Gusev

Angela and I had a safe trip home.  We did have a very tight connection at the JFK airport because our flight from Moscow was an hour late arriving.  We had little over an hour to make it through customs, get our bags and recheck them, get my ticket to Atlanta, take the Airtrain to the Delta departure terminal and make it to the Delta gate.  Praise God that we arrived at the gate just in time for boarding!  We felt the prayers of the saints and knew that God had gone before us and prepared the way.  Thank you so much for your prayers.

Our time in Gusev was short but very sweet.  When we arrived in Gusev, we expected to be taken to the church where Kalzhan and Gulia presently live.  Instead, we were taken to the home of a young couple, Kena and Katya, who have a 5 month old son.  Katya is the daughter of our very good friend Natasha. It was such fun to share their joy over tea.  From there, we went to visit Kena's store where he sells goods from Poland. 

Katya and family 

 

About 5 years ago, Natasha (Katya's mother) and her husband, adopted a deaf girl named Lena who used to live at Kolosok Orphanage.  She was 6 at the time she lived at Kolosok and was a very frustrated and unhappy child.  At that time, she did not know sign language so she really had no way to communicate with anyone. Today, she is 12 and is a totally different child.  She is full of joy, knows that she is loved both by God and her family, and can now hear and talk.  Lena recently underwent implant surgery that has enabled her to hear. :)  Praising God for all He has done in Lena's life!

 

Lena, Lucy and Natasha

 

After visiting his store, Kena still didn't take us to the church but surprised us by taking us to Kalzhan and Gulia's new unfinished house.  We were greeted by the family and others from the church where we had a picnic birthday celebration for Isaak, Kalzhan and Gulia's youngest son who turned 5 that day.  We enjoyed delicious shashlik that was cooked by their oldest son, Danik, and lots of other tasty food.  The kids played games then Isaak gave away some of his most precious toys as gifts to the other children who came.  Isaak wanted to give presents instead of receiving them for his birthday.  The celebration lasted until around 10 pm. :)

 

 

 

Angela balancing cups and plates on her head

 

 

Isaak giving presents

 

The next morning we attended church. Once again, I was blessed to get to be a part of the worship team and play my flute.  During church, we heard testimonies of the people who went on the yearly week long bicycle trip to evangelized the surrounding villages and towns.  It was amazing to hear their stories.  After the testimonies, Kalzhan preached a powerful sermon about being in Christ.

The Bicycle Team Singing

After church, we visited shortly with friends we had not seen in several years before going upstairs to have lunch with Kalzhan and Gulia.  Our fellowship time with this family will be a sweet memory for both Angela and I.  We have many years of history together and it was such a blessing to be in their home again.

The Alimbekov Family

 

Because it was difficult to do, I did not post but one picture while in Russia.  I have now added pictures to previous posts if you want to go back and see them.

 

Next time I will post on our visit to Kolosok Orphanage.  Until then...