Category Archives: St Petersburg Ministry

Team 3: Goodbye

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The last half of our mission trip was full of mixed emotions. We accomplished our mission to serve and love the children/teens, but one week simply was not enough. This trip made us realize how important it is to let go of our comfort in exchange for caring for others. For example, one of the non-Russian-speaking team members shared how surprised she was at being able to connect so closely to someone without being able to speak their language. One of the team members noted how universal the expression of love truly is. Even though our relationship with the children … Continue reading →

Team 3: Our 1st day!

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Today was the first day we spent with the kids. It was amazing!! The kids were so happy to meet us. They welcomed us with open arms. We played games and sang songs. I think the kids enjoyed playing musical chairs to country music. I am so glad for the experience of meeting these kids; they have so much to give to the world. Some of the kids need some extra care because they did not experience care/love at home. I learned that one of the kids walked up to a police man and told him point-blank, that his mom … Continue reading →

FFMC: Last day with the kids…

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Day 5. Our last day at the orphanage. What a day. Last night as we were preparing for our final day, we struggled between the happiness the kids gave us and the sad feeling from realizing we may not see them again once we leave. We quickly agreed to focus the next day on loving the kids and enjoying the little bit of time left with them. That decision soon became a huge blessing to us all. After our morning skit about the importance of listening to God as our coach in life; the little kids left and the fun … Continue reading →

FFMC: Being Flexible

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Our first day at the center was an emotional roller-coaster. We were excited because of all the planning and efforts put into the skit, games and crafts. The anticipation was palpable. There were many unknowns going into this week (How many kids will be there? What will be their ages?), but we thought we had all our bases covered…Boy were we wrong. This day was not going to follow a simple schedule on an excel spreadsheet. We were going to have to think on our (very jet-lagged) toes! Upon meeting all 23 of the kids, we quickly realized our anxieties … Continue reading →

FFMC: The team has arrived!

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After long travels, the First Free Methodist Church team from Seattle, WA has arrived and getting some long awaited sleep! Thank you everyone for your prayers! Please continue to pray for the team as they go through some training tomorrow, learning about what it means to live in the Russian culture and memorizing some Russian words! Since the FFMC team is here for only 9 days, they have gone through much of the training in the US before their departure. The training empowers teams to serve even better throughout their time of ministry in Russia. It is amazing the impact … Continue reading →