Our team is home and exhausted. I spent the entire day posting pictures on my facebook page and have 7 albums SO FAR. I'm not even done yet. For now, you can go to my facebook and look at the albums I have. Try clicking on this link, http://www.facebook.com/photos.php?id=504687746 to see if that will work for ya.If not, you can probably go to www.Facebook.com and look up Pam DeFrees and go to the albums on the profile page. Everything is pretty much blocked unless you are a facebook friend but the Ukraine albums are not blocked so HOPEFULLY you can see the pictures. Other team members have posted pictures too. I plan to steal their pictures and put them on a web page for you to go to.
We are all already missing our kids and translator friends so much. My sweet friend, Vova, came to the airport in the middle of the night to say good bye. I still see his face every time I close my eyes. I want to bring him home with me so badly. Quite a few of our sweet friends who translate for us came to see us off and help us with all our luggage. We love them so much!
Please continue to keep us in your prayers. Jet lag will stay with us for quite a while. On top of that, we are emotionally and physically drained and will go through a time of sadness as we adjust to leaving our kids. Facing every day life is an adjustment so families have to be patient. This is a time that the enemy will be attacking so please continue to lift us up in prayer. We appreciate you so much!
Friday, June 27, 2008
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
As much as family members would love to see pictures, I know it will be a long process so I will at least get a blog in. It is almost 7 in the morning here (Thursday). No one is up because we are not eating breakfast until 9; a little later than usual. I started a blog last night (Wednesday) around 3:15 p.m. your time, 11:15 p.m. our time but the lady in charge came to tell me it was time to get off the computer so she could lock up and go to bed. I couldn't even save all that I wrote or even send the amount I had written. When a lady with a white rat on her shoulder tells you it's time to get off, you get off! : )
Our days are going by very quickly. It always amazes me how we instantly fall completely in love with the kids. It is an instant, deep love that God just pours through you. It's not something that can be explained and it's not something that can be totally understood by those who have not experienced it. In fact, my husband has mentioned that to me several times on this trip. He now sees why I'm all messed up and why I wear my dorky beaded braclets that "my kids" made me and why I can be so in love with these kids.
Our experiences at Fontanka have been sweet. The boys are willing to do anything we ask them to do whether it's listening to a Bible story, do relays, or crafts. Even the "too cool" boys who wouldn't make a craft at least watch the others. I was able to convince one boy to make one for Babushka Lela since he wouldn't make one for himself.
Igor told me that one of the oldest boys came and sat by him on the bench. He told him, "Thank you for not forgetting us." Igor said it meant so much to the boy that we come to see them. We look forward to spending the morning with them today as we will be sharing the Salvation message with them.
Gary is head over hills in love with a boy named Viktor. Two Viktor's are special to him but one has stollen his heart. He wants to pack him in a bag and bring him home. Of course, those of you reading this who have been there before know exactly how he's feeling.
Yesterday we spent the morning on the Black Sea with the Camp Viktoria kids. There wasn't much to do because the teachers no longer let them go over to the concrete wall to jump and swim. They have to stay in a roped area to swim where they can all be closely watched. We played catch and wrote with sidewalk chalk and just hung out. Most of the team swam with the kids for a while too. Gary just had to jump off the "bridge thing" that he had heard so much about. He didn't want to miss out on the opportunity just incase it was his only one. I'm fine with not experiencing that!
God answered my prayer that I would see my Vova while I was here. I mention him in my PassionForUkraine web page from last summer. I had to say good bye to him at McDonalds and thought I'd never see him again. He was finished with school and had plans to continue school and learn to cook so he could be a cook on the sea. Monday as we piled out of the van I heard commotion on the other side. Through the window I saw Mike hugging someone. When I saw that it was Vova I screamed and ran to him. He was so happy to be with us and I was never happier to see him in my life! Yesterday at camp the director made him leave, but as least I got to send some time with him and had already made him a bracelet and gave him a Russian CBC CD (thanks again Ray!!!) which he loved very much. He listened to it the night I gave it to him and he loved it. God is good! All the time!
We sat and watch relays all evening. As boring as this is, it's not bad because our kids sit with us and they can't get close enough or get hugged enough. We just sit and bond and love on them. I was on the top row of the bleachers last night and I scanned over the crowd. Everyone of our team members were surrounded with kids. Arms around each other, talking, smiling, rubbing backs, and just pouring out love. The kids soak up everything they receive. Ben was surrounded by his girls. Every time I looked over to where they were sitting he was looking at them and they were all smiles as he talked to them in his Russian accent. Emily and Sara have several kids who never leave their sides. They are being the hands and voice of Jesus. Merry, Chels, Danny (who keeps us very entertained at all times), Dana, and Misha are just wonderful with their kids. There is a deep respect and love that has been growing the last 1 to 5 years with their kids. Mike (who is Misha 'round these parts) has seen many of these kids grow up from age 10. Now they are 14 or 15 or 16 and they love and respect Mike so much. One of the little boys came up to him yesterday and hugged him and said "You are GOOD BOY!" : ) This is Vladik, Emily's boy who is now Ben's boy, who is really everyone's boy. He's a little stinker but he's full of love and joy.
This is long, I know, but God is doing so much and I know those of you at home want to know how your kids are doing and how the trip is going.
The relay time was almost over last night and one of the teenage boys started trying to take Bill's sunglasses. It became a little game which all the other teen agers thought was pretty funny. Bill just played a long for a while but then as more boys came to sit with the group they all began to talk. Bill had already shared his testimony with many of them earlier and even though they were way too cool to talk to the American at first, now they love him and stay with him all evening. Last night Bill began to share the Gospel and Igor joined right in to translate. Some were laughing and playing around at first but by the time they were done talking, it was very quiet and serious. They asked Igor a lot of questions and they were truely being moved by the Spirit. It was dinner time for the kids while this was going on, so all of us had to go to the gate while the men had this wonderful time with the boys.
Even though we have not had an organized teaching time at Viktoria, God is stirring in the hearts and opening doors for His Word to be taught.
Remember that we are 8 hours ahead so please be praying as we share the message of God's forgivness and Salvation today. Also, it's Gary's birthday today and he doesn't know we know (thanks Facebook) so we have a little breakfast surprise for him. Be in prayer for Bill and Misha as well. This is their last day with the kids. They leave at 5:20 Friday morning. They will be sad and torn to leave but they both have to return to their jobs. Plus my 3 boys at home will be happy to have their daddy home, no matter how messed up he is now. : )
We feel your prayers and God's presence and peace. We all love you and talk of home with each other often. Your kids are awesome!!!
Our days are going by very quickly. It always amazes me how we instantly fall completely in love with the kids. It is an instant, deep love that God just pours through you. It's not something that can be explained and it's not something that can be totally understood by those who have not experienced it. In fact, my husband has mentioned that to me several times on this trip. He now sees why I'm all messed up and why I wear my dorky beaded braclets that "my kids" made me and why I can be so in love with these kids.
Our experiences at Fontanka have been sweet. The boys are willing to do anything we ask them to do whether it's listening to a Bible story, do relays, or crafts. Even the "too cool" boys who wouldn't make a craft at least watch the others. I was able to convince one boy to make one for Babushka Lela since he wouldn't make one for himself.
Igor told me that one of the oldest boys came and sat by him on the bench. He told him, "Thank you for not forgetting us." Igor said it meant so much to the boy that we come to see them. We look forward to spending the morning with them today as we will be sharing the Salvation message with them.
Gary is head over hills in love with a boy named Viktor. Two Viktor's are special to him but one has stollen his heart. He wants to pack him in a bag and bring him home. Of course, those of you reading this who have been there before know exactly how he's feeling.
Yesterday we spent the morning on the Black Sea with the Camp Viktoria kids. There wasn't much to do because the teachers no longer let them go over to the concrete wall to jump and swim. They have to stay in a roped area to swim where they can all be closely watched. We played catch and wrote with sidewalk chalk and just hung out. Most of the team swam with the kids for a while too. Gary just had to jump off the "bridge thing" that he had heard so much about. He didn't want to miss out on the opportunity just incase it was his only one. I'm fine with not experiencing that!
God answered my prayer that I would see my Vova while I was here. I mention him in my PassionForUkraine web page from last summer. I had to say good bye to him at McDonalds and thought I'd never see him again. He was finished with school and had plans to continue school and learn to cook so he could be a cook on the sea. Monday as we piled out of the van I heard commotion on the other side. Through the window I saw Mike hugging someone. When I saw that it was Vova I screamed and ran to him. He was so happy to be with us and I was never happier to see him in my life! Yesterday at camp the director made him leave, but as least I got to send some time with him and had already made him a bracelet and gave him a Russian CBC CD (thanks again Ray!!!) which he loved very much. He listened to it the night I gave it to him and he loved it. God is good! All the time!
We sat and watch relays all evening. As boring as this is, it's not bad because our kids sit with us and they can't get close enough or get hugged enough. We just sit and bond and love on them. I was on the top row of the bleachers last night and I scanned over the crowd. Everyone of our team members were surrounded with kids. Arms around each other, talking, smiling, rubbing backs, and just pouring out love. The kids soak up everything they receive. Ben was surrounded by his girls. Every time I looked over to where they were sitting he was looking at them and they were all smiles as he talked to them in his Russian accent. Emily and Sara have several kids who never leave their sides. They are being the hands and voice of Jesus. Merry, Chels, Danny (who keeps us very entertained at all times), Dana, and Misha are just wonderful with their kids. There is a deep respect and love that has been growing the last 1 to 5 years with their kids. Mike (who is Misha 'round these parts) has seen many of these kids grow up from age 10. Now they are 14 or 15 or 16 and they love and respect Mike so much. One of the little boys came up to him yesterday and hugged him and said "You are GOOD BOY!" : ) This is Vladik, Emily's boy who is now Ben's boy, who is really everyone's boy. He's a little stinker but he's full of love and joy.
This is long, I know, but God is doing so much and I know those of you at home want to know how your kids are doing and how the trip is going.
The relay time was almost over last night and one of the teenage boys started trying to take Bill's sunglasses. It became a little game which all the other teen agers thought was pretty funny. Bill just played a long for a while but then as more boys came to sit with the group they all began to talk. Bill had already shared his testimony with many of them earlier and even though they were way too cool to talk to the American at first, now they love him and stay with him all evening. Last night Bill began to share the Gospel and Igor joined right in to translate. Some were laughing and playing around at first but by the time they were done talking, it was very quiet and serious. They asked Igor a lot of questions and they were truely being moved by the Spirit. It was dinner time for the kids while this was going on, so all of us had to go to the gate while the men had this wonderful time with the boys.
Even though we have not had an organized teaching time at Viktoria, God is stirring in the hearts and opening doors for His Word to be taught.
Remember that we are 8 hours ahead so please be praying as we share the message of God's forgivness and Salvation today. Also, it's Gary's birthday today and he doesn't know we know (thanks Facebook) so we have a little breakfast surprise for him. Be in prayer for Bill and Misha as well. This is their last day with the kids. They leave at 5:20 Friday morning. They will be sad and torn to leave but they both have to return to their jobs. Plus my 3 boys at home will be happy to have their daddy home, no matter how messed up he is now. : )
We feel your prayers and God's presence and peace. We all love you and talk of home with each other often. Your kids are awesome!!!
Monday, June 16, 2008
We are here!
Today is Monday and we are having a wonderful time. God has been answering prayers and opening doors for us.
We had a good flight and were only an hour behind schedule when we landed in Odessa. It was very exciting seeing Lela, Viktor, and Valerie. Valerie is our translator who is helping us set up our schedules with the different places that we want to minister in.
We were taken to our "hotel/church/kindergarten" and unpacked a little and ate dinner.
Later in the evening we were reunited with our sweet translator friends, Tolik and Igor. We talked and laughed until late in the evening.
Saturday morning, our team left to go to visit the boys who live at a place called Fontanka. This is the institution that Igor and Lela visit every Sunday. These boys are homeless and most of them are orphans. Some have escaped from orphanages and some just have no one to take care of them for one reason or another. The director and his wife seem to really love these boys. They are giving them structure, love, food, and an education.
We enjoyed playing soccer, volleyball, and other games with the 19 boys who were there.
After Fontanka and lunch, we drove out to Camp Viktoria to talk with the director about us coming to teach in the late afternoons. We were told that he would probably say no because they will have activities already planned. We have all been praying for God to soften the director's heart and we have been praying for God's will to be done. We want to serve where ever He opens a door.
The meeting with the director went very well and he gave us permission to at least come to their activities and possibly teach. We were even invited to come to their "disco" for that evening. I can't even tell you how excited we were about that! We had to leave and come back when it was time.
This will be too long if I tell story after story of happy reunions, so I will just say the reunion was very sweet and we were all so happy to see each other. The newby's on the team quickly made new, life long friends of their own.
On Sunday we went to Tolik's church and then shopping later in the day.
TODAY:
WHEW....sorry...I know it's long. I know family members are all wondering how everyone is doing so I want to put some detail in this post.
Our team had a great time doing activities, a Bible story, and craft with the boys. They loved every minute of it. Some had the "I'm too cool" thing going for a while but that mask was removed by the time they had to go in for lunch.
Our afternoon with our kids at Camp Viktoria was very rewarding even though we did not get to do anything organized. We spent a lot of time just bonding with them and getting to know them. Bill was able to share his testimony with the older guys who are very harden. I think they were counselors there. Once they all started talking they had a lot of questions for Bill and were very interested in his answers.
Thank you so much for your prayers. I will try to up date every day that we can. It isn't always easy to get into the office to use the computer but we will always try.
The team is doing great and they are willing to do anything that is asked of them. There is a lot of team work as we work on preparing for each day. Everyone jumps in and does their part.
We had a good flight and were only an hour behind schedule when we landed in Odessa. It was very exciting seeing Lela, Viktor, and Valerie. Valerie is our translator who is helping us set up our schedules with the different places that we want to minister in.
We were taken to our "hotel/church/kindergarten" and unpacked a little and ate dinner.
Later in the evening we were reunited with our sweet translator friends, Tolik and Igor. We talked and laughed until late in the evening.
Saturday morning, our team left to go to visit the boys who live at a place called Fontanka. This is the institution that Igor and Lela visit every Sunday. These boys are homeless and most of them are orphans. Some have escaped from orphanages and some just have no one to take care of them for one reason or another. The director and his wife seem to really love these boys. They are giving them structure, love, food, and an education.
We enjoyed playing soccer, volleyball, and other games with the 19 boys who were there.
After Fontanka and lunch, we drove out to Camp Viktoria to talk with the director about us coming to teach in the late afternoons. We were told that he would probably say no because they will have activities already planned. We have all been praying for God to soften the director's heart and we have been praying for God's will to be done. We want to serve where ever He opens a door.
The meeting with the director went very well and he gave us permission to at least come to their activities and possibly teach. We were even invited to come to their "disco" for that evening. I can't even tell you how excited we were about that! We had to leave and come back when it was time.
This will be too long if I tell story after story of happy reunions, so I will just say the reunion was very sweet and we were all so happy to see each other. The newby's on the team quickly made new, life long friends of their own.
On Sunday we went to Tolik's church and then shopping later in the day.
TODAY:
WHEW....sorry...I know it's long. I know family members are all wondering how everyone is doing so I want to put some detail in this post.
Our team had a great time doing activities, a Bible story, and craft with the boys. They loved every minute of it. Some had the "I'm too cool" thing going for a while but that mask was removed by the time they had to go in for lunch.
Our afternoon with our kids at Camp Viktoria was very rewarding even though we did not get to do anything organized. We spent a lot of time just bonding with them and getting to know them. Bill was able to share his testimony with the older guys who are very harden. I think they were counselors there. Once they all started talking they had a lot of questions for Bill and were very interested in his answers.
Thank you so much for your prayers. I will try to up date every day that we can. It isn't always easy to get into the office to use the computer but we will always try.
The team is doing great and they are willing to do anything that is asked of them. There is a lot of team work as we work on preparing for each day. Everyone jumps in and does their part.
Saturday, June 7, 2008
Planning night
Most of the team got together last night at our leader's house and went through all the craft supplies, worked on a dance (we got an arobics work out), and learned sign language to a song. We had a great bonding time and we are getting more and more excited about leaving next week.
The picture of the man holding the puppet is my husband, Bill. This is his first trip to Ukraine and I know God is going to do amazing things through him and to him! The cute things you see on a few people's heads were supposed to be jump ropes. I ordered some things from Oriental Trading and I thought I was ordering jump ropes. They ended up being rope rings instead. The boys all decided that they made cool head gear, so we all wore them the whole evening. I don't think we'll wear them on the plane, as they suggested, however!
Oh, by the way, the puppet did not have braids when we got to the house. Now she is sporting beautiful braids, beads, and a bracelet....We found out Danny has many talents!
Please continue to pray for us as I know you will. Every thing is coming along nicely and God is already moving and preparing hearts.
We have been ministering to this orphan camp the last 5 years and we know that the harvest is here for many of the kids. We also know that we will be planting fresh seeds in others. We pray that the counselors would also be open to the Word.
Pray especially for the director of the camp. If HE received Jesus as his savior...WOW! I can only begin to imagine what God can do with this man.
The picture of the man holding the puppet is my husband, Bill. This is his first trip to Ukraine and I know God is going to do amazing things through him and to him! The cute things you see on a few people's heads were supposed to be jump ropes. I ordered some things from Oriental Trading and I thought I was ordering jump ropes. They ended up being rope rings instead. The boys all decided that they made cool head gear, so we all wore them the whole evening. I don't think we'll wear them on the plane, as they suggested, however!
Oh, by the way, the puppet did not have braids when we got to the house. Now she is sporting beautiful braids, beads, and a bracelet....We found out Danny has many talents!
Please continue to pray for us as I know you will. Every thing is coming along nicely and God is already moving and preparing hearts.
We have been ministering to this orphan camp the last 5 years and we know that the harvest is here for many of the kids. We also know that we will be planting fresh seeds in others. We pray that the counselors would also be open to the Word.
Pray especially for the director of the camp. If HE received Jesus as his savior...WOW! I can only begin to imagine what God can do with this man.
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
Almost time to go!
Our team is getting very excited as the date of the trip gets closer and closer. It is finally feeling like a reality! We are having a lock in this weekend so that we can get to some very serious planning time, sorting craft things, working on skits, having fun, getting to know each other better, and just tie up details for our trip. I have been having been talking with Alyona (Lela's right hand "man" and our dear friend) on e-mail and Igor (one of our favorite translators and friends) on facebook. They are praying along with us as we plan and as we follow God's direction.
Please keep us in prayer as we plan and prepare. I don't think we are fully funded yet, but God is providing as we are still receiving donations from those God has called to give. We are so very thankful for you who have given and for you who are praying. Please pray for us to be healthy, full of the Spirit, have safe travel, and for us to follow God's lead in all that we do and say. We also ask that you pray for the children and the directors and couselors so that their hearts will be ready and open for His Word. Many of the orphanage workers have seen us come every year. We want to minister to them and show God's love to them as well.
God is good! All the time! We praise and worship Him for all He is and for all He is doing and all He is going to do.
Please keep us in prayer as we plan and prepare. I don't think we are fully funded yet, but God is providing as we are still receiving donations from those God has called to give. We are so very thankful for you who have given and for you who are praying. Please pray for us to be healthy, full of the Spirit, have safe travel, and for us to follow God's lead in all that we do and say. We also ask that you pray for the children and the directors and couselors so that their hearts will be ready and open for His Word. Many of the orphanage workers have seen us come every year. We want to minister to them and show God's love to them as well.
God is good! All the time! We praise and worship Him for all He is and for all He is doing and all He is going to do.
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