New Plans.

So, there have been some major changes in my itinerary. I bought plane tickets to St. Petersburg to attend their Annual Conference, but a new door has opened here and I will stay here.

For the next few days I will be working and living at a drug and alcohol rehabilitation center. Many of the people living there have HIV/AIDS. I've been told that we wake at 5AM to pray and then we begin work. I will have very limited computer access for a while, but will post any chance I get. I will also have very limited access to indoor plumbing, and will use that every chance I get.

I'm very excited about this oppertunity. Sometimes God throws you into the place where your heart desires. This is one of those times. Please pray that I may be effective. I have been working on my Russian every day, but I will have no one to translate for me and will need to totally depend on God to give me understanding.

Sometimes the Russian United Methodist Church is viewed as a cult by the Russian people. Today I have a better understanding of "why." The UMC in Russia believes in a God who transforms lives. The UMC in Russia believes in a God who sometimes asks us to sell everything and give it to the poor. The UMC in Russia believes in a God who sometimes asks us to open our home to the poorest of the poor, the weakest of the weak, and the sickest of the sick. The UMC in Russia believes in people who do this everyday. слава Бог!