Where to begin? On Thursday morning at 6:00am, Christine and I headed out west to the Ukrainian-Polish border in her car. I decided I did not have enough experiences on the Polish border; that I needed to try every means of transportation to see the result. Joke! It was an overcastted day but a great early morning drive. We navigated the city of Lutsk without getting lost. We were encouraged when we arrived at the border and the line was significantly shorter than the last time Christine brought her car across. After about a two hour wait, we finally arrived at the border. The Ukrainian authorities searched the car and told us we could go one to passport control. This is when Christine and I had an opportunity to pray together, trust in the Lord and see Him work. As they lady, Natasha, looked at my passport. She asked for a document I never received. Then she told me I was illegally in the country and that I should have left every 90 days. I told her that I was not told this because I have a visa and I registered with the police for the term of my visa. Apparently, this was not enough. She became very agitated. She called her superiors. She was on the phone for a long time. This is when Christine and I began to pray without each of us knowing it. We prayed for Natasha, we prayed for God to grant us favor. Natasha became calmer but eventually told us to wait in the car. We prayed together while in the car. After only a few minutes, Natasha came out of the booth and handed us both our passports. God answered our prayer. We could proceed to go into Poland turn around and return to Ukraine, as this is necessary for Christine to do ever couple of months. God gave us favor with the Polish authorities and the officer allowed us to turn around right at the border, ahead of a waiting line of cars. This time no two hour wait. So, we drove up to the Ukrainian border, were given the immigration form to complete by a very friendly officer. She then told us to go on to passport control to get back into Ukraine. They were waiting for me because as we pulled up an officer approached the car and said, you are the one they were talking about with the visa. He explained to me the law. I explained to him, I didn’t know all the nuances, no one told me in the various office I’ve been in what was necessary. Even my recent trip, in March, to the immigration office, they just made a copy of my documents. He told me that they should not let me back in Ukraine, but I should have to go to the Consulate in Poland and get a new visa. I prayed. I told him I only have a short time left on my visa and would have to renew it again soon. I asked him, what I will do; live with him, because I don’t have a car or a way to go anywhere. He listened. He was sympathetic. I asked him what I can do so that I am doing things in order in the future. He answered. He told us to wait in the car. We prayed again. Prayed for his heart, the heart of his authorities and for God’s will because I believe He has called me to Ukraine. The officer came back to the car, explained some more. I apologized. I explained some more. He told me he would let me go. God answered this prayer too. During this short yet adventurous trip God showed me there are many more papers under rocks in this journey, but Him will always lead me to the right rocks and He is able to work out every situation for His glory when I place my faith, confidence and trust in Him. All glory to God!!!

This is the Scripture that can to mind for this day: You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You.  Trust in the Lord forever, for in Yah, the Lord, is everlasting strength. Isa 26:3-4 NKJV

Now, you may ask, why did you go? I went for a number of reasons. Christine needed to go and I wanted to serve her so she wouldn’t be alone. Also, I have multi-entry visa to Ukraine and I haven’t left the country since receiving it. When I renew my visa, I don’t want there to be any questions why I need a multi-entry visa. Finally, as a part of my understanding Ukrainian culture, it is my goal to visit many different areas in Ukraine. I was able to visit Lutsk today and ride through a number of smaller villages. Here are some pictures from our journey back where God gave us more grace through the people we met in Lutsk.  http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=171206&id=550104316&l=e4a7544c7b

It has been too long since I posted. But in reality, my lack of inspiration to write was a reflection of the way I was feeling during this time of silence. It’s not that nothing has been happening, actually quite the contrary. God is continuing to work in me and open doors so He can work through me. The work He has been doing in me has been the main reason for the silence. God has been using circumstances to draw me closer to Him. He has been using circumstances to open my eyes to the reality of the battle that I am in the midst of.  The battle raging around every believer every day. I knew these times would come. They are very common for missionaries and probable more common for believers that anyone would want to admit.  I am so very grateful for those of you who pray for me when you are prompted by the Lord. I receive a wonderful gift on April 14th.  A mission team from my home church came to Ukraine for 9 days. It was a time of rejuvenation for me. There is a saying, there is strength in numbers. I felt the strength. I felt the love.  Here are some pictures of our time of ministry together.

Zaborol Women’s Facility

Waiting outside my building

English School

Singing in Church Service

Teaching Session in Church

I was wrong! I thought for sure the snow and ice would remain on the ground way into March. It began melting last week as temperatures rose into to 40’s. Now the sidewalks are a slushy mess and the only things you are guaranteed to come home with every time you go outside are cold, wet feet. The up side…spring is in the air, the days are getting longer, and the sun is shining more often. It may snow and freeze again but I am still hope filled. I have almost survived my first full winter in Ukraine where on the shortest day the sun rose at 7:56am and set at 3:56pm. It is 6:00pm now and just getting dark. Four more days until the first day of spring in Ukraine, March 1^st.

Building Snow-people in the Park

The first weekend of January, I decided I wanted to go see the Christmas tree (in Ukraine it is the New Year tree) in the center of town. The family I was living with decided they wanted to go too. A friend of theirs was visiting and she joined us. One of the guys from our church who lives nearby also joined us. We loaded the two boys on the sled and headed out. It was a gorgeous evening for a walk. Our route took us through the park. As we began walking in the park, some other folks from church called and wanted to join us. So while we waited for them in the park, we had a snowball fight and began building a snowman. By the time they join us, we had an entire family.

My Very Own Holiday

The 25th of January was Tania’s Day. No, I’m not kidding. I’ve waited all my life for this! It is the celebration of all those named Tetiana (Tania). In celebration, gifts and greetings are often given. Almost all the Tanias from our church met in the evening for tea. I was great being included in the celebration and just getting to know the ladies better in an informal setting as these are the ladies I came here to serve and help to go deeper in their walk with Christ.

Socks on Boots

I was on the marshrutka (mini bus) one day and looked down to see a woman with socks on the outside of her boots. I was quite surprised and curious as to the reason for this. I began to think of all the possible options. First thought was that she was cold; we had about a week of temperatures about -27°C. No, that didn’t make sense; she could easily wear the socks on the inside. Second thought, she was wearing the socks to keep from slipping on the ice. You see, for the past month, most of the sidewalks in Rivne have been sheets of ice. It is not very smooth ice in most places but it is still really slippery. A friend confirmed later in the day that this was indeed the reason. It was very efficient, effective, creative but odd. Unfortunately, I don’t have a picture.

Other Happenings

I have been living in Rivne since right after American Christmas. I was living with a family but on last Friday moved into my own flat. As I right I am sitting in the living room. It is great to have a place of my own so I can truly begin to feel settled in Ukraine. God is also beginning to open up opportunities to serve. I will be teaching English on Saturdays as an outreach for unbelievers, I have started going to the Bee House (a family style orphanage house) weekly, and I am now doing one-on-one discipleship with young woman from Salvation Church who speaks English fluently in preparation for the discipleship group. God has answered my pray and provided me with a new friend and English is the only language we currently have in common. I thank God for the opportunity to meet her and pray that the friendship will develop with time.

Here are some recent pictures: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=145937&id=550104316&l=9db0ea7c91

Tonight candles will burn inside windows in remembrance of the millions (3.2 – 10 million) of people who died between 1932-1933 as a result of a great famine. The famine called The Holodomor (Ukrainian: Голодомор; translation: death by starvation) is used to refer to this famine because there were no natural causes for starvation. The Holodomor is considered one of the greatest calamities to affect the Ukrainian nation in modern history. Please pray for healing because 75 years later there is great anger, bitterness and dispute surrounding this famine.

Each month in the Ukrainian language has a specific meaning and October was (жовтень) which in derived from the word yellow. The reason for the Ukrainian word for October is because at the beginning of the month all the trees begin to turn yellow and by the end of the month all have turned. It was particularly remarkable for me to experience some of this beauty of the change of colors in the Carpathian Mountains in western Ukrainian. We were in a small village about 70 kilometers from the border of Slovakia. While we were there I had a chance, for the first time in my life, to gather mushrooms in the forest. Also, to tried to determine which were the good mushrooms and which ones were bad, as in poisonous. Ironically enough the ugly mushrooms were good and the more attractive ones were not. I was grateful I didn’t not have to venture this alone because I would still be lost in the mountains and I would have picked all the bad mushrooms because they were pretty, easy to spot and plentiful. Another first was an encounter poison ivy. It was all over the forest but especially in the places where the mushrooms were. I recognized this early and tried to stay away from it, but one time I ended up knee deep in some, so I just began to pray for the poison ivy not to have any effect on me. Thank God He answered my prayers.

 A Few Highlights from the Trip

 One highlight of the trip was walking through the small village alone and saying hello to all the people as I passed by their homes. It was funny, one man and woman were working in their yard up on a hill and as I walked by the man stopped what he was doing, ran down the hill and called to his mother to come outside and look. I just smiled and waved. Also I got the experience the dialect of Ukrainian that is called zacarpathian. This dialect is so different that at times other Ukrainians don’t understand what people speaking it are saying. The dialect even has two additional sounds in addition to the sounds in the Ukrainian language.

Another highlight was spending some time with the youth in the church there and worshiping with the believers on Sunday.

Just in case you were wondering November is Листопад – which means leaves falling.

 If you would like to see more pictures click here: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=121948&id=550104316&l=be17c6c364

In the past after spending time in Ukraine for summer, I would be home by now. This is my first autumn in Ukraine. So, I’m back to the big city where there is a chill in the air, the sweaters are out of storage, the leaves are already turning yellow and brown and littering the ground, there’s the roar of the metro (subway), the honking of horns, watermelons are at their sweetest, children are back in school and so am I. I have been energized by the summer. Most summers over the past few years have gone by without my being able to enjoy them. I truly enjoyed this summer.

Read more about my eventful summer in my most recent prayer letter.

http://www.scene3.org/content/view/8061/68/

Also, here are some photos.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=109365&id=550104316&l=8d5af551cb

Guess which picture has food in it!

One night, one of my friends and I were eating dinner together.  As we finished eating we both agreed that we were full.  We cleared the dishes from the table and she looked at me and said, “I will wash some sweet cherries.”  My response was, I thought we were full.  Her response? “Oh, cherries are not food.”  Naturally, my question was, if cherries are not food what are they? The answer? “They are for spending time together.”  She then went down a list of edible items that are not categorized as food.  Bananas, oranges, and most fruits, cakes, cookies, ice-cream, having tea are all for spending time together.  I know this is a big relief to anyone who is currently on a diet.  Her entire explanation started out as a joke but in the end it turned out to reveal an important truth about Ukrainian culture.  I exclaimed, “Oh, so now I understand why every time you visit someone you are served tea because it is a way to spend time together.  Even if you visit 10 houses in one day, chances are you will have tea 13 times (3 times at home).”  She said, yes, they are not feeding you, if you want to eat, you can eat at home.  A lot of things became clear after this conversation.

So, after packing my bag and heading to Rivne for the summer to practice my language, I spent a week in the woods at a Youth Festival.   From 6:00am until well after midnight 98 percent of the time I had to think and speak in Ukrainian.  One percent was spent asleep and the other on percent was getting clarification for important instructions and taking a mental break from time to time.   Here are a few pictures from my visa trip to Krakow, Poland http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=94469&id=550104316&l=23363e9aef and the Youth Festival http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=94475&id=550104316&l=29c11b2393.

]]> http://www.createdforamission.com/2009/07/22/it%e2%80%99s-not-food%e2%80%a6it%e2%80%99s-for-spending-time-together-and-other-happenings/feed/ 8 http://www.createdforamission.com/2009/05/26/home-alone%e2%80%a6/ http://www.createdforamission.com/2009/05/26/home-alone%e2%80%a6/#comments Tue, 26 May 2009 16:59:56 +0000 Tania http://www.createdforamission.com/?p=284

With two slight differences from the movie… : 1) my roommate did not forget me, and 2) more importantly I was not fighting off two robbers who were trying to break in.  But I was living alone in Ukraine for the first time ever.  For a little over one week, my roommate was out of town and I was on my own.  In some ways it felt great because I could have some alone time.  For all those who know me well, you know these times are important for me to experience occasionally.  Ironically, in spite of my desire to be alone, I found that I truly missed the presence of my roommate.  Natasha, my roommate, knows five or six English words and very seldom uses them, so it’s not like we have lengthy conversations when we are both at home.  Nevertheless, I have a feeling of reassurance when she’s around, knowing that someone is there in case I need something.  As I reflect on this experience I know God gave me a snapshot of the future.  This summer I may have another opportunity to be living alone for a few weeks, rehearsing for the eventuality of living solo when I move to Rivne.  I love the way God prepares me for what He knows is to come.  And in the end, I know I am never truly alone, because God says He will never leave me nor forsake me.  I have added some new pictures to Facebook (facebook link) with a few highlights of spring and my life in Ukraine.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=82587&id=550104316&l=5bb6883da2