God has been faithful and good to me and everyone around. And He has allowed being involved in doing His good work. The school takes up most of my time and I feel so blessed to have the opportunity to serve the children and families there.
Village kids have been around too. We have not been cooking recently at my place, but every Sunday they come to make sandwiches to take with them to church.
So thankful for the church, it is the place where the children are always willing to go and I can see how the Lord has been taking care of them and loving them through His people. Since I am the only person at church who has a car at the present moment, it is my job to pick up all the kids and take them to church (it is in another village) and back. Usually it takes several trips each way. I must say it has been quite challenging for me to be a driver. But the kids help me to clear the car from the snow and when I come outside I can see them working on it and being happy to be able to help.
We had a fun and love filled Christmas. V, Y, S and V prepared a skit with a message of the true spirit of Christmas. That was very touching. And it was fun to watch them perform for the first time in front of everyone and Y had to wear the nicest dress for it and looked just adorable. She is a very very beautiful 10 year old girl and the youngest in the family with older brothers (who are real troublemakers and one of them is in jail now) and she always comes dressed in her brothers’ old clothes and behaves correspondingly. So it was quite a transformation to see her acting in the play being beautiful inside and out.
My special pleasure was to deliver food packages for families in need for Christmas. The B family – Ukrainian war refugees – were so touched by the gifts; they kept saying that they are thankful to God for His great kindness. Another family who received groceries was the S. It is the family of A who is in Minsk Family Home now. The family is on the list of where the children are at risk. The local school is responsible to watch them and now they have been given their last warning and if the mother is found neglecting her children again and being not sober then the children are to be taken to the shelter. If that happens A has to go with them too, because she is not of age yet.
By God’s great mercy I have found favor with the school director and she let me sign the papers saying that I am a responsible adult for A until she turns 18 (that will be on the 22nd of February) and until then she promised to be very patient with A’s mother and not to take any action as to send the children to the shelter. Unfortunately, there are all the reasons for it and she has all the right to do so to protect the the three younger kids.
A cares so much for her siblings and helps as much as she can and we are praying and believe that God will not allow any harm to happen to them. A and I meet every week for English classes and it is a joy to see her grow in the Lord.
It was also a joy to deliver another gift of Love to the S sisters. I am continuously amazed at how much our Father cares. I can’t but mention again that these girls are complete orphans, come from somewhere in Moldova, were abandoned at the train station in Belarus, grew up in an orphanage here and they are the only orphans I know who even do not have patronymic names in their passports to say nothing about any relatives. Yet they were found by the Father and His love is poured onto them through Christian brothers and sisters. Ira and her husband have moved into their new apartment and expecting a baby now! K is still doing some work on her apartment.
It is wonderful to witness God’s greatest mercy and love in all these things.
Praise our Lord for everything He is doing.
With Love in Christ,
Vita