Sometimes on the race you learn very interesting things. My contacts have brought me so much joy this month. Each day I wake up and see what a Godly couple looks like. The way that Andrei leads his wife, Larisa, and his children is beautiful. He completely follows God’s will and walks boldly on the path marked out for him.
Andrei is a school history teacher, a pastor, a worship leader, a bible study leader, a father, a husband, and a friend. He is constantly visiting others and sharing Gods love with everyone he meets. God’s words are written on his heart and his grace flows from his lips. He puts a smile on the face of most people he meets…which is very difficult.
Larisa is a mother, a wife, a gardening queen, a washing machine, a cook, a cleaner, a women of power….enough said. She is sassy yet full of wisdom. I love spending time with her. She shows so much love with every action. Even when we carry two buckets of soil and she gets really mad that we are messing up our bodies for our future children…
Our contacts amaze me. Its beautiful to see the power of the Lord in them. They truly live out the gospel. When God commands us to go to the sick, homeless, poor…..
they truly follow it. One of the first days I got here I was blessed to go to a house visit of a women in the church that is blind. Often times she doesn’t get to come to church because the local bus system knows she is blind and doesn’t like to help her. Thankfully we were able to spend time with her and love on her. This lady may not be able to see but she can sure sing. She has a voice like I imagine the angels. I am honored to spend time with her. I was able to go to another house visit a few days ago. I was able to sit with a man who is paralyzed and a women who has a tumor growing on her body that weighs over 100 pounds. The spirit of the Lord lives in this women and she shares Gods beautiful words with all of her friends. Sadly the man can not say the same, because of his disability his mom helps support him. His mother is not a Christian and tells him if he converts to Christianity then she will no longer support him. My heart breaks to realize that the freedom of the gospel isn’t everywhere. Knowing he wants to submit to the Lord but also wants to live and be taken care of.
Each day is something new yet so beautiful. However my last day cant be put into words. The special day they created for us was something I could only dream about happening, but even better. I have never felt the Fathers love for me so strong through other people before. I had shared my testimony several time recently so at church our last Sunday I talked about Mara Grace. They genuinely loved it and started praying for her right away. When I was venerable and let me heart speak it shock their lives. So our contacts tried to do a little surprise for me. They took me to a orphanage for children with disabilities. I mean honestly, it was pure joy. Something so powerful and amazing that I cant quite describe. It was a beautiful day with my Father. It was as if he was right there with me. I know there are not enough words I could ever say to Larisa and Andrei for my surprise but I will be praising my Father for it for a very long time.
My contacts have taught me many things this month but most importantly I learned my sneezes are cute. Its a big deal and apparently very funny. Also my name is Vera in Russian so if you need a nickname for me Vera will do. It kinda has a ring to it, I really like it. Oh can I learned some words in 4 different languages this month. That's just another thing my contacts taught me. Russian, Romanian, Moldovan, and Ukrainian. They are brilliant.
