Down in the River to...teach

Today was more of a challenge than previous ones, but I think we handled it well. When we arrived at Karlovka (in our cool Ukrainian outfits we bought last night), the boys had already gone to the nearby river to swim. The director told them they could go. This is a problem we face often here - the director might wake up one morning and decide that day's schedule will be different. We went on a tour of the facility, and when it was clear they would be at the river, we walked there. The boys were excited to see us, and they gave up some time in the river for our Bible Classes. We were able to have singing, Bible Classes, and crafts by the river. Actually, a small Russian Orthodox Chapel sits in front of the area where we had class, so we were teaching in the shadow of the Orthodox church. Our teachers did a great job talking about the Prodigal Son and the patience of the father. We bought some supplies last night that gave us good material for bookmarks to make. We plan to arrive 1 hour earlier tomorrow to catch the kids right after breakfast. Hopefully, that will avoid another miscommunication.

We made the trek to Lynn's where she fixed another great lunch. From there, we called Sasha in Krasnoarmeysk to make final preparations for next week. He is going to take a couple of us tomorrow to check out our housing. We have never stayed there before, so we want to make sure we have all the neccessary preparations in place. After Lynn's we led the Proletarski VBS. We have a good core group that continues to enjoy it. For their bookmarks, they were able to write the English version of their name (which made life easier for us, since our nametags are in our checked luggage).

Speaking of luggage...thanks to David Burka and others who have called trying to help. Our luggage is still in Istanbul, but it might be on the flight to Athens tonight, where it will then go to Donetsk. It may arrive at the same time as our other teammates! We found out today that the United Airlines rep never put in the report that our luggage was missing. We filled out all kinds of reports, but it didn't get recorded on their end. So...we filed one of those today to make sure they know where our luggage is. We have a great travel agent working on it from the States, and we are in touch with the folks over here. Maybe tomorrow, probably Friday, but always...just the way we like it.

God bless!

# Posted @ 8:15 PM on Wednesday, July 25, 2007

Comments:

Hey Everyone,
Everything continues to sound great...I remember last year how flexible everyone was to the possiblity (and probability) of changes without notice. Sounds as if all of you are continuing that great attitude. Just want all of you to know that Bonnie and I have you in our thoughts, hearts, and prayers...May God continue to bless you for the example of servanthood that you set for all of us....(Still wish that I were there with you...) Please give my best (again) to Kostya, Niki, and Masha..They are truly special people....Take care...Will touch base again soon....In the Master, Ben D.

# posted by

Anonymous : 8:45 PM

Tansy-Poppy always said- The German and Russian Language was so much easier to learn than English. You are making him proud..... We all love you, you have been and are in our thoughts and prays. You and the team.
I will do what any good parent does and just send money. We are so excited about this missionary trip and have been glued to the blog and International time clock.
Much Love ---Mom, Dad, Trey, Teya,Riley, Aunt Easter, Uncle Joe, Uncle Bobby, Uncle Buddy, Aunt Lisa, and Granny...xoxo

# posted by

Anonymous : 9:01 PM

I'm sorry to hear that you all have not received your luggage yet, but it sounds like you are all dealing with the adversity very well. God works in mysterious ways so maybe some kind of blessing will come from it.

It sounds like the river turned out to be a great place to teach the kids...I'm sure that you seeking out the kids showed them that you are dedicated to teaching them God's word...maybe that will turn out to be a blessing too.

We wish you all the best.

Teresa, Phillip, Hannah, & Seth

P.S. Grandaddy - We enjoyed getting your email the other day. We miss you and love you!

# posted by

Anonymous : 11:47 PM

So you think YOU'VE got problems! What's lost luggage when one is trying to put out the weekly bulletin and one has NO folding maching!!!! Never mind though, after hand folding 610 August calendars, and waiting several hours the not-so-pefect bulletin got folded on the offending folding machine, newly repaired. Life is soooh tough. Seriously, am so sorry about the luggage - Istanbul - who'd have thought it! I just keep thinking of ALL that work ya'll did before leaving. Great to read your messages, sounds great, and half of me wishes I were there; the other half is glad I'm here with all my clothes, toothbrush & floss. Miss you all. God bless your work. I'd say you're all tough ole birds and quite creative. Love to all. Carole

# posted by

Anonymous : 11:50 PM

Bless your hearts,
It sounds like you are doing great in spite of it all. David, I am just going by Target and get some more cedar balls to send. Linda made it here with no problem. She says "hello".

Take care, maybe tomorrow will be the day your luggage will arrive.

Love,
Melva

# posted by

Anonymous : 11:56 PM

I think that would be a cool place to teach a Bible lesson. Thank you for the blogs. We are glad to know how your days are going. It sounds like they are going, "just the way God would have it". Lots of teaching, praying and singing. It doesn't get better than that.

As my Grandma Eveyln would say,
May God bless you!

Tina

ps-Daddy-we love you and miss you!

# posted by

Anonymous : 12:19 AM

SETH and HANNAH want to know how you are going to get your luggage back and if it has been to the North Pole...We decided that Santa could get it to you quicker on his sleigh than the airlines can because the reindeer are really fast. We really hope it has NOT been to the North Pole.

Take care,
Phillip, Teresa, Hannah, & Seth

# posted by

Anonymous : 5:23 AM


Home About Us Directions Times of Service Our Elders Our History Our Ministers Contact Us Ministries Missions Youth Articles Events Media Watch Live Bible Study Mailbox Study Plan from the Beginning
Down in the River to...teach Today was more of a challenge than previous ones, but I think we handled it well. When we arrived at Karlovka (in our cool Ukrainian outfits we bought last night), the boys had already gone to the nearby river to swim. The director told them they could go. This is a problem we face often here - the director might wake up one morning and decide that day's schedule will be different. We went on a tour of the facility, and when it was clear they would be at the river, we walked there. The boys were excited to see us, and they gave up some time in the river for our Bible Classes. We were able to have singing, Bible Classes, and crafts by the river. Actually, a small Russian Orthodox Chapel sits in front of the area where we had class, so we were teaching in the shadow of the Orthodox church. Our teachers did a great job talking about the Prodigal Son and the patience of the father. We bought some supplies last night that gave us good material for bookmarks to make. We plan to arrive 1 hour earlier tomorrow to catch the kids right after breakfast. Hopefully, that will avoid another miscommunication. We made the trek to Lynn's where she fixed another great lunch. From there, we called Sasha in Krasnoarmeysk to make final preparations for next week. He is going to take a couple of us tomorrow to check out our housing. We have never stayed there before, so we want to make sure we have all the neccessary preparations in place. After Lynn's we led the Proletarski VBS. We have a good core group that continues to enjoy it. For their bookmarks, they were able to write the English version of their name (which made life easier for us, since our nametags are in our checked luggage). Speaking of luggage...thanks to David Burka and others who have called trying to help. Our luggage is still in Istanbul, but it might be on the flight to Athens tonight, where it will then go to Donetsk. It may arrive at the same time as our other teammates! We found out today that the United Airlines rep never put in the report that our luggage was missing. We filled out all kinds of reports, but it didn't get recorded on their end. So...we filed one of those today to make sure they know where our luggage is. We have a great travel agent working on it from the States, and we are in touch with the folks over here. Maybe tomorrow, probably Friday, but always...just the way we like it. God bless! # Posted @ 8:15 PM on Wednesday, July 25, 2007 Comments: Hey Everyone, Everything continues to sound great...I remember last year how flexible everyone was to the possiblity (and probability) of changes without notice. Sounds as if all of you are continuing that great attitude. Just want all of you to know that Bonnie and I have you in our thoughts, hearts, and prayers...May God continue to bless you for the example of servanthood that you set for all of us....(Still wish that I were there with you...) Please give my best (again) to Kostya, Niki, and Masha..They are truly special people....Take care...Will touch base again soon....In the Master, Ben D. # posted by Anonymous : 8:45 PM Tansy-Poppy always said- The German and Russian Language was so much easier to learn than English. You are making him proud..... We all love you, you have been and are in our thoughts and prays. You and the team. I will do what any good parent does and just send money. We are so excited about this missionary trip and have been glued to the blog and International time clock. Much Love ---Mom, Dad, Trey, Teya,Riley, Aunt Easter, Uncle Joe, Uncle Bobby, Uncle Buddy, Aunt Lisa, and Granny...xoxo # posted by Anonymous : 9:01 PM I'm sorry to hear that you all have not received your luggage yet, but it sounds like you are all dealing with the adversity very well. God works in mysterious ways so maybe some kind of blessing will come from it. It sounds like the river turned out to be a great place to teach the kids...I'm sure that you seeking out the kids showed them that you are dedicated to teaching them God's word...maybe that will turn out to be a blessing too. We wish you all the best. Teresa, Phillip, Hannah, & Seth P.S. Grandaddy - We enjoyed getting your email the other day. We miss you and love you! # posted by Anonymous : 11:47 PM So you think YOU'VE got problems! What's lost luggage when one is trying to put out the weekly bulletin and one has NO folding maching!!!! Never mind though, after hand folding 610 August calendars, and waiting several hours the not-so-pefect bulletin got folded on the offending folding machine, newly repaired. Life is soooh tough. Seriously, am so sorry about the luggage - Istanbul - who'd have thought it! I just keep thinking of ALL that work ya'll did before leaving. Great to read your messages, sounds great, and half of me wishes I were there; the other half is glad I'm here with all my clothes, toothbrush & floss. Miss you all. God bless your work. I'd say you're all tough ole birds and quite creative. Love to all. Carole # posted by Anonymous : 11:50 PM Bless your hearts, It sounds like you are doing great in spite of it all. David, I am just going by Target and get some more cedar balls to send. Linda made it here with no problem. She says "hello". Take care, maybe tomorrow will be the day your luggage will arrive. Love, Melva # posted by Anonymous : 11:56 PM I think that would be a cool place to teach a Bible lesson. Thank you for the blogs. We are glad to know how your days are going. It sounds like they are going, "just the way God would have it". Lots of teaching, praying and singing. It doesn't get better than that. As my Grandma Eveyln would say, May God bless you! Tina ps-Daddy-we love you and miss you! # posted by Anonymous : 12:19 AM SETH and HANNAH want to know how you are going to get your luggage back and if it has been to the North Pole...We decided that Santa could get it to you quicker on his sleigh than the airlines can because the reindeer are really fast. We really hope it has NOT been to the North Pole. Take care, Phillip, Teresa, Hannah, & Seth # posted by Anonymous : 5:23 AM Post a Comment << Home	Mt. Juliet Church of Christ Physical Addrees: 1940 N. Mt. Juliet Road Mt. 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