Giving More and More

Recently I was privileged to meet an interesting individual.  She was a girl in 8th grade that had lived in orphanages for the past 8 years in her life.  In 2 weeks time, she will have a healthy family for the first time in her life when a couple from the United States will come to adopt her.

The joy that she had, knowing that this couple, which she had spent time with previously, was coming to rescue her from orphanage life was quite apparent.  She told me of how she has prayed her whole life that she could someday have a family, who loved her and she could love.

One short anecdote she shared with me, from her time with her parents-to-be, is how one evening when they were together at the dinner table, they had laid out a bunch of candy which she could take.  And she told me, with a big grin, that she took it all and shoved it into her pockets as quickly as possible.  But when she looked back up to the table after her fury of collecting, the table was again full of candy.

Sometimes we underestimate the love of our parents, and in the same way, the love of our Father in heaven.  Despite our failures, our past, our self-serving nature from the time we enter this world until the time we pass from it, and our constant rejection towards them, this love is never ending and persistent.  And why do we receive this love from our parents and God?  Simply because we are their creation.

For grace proclaims the awesome truth that all is gift. All that is good is ours, not by right, but by the sheer bounty of a gracious God. - Brennan Manning, The Ragamuffin Gospel

Often because of the imperfect relationships, which we experience between family, friends, the church, and our resistance to God, we never fully experience this grace, and it becomes near impossible for us to believe that it is possible to receive such an endless gift.  Even "good Christians" will reject this gift, or attempt to become an arbiter of these blessings for those whom they deem worthy or unworthy.

Nobody can earn this gift, for to so would be to contradict what grace is in it's essence.  And so because of this, we need to give grace to others in our finite human way whenever and wherever we are able.

We live in a world that seeks justice for every action, minute or massive, and it doesn't seem to be working out very well.

My humanity is caught up, is inextricably bound up, in what is yours. - Bishop Desmond Tutu, No Future Without Forgiveness

We need to have an investment in the lives of the "graceless" among us.  Those who are completely without hope, and will never find it if we don't share that with them.  Whether it is through spiritual, physical, emotional, or other types of support, we need to have a burden for these people.  Not only because it is for their good, but because it helps us to realize the grace that we have been given.

You Mean We Should Set Goals?

In a previous blog I wrote about how life is moving forward constantly, and that if we stop and dwell on the past too long we will be left behind, and ultimately see life and opportunities pass us by.

It is easy to let what has happened in our past define who we are. Many of us have had negative or quite traumatic experience in life that can define our very existence. This happens with individuals, countries, ethnic, religious, and other groups of people quite frequently.

Sharing blini (crepes) together for a meal

In most cases people define themselves this way because they are victims of some kind of injustice. Child abuse or neglect, infidelity, religious or political strife, war, starvation, and sickness are just a few of the thousands of situations that could be listed. These are terrible and unspeakable things that often place people at a disadvantage financially, physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.

While many people are in near impossible situations to break out of, those who should be counted in this number are a small minority. And the reason I say that is because the majority of people who believe they are in an impossible situation, is because they are still mourning the negative experiences of their lives, instead of setting goals and planning for the future.

"The boundaries that you establish for yourself create the limitations of your existence." - Erwin McManus, Pastor, Mosaic Church, Los Angeles

John speaking to the group through an interpreter.

Who you think you are is what you will be, and who you will be is dependent upon the goals you set for yourself.

Recently John Wiens, the director/founder of New Hope Center, was speaking to the group of graduated orphans who we spend time with regularly, and he challenged them with that message. "Who will you become? Will you believe that you have value, and that you can lead a successful life, or will you always believe that you are just an orphan kid that will end up in jail someday?"

This blog entry is named after one of the responses that one of the boys had. "You mean we should set goals?"

While he may have been slightly sarcastic when saying this, his response is very telling about how the orientation of our minds makes a huge difference in where we are headed. Sometimes we need someone or something that allows for us to think in a different way, but ultimately we need to do this for ourselves.

Our past is ours to deal with. It should not be forgotten, but it can not and should not live with us today if we are to live a life of freedom. This is often the case for young men like this, who have lived as orphans, with little or no help to succeed. But this is a lesson that has immeasurable power to change one's life. And it is the preaching of this message to orphans and those who are in bondage to their past that can change their world and ours.

It's My Job to Love

It's hard to believe that it has already been almost 2.5 months since I first arrived back in Zaporozhye, Ukraine, and also that another year has passed for all of us.

Guy having fun at our Christmas Eve dinner

A year ago, I was still trying to get comfortable with a new surrounding and living in a different culture once again, but now it almost feels as if I've been here for ages.  An awful lot can occur in a year.  Relationships can be formed and broken, new family members can be born, and others have passed on, and our lives can take huge turns for better or worse that we never would have expected.


After periods of time like this, I always like to look back and see what decisions I've made, or what lessons I've learned, that will hopefully shape me into a better person in the future.  It's a process that can be difficult to be honest with yourself about, because it's always easy to be a revisionist historian about how things happened, and cast them in a better light than maybe they originally occurred, or sometimes not to give yourself or others the credit deserved for making good decisions that have made a difference in your life.

Mandarins are a Ukrainian holiday season establishment

While I think there are many things that I'd say I've learned in the past year, I think what has really stuck with me is the concept of loving your neighbor as yourself (Mark 12:31, Matthew 22:39).  It is an incredibly difficult thing to do; some might say impossible.


Every day we are faced with challenges to this way of thinking and living.  When someone mistreats us, or lies to us, or steals from us, or even when we walk by a homeless person on the street, or someone who is greatly different from us, whether in lifestyle, culture, or creed.


We have decisions to make that can change this world for good or bad.  Or just simply change the life of the individual in front of you for good or bad.


Even during these two months working with orphans, I've come across moments, when I have an incredibly hard time trying to love them.  Maybe I've been told a lie, or something has been stolen, or someone is just giving me a bad attitude about something I asked of them.


The easy thing to do is just to judge them and have a poor attitude about the ways that they are acting.


Often when I am having trouble I think of something that Billy Graham, the famous evangelist, said when he publicly appeared with President Clinton not long after the President's sex scandal.


"It is the Holy Spirit’s job to convict, God’s job to judge, and it’s my job to love." 


Now reread that quote again in segments, and really dwell on what it is that Rev. Graham was saying.


It is the Holy Spirit's job to convict.  It is not up to us to change their hearts.  They will be changed over time by the love of God through us.  By attempting to guilt somebody into changing their lives, you are likely pushing them further away, and not allowing for real transformation to happen.


It's God's job to judge.  We are not in charge of punishing people for their offenses.  This should not be a burden in our life.  It is very easy to get caught up in emotion, and have a feeling of righteousness come over us.  We all have things in our lives that could be judged by others, so stay humble.


It's my job to love.  This is really what it all boils down to.  It is our job to love.  Love in a self-sacrificing way, that doesn't care what the world is telling us, or even what our own heart or mind might be telling us.  Loving in a way that takes us out of the driver's seat from time to time.


Really it is often our attitude about things that keeps us from loving our neighbor as ourselves.  We just want to have so much control of the situation, and we don't trust that loving those people who have offended us will make a difference.  And many times by the measure we want to go by, a difference hasn't been made.  We want retribution or justice.  We don't take a moment to think that this attitude change is much better for us and for them, because it lifts such a huge burden away from our lives.


I hope that this New Year, that I am able to have a better attitude than the previous one.  And that I can be  more self-sacrificing, and caring than I was in the previous year, and that I am able to fulfill my role as one who loves.


The Holy Name, January 1, The Book of Common Prayer


Eternal Father, you gave to your incarnate Son the holy name of Jesus to be the sign of our salvation: Plant in every heart, we pray, the love of him who is the Savior of the world, our Lord Jesus Christ; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, in glory everlasting. Amen.

Away For the Holidays

One of the dilemmas that always faces me when I've considered making a big life move or change is that I won't be present for the holidays (Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years, Easter) with my family.  It's one of those things that you know that you need to do, and it is something that could lead to a source of longing, or even depression if you don't handle it correctly.

Sharing a Meal of Fish Soup and Bread with meat paste

But if you frame it in a correct way, you can allow for the seasons surrounding the holidays to be a time of greatly rewarding reflection, and of inner growth.  A time where you can learn to appreciate the blessings you've had in life and how some of the experiences you've had in previous years have contributed to what you are doing now.

Almost every day I spend time with a group of graduated orphans, who are now studying at a state vocational school, and once or twice a week I get to see children who are currently living at an orphanage.  These children have rarely had a real Christmas (New Years for most people in Ukraine) celebration anywhere near what I, you, or even most Ukrainians are accustomed to.

Neighbor boy, Kirill, watching some of the guys play foosball

The idea that they'll wake up in the morning on Christmas Day and run down the stairs to see a huge pile of gifts and then a enormous turkey or ham with all the side fixins will be prepared for them and those who they value most dearly is completely foreign.  While many of them will be fortunate enough to be able to spend New Year's Eve with some family members, the fact that these types of things might not occur is not really a disappointment at this point in their lives, it is an expectation.

I know that now I'm that guy who makes you feel slightly guilty about how good you've got it around the holidays (or in general), but at the same time you should really use it as an opportunity to be quite grateful, and maybe even joyful.  Your wealth is a blessed resource which God has allowed you to have, but it is also a great responsibility which you must use to enable those in desperation.

An interesting web site that my father posted on Facebook, that I promptly stole from him is the Global Rich List, which allows you to enter your annual income to see where it matches up against the rest of the world.  I was surprised to find that even with my very modest (by American standards) income for working in Ukraine, I am still ranked within the top 14% in the entire world.  If you'd like to see where you stand, click here.

It's very easy to lack perspective, and to grumble about not having this gadget or that one, or that you can't afford to get this new car a full 5 years after you purchased the previous one (or one of the many many other examples that could be listed of lesser/greater ridiculousness).  But at least during this one time of year, we are told "peace on earth, and goodwill toward men."  I've heard that phrase a million times probably, but it didn't really sink in for me until recently when I was watching Disney's recent rendition of Charles Dickens'  A Christmas Carol.

Scrooge had gone through all the trauma of the three ghosts and the following morning (Christmas morning), he finds this sudden joy for life, and the abundance of life that can be found for himself and others when he sacrifices some of himself and his wealth for their well being.  He began to create peace on earth by showing goodwill towards his fellow man.  He essentially killed his former self and became a new individual, a better individual.

While, I doubt we will face dramatic experiences like Scrooge did, there are staggering truths that we know about our world today, and we know how we can make a difference by sacrificing just a little bit.  Please consider making additional contributions to organizations or missionaries during this holiday season.  Or even consider an alternative Christmas, where you make donations in your loved ones names.  You will be surprised at how much stress is relieved from this celebration, and how happy you are without the stuff of Christmas.

Here are some great organizations you could consider supporting this Christmas. Click their names to learn more and donate.

New Hope Center (Zaporozhye, Ukraine) - This is the center where I am working in Ukraine that provides services to orphans in the city.  We'll be opening up a vocational school for them and low-income students from villages and group homes in the next year, so your support is greatly appreciated.

Blood Water Mission - Their mission is simple.  Provide clean water for those in parts of the world (particularly Africa) where clean water is difficult to access.  Access to clean water is key to AIDS prevention.

Redeeming Families Orphan Ministries (Westfield, MA) - An orphan care ministry that is based in Western Massachusetts (and if you check out the board I'm sure some of you reading will recognize their faces).  They are currently focused in China, and also provide services to help those considering adoption

New Hope Center Video

This is the promotional video that was recently made for New Hope Center that John will be using for the fundraising trip which he has recently left on.  It was made in a pretty short amount of time by some local video producers (who don't really speak English), so please forgive some of the editing mistakes or design choices that may be a bit dated.  I believe it does a very good job explaining the needs of orphans in Ukraine, and why they need programs like the ones that New Hope Center will be offering in the next year.

Also another note.  This video was made with a Mennonite Brethren church audience in mind, so it makes quite a few references to "Mennonite Heritage."

There are many real and graphic images in regards to the lives of orphans and the history of Ukraine in this video, so please be prepared for that, if you decide to watch.  It's about 17 minutes long.

Milking for Orphans?: An Entrepreneurial Idea to Keep A Ministry Sustainable

I've been back in Ukraine just over 2 weeks working with New Hope Center in Zaporozhye.  Every day has an opportunity to be a learning experience, and I think it's best when you are living in a foreign country, doing work like we are, that you really focus on this current day, on this moment, or on the person who is right be before you right now, because this might be the only chance you have with them.

This past Thursday John Wiens, Pastor of New Hope Church, and Director of the New Hope Projects left to head back to Western Canada to do the primary fundraising for the following year that will, with God's help, provide the financial boost needed to begin the Trade School and Group Homes.

Garry Verhoog and John Wiens at the potential Trade School site

While I've told you some about the concept of the Trade School and Group Homes, I haven't told you the part of this project which makes it unique, which is a Dairy Farm.

I know you're thinking right now, "What does a dairy farm have anything to do with helping orphans?"  While generally I would agree that orphans and dairy production generally don't go hand in hand, in this instance they are carefully intertwined.  And I'll tell you the story behind why this is true.

John Wiens, came to Ukraine just over 4 years ago, with the mission to reach those who have been undervalued by society, in part, because this is the place where his Mennonite ancestors once lived.  For those of you who are unfamiliar with Mennonites; these people know farming.

John grew up on a farm where they would harvest grain in Western Canada, so when the idea for a trade school arose, he thought what would be a better way to keep this project sustainable than to start a grain farm.  And this is when God presented another exceptionally mission-minded individual into his life, who changed this idea slightly.

Garry Verhoog, was a very successful dairy farmer in Manitoba, Canada.  He was set to live out the rest of his life very comfortably, and to continue doing this the rest of his life, along with his family.  But God had a different plan for the coming years in his life.  Garry, who also has a Mennonite heritage, felt a calling to go to Ukraine as well, to assist small dairy farmers learn how to farm more successfully, using the wealth and skills he'd acquired after many years of hard work.

A couple of the graduated orphans getting to do some
outdoor work at the potential site of the Trade School

And so he moved to Mikolai Polye, Ukraine, a village just north of Zaporozhye, where he has lived for the past couple years teaching village farmers how to yield better results from dairy cows, and better practices in husbandry, so they can reproduce quicker, as well as providing microloans so some of these farmers can buy better materials or equipment that will can increase their profits by double or even triple.

God placed these two individuals, independent of each others' knowing, where they are right now, for a reason.  John wanted to provide orphans an opportunity to learn new skills that will provide them with career opportunities, and present them with the hope of Christ.  And Garry, also wanting to share the Gospel with others, had his dream of helping small dairy-farmers reach their potential.  Because of this, John and Garry decided, that in creating a dairy farm together, they can both achieve their goals.

The Dairy Farm will allow for Garry to instruct local villagers on how to farm more correctly and employ a number of them (in most villages, unemployment is over 50%).  And the Dairy Farm will produce enough milk to pay for the majority of the annual costs of running a trade school for 45 orphans and low-income individuals, as well as the costs of multiple group homes.  It will also provide an opportunity for 15 of those individuals to participate in a Dairy Farming track, where they can learn dairy farming as their life's work.

This is an amazing story of how people with different mission-minded goals can come together, and change each others' lives, as well as the lives of others.  The project will provide great opportunities for orphans and other low-income individuals, as well as potentially transform the lives of hundreds of people in this village, where the economy is almost entirely dead.

And so this Dairy Farm is a big part of what the fundraising for the next year will be tied to.  It is a big investment, that will have a good return over many years to come.  But it is also a risk, and an unorthodox way of doing ministry.  So be praying that God places a desire in the hearts of many to contribute towards this project, and that He gives John and Garry the wisdom as how to best manage this project.

Whoever is generous to the poor lends to the LORD,

and he will repay him for his deed.

-Proverbs 19:17

Unexpected Expected Return

 So I arrived back in Ukraine this past Wednesday (October 19th) and am now mostly settled into my new dwelling, and returning to the familiar setting of Zaporozhye.

After spending just one day with my friend John Charlier, a missionary from Southern California, who also does work with New Hope Center, I found a nicely located apartment near the center of the city that is convenient for me to get to work and is nearby most people that I know.

Also a huge bonus is the fact that I have a land lady that really enjoys feeding me.   To the left are a couple things she's given me. She's a pensioner that lives with her granddaughter, and uses the rent from the apartment I'm staying in to pay for her granddaughter's medical school tuition.  She's had me over for tea and coffee and food twice already, and I've only been living there for about 4 days.

Sweet Pumpkin Kasha

Though the land lady and her food are incredibly awesome, New Hope Center, graduated orphans, and other acquaintances are the reason that I am back in Ukraine.

It has been quite the experience assimilating back into the community that I called home for most of last year.  Aside from Pastor John and Max, it seems like most people didn't expect that I'd actually return.  I can't count the number of times that people have said to me "You've returned!"  As if they expected that I would never be back in their city.

Homemade Pickles, Jam, and Bread

I told most of the people that I would be returning, and I'd spent a long period of time with them before, but even though I got to know a number of these people pretty well, there was strong sense of doubt that I would be back.

While I don't think most people thought too deeply on whether I'd come back or not, I think this surprise in my return is really telling about a mentality you often see in the former Soviet Union about promises, especially from Westerners or those in authority.  People expect you to let them down until you've repeatedly given them reasons to believe otherwise.

This is true of politicians (who conveniently were Communists 20+ years ago) after the collapse of the Soviet Union, taking advantage of the system, and making millions, if not billions of dollars off of the majority of people who are living on a fraction of the American poverty line.  And this is also unfortunately true of some missionaries that crossed into these borders in the early 90s.  While many did a lot of good for the growth of Christianity, there are almost as many stories of Westerners who came and made promises of return or staying in contact, or swiftly converted a few folks and then left them without any support spiritually or financially.

Graduated Orphan Boys
Using Computers at New Hope Center

The people that New Hope Center is working with that have felt this let down the hardest.  Orphans have been let down by their parents, by teachers, by their government, by pastors, and by missionaries with unkept promises.

So I guess when a young American guy like me says, "hey I'm coming back in two months," I should understand why they are surprised.

Trust needs to be built.  Bonds need to be formed.  Promises need to be kept.  It takes time, it can be difficult, but it can be done.  And all of that can slip away very easily.   So I need to walk humbly.

He has told you, O man, what is good;

and what does the Lord require of you

but to do justice, and to love kindness,

and to walk humbly with your God?

      -Micah 6:8