Visiting The Children of Ukraine

We have been in Kharkov for almost 3 days and it has been a busy time. So busy, it is easy to lose track of what day it is. The Lord has given us grace to not suffer jet lag and our energy is doing well.

We had the awesome privelege of seeing Green Forest Orphanage in Visoky once again.
It was a very special time to walk in there once again. This was the home of our daughters for many years. We met the lady who taught her to walk when she first arrived at the orphanage at the age of 4. She greeted us with tears of joy. We were able to share pictures that we plan to leave.

Dima had a lengthy conversation with one of the workers and I was fascinated that 6 little children sat in chairs quietly without a peep. We moved over to them to sit with them and give them some attention, and then they all started hugging us and asking questions.
One little boy Sasha, remembered us. He was young when we were there before, maybe 5.
He is now 7, so this is his last year. He saw pictures of Sarah and Erika and called them by thier Ukrainian names. He had little tears and was so gentle in his manner.
He hugged my arm and we communicated with smiles and hugs.
When we were leaving he began to quietly weep and my heart broke.
Oh how I hope this little guy finds a home. I do not know his situation, only that he needs to be loved.

We visited the Hostel for girls. They were offically going to be shut down because there are hot plates instead of a stove. We will be purchasing a stove for the girls and they will then be able to stay at the Hostel.

The girls also need a washing machine. The one they had is broken. They have been washing clothes in a sink. One of the workers has to wash heavy blankets and towels by hand. They really NEED a washer, so they will be getting one of those too.

We have visited the TB Sanitarium twice and have been able to present the gospel once again to the children. Mostly, we sat with them and loved them. We taught them "The Joy of the Lord is my Strength", in english, with motions and they seemed to like it. On our way out the gate, little Natasha was repeating our names over and over and telling us "good bye"! To which we replied "dos vadana".

This afternoon after this writing, we will be heading to another orphanage.

Tonight we plan to meet with a translator we met 2 years ago.... Misha.
We are looking forward to talking with him again.

We are In Kiev

Praise the Lord, we are sitting in Jay and Judy Francis's apartment in Kiev. We leave in a couple of hours for the train to head to Kharkov. Our trip was GREAT! Very good plane drivers. :)

Tomorrow is the Day!

When I was a little kid, I went to DisneyLand. I remember the anticipation and waiting to go and it was so exciting.

That is about how I feel right now, leaving for Ukraine. Mike and I are so blessed to be able to take this trip, and I can't think of anything more that I would want to do than this. It is WAY better than Disneyland. It is real, not fantasy land. Right now it is tomorrow land, but tomorrow, it will be real today land. :)

Please pray that hearts will be prepared to receive the Words that the Lord give us to share. Please pray that our words will be His words, and His words only.

The rest of the team that will be meeting us in Kiev and Kharkov are excited with anticipation too, and we look forward to seeing them again.

We also would like to thank the Lord for His provision for this trip. It is amazing how things have worked out.

Stooping Very Low

We have had a jar in our office for the last year or so to collect for Ukraine Orphans.
We empty it now and then. It is a visible jar with a picture of the Orpans from Erika and Sarah's orphanage on the front. Sometimes our customers deposit coins in there, sometimes checks, sometimes cash. We were able to give a little over a hundred dollars once.

Well, a few weeks ago, I noticed about 35 to 40 dollars in there. I went to get it out today to get ready for our trip, and lo and behold the jar was empty! Everything but 15 cents! Even the pennies Anna had put in there were gone.

I asked Mike and he said, I figured you already took it out. I asked our worker and he said he found the jar under a chair and the lid in the middle of the floor. ???? And he didn't say anything about it???? I would have found that RATHER ODD. But he didn't.

So, somebody, STOLE money from those who have NOTHING. Isn't that the SADDEST thing?
It is obvious what that money goes for, and they STOLE IT! I can't believe it!

That kind of thing just doesn't happen around here, but I guess it does now.

How very sad.

I left a note on the jar that said, "To Whoever Stole The Orphans Money, God Knows Who You Are."

I'm sounding a little miffed, and I really need to pray about my heart towards whoever it is. I hope they come forward and bring it back.

I'm so sad. It wasn't a huge amount of money, but it wasn't theirs to take.:(

The Countdow Begins

It is less than one week from the day we leave for Ukraine. Our daughter in law and grandson will arrive on Saturday! It is so close.

I am trying to tie up loose ends here to get prepared.
One of those loose ends is getting an antibiotic to take with us just in case.
Getting laundry done is a biggie.

We are trying to pack very light. We don't want to have too much luggage.

Things to pray for:

Our apartment was reduced to 1 bedroom instead of 2. We would be better with 2,because a translator will stay with us, but the price jumped, so we are having our contact look for us and when he gets back with us we will make a decision from there. We want to be careful with money and not use money we don't have to. That way we can purchase more for the kids.

Pray that we will safely arrive and get to the train station on time.
Pray for hearts to be prepared ahead of time to hear the Good News of Jesus Christ.

2 of the girlies have slight colds. Please pray that they are not sick while we are gone.

Erika developed a blister where she puts her leg on and is unable to wear her legs.
Please pray the blister HEALS before we leave so she can go out of the house!

As we visit the girls orphanage, please pray that the pictures we bring will minister to the workers there and that they will treat potential parents there to adopt nicely instead of with contempt.
Also Pray for SALVATION to all who HEAR.

EXCELLENT NEWS!



Jay and Judy are going to take the train with us to Kharkov and stay for a few days!
Yea. They are in language school in Kiev right now, but will be able to take a couple of days. That means extra study when they get back! :)


We are so happy that the girlies will be in good hands with Becca.

More later........

I'm hangin' on to my hat. This is gonna be one wild ride! :) Yippie!