Thursday, October 29, 2009

Days 8-12 (including Days 4-7 of classes in Kharkov)

OK, we got tired and fell behind on our blogging!

The days are long but very rewarding. In the mornings we prepare for the day's teaching and meet with the team to pray, debrief, and share testimonies. Then it's off to the local public school to meet with students. Then lunch. Then more prep time. Then teaching English plus Bible in the evenings. Then we return to the flat about 9:30 PM when have a snack, talk, and crash.

There are a few other items to tell you about as well.

On Friday evening after English class we had "American Culture Night". It was a big party where each class presented skits and songs they had worked on. Plus we played a lot of games, and treated everyone to peanut butter & jelly sandwiches. (American peanut butter is rare in Ukraine, and very much appreciated.)

Dave's Class Skit

Bruce's Class Skit

On Saturday afternoon students met us in downtown Kharkov to show us their city. They were very gracious and we had many wonderful, personal conversations.
Center of Kharkov - Monument known affectionately by the locals as "4 Guys Coming Out Of A Pawn Shop Carrying A Refrigerator"

Students showing us their beautiful city

All of these activities are designed to build relationships so that students will continue their English plus Bible with the IP staff, and eventually come to know Christ personally!

On Sunday morning we went to the local IP church. Many of our students attended, which was wonderful! Sergey preached. It was probably the most interactive sermon I've ever heard. Sergey would ask a question and multiple people would jump in to answer. There was passion and humor - it was a real dialog. The music was also great. While it was in Russian, we recognized several of the tunes and sang along in English.

After church we had a communal meal, graduation ceremonies, and said a sad goodbye to our students. We leave a piece of our hearts there.

After the class we learned that an IP team member (Marina) had gone to the hospital and was diagnosed with pneumonia. She didn't want to tell us during the week for fear that we wouldn't allow her to continue. Please pray for her healing.

On Sunday night we flew back to Kyiv on an ancient Antonov 24, first flown in 1959. According to Wikipedia, "the design of the aircraft was optimised for operating from rough strips and unprepared airports in remote locations...The machine is rugged and does not require sophisticated ground equipment for maintenance...production in Ukraine was shut down in 1978. It was the oldest aircraft I've ever flown in (and I've been flying for 40 plus years), but it got us back to Kyiv safely.

After 2 hours sleep in Kyiv we awoke at 2 AM and caught early morning flights back to the US.

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