Saturday

Yesterday was very busy so I was not able to write. We started counseling at 10 a.m. and at 9:15 we finally finished. Then to our delight Kristi and Fila droppped in for a visit. They stayed until after 11 so I was too tired to blog. Anyway, we had 4 couples and 4 singles who came to talk. Most wanted help with problems they were dealing with and one couple wanted to talk about our ministry and find out how we knew we were called to marriage ministry. They have been married 19 yrs. and their pastor has asked them to counsel the couples at their church and to train them in marriage. They also wanted us to come to their church and do a seminar. They live in the eastern part of Ukraine near the Russian border. We also met with a man who was going to divorce his wife when he got home because she was a lost person and yelled at him all the time. He has a 7 yr. old daughter also. We met with him for 3 hours and shared scripture with him on his responsibility to stay in the marriage since his lost wife does not want a divorce. We talked about the need for his little girl to have his protection and care and talked about how he was a positive influence in the home to his wife and that what if she was on the brink of salv. and he left now and missed the opportunity. By the time he left, he agreed to stay in the marriage and work on his walk with God. One other couple said that they have been to many marriage seminars but ours was the best by far because it was straight from the bible and very practical. We praise God for the grace He has given us to do this and know without a doubt that we have nothing to offer except what He gives us.
Today we started at 10 meeting with the young woman above. I will not give you her name because of her circumstance, but her husband was a pastor and left her for another woman last year. Her story is very heartbreaking because he left her with 2 children and no money. She is battling with the emotions that come from such a betrayal and wanted to ask for help. We met with her until 3 and then went and ate and came home to take a nap.
We will pack up tonight because tomorrow is going to be very busy also. We will go at 2 to meet with the gypsy pastor and his wife and then meet with their leaders to do some training. Afterward we will preach at the gypsy church at 5 (that is when they meet since gypsy people don't go out in the mornings). Richard and Anya are coming for a visit when we return in the evening and then the driver will pick us up at 2 a.m. to take us to the airport in Slovakia for our 9 a.m. flight to Prague. We have to leave so early because the borders have long lines on the weekends and you might have to wait up to 3 or 4 hours to pass through. Can you imagine living like this all the time? It is crazy. The border guards will stand and just look at the people and do nothing but make them wait sometimes for 20 mins or more then they look at your papers and let you drive for 20 ft. and make you stop again and go through the process again. It is a leftover soviet practice. Very maddening, but the people here are very patient and just wait quietly without annoyance. Such is life in the former Soviet countries.
Please continue to pray for us over the next few days as we finish up our mission here. We will try to post pictures from the gypsy church tomorrow night. Starting monday we will be on vacation officially in the Czech Republic and hope to get a good rest and time with the Lord to be refreshed. Please pray for us as we go.
Thank you all for your faithful support, for your comments and for your prayers. You are all a blessing to us.