Vanguard: Tomorrow we say goodbye…

Our time here in Russia is quickly winding down to an end. Tomorrow, we will finish the wonderful and fun two week day camp at the TB children’s center. It feels like just yesterday that we were meeting the kids and playing our first game of Russian zombie tag with them!

Over the last two weeks, we performed a continuous skit in which Sean played our helpful and loyal guide. We used this character to convey the aspects of God and how we can relate to Him as our Heavenly Father. The rest of us acted as a group of friends in different scenarios in which we learned about forgiveness, confidence, faith, courage, salvation, peer pressure and so many other important lessons. Tomorrow we conclude the skit with friendship, forgiveness, and love. The kids have been receptive to the skits and can recite to us what happened since the first day two weeks ago!

We have covered a variety of Bible stories including David and Goliath, Esther, the Good Samaritan, searching for the lost sheep, and the most important Salvation story. In the older group, we used questions to lead in depth discussions regarding some heavy topics such as the participation in smoking and drinking, self-esteem, and obstacles they face daily. Sean, Sara, and Lauren have heard some of their stories and allowed them to partake in some challenging and reflective activities. In the younger group, Eric, Lindsey, Gabby, and Joey have expended their patience and energy to build close relationships with the younger children and teach them simple lessons. The younger group is filled with joy, excitement, and genuine love!

This week we were able to not only join the kids at the movies on Tuesday, but we also took a boat trip around the river in Novgorod this morning. We had a fun time trying to decipher what exactly was going on in the Russian cartoon and laughing at the few comments we understood! The boat was also exciting as it was some of the kids’ first time on a boating adventure! We even defeated the language barrier and taught them some card games! This evening Lindsey, Gabby, Sara, and Lauren made our own little spa. We painted the girl’s nails, curled their hair, and dolled them up with some makeup. We then had a “discoteka” (or dance) in which the boys and girls showed off not only their moves but their best dressed hairdos!

Words cannot describe the amazing time we have spent with these children! Our love for them has dug deep roots and we are working hard each day to trust that God will take care of them after we leave here. As much as we don’t like goodbyes, we know that these two weeks with these specific kids was for a reason and that it has impacted everyone involved for the rest of our lives! We look forward to coming home and sharing all of our stories, pictures, and laughs with you, our friends and family! God has truly blessed us with these 50 or so little hearts!! Thanks for the prayers and support! Keep them coming, not home yet!

Vanguard Team (written by Lauren)