Ukraine, Here We Come!

I have been absent from the blogging world for a few weeks.  I have been under the weather but also have been very busy getting ready to go to Ukraine.  I will be leaving today along with 2 others: Taryn Kilpatrick, one of our board members, and my daughter, Alexandra, who has been ministering to orphans in Ukraine for as long as I have.  She has, in fact, been to Ukraine more times than me and knows way more Russian than me!  I am so happy that she is joining us this trip! (Jay, of course, will be with us!)

While I have suitcases filled with socks for the children, and the beginnings of camp supplies for this summer, my purpose for this trip is not to carry supplies.  Rather, I feel that it is so important to nurture the relationships we are building with the children as well as their caregivers.  I don't think it is enough to host the children in the summer and then never see them again.  As I have pointed out before, we must build relationships with the children now if we expect to be able to impact them in the future, as they graduate from the orphanage and beyond.  If you read my previous post, Directors are People, Too, you also know that I have some rebuilding to do with the Directors.  I am looking forward to getting to know the adults that are responsible for the care of the children that we love.

So please pray for us this week.  I want the name of Christ to be honored.  I want God to be glorified.  Not us.  Or America.  Or socks and other gifts.  Pray for me personally that I will remember that the Gospel is about people, not projects.  Pray for Taryn and Alexandra, that God would use them to bring love and healing to the broken.  Pray for the children.  The Directors.  Others that we meet along the way.  By praying, you are a necessary part of Grace to Ukraine and become the conduit through which we believe God will move mountains.