybe one day we can sing about Horodok with Chris Tomlin "You are the God of the City, You are the King of these people, You are the Lord of this nation."


Love,

Lilya

Friday, July 9, 2010

Priveet from Horodok!

It's Laney :) This is my 3rd year in Ukraine and it has been the most...interesting by far.

I hate to be cliche but words truly cannot describe the experiences I have had in this beautiful country. When returning from mission trips it is very common for people to say they have become so much more grateful for the luxuries they have in America, the cleanliness they maintain or the wealth they have. It would be very easy for me to say the same on my return home, but I would be lying.

Whether walking down the street or having a conversation with old friends, I am so very humbled time and time again by the joy these find in their life. Jump in your nice car and drive to English class really quick? I think not. It is more like, sacrifice an extra 20 minutes of sleep in the morning because you have to walk to the other side of town. Yet, the kids do it with smiles on their faces and big hugs awaiting us on our arrival. Ukraine lacks the convenience of fast food and on the go "stuff" we have in America, yet I am believing more and more that the Ukrainians truly have the advantage. Being "forced" to sit down and enjoy a more creates and opportunity for deeper relationships and fellowship with loved ones.

The generosity and kindness of these people never ceases to amaze me. Just yesterday Tanya, Joe and I were invited to a girl's house for what we thought would be tea and cookies (which is more than enough to begin with.) Our American way of thinking was proved wrong once again. We were greeted in a private dining room with a table set for royalty. There were plates full of traditional food, and we were absolutely not allowed to serve ourselves. After the meal was a cake made with berries picked right from the backyard. Olya told us her mother had cooked for an hour to prepare the food before we came. All of our jaws dropped when we began to ponder what American would do such for a stranger.

To wrap it up, I am in love :) The people could not be more kind to us and full of a genuine love that challenges any other. They are hungry for the gospel and the love of a Savior.

Please continue to keep us in your prayers. There is much more to be accomplished!
Dopobachinya!

The team on some downtime


Some more pictures from Horodok
















I am pleasantly surprised everytime that I come back to Horodok, Ukraine. The people, the fellowship, the smiles, the laughter, but mostly the love. This year, my Ukrainian sister, Laney, and I got honor to teach the intermediate english class together. Our students are so intelligent and they are also the loudest, of course. During group time, the kids seem to be very captivated by the worship music and testimonies of our team, which is very encouraging to us.Today, our class will have a party and I am very excited!

Yesterday, Laney, Jojo, and I were invited into one our students home, her name is Julia. We went expecting to just sip chai and chat, but being in Ukraine, of course a full delicious meal was prepared, along with dessert, and chai. :) I love this cutlture, its so comforting to be here, and i'm not ready to leave Horodok. But, we are all very excited that Jojo gets to stay and work with the children in this city for the next year because he's going to do such great things. The children in Horodok know why we are here, beyond the fact that we come to teach English, we are here to save them. I believe that the extravgent love that we are touching them with every minute that we are here speaks more words then we could ever say, even if we could speak Ukrainian fluently.

Please keep praying for us!

Sincerely, Tanya!

Thursday, July 8, 2010

Enjoyment

"Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is the fruit of our lips giving thanks in His name."
Hebrews 13:15

Enjoy each moment of each day for what it is!

Earlier this week I read this in a card given to me by one of the ladies in my life group- enjoy each moment of each day for what it is.
Each year we seem to come up with a motto for the week- this is my motto for this year.

When we leave America for Ukraine we leave relaxed (for the most part), rested and ready we can be. It doesn't take too many days of changed plans, yucky weather and many hours spent together for the rest and relaxed to slip away and for us to begin to wonder just how ready we really were!

If we let allow it, the focus can move from the enjoyment of the moment to the aggrevation of the moment.

Enjoy each moment of each day for what it is......here are some moments I've really enjoyed-

Tom calmy meeting the challenges of the day and encouraging us to see the bright side.

Joe always willing to help at a moments notice.

Sebastian asking questions making me think and helping him work through what he is trying to figure out.

Laney meeting challenges head on and not letting them defeat her.

Tanya trying to figure out military time...giving up and telling me it is 15 hundred o'clock!!

Maureen using her singing abilities each day...and not stopping when the sound system did.

Hikaru making us laugh even when he's not trying too make us laugh.

Justine and NingNing- the married couple.....smiling and helping in whatever way is needed.

God is so good....even when the day is challenging! If we take a minute to stop and focus we can find the enjoyment even in the tough times.

Soaking it all in

I'm speechless...Ukraine is more beautiful than I imagined.

7/1

We started out from the church on Thursday afternoon. Our first flight took us through O'Hare airport in Chicago. It was nice to see Chicago again, if only briefly. Memories of my time at Moody and friends in the city kept going through my head, but we only had three hours of layover time, which was just barely enough to get to our gate, drop off our stuff, and go eat dinner in shifts. By the time everyone was finished eating, it was boarding time! The flight to Warsaw, Poland was 45 minutes late taking off. After a 9 hour flight, we had only 20 minutes to get to our connecting flight to L'viv. We landed around 5:30 PM local time on Friday, July 2nd. Praise God we made it safe and sound, and nobody lost their luggage!

7/2

I've never been to a non-English speaking country before, so i wasn't sure what to expect. I spent a good portion of the trip over here familiarizing myself with the Ukrainian alphabet. When we landed in L'viv, it was fun sounding out the words on advertising billboards and buildings, trying to make myself sound as Ukrainian as possible, even though I had no clue what I was saying! Some of the words are actually English words with Ukrainian letters, so it was neat to be able to figure out what certain signs said. The drive to the hotel in Horodok took about 45 minutes.

7/3

Friday evening and Saturday morning, we walked around Horodok inviting local youths to come to our English camp. On Saturday afternoon, we had 20-30 kids come and register for ESL. Saturday afternoon, we went down to the nearby soccer field (or "futball stadium") and hung out with the local kids. We played Americans vs. Ukrainians in soccer. Shockingly, the Americans won!

7/4

Sunday, we went to Grapevine Baptist Church in downtown L'viv. The church meets in the same place as the symphony. During the service, I could hear the vocalists warming up their voices through the open windows. tom was the guest speaker, and he gave a sermon on how God is our heavenly Father. It was a good sermon, even though Tom forgot a couple of times that he needed to pause for the translator.

Of course, what would July 4th be without a barbeque? So, on Sunday afternoon (more like evening, but the sun is up until 9:30/10:00 around here during the summer), we got together with the local team and the missionaries and had Shashlik (pork kebabs). I had a really good talk with Tim akers about the needs here in Ukraine, missions-wise. He said the biggest need they have right now is for someone to come in and teach English as a native speaker at the local universities in L'viv. L'viv is a big university town, and a lot of students are very eager to learn English, so teaching ESL is an easy in. Unfortunately, IMB does not have the budget right now to hire a full-time missionary, but if someone wanted to come for a 1 or 2 year stint as a fully-supported volunteer through their local church, it would be a huge help. Joey is going to be doing just that, and I feel like if I talk with Tim Akers about 3 more times, he's going to convince me to do the same thing. I'm already halfway there.

God bless! More posts coming soon!

~Maureen

Tuesday, July 6, 2010

Some pictures from Day 1 at the school












What a great picture of the interaction between the American team and the Ukrainian students. We are so blessed to be part of what God is doing here in Horodok.

Here are some pictures from ESL on day 1











Here is a shot of the each classL Basic, Beginner, Intermediate, and Advanced. We are having fun and have a captive audience to share the Word of God to each of these students.

Monday, July 5, 2010

Checking in from Horodok

Well we are getting closer to having the wifi internet access that we need to be able to post pictures and videos of our stay here in Horodok. This weekend was totally awesome (except for the rain). We are in the middle of ESL and wre have about 70 to 80 students in this year's program. They are all being taught the Word of God each day and it is awesome to see, hear, and be part of the conversations that are taking place. As soon as we get the wifi access we will bombard everyone with some pictures and maybe evena video.

For now we will ask that you pray continually for us as we act out what it says in 1 Corinthians 13:13...to hope unswervingly and love extravegantly.

2010 Ukraine team

P.S. I love you Averi, Peyton, and of course my beautiful wife Nicole!

Saturday, July 3, 2010

Saturday



























Your Ukraine Team: Maureen, Tanya, Laney, Joe, Sebastian, Merrie & (because no on took a picture of him on the day they all got together and I'm his wife and can do so!) Tom
Hey everyone, this is Nicole. I got a call from Tom today saying that they are having issues getting Internet at the Internet Cafe. So, instead of hearing a great message with all kinds of details...and fun pictures....all you get is little ol' me with a quick message that I got!
Today (Saturday) the team had registry for their ESL class. They had a good response and all went well. They have another day of registering on Monday. Tomorrow they are going to a local church. Since I get to write this post...I get to ask for a special pray request and brag for just a second...Tom is preaching tomorrow at the local church. Please pray for him as he prepares his message! Pray that those who hear it are blessed and that the Holy Spirit would start working immediately!

Pray also that they get their Internet issues worked out so that we can hear from the team! Continue also to pray for them as they are "Being Bold" in Ukraine! I'm so proud of them!
BTW...they made it there safe!

Love In Christ,

Nicole Cooney

Thursday, July 1, 2010

The team in a snapshot


We are getting ready to get on the shuttle to take us to the airport. We are all so excited and ready to go.

Wednesday, June 30, 2010

Reflections

Looking back....Looking forward

In a few days I will be in the Ukraine! This years trip is both sweet and bitter-sweet. It is the first trip with out Dave Hacquebord as our leader. You really don't realize how many little details a person takes care of until they are no longer there to take care of them! Also, it may be our last time to minister to the people in Horodok...people that have become friends and family over the past 6 years. It is great to head back again knowing the people in the town are waiting our arrival. Can't wait to see friends who have become "Ukraine Family"...

Looking back I remember our first trip. We had plans to stay in a hotel in Horodok. Shortly before leaving America we found out that they would not let us stay in the town. We had to stay in Livi and travel to Horodok each day. How new and different everything was; the language, the food, the customs... I remember we asked Jennifer, a missionary, what our role was for the week. She said, "Pretend this is a circus and you guys are the main act. A lot of these kids have never seen an American before. You are what is drawing them to summer camp." We spent the week smiling at the kids, playing the games and helping with the crafts. What I loved most about our week was the fact that it wasn't about us or about what we wanted to do. We worked along side the Ukrainian team....helping them with a program they had planned and put together. We would leave at the end of the week but the work in the town of Horodok would continue all year!

Year two rolled around quickly. Good news- this year they allowed us to stay at the hotel in town!! Not only were we able to work with the kids at camp all day, but also spend the evening visiting with them. We spent a lot of evenings at the soccer stadium, us girls chatting while the boys played soccer. We were building relationships and forming lasting friendships. Trust was growing....

Year three was one of my favorite years. This is the year we moved out of the hotel and into a house to "live" with a family. What fun we had teaching Natalia how to play Yahtzee over hot tea and cookies in the evenings. She spoke very little English. Her husband was a prominent doctor in the town, very well respected by his peers. He spoke great English and enjoyed sitting outside asking questions about our lives in America, our purpose for coming and our God. It was a sad day when we got the news that he had died of a heart attack.
Year three was also the year they gave Ron a key to the school...I don't remember what door it opened-it doesn't really matter. To us it said, "We trust you, thanks for investing in the lives of our youth.

Year four was a challenging year. This is the year a group of youth came with us...the challenge wasn't the youth, it was the size of our team! Some stayed in the hotel and some stayed with Natalia. Natalia was still grieving the death of her husband. The first few days I wasn't so sure it was a good thing for us to be in her house, but as the week continued I realized it was a comfort to her having us there.
The kids in Horodok LOVED the American teenagers. What a great addition they were to our ministry in Ukraine...their impact was far reaching.
This was the year they told me., "Merrie, you are in charge of the craft room." I realized we had become "family" and we were no longer the "main act in the circus." We were part of the team...they knew they could trust us....we had proven ourselves.

Year five rolled round and a group of youth joined us again. The Ukrainian youth were delighted to have all of us back. It was exciting to return to a place that felt very familiar and spend time with people we had come to love. More than once we saw evidence of how our building relationships the past four years opened doors to allow us to do new things this year. This was the first year half of the team stayed for 14 days and the other half stayed for 21 days. It was a great trip....who knew the changes that would happen before year 6 rolled around.

So, here I sit looking forward to year six and wondering.... Wondering if it will be our last time in Horodok. Wondering what it will be like with out Dave and Kyle McLane and his family.(The McLane's are now missionaries in Africa.) Praying over our plan to be bold very intentional in sharing Jesus this year and wondering how it will be received. Excited to see our Ukraine friends but wondering what I will say to them when they ask if we are coming back next year. Wondering what stories I will have to share when we return . So glad I don't have to wonder about Jesus and the part He plays in all of this...for He knows the plans He has for us. I am looking forward to being part of His perfect plan as I minister in Ukraine this year.

Wednesday, June 23, 2010

One week away...

As I sit here one week from us leaving, I am growing more and more excited with each moment that passes. All of the preparation and sacrifice that has been put into this year's trip is about to become tangible in a matter of hours. My prayer is that the people of Ukraine are ready and willing to listen to the message that we have to share with them. That message is the gospel of Jesus and what he has done for each of us that are going. The hope that we have in Him has allowed us to continue moving forward with a purpose and a vision.
This year's trip is a little saddened with the passing of Dave Hacqueboard this past spring. Dave was a person who loved the people of Ukraine and did all he could to make sure that the message of Jesus was preached to all who would listen. Again, the hope we have in Jesus is what we hold on to knowing that we will see Dave someday in glory, but for now must continue on and be bold with our faith in 2010.