On Wait

"Wait for the Lord; Be strong, and let your heart take courage; Yes, wait for the Lord. Psalm 27:14. One time at a detention center Bible study we told the kids that God answers prayers in three ways: yes, no and wait. The next week, a kid came in, leaned over and whispered, "I'm on wait." OK, I hate waiting. Never been good at it and never liked it. I know it's good for me, especially when I'm paying attention, as the Lord often keeps us there to learn.

Yana and Seroja-Traditions!

This past weekend, some of the being on wait ended in a good way. We had a great wedding celebration for Seroja and Yana, both of whom grew up at the internat/orphanage in Kaniv, and who have lived here at the Safe Haven house for a couple of years. The wedding was in the back yard, Anya and her friends made the food, Lena made a wonderful cake, Alisa decorated the yard and took photos, Olya did hair, and everyone pitched in to make it a special day. Seroja's only blood relative, his sister, was here, but so was the family that the Lord has made for him and for Yana.

Kersa, Vova, Dima and Zhivchik

What was also nice was that kids we've gotten to know over the years from the camps, who are now on their own, also came. We were also blessed as Inna and Roma, who help out leading the camps, came up from Cherkassy with Ruslan and Zhivchik, two kids who have become a big part of my life and the lives of others who have helped at the camps. Both of them talked about wanting to live here one day when they finish at the internat. Awesome.

Me and Ruslan

Waiting is OK, but sometimes these yes's are also mighty nice. Thank you Lord.

Home for now

Sergei, Shamil, Sasha, John, Lydia, Ira

Steve Wiggins sang a song that I like with the tag line "all the darkness in the world can't put out the light of the smallest flame." When we went into the juvenile prison a couple of weeks ago, we saw some of that in action.

First, was the kid like curiosity that my watch brought out in Sasha. Sasha is a regular at the Bible study and told me that for him, it's a place of safety and hope-unlike the rest of the prison. When we were leaving, Sasha asked how old my watch was and when I told him it is at least 10 years old, he was shocked. When he asked what happens when the battery dies, I took off my watch and gave it to him and told him to shake it as it is a kinetic watch that self-winds. You would have thought that I'd given Sasha a time machine. All of a sudden, a 16 year old orphan became a 7 year old kid, shaking the watch, showing it to everyone, and smiling like there was no tomorrow. He gingerly handed it back and gave me a big hug as we left.

New room

Before that, Alexander, one of the prison officials, gave us a tour of where the boys live. Sergei told me that something had changed in the place as before, they never would have shown us that place. Alexander showed us two rooms with many beds and said that this will be where the new guys will live. Ukraine is going from 10 to 4 juvenile prisons and this one will take many of the boys. He also showed us a bathroom that the boys had redone themselves-they did a great job and you could see Alexander's pride in them. They need some help with things like chairs and cubicles for clothing so I told Alexander that we would help with that. He said that will mean a lot.

Bathroom redone by guys

This month marks 15 years that we've been going into that colony. While it's still a tough place, I can see how the Lord has blessed it, made it better and provided a more humane place for the guys. I think that Lydia Petrovna's presence and her love are key to that. Her love for the Lord and for her boys is a strong light in there.

Place of Baptism

There are times when we need a break, even when that break involves you and 38 other members of an extended family. Bogdan, Anya, Inna, Roma and I got to bring the guys and girls from the Safe Haven house, plus a group of kids who either lived here or who have become a part of our lives through past camps, to Kompass Park in the village of Khreshatic. Thanks to Alla, the director there who was able to get sponsors, we were able to bring many more kids than we thought possible.

It was fun to watch them be kids, to go swimming, to wander about the village, and to catch up with each other. Each night we had a time of sharing about who Christ is and how we can grow in our faith. Mostly, it was a time to share His love and to enjoy each others company.

As we were waiting to start one meeting, Bogdan asked us to pray for Yulia and Dasha as they were speaking with Anya about their faith. A few minutes later, Anya came in to tell us that both of them wanted to be baptized as a public showing of their desire to follow Christ.

Praying for Yulia, Dasha and Vova

We went down to the river and Bogdan and I baptized Yulia and Dasha--this was a first for me. As we were getting out of the river, Vova asked if he could be baptized too. It's hard to describe the joy that brought and the gift that it was for us.

Later, Frank from Hope Now, which started Kompass Park, told us that Khreshatic means "place of baptism." Gotta love when that happens.

Letter to an Old Man, Me

Sharon O'Fallon found this in her father's papers and Deb shared it with me several years ago. As I was going through some favorite quotes and sayings for a sermon I'm putting together, I found it and thought it would be good to share.

Dear Friend;

You're going to meet an old man someday!  Down the road ahead- 10, 20, 30 years- you'll catch up with him waiting for you there.  What kind of an old man are you going to meet?  He may be a seasoned, gracious fellow surrounded by a host of friends who call him blessed because of what his life meant to them.    He may be a bitter, disillusioned, dried up old buzzard without a good word for anybody, soured, friendless and alone.  The kind of old man you'll meet depends eventually on yourself.  Because that old man will be you!

          He is a composite of everything you do, say and think.  His mind will be set in the mold you've made by your attitudes.  His heart will be turning out what you've been putting in.  Every little thought and deed of yours goes into this old man. He'll be exactly what you make him- nothing more, nothing less.  It is up to you.  You'll have no one else to credit or blame.  Every day, in every way, you are becoming more and more like yourself--getting to look, think, and sound more like yourself.  Live now only for what you can get out of life? The old man gets smaller, drier, harder, crabbier, and more self-centered.  Open your life to others, think in terms of what you can give--the old man grows softer, kindlier, greater, and more Christ-centered.  Fact is, the hidden little things in life, attitudes, goals, ambitions, desires may seem unimportant now,  But, they're adding up inside where you can't see them, crystallizing in your heart and mind.  They'll show up sooner than you think.  It’s time to pay that old man a visit and care for him!  Like a wise businessman, taking inventory of his stock, examine his motives, attitudes and goals.  The product of life is of more value than merchandise.  Work him over while he is still in a formative stage--before it’s too late.  You'll be more likely to meet a splendid, old man.  The man you'd like to be. 

God bless you.

         

( Written by the late Richard Halvorsen, Chaplain of the US Senate.)

Kinsley's Out There: Community

Kinsley's Out There: Community: "The guys downstairs This morning, I went downstairs and there were four guys sleeping in various places in the little house where I'm sta..."

Community

The guys downstairs

This morning, I went downstairs and there were four guys sleeping in various places in the little house where I'm staying. Last week, six guys from the orphanage, who just graduated, came here so that they could take their college entrance exams.  Now there are 22 guys and girls here. Give or take one or two.

What's interesting is that most of the guys were ones who didn't come to the camps for one reason or another and who never really connected with us.

Last night, we had a Bible study and most of them came, including Vitya, who hung out with us at the first camp (Tiger used to call him Curly, which may be part of the problem...), but shut down after that. As Anya was asking the group to explain what it means to be a Christian, I saw Vitya listening intently. I'm not sure what got through, but that he was listening was a bit of a miracle.

Family, celebrating my birthday.

The study was on Acts, and as we were reading  how the earliest followers of Christ freely sold their possessions and lived so that no one was in want, it was a reminder that we often miss out on the blessings that such living can bring. It was also a reminder that God gives us a place to belong, a place where we can be loved. Seeing the 22+ kids, thinking how they were all abandoned, abused or neglected, and are now finding a place to call home, made me think that this is what the Church should be about.

Maybe that is what Vitya was experiencing for the first time.

Colony Visit

Lydia, Ira and John at the festival

It had been over a year since I'd been able to get into the juvenile prison colony due to red tape and scheduling conflicts. This past Saturday, Sergei, Lydia and I finally got to get into the colony and it happened to be a festival day, where the guys were doing skits, singing, dancing and doing acrobatics. Most of the guys were there as were many officials and at the end, I got a chance to thank them for their openness to letting us in and got to present them with a laptop and LCD projector that we were able to purchase for them.

Sergei, Lydia and I also got a chance to invite all of the guys to the Bible study, which was great, as there were 80 new guys from other colonies that had just closed.

Guys doing acrobatics

When it came time for the small group, guys just kept coming. We ended up with about 35 or 40 and at least 10 were from the other colonies. Sergei, Lyda and I started to share about what we do and why and then the guys started asking me questions about the juvenile "prisons" in America. I got to share about guys whose lives the Lord has changed, including Jason who was at Camp Squanto 15 years ago and who now is on staff with us at Straight Ahead Ministries, and about His love for them all. Then I asked them about their lives and why they come to Lydia and Sergei's group.

One boy, Vlad said that he comes to get closer to the Lord. He has repented and he now feels hope that he can make it. Sanya shared that his father killed his mother when he was 9 and that he started stealing when he was not much older than that. Sanya told us that he loves coming to Sergei and Lydia's group, but when he goes back to the rest of the prison, he often feels hopeless. That lead to a great discussion about Sergei and Lydia's love for him and for the other guys, and how that love comes from Jesus, who never leaves us, no matter where we go. Sanya started to beam.

When it was time to wrap things up, Sergei said that if any of the guys wanted to repent, if they felt like their faith was coming alive, that they should stay. A couple of guys left, but the rest stayed. Sergei  wanted to make sure that they understood so he told them again that they should leave unless they wanted to pray. No one moved and they all prayed. This is not something that they take lightly as they get harassed and put down for coming to the group and for becoming believers.

As we were leaving, there were a lot more smiles and hugs, and many guys asked when we were coming back. It's amazing to see hope and life come into hearts that have been so hurt and closed. We need to pray that they keep that light and share it.