Month 4 was different from every other month. We were one of the UH teams – Unsung Heroes – where our team was in charge of finding new ministry contacts for future World Race teams to partner with. We found that God truly provides in the most unexpected ways. Though this month encompassed the deepest struggles for my original team, it also poured out blessings through incredible friendships that were formed.
(Less than 1% of Estonia is Christian. After being taken over by the Soviet Union and feeling the oppression, most people were turned off from religion altogether. Most Estonians are not very open when it comes faith because of their history.)
Estonia Highlights:
- During our first prayer session, we asked God to direct us to a specific location to begin our UH month. I knew absolutely nothing about Estonia or the cities within. As I began praying, the Lord poured a picture of bare feet walking across thin ice. We needed to keep our eyes focused on Him and we would be able to walk across the waters in better condition than ever. He showed me ships and cannons, representing a port city that did lots of trade and was easily accessible. I had no idea that the largest city, TALLINN, was a port city and soon became our destination.
- Our team reached out and contacted various Christian missionaries and organizations in the area. SHANNON was the first person we met up with, who truly became the biggest blessing for our team. She is a full time missionary, who is involved with planting a church in Tallinn – FOCUS CHURCH. After finding out about our team’s struggle to find housing, Shannon and her roommate Marissa invited our girl’s team to live in their apartment for the month. Shannon became a huge spiritual influence and encourager for our team.
- An amazing ministry that we got to learn about was PLUSS MEEDIA. Pluss Meedia encompasses a variety of media avenues to reach youth in Estonia, including a magazine, website, and videos. Pluss Meedia also hosts a camp every year for high school students to be a part of the production and creative process. This is an incredible way to get students involved, teach them about photography, videography, and media, and be a part of the ministry that is reaching other youth. Please be praying for this ministry, and specifically, for more professional help to come and teach the youth.
- Shannon was in charge of marketing for Focus Church, and we were her interns for the month! With that, the next addition to my ministry resume includes being an ESTONIAN EASTER BUNNY. Everyone around me said this is my life’s calling (Haha jokes, especially because the outfit was pretty creepy). I found there was nothing else I could do but embrace the experience for all that it was! We passed out fliers for Focus Church’s big Easter kick-off event.
- EASTER!!! We got to be a part of a huge Easter service and Egg Hunt for families in Estonia. Setup, cleanup, and cotton candy maker were my specialties. This was such a special time for us to be with other Americans in celebrating the Christ’s Resurrection.
- I ate ELK SOUP in a dungeon. (Tallinn was a very touristy city, with a Viking theme!)
- One of the most memorable parts of Estonia was meeting ANTON. I truly feel like God set up this appointment. We met him at the beginning of the month, in our attempts to find housing, and were blessed to spend time with him throughout. He is a talented musician, but more than that, Anton has an incredible love for people that flows freely and an eagerness to learn more about life…and God. I am so thankful for this friendship. We got to go to Anton’s ESTONIAN ROCK CONCERT, which was awesome. The last night, a couple of us went and set off FLOATING LANTERNS over the Baltic Sea.
- We got invited to a RUSSIAN BIRTHDAY PARTY, where we learned that they knew more about American history than we did.
- At the end of the month, our team travelled down south to TARTU. We stayed with a missionary family that was involved with several ministries, including the building of a Christian camp, LIGHT IN THE FORREST. We had the privilege of visiting the camp and hear about their vision.
