Vacation Bible School 2013 - Day One

This year's Vacation Bible School program had been a dream for several years. Dee had found the 'Mad About Jesus' website several years ago and was excited about implementing some of their wonderful science experiment object lessons into a week long VBS program one day here in Russia. There was only one problem - we needed a mad scientist! We are so grateful for those who have been saved through the ministry here in our village and this year we had wanted to include them as much as possible in our VBS program. Several of them were not able to help as we had hoped but, one lady was willing even to be a mad scientist in order to help these precious children understand Bible principles taught during the week!

Registration

The lady standing on the right in the jeans and the white jacket was a new Mother that we had bring her daughter for the first time! This year was a great year for new children that we have not previously been able to work with attending VBS! We had adults bring their children or stop by to watch every day!

Praying before the activities begin for Day One!

And so without further adieu, we would like to introduce you to...Mrs. Pipetkina, our 'mad' scientist for our 'Laboratory of Fun' VBS program 2013! 

I believe this is one of my favorite photos of the week. The minute Ryan noticed who Mrs. Pipetkina actually was he just laughed! 

Dee teaching the smaller age group.

Don't you love our flannel graph "holder"??

The Bible lesson for the first day was the Woman at the Well.

David teaching the older age group.

Immediately after the Bible lesson, we gathered all the children together again for the experiment. Mrs. Pipetkina was very nervous about the experiments as children are not her usual listening age! You see, Mrs. Pipetkina is actually a geneticist! She has given many lectures, but had never worked with children. She was challenged and spent much time in prayer asking God to help her make the experiment clear and easily understandable for the children. We had to translate each experiment and spend many hours together talking through them so that she knew exactly what needed to be said and how to convey the message. This week definitely caused her to lean on the Lord and that is a great position for her to be in - trusting in Christ to help her!

The children were looking forward to something new and exciting to watch when it was time to gather around for the experiment. 

This experiment can be described in detail here but these photos just have to be shared! Mrs. Pipetkina has a fear of balloons. So, this first experiment was a challenge for her to have to pop THREE balloons on purpose! We even offered to pop them for her since David understands her fear (hmm, his wife has the same "strong dislike" for balloons!) but she promised to be brave. She did great! Best of all were her faces as each balloon popped!

Sin separates us from God.

Can you help me put the balloon back together?

But, John 7:38 says, " He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water."

Both water and salvation are priceless and free. 

Both are available to everyone!

The balloon filled with water does not pop, but is protected, when it is exposed to open flame.

As is the person who puts his/her faith in Jesus Christ!

The experiment went well! The children understood and were amazed that the water balloon did not pop!

Next on the schedule, review game time!

After snack time, it was time for a few games!

The first game required the kids to hold each other at the elbow and without breaking the chain, get their bodies through the hula hoop and on down the line.

There are usually a few clowns in the group but this little guy just made us laugh with his funny faces while he concentrated on getting through that hula hoop!

The next game was a bit of a risky one on our part but we saw this game played at a good friend's son's birthday party and it was a lot of messy fun!

We did a little simpler version where the kids stand in line, each team having two players (one on each side of the table) blindfolded and ready to dig into a jello and whipped cream pie with their hands! Inside the pie were gummy worms, rice, and beans. The goal was for the children to find as many beans as they could, pull them out of the pie mess and onto the tablecloth in 30 seconds. The team with the most beans found wins!

I gave the instructions and David made sure to taste test the whipped cream just in case it was bad! ;)

The beautiful pies!

And their off!

Okay, so the risk was worth taking! They LOVED this game! Girls and boys alike!

After washing their hands off in a bucket of water, they received their papers to complete and bring back the next day and all went home. 

Whew! 

Our program lasts two hours and it is a packed two hours with no time in between activities for them to wander off. This year the first few days felt like the two hours was more like 30 minutes! The time seemed to pass so quickly from start to finish! 

We were so thankful for the great beginning of VBS 2013 with a total of 28 kids in attendance!

Opportunity

We would like to ask you to pray with us for a unique opportunity that we recently became award of here. Someone we know here in the area has recently made it known to us that they have finished their business in Krasnoyarsk and will be selling all of their equipment. Included in the items they are selling is a vehicle for the price of $34,000. This vehicle is in excellent condition. The next comparable vehicle we could buy here would cost approximately $60,000. We would be very interested in purchasing it since our vehicle needs to be replaced. The road conditions we have here in the villages really take their toll on vehicles. 

We are just praying that if the Lord sees fit we would be able to raise the funds necessary to purchase this vehicle within the time the person needs to sell it. Would you please join us in prayer and consider helping with this need?

THANK YOU!

Special prayer needed!

We have a special need for prayer right now as we deal with a sensitive medical situation in a family who attends our services. Even though I have been trying to express my thoughts and share this story with our blog readers on both this ministry blog and my (Dee Dee's) personal blog I have not bee able to put it all into words. 

I just wanted to ask everyone to be praying for us tomorrow (Friday) morning at 11 am as we drive a dear lady, Katya, to a doctor's appointment at a cancer hospital in the city. 

Katya, her niece, with her daughter, Sveta

Again, there is so much to tell of our experiences with this family over this past few months, but as I sit down to write a blog post my heart seems to go numb. 

We need doctors to be gracious enough to answer questions and be honest with us. 

We need for God to give us the exact words to say.

We need God's mercy and comfort as we explain the inevitable to family and the patient herself.

We need grace to say it all as God would have us to say it.

We need HIS perfect timing and opportunity for all of this. My heart is broken and this is the last thing I would want to do but at the same time I am thankful for the Lord allowing me to go through this valley with this family. God's grace will be sufficient for them as well as it has been for us in trying times!

Thank you for your prayers! We will keep you all updated and I will work on sharing Katya's story!

Vacation Bible School Posts

I just wanted to let our blog readers know that we have recently been asked to guest post some specifics regarding how to plan a Vacation Bible School program on the mission field for the Baptist Missionary Women blog.

Here are the links to each post for those who may be interested in reading more about planning a VBS program:

1. Scheduling a VBS program - written Feb. 27th, 2013

2. Getting it All on Paper - written March 6th, 2013

3.  Tips for Inviting Children and to Keep Them Coming Back - written March 13th, 2013

4.  Using a Point System - written March 20th, 2013


You can also find great recipes, craft ideas, and even funny missionary stories on the Baptist Missionary Women blog. Stop by and take a look at this great resource managed by a missionary lady and contributed to by other missionary ladies from around the globe!

Wounded Soldiers (Katya's story - Part One)

(NOTE: I began writing this post as it is dated, back in February of 2013. I struggled with how to write and express all that happened as my husband and I fought for months to help this dear lady, Katya, receive medical care she so desperately needed, as well as, help her family cope with the reality of her illness. This post is the beginning of the wonderful story of Katya's salvation and the precious few months she lived as a Christian.)


This past week was a blur to us.

Almost like a nightmare that we would really like to forget.

As you pass through these halls it is almost like you are walking through a war zone;

walking past wounded soldiers weary from the fight.

In reality, it is the local cancer hospital where people should be able to come to find rest and seek treatment.

Being one of two cancer hospitals in the entire region rest and relaxation is a far cry from what you see

on the faces of those who have found themselves here.

Instead you see people, many of whom have traveled for miles just to have their diagnostic tests done and

hopefully be "lucky" enough or "sick enough" to be admitted the day they arrive.

They are exhausted from standing in lines

for endless hours only to be told they must come back later,

or even that there is no room for them at all, unless they can pay for their medical care.

You see, the situation here in Russia with cancer is critical.

The numbers of patients is growing.

I just heard a statistic that 5,000 children in Russia are diagnosed with cancer each year.

Less than half of them will actually receive care.

The best hospitals are not in the small towns but in Moscow, St. Petersburg, and other large cities.

Then there is the older generation which comprises most of the patients here in our area.

We currently have two cancer hospitals in Krasnoyarsk.

They are overflowing with needy patients.

Take Katya, for example, the mother of one of our most faithful ladies.

This week was spent just doing our best just trying to get her admitted to the cancer hospital.

You see, she started telling me sometime last month (January 2013) that she was having trouble swallowing.

I told her she should see a doctor.

Fast forward a few weeks later and we find out she is in the hospital because of fluid building up in her abdominal cavity so much that she could hardly stand up. We understood what this more than likely meant - CANCER.

Katya was released from the hospital after they kept her for almost a week (if I remember correctly). The doctors told her she needed to be seen by a doctor in the city because they did not deal with these type of situations like hers. They really told her very little and eventually a doctor there agreed to drain some of the fluid off of her abdomen to ease the discomfort. While she was in the hospital a lady in her room kept telling her not to worry or be afraid that she would be okay. This Orthodox lady showed her prayers from her book of prayers and told Katya that she needed to buy a cross from the Orthodox church and "pray" those prayers. Katya returned home on a Wednesday so just after the service, I took her daughter, Sveta, and grandkids home from the service to try to talk more with Katya about her medical and spiritual needs. The Lord chose the perfect time for us to talk this time, as I had tried before to sit down with Katya and share God's plan of salvation with her but was unable to. This time, we talked a bit about her medical problems. Then she began sharing with me about what her roommate had told her and about her fears as she lay in that hospital bed. The conversation led right into sharing the gospel! I was able to reassure Katya that SHE can't handle what is in store and can't know the future but God does and wants to use this to draw her to HIM! After talking a little, Katya agreed to let me read some Scriptures to her while her daughter and granddaughters sat across the room. Katya soon expressed her desire to come to Christ and place her faith and trust in Him to save her. I prayed for Katya and then offered for her to pray and accept Christ and she cried out to God verbally and asked Him into her heart begging Him to save her! What a precious prayer Katya prayed to a loving heavenly father! She said "Amen," and she hugged me. Relief was audible in her voice. Her daughter hugged her while I sat with her teen granddaughter and noticed tears streaming down her face as well. We all rejoiced in that moment as we had all prayed for years for Katya to come to Christ!

From that point on, we strongly desired that God would be glorified in Katya's life no matter what the outcome! That evening I told Katya that whatever news she may hear as she goes into the cancer hospital for further testing, it will be God's will for her life and she can safely trust in His promises. That very evening she became visibly at peace even through her pain and suffering, now that her eternity was settled!

(to be continued...)

Sunday School Caroling 2012

Each year since we first arrived in Russia we have been involved in special Christmas cantatas and plays during the long holiday season. The only problem is that with us serving in Siberia, the time when most of these activities are scheduled to take place is usually during the coldest time of the winter. Often that means that people are not physically able to attend or have no desire to leave their houses or warm apartment buildings in -30 degrees Celsius temperatures! 

So, in an effort to teach my Sunday school kids to show kindness to others and be a blessing to the elderly and physically handicapped, we went caroling from house to house through the village! 

Honestly, I had been wanting to do this for several years but, when the temperatures drop often the kids also stay at home snuggled in their beds and only the most faithful ones come out to Sunday school. This year we had a good group of faithful kids and they were excited about doing something new.

First of all, we decided to go caroling on a Sunday afternoon just after our Sunday morning service. Most of the kids went home for lunch and we fed a couple at our house before gathering them all up in our truck. Going caroling on a Sunday worked out to be the best way to ensure that the kids would all be there as they promised. 

Cramming into the truck was just part of the fun!

Yes, it was a little "crowded"!

Here are a few photos from several of our stops.

We sang to this precious lady, Nina. She is Angelina's (the little girl in the photo) great grandmother.

We visited families of some of our SS kids and elderly ladies who are no longer able to walk and get out of their apartments without assistance. But, our last stop, in my opinion, was the most memorable for all of the children. 

The young lady seated on the right in the photo below has been a friend of our family's since we first moved to the village. We were introduced to her through the English teacher at the village school. She suffered a seizure when she was about six years old and the damage left her handicapped. Her family moved out to the village with the hope that it would help her. She has improved tremendously since that time. 

What a blessing to hear her mother, grandmother, and grandfather thank us over and over again for taking the time to come to "cheer them up" with our visit and singing. It was GOOD for the kids to see this eighteen year old girl in such physical condition yet she studies in school and wants to be just like them. 

I couldn't have been happier with the responses we received from these dear people we visited. What a blessing it was to me and what memories were made for the kids.

Traditionally, if you do something nice for someone or visit them around Christmas time you WILL walk away with more than you can imagine. Today was no different for us!

Here is our loot after all of our visits! We also gave away some candy bars before this photo was taken. The children divided up the candy among themselves.

I pray this was the beginning of a new tradition and that many look forward to it each year from now on!