is it spring yet?

Dear Friends,

most Russians consider today (February 28) to be the last day of winter. Indeed, it has been warming up and today was close to the melting point. That's Tonya looking out through the ice sculpture.

We took a group of kids from the orphanage sledding today. It was more like sliding down the hill on plastic pads that you sit on. We had a great time with thrills, chills and spills.

There is a young lady who just turned 19. She graduated from an orphanage a little over a year ago, decided to go live in a village, and returned pregnant. A local church has been helping her with housing and such. We took her to the hospital in our Speed-The-Light van for her delivery, and a week later picked her and her newborn son up and took her to the church's children's shelter where she is staying. Her son caught a cold and needed to go back to the hospital. Please pray that he would recover his health, and for her to find hope and a direction for her future.

We have continued to take our driving lessons, and tomorrow Cecil will take his written test. If he succeeds at that, then the following day he can take his driving test. The questions on the written test are more like riddles than questions, please pray for him to be able to pass and to get his license. Hopefully Tonya will be ready a few weeks from now.

We were invited to speak to a group of veterans from the Afghanistan war (when the Soviet Union was in Afghanistan). They thought that we produced a newspaper for Afgan veterans. Actually it is produced by David Leatherberry, who works with AGWM and lives in Russia in the western side. Anyway, David sent us some materials and we were able to present them and talk about the newspapers to the veteran's group one week ago. Please pray that the seeds planted will bear fruit.

On the 7th of March Cecil will leave for Mongolia. He needs to get a new Russian visa, and he needs to leave Russia to do that. In Mongolia he will visit some old friends, but mostly make sure he gets his visa so that he can return to Russia. There has already been a hold-up in the processing of his visa invitation, so please pray that the invitation will be forthcoming and that all will go well on his trip.

We praise the Lord that Jason is back with us. He is doing well. We look forward to others joining our team some months from now.

Blessings,

Cecil, Tonya, Timothy and Vera

Activities in the Russian Far East

Dear Friends,

In December and January we went to all the orphanages in Khabarovsk (and a few others) to show a Christmas movie and spread some good cheer with the folks there. The Lord really opened doors for us and we were able to share about the real gift of of Christmas. Here is a photo of one of the groups we were with, showing off some other gifts we gave them.

Here is a photo of Cecil helping to set up the sound and video equipment for the movie.
Those outreaches left us a little behind on our other activities (did you know that missionaries have lots of paperwork too?). But we've been plugging away on other things too. Both Cecil and Tonya have passed their written exams at the driving school, but still need to practice driving with an instructor some more before they can finish the school and be allowed to take the tests with the road police for their Russian driver's licenses. Since Cecil's been driving for the last 25 years (and is presently driving every day in Russia on his international license) the school instructors only insist he put in at least ten hours of practice in the training car with a teacher (Tonya has to do 20 hours). Although Russians drive on the same side of the road as Americans, the training cars are from Japan, so we're learning how to drive a car with steering wheel on the wrong side. Such skill might come in handy if we ever get jobs driving for the Postal Service in the States. We've learned that you never know how God can use the strangest things, but I'm really wondering about it this time.

Our supporters were exceptionally generous in December, and we were able to pass some of that along to the homeless shelter for the construction project. They've been digging a well by hand, two meters square and seven meters deep. We were able to purchase concrete rings which they are lining the hole with to keep the well from collapsing when the ground thaws in the spring. You can see some of those rings in the photo. That's Timothy in the ski mask talking about the project the Sergei, the director of the shelter. You can see a corner of the building the homeless are constructing for themselves left of Sergei.

In our last update we mentioned how we helped a mother who is staying at the homeless shelter get in contact with her son who is living in an orphanage where we minister. She has been allowed to visit her son in the orphanage. She asked permission to take her son to church on Sundays, but the orphanage director wants to see more stability in her life first (she's only been at the center three months, been living on the streets for several years, doesn't have a job, etc.). Please pray that this will not discourage her, but rather would encourage her to continue getting her life in order. Also pray that the time would soon come that she would be permitted to take her son to church with her.

Now, the big news about Cecil. He will be going to Mongolia in March to get a new Russian visa. It was either there or South Korea as the nearest places. Since he has friends in Mongolia from when he lived there (back before he was married), he decided to go see them again. His present visa expires on March 12th and he must leave before it expires. The only hitch we are experiencing about it right now is his invitation. To get a visa to Russia you must have an official invitation. It takes a month for the government office to process an invitation. As his last invitation was being processed it was rejected for a minor mistake, so the process had to be started over again. It was re-submitted on the 12th of February, and Cecil's tickets to Mongolia have him leaving on the 7th. If would be nice if he had the original with him when he left. Please pray the invitation gets processed early and he has it in hand before his departure.

Jason, who does campus outreach, will be leaving the States on the 15th and arriving in Khabarovsk on the 17th of February (one day for transit, one day crossing the international date line). Please pray all goes well for him.

We have some folks planning on joining our team here in Khabarovsk. Aaron & Beth Barnes and Gerald Haug plan to attend training in March in Springfield, Missouri, and come on to live in Russia as soon as they finish raising financial support. Please pray that they have a wonderful time in training, that Lord give them generous and faithful supporters, and that everything comes together for them. There is also a young lady looking come in August to stay as a student and do campus ministry. Please pray for her as she takes this bold step.

Although the temperature outside has stayed below freezing it's been a rather warm winter, both in our hearts and in the weather. Thankfully it is snowing today because we haven't had much snow this winter. Here is Vera playing on a block of ice in the park.

Something we feel the Lord has put on our hearts is to help build a Ministry Center here. A place that can house several different outreaches and ministries and help to coordinate among different churches. Next week we are hosting a meeting to initiate the formal planning for this project. Please pray for us to have wisdom and to know the direction God would have us to take with this.

Cecil has begun writing our next newsletter (snail mail). Please pray for him to be inspired, creative, and able to spell properly.

May the Lord bless you and keep you.

In His Grip,
Cecil, Tonya, Timothy and Vera

Films and Driver's Licenses

Dear Friends,

Christmas in Russia is on January 7th. Therefore the Holidays here start on New Year's and go until after Christmas. We've joined together with another group to go to orphanages and boarding schools in Khabarovsk to show films with a Christmas message. We may have lost track of how many we've been to total, but last week our team went to eleven. Here is a photo of Tonya holding the microphone while the kids were telling what they remembered from the film.













Here we are with some kids after a show. That is Sveta next to Tonya. She is the main organizer of this outreach.














Today Tonya and Sveta went to show a film at a correctional school. New we only have three more places to go to.

Timothy and Vera were in a Christmas production in the church. Vera got to play one of the sheep, and Timothy played the part of a shepherd. Here they are during a song and dance routine in the play.












There is an orphanage where we've been going every Wednesday. Cecil took some photos of the groups we work with there and printed enough for all the kids to get a copy (they love photos of themselves). There are several folks from the local church that come with us to help. Sometimes they walk to the church and have tea between presentations. A few weeks ago one of the ladies from the homeless shelter (which is directed by our former driver, Sergei) started talking with the group while they were having tea. She has a son who was placed in the orphanage system and she hadn't seen him for over two years. As she was describing her son, Valara (our present driver) pulled out one of the photos and showed it to her. She recognized her son in it, and with tears asked if she could keep it. Of course she could. Last week she was able to make arrangements and go visit her son.

Cecil is permitted to drive in Russia on his American driver's license, but if he ever receives a Russian green card he will need a Russian driver's license to drive in Russia. Tonya's American license isn't valid in Russia since she is a Russian citizen. We both decided to get Russian driver's licenses. Little did we know what would be involved. Checking at the local police station, they informed us that we must attend a driving school for six hours a week for two months (even though Cecil has had an American driver's license for more than 25 years). At the school we discovered we must have complete physicals before we can get a license. At the local clinic we were given a list of all the specialists we would have to see. Then the fun began. First was a simple visit to get a chest X-ray to check us for TB. Then off to another clinic to visit the Narcologist (to see if we were addicts), where, after paying a few roubles, he asked if we took illegal drugs and stamped our documents (we were expecting at least a urine test). We are required to provide all our medical records, but since we've never been to the doctor here, we don't have any local medical records. So we went to the hospital to ask for a document that they don't have any of our documents. It took them a while to find the form to document that they don't have any of our documents, but after paying a few roubles this necessary document was forthcoming. Then off to the psychiatrist. After checking their records they gave us a document stating that we have no psychiatric problems because we've never been to the psychiatrist (Cecil tried very hard not to think about the logic of that). Off to pick up the results of the chest X-ray. Now back to the first clinic so that we can start our physicals. One doctor examined our eyes, another our ears, a neurologist checked our reflexes, and a we were given a cardiogram. Now Tonya is done. Since Cecil is a foreigner he has one more specialist on the checklist: the dermatologist. We thought, "Oh, this should be easy, we're almost done." Cecil has had several complete physicals in the past, but never has he experienced such a painful examination of his privates. Then, as he is getting dressed after the examination, thinking everything is done, she (the dermatologist) announces that the law requires him to have further tests: give blood for an AIDS and syphilis test and give a nose sample for a leprosy test. Cecil managed to keep a straight face, but Tonya lost it at the mention of the leprosy. The lady doctor was quite offended by Tonya's laughter. Off to one more clinic (the fifth). Well hidden behind some apartment buildings and warehouses (no sign) we find this clinic. No luck, since New Year's is coming they aren't taking samples for testing. We are told to come back in two weeks. Two weeks later Cecil gets his nose wiped by a specialist, and the next day we go back to get the results. Just in case you are wondering, Cecil does not have leprosy (and now we have a document to prove it). Tomorrow we go to pick up the results of the AIDS and Syphilis tests. Then he will be able to apply for a learner's permit. Stay tuned for more excitement.

After class at the driving school the instructor asked Cecil what is involved in getting a driver's license in America. Cecil explained the process, and she was amazed that the whole process is done at one place, and takes less than three hours (if you already know how to drive). After pondering this for a while, she said, "well, at least in Russia you'll never be bored."

Vera's birthday was New Years eve. New Years is celebrated with fireworks here in Russia. She thinks it is wonderful how everyone celebrates her birthday. Since the year is 2007, you can remember her age is 7. She also lost her first tooth. She was so excited. The tooth fairy pays in roubles here in Russia.

One of Cecil's friends has sent a bunch of Star Trek DVDs and other Star Trek stuff to us. The result is that Timothy has become quite a Trekkie. One of his favorite heroes is Capt. Kirk.

Please pray for us to have wisdom about Cecil's visa. It expires in March and he will have to leave the country to renew it. We're trying to figure the best place for him to go to do that.

We also want to thank you for praying for the orphanage outreaches. We've had a great deal of favor with the directors, and had open doors.

Well, time to go and help Tim put together that model of a Klingon star cruiser.

In His Grip,
Cecil, Tonya, Timothy & Vera

Some Happenings

Dear Friends,

as we write this letter is Christmas afternoon for us, but for some of you in the States it is still Christmas eve. And yes, we are having a white Christmas here in the Russian climate. It warmed up to about 25 degrees Fahrenheit last week and snowed.

We wanted to share with you how the Lord answered your prayers and the stolen truck was returned. The church received a phone call telling them where to put the money if they wanted the truck back. Sergei (who leads the homeless ministry) and the Pastor wrote a letter explaining that the truck belongs to God and explaining what kind of ministry it was doing, such as building the house for the homeless, and left it there instead. This began a back-and-forth bartering where the thieves kept offering lower amounts to return the truck. Sergei kept answering that the church was praying for the them, and they were asking the Lord not to bring judgment on those who had stolen the truck. Also, Demitry, who leads the prison ministry, contacted the criminal authorities and asked them to let these young thieves know that you shouldn't steal from God. Finally the thieves asked, "can't you give us anything for the truck?" The answer was no. Later the church received a phone call telling them where the truck was parked, so they were able to go and get it. All we can say is, "Praise the Lord!"

It about that time of year here where they start setting up blocks of ice and carving them.

Here's the family by an "ice castle" at the central square.

We praise the Lord for Jason's safe return to the States. He left on December 15 and is now at his folk's house for Christmas. We look forward to his return to Russia next year.

A couple weeks ago we concluded a series on the Ten Commandments at the orphanage. To celebrate the event we had a competition quizzing the kids about different aspects of the commandments and the final task was to write all ten of them from memory. Here are two teams during that final round. All the teams successfully recalled all ten of the commandments.

Vera recently participated in her first gymnastics competition. Despite some initial stage-fright, she did well. Here is a photo of her during the floor routine.


Over the next several weeks we are planning to visit all the orphanages in Khabarovsk and show a movie from the Billy Graham Foundation. We are doing this as a joint outreach with another group. Please pray that doors will open and the Lord would give us favor in every one of the orphanages.

On Thursday Cecil cooked a great big beef stew and we went to the homeless shelter that a local church operates. There we served a whole meal and told the Christmas story. Meat is a rather rare treat there, and we were well received. We told the Christmas story (from Matthew and Luke). It was the first time that some of the folks there had ever heard that story.

We thank you so much for your prayers. May the Lord richly bless you and yours in this season of the Christ Child.

In Him,
Cecil, Tonya, Timothy & Vera

Ice cream, Trans-Siberian railway, and Ulan Ude

Dear Friends,

The advent season has arrived and we're not wondering if it will be a white Christmas. It's been a winter wonderland here for a while. The last several days when Cecil has gone out to start the car the temperature has been at -21 degrees Celsius (what is that in Fahrenheit? Something like -6?). Even though we use Celsius here Cecil still likes Fahrenheit. The encyclopedia says that Mr. Fahrenheit developed his temperature scale when he discovered how to use a mercury thermometer, but further investigation reveals that he chose 0 degrees since that is the lowest temperature you can reach by mixing salt and water, hence the optimal temperature for the manufacture of homemade ice cream. Mr. Fahrenheit liked ice cream, and so does Cecil. Now, 0 degrees Celsius is the freezing point of water, and frozen water is O.K. But really, what do you prefer, frozen water or frozen ice cream?

Cecil has been on the road for a while, and it sure is good to get back. He took Jason to Ulan Ude for the Assemblies of God Siberia team meeting. Tonya and the kids couldn't go because school is in session. Ulan Ude is over 50 hours on the train from Khabarovsk, one way. This was Jason's first time on the Trans-Siberian railway. As Cecil said,"the first several times on the Trans-Siberian is very exciting, but after about the 14th time?" Anyway, here's Jason by the train.

We were in car number 11. Can you see it back there? (About half-way back the train)

The team meetings had wonderful worship and good fellowship, but we also did some business. Cecil will be helping to lead a new project to help the national church in the Russian Far East. Their most commonly stated need is for a building to house the Bible Institute as well as a headquarters to organize outreaches and churches across the Far East. While this project is now in the "serious initial discussion" stage, we expect things to develop. Please pray for us to have wisdom and make right decisions regarding this project. We're not sure how this project fits into our long-term goal of helping orphans as they leave the orphanages, but we strongly feel the Lord leading us to do this project.

Ulan Ude also has the largest head in the world.

Lenin looks a little cold there, with snow on his eyebrow.

As an aside, Cecil met some Mongolians at church who were also visiting Ulan Ude. He was very excited to use his long-dormant Mongolian language skills. He admits that after about two minutes he had to change languages, and found they didn't speak Russian, though one of them spoke English. Anyway, it was the first time in ten years he got to speak Mongolian.

Before the trip we had and early Thanksgiving celebration with some friends. The Americans who came brought an apple pie; the Ukrainians who came brought a Karavi (a spiced fruit bread). Both were delicious.

And the rest of the feast was pretty good too, even though we couldn't find a turkey. Afterwards we read the story of the first Thanksgiving and wrote down what we were thankful for.

While Cecil was gone Tonya continued the lessons with the orphans. She's been going through the 10 commandments. When she taught on "Honor your Father and Mother," she prayed a lot beforehand since she didn't know how they would respond. It turned out they were very interested and responded very well. Please pray that we continue to have favor and that these orphans will be set free of whatever emotional hurts they carry with them. Please pray that the Lord will build up a team to work with us in the orphanage ministry.

We've received a lot of interest regarding the homeless ministry here, so we thought we'd mention it again. We are barely involved with this work, the local Russian church is in charge. We just help out from time to time in minor ways. They are doing a great job. They are presently housing about 40 people in a big tent. The tent has now gotten rather cold, and they continue to build a house as funds become available. Mostly the local church is raising the funds themselves, with the homeless doing much of the labor. Here is a photo I took on Sunday morning (December 3rd). The walls are up, floor is not quite complete, and the roof is not yet begun.

The church recently purchased a truck for this construction project, expecting to use it in future projects as well. It was stolen last week and they received a "ransom note" demanding money for the return of the truck. Please pray that the truck will soon be returned without any loss to the church.

There is a couple planning to come to Khabarovsk in April to work with us for a year or so. Please pray for Aaron and Beth as they prepare for this big step. Pray that funds are raised quickly, that believers would commit to pray on their behalf, and that the many details involved with moving across an ocean would all work out.

Also, please pray for Jason as he will be returning to the States in ten days. He plans to return in February. So pray that he makes it home and makes it back.

We want to thank you all for your many prayers for us.

We've also received several requests lately for maps showing where we are located. You can find some maps on our web site, as well as some other interesting stuff. The address is http://hqmail.agmd.org/~cecil.eshelman/khabarovsk_region.htm

Giving thanks,
Cecil, Tonya, Timothy & Vera

On the road again (with Thanksgiving)

Dear Friends,

Cecil recently returned from a trip to Moscow where he attended a conference. The subject was how to help orphans transition into independent living upon graduation from their orphanage. Studies show that only about 10% of orphans in Russia successfully navigate this transition. Quite of lot of information was presented, and Cecil found it very helpful in understanding the problems, and possible ways of helping. The situation is more complicated than we originally thought. We continue to seek the Lord in regards of how to implement our ministry to the older orphans.

While Cecil was gone Tonya continued to visit one of the orphanages where we have an open door. Right now she is teaching on character development with a spiritual emphasis. We've been forming relationships with the kids (and the staff). We plan to become their friends and remain in touch with the orphans after they graduate.















Tonya also translated for a team of Americans who came to encourage the village churches. Two members on the team were in their 80's. One of them would tell stories from his experiences in the battle on Okinawa during World War II. Sometimes his stories became so humorous that Tonya couldn't stop laughing and the audience had to wait a while to get the translation. They were very, very well received.

Just before his trip to Moscow Cecil accidentally pressed a button on his cell phone that caused it to "lock" and require a four-digit code to "unlock" it. We couldn't find a code number with the paperwork so we went to the store that sold it to us. They tried to unlock it but were unable. They said there was a place with a computer that could unlock it, but they didn't know where that place was. Completely stymied, Cecil said,"Oh Lord, what can we do? I don't have time to try every four-digit number there is." He then entered the first four-digit number that came to mind, and the phone unlocked. He immediately memorized that number for future reference. Thank you to whoever was praying for us that day.

Today we celebrated Thanksgiving with some friends here. O.K., we know we are a few days early, but Cecil and Jason will be getting on a train tomorrow morning and going to the city of Ulan Ude. The trip takes 52 hours. They will be meeting with other members of the AGWM team who serve in Siberia. Tonya and the kids will stay in Khabarovsk since Thanksgiving is not celebrated in Russia, and schools will be in session.

Snow now covers the ground here. It won't melt off until March. If you like winter, come give us a visit. No need to hurry, we will have another winter next year. But actually, we recommend Russia in the summer.

Thinking of Russia in the summer, we are in the planning stages to have a team come to Khabarovsk. If you are interested in a summer mission trip, let us know. We can send you more information.

Please pray for Cecil and Jason's trip, for open doors for ministry, for the summer team, and for some folks who are making plans to come to work with us long-term.

Blessings,
Cecil, Tonya, Timothy and Vera

Ten Years Together

Dear Friends,














Ten years ago tomorrow, October 26, we were married on a beautiful snowy day in Siberia.
















And so we began a Russian-American adventure.




















And the adventure continues.

Thank you all so much for your prayers regarding the pastor's conference. There were so many details to take care of. Yet everything went so well. Omar, our main speaker, wonderfully encouraged and edified the leaders. We also spent time in worship, fellowship, prayer and volleyball. There were over 70 in attendance. They expressed their gratitude for this chance to be refreshed. We in turn want to thank all of those who supported this event financially or in prayer. It has truly been a highlight.

We took an opportunity to share a word just before serving communion during the conference.

Today was the second time we were able to speak to a group of orphans who we mentioned in our last email update. God has really opened a door for us there. The Lord has such a way of bringing things about. We just stand amazed.

Tonya was able to find time to host a ladies meeting in our home. It is a very large apartment by Russian standards. Since God has blessed us with such a place we desire to see it used as more than just a dwelling for our family. Besides, Tonya loves having lots of people around.

In November Cecil will be doing quite a bit of traveling. Please hold him up in prayer.

We give thanks that ten years ago the Lord established our family. We look forward to the next ten.

Sincerely,
Cecil, Tonya, Timothy & Vera

A Little News

Dear Friends,

 

God continues to provide divine appointments.  On Wednesday last week we went to speak to a group of students at a school for those with learning disabilities.  This school also has an orphan division within it.  We were hoping to someday gain access to the group of orphans, but one must be careful here about how you approach such things.  After speaking with a class we were headed out of the front door.  A lady there asked who we were and struck up a conversation.  She immediately invited us to come and speak to the group of orphans.  She is the assistant director of that division, and she has given us free reign to speak about whatever we want.  We're scheduled to go next week.  Praise the Lord.

 

Yesterday the Pastor's Conference began.  It has been a wonderful time of worship, fellowship and hearing from God's word.  Please pray that these wonderful servants of the Lord will be refreshed, encouraged and strengthened.  Many of them labor in difficult fields.

 

We want to pass on to you a praise report.  You may remember a special article Cecil wrote that was published in Russian Evangelism.  It was about the Christian Adaptation center for men released from prison here.  They are building their center and we hoped the article would generate some financial help for them.  Demitrei, the director, had used every available resource he could find, but two weeks ago the money ran out.  After church he gathered the men together and told them they still needed at least $12,000 to finish the work, but the only recourse left was prayer, so they had a prayer meeting.  What he didn't know was that at that very moment we were informing his pastor that the appeal had generated over $13,000 for the center.  This is the largest offering that Russian Evangelism had ever received for an article. 

 

It's official:  Russia is now the number one exporter of oil in the world, pumping more oil than even Saudi Arabia.  With all that oil wealth flowing into the government coffers (and private pockets) you would think the Russian people ought to be prospering and the standard of living ought to be rising, and yet the only thing that seems to be rising is the prices.

 

Hey, here are a few other statistics:

 

Russian Population:       143.5 million

Of these:

There are 10 million drug addicts or 7 % of the Russian population.  Almost half began abusing drugs at the age of 13 or 14 years old.

Forty percent of the male population of the country are alcoholics, and the average age that they begin drinking has gone down to 12 or 13 years old.

There are 1.1 million prisoners.

There are 11 million invalids, of them 80% are in the first or second group, which means they cannot work.

There are 37 million pensioners.

There are 2 divorces for every 3 marriages.

There are 2 abortions for every live birth, or 3 million abortions a year.

There are 4 million abandoned kids and 10 million children living with a single mother.

The population of Russia decreases by roughly 700,000 people a year.

 

President Putin in his "State of the Country" address mentioned the problem of the declining population.  He mentioned three causes:  low birth rate (many families have only one child), shorter life span (due to high alcohol and cigarette use), and emigration.  He wanted to increase government assistance to mothers so that they would have more children.  I didn't really catch what he wanted to do about alcohol and cigarette use.  And he wanted to encourage immigration to Russia.  The last point sounded really good to us, since it might make getting a Russian "resident permit" easier (at least that's what we'll pray for).  He also mentioned the need for Russian families to adopt children rather than leave them in orphanages.  He said, "It seems to me that foreigners adopt more Russian children than Russians do."

 

We do regularly pray for President Putin and for the country of Russia.  We thank you for your prayers as well.

 

Again, please pray the next few days for the conference.

 

Shalom,

Cecil, Tonya, Timothy and Vera