Ukraine is about to return!

This is just a reminder that the Ukraine team is coming back in two days!!! I'm excited to hear all about their time there. They are returning on US Airways flight number 705 from Charlotte, arriving at SFO at 7:06 pm. I'm sure I'll see you guys there!

--Brendan

News on the Ukraine Team

Hi there! This is Brendan posting. I just got off the phone with someone from YoungLife who had just spoken with Aloyna in Ukraine! Aloyna says that all is well and the floods were not near the team. So confirmation that all is well and the team is safe and sound! Just wanted to keep you updated. Aloyna says it was a great time of ministry and that the team is going to have LOTS of stories to share.

--Brendan

Ukraine Update

Hey there friends!

We are doing well. We just arrived back in Chirnovtsi after a stretching week at camp. We were able to minister to special needs Ukrainians. It was neat to befriend them. God did many great things and was so gracious to us. We were able to show our love for them through our smiles, touches, and presence. Additionally, we became friends with the Young Life leaders at the camp.

Our conditions were not the best, but we managed quite well. Each person was a unique story to tell- so grab your favorite team member when we return and take them out to lunch. You will be blessed by what you hear.

A few highlights:

* Some people who were a part of another camp at the same facility came last night to hear the gospel preached. It was truly incredible. For some reason their program was not going on last night- so in effort to entertain the kids their leaders asked our leaders if they could join us for program. PRAISE GOD! Then, these kids were excused before the lesson was over for free time AND THEY DID NOT LEAVE!!! Pray for the seeds that were planted.

* The mothers were encouraged as having children with special needs here is not as socially accepted as it is in the States. Many believe it to be a curse on the family. As we left today many of the mothers were crying and telling our team that our guys did for their children what they cannot get their husbands to do.

* The special needs kids knew we loved them! They would call us by name and give us big hugs. David and David both had Sasha and Sasha, two severely autistic boys who came to recognize them as their friends. Chuck had a buddy whose father is an alcoholic and comes from and incredibly rough background. They were inseparable. Eric learned to communicate with his buddy and they had quite the system down (We all think that Eric is part Ukrainian anyway). These goodbyes brought tears to my eyes.

* God's word was preached and some came into a relationship with Jesus for the first time.

* Our team is united, we laugh a lot, and have become dear friends.

This is my last internet opportunity. Thank you for your prayers. Please pray for us in our travels. We will see you at home!

Risa

Update from Ukraine

Hello folks! This came from Risa via text message to me:

All is well at camp. We're having fun working hard not understanding Russian and sharing Jesus with special people. The kids are doing well and being stretched. Please continue to pray!

I'll keep you posted as I hear from the team...in the meantime, pray for Risa as she gives evening talks teaching about Christ's love and goodness as well as continued safety and growth of the 209 students.

--Brendan

Greetings from Ukraine!

Upon our arrival here we were greeted by the Young Life staff at the airport. They brought our luggage back to Chernivtsi whilе we remained with Aloyna in Kiev for a few days. In Kiev we were able to gain a view of Ukrainian culture through eating at buffets with a spread of many different kinds of Ukrainian food, visiting the church where Russian Orthodoxy began, touring through the Chornobyl musuem, and walking around observing the people and viewing the important sites in Kiev. We were able to stand where the protests of 2004 were and our girls got a taste of covering their heads before going into church. It has been a cultural plunge and we now feel as if we have made major progress in painting a picutre of Ukrainian culture for ourselves. Sidenote- we have never seen so many mullets nor eaten so much dill in our entire lives.

Our times together as a team have been sweet. We have been sharing our stories and praying for each other. It's been fun to cook together and to stay up late into the night just laughing. We are becoming deeper friends.

We arrived this morning in Chernivtsi. We traveled all night on the night train- what a fun adventure!! Cobblestone streets with old, historic buildings and lush green trees make for a beautiful Chernivtsi. The Young Life staff is wonderful and we have instantly become friends. They are able to tease us even with broken English and we have enjoyed the sweetness of Christian friends from another culture. We are eager to learn from them.

Tonight we will stay at the Coop, and then head out about an hour to camp. It turns out we will be ministering to the special needs students who come to camp.

Prayer Requests:

Continued unity as a team.
The students who come to camp would come to know Jesus.
God would show himself in unexplicable ways to our team.
We would be a huge blessing to the Young Life Staff here in Ukraine.

You may not hear from me until after camp (July 31)- but please be faithful in your prayers. The entire team sends their greetings.

Nicole says that she is fat and happy from the Ukrainian food- she wanted you each to know that!

- Risa for the Ukraine 2008 Team

Ukraine team on the ground!

Hey folks, this is Brendan writing on behalf of the Ukraine team. I got a phone call from them this morning saying they arrived safe and sound. It was a long flight and they're dog tired, but they've been laughing a lot to stay awake and they're already connecting as a team.

I'm writing for them because they've had some problems getting internet access. They found a place but the internet was so slow that it would've taken them 'til August just to get to the blog site! So I'm posting for them. It will probably be another few days before they get reliable internet access, so expect it to be a few before we hear from them again.

In the meantime, please be praying for continued safety and blessing as they look to minister to a very hurting people group.

--Brendan

We're Getting Ready

Praise the Lord- we are about ready. The Lord has been faithful in many ways; financially, physically, logistically, etc. The stories are already flowing and we've not yet left Walnut Creek. We are certain each member of our team has been called, as we prayerfully considered each one. Please pray for us as we leave this Saturday morning and encounter Ukraine for the next two weeks. Here are some of our prayer requests:

* Our eyes and hearts would be open to what the Lord is teaching us.
* Safety and health.
* Many would come to know the Lord in Ukraine and that the local ministries would be encouraged by our presence.
* Our team would be united.
* Our team will grow in our understanding of God's majesty.
* God would be honored, praised, and glorified through our team and this trip.
* Risa as she speaks at the camp in the evenings that her words would be what the Lord desires them to be.

Our team is:

Chelsea Bourell
Eric Buckland
Nicole Burkholder
David Cranmer
Risa Cranmer
David Farrar
Kim Holland
Chuck Jeffries
Laura Matthiesen
Caitlin Rahn
Jenny Schuelke

We covet your prayer and thank you for your support.