The End

Our time here in Ukraine is at an end.  The past 28 days have been full of wonderful new experiences and friends. The students have done a great job of being the hands of feet of Jesus as we served with Christ Fellowship and New Life churches through both physical labor and developing relationships that will last far beyond our short time here.  While we know that many are excited to return home, it will be bittersweet as we leave these new friends, and also say goodbye to the Mosses and to Jacky.  We will miss seeing them each day, but will be praying for the ministry opportunities God has laid before them in Ukraine and China.

Today, we leave for the airport to head to Vienna, Austria.  We will be there overnight, and will hopefully have the chance to explore the city a little bit.  Then, Friday morning, our flight leaves Vienna for Chicago!  Please be praying for smooth travel and efficiency, as we have about 2 hours to get through customs in Chicago before our flight leaves for LA!  This can be a stressful time as we have 36 of us to get through in a short amount of time.

As we have begun to look back on our time here, it is clear to us that we could not have done it without your prayers and support.  We have been blessed with a fairly uneventful (as far as safety and major issues go) trip, and we know it is because we were constantly lifted up in prayer by all of you!  In the same way you have been praying for us, and are excited to hear our stories, we know that God's presence and work was not just here in Ukraine, but that he is active and working in Orange County too.  We look forward to hearing your stories.  Thank you again for your support.  We will see you all soon...

From Zach

Our time in Ukraine is slowly reaching its end. Everyone is beginning to greatly anticipate coming home to family, friends, and as you will soon learn from listening to our experiences here in Ukraine: fresh, ice cold water and our own private rooms. We will be leaving Ukraine on Thursday and will be staying a night in the beautiful city of Vienna.

God has definitely shown His presence and work during this entire trip. This is demonstrated by how many Ukrainian lives were impacted by our presence and vice versa. Over our stay of 28 days, we have forged strong and powerful relationships with the Ukrainians that will definitely bear much fruit in the near and far future.

Personally, and this can be probably shared by many other members of the team, I feel that my life has been greatly changed and shaped by all that has happened here in this country. I have felt much spiritual growth, however, I feel another great majority of our spiritual growth will take form after we come home and begin using the gifts, talents, and knowledge that we acquired here in Ukraine and using these things to minister to the people of the US, especially in our hometowns of Fullerton and Brea.

The team is looking forward to sharing all the experiences we had here in Ukraine and especially reuniting with all of you upon our return. Please continue keeping us in your prayers and we will most definitely be keeping you all in our prayers. God bless and see you soon!

From Janessa & Lauren

Hello from Viking Bay! We can't believe we are already here, debriefing about our trip! We have had so many awesome experiences and have met so many incredible people. It's awesome to see how God is at work in Ukraine & we are grateful to have played a part in His mission. Some of the campers we met accepted Christ & we are overjoyed to have been able to share Christ's love with them. Lviv is beautiful and we miss our days in the city already! We are so excited to be able to share pictures and stories of all the fun moments we have had! Can't wait to see y'all!
Love,
Lauren Lanning and Janessa Tari

P.S. The cheese is great.

From Andrew

Hey friends! So our trip is pretty much coming to a close. We are in Viking bay relaxing and just pondering on the memories we made. While we are here, I have been looking back a lot on the impact and relationships that I have made. Going home, I know I won’t be able to see the impact and relationships I had and made anymore. This will be a hard process for me, just sitting at home and saying to myself “What is going on at New Life Church now?” but I know that the time I was here in Ukraine, was the most spiritual high and enjoyment I have ever had in my life. As I go home, I am trusting in God, and I know that he has a plan for the Ukrainians’ lives. I want to thank God for giving me an opportunity to go on this trip because not only did it change me, but I got to see so many hearts and lives changed by the Gospel and see God at work right before my very eyes.

Last Days

 What’s up America! It’s been real. It’s been too legit to quit, but now we must quit. We spent some good times here in Lviv and around, and we’re grateful for the times we’ve had together and apart. [We love Max]

Even though we have loved being here, many of us are ready to come home to our beautiful mommies.

This time in Viking Bay has been peaceful and relaxing [with Max]. We’ve finally gotten to fulfill our dreams of playing soccer in Europe at a nice indoor facility at the resort. At camp, the Christ Fellowship team (Clayton and Skyler) was super disappointed because nobody wanted to play. #nosoccer

Johnny Dalton Hargis has managed to grow his beard for the entire trip and beyond. #props #welldone

Before the camp split, we all got haircuts, and some of us dyed our hair. #lightningbolts #bleach

As you can see, some of us have also been missing our social media. #hencethehashtags #everyone

There were some intense rec games that we played that we hope to bring back to America. Be ready for shirt pulling, aggressiveness, and Ukrainian strength in many varieties of games. #americaneagle123 #winniethepooh

I just can’t wait to enjoy some fast food and unlimited ice water. #chipotle #burgers #smoothies #chickfilasauce #FREEREFILLS

The food here has been pretty good but it will be nice to not have potatoes and dill at every meal. Some items will be missed though, like Vareniki and juice! Some other favorites include borscht, “Chicago Style” Pizza, and definitely the good ole’ Silpo runs!

We made some good connections with Ukrainians and it will be difficult to leave them. We just pray that our work here has been fruitful and will remain long-lasting.

Tonight we will spend some time together in a Russian sauna, whipping each other with leaves and branches. #experience

Connor: This was my first time away from Trevor for more than 24 hours. It was interesting and I definitely missed seeing his beautiful face in the morning when I woke up. Clayton did okay at filling the gap for the week we were apart. #newexperience

Simon: This has been the first time I’ve been away from my family for more than a week. I really miss you all. #icantwaittoseeyou

The biggest disappointment in going home is separating from Jacky and Joseph. They will be missed a ton back in America!

Aside from some small pranks, the last day in Viking Bay is being spent doing nothing and just relaxing. See you all soon!

Skyler, Clayton, Johnny, Jacky, Connor, Simon

Reconnected

Greetings from Abby Burdick and Kelly Fain!

We have 2 days left here across the world, and we have enjoyed relaxing in Viking Bay.  We are all very tired as we reflect on the last month. Kelly Fain (Christ Fellowship) and Abby Burdick (New Life) have been reunited, and it has been amazing to get a chance to share stories. Both sides were truly blessed with different experiences, providing us with both challenges and highlights.

Now we are at debrief and we love relaxing in the hammocks and spending time together.  See you all soon!

Love always,
Kel and Abbs

Parental Perspective

Parents, I just wanted to post a quick blog entry to let you know how impressive our kids have been these last three weeks from our perspective as missionaries here.  

I know you have all taken a huge step of faith in putting your kids in the Lord's hands and trusting that God is big enough to teach them, use them, and keep them... all while they are so far away from you.  

Life overseas is full of interesting experiences...new food, new people, new language, new ways of working, plans changing...sometimes things lacking, like hot water or Internet access, and on and on.  For Alfie and I, this is very much life in cross-cultural ministry.  Many short-termers do not do well with so much to adapt to and do without, but our kids have demonstrated flexibility, teachability, patience, kindness to one another...just plain maturity. They have dealt with disappointment, sorrow, inconvenience, and confusion by pulling together, talking things out, and bringing things to God.

Alfie and I are raising our three children here in Ukraine. We are foreigners here, and there are times when we just can't meet a need one of our kids has had. This is humbling and scary for me at times. But I have never failed to see God provide for my kids the things that they have needed through unexpected people, or unexpected circumstances. Their world has had to be wider than just mom and dad. And The Lord has never failed to awe us in the way He chooses to take care of our kids here.

Similarly, your kids have faced many challenges here and have grown as a result. Their world has had to become wider too, and we have seen  that the love of God is still far wider, deeper, longer and higher and as they have become more rooted and grounded in this Great Love, they have responded to challenges with great grace.  And just so you know, the five leaders who have labored alongside them, Josh, Lyndsey, Blake, Scott and Kaitlyn, have been faithful and wise channels of that love. 

At times, God has asked our kids to understand that this trip isn't just about themselves, but that there are ripples of the Spirit moving through the relationships they are building that radiate out into many lives.  On many occasions they have chosen to say "not my will, but Thy will by done, Lord." We have had teams of adults who have not been able to make that choice.

So I just want to say "thanks,"  for letting your kids' worlds be wider than just life in OC this summer, to include us, Ukraine, and the many new Ukrainian young people who are also journeying towards God with them.

Julie Mossé

Better late than never...

For your viewing pleasure- a Jacky, Clayton and Aaron original...

They wrote this during the first couple days that we were here, but we had problems getting uploaded.  It finally worked today! YAY!  Hope you enjoy it.

Lifelong Friendships

Hello everyone!  So I have just gotten back to New Life church back from a great week at English camp with Christ Fellowship church!  The English camp has been my favorite part of the trip so far.  The campers that I met were some of the sweetest and most generous people I have ever had the pleasure of meeting.  In such a short amount of time, I was able to bond with all of the campers and make lifelong relationships with some of them that I will cherish forever.  One of my favorite memories of camp was on Thursday night when we put on something they call The Labyrinth. The Labyrinth was used as a way to explain the gospel to the students and hopefully lead them to accept Christ as their savior.  Since it took a long time for each student to walk through, all of us who hadn't gone through yet sat together in the dining hall.  After 30 minutes or so, Lauren and Clayton began playing worship and everyone swarmed around them.  We all sat together and after only a couple of songs, all of us were holding each other and worshiping God as a family.  Although I had only known these campers for four days, they had suddenly become my family and I loved each one of them.  As we sat around worshiping together, I realized how blessed I was to have met everyone and how awesome God is for providing a camp for us as a way to minister to the campers. Thank you for reading my blog!

Cory Stoffel

Teaching for Jesus

Dear Family and Friends,

This past week at English Camp was so much fun. I loved getting to know so many Ukrainians and learning about their desire to know Christ. One day at lunch I sat next to a girl named Hannah and I asked her what her favorite part of camp was, to which she responded, her English lessons. I asked her why and she explained that the teachers at her normal school treat the students like slaves in the classrooms. She also said that here at camp she loves that the Americans relate to, respect, and love the campers when they teach. She told me that we are just like Jesus to them. I was so encouraged by this because, in essence, that is why we came to Ukraine. I pray that you all are doing well in Cali and that God is working in your lives as well!

Love you all,

Kayla Chapman

Off to English camp....

Hi all!

Here is an official update.  We have completed 2 Vacation Bible Schools, one English club, several work projects, some of them super hard labor.  We had a day of rest today, and have celebrated Independence Day complete with BBQ and fireworks, even if it was a day early.  The Mosses have joined our leadership team, and we feel so blessed to work with them.  The connection with our team has been seamless and they have been a wonderful asset, and have brought wonderful insight to us.  We are so glad they are here.

Tomorrow we leave for English camp! Since we are not sure what our internet situation will be for either team, we wanted to give you a update and some ways you can be praying for us.  We are so excited that it is finally here, and we are so proud of the work the students have put in to prepare.  Despite some nervousness and stress on their part, we know that they are prepared and have been called, as Kristie said, "For such a time as this..."  The work they are doing for English camp, the actual teaching and playing games, is really secondary to what is of first importance.  Our CA team really has the opportunity to live out the gospel in front of their Ukrainian students, and to plant seeds that could change lives, whether that be at camp, or down the road.  We want to say thank you for following us, and for your prayers and support thus far.  as we leave for camp, here are some specific ways you can be praying for us:

Pray for travelling mercies for both the Christ Fellowship and New Life teams, as well as the safety of the campers who will be coming. 

Pray for the nerves and fears of our teams as they step into class time and get to know their students. 

Pray that lessons will go smoothly and that students will make a positive impact during lessons. 

Pray for the health of our team- we have a couple colds, and nothing major, but we don't want anything to stand in the way of the work that God wants to do through us while we are gone.

Pray for any powers or principalities that may be working against our team.  We want all things to go according to the plans God has set before us, and we want to stand firm and know that he has already conquered anything that may stand in our way. 

Pray for the rest of our time, the meals we will be eating, the games we will be playing, and that our teams get the things they need to do well.

Pray for effective communication between all of us, and for a unity, even though we will be apart for about 9 days.

Most importantly, pray for the students who may be hearing about Jesus for the first time.

Please know how much we appreciate it, and that we really couldn't do it without your constant prayers.  And like we mentioned before, we are not sure what our internet situation will look like, if we have internet, we will try and update Twitter/Instagram/the blog if we can, but if not or if only one team is able to, please don't worry.  In this case, no news is good news :) Thanks for partnering with us. 

Love,
The Christ Fellowship and New Life Teams, and all the leaders

A Lunch in Ukraine

Hey everyone!

We wanted to share with you the unique opportunity we were given on Saturday to go to Ullia's home, our Ukrainian friend from New Life Church. It was such an amazing and humbling experience that we were given, it really opened our eyes to new ways of living. We learned that we were the first Americans to ever be in their home. As we took off our shoes before entering their home, we were instantly shocked. Their home consisted of a single room, the size of a normal bedroom at home. There were two couches, each used as a bed for two people, and a crib for a little boy. It was an eye-opening experience to see the love that the family had for each other even through their trials and low financial status. The mom quickly started cleaning the home and laid out a table with their best white table cloth. They prepared a wonderful meal for us and we feel so blessed to be given such an amazing and valuable experience. We were able to have conversations with them through Ullia, as she translated into Ukrainian and English. It's amazing that even though we're separated by a language barrier we were able to have those walls broken by the power of God. God has been so good to all of us here and we're so excited to see how we'll be used by Him during English camp. 


Love always,

Kelly and Brooke

From Andrew

Hey friends! So the first week is coming to a close and it has been a blast. Vacation Bible School has been a big hit with bible skits, recreation games, and crafts, and the kids are loving it at both Christ Fellowship and New Life Church. A few students also volunteered to help some of the Josiah Venture Intern's at School 51. There, we got the chance to see how the interns lead English class the first day, and then the we were able to lead the class the next day! Lviv, Ukraine is a wonderful city, and just getting to see the glorious nature and society that God has created has been amazing. This experience so far has been astounding, and it has been a real blessing being able to serve here!

Loving Kids From Lviv

Hi everyone!  I am the first blogger to post something, so I'm excited to be writing this! Since Tuesday, we have been leading a VBS (Vacation Bible School) for New Life and Christ Fellowship churches.  We all thought that we weren't going to start VBS until next week, but we found out Monday night that we actually were going to begin the next day.  At first, most of the team was pretty nervous about trying to lead VBS the next day but once Tuesday morning rolled around, we all rose to the occasion and had lots of fun playing with the kids and showing them Jesus' love!  Sadly, these 3 days of VBS have flown by and tomorrow will be our last day hanging out with the kids.  After reflecting on these past 3 days, I realized how much I have come to love these kids! Even though I haven't been able to converse with most of the kids I've met, I've had such a blast playing with them and loving on them! This experience has shown me that no matter what language we speak, or where we come from, we are all connected through God and I'm so blessed to have been able to meet all of my new brothers and sisters in Christ!  Thanks for reading my first ever blog post!  God bless! 
Love,
Cory Stoffel

Three Words

We asked everyone to give us three words to describe their time so far...

Demetri- integration of culture
Trevor- sacrificial eye-opening fun
Simon- teach eat repeat
Johnny- fun exciting hot
Abby Burdick- exhausting new exciting
Brooke- exhausting beautiful unique
Lauren- Lauren wants cheese.
Kelly- exhausting exhausted exhaust
Aaron- fun connection different
Clayton- We're in Ukraine!
Kayla- scary stressful reunited
Sara- exquisite thrilled tiring
Connor- new exciting culture
Cory- exciting tiring beautiful
Zach- exhilarating exciting beautiful
Amy- inspiring tiring perspective
Jordan- unexpected beautiful tiring
Chloe- different unexpected perspective
Nathan- inspiring tiring exciting
Jacky- Ukrainians are hipsters.
Andrew- is the best
Blake- promising beautiful shivers
Kaitlyn- beautiful tired anticipation
Scott Alvord- Ahhhh yeah Ukraine!
Natalie- complete culture shock
Abby Bradbury- love the people
Skyler- exhilarating sluggish colloquial
Stefanie- excited encouraged tired
Chris- Ukraine is awesome
Joseph- meeting Californians here
Janessa- cobblestony, lovely, humid
Vanessa- serve long extravagant
JD- great without luggage
Kay- reconnect excited
Scott Fisher- reconnect reminded refocus
Ryan- nervous excited pumped
Jordan Law-  unique exhausting fun
Josh- excited expecting unknown
Lyndsey- excited overwhelmed new

Welcome!

Hello Everyone! 

Welcome to the official blog of the summer 2013 Ukraine team from EV Free Fullerton.  Our team is comprised of 32 upcoming seniors, and 8 leaders.  We will be partnering with Josiah Venture in the beautiful city of Lviv. We are so excited to be a part of this adventure.  This will be our connecting place as we prepare for our trip, and we will be updating this blog as much as possible throughout the process. We hope that you'll join us in praying for this trip.  We desire that even now, God would begin to work in our hearts, and the hearts of the Ukrainians we will be working with.  We trust that God is in control of all the details and facets of this trip and that he will be glorified as we trust him to meet our needs.  Thanks for coming along side of us.  We can't wait to see what God will do this summer.

You can also follow us on Twitter: @HSMUkraine2013