The month of December has been a fun one!  We participated in various events around the city to celebrate Christmas.  On Friday the 17th, at Womens Club, we celebrated Christmas with around thirty ladies in attendance.  We were blessed to have two American students visiting with us for the week, so we were happy when they agreed to take part.  One of the girls even played Mary as we told the story of the birth of Jesus. 














We ate by candlelight, sang songs in Russian and in English, three girls took turns reading the Christmas story from Luke, and Eileen shared with us the true meaning of Christmas and about the gift of salvation that Jesus brought to us. 



















Each girl received an angel Christmas ornament as she left.





We were excited to see many local believers there as well as some new girls we had never met before.  Please pray for these girls during the holidays.  Pray that God will open their hearts and reveal truth to them as many of them will be on vacation for the next couple of weeks and will have some extra time to reflect on this season.

Psalm 107:1

We have so much to be thankful for in Ufa!  God has blessed us in so many ways.  Please pray for us this week as we will have many opportunities to share God's love with people as we talk about and celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday. 

Last week we got started early with the November women's club.  This month we had a Thanksgiving theme.  We had lots of wonderful food,  fun games, and Eileen talked to us about being thankful to God.  She talked about the practice in the Old Testament of building altars to show thankfulness to God.  On each table was a basket of rocks.  We went around the table and each person had the opportunity to say something for which she was thankful.  After sharing, each lady took a rock from the basket and placed it on top of the pile on the table.  After everyone had shared, we realized we had built our own altar.  It was really neat to see this visual reminder of God's graciousness.  Even the nonbelievers in the room acknowledged that these blessings they had received came from someone bigger than themselves. 

We are blessed to have three Russian language students from America working with us as they attend a local university.  They all arrived in September.  Since they are new to Ufa, I have asked them to write a short summary for this blog on their first impressions of the city.  This is this first of three posts.  While reading this first post, you will see that not everything conforms to the way we often romanticize life in another culture.  However, when we have a greater purpose in mind, it often keeps our eyes forward as we press toward the mark.

So, Bashkiria. The food's not that bad. And neither are the bathrooms.
 
And what else do we need to be comfortable?

After a somewhat lengthy flight, I arrived. At last at last, RUSSIA. The euphoria lasted for about 2 weeks, but came to a crashing halt when the cashier became angry on account of my inability to understand the question "need a bag?" I spent about a week with my lips pursed in public, but I've gradually crept out of the shell.  I can even laugh or joke with people in public now. OK, sometimes.
The language studies are hard but, like everything here, it shocks you at first then you adapt. Signs are in two languages, Bashkir and Russian.  Sometimes Bashkir is on the left, sometimes on the right. You never really know, but you get used to it. You get used to not finding what you want at the grocery store. You get used to the tasty sour cream in your soup. You get used to the trams, the trolleys, the crowds, the snow, the darkness, the “Are they speaking English?” glances.
 
 But what makes the city tick?  It seems to be a city of many students. But then again, I've certainly seen more babushki (grandmothers) in public than ever before.  This is the industrial center of the republic, so many people come here from the villages seeking work.  Cars are generally for those with a little extra money, so we pack in tight in the tiny buses, with little concept of space to yourself.  Surprisingly this ties in with the stern face many people wear in public.  This is ironic.  We live so close together, but keep each other at a distance.  Though, I think the vestiges of the Soviet Union, like the stern public face, are gradually washing away.
 
This is especially true among the youth, so many of whom are eager to practice English and hear about America.  It's a neat tool-- who ever thought being a dumb foreigner would draw people in instead of pushing them away?  Just being American makes a lot of people want to befriend you.
The people here often are unwilling to have a heart-to-heart conversation with people who aren't close friends.  People they don't know, they can’t trust.  Religion is mostly viewed like ethnicity; it’s something your born with but not something you must act on all that often.  It’s part of your group heritage, not your individual life.  However, there are seekers.  Cornelius’s so to speak. There are those who are seeking GOD, who know the SHEPHERD’S voice, and who are getting ready to respond.  All we can do is present the gospel; the power lies with the Holy Spirit.  So, we push forward.  But hey, are we called to be victorious or persistent?
 
So, we persist.  We persist in prayer.  We, persist in righteousness.  We persist in standing firm.  We hold out the Word of life.  We take part in the ministry of reconciliation. "We implore you on CHRIST’S behalf--be reconciled to GOD!"  What honor is comparable to having our KING invite us into His work?  And behind all this, I remember a man on a cross, all for the sake of love.  So, I go to them outside the camp.  It's not important that I am comfortable, or wealthy, or safe, or even happy.  My GOD loves me, and remember his words to Levi "Ekolouthei moi!" ~"FOLLOW ME!"
 

Some places in the world are experiencing a great time of harvest.  It seems like a person can just say the name ‘Jesus’ and ten people come to Christ right there.  Russia,   is not one of those places yet.  Of course people are praying for this to happen soon but, we are still in a pre-’great harvest’ time.  I say ‘pre’ because we know that God can do this if He will and as we pray, we are optimistic that God will hear these prayers and call a great multitude of Russians unto himself. 

The current reality is before Russians people take the big step of coming to Christ, they have taken many smaller steps.  The journey from a lifetime of atheistic thought or a heritage of Islamic faith to confessing Jesus as Lord and Saviour, can take a while.  Still, it is often exciting to see these smaller steps being taken.  At a recent team meeting several of these stories were shared.

Those who were there the first time a particular women (we’ll call her Gail) came to Saturday night English group won’t forget the very matter of fact way she told us about her intentions.  Gail told Victor and Susan that she knew who we were and what we were trying to do, but that she was here only for the English practice.  Her manner was extremely stand-offish and she did not really participate much other than to ask specific English language questions.  At this last team meeting it was noted that not only had she become a very friendly person who was always involved heavily in the discussions, but she has become a regular at the Sunday night Bible discussion!  Gail has come to enjoy the groups so much that when she can’t come, she is apologetic.  She has praised and thanked us for the English and Bible discussions.   Lately she has started asking many questions about the Bible and biblical things.  It has been wonderful to see the way she has gone from using us for English practice to being what we would consider a seeker. 

We do these English clubs and meetings every single week.   We prepare discussion topics and put out snacks for our guests yet, sometimes it seems as if we are just ‘spinning our wheels’.  It is easy to start questioning why we are doing it and if these clubs are an effective way to witness.  In these times it is good for us to share stories like the one above and to remember that the Lord is changing people.  Not on our schedule, but we are seeing change.  This past team meeting was a time for praising God for what he is doing in Ufa and asking Him to continue to call people to Himself.    

Please pray for a harvest here.  Pray that the Lord will keep calling people to Faith in Himself.  Pray for us as we continue to interact with people at all places on their journey toward a saving faith.  Pray that walls of suspicion and doubt will continue to break down so people will listen to the message God has given us.

Friday night in Ufa, like any city can mean different things for different people.  Some will rest after a long work week.  Some might go out with their friends or family.  For some this Friday night in Ufa, it meant attending the monthly men's or women's clubs.  These are always great times of food, games, meeting new people and chatting with acquaintances and friends.

The women had a great time as usual.  About 25 women attended which makes for great fun when it comes to game time!

This was the Mt. Olivet ladies' last day in Ufa.  Today, after some souvenir shopping, they made us lunch!  The food they made us was delicious and we had a good afternoon of fellowship with them.  The rest of the ladies' day was spent packing for the trip home.  They must be at the airport very early in the morning.

Tonight was the last night of the cooking and crafts exchange in Ufa.  The activities were cookies and greeting cards. 

Tonight's exchange was a little different and maybe a little crowded.  The room that the ladies from Mt. Olivet were using for crafts was unavailable tonight so they were all in the dining room where the cooking takes place.  Flexibility is a big part of living in Russia.  In the USA we are used to things being ordered in a certain way.  Russia is not always ordered the way we expect.  Only having one room was no big deal, though.  It just meant that everyone was together the whole time instead of breaking into two groups that alternate between the cooking and crafts.  On the menu tonight was chicken corn chowder and decorative pillowcases.  The pillow cases were a little more involved than the other crafts that have been done so far.  It involved more preparation than some of the other projects.

A new day means a new craft  and a new dish in Ufa.  The cooking items were morning glory muffins and banana nut muffins.  The craft was hand made jewelry.  Today, some of the women that have been participating all week brought some of their friends with them.  Since the cooking piece was centered around muffins, Patti shared  about the 'Bread of Life'.  

The schedule is similar, yet everyday the Mt. Olivet ladies have new experiences.  Today they visited an art studio run by a local believer and were able to purchase a few of his small works as souvenirs.  Again, the afternoon was spent preparing for the evenings activities.  The also listened to Chris share what he hopes to see happen in Ufa and to discuss a little bit about how their activities fit into the big picture.

This evening the dish was French beef.  This was a little more involved than yesterday's mini cheesecake and required the ladies to get a little more hands on in the preparation stage.  

Almost all of the teams that visit Ufa tour the same spots.  Hey, there are only so many parks and museums here.  However, each team's experience is unique to them.  The Mt. Olivet ladies enjoyed a stroll through Victory Park and a tour of the Lula Tulpan mosque this morning.