WWJD 2012 - Day 1

What does it mean to be "made new?" This week we are beginning to understand. The WWJD mission team will spend the week with Revelation 21:5, "I am making all things new." Last night we were given our assignment for the week. We are working at a respite care center. Today was our first day and we made many new friends! Kids from 7 to 18 years old who need some extra help became our buddies!

As we were praying about this trip I felt I was ready for anything. Anything God! It doesn't matter what job assignment you may have for us, I can do it! I can muck stalls, paint, clean houses, read newpapers to elderly friends. Anything! Well, wait, did I say anything? When they gave us our assignments and I heard we'd be working with special needs kids it scared me to death. Of all the things we could do this is the one I am so not qualified for! I was scared to death. As we approached the care center and read about the kids we would be working our kids excitement grew as my anxiety grew. We first went to the park and then swimming with our new buddies and I soon began to understand the amazing way that God was making things new inside me.

God worked in a big way as I began to engage with our new friends and as I watched our missionaries at work tears came to my eyes. The love and concern they showed for each child was overwhelming. As we talked about our experience after our day at the respite care center every one of our kids had a God sighting to share and, every one of our kids was a God sighting to me! I am excited to return tomorrow to see God move through these beatiful children we get to spend the week with. I am excited to see how God is "making all things new!"

Kelli Kirk

WWJD 2012 Mission Team headed out on day 1

Russia Mission Team Update 6/21

Greetings from Russia!   Today's one-word summary is RESOLVE.   It was a difficult day.  The children know we are beyond midpoint in the English/Bible school.  Now, there is only one day left.  The children arrived with guarded emotions and by the third day were more open, vulnerable, and joyful with us.  Now they are becoming guarded again, creating that emotional distance to protect themselves as the team prepares to leave.   Today was also the day we talked about God's love, grace, mercy, and forgiveness in Jesus Christ.  It was a day to proclaim the gospel.  It was also a day of spiritual warfare.  Several of the children were emotionally hyper or agitated.  Classroom management was difficult.  The children were restless and non compliant, talkative and loud.  It made teaching very difficult, and, many of the teachers were frustrated.   Since it was a spiritual warfare day, all the normal doubts associated with mission work came crashing down upon us.  Am I making any impact?  Why am I here?  Does it really matter?  These questions plagued most of us.    Of course, nothing done in the name of the Lord for his glory is ever wasted.  We hope and believe this to be true.  The seeds of the gospel that are planted in the lives of children, albeit ever so small do often germinate, sprouting great trees of fruitfulness.  However, it takes time.  And, five days is not enough time to see results, only to plant and nurture the seed.  As Americans, we love to see results.  Sometimes, I feel this pressure from our own church family.  How many kids were at camp?  How many children gave their hearts to Christ?  How many lives were changed?  All, I can report is that we were faithful, to the best of our ability, to proclaim Christ and his gospel in word and deed.    These camps possess a built-in tension.  One the one hand, it is a language camp.  We teach conversational English, using the Bible as both text and means by which to generate conversation.  This English is more than introducing yourself (e.g., "Hello.  My name is Jeff") or asking where is the toilet.  This English is about discussing ideas and concepts that shape our understanding of the purpose, nature, and direction of our lives -- very complex and serious topics.  Of course, each student's proficiency in the English language is different, thereby making intellectual conversation almost impossible.   Thus our English instruction is about a few vocabulary words and a rudimentary version of biblical stories, reduced to their most basic sentence structure and grammar.    On the other hand, the camp is theological.  We teach the gospel of Jesus Christ with the hope that the children will come to faith in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.  The camp, thus serves as a type of Sunday School or Vacation Bible School.   Using the story of Joseph in Egypt (cf. Genesis 39-45), we are teaching about trusting in God's purposes and promises and how Joseph is a prototype of Jesus as deliverer and one who shows mercy and forgives the sin of his brothers.  Thus our theological education is simplified so that the children know the basic story, its characters, and main themes.   With the teenagers, who are able to think abstractly, we try to delve more deeply into the intricacies of the text.   But, without me possessing Russian language skills, this more intellectual dialogue is nearly impossible.  My only recourse, is to communicate the basic ideas and challenging questions to my interpreter (Diana), as a whole, instead of line by line interpretation, and then to ask her to communicate these ideas in Russian and dialogue with the students, reporting back to me what they said.  Fortunately, Diana is a confirmed Lutheran and is able for this task, but many interpreters are not.   So, the English/Bible Camp contains a tension, between which we constantly navigate, making constant decisions based upon what is needed in the moment.  Missions is like a dance.  The work is an art form, demanding the teacher to be sensitive to the response and ability of his/her partner (i.e., the students).   Fortunately, EEMN has been in this part of the country for over 17 years and can report the long-term impact of such camps.  There is tremendous fruit.  Children do come to Christ and the Church is growing.  Often, it takes several camp experiences for the fruit to become evident, but the planting of the seed of faith and its growth is real.  We just do not see it.   Mom is doing great.  She is very uniquely qualified for this type of work.  She is energetic, athletic, engages children well, and has a warrior spirit.  You can be proud of her.   She radiates Jesus all the time.  I struggled today.  So much for being a mature pastor of strong faith.  Though I know in my head everything I wrote above, in my heart, I was deeply frustrated.  In our team debrief, I shared all this.  It affirmed at least two other people, who were professional teachers and thought they were the only ones struggling with such feelings of inadequacy and failure.   I'm sure you feel this way at times, too.   I need to remind myself that the same God who was faithful to Joseph is also faithful to us. He has plans and purposes for each one of you.  And, though the way may seemed blocked or unclear to you, be encouraged that the Lord is still at work.  We all need to wait for his perfect will to unfold in his perfect timing.   I am so thankful that you each love the Lord whole-heartedly and seek to serve him with your lives.  As a father, I am so grateful to the Lord that he is at work within you.  Now, I pray that He opens doors for you to proclaim Him and that you are encouraged to new strength and joy.   Love,   DAD and MOM (P. Jeff  & Mim)

Russia Mission Team Update 6/18 & 19

Greetings from Russia! 6/19   Today's one-word summary is FRUSTRATION.   Usually, in every camp experience in Russia, there comes a point where you wonder if you are actually connecting with the children and making a difference.   I arrived at that point today.   Now, I know better, but I cannot help my feelings and emotions. The Lord is indeed at work and accomplishing his purposes.  He loves the children we are serving in His name, more than we ever could.  Our Lord, also, is famous for taking what few resources we offer him (e.g., our talents, skills, and abilities) and feedings multitudes.   The point is being willing to offer him what you do have and to trust that He will use our offering to accomplish his purposes.   My frustration lies with the language barrier.  As a pastor and teacher, I desire to impart knowledge about Christ' love and grace.  I tend to forget, however, that such impartation is not only through words, but also through actions.    Many of us can recall how a person made us feel by the way they greeted us or interacted with us.  Sometimes it was only a glance, a tone of voice, or a gesture, but we knew they were glad to be with us, and we were glad to be with them.  One experience or one interaction can change profoundly the course of a person's life.   The opportunity before us is to build relationships, not just to complete an assigned curriculum, regardless of how well it is written.   It helps to be able to communicate with words, but I am not limited to words alone.  I have other resources: my eyes, hands, body posture, and tone of voice to communicate Christ's love.   Cognitive knowledge, albeit significant, is not as important as the experience of that knowledge.   So, envision my class.  I have 11 students (5 boys and 6 girls) who range from ages 13 to 15 (our grades 7 - 9).  Their hormones are raging.  We are in a small classroom, so space is confining.  The students sit very close to each other.  They are touching.  There is a hierarchy: alpha males and alpha females who dominate the attention of the class, and others who remain relatively silent.  The language ability of the students is varied.  The potential for interesting conversation is high, relative to whether the students are willing.   Were it not for my translator, Diana (a retired English Professor), I would be lost.  I have a deep abiding respect for master teachers everywhere.  Thank you for your patient service of love.  I KNOW it is not easy.   On another note, the weather was clear in the morning and has now turned overcast, threatening rain.  Mim and I went swimming again in the Koltushe lake this morning at 6:00a.  The water was cold, but we did not encounter any inebriated fishermen.  PTL!    Breakfast was porridge and rye bread.  Lunch was soup (carrots, potatoes, cabbage, and dill) and rice salad (mayonnaise, corn, cucumber bits, and dill).  For snack we had bliny (like a crepe) with jam and sour cream.   The main food staples seem to be noodles, porridge, potatoes, carrots, cabbage, and dill.  Very Russian.  "Soup and cabbage is our food" is the Russian slogan.   Miss you,   Love, P. Jeff   Greetings from Russia! 6/20   Today's one-word summary is SURRENDER.   It was a great day today.  The students were attentive, respectful, and seemed to enjoy themselves and are learning.  We have changed, too.   I realized that there are situations and circumstances in life, in which we find ourselves, that overwhelm us.   We are simply not up to the task or challenge.  Either we lack the necessary skills or abilities to command the situation, or, we are unable through strength of will or force of character and personality to win the day.  In these moments it is best to rely upon God and call upon his name.   The story of the feeding of the 5000 reminds me very keenly that God's grace is truly sufficient for our daily lives.  In this story, the disciples were asked by Jesus to feed 5000 people, who had been with Jesus three days and were tired.  It was an impossible request.  They did not have the resources in food, money, or strategy to make such provision.   Jesus asked them to take inventory of what they possessed.  They found a young boy, who had 5 loaves and 2 fish, which he was willing to give to the Lord.   Such meagre resources, when offered willingly to the Lord, can be more than enough.  The Lord took these offerings, gave thanks, and then gave them back to the disciples to distribute among the people.  Everyone received something, and there was more than enough left over to fill 12 large baskets.   So, we resolved, as a team, to offer what talents, skills, abilities, and materials that we had prepared willingly to the Lord to bless and return to us, and, that we would then see what the Lord would do among us.  It was amazing.  All team members reported joyful successes.  Of course, there were minor discipline issues or glitches, but on the whole, it went extraordinarily smoothly.    There is a lesson here for our family.  When we offer our lives to the Lord, our time, talents, and possessions, asking the Lord to bless them for his will and purposes, his grace and provision will prove more than adequate.  We will be fruitful, because the Lord is the source of all joy and blessings.  Our lives and efforts will accomplish the Lord's purposes, because we are surrendered to his will.  Truly, his grace is sufficient for us.   At the team meeting, we talked also about our translators.  All of them are volunteers.  They possess different abilities.  Some are natural teachers, not just translators.   Learning to work together, translator and teacher, is truly an art form.  The teacher must speak in concise and short sentences that communicate one principle idea.  The teacher must also avoid idiomatic expressions, enunciate syllables clearly, and select appropriate, age-specific vocabulary.  Americans, evidently, are notorious for their poor diction, often swallowing or slurring their consonants and fading their sentences.  By completing a thought, the teacher provides the translator the opportunity to understand and select the appropriate vocabulary and expression by which to communicate the thought or idea.   Consequently, teaching and translating is like a well-choreographed dance, both partners gliding fluidly across the dance floor.   There is a rhythm and cadence to teaching, interpreting, and checking for understanding.  The interpreter is a foundational piece upon which the strength of a mission is built, and, they are invaluable team members.    The best ones, like Diana (former English professor in Russian University), who is also a confirmed Lutheran, are priceless.   Thank you, to Good Shepherd's missions' committee for covering her travel expenses to participate in this camp.  She is more than worth the investment.   Well, mom and I (Mim and P. Jeff) miss you all.  At the end of the day, we are exhausted from the camp, but we are grateful for the experience and your prayers and support, without which, none of this would be possible.   Love,   Dad and Mom (P. Jeff and Mim)

Message from Pastor James in Siberia

Greetings from Siberia!   I am in my last week here in Kurgan, Russia. I have missed you more than I can say. I appreciate those who sent words of encouragement. I wasn't able to answer every note, but I have prayed for your prayer requests from Sundays on Tuesdays and for the many requests that have come via email. And of course I am praying for our Russia team in St. Petersburg!   I am still in the second grade in terms of learning Russian. I have a functional vocabulary of maybe 300 words. I can recognize another couple hundred or so words in context as I read or listen to conversations. I still speak very slowly. If a native Russian doesn't slow down for me, I'm lost after half a sentence. But I have made a good start and I have some modest success stories. For example, I bought 3 bananas yesterday. I made myself understood: "Please give me three bananas. No, I don't want a bag. How much does it cost? Here is the change. Thank you." I understood exactly the price and the small change the seller wanted to make her job easier. You can read between my statements and guess hers. It doesn't sound like much, but I was pleased because I have had to just hold out a handful of change on some previous occasions. I have gained a solid foundation for continuing my studies. My teacher at the language institute has been pleased.   One purpose of a sabbatical is to come back to work with renewed vision. I am really looking forward to being back in Salt Lake City and I am eager to be back at work! I count every day at Good Shepherd as a privilege. It is sometimes hard to remember that in the trenches. It is crystal clear from here! I love being one of your pastors!   I look forward to seeing you on June 24.   Peace from Siberia,   P. James

Russia Mission Team Update 6/16, 17, & 18

June 16, 2012 Greetings from Russia!   Today's one-word summary for Sat., June 16th was ADVENTURE.   The morning hours started with rain.  Mim and I went to swim in the rain in the small town of Koltushe (about 1 km walk from the camp).   Early that morning the team from Petrasovosk (400 km north of St. Petersburg) arrived by train and we moved our sleeping accommodations to make room for 16 more people.  We are now living four to a room -- tight and cozy.   We took a bus into St. Petersburg where the team divided.  We went to see Katherine the Great's Summer Palace, located a 45 minute bus ride outside of St. Petersburg.  This palace was built in the 1700's but destroyed nearly completely during World War II.  The palace has some 48 rooms, of which about 25 are currently restored.  The palace itself is incredible, as are the palatial grounds and gardens.   At 6:00p, we went out to eat.  It took about 2 hours to get our food, but it was worth the wait -- Shaslik (marinated grilled lamb) with boiled potatoes.  The trip home was quite the adventure starting first with a bus ride to the metro, two transfers on the metro, and then a bus ride to Koltushe and then the 1km walk home.  It is 11:10p and still light, but we are tired from all the walking.   Tomorrow we attend church at St. Mary's and then begin the team training in earnest preparation for the children on Monday.   We are doing much better with jetlag, though Mim and I fell soundly asleep in the restaurant waiting for our food.  Evidently this is supported with photos.   Love you all.  We miss you. P. Jeff   June 17, 2012 Greetings from Russia!   Today's one-word summary is WORSHIP!   Mim and I awoke to rain and decided to go swimming again in the Koltushe Lake.  This time we were accosted by a slightly inebriated fisherman.  It was interesting, but we worked it out.   We attended worship in St. Petersburg near St. Mary's church at the English-speaking Lutheran church.  Attendance without our group would have been about 12 people.  Our group made it a packed house.   Pastor Leif talked about the cost of following Jesus.  Essentially, everyone of us is a missionary and on-call for the Lord.  We has the right and authority to decide where he needs to send us.  Mim and I talked afterwards about whether we were submissive to the Lord in this way, or had we grown complacent and comfortable.  It would be easy to tell the Lord we are not available for his assignments.  And those assignments come to us in opportunities to connect with people through our everyday lives.  It doesn't necessarily mean that we need relocate, but it might, if the Lord directs us.  As disciples, we are primarily missionaries.  We both asked the Lord to develop this mindset within us, that we are his missionaries to direct, guide, and send.  And, that we needed to be prepared in and out of season, ready at all times to be responsive to the Lord's will.   The service was held in the liturgy of my youth (Missouri Synod Lutheran).   All the hymns we sang were familiar, but I had forgotten how highly pitched they were.  My voice has changed.  I'm thankful for the diversity that we have at Good Shepherd.  It truly is a blessing to experience all three types of services: traditional, blended, and contemporary.  We had no communion.  The Missouri policy on communion prohibits them from distributing it to non-Missouri members.  It would have divided and the hurt the team, especially the one that is just leaving.  Again, I'm glad that we celebrate open communion at Good Shepherd.   Instead of shopping for souvenirs, we retired to a small cafe to discuss these things and to get out of the rain.   The bus - metro - bus transfers are always an adventure.  Our walk back to the seminary in the rain was marked by the challenge to avoid being splashed by cars driving through the pooled water on the roads.   As I write this, it is 6:13a in Utah.  Blessings on your day of worship and communion with the Lord.  We love you all.   P. Jeff   June 18, 2012 Greetings from Russia!   The one-word summary for today's events is CHILDREN!   Our camp finally began.  We have about 65 children.  About 20 more from last year, but with about 75% repeats from the previous year.  The camp runs much like a Vacation Bible School program:   . Opening Singing . Bible Lesson #1 (English Lesson #1) . Rotation #1 (Craft or Games) . Bible Lesson #2 (English Lesson #2) . Rotation #2 (Craft or Games) . Drama . Closing Singing . TEA   Many of the teachers have spent months preparing for the challenge of teaching English while teaching a Bible lesson.  Their dedication is inspiring.  Many of the teachers are retired professionals, who are devoting their time to mission work, several of which, are spending a month or two working in EEMN camps.   Amber was in great form as the craft leader for the camp.  The kids made bookmarks and place settings out of yearn.  Even the most energetic of kids were able to focus during this task.   Mim is a little sick today.  Stomach problems from the mystery meat that was served.  Diana, one of our translators, informed me that this had caused Pastor James trouble as well, least year.   Tonight's dinner featured boiled potatoes with dill weed served with a patty of mystery meat (Diana told me it is a kind of sausage from various animals parts).  The shredded carrots served in mayonnaise with garlic was my personal favorite.  And, of course, there is always the light brown, Russian Rye bread at every meal -- even breakfast.   We also moved into different accommodations at the seminary.  Where we were before was fine with bunk beds.  These new rooms are two to a room and feel more spacious.  We all felt we moved into the Hilton Hotel.  Of course, next week, in the villages, we will have no where as nice of accommodations as these.   The beds have mattresses thicker than 2 inches!  The bunk beds prior had only 2 inch mattresses and were on wooded slats.    Bill and Sally Moberly left camp this evening for Lativia.  So, we are in the capable hands of Eric, his young protoge, who is also the lead translator.  He is American, but he lived in Russia for five years.  His wife is Russia.  Eric is 30 years old.   I teach a class with 14 and 15 year olds.  We have 11 people in the class.  I am trying to engage them on an abstract conceptual level, which is a challenge.  Evidently, the Russian educational system focuses primarily on rote memorization.  The students learn what the teacher knows and memorizes this knowledge.  The American educational system is oriented to problem solving.  The instructor teaches the students how to learn.  A Russian student is fearful of making mistakes, since engagement is more performance of one's ability to memorize.  Thus, challenging the students to think abstractly is beyond their cultural mentality at this age.   So, we are learning together.   The theme for the week is the story of Joseph.  Today's lesson dealt with Genesis 37, the story of the mistakes that Jacob, Joseph, and his brothers all made, yet how God worked through all of them for good.   Please keep us in your prayers.  The weather has been very windy with periodic showers.  Some of our team members have developed coughs.  We need to stay healthy.   Love you all.   P. Jeff