Wednesday began as kind of a rough day with the kids but thankfully Lauren had the right words to say to get the children back to their normal selves. We continued with the character trait of respect so our talk with the children tied in with the theme for the day. In small group we discussed the importance of respecting each other through our words and our actions. Thursday Noah’s Ark was the example we used to teach about excellence. It showed the kids that without courage, caring, diligence, and respect you cannot be excellent. Carley had the opportunity to pour into the girls in sharing her testimony and they were really receptive. She shared that excellence can sometimes be misunderstood as perfection but without God we can never be perfect. This topic was very difficult to talk to the children about because it was something that we, as individuals, struggle with.
Friday was the second day of excellence and Lauren shared with the kids the story about Rudy Ridicur. They loved listening to the story and were inspired because it was true. We had the chance to teach them a new game called elbow tag which was a huge hit! We made lava lamps with boys where Beth had the chance to use it as an object lesson for sharing the gospel. The girls made iron beads and Lauren also shared the Good News with the girls. Taking any opportunity we could to spend more time with the kids and love on them, we stayed late to play games. That night we spent some extra time planning the finale and a surprise for the kids on their last day of camp.
Saturday was filled with many emotions, lots of tears, hugs, joy, and goodbyes. We started off the day with our surprise which was the Kung-Fu Fighting dance, followed by a slideshow of our memories we made together. When we went to small group we passed out their gifts and individually we shared how special they were to us. Some of the staff at the Center took the time to share with us their gratitude and how thankful they were for us loving these children. That night the kids threw a goodbye disco party for us. They had made posters and wrote us each a letter of appreciation. Although this was the hardest part of the night we feel at peace knowing that God was working the entire time we were there. We saw visible growth in the behavior of some of these children. Our goodbyes were filled with tears and sadness knowing that was the last time we were ever going to see their beautiful faces.
Sunday morning we went to an international church that had English translation. We rode the metro to go to the Saint Isaac’s Cathedral. We had to make a stop and through Gods sense of humor some of the girls from the Transit Center greeted us with hugs as we stood there thinking it was a dream. In a city of five million people we were so amazed to have seen the girls at that time in this particular place. The Cathedral was breathtaking and many of us purchased rings with Russian prayers on them. The 200 stairs to the top was a whole new experience, but worth the frightening trip. Our last excursion before heading home will be the Swan Lake Ballet on Monday night. Our flight leaves early Tuesday morning so please pray for safe travels and healthy bodies for the flight. We have thoroughly enjoyed our time in Russia and are saddened to leave. Thank you all for partnering with us through prayer and support!
For the team-Written by: Carley, Krystal and Shannon