The
morning after…was so much better. I actually think that the night
on the train was the best sleep I had since the beginning of the
trip! The people in my room had made my bed for me by the time I got
back during the night and were kind enough to help me break down my
bed the following morning and get my stuff together and on me to be
ready to depart the train; for that I was extremely grateful. Once
off the train, our group gathered together at a nearby bench and
awaited our contact to arrive and take us to our site. Adam helped us
get ahold of our contact, took a few of us to get coffee at a local
shop, and gave us a little more advice about living in Ukraine. We
could tell that he was not a believer, resistant to spiritual
discussion, and seemed quite empty. We unfortunately never had a
discussion about the Gospel with him but have committed to pray for
him, at least during the duration of our time in Ukraine. Our
contact, James Hopkins, arrived not much later. He is a native
American, though has been in Ukraine for twelve years. He and one of
his staff, Sasha, picked us up and took us to an apartment where our
team will stay during our time in Ukraine. The apartment is very nice
�” two bedrooms (though empty except for a bed in one room, so we
have split our sleeping pads and bags between them), a common room,
toilet room, bathroom / sink room, and kitchen. We slept for a few
hours after getting settled in, took a grocery run, then James
returned to give us an orientation. He explained some of the history
of Ukraine to us, giving us a background of the people, told us of
how he came to Ukraine, and explained briefly the ministry we will be
doing. The first week we will pretty much be on our own, as it is a
down week for the YWAM chapter here, but the following week until the
end of our time in Ukraine we will be helping with a kids’ camp where
we will play sports such as soccer with the kids and share the Gospel
with them when we get the chance. He also told us about Jake, the
newcoming American staff member who is two months into his two years
ministering in Ukraine, after which he will return to his fiancee in
the states and get married. We went to a local pizza parlor for
dinner to celebrate the birthday of one of our teammates, Brittany
Cox. We ordered four pizzas, all of which were delicious! We went to
bed a little after midnight…and all slept until 11am the next
morning. I can’t remember the last time I slept that late or that
long! We had a refreshing worship time the next morning then left to
tour the city of Loutz for the day with Sasha and Jake as our tour
guides. It looked like it was going to rain, but throughout the
entire time we were touring, it only rained when we were on the buses
(though it definitely poured then!). Not long into our journey we
encountered a Ukrainian friend of Sasha’s, Marsha, who offered to
travel with us and translate for us. We welcomed her gladly! Soon
after, Sasha was called away, so Marsha and Jake led us around. It
has been a mutual blessing for Jake to be here, because both he and
us are grateful to have fellow Americans with which to work and
communicate. He and Marsha gave us some wonderful insight into the
city and its history. Marsha led us to a beautiful church that we
were able to tour, and the pastor actually gave each of us a small
Ukrainian pocket Bible! After the church, we continued on to the home
of a famous Ukrainian architect, Nicolai, who apparently is even
known internationally for his work. At first I thought the home must
belong to a deceased artist from at least several decades if not
centuries ago, but was astoundingly surprised that the artist was
still living…and even home! He gladly took time out of his day to
talk with us, even pulling out a notebook for each of us to write our
names, home states, and a small note to him in, which his wife would
later translate. We learned some about his life, and he was very
interested in ours, telling us that we showed him that America also
produces beautiful women (not just Ukraine) and that he would be
creating a sculpture in our honor with the words “Believe, Hope,
and Love.� Though he asked about our spiritual backgrounds, Marsha
said that he was not a believer. We were not able to share the Gospel
with him, either, but have also committed to pray for him.
I
am learning to trust God, clinging to Him more than ever before
during my time here. It is a privilege to take part in spreading His
Kingdom, life, and love throughout the nations of the world. Tomorrow
a few of us (including me) will go with Jake and James to a Ukrainian
church, so I will write about that later!
