Our registration trip, pt. 3: friends in Kiev

Sarah Beth and her "men"--Adam and Carson. Adam, btw, is Super boy, and Sarah Beth is now Lois Lane. Just thought you should know.
John-John and Adam were pals at FPO, when Adam's family lived in the quad next to us. Here they are in Kiev together.
The kids, minus John-John and Adam, who spent the day together in Kiev. What a great time we had!

But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation. I will sing to the LORD, for He has been good to me. Psalm 13:5-6

We are finally to the end of our registration trip stories, and this is my favorite. There is little in the life of a missionary that is more precious than the missions family on the field. They are our lifeline, people who truly know what it is to do what we've done, and who know that we haven't completely lost our minds. There is something especially important about that group with whom we trained. They know us beyond knowing us. They love us, anyway--a miracle in itself. Our closest friendships in life are with those people we lived with for eight weeks while we all studied, wrote papers, tried to find a wireless internet signal on the playground, and just generally spent time together. So you can imagine our joy when we knew we were going to get to spend some time with one of the families from FPO.

After a great, restful night at the Christian Center, the taxi picked us up and took us to Kiev, to the home of our friends Calvin and Janet and their son, Adam. We had soup and sandwiches and lots of great conversation. We were joined by Carson and Cameron, brothers who are friends of Sarah Beth's, and Lori and Paul and their kids, who live upstairs from Calvin and Janet. Great new friends! There is something about having experienced the transition onto the field that makes people instantly friends. We spent hours telling stories, laughing at one another's fumbles with the Russian language, and just generally recouping and renewing our ties.

I can complain a lot about the sacrifices of living the life of a missionary. It's not interesting nor helpful, but I can do it if I choose. However, when I really think about this life, I am struck by the many blessings that are attached to it, not the least of which is the friendships we've made with other missions families. We are blessed beyond measure. And even though those closest to us live in different parts of the world, nothing can break those ties--not time nor distance, not different language learning or different cultures. Our hearts are knitted together by God, and no one and nothing can break those ties.

Well, I'd better run. We have an extra Sarah Beth here (the other half of SBSquared), and John-John and Hannah are at her house spending the night. After Marc's language lesson this morning, we're all piling into Jeff and Karla's van to go to a waterpark outside of Moscow. I think you can imagine how much my Florida babies are looking forward to dipping their toes in some water. Wherever you are in the world, I pray that today will be a day you take the time to thank God for the friendships He's given you, and that you remembered to pack your swimsuit in amongst your winter clothes when you left the States! Blessings to you and yours!

His,
Kellye

When it's all been said and done

My three treasures--Sarah Beth, Hannah and John-John.

For He has rescued us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of His Beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. Colossians 1:13-14

Obviously, I am taking another break in the saga of our registration trip. In the last day or so, there has been a sort of "perfect storm" of things God is obviously telling me, and I feel compelled this morning to tell them to you. (I don't always do that--one of my favorite people, Lauren Crews, once said that what God is telling you is for you, not necessarily for everyone. Wise words.)

First, a confession which will not come as a shock to anyone who even vaguely knows me. I am a worrier. You name it, and I have worried about it at some point in my life. My current list of things to worry about consists of the following:

• on-field friendships for us and the kids
• the pain and trauma of transition, especially for Hannah
• how we are going to pay the leftover tuition for the kids' school next year
• controlling my weight (I went back on Weight Watchers on Saturday)
• what to do with my hair (I'm not kidding)
• whether people think we are "good" missionaries
• what I will wear to the swimpark on Tuesday (my swimsuit is still in the States)
• how my kids are turning out (don't all parents worry about that?)
• my Daddy's "flutter" on his stress test

You get the idea. Some stuff I worry about is important in our lives. Some of it is, well... silly. So this is the stuff I carry with me. And you should know that I am a thousand times better than I used to be. I used to make myself sick worrying about stuff. Now it just wakes me up before dawn. (Actually, this morning it was the construction outside, which began at about 5.) And let me be clear--I am totally and completely aware that this is sin. I know it. I really, really do.

At church yesterday, the "word before the word"--the analysis of scripture that takes place before the "main" sermon--was about thanksgiving. In his analysis, the speaker made the point that the opposite of thanksgiving is worry. We worry about what we will wear, etc., but those things keep us from thanksgiving, and thanksgiving is a command of the Lord. I had never thought about it that way. When I worry about things, I forget to be thankful for the ka-billion things God has done for me and is doing currently in my life. Interesting point.

So when I got up this morning, I was already thinking about what was said at church and all the things I worry about in the course of any given day. In my quiet time, I read from Colossians 1-2:5 (I'm studying Colossians right now). In that passage, Paul tells the church at Colossae that their lives should be filled with fruit, and that they should beware being deceived by persuasive arguments. Nowhere does he say, "And while you're living fruit-filled lives, make sure you spend some of your day worrying about things God already has under control." It occurred to me that the "persuasive argument" I have listened to for most of my life is a lie straight from the enemy. He has persuaded me that God cannot handle the details, that He needs me to work and do my best to solve all problems and control all things in my life and the life of my family. Yikes! That wasn't a fun realization. That didn't make me feel very good about my Christian walk. There was some confession and forgiveness time, and then I started listening to music.

I am listening through Robin Mark's "Revival in Belfast" right now in my quiet time. This is a collection of music we did in praise team years ago on a Sunday night. It's great music. I love "Lion of Judah" and "Garments of Praise" and "Days of Elijah." But this morning, I got to the end of the album, to a quiet little song called "When it's all been said and done." These are the words I came upon:

When it's all been said and done, there is just one thing that matters. Did I do my best to live for truth? Did I live my life for You?

Lord, Your mercy is so great that you look beyond our weakness and find purest gold in miry clay, making sinners into saints.

I will always sing your praise, here on earth and ever after. For You've shown me heaven's my true home, when it's all been said and done. You're my life when life is gone.

You know how much my worrying matters? I mean really matters? Except that it's sin, and something I must immediately get rid of, it doesn't even fall in the list of top 100 things that matter. It isn't living my life for truth, or living my life for Him. What matters is taking care of that which He has entrusted to me--their names are Marc, Sarah Beth, Hannah and John. It's praying for my friends and family. It's loving people like Jesus loves me--in spite of themselves. It's saying, "Yes!" to whatever it is God has for me right now. It's not worrying about the three million things Satan has convinced me I'm in charge of, when I'm really not in charge of anything at all. It isn't thinking about next term (though the south of Spain still sounds great to me, Tara) or stateside or any of those things. It's here and now. It's taking care of my home and family. It's living a life that glorifies Him. It's making my life the song I sing for Him. That's what matters when it's all been said and done.

I may or may not know you. I'm overwhelmed by the people who read this blog even though they don't know me. But here's what I'd tell you this morning--whoever you are, and wherever you are, take a deep, hard look at what the persuasive argument is you're listening to today, and then evaluate it based on the life He has called you to live. If it doesn't match up, then you need to change the tuner on the radio and listen to some truth. Wherever you are in the world, I pray that today is a day in which your life reflects the best He has for you, and that you are not spending time worrying about the ever-encroaching gray in your hair. Blessings to you and yours!

His,
Kellye

Our registration trip, pt. 2: Irpin

Almost everywhere you go in Eastern Europe, there are dogs. Of course, John-John loves every single one of them. This was "his" dog at the Christian Life Center in Irpin, Ukraine.
Honestly, these were some of the most comfortable accommodations I can ever remember having. As you can see, we slept really, really well. For those of you near FDR State Park in Pine Mountain, GA, it reminded us of the cabin we rent there for vacation every summer.
Yep! Five inches of snow...though it had been 60 degrees earlier in the week. C'mon! But it was really beautiful, and we had a good time playing in the snow, something we don't do much of in Moscow because of the pollution.

Let the favor of the LORD our God be upon us; and confirm for us the work of our hands; yes, confirm the work of our hands. Psalm 90:17

After we arrived in Kiev, we went immediately and changed rubles for grieven, the money in Ukraine. Then we headed to McDonalds, so excited about eating breakfast, which we haven't had at McDonalds in a really, really long time, because only a few, stand-alone McDonalds serve breakfast in Moscow. It was about 9:00 a.m. when we arrived at the McDonalds across from the Kiev train station. As we walked in, Hannah said, "I'm so excited, Mommy. It's just like when Poppy used to take me and John to McDonalds before school!" Well, not quite. Because this McDonalds did not serve breakfast foods, we ended up eating hamburgers and french fries at 9. Oh, well. Someday, we will find a place to have a McDonalds breakfast!

We found a taxi for the "short" ride to Irpin, where we were staying at the Christian Center. An hour later, we were still not there. Finally, we arrived, exhausted and not a little frightened by the style of driving employed by our taxi driver. Marc went in to the center, and the kids and I got out of the taxi to stretch and get our bags. Now to understand our apprehension about the Christian Center, you need to know that places like this in Eastern Europe can vary widely in their sense of...their belief in...well, let's just say that it can be kind of scary. So we were looking for a sign of some sort that this was going to be okay. The place looked beautiful--well-kept lawn, newish buildings, fresh paint. Then we met Vasily, the director, who came out to greet us wearing (I am completely not kidding) a blue and orange Gators jacket from the University of Florida. I almost dropped my teeth. I knew that no one who was a Gator fan of any sort would run a shoddy establishment, so I felt okay from there on out. And it was wonderful! Beautiful accommodations, a really nice bathroom, comfortable beds, and lots of room to spread out and read and run and enjoy. There was even a dog for John-John to play with all afternoon!

The people who work at the Christian Center were just wonderful, especially the lady who runs the kitchen, Lyba. Even though we declined to have dinner since we'd done nothing but eat all day, she brought us tea and coffee, bread and fresh butter, cakes and other goodies. We ended up having a feast! Lyba is the sister of Vera, who works in the company office here in Moscow, so I think she felt like she was our adopted mom, which was just fine with us.

We took a long nap after eating lunch, and woke up to find that the ground was completely covered in snow. Big snow. Heavy snow. By nightfall, it was still snowing heavily and about five inches had accumulated. Under a bright moon, we went out to play in the snowy woods, surrounded by beautiful fur trees. Honestly, it was really fun. We went back to our room, which was huge, and drank hot chocolate (Swiss Miss packets from the U.S.--thanks, Aunt Kay!) and watched Gilligan's Island. After a great night of sleep, we woke up refreshed and renewed and ready to spend the day in Kiev with friends. I'll pick up there tomorrow.

I don't know that there's something really deep to glean from our time at the Christian Center. We enjoyed ourselves immensely, and look forward to returning some day. What we really enjoyed there was some rest. It can be hard for us to rest in Moscow--there's always stuff to do, it takes an hour to get anywhere, we're always tired, we drop into bed at night exhausted. But in Irpin, there wasn't anything to do but rest, read books, enjoy each other's company, play games, and relax. In this, as in all things, God knew exactly what we needed. A little bit of His beauty. A little time to relax. Some fellowship with believers who don't speak English but were very, very welcoming to us. A sign that He is at work in Eastern Europe, where the progress is beyond slow. We needed these things, and so He provided them. He is good and faithful, and He knows us so well. In dark times, when all I want to do is be someplace where the stop signs say stop and not стоп, I can take great comfort in knowing that He knows, that He is in charge, and that all is well. There is rest to be found in that knowledge.

During my "mommy" time yesterday (I went to by bathroom scales), I listened to my iPod, and one of the songs I listened to as I roamed Moscow's metro system was by Chris Tomlin. It contained these words: "We have only heard the faintest whispers of how great You are." More and more, I am overwhelmed by how little I know and understand Him. I am humbled by the ways He is revealing Himself to me here, but I am sad as I look at the years I have wasted on my own pride and ambition. As we learn to fully rely on Christ, those faint whispers are becoming louder, and I have to tell you this--knowing Him more is nothing short of awe inspiring. He is unbelievable in His capacity to love us enough to take care of the small details.

Wherever you are in the world, I pray that the whispers of His greatness are growing louder and louder, and that you have bathroom scales in pounds and not kilograms. Blessings to you and yours!

His,
Kellye

The party

This is what having a sixteen-year-old has done to me...not only am I a drooler now, but I have bug eyes to boot!
Sarah Beth's "big" present--her best friend, Anna, came in from St. Petersburg for her party. She was totally and completely surprised. (For the surprise moment, look at Marc's blog, where he posted the video he shot of Sarah Beth and Anna.)
Her cake--Jungle Camp's Favorite Chocolate Cake with Buttercream Frosting--with all those candles!!!

This is a brief respite in the saga of our trip to Kiev. I don't have much time, because I'm headed out for a little bit of "mommy" time alone--a precious commodity for me. But I wanted to let you know that Sarah Beth's sixteenth birthday party went off last night without a hitch. Fifteen or sixteen kids came, and they had a wonderful time. We had little pizzas, chips and dip, a nacho bar, and chocolate chip cookies and cake. Because Sarah Beth is 16 going on 90, they watched Gilligan's Island and The Andy Griffith Show. Most of all, they laughed and had fun together. I especially appreciate that several of the kids left this morning for Uganda on a mission trip, and I'm sure they had a million things to do besides come to S.B.'s party. The big surprise of the evening was Sarah Beth's best friend, Anna, who lives in St. Petersburg. Her parents, Nancy and Mel, drove from Petersburg (a 10-hour trip on a good day, which Thursday wasn't) on Thursday and dropped her off. Lots of people worked hard to keep her a surprise, and she is here for the whole weekend. They stayed up late last night, giggling and whispering and laughing. Sarah Beth said it best--when Anna walked in, she said, "This is so much better than a puppy!"

I was nervous about the party. It was the first "real" girl/boy party we've ever had. It was great. I've said it before, and I'll repeat it again--the mk community in Eastern Europe is like the best youth group you can imagine. They're the kids you'd hand-pick for your children. I love them so much, and I'm so honored to be "Aunt Kellye" to a whole new group of nieces and nephews. It really is a special thing to be part of the missions family.

Well, that's not much of a blog, but I want to get on the road to where I'm headed. I love you all for caring about Sarah Beth's birthday, about the way the kids are adjusting, about our new life here. I am so honored by the commitment many of you have made to praying for our family. You are a vital part of what we do. Wherever you are in the world, I hope you are enjoying an easy Saturday, and that you have leftover queso to enjoy. Blessings to you and yours!

His,
Kellye

Our registration trip, pt. 1: travels with Daddy

You can get kind of a feel for how small a train coupe in Europe is in this picture, though we were pretty comfortable.
Ignore the fact that Marc looks like he's had a little too much of Russia's favorite drink...it's still a cute pic of the girls. (Sarah Beth was trying to get a phone signal about 2 hours outside of Moscow.)
John-John loved his first train trip. Here he's sitting on a table watching the Russian countryside roll by us...he sat that way for a pretty good while.

You are forgiving and good, O LORD, abounding in love to all who call on You. Psalm 86:5

Well, we are back from Ukraine (I always want to say The Ukraine, which is totally wrong), and we had a really amazing trip in lots of ways. There's so much to tell you that I thought I'd divide it up into a few parts, so this may take a couple of days.

First of all, we had to leave on this trip simply because we've been in Russia six months (!!!), and every six months we have to leave the country. We'll do this all over again in October, but for longer, in order to renew our visa. When we boarded the train (my first ever train ride) on Monday night, I don't mind saying that I was pretty nervous. It wasn't just that I was getting ready to go somewhere new or use a new form of transportation, but mostly worrying about the border crossings. In my mind, I could see all those WWII movies in which trains and cold nights play such a terrible part. (Except, of course, you have to substitute the German voices with Russian voices, but you get the picture.) When we got on the train, which was about fifty years old, we were met by our conductor, who seems to have been the original conductor for the train. (Not really...he was about my dad's age.) We knew immediately that we were going to like him. He was so sweet--allowing us to stay together in one coupe (Marc had a bed in another, but wanted to stay with us since this was our first time), speaking to us in a kind voice, smiling at us...you name it, and it if made us feel more comfortable, he did it. So we settled in, playing gameboys, reading books, coloring and drawing until we all were ready to go to sleep. Miraculously, John-John said at about 10:30, "Is it okay with everyone if we turn off the lights? I'm so tired." Of course, we scrambled to turn off the lights, since we'd all worried that he wouldn't sleep. We rocked along in our train to Bryansk, where we were to cross the border.

Crossing two borders on our way to Kiev is a little like being in a hospital--you are awakened a couple of times in the night for someone to take your "vitals." So at about 3 a.m., a knock came at our coupe. It was our conductor with the border guard from Russia. He explained to the guard that we were an American family, and that he had allowed us to travel together so that we would be more comfortable. (Of course, no one but us in this scenario spoke any English, so all of this is going on in Russian.) The border agent talked to us for a minute, checked our passport pictures against our faces (no small feat, since the kids were soundly sleeping), and took our stuff. Several minutes ticked by, and our conductor came back to get Marc. Now, to appreciate our concern, you must know that no one else had to go anywhere. No one was being called to a different part of the train. Marc got up, put on his slippers, and went with the conductor. All I heard was another border guard whisper something about the militsia--police. For those of you who work with our company, I think you can appreciate that our special three-day training started to kick in pretty hard about that moment.

So Marc went with the conductor, the kids slept, and I prayed pretty hard. About five minutes later, Marc reappeared with a grin on his face. The border guard had returned all of our passports, showing Marc where they were stamped, and wished him bon voyage, shaking his hand before Marc returned to us. Can you imagine? So we went back to sleep, praising God for friendly border guards (and our special training, too).

The Ukrainian border was exactly the same. We had a friendly border guard, and no problems at all. After the Ukrainian border was crossed, our conductor came to our coupe and told us that everything was done, and that we should sleep soundly now. Then he closed our coupe door. We all sat in our beds for a moment (Sarah Beth, Marc and I were all awake), and then Sarah Beth said, "If that wasn't Grandpa on a Sunday afternoon in his white shirt and tan shorts settling us all in, then I don't know what was." We laughed and agreed. Marc said, "If I'm not mistaken, our conductor just tucked us in for the night." We all went back to sleep, and we slept soundly until not long before we arrived in Kiev.

It struck me as I drifted off to sleep that, like everything else in this adventure we call the missionary life, God knew everything that would happen. He knew I would be nervous about our trip. He knew it would be a little scary. He knew that it would be a Russian language exercise like no other. And how did the Father comfort us? By placing us in the hands of someone who reminded us so much of my Daddy, whom we all adore. I've seen my Daddy over the years with travelers, and he always handled them much the same way...making them comfortable, placing their needs high on the list of things to take care of (my Daddy worked in the airline industry his whole career). And you know what? It didn't make me homesick or sad or lonely for my Daddy and Momma. It made me so thankful that the Heavenly Father takes such careful care of us, down to the last detail.

For right now, I'll leave off there. I'll pick up in the Kiev train station tomorrow. Irina will be here soon, and Sarah Beth's sixteenth birthday party is tonight, so there is a great deal to get done today. Wherever you are in the world, I pray that you are aware of the ways the Father is comforting you through whatever you face, and that you know the words for Bon Voyage in whatever language surrounds you. Blessings to you and yours!

His,
Kellye

Easter (well, sort of), 2008

Yep, that's the view from our kitchen window Easter morning. Nothing says Easter like a fresh coat of snow, right?
Thank you to my beloved friend, Elaine, who sent me an egg cookie cutter after my disastrous post at Christmas where I cried for the lack of a cookie cutter. As you can see, I had plenty of egg-shaped cookies for Easter.

Up from the grave He arose with a mighty triumph o'er His foes. He arose a victor from the dark domain, and He lives forever with the saints to reign. He arose! He arose! Hallelujah, Christ arose!

I'm not sure I have ever dreaded a holiday more than I dreaded Easter. Of course, Russian Easter is still a month away, so I have a chance to do some stuff again (I'm not sure we will, but we might, if it's an excuse to have another ham, which was really, really good). But at home, Easter was our big holiday, with Passion Play and Easter Sunday taking our focus for at least a full month before, Easter dinner at Angie and Raleigh's, with the kids hunting Easter eggs on the lawn and our traditional picture by the palm trees at the pool. We really have been homesick this week, especially with the big Tennebrae service at our church. It was hard. But you know what? We had a pretty good day. So here is my list of the things that were different and the same about our first Easter in Russia.

Things that were different:

• We had a white Easter. That's just weird.
• It isn't Easter here.
• I had to look up the word for ham.
• I used red pepper instead of green in my famous potato salad.
• I didn't sing in the choir or praise team for Easter Sunday services.
• I didn't understand the sermon at church (we went from Exodus to Hebrews to Luke...it was enough to try to understand the words for the books).
• We did not have new clothes for Easter.
• My parents weren't here.
• My aunt and uncle weren't here.
• I did not make a mandarin orange cake (no instant vanilla pudding here).
• I wore a coat and snow boots to church.
• I took a bus, a metro, and a marshrutka (kind of a taxi) to get to church.
• It poured snow on us on the way to church.

Things that were the same:

• The Easter bunny showed up (a special thanks to the Easter bunny for bringing some stuff from America...especially the squishy balls, which were a hit all around).
  
• I sang "Total Praise" (even if it was just me and Jesus in my kitchen, I think He still appreciated the effort).
• We had people we loved over for Easter dinner (our friends the Tarletons came over)
• I made ham and potato salad and deviled eggs and green beans for dinner.
• We dyed eggs (another thank you to the Easter bunny for the kit from the states).
• We hunted eggs (in our apartment, because the snow might have made it a bit difficult).
  
• We went to church (where they at least acknowledged that it was Easter in the States, and wished us a Happy Easter).
  
• I read all four accounts of the first Easter. (My favorite is John.)

And the most important thing that remained the same: Jesus still rose from the dead, conquered death and sin, and gave me eternal life. In the face of that, there's nothing to do but rejoice, right? Snow or no snow, family or no family...He is still Lord, He still reigns, and He's MY Savior. It never ceases to amaze me.

Well, I'd better run. We have tons to do today, because we are leaving on the night train for Kiev. (I don't know if that's like the midnight train to Georgia or not. I'm guessing not, since everybody will be speaking Russian.) We will be completely out of communication until Thursday afternoon, when we return. Please pray for us. We are a little nervous about our first trip out of the country. But we know that, like everything else, God has this in His hands, too. I pray that wherever you are in the world, the Easter bunny showed up and you spent a miraculous resurrection day with people you love. Blessings to you and yours!
His,
Kellye

A special birthday present

Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O LORD, my rock and my Redeemer. Psalm 19:14

I have very little time this morning, because Marc and I are headed to meet Irina and then on to the train station to purchase our tickets to Kiev for next week. We are excited about traveling to a new country, and grateful that they speak Russian there. (When did I start to be grateful for places that speak Russian? Don't I speak English? Hmmm...) Anyway, I wanted to share this picture Marc was able to lift off of our DVR recording of the Today show on S.B.'s birthday. My sister, Kay, and my nieces, Amy and Katie, went to the Today show on the 17th with a sign for Sarah Beth's birthday, and here they are!!! That's Amy on the right and Katie on the left, and Kay is actually behind Meredith Viera's head. What a special thing to do for our girl on her birthday. We were so excited, and Sarah Beth was really, really excited. She had such a great birthday, and we are so grateful for all the people who worked to make it special--even getting up early and heading out in the cold New York morning to hold a sign. Do I have the best family or what?

I'm headed out. I love you guys. Thanks for reading this. I pray that wherever you are in the world, you are getting to go someplace where they speak your second language, and that someone loves you enough to stand in the cold with a sign on your birthday! Blessings to you and yours!
His,
Kellye