A week ago we all started getting feverish. Hello winter flu! Thankfully no throwing up, but lots of coughing, noses running and of course grumpy attitudes. It didn’t help that we didn’t go anywhere not wanting to infect the masses. Well, by Saturday we couldn’t handle it any more. We needed some fun! So we had a special waffle brunch with smoothies, followed by toy Story 2 and peanut butter chocolate chip cookies. A little later we all went outside, built a fire, captured some worms, and ate hotdogs. A fun family day (we all just had to ignore the hacking that Mom and Dad were doing, I’d call it coughing, but that would be misleading). Spring please come soon!
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What I liked the most about my Titus was the partnership and service of the local church.
In Magnitogorsk in Russia, we were able to work with one church for 3 weeks – teaching kids as well as grandmas, teaching during camps, bible seminars, youth groups,
house groups and Sunday service. This church was so active!I was blessed by the hunger of the people. As soon as we arrived, they started sharing their expectation of our time together. And they took everything they could from us,
they were so eager to learn. It was such a privilege to see theface of many people being filled with the truth. I loved seeing people discovering that they can understand the Bible on their own and study it themselves. I loved having people coming up to us, asking if they can teach what they’ve learnt to others as they’d been so blessed and impacted by those teachings. I loved praying for people at the end of the sessions as they wanted to be free by the truth. It was great seeing people encouraging each other through the teaching they had just received. I remember a woman encouraging a sister about God’s character 2 days after
the seminar. They were applying the teachings in their lives and letting it bring life in them. Truly the Bible is an extraordinary book that keeps transforming lives among different nations, cultures, ages and time period and it is a privilege to be part of the process of seeing people’s lives transformed and changed by the Word.
Sandrine Freymond, 24 years old, Switzerland(Sandrine has recently joined us on staff with YWAM Kyiv)
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Situation 1: A small group of Kazakh Babushkas (Grandmothers) is looking curiously at me and the colorful visuals I put on the wall. All are ready with a pen in their hand.Situation 2: Around 40 Kazakh men hang in their chairs, some are smiling in anticipation, some are just observing those strange foreigners. Apparently it is a group mixed with pastors and exprisoners who became believers while in prison. Some are out for a long time, some just for a few weeks.
Situation 3: A group of “normal” Russian churchgoers chat while I get my notes and PowerPoint ready.What do I do in any of these situations? I take a deep breath and greet them with my broken Russian. In my heart I pray for God to give me words and help them to understand.
It is a joy to see them nodding, almost like a light was turned on in their mind and they understand things about God‘s heart they have not before, tears running down their faces. Others look at me seriously and I can‘t figure out what they think about my teaching.
During the last 2 months of teaching I learned SO MUCH! We taught various audiences, as you can tell, which was a big challenge but also awesome chance to learn how to teach people according to their needs and ways of understanding. I‘m convinced that God was at work helping the people to understand the Bible for themselves.
The main point I learned was not trusting in the way I teach or my appearance but in what I teach: the Bible, God‘s
powerful word! I taught following the slogan ‘I will do my best and God will do the rest’. Looking back, I see how God helped me personally to grasp more of who he is and I can whole heartedly say that I am very glad that I did the Titus Project.Seraina Monsch, 25 years old, Switzerland
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Kai is growing up and finally getting teeth. He is 10 months old as of yesterday and he only just has his top two teeth and his bottom two teeth, but the top two were definitely not fun. It seems like more are coming in now too! Well, I just wish it would end soon. But thankfully he will be able to chew one day, so I guess it is all worth it!
He is also super mobile, crawling around, pulling himself up on everything, moving around from couch to table to couch like he is the boss of the place :) I’m glad he is such a mover, that way he can keep up to his siblings, but what a handful!
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The middle child, there are all sorts of books written about being one, but I’ve never been one, so it is interesting raising Jay. Now that Cassie is off at school it is tempting to be able to get a whole bunch of things done during the mornings while Kai is sleeping, but I’m resisting that temptation. 3 times a week I get the special privilege of playing with just Jay. We do puzzles, baking, trains, cars and reading books together. He is really fun and a very helpful little man. I really enjoy his personality. Next big job for him…potty training!
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Cassie is four now, which means her life is getting filled with all sorts of good things. After a great time in Canada for Christmas, and a wonderful teaching trip in Sweden we come home to Ukraine. We realized that Cassie needed a bit more social interaction and stimulus, and so we began entering into the life of extracurricular activities. Every Monday and Friday at 4:00pm we drive Cassie to dance class. She absolutely LOVES it! Her dance teacher seems to really like her, even doing her hair into extra special braids if we get there a little early. And Cassie dances with all of her heart- chin up, tummy in, toes pointed, you get the picture!
She also really wanted to start school, and so every Monday, Wednesday and Friday we take her to a local preschool (Picture is of her first day). Her Russian skills are getting better and better. Although it is already a bit of a fight to get her to go once she gets there she has a good time and is making more friends each day.
Lastly, Jesus. Well, He shouldn’t be last, but it is the most recent development. Each day Ben or i try to read to the kids a story from their bible. Over the past year I have been explaining to Cassie that Jesus is always with her, even though she can’t see Him. How when she does the wrong thing or makes a bad decision, that Jesus wants to forgive her and take that yucky feeling away from her insides. And how one day when she feels ready she can ask Jesus to really come and be a part of her life. So the other day I am reading to the kids the part in the bible where Jesus is explaining how the bread is like his body etc. and I tell her that one day it will be easier to understand and if she decides she wants to have Jesus as a part of her life. Then she turns to me and says, “Actually Mom, yesterday by myself I asked Jesus to be a part of my life, I invited Him into my heart.” Wow, what a big girl! Of course this decision will grow and have different opportunities to be confirmed throughout her life, but for now we celebrate, we will have a big party! Mark the day – February 27, 2013 Thank you Lord!
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Our church at home in Canada asked us if we knew of a good project that the kids could raise money for. We know that when kids discover God’s love for them and His rescue plan for the world they are filled with a sense of worth and purpose.Recently Ben’s parents bought Cassie and Jay the ‘Jesus Storybook Bible.’ It is a bible with awesome illustrations, and actually fun-to-read bible stories, each one taking poetic license to show the way that Jesus is the fulfilment of God’s rescue plan even from the beginning of the world.
And so, the end result- Bibles for Orphans! It is an organization here in Ukraine that gets bibles into the hands of orphans. Currently they are raising money to get this bible translated into Ukrainian and distributed to orphans throughout this nation. Each bible will be $3. Click here for more information on this fundraiser: www.biblesfororphans.com
Our kids made a video for the children at our home church in Canada. Their goal is to raise $300 for 100 bibles. Each kid is giving of their own money- pretty cool eh? Click on our video link to see the cute video our kids made.
An excerpt from the intro to the bible:
“Now, some people think the Bible is a book of rules, telling you what you should and shouldn’t do. The Bible certainly does have some rules in it. They show you how life works best. But the Bible isn’t mainly about you and what you should be doing. It’s about God and what he has done.
Other people think the Bible is a book of heroes, showing you people you should copy. The Bible does have some heroes in it, but (as you’ll soon find out) most of the people in the Bible aren’t heroes at all. They make some big mistakes (sometimes on purpose), they get afraid and run away. At times, they’re downright mean.
No, the Bible isn’t a book of rules, or a book of heroes. The Bible is most of all a Story. It’s an adventure story about a young Hero who comes from a far country to win back his lost treasure. It’s a love story about a brave Prince who leaves his palace, his throne-everything-to rescues the ones he loves. It’s like the most wonderful of fairy tales that has come true in real life!
You see, the best thing about this Story is-it’s true.
There are lots of stories in the Bible, but all the stories are telling on Big Story. The Story of how God loves his children and comes to rescue them.
It takes the whole Bible to tell this Story. And at the center of the Story, there is a baby. Every story in the Bible whispers his name. He is like the missing piece in the puzzle-the piece that makes all the other pieces fit together, and suddenly you can see a beautiful picture.”
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On our most recent road trip we listened to an excellent teaching on being married and raising a family in ministry. The teaching is by Darlene Cunningham, co-founder of YWAM. This teaching was particularly encouraging because it is challenging raising kids, never mind when that is within a small community. Darlene gives some really wise principles within a strong godly heart!
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Recently we taught in a Discipleship Training School, a 6 month program that equips young believers to know God and then make him known – because he is a beautiful, wonderful God worthy of everyone’s worship. We were teaching about the Bible because it is God’s story and shows his wonderful plan for our redemption! We usually put out a little question box, where students can write any questions they have and so I thought I’d share some of the questions the students had for us. Most of them are well thought out and challenging, but it gives us a chance to help them see who God really is! So here they are:How can we call God love and use when he sends people to hell. I understand that people “choose hell by rejecting Jesus”‘ but it seems like you are screwed if you are born to a muslim or a hindu family.
I get that there is lots of evidence for the accuracy of the new testament, but how do we know that its true? If I discovered a really old copy of the resurrection story I would assume it was fiction or something.
How do we reconcile the big difference between how the Holy Spirit acts in the New Testament and how he acts in our lives? The fact that its so different makes me think that the Holy Spirit just isn’t around or maybe he changed or maybe something else entirely.
How can I be sure the BIble is God’s Word?
What are the apocrypha?
If you’re wondering about one of these questions, or you have one yourself, don’t hesitate to write us and ask! We love helping and encouraging people to know what God is really like! Send us an Email here.
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“When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.’ To this day, especially in times of disaster, I remember my mother’s words and I am always comforted by realizing that there are still so many helpers – so many caring people in this world.”
– Mister Rogers -
Just for some fun:A resident of one of the European countries – an atheist – became lost during a trip to Africa. After a while he came upon a tribe of savages.
Suddenly, he sees that the leader reads the Bible. Going up to the leader, the European said to him:
– Bible reading? This book is out of fashion – no one reads it anymore.
– A white man, it is your good fortune that a couple of weeks ago we visited a missionary, and that I am now reading the Bible, and otherwise you would have long been roasted on a fire.Житель одной европейской страны – атеист – заблудился во время путешествия по Африке. Через некоторое время он набрел на племя дикарей.
Вдруг он видит, что вождь читает Библию. Подойдя к вождю, европеец ему говорит:
– Библию читаешь? Эта книга уже вышла из моды – ее уже давно никто не читает.
– Белый человек, это твое счастье, что пару недель назад к нам приезжал миссионер, и что я сейчас читаю Библию, а то бы ты давно уже жарился на костре.
