When life gives you lemons...

"Circumstances are to be like mattresses...we're to be on top of them, not under them." C. Alan Floyd

I haven't blogged in a while for a very good reason--we were without electricity! Luckily, in Russia neither our heat nor our hot water are electrically driven, but that's about all we had. Thank heavens, this afternoon the power was restored, after some haggling between the city of Moscow and the Pushkin Institute, where our building is located. I have never been so glad to see the lights come on in my life. It was especially bad Friday night, only because our friend Andy, from Novosibirsk, Siberia, was in town and coming to dinner. We ended up going to Pizza Hut, having a great time, and then coming back for Andy and Marc to work in the dark on their computers. To keep the kids occupied, I watched Muppet Christmas Carol with them on our little dvd player, and we roasted marshmallows over a candle. I've heard the old saying, "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade," but I can honestly say I've never heard, "If Russia takes away your electricity, roast marshmallows over a candle." Do you think it'll be the next big, popular saying?

On Sunday, we took a team of volunteers from the states around Moscow and to our church. It was our first assignment that wasn't "learn the language," and all-in-all, I think it went pretty well. I was able to help one of the older gentlemen negotiate the price he wanted. The salesman asked if I wanted commission, too. It was fun. The only thing we bought was an Oklahoma Sooner matrushka doll. The Gators set had Leak as quarterback, but I'm promised that after Christmas, the new one with Tebow's name on the jersey will be ready to pick up.

And speaking of Tim Tebow...what a great thing that he won the Heisman. I am especially proud for his parents, brothers and sisters. What a wonderful family, and what a great example to the rest of us of what a great Christian family can be.

On Saturday, I took my first excursion on my own...to the center of the city and a wonderful bookstore named Biblio-Globus. I was able to find it easily, and even gave directions to a lady coming off of the metro looking for it. (Yes, I gave the directions in Russian!) More and more, I find that I think both in Russian and in English. It doesn't necessarily come easily to me, but I can definitely tell that the hard work in my lessons is starting to really pay off.

Well, this wasn't particularly profound, but that's all the news from here. We did get our first Christmas cards today, from my nieces Katie and Amy. It was so wonderful! We look in our mail box every day, hoping and praying for something from home, and it's usually empty. What fun it was to find two cards in there today!!! We also had communion at church for the first time last night, and it was really nice. We sang "How Great Thou Art," and I cried through the whole thing. Just to stand in Moscow, Russia, in the midst of this great city and even greater thing that God is doing in my life...He is great. But to be able to sing it in Russian...beyond words for me. And to be able to sing the chorus with my eyes closed in prayer...well, let's just say that God is good...all the time. Today, I was frustrated in my lesson with verbs of motion, and Irina flipped through hundreds of pages of the textbook. "Look how much you already know, Kellye," she said. And all I could think as I looked at all those pages was how big the God I serve really is.

Can't you see His "big-ness" all around? I hope you are daily looking at the big ways He is at work in your life, too. And I hope none of them include getting your electricity turned back on! Blessings to you and yours!
His,
Kellye