Home

We made it home safely from Russia!  Two members of our team are still in Russia - Elya and Daniel stayed behind for a couple of extra weeks so they could spend time with family so I would ask that you continue to keep them both in your prayers.  What an incredible experience!  Each year the mission changes and it was such a privilege for me to be a part of this year's mission.  Running two VBS sessions in one day was exhausting, but at the same time we were able to reach more children which is one of the main purposes of the mission.  We cemented friendships that began last year and made new friends.  One of the things that I love the most about VBS is just watching the kids and seeing them learn about the God who loves them and gave Himself for them.  For both the adults and the children to ask for the team to come back next year is the greatest compliment we can receive and at least for myself, and I know for many others on the team, some of the people we have grown to know in Russia have become like an extended part of our family.  God is so wonderful and seeing Him working through our team and in the hearts of the people there is just such a joy!     

St. Petersburg

We are in St. Petersburg enjoying all of the sights.  Today we went to the Hermitage and it was so impressive to see all of the beautiful artwork and architecture.  I think we are all a little sad that this is our last day here.  We have to leave the hotel for the airport at 3:30 AM St. Petersburg time so it will be a long day tomorrow!!  I know each of us can't wait to see our families again!  We miss you all and love you and we will see you tomorrow!!!

Saturday update

 Mike's shoulder is getting better every day and we gave the salvation message yesterday which had quite an impact on the children.  It's a little sad that today is our last day of VBS but the kids have really enjoyed the time we have spent here.  We have enjoyed spending so much time with the kids and getting to know them better as well as teaching them about the great God that we serve.  We are already looking forward to returning next year to minister to the kids.

Montine leading the children around the walls of Jericho



Making bandanas for craft time

A few guys from the rehab center even got involved in craft time! 

The kids really enjoy the songs (and so does the team)!
Meredith, Hannah, Elya, Amanda, Ben, and Daniel

Recreation

Just a few of the kids that have come to VBS at the rehab center.
Stephanie and Ben

Before the salvation Bible story was presented by Hannah, we did a skit showing how sin makes us look black and dirty.
Elya, Hannah, Cherrie

Prayer time.

Elya, Amanda, and Ben

Crossing the Jordan River with Joshua
Hannah

Craft time at the Soltsi church
Montine, Cherrie, and Hannah

Singing praises to God

Old friends from last year  :)  Nadia and Christina during recreation time.





Can't wait to begin!
Meredith and Olga, one of our translators

God is our Almighty King!
Elya, Ben, Amanda, Olga



Now I am a real cowboy - this is Masha!



Friday update

Well Mom and Dad I’m alive so you can reassure Mery and Yeya. So far we’ve done 3 days of VBS and it’s been a lot of fun. Every day I get to play a goofy cowboy (not far from my character), and today I was trampled by an ox, well, hypothetically at least. The kids as always are fun to be with, so it will be sad once we have to leave. Though two things I’m really excited for is showing the Jesus film to the rehab guys, the plan is to cook hamburgers (an American Classic, Of course) for the guys… and us J Yum. The other thing is we are planning to go on a picnic with the church members right next to the Kaloshka River and we get to beat the heat by going swimming (trust me that is definitely needed) The coolest things I’ve seen is how God is really working in the hearts of these kids both in Sol’tsi and Vibiti. They come back more excited each day giving us the energy we need when we are tired. Thank you for all the prayers so far and I hope you continue to pray for us, cause that is always needed.

P.S. I’m really enjoying all the Russia food.                                                               -Ben R.

Cherrie – Hello family and friends! Russia and its people are A M A Z I N G. It has been so busy since our arrival; VBS is going really well and we are serving 40+ kids a day! They are loving the music, drama, crafts and fellowship. Tomorrow is the Salvation lesson so we’ll do the bracelet and other fun stuff! We’re going to visit a museum in Sol’tsy tomorrow and go to the river Shelon’ for a swim.  Our final day here at Vibity where the rehab is and our “hotel” is on Saturday.  We will be in St. Petersburg on Sunday evening after a final “dinner” with Pastor Anatoli in Novgorod. Get this…we have breakfast at 8:00 a.m. oatmeal, bread, fruit, tea, meat and cheese – then at 2:00ish we have “lunch”…meat, cheese, bread and soup & fruit; dinner is around 9 p.m. and all is repeated on a smaller scale leaving out oatmeal for breakfast. Believe it or not we have all L O S T weight.  We’ve been working so hard doing VBS in 2 cities. It has also been very hot in the high 80’s everyday. God is so amazing - our interpreters have taught us so much of Russki language! Everyone here has been so hospitable and constantly want to feed us! Thank you all so much for the love, prayers and support! Abundant blessings, we’ll see you next Wednesday afternoon at some point. Xoxoxoxo!!

Montine -  We are enjoying getting to know our Russian brothers and sisters in Christ.  They have such a wonderful heart for the LORD and have been great partners in our mission.   Richard and I traveled last night with Pastor Anatoly (from the Novgorod church) to Staray Russa, a small town about 75 miles from Soltsy.  Richard spoke to the church there about missions.   His talk was well-received.   I was in charge of story-time today during VBS and told the Russian children about my grandchildren at home.  Our story was about Joshua and the children of Israel and how the Lord told them to march around the city of Jericho and then shout and he would deliver Jericho into their hands.   Our story was complete with a Jericho wall that tumbled down when we all shouted.  We bought Russian bibles today (both children’s and adults) to give out to our young (and older) VBS friends.  We are looking forward to surprising them with the Bibles at the end of VBS.   Hugs to you all!

Stephanie –  Ma…(hahah) I got my sour cream and onion chips!! =) But I have lost my voice, and it has been very entertaining. Some of the children even take joy in pretending they have lost their voices too. The games have been a big hit, and the only damage done was Mike’s shoulder that was dislocated while in competition ( that is why you do not try to steal the bacon from your wife ;) )  Lol.  I think the favorite game was the water balloon toss/ dump water on Ben and Stephanie. The kids are participating in the songs and getting really into it which is awesome and so much fun! We are doing two VBS and I am absolutely loving it. One little girl came up to me grabbed my hand and said you are the sweet one.  (I am not sure what it meant exactly, but it made my day) and she would not let me go for the rest of VBS. I felt special. All the children here are so excited and seem to have a yearning to learn it’s just so wonderful to see, and a blessing to be a part of it. To hear the laughter, see the smiles, and join in with them is something there are not words to easily be found to describe it. You just have to experience it, I think the best way to describe being here is a joy that wells up deep inside, and just bursts out from head to toe.

 We are going to the museum today, and tonight will have a picnic on the river. Maybe swim, but sing songs, and have fellowship with the people of the Sol’tsy church. The people here are so sweet and very giving. Even if they have nothing to give they still give it anyway. The people have been a wonderful blessing to the team, and we are most grateful for them.   I am just feeling very blessed and happy. Oh and Ma, I want to thank you for all you have done for me, and the way you raised me. For it has made me the person I am today. For that I am thankful to God for making me your daughter. I love you and I will see you in a few days.

Meredith - Coming back to Russia is like coming back home.  It is such a joy to fellowship with all of the friends that we made last year and to make new friends.  It has been such a busy time, but I love the fact that we are able to cement the relationships that we began last year for some of us.  I have also enjoyed such awesome fellowship with members of the team I can't even begin to describe it.  Matt, Erica, and Olivia I love you and miss you and I will see you soon.

Amanda - Hi Mom and Dad- sorry didnt tell you when I got here...my cellphone isn't working at all this year.  Please pray for me..I'm feeling very tired all the time..like 1% energy...and YES MOM I am taking my vitamins AND drinking water.  The other night was really awesome...remember how I was making copies of the music from the song book Elya gave me? Me and Elya sang some of them with the rehab guys, and I played guitar....I also sang to them the Russian song I made up, the prayer song... I was just so happy to share with them.  So many things have happened and the days are flying by...soon we'll be finished and able to come home..I want to stay here longer.  The first night we were here a bunch of us went to Borisov's house for tea..it was so WONDERFUL to see them again..Viktor and Tatiana are some of the kindest people I have ever met.  Please pray for us..we have a tough lesson today in vbs to teach and I am giving the devotional today at lunch...please pray.

Greetings from Russia!!!

Well, we finally were able to get an Internet connection!  We are in Soltsi right now and we just finished our second day of VBS!  Of course, on the mission field we learn to be flexible, adaptable, and trainable and that has been the theme of this trip so far!  Once we arrived (thank God with all of our luggage!), Pastor Anatoli mentioned that they want to try to start a church at the rehab center in October.  As a result, we are actually conducting two VBS sessions, the first one in the morning at the church in Soltsi, and the second VBS at the rehab center in Vibity in the evening.  The days have been long (it doesn't get dark outside until about 11 PM), but we are already seeing God working here.  We had one girl (other than the two teens who already attend the church) attend the Soltsi VBS on Tuesday, but today we had 6 girls and one boy.  We were so excited to see the number of children grow so much. 

Yesterday while we were playing games outside of the Soltsi church, Mike dislocated his shoulder.  We thank God that his injury was not as serious as it could have been.  Mike is currently in a cast and we have lost one of our musicians, but we have one of the teens from the Soltsi church who is going to play with us.  Mike is having fun dancing around with one arm!!  :)

It was so wonderful to see the kids from last year's VBS at the rehab center show up on Monday to see us even though VBS did not start until Tuesday!!  God sent 36 kids the first night at the rehab center which is more than we had last!  God is working in this place and we are so thankful to be a part of this mission! 

We don't have the entire team here right now, but I know everyone wants to tell their family and friends that they love them and to continue to keep us in your prayers as we are praying for everyone back home. 

It is taking a long time to upload pictures, but we will try to update as much as possible.  Please continue to keep us in your prayers, especially Mike.

This is Masha.  She was our only child on the first day of VBS in Soltsi.  Needless to say, she got a lot of attention  :)

This was the first night for VBS at the rehab center.  We were so thrilled at the number of kids who came!



Tatyana is cooking for us again.  She is such a wonderful cook and we can't get enough of her oatmeal!



It is so wonderful to see friends we made from last year's trip.  Nadia is playing with Daniel.

 



   

Bible story

Ready to GO!!!

Thank you so much to everyone who contributed to our team with prayer support and through our fundraisers.  We rely greatly on so many people to help us in this mission endeavor.  It is hard to believe, but we will be leaving one week from Friday on July 22nd!!  It seems like the time has flown by, but God is so great and I believe He has great things planned for this mission.  Please continue to pray for our team as well as for the churches in Novgorod and Soltsi, and especially for VBS.  We are praying that we have a good turnout of children so we can present the gospel and share God's wonderful plan for us.  Please pray for safe travels and on-time arrival of our luggage!! 

Here are a few pictures from our fundraisers and team building activities which God has used to pull us together as a team. 



Carwash



Even our youngest team member helped!




Cherrie sold donuts, coffee, and water.





VBS practice





Preparing for the Russian dinner.









We had such a great turnout!  Thank you to everyone who attended.





Cleaning up!




Our version of Russian tea.  It is a joy to fellowship with each other!



Soltsi Russia fundraisers

We have several opportunites for you to partner with us in sharing God's Word to the people of Soltsi Russia! 

Saturday, May 21, 2011
- Carwash at FBCW from 8 AM-12 PM.  Donations welcomed!

Tuesday evening, May 24th and June 21st
- CiCi's pizza.  Drop your receipt in the container near the cash register and our team will receive a portion of the proceeds.

Saturday, June 18, 2011
- Russian dinner at FBCW at 6:30 PM.  Come enjoy some traditional Russian dishes and learn more about our mission.  Tickets are $15 each and are on sale now in the church lobby. 

If you are unable to attend any of the events listed above, please prayerfully consider donating to our team.  We need both your financial and prayer support.  We invite you to partner with us as we seek to fulfill the Great Commission!  Thank you in advance for your generous support!

CiCi's Pizza Nights

Please come support the Russia team at CiCi's Pizza!!!  Drop your receipt in the box located near the register and our team will receive 15% of the receipt totals. 

Join us 5/24/11 and 6/21/11 anytime between 4 PM and 8 PM to help us raise the money we need to partner with the church in Soltsi, Russia.  Thank you for your continued prayers and financial support!

CiCi's Pizza

13600 Foulger Sq # F

Woodbridge, VA 22192

You’re invited to a lia sophia party!!

When:              April 9, 2011

Time:               7:00 PM

Where:            home of Meredith Tiffany

 13201 Otto Road

 Woodbridge, VA 22193

RSVP:              meredith_tiffany@earthlink.net or 703-878-9291

Cory Wise has graciously offered to donate all of the proceeds from this party to the FBCW Soltsi, Russia missions team. 

SPECIAL RAFFLE!!!

The Operetta necklace will be raffled off and given away for free!!!  Check it out at   http://www.liasophia.com/sites/corywise/productcatalog?page=productdetail&sku=103347201.  Come and join us for food, fellowship, and fun!

If you cannot attend the party but would like to place an order, online ordering will be available April 1 – 17 by visiting www.liasophia.com/corywise and entering Russia Missions for the Hostess Name. Thank you in advance for your generous support!

Russia Mission 2011

We are very excited to return to Soltsi for our second year to see what God has planned for us all!  We will be hosting a VBS again this year for the children of the village.  We also hope to perform some work projects in partnership with the Drug and Alcohol Rehab Center and partner with the Soltsi Baptist Church to visit and encourage seniors in the nursing home as well as in the hospital.  Philippians 4:14 says, "Yet it was good of you to share in my troubles," and that is what we believe God wants us to do, to join with the Soltsi Baptist Church and encourage and fellowship with one another.  We all face problems and God wants us to minister and be an encouragement to each other.  Please pray for our team as we begin to work together and prepare for VBS and raise financial support.

Mission date: July 22 - August 3, 2011   

Team members
Richard Wewerka   co-leader
Montine Wewerka
Mike Miller   co-leader
Elya Miller
Daniel Miller
Hannah Wetzel
Stephanie Hill
Amanda Root
Cherrie Lindsey
Amber Baderman
Ben Richards
Meredith Tiffany

Russia Mission 2010

This is a picture of last year's team with some of the children from the orphanage who attended VBS.  God was so good and we were able to share His word with these precious children.