Well, we have been pretty busy since we've been back. We are Trying to get the bios and pics done for the sponsorships at the orphanages. This is a chore because it's so hard to get all the kids in one place at one time. So, we get what we can when we visit. You think it would just be a matter of getting the case workers to round them all up...better said than done. We keep working at it though. It's awesome just being able to visit with the kids.

We are starting our photography project "Through These Eyes" with the kids at one of the orphanages tomorrow. The vision of this project is to

teach children goal setting while introducing them to the art of photography and create advocacy about life in a Russian state ran orphanage through the eyes of a child. We chose 7 children ages 10 to 17 to participate. They will learn a little about photography and then take pics of their lives over the next month. We will give them disposable cameras and turn them loose. We always see their lives through our lens. It will be interesting to see it through theirs. We will document the progress through video and photos of our own. These will be done by our children...so the whole project will be shot and documented by children...this should be a blast!!

We are leaving for Estonia on the 23rd of this month. This trip serves 2 purposes. We need to renew our visas and we have to be out of the country to accomplish that. We also feel like God is leading us to explore the possibilty of helping some ministry to Russian orphans there. Estonia is considered Eastern Europe but was once under Soviet rule, so there is a large Russian influence...and quite a few Russian chilodren in orphanages. They are children with no citizinship. They have no country to call home. The Estoonians don't want them because they are orphans...and the Russians don't want them because they are orphans. We will see if there is a possibility that Big family can be a help to any one ministering to them. We will be there for a month. Please pray that God will give us safety as we travel and stay there. Also, pray that the trip will be fruitful.

I was blessed to be able to work with a team from America and made some new contacts here in Lomonosov. I met a Baptist Pastor named Andre that I think opened up a door for someone in our church to start going to a children's hospital here in town. I have found that lot of what we do here is just being at the right place at the right time. Through these encounters we are learning to be obedient.

This Week

This has been a busy week for us here. Tuesday there was a prayer meeting at MIR. We went to the orphanage at Luga on Thursday. We had a great visit with the kids there. Our main reason to be there was to get pictures for the sponsorship bios but it was nice to visit with all of them. We don't get to make it there very often because it's so far away.

Friday I went to the drug rehab center at Kotley village. I met with the director about the photography project we are wanting to do. It was awesome to hear that they are offering us anything we need to make this project possible. Praise God!! I was also able to visit with my friend Andre. We visited a cafe that the rehab center has as part of their adaptation program. It's for those people who have finished the rehab program and want to get integrated back in to society. It gives them a job and they can get used to being out in the world again. The rehab program is pretty intense so it's a good thing they have something like this.

Saturday we went to Ukki. again, the reason was to update pics and bios but it was so good to hug all of those kids. we missed them so much!

Ian had his 14th birthday and he got 2 books as well as well as his favorite meal of pellaminis and mashed potatoes with fried green beans. Eve's birthday is in 2 days so we decided to go to Ikea and go ice skating for her special day. She'll be 9. Man, they're growing up so quick.

Back in Russia

Well, we are back from our trip to America. We had a great time with family and friends. We are glad to get back though and are ready to dig our heals in for the winter.

Here is an update about some things that are on the burner for the next few months. We are updating all of the profile pics and bios of the kids for Big Family. We went to Luga yesterday and are going to Ukki on Saturday. I spoke to Pyotr from of the foster families that Big Family works with and we are going to schedule to go visit them here soon. Next Thursday it's the orphanage in Gatchina and then to Max and Ira's to fisit the foster family in Kommunar.

Tomorrow I am going to Kotley village to visit the drug rehab center to talk to the director about some things. It will be nice to visit my friend Andre while I'm there. I don't get to see him enough and I miss him.

We have a photographt project we are starting with some of the kids here in a couple of weeks. I will put up a seperate post on that in a couple of days.

It is a busy season but we are looking forward to all the stuff that God is doing. Keep us in your prayers that we will accomplish all God has for us to do while we are here.

Needing a car

does any one happen to have a vehicle we could borrow while we are in America? We will be home from June 17th to August 25th.

A reminder

We see things here all the time that remind us that we're not at home in the comforts of our own country. Sometimes we come across something that tugs at our heartstrings. This little guy almost brought tears to my eyes. We don't live in a third world culture here in Russia but when I met this boy I felt like I was in a village in Guatemala. We met him and his mother near the market where they were begging for money.

His mother wouldn't let me take her picture but I can say this: I've never seen so much sadness in one person's eyes. I can't even explain it really. It was like I could see her life through her eyes. It was sad and it was rough.

They were not Russian. They were immigrants...from where I'm not sure. They didn't speak Russian or English. She spoke to me briefly and I thought she said something like Kadjik. I'm not sure if that is where they are from or the language they spoke. It might have been the boy's name.

I wanted to sit with them and try to communicate to them but they were so distant. If they were Russian I could have gotten by a little and had a broken conversation with them. I've never felt so helpless to speak the Gospel in my life. I came home and said a prayer for them that God would bring someone to them that could share His love to them in their own language.

Subcultures exist here. There are gypsies and other people groups that are the "vagrants" of society in the eyes of the government...but they still have needs. I think that we have found a comfortable place even here in our home away from home...today I was pulled back out of that comfort zone and reminded that there is a great need for the Father's love in this country. Our heart was tugged on today by a little homeless boy who said nothing. Lord love on them in a way that only You can!!

God's Provision...Again!!

I wanted to share with you about something cool we learned about recently. We have been praying that we would be able to go home and visit this summer. We miss our friends and family and we wanted to do some fund raising while we are home as well. We know that we didn't have the money for this but we felt like the Lord would provide. We then get a call from a family member who said that a friend of ours had a ministry auction and he set a couple lots aside for our ministry and that we should be expecting a check here soon. It's almost half the money we need for tickets home. God is good!

Provision comes from the funniest places. Often times we try to plan out how we will accomplish something...or start making plans as to how we will try to make something happen...God then steps in and does something totally out of the blue. I love when He does things like that. It keeps us in check as to who is actually in control.

God's Provision

Who says God doesn't care about the little things in our lives. Here is proof. As you know we are working on moving into a flat in Lomonosov. God provided one in just the right time. We are wanting to move in by April 1st. The flat needs a bit (ok a lot) of TLC...the owners are paying for most of it though. We just have to pay up front for the supplies and they will reimburse our rent over the next few months. We were hoping to get all the work done before we move in. That means wallpaper, flooring, paint...as well as a touch up in the kitchen.
As you can see it needs a bit of work. This is where things get cool. We were going to take our tithes for the month and finish everything before we moved in so we wouldn't have to be working on it after we live there. Then we were going to just pay double tithes next month. This didn't sit well with us though and we began to think about the reasons for moving in the first place. We want to be a blessing financially in whatever way God calls on us to be. Living in a cheaper place is one of the changes we decided to make to help this happen. So you see it kind of defeated the purpose and we felt like we were trying to take control of the situation. We prayed together and asked God to help us. We stood in agreement that God would take care of everything. We went ahead and gave our tithes as well as an offering for a need that God laid on my heart.

One of the things we are going to do is replace the kitchen sink and put in some cabinets. I get on the internet Monday and guess what I find? A family is moving out of St. Petersburg and they are selling...you guessed it. Cabinets and a sink. Who sells their sink when they move!? I was like, "WHAT?" They are even moving out the same time we were planning on putting the cabinets in our flat. We will save so much money...and it's better than the ones we picked out to install in the first place..LOL!!

This is one more thing that God has done to show us how much He cares. We are still trying to squeeze our pennies so we can get everything done before we move in...pray for deals. We still have a lot of work to do over the next week and a half but I think we can do it. Praise God!!