Part II of Overdue post!

Here I go with part 2 of the update on the last 3 months and some of the lessons we've learned.

Lesson #4 - When you think things are impossible, look for some "new possibilities".

Three dear friends joined Linda Gray and I with work in Eastern Ukraine. The g*v*rnm*nt official in that area would not give us permission to teach. It's always our desire to obey the law - even though God is our ultimate decision maker. If we choose to disobey, the believers around us usually pay the greatest price. So, we opted to trust the Lord. We met with a precious group that used to meet for Bible study. We were not allowed to teach - but no one prevented us from having fellowship. And God blessed us tremendously! When we stopped looking for a way to make the "impossible" possible, we realized God was placing other possibilities before us. Glad we didn't miss it!

Lesson #5 - Everything truly is better with joy (i.e., laughter, smiles, cackling when appropriate)

We had a back to school kick off celebration with Learn 2 Day English School. We laughed a lot! Language can always be a struggle, but laughter makes it all much easier to deal with. Praise God that this younger generation of Ukrainians smile often and smile publicly. A smile is powerful! Don't believe me .... smile and see what a difference it makes in those around you.

Lesson #6 - Life and work are both better when shared with others!

The kind of work we do can be lonely. Meaningful, yes. But, also lonely. We serve with some amazing and dedicated other missionaries in Ukraine. But, because of the amount of work needed to be done, we don't see each other very often. Shelby and Gerald Hendrix were here in September visiting us from America. Shelby hosted a group of my coworkers for a time of fellowship. It was a great day of encouragement and was a boost for the weeks to come when we would be "hitting the pavement" alone.

Take advantage of sharing your life and your work with others. Things are much better when shared!

Don't go it alone! Pick up the phone. Go to Starbucks and talk to the person in line in front of you. Choose to spend life and work with others.

Lesson #7 - Choose your friends wisely! Choose friends who make you want to be all you can be!

These 2 ladies are amazing women. The woman in the pink is Svitlana. She teaches 15+ Bible studies each week! Yes, each week. The number goes up and down as Bible studies begin and end. She travels to towns and villages all over her region to lead small groups of women in learning how Christ can and does change lives. She believes she has the "gift" of singleness. Her mother supports her by growing most of their food in a small garden. Svita is one of my heros!

The lady in the blue is Ginny. She is the one who introduced me to Ukraine by inviting me to teach at BEE Conferences here many years ago. Ginny and her husband Dick, have been committed to helping Ukrainians grow in their knowledge of the Bible and challenging them to teach others what they learn. They've come many, many times throughout the last 16 years. Ginny joined me in October for the BEE Leader's training. And again, she made me push myself to be all that God wants me to be!

I'm honored to call these two ladies my friends!

Enough lessons for now. Think them through - I'm sure you could add a few to my list!