M.B. Airgood

pothole.

2012-01-17T03:53:00.000-08:00

As we read through the communion liturgy, the sound of children enjoying Sunday school in the next room begins to grow. It always seems as though the children store up all of their energy during the noisier parts of the service and hold on to it until it comes time for the silent prayers of confession. As we bow our heads the dam breaks and mighty roars of laughter flood our worship space.

It's one of the charms of worshiping in a minuscule space. It's one of the joys of having a full children's Sunday School. It's one of the challenges of making do and making things work.

The other day I mentioned the large out-door staircase that leads to my house. The day after I posted about it, I fell into one of the potholes while going down the stairs.

It was dark and I should have been going slower; being more deliberate with each step. But, I was in a hurry and I rushed down the stairs. A grandmother with her small grandchild was occupying the safe section of the steps and I moved to a different section to get around them. I felt my ankle twist under my leg as my foot found its groove in the missing section of step. I caught myself and managed to gain some traction before any further damage was done. I hobbled forward and didn't feel anything. I regained feeling at the bottom of the stairs and realized that there was no way I was walking back up the stairs - so I went on my way.

My ankle is feeling better now. It's still sore some times; but thankfully I didn't have to go to the hospital and I only had to stay off it for a few days.

I'm spending the month of January focusing on reconnecting with Ukrainian culture and improving my ability to communicate in Ukrainian.

I'm the kind of person who enjoys getting things done. I accomplish things. This is my personality. For me it has been very frustrating to not get wrist-deep in the day to day life and ministry of the student center.

But I have to realize that there are many pits and potholes along the stairs in Ukraine. If I don't slow down and take each step deliberately I will certainly fall and this time I might do some serious damage.

These first few steps [learning more grammar, improving my vocabulary, working to pronounce sounds more distinctly, and making statements with the proper (read: non-American) intonation] are boring and difficult. It's easy to fall into a full-force run and to assume that everything will be fine in the long run.

This is the joy of making do and making things work. It applies to small worship spaces just as much as it applies to getting more disciplined about language lessons.

As my mother always pointed out, "A stitch in time saves nine."

Returning

2012-01-10T06:44:00.000-08:00

It is always good to return somewhere you love. Lviv is treating me well. It has been nice to slowly return to the customs and culture of Ukraine.

My new apartment is very nice. It is a small two-bedroom apartment in an old Soviet-block building in city center. The kitchen has been recently remodeled and is very nice. It has a very efficient stove and oven, plenty of cabinet and counter top space, and a dishwasher. Sadly, we don't have enough dishes to ever need the dishwasher - but eventually my boxes will arrive and we will! The bathroom is split into two rooms, which is a nice feature when guests are over.

The neighborhood is quiet and safe. The building is very secure. Each apartment has its own door code for the front door, and the apartment itself has a sturdy wood door. I feel very safe in the apartment, and the hallway is always well lit and I never feel unsafe. The building also has a (somewhat rickety) elevator - which is an oddity for city center.

I live with a good Ukrainian friend who helps me understand Ukrainian culture and language better every single day. It's good to have someone to talk to and to help me process through things - it was very frustrating before (when I lived alone and then lived with non-Christians) to not have anyone to help me process through things. We found a cat already. His name is Mefodyi (Мефодій) named after one of the first missionaries to the Slavic world - Methodius.

Each room in the apartment has a giant window and a spacious balcony. The view isn't tremendous (the view from the stairwell side of the building is breathtaking!) but at least we don't have neighbors five feet across from us looking in our windows. There is an old building with a few offices, but at night there is no one behind out building.

The biggest drawback is the tremendous hill and the long hike to get to the apartment. One road is a little less steep, but it's further from the center. Behind our building is a large staircase to traverse the hillside. The stairs are in really bad shape and poorly lit at night. There is also a trail through a wooded area that is steeper, but a little prettier. I keep hoping to find some shortcut on level ground ... but so far I have been forced to put up with the slopes! This is also nice in some ways, though, because it makes the neighborhood more secluded and keeps the monthly rent low for an apartment so close to city center. It's only 5 blocks from the main square - but two of those blocks happen to be very steep!

Every day is an exercise class, and I feel healthier already. I'll try and post some pictures of the apartment as we get each room settled.

Christmas in the village

2012-01-09T03:35:00.001-08:00

I had the great joy of visiting the small town of Xodoriv for Ukrainian Christmas. I interviewed my friend's grandmother a while back so that I could better understand the history of Ukraine. She invited me to enjoy the Christmas feast with their family.

Nazar's grandmother grating eggs for one of the many dishes we would eat for Christmas. The Christmas meal consists of at least 12 dishes!

Jessica cat eyeing up the fish covered in onions. Luckily, she sat at my feet and ate plenty of fish during the meal!

Nazar's grandmother cutting the Christmas bread - it literally covered half of the table.

Nazar and his mother overshadowed by the giant Christmas bread!

Nazar's other set of grandparents. His grandfather is a wickedly funny old man, but at the same time his prayers were wonderfully deep and heartfelt. I really loved being around him.

Some of the many dishes. On the right you can see the traditional Christmas doughnuts.

The new Greek Catholic church being built in Xodoriv, as seen through the eyes of a young boy.

2011-12-30T10:44:00.000-08:00

Safely in Ukraine ... Enjoying being at my new apartment.

I went to a large outdoor market, and the crowds that were there the day before New Year's eve we really overwhelming.

But, my Christmas tree is up and I am excited to be hosting a large New Year's eve party tomorrow.

24 hours

2011-12-28T06:51:00.000-08:00

I'm at the Pittsburgh airport waiting for the first leg of my flight. In a mere 24 hours I will be resting in my apartment in L'viv. This I my first trip from the US to L'viv, and it is a long one (I flew directly from Mongolia the last time I was there). These long transcontinental flights will be a regular part of my life from here on out.

It amazes me that a generation ago when my professor Dr. Smith flew to Latin America, he sent a telegram announcing his arrival and then went without contacting home for months at a time. When his mother and father-in-law traveled to East Asia they packed their belongings in a trunk large enough to use as a coffin to be buried in after a lifetime of service never to return home.

It is a quick flight filled with near constant updates thanks to the Internet, today! Just amazed at how lucky I am to serve in a time and place where life is easy and easily connected back home.

1week

2011-12-22T14:03:00.000-08:00

I can't believe that there is only one week separating me from Ukraine! And what a full week it will be!

Christmas is somewhere in there, as well as a Sunday night service I'll be preaching for at Warren First UMC. There are people to see, goodbyes to be said, gifts to wrap and unwrap and then pack away, more last minute items than could possibly fill two small suitcases, and packing up my sister and brother-in-law's house before they move (the same day I move!), and a thousand other details to focus on before I fly out.

And yet I'm oddly calm. My sister, a Physician Assistant, keeps checking my pulse to make sure I'm still here.

This Christmas season is an odd holiday time. I'm receiving the best gift ever - getting to go and fulfill my dreams with the support of my family, congregation, and denomination. My brother-in-law will take his dream job out in Illinios and my sister will happily find a new job in her field. We don't have a tree up, or really too many gifts stashed away - but this season we will celebrate well. We will follow that star wherever it takes us and find great joy in whatever lies ahead. Although we lack all the external, visible accoutrements of Christmas; I think we have found the real meaning. What a blessing that is.

Joy and Peace to you all as you find the meaning of this season.

apartment therapy

2011-12-02T07:18:00.000-08:00

My friends in Ukraine are currently apartment hunting for the place where I'll live. We plan on signing for an apartment some time next week.

It's an odd adventure to apartment hunt by proxy. After my friends go to visit an apartment they will send me pictures and I find the address on a map to see if the location is good. There's a whole process that happens for each apartment, and its very time consuming. My friends are wonderfully patient and extravagantly generous with their time.

I've been a transient person for the last three years. I haven't lived in the same apartment for more than three consecutive months since January of 2009. I have lived with family, friends, and strangers; in rented rooms, luxurious apartments, and spare basements. It has been a wonderful journey. You don't know how much the kindness of others means until its all you have.

It will be good to have a (semi)permanent space. A place to make my own, to live in and love. A bedroom and bathroom where everything is just where I want it to be - it's odd how important these things become after a long time of not having them. I fully plan on throwing my suitcases over the balcony after I'm unpacked - I don't want to have to live out of a suitcase for years and years to come!

Hopefully in the next few days something great will work out. I'm certain that just the perfect place will appear.

2011-11-09T12:59:00.000-08:00

Perhaps it was an off hand comment. But it's a comment I have been fixating on for more than a month now. Thomas Kemper shared a vision of finding a place for 500 young adults to serve in mission. The idea of 500 people my age engaged in mission within the United Methodist Church sets my heart on fire.

I just finished reading a few blogs written by friends. They have returned from living overseas, and it is profound to hear how much their lives have been changed by the experience. You can't turn your back on the reality of having lived out your faith in a different context. It's easy to waiver away from a faith formed entirely within your own context.

I will continue to nurture the fixation on a massive swelling of young adults in mission - a new movement in our missionary community. I will continue to dream and to pray.

Rest

2011-11-08T08:46:00.000-08:00

I have had such an enjoyable time resting a bit. Churches tend to run on a fairly fixed schedule - and beyond Sundays and Wednesdays the pickings are a little slim. Now, when I'm back in my home conference I will be driving from church to church and visiting pastors during the week; but here in GA, most of my connections are laity.

I've had a wonderful time resting, reading, visiting familiar places and seeing familiar faces. This time of rest makes me feel that I am ready for the whirlwind of activity waiting for me in Ukraine. It's also really exciting to see all the ministry that I get to be part of here in the states. It's rare that I get to just sit and listen to people share the stories of their church and their faith journey. It's exciting to dream about the future and all of the faith stories that will be enriched through the ministry we are about to expand.

It is good to reconnect. To reconnect with family and friends, but also to the needs and passion of the churches that support us.

2011-10-21T07:44:00.000-07:00

I wish that everyone had the experience of itinerating.

Itineration. I think that perhaps it is one of our United Methodist words - like connectionalism - a word not understood by spell check or most of the United Methodist church.

Itineration used to be known as "home assignment." Many denominations refer to it as "furlough." It's an intentional period where missionaries go and visit churches. It's an opportunity to build relationships with local congregations. The goal is to raise financial support for the entire missionary community.

This is also an excellent chance to raise awareness for mission at the local church level. Did you know the United Methodist church has over 300 missionaries? Did you know that we still require NO pre-departure itineration? With most mission organizations each missionary needs to raise the full amount of support for their ministry before they leave for the field. Some missionaries spend years trying to raise the financial resources needed; but not with GBGM. We raise money for the entire missionary community. My way was payed by a missionary raising financial support a decade ago - and I'm raising money for the next generation of missionaries.

I wish that everyone could see the way that teenagers lean forward while we speak about missions. The way that young people are completely engaged and awestruck. The look in their eyes that seems to say, "Is this really a career choice?" or "Could I do this?" This is an exciting time to be a United Methodist missionary. The global United Methodist church has grown by 4 million+ members outside of the US in the last few years.

We are beginning a new age of young adults in mission. This could end up becoming a whole new mission movement. Thomas Kemper shared a vision for GBGM that included sending 500 young adults into missionary service. In every church I visit I can't help but be moved by the idea that God is calling 500 people my age or younger to follow the call of the cross to the ends of the world. It's an unbelievably powerful idea.

So, I'm itinerating now. I'm raising financial support, sharing the good news of how the Gospel is being spread around the world, and inviting others to join in the adventure.

The Journey Begins

2011-10-14T09:19:00.001-07:00

The commissioning service was beautiful. Jorge Lockwood planned a really engaging and multi-cultural worship service for all those present in person and over the web.

My boss, Hans Vaxby - the Bishop of Eurasia, preached a challenging sermon - commissioning us to "do whatever it takes." He quoted a Swedish rock star throughout the sermon ... such a fun man. I wish he could be my boss forever.

This weekend I begin itinerating. I will travel around the country drumming up support for the United Methodist missionary movement. Thomas Kemper laid out a vision of sending 500 young adults onto the mission field. This will obviously be a tremendous undertaking - and can only be accomplished if the standard support missionaries are able to fundraise well. More than financial support, it is imperative that our local churches reconnect with the idea and theology of mission.

We can be nothing more than a dying institution without a connection to mission. If we can embrace the mission of God we can return to being a missionary movement again.

Exciting stuff.

WPA Annual Conference 2011

2011-06-15T14:39:00.000-07:00

I can't quite remember how many times I've attended annual conference. I've gone enough to know how the game is played, but not enough to be a fixture. It appears that I've also voted enough times to speak Robert's Rule of Procedure almost fluently - and like most of the languages I study, I don't much care for it.

I'm anti-meeting. I'm anti-committee. My mom wrote to me once, "A camel is a horse designed by a committee." John Wesley's movement incurred the mocking name "Methodist" because it appeared that they held their organizational beliefs just as strongly as their theological beliefs. We have lost that love for efficient and effective organization.

This is what is wrong with United Methodism. Our theology is still sound. While it would be nice if we could stop debating the divisive issues, and honestly I would love to see us reclaim our Wesleyan heritage (we are not strictly Evangelicals, nor are we mainline protestants!), and I would be forever grateful if United Methodists would stop getting their theology from the lady with big hair on the Holy Roller channel; our theology is not the problem.

Our organization is the problem. Our structures and method are from a different century. My home conference put up a plea for people to "like" them on Facebook in the same month that 6 million Americans deleted their Facebook account. At conference I was asked to sign up for six e-mail mailing lists. I kept wondering, "Do people still use e-mail?"

I'm a dinosaur of sorts: I love Sunday School, I would rather not own a TV, I can't text and drive like the rest of my generation, I've gladly served on almost every committee at the local church level. I still fit quite well into antiquated structures and methods.

But my friends don't. My pre-churched, un-churched, and post-churched friends don't fit into the organizational system. The United Methodist church needs to undergo radical change. The change will be invisible to those outside our system, but if we could reform our ways - the whole world would soon feel the full force of the United Methodist church.

Going Home.

2011-03-31T02:53:00.000-07:00

After two long years overseas, I'm heading home in one week. One week!

I look forward to (in no particular order!):

1. Seeing my sister and brother-in-law for the first time in two years!
2. Not riding route-buses everywhere! Squeezing into packed transportation and fighting my way off 20 minutes later is something that I will certainly not miss!
3. Cooking without limits! I will no longer have to use a million substitutes in every recipe.
4. Seeing friends and family!
5. Driving! I haven't driven a car in two years - and I can't wait to get behind the steering wheel again.

I will miss:
5. Ukrainian food, which I love very much.
4. Especially the Lokal' restaurants - which are a dynasty (because "chain" makes them sound tacky) of restaurants owned by the same man which are themed around L'viv and its history.
3. Long walks through this beautiful, architectural city. It seems that I find something new to admire every day.
2. Thursday Night and Sunday morning worship here.
1.These people, these wonderful, beautiful people who mean so much to me.

I will be back. I promise that much.

Video

2011-03-26T03:39:00.000-07:00

I was asked to speak at an exploring ministry conference for the Holston Annual Conference. Since I will not be in the states for the Discovery event, I created this video for them to watch.

In it I share my story, my call to mission, and my current work in L'viv, Ukraine. It's directed at young people considering going into the ministry - but I hope that anyone could enjoy watching it.

Thursday.

2011-03-17T03:40:00.000-07:00

It's a little after noon on a typical Thursday afternoon, and yet; nothing is ever typical.

This evening I will co-preach at the student worship service with my friend Olia. She has never preached before, and as we live in a fairly conservative, predominately Catholic culture - women don't often preach. She is nervous, but I have full confidence in her ability, spiritual maturity, and calling. It will be great.

Also, the translator for my half of the sermon has never translated in front of a crowd before. I trust him completely. Also, we're going to incorporate the arts into the service by painting part of a picture each week. That should be fun.

Our sermon tonight is "Angry Jesus." We'll highlight the fact that for many people our age, God is seen as angry and wrathful ... and they have a point. In the Old Testament God is often full or wrath, and in the New Testament Jesus carries on the tradition. But we will also highlight the fact that the Triune God is angry for very specific reasons ... and they might not be what we have come to believe. Anger is a healthy emotion, especially when it coincides with demanding justice.

I usually include a write up of my sermon - but, I don't have anything written up this week. We have an outline, but my sermon will not be a manuscript sermon this week. There will be a lot of discussion, exchange, and (angry) argument between the two preachers - and some of it will be in Ukrainian.

This should be an interesting Thursday!

The interview.

2011-03-15T14:29:00.000-07:00

I began with some softball questions: name, year born, the usual introductions. I had hoped that the interview would be slightly more casual - but she was a little embarrassed perhaps, or at least a little thrown by the idea of being interviewed by a young American.

Hanna Mixhailivna was born on the 2nd of March 1935. She looks older than my own grandparents even though they have quite a few years on her. Proud of her appearance, she has clearly re-done her hair after coming in from the wind and picked out a nice sweater for the occasion.

I explained why I had wanted to interview her and lead off with a fun ice-breaking question.

On the bus ride over I had imagined how, if asked, I would respond to the question: What is your happiest childhood memory?

Maybe it was the summer that all the neighborhood kids took on two-part alliterated animal names and Rebecca was Paula the Porcupine and I was Aurthur the Alligator. We pretended our dirt lot a small town and because I couldn't ride a bike like the rest of the kids I owned and operated the gas station. Or maybe I would be a little more generic to avoid being so honest and make vague statements about learning to ride a bike, or playing pool with Robbie and Rebecca.

She paused after the question left my mouth. More than a stop-gap it was an awkward pause. I thought about adjusting the question - maybe I could remove the word "favorite" which tends to trick people up - but I could see that she wasn't searching for a memory, she was looking for the right words. After a lengthy pause she began:

"My childhood wasn't very happy, what I remember of it wasn't very happy. The war came soon. My family was persecuted by the Soviet Union. My father was imprisoned for 11 years for taking part in the rebellion. My family was dispersed. My brother, he was taken to Siberia for 20 years. My mother and I were hiding anywhere we could just to survive. So, I cannot remember any happy moments from my childhood."

I shared my own awkward pause.

While I had known most of these facts before the interview began, hearing them all together was rather sobering. I really didn't know how to continue the interview. I was suddenly embarrassed by my care-free childhood and relative lack of struggle.

Grandma Hanna's father had gathered supplies for the UPA (Ukrainian Insurgents Army), a pro-Ukrainian guerrilla-style combat unit that fought against the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany during WWII. Growing up, her family had always respected the names Bandera and Shevchenko and all the others who had believed in an independent Ukraine.

Hanna was only 8 when her father was arrested for his involvement in the conflict. Along with her brother, he was sent to a prison in Siberia. It would be decades before they would be reunited. Hanna and her mother shared the politically dangerous last name, and were forced into hiding. Sometimes there would be long stretches when she wouldn't know where her mother was. She remembered the great strength and determination her mother showed. She would work so hard in the collectivized fields that her hands would bleed. Hanna remembered watching her mother grate beetroot; she couldn't tell where the red dye of of the vegetable ended and the red blood from her mother's hands began.

Did you think about love when you were a teenager? :: "Yes. Of course. We all did. I married when I was 25, which is the perfect age to get married. Not too young, not too old. I was persecuted by the Soviet government until my last name changed when I was married."

When the soviets removed her right to worship in the traditional Ukrainian faith of the Greek Catholic church, she continued worshiping in a Soviet sanctioned Orthodox church. "We believe God is one. God heard our prayers. Greek Catholic ... Orthodox ... it didn't matter so much. We worshiped in the same church we always had - and today that church has become a Greek Catholic church again." When her children and grandchildren were born she had them illegally baptized into the Greek Catholic church. Faith was an integral part of survival for many Ukrainians during these difficult years. Hanna is glad to see so many young people actively living out their faith, but feels quite strongly that more young people need to connect with God for the good of the country.

This was particularly poignant for me. In my work as a missionary in Ukraine, I work for a student-run inter-confessional student ministry. The student-leader of language outreach ministries is a passionately Greek Catholic Christian. I am continually impressed by the faithfulness of our students and their strong desire to serve God.

Grandma Hanna beams with pride as she talks about her grandchildren. "Nazar finished music school with a red diploma - a perfect record." Although several of her family members are part of the diaspora in America, Canada, the Czech Republic and Argentina; she is proud to finally be part of an independent Ukraine. "The years of persecution were worth it. Things are improving, and they must improve ... We did what we had to do for our future."

Hanna felt it was important to tell me that during the Soviet imposed forced-famine in Eastern Ukraine her family had sent food. They, along with the food which would have saved lives, were turned away by the Soviet guards at the border. The guards lied and said that there was no famine.

I thanked Hanna for the interview and she invited me to celebrate the Holy Feast with her family. Like all good Ukrainian grandmothers, she then offered up food that she had spent all day preparing. She fed her grandson and me until we were full - and then insisted that we eat a little more. We chatted a bit in my broken Ukrainian, and she expressed real joy that I was at least trying to learn Ukrainian. She gave an interview of her own and asked me all about my family. Cultures and situations are always different, but people are always the same. I answered with the same beaming pride as I described my family.

I had read about the UPA and heard stories from my students about the difficulties their grandparents had suffered - but this was the first time that I had had the opportunity to sit down one on one with a survivor and hear a first person account of the persecution. I am thankful for the chance to learn more about this difficult time in the history of Ukraine.

[Special thanks to Grandma Hanna for graciously allowing me to interview her. Also, special thanks to my friend and teacher Nazar Yatsyshyn for arranging and interpreting the interview.]

2011-03-08T08:21:00.000-08:00

Dear Friends,

It breaks my heart to leave this place.

There - I've said it. In one month, I'll be on a plane back to the states. I left in May of 2009 - last decade! - with the idea that I would be gone for a year. Eventually I settled on the idea of visiting a few UM missionaries before my return to the states. I decided to spend a month or two with Helen Shepherd in Mongolia and a month or two in Ukraine with David and Shannon Goran.

Today marks one year since I arrived in Ukraine. In the way things tend to work out, two months, stretched to 3, then to 7, then to 13. In my heart, I'm hoping and praying that 13 months will stretch into 13 years ...

Transition is difficult for everyone. Two years ago I sold everything that wouldn't fit into a single trunk. I have a bed, two boxes of dishes, and a hope-chest filled with important things. I wrote up a last will and testament (just in case) and closed out most of my bank accounts. I found a good home for my cat and my car, I said final goodbyes to my grandparents (just in case), and I left the country with two bags.

I'm down to one bag.

I'm ready to go home for a visit. I'm excited to see people, and to spend time with my family and friends. I long for the opportunity to share my experience with others - to energize people and rally them around the concept of mission.

Specifically - I want to come and visit you and your church. I would like to have a chance to speak to youth, young adults, UMW groups, UMM groups, or the whole congregation on a Sunday morning.

If you would be interested in hosting me and having me speak at your church, please e-mail me at mairgood@tfc.edu

2011-02-11T04:14:00.000-08:00

A children's sermon at L'viv UMC.

2011-01-27T00:54:00.000-08:00

The wind rushes through the holes in my jeans and my too-thin shoes. The cemetery is on the crest of a hill, and our only protection from the elements is each other. The nine of us gather around the grave of our sister, daughter, and friend.

[[On a normal day, in its normal ways I had heard my name being called. I looked all around the street and didn't see anyone I knew. Then I noticed a tall girl with black hair who looked vaguely familiar. As I approached I recognized her as Mariya. She was the first person I had recognized as a visitor at Pilgrims. After almost 3 months I could recognize when someone was new. She had been a semi-regular at Pilgrims years ago, and came back to try it out again. She stuck for a week or two, but felt out of place because she wasn't a student anymore. On the street that day I invited her to try our Sunday morning worship service.]]

As we approached the grave, her mother shook all the flowers to remove the snow. It was almost as if the snow was personally trying to offend her and the memory of her daughter. In less than 30 seconds of being present we watched as her mother crumpled into a sobbing mess. The evening before, I had taught a Bible study on the beatitude, "Blessed are those who mourn for they will be comforted." I cursed my laziness and the few extra words I would need to know to express this simple thought.

[[Mariya came week after week to the Sunday service. She and another young person took over my responsibilities of setting up the altar and the communion elements. Some Sundays we only had 9 or 10 people, but Mariya was always present. When she finally found a job, she tried her best to get Sundays off so that she wouldn't miss church. In the summer she helped translate for one of the camps. I introduced her to David and Shannon and then I got on a plane to go to Germany for the week and Kyiv for some time after that.]]

After we held our service, we tried to catch a bus. The bus we had anticipated was cancelled and we had to walk to the next village over to find a way home. Mariya's mother tells me that it's only one more mountain and that we'll make it in time if we run. Like all Ukrainian women I can't quite place her age. Somewhere between 40 and 70 seems a little imprecise. She holds my arm and tells me stories of life in the village that I can't fully understand.

[[David shares the bad news that while I was away Mariya's mental condition had deteriorated. They were trying to find a place at a clinic for her. The members of our church had her on 24 hour supervision. They took turns in groups of 2 or 3 to stay with her overnight. For several days our congregation gave up their own lives and free time to protect her from herself. After she was admitted, they made routine trips to visit her in the hospital.]]

Mariya's mother invites us to her apartment in L'viv for some dinner. We ate in the living room, which had also been Mariya's bedroom. Gifts from friends at church lined her shelves, and our photos filled the final pages of her photo albums. The pictures from the all church picnic where Mariya looks so happy.

She found a job she loved and she worked hard. And we were all just in shock when we heard the news that she had been hit by a car on her way to work. It was so hard to have lost a friend and a part of our community.

She brought our community together. Before her illness we were a loose group. We went to church together, but there was no real community. We became a community through service to Mariya. We became a church through being the hands and feet of Jesus to one of our own.

Christmas Service

2011-01-09T12:36:00.001-08:00

We just finished celebrating Christmas recently, and I just wanted to share a few seconds of the carols being sung by candlelight.

Together

2011-01-03T01:48:00.000-08:00

On Sunday I preached at L'viv UMC. I preached on the stories of the wise men and the shepherds and on the theme that Jesus brings us all together. We had a record number of people show up, we accepted 3 new members, and we dedicated a child. It was a beautiful service.

Our pastor, Lyubomir Rudko, blesses the communion elements. In the foreground is our advent wreath with 7 advent candles.

It was a rather cold and icy morning and many parents didn't allow their children to go out for Sunday School, but those who did show up were treated to an excellent Sunday School lesson prepared by (adults, left to right) Roman, Yulia, and Erika.

It's really beautiful to watch a church grow, especially in this context and under these circumstances.

I was a little sad that I couldn't get a great picture of just David, Shannon, and Jesse - but I love this picture a lot because it shows the tremendous amount of support they have from this church family.

2010-12-28T12:49:00.000-08:00

Baby Jesse Goran crawling in front of the Christmas tree at the Goran apartment.

Olya Savchinska, Laura Walden, and Ben Beasley browsing at the book market.

Just a statue and a pretty building. Don't you like my new camera.

Olya, Laura, and Ben enjoying the book market.

Church and Sunday School photos

2010-12-26T10:25:00.000-08:00

Church Christmas lunch.

Church Christmas lunch.

Nastiya, who was an exchange student in St. Mary's PA and Michael Airgood.

Michael Airgood reading the story during Sunday School.

On Globalization and Mission

2010-12-20T11:51:00.001-08:00

I'm increasingly interested in the idea of globalization - and while riding a bus today I realized that I am a part of it.

My socks are made in Norway and purchased while on vacation in Latvia. My jeans are G.A.P. They are made by an American company, in Mexico - but they were purchased while I lived in South Korea. My t-shirt was designed, made, and purchased in Germany. My sweater has no label, but I purchased it in Russia at a second hand store called "Euro-Second Hand" so I know it's been around a few countries and was probably produced in China or another Asian country. The bus I was on was purchased from a bus line in Poland.

I have visited over a dozen countries and had the opportunity to really experience daily life and culture of half of those. While I only speak English comfortably, I can have conversations and entertain guests in Russian and Ukrainian. Given a children's book with pictures I could read and understand a good bit if it was printed in Korean, Polish, German, French, or Mongolian.

I have only lived in one country without a McDonald's (Mongolia) and other than that I have failed to successfully live further from a McDonald's than I did as a child growing up in Kane, PA (It's still a forty minute drive to the closest McD's ...). I have never been more than a few miles from the closest bottle of Coca-Cola (I was in one convenience store high in the mountains of southern India when the urge for a coke hit and couldn't be satisfied, but the next stop offered three of my favorite colas.)

I am a child of this highly globalized generation. While it would have been bold and striking if my parents had back-packed through Europe - it's only striking that I have traveled on such a shoe-string budget and that I generally avoid the tourist traps. It's only bold that I come with a message.

It's important that we don't lump mission and globalization together. We aren't another McDonald's or Coca-Cola that needs to get our brand name goods into people's minds.

Mission is the activity of connecting God and people. Missionaries ideally listen as much as we talk. A wise older missionary told me once, "If you go to another country to bring God to them you'll always be a failure - because God is already there."

McDonald's goes to build something new in a new place - it goes to expand the size and revenue of something back home. The motivation is misplaced. Missionaries go to connect people with something old and ancient that exists inside of the people. Our motivation is love. Really, these two concepts couldn't be more opposite.

But sometimes they are closely linked. People want to know why we're bringing a "new religion" to people, or why we want to cause more wars in the world, or how we will justify the cost or the resources when our own country has so many problems.

The call to missionary life is the call to be God's littlest. We share and express our faith most sincerely when we find ourselves in a position of humility. Missionaries find new reasons every day to be humble. [[Crying in a corner store because I couldn't remember the word for orange and I had already stood in line for an hour and I really needed some Vitamin C to get over my cold was probably not the proudest moment of my life.]] In our brokenness God finds possibilities to share the good news of the Broken One.

While my outfit is a multi-national assortment that could make the U.N. proud - religion knows no country. A Mongolian could find faith in Jesus Christ (a Jew from Modern day Israel who lived in ancient Rome) thanks to the efforts of an American missionary with ancestral roots in Korea and Germany; but none of that matters. God has been present with that man and with his people for as long as they have been on the earth. Ultimately there is no country or flag, but only the heart and mind of the peasant Mongolian who has always wanted to know that someone loves him unconditionally.

God's littlest has the blessing of connecting God and people. There is no room for pre-tense or facades in a heart that is filled with God and people.

100 grieven challenge - Day #7 - wrap up

2010-12-18T13:30:00.000-08:00

Today was spent mostly at home. I had a friend over for tea and then went with him to the supermarket. I only needed one thing - oil. Most Ukrainian food is fried - and Ukrainians use massive amounts of oil when they fry. They always balk at how little oil I use - but they're always impressed by the fact that my food is tasty and not greasy. Sadly, my roommates use my oil copiously and I wanted some onion rings for dinner. (Oddly, if I eat onion rings it makes my body feel as though I have eaten steak and it makes my craving for meat go away ... for a little while.) 13.74 UAH

A good day off wouldn't be complete without a little entertainment. Sadly, my friends all have finals now, so it looked like I was going to watch a scary movie and "hold my own hand." But, luckily, my roommate Andriy called at the last minute and invited me to run to the local Orthodox church and come watch his sister in a play. The annual St. Nicholas play was excellent. Maybe 40 or 50 people gathered inside a freezing cold church to watch the children and youth beautifully perform a Christmas play. At the end we prayed the Lord's prayer and sang for St. Nicholas to come to us - and he came out and brought gifts for each of the children. It was the best entertainment I've seen in a long time! 0 UAH.

Afterwards I was invited to join Andriy's family for pizza night. After we arrived, Andriy explained that he had a date and had to leave - and he left me with his non-English speaking parents and his sister who speaks a little English. So, not only did I get a free meal - but I also had a high stakes Ukrainian lesson. 0 UAH.

Money Spent: 13.74 UAH
Money Remaining: 26.27 UAH
Steps Taken: 6,885

So ... in summation. I managed to live a whole week and only spend 73.73 UAH. That's less than $10. I think it was definitely worth it to walk to city center, but I plan to take the bus on early mornings from now on. While it's good exercise, it's getting bitterly cold here and I'm a little more tired than usual this weekend.

I managed to walk 68,471 steps. For me that equals about 34 and a quarter miles in one week! Just short of my five-mile-a-day goal.

I have enough to treat myself to some steak tomorrow (I'm babysitting baby Jesse and will use the Goran's oven to cook a nice, meaty piece of steak!).

I hope you all enjoyed seeing a little bit of my day-to-day life and the small pleasures of living in a country like Ukraine.

100 grieven challenge - Day #6

2010-12-18T12:24:00.000-08:00

I just can't live without milk. A morning without milk and cereal just feels wrong. I needed a bowl of cereal so badly this morning that I was willing to throw on my coat and run out to the store to buy some. 7.50 UAH.

Friday is usually a day of rest - but this particular Friday was a special party to celebrate St. Nikolaus day. I had to buy a secret Santa gift. So, I saved money by baking some "no-bake" cookies. I used butter that my roommates grandmother hand churns at her home in the mountains - so the cookies are unbelievably good. I also wrapped it in old cloth I had lying around and used an old Christmas card as the name tag. Everyone thought that it looked very, very nice. 0 UAH

After the party I had friends over to relax. I had to buy some cloves to make the mulled beverage - but it was totally worth it. Afterwards we walked and sang in the streets. I finally feel like it's Christmas. 3.44

Money Spent: 10.94 UAH
Money Remaining: 40.46 UAH
Steps Taken: 11,405

100 grieven challenge - Day #5

2010-12-17T04:43:00.000-08:00

Today was a zero-sum day. I didn't spend a dime or a 10 kopeck piece today.

I brought scrambled eggs for my lunch today. Interestingly, scrambled eggs deflate in tupperware. I filled the container up to the top - but a few hours later I found a small egg-brick, roughly the shape but half the size of the container.

My friend Valodiya also had some lunch sent by his mother from the village - so we shared together and everyone got a great lunch.

Thursday is Pilgrims and with David and Shannon still sick there was a lot to do around the student center. The whole leadership team comes on Thursday mornings to clean - and it was fun to clean with good people.

I'm trying to decide if I want to keep walking after this week. While it's still a long slog through snow and ice, it's getting easier and quicker every day. It almost makes arriving at the student center (or back at home) a celebration. I feel that someone should at least greet me merrily when I arrive.

Money Spent: 0 UAH
Money Remaining: 51.40 UAH
Steps Taken: 12,346

100 grieven challenge Day #4

2010-12-16T00:04:00.000-08:00

So, I spent a lot of money today. I ordered a Christmas present on-line for a family member and I bought a nice gift for a friend. But, this money came out of a special fund I keep tucked away - so I'm not going to count it toward my total.

The walk into work is becoming easier every day. Each time I make the trip it seems shorter. I've mentally broken it up into 3 parts and I can encourage myself to just keep walking. It's always tempting to just take a bus - but I've been pretty good so far this week. 0 UAH

My food supply is running a little low. The only necessity I had to purchase today was sour cream. I substituted mayonnaise in a few recipes - but sour cream is 15% fat and mayonnaise is 78% fat. I decided that for my health I should just bite the bullet and buy some sour cream. Sour cream is in every dish in Ukraine. 7.35 UAH

Cat with sour cream.

I spent most of the day working on paper work. It was difficult to not get distracted and go out for lunch. I forgot to even pack something tasty, but I managed to scrounge up some food at the student center. I ate a salad made from cabbage, onion, corn, and crackers. It was surprisingly good.

Money Spent: 7.35 UAH
Money Remaining: 51.40 UAH
Steps Taken: 10,615

100 grieven challenge - Day #3

2010-12-14T15:07:00.000-08:00

I spent 1.75 UAH on a bus ticket. I walked most of the way into town, but had to rush for an early morning appointment. Of course the people I was meeting showed up 40 minutes late. Oddly enough, my appointment was for a photo shoot. Apparently I’m going to be part of an article about foreigners living in Ukraine. The pictures were really, really nice – I hope I get to keep some of them.

I joined some friends for lunch at a café. I had packed a lunch, but I try to never pass up an invitation to share a meal with friends. I just bought a desert and ate slowly. 10.50 AUH.

English Club was on the topic of drugs and alcohol. We did an exercise (ostensibly to practice bad/worse/worst) where we ranked major drugs on a sliding scale. I had a prop for each category. Luckily I was able to find something to represent every major drug group around my apartment. A pro-legalization newspaper for marijuana, an empty beer bottle, a spoon and lighter – these are things my roommates just keep around. Just in case. My students provided the cigarettes and junk food categories. As all teachers know, it’s all too easy to spend a small fortune on materials for classes. I pay for all prizes out of pocket – but luckily, today a friend gave me a candy bar, and I didn’t have to spend money on a prize this week! 0 UAH!

Money Spent: 12.25 UAH
Money Remaining: 58.75 UAH
Steps Taken: 13,008

100 grieven challenge - Day #2

2010-12-13T09:15:00.000-08:00

Today my normal market was closed due to sanitation concerns. So, I had to purchase my vegetables at a supermarket this week.

Vegetables are a little more expensive at the supermarket - but it's easier to guess how much your total bill will be. In the supermarkets they have two styles of most vegetables: washed and unwashed. Unwashed carrots cost half as much as the washed variety - which is a real puzzle to me because I assume that people still peal the washed carrots.

The day old tomatoes are much cheaper - but there was a throng of little old ladies six women deep and I simply couldn't get to them to see if there were any quality fruits left. Apparently I wasn't the only shopper a little upset by the hasty closing of our market.

I managed to squeak out of the store with a bill of only 19 UAH. This is no small miracle as the entire store is designed to lure shoppers into spending more money than they originally intended.

Money Spent: 19 UAH
Money Remaining: 71 UAH
Steps Taken: 4,092

100 grieven challenge - Day #1

2010-12-12T06:11:00.000-08:00

Ukrainians always want to know how to translate the word “grechka.” I explain that we don’t eat it in America and thus we don’t really have a translation. This answer has yet to satisfy anyone. Usually the student runs to a corner store to buy a bag of it to show me what they mean. After assuring them that I have understood, I continue on in explanation that we feed it to chickens sometimes – so maybe a farmer would know what to call it.

Buckwheat groats are a staple in Ukraine. That's really the right translation.

It's entirely fiber and absolutely indigestible. Your body would get more nutrients by boiling up a pair of old sneakers. But, it's cheap and plentiful. With enough salt it's also tasty. today I boiled up some gretchka and used up the end of my groceries from last week.

I gave 10 UAH at church and didn't spend any money on myself. I walked to church and home - 5 miles round trip.

I plan to stay at home and relax for the rest of the day - so I'll go ahead and log my totals.

Money Spent: 10 UAH
Money Remaining: 90 UAH
Steps Taken: 10,120

100 grieven challenge

2010-12-11T08:34:00.000-08:00

This is what 100UAH (UkrainiAn gHrieven) looks like. Currently it is worth $12.55 in US currency.

My goal this week is to only spend 100UAH. I've been in a celebratory mood recently and have plunked down a 100 note on a few occasions for a single meal. (Honestly, it's exciting to live in a place where steak for two - plus sides! - comes to less than $15 ... but I digress) So, this week I am going to challenge myself to be thriftier.

So, I can spend just over 14UAH a day. I need to buy a secret santa gift this week, so unless I get crafty, I'll have a little less to spend on food.

Also, I'll try to save money by walking to and from city center, weather permitting. It's 2-3 miles - so I'll also post my daily step counter.

So, check back each day to see how much money I spent, how I spent it, how many steps I took, and creative things I did to save money. ... or ... check back in to see how miserably I failed and how much I went over budget.

November

2010-11-30T00:43:00.000-08:00

So, for the last 6 years I have participated in No Shave November. Usually at the end of the month I just keep the beard - but this year I can't wait to get rid of it. Here are some photos from the Thanksgiving party ... and my beard in its final days.

Jesse Goran loves my beard.

This is Dale and Olya. They're a really fun couple who are super helpful around the student center. Dale teaches our guitar course and Olya is on the leadership team. I just love them.

Here is the first food crew at the Thanksgiving celebration. We never dropped below 30 people at the party - even though there was huge turnover. We don't actually know how many people we fed ... but it was a huge number.

2010-11-18T05:45:00.001-08:00

As a missionary, I am constantly attempting to not offend people.

Not the little things - I mean, I know that I offend people when I stand in front of a window (in slavic cultures all sickness is derived from being in the way of a draft. Even in 100 degree weather train windows are kept closed because the draft will kill people.) I know that when I eat, I eat like an American and this sometimes offends people...

No, I'm talking about the big things. I prolong the conversation and save the bad news for last. When I'm preaching the gospel I slam down the parts that they can accept and I push back the parts that they might reject. I'm so afraid of losing people.

In small group we're talking about the rich young ruler. It's beyond my imagination that Jesus just lets this guy walk away. He's charismatic, connected, and faithful. You could sprout up 10 churches around this kid. But after their encounter, Jesus just watches him walk away.

I wonder what things would look like if I were to be fully honest. If we greeted people at the door and said, "Welcome, you have to be willing to die in order to come here." "Hi, my name's Michael - are you ready to drink the Kool-Aide?"

What if our membership policies actually demanded radical faithfulness? My mentor believes that a church's average attendance should be much higher than the membership number. There should always be a couple of dozen regular attenders that just aren't ready to commit to the level required to be a member. I don't know how I feel about that.

[Membership is something from a by-gone era to people of my generation. If we're there every week and we're giving our tithe; we are a member. We don't need a piece of paper to prove that. If the United Methodist church is radically successful in reaching my generation - average attendance will increase while membership continues its downward spiral.]

What if we genuinely asked our people to make the hard sacrifices required of the Gospel?
1. I bet that more poor people than wealthy would be willing to take this challenge.
2. I bet that there would be a huge domino effect.
3. I bet that there would be huge internal division and eventually a split resulting from this.

Sunday School

2010-11-01T10:16:00.000-07:00

L'viv UMC began a Sunday School program this semester. Erika Pushkarova, in the maroon sweater, leads the class.

Jesse Brian Goran, in his Easter outfit which will no longer fit by Easter, is the youngest and most adorable member of the Sunday School class.

Erika does an excellent job planning a weekly lesson, recruiting kids, finding volunteers, and making sure that everyone has a great time will learning a lot.

Here's the group shot of all of the students (Minus Jesse who was probably eating or napping by this point!)

Vacation

2010-10-27T12:44:00.000-07:00

I spent a few days in Warsaw. Oddly, I never once thought to pull out my camera. I was having such a good time that I didn't have time to stop and take pictures!

Riga, Latvia basically looks like a city in a fairy tale. It's big, but absolutely beautiful. I stayed with friends and they were very excited to show me their city.

Bill and Helen Lovelace hosted me in Kaunas, Lithuania and we had a great time just strolling through the city.

The hill of crosses in Siauliai, Lithuania sends an enduring message of hope to Christians being persecuted. The Soviet government bulldozed the hill and removed the crosses at least 3 times ... but the people continued to come back and bring crosses.

This picture isn't from my vacation ... but it should be. These are two of my roommates. I live with three Ukrainians and I'm the only meat-eater and the only non-artist. In this picture, my roommates are conducting a photo session. A good time was had by all!

Vacation

2010-10-21T12:36:00.000-07:00

Hi friends,

I wanted to update everyone. I'm currently on a ten day vacation. While it would have been really enjoyable to outline every detail of the trip - that tends to confuse people. It seems that people have a hard enough time remembering that I'm in Ukraine and not Uganda without me writing the names of dozens of cities every day. Here's a brief look at my vacation.

I spent a weekend with a friend in Warsaw, Poland. He had a break from school and we saw literally everything worth seeing in Warsaw. I met a lot of his friends, and in general it was a perfect weekend. I walked more than 20,000 steps every day!

I spent a few days in Riga, Latvia with some friends there. I rested a bit more and did a bit less touring. My Latvian friends are quite keen on theatre, so we did a lot of artsy stuff.

Right now, and for the next few days, I am enjoying Kaunas, Lithuania. My friends Bill and Helen Lovelace work here (as well as in Kiev, Ukraine) and I'm with them. I might tour one or two buildings - but the rest of my time will be spent just sitting around, resting, and enjoying good company.

It's been wonderful to recharge a little bit in Europe. It's been a huge blessing spending some time with old friends and depending on the hospitality of others.

Love, Michael.

More photographic evidence that I really live in Ukraine.

2010-10-16T14:15:00.000-07:00

So, I'm in Warsaw visiting some friends, and I found some great photos on one of their computers.

This might be the best picture I've ever seen of the Opera House.

As a general rule; when I look good in a picture, everyone else doesn't. Michal Kurek (pronounced Mikow, and he's my host in Warsaw) is on the right. And Gosha is on the left.

I think this picture just sums up my life in so many ways.

Riot.

2010-10-12T05:57:00.000-07:00

Our hands fold around mugs of hot tea. With only three days until the city turns the heat on for the year, these final days are cold and sometimes painful. I'm nursing an old back injury, brought back by lifting too many heavy things these last few weeks.

After a morning of conversation with the students around the center, my numb fingers try to peck out a sermon. Maybe my mind is frozen, too. I just can't get my thoughts across. As with any writer's block - the key is to not panic. Just accept that today probably won't produce a hum-dinger, but hope that something foundational can be created.

The chanting is always distant at first. Some days it seems that a riot is inevitable. The Minister of Education will be imposing a fine of 50 UAH for each lesson missed by every student. My friends who have managed to find employment generally make about 5 UAH an hour. Yes, it would take 10 hours of work to pay the fine for missing a SINGLE class.

We work with University students. That's our ministry here. We pray them through the bi-annual seasons of finals where they labor over tests for more than a month at the end of each semester. We teach conversational English to supplement their grammar-intense English courses. And we march beside them in opposition to unfair laws which attempt to place the blame for the poor education system in the laps of students.

A few more days and the heat will return to our apartments. That minor gripe will disappear. How long until the students are given a quality education which supports their desire to learn and to grow?

Experiment in Practical Christianity

2010-09-29T12:34:00.000-07:00

So this semester will be a little different for me. Last semester I taught some English courses. After some long discussions we decided that this wasn't the best use of my time. While I think that my English courses were very good, and I feel that the students really learned a lot - teaching English simply isn't my passion; and it's not that effective at bringing new people in the door.

This semester my English courses will be replaced by a weekly English language small group. [I will still lead a weekly English Club - open to people of all ages and English levels. We have 11 year olds who speak quite well and 45 years olds who don't speak at all!] We will be studying "Experiment in Practical Christianity." It's a wonderful resource written by two Candler professors from the 70s/80s. During this semester we will look at Christianity as though we had never been introduced to it before. We will experiment with the acts of Christian discipline - like we're trying on new outfits to see which ones fit best.

Nastiya (on the left) spent a year in St. Mary's Pennsylvania and attended the United Methodist church there. I think we met once in Bradford at a Methodist youth retreat ... but when I tried to speak Russian to her she told me that she spoke Ukrainian! Nataly (on the right) came to my English course last semester and is a student at the Ukrainian Catholic University.

I really love blurry pictures! I'm on the left. Dale is another American young adult who lives in L'viv. His girlfriend is part of "Youth to Jesus" and it's great having another American in the group. Michael Maiko comes to a lot of English language events - and I'm glad that he's joining us for this small group.

So, in case you didn't notice - these pictures are all taken in my bedroom! The small group meets in my room at my apartment. I only rent one room - and I couldn't ask my many Ukrainian roommates to vacate the living room every week for a few hours ... so we all squeeze into my bedroom. Luckily, They don't make single-serving furniture in Ukraine. Every bed also folds into a couch. So fitting seven people is not problem and it's actually quite comfortable. The Ukrainians don't think anything is strange about the arrangement ... but could you imagine inviting seven people into YOUR bedroom once a week???? It feels super bizarre to me as an American.

So far things are going really well. I just hope that we can get a consistent group that is willing to make it every week.

(I borrowed these pictures from Facebook. Mariya Zelman was willing to document our first meeting - and I really enjoy these photos.)

X-Factor

2010-09-14T05:14:00.000-07:00

This is Lily - she's one of the students from the student center in L'viv. She's currently a contestant on the Ukrainian version of American Idol. This clip is in Ukrainian and Russian, but she sings in English. It's worth a view or two. We're super proud of our Lily.

(Lily gave me my Ukrainian nickname, Mishko - which is a very villager form of the name Michael.)

Running.

2010-09-12T10:22:00.000-07:00

These last few weeks have been busier than anticipated. I apologize for not writing as often as I should.

I am juggling two cities, two languages, and two VERY different jobs. These things come together to form one AMAZING experience, and I will forever be indebted to this time for the things it is teaching me.

I live and work in L'viv, Ukraine; still. I do the English Language ministries for Youth to Jesus inter-confessional student ministry. This means Tuesday night English Club as well as a new small group in English (which promises to be quite an adventure!). The only language spoken in L'viv is Ukrainian.

I spend time in Kyiv, Ukraine. I work with the United Methodist center for street children - but I also work with the ongoing church plant in Kyiv - specifically in working to reach out to people of different socio-economic levels. I speak Russian in Kyiv because it is easier for me to speak and understand than Ukrainian and both languages are spoken.

On top of this, my roomates and I have been welcoming couch surfers. The idea is to allow strangers to sleep on your couch or in a spare room - with only the promise that they will pay it forward. We are a bit zealous and might be trying for a world record. We had 25 couch surfers in one week, and as many as 15 people at the apartment at one time!!! It's a whole, crazy, extra-layer to life, but really quite wonderful. It has been a huge blessing to get to know people from all over the world and to show them the most beautiful city in the world (because, truly, L'viv is unimaginably beautiful).

So, some weeks I sleep two night a week on a train, and others I have people sleeping in the hallways of my flat! But, I consider myself very lucky to be leading a very full and fulfilling life.

2010-08-26T12:47:00.000-07:00

Yura insisted that I sit next to him in worship. The strong smell of glue overpowered the strong smell of sweat and dirt. Neither is appreciated. On a weekday, I might need to make the difficult decision of asking Yura to return when he was sober - but it's Sunday and it's worship and high or not he's here and his presence is ultimately good for him and for our community.

The songs are familiar and I'm grateful for that. With the language barriers some days few things seem familiar. Even parts of the sermon come into focus - my Russian is getting strong, but I'm still easily confused.

On Monday I'm thankful for the safety net of Dima and Yana. As I talk with their parents my tired tongue forgets to roll its Rs. My weary lips forsake grammatically correct endings and press onward to the point. Occasionally, mid-sentence, I realize I'm in too deep. I started out in the wrong tense and would have to switch all the endings in forms I don't remember to finish the sentence. I look to the Kabakov children and, with "that look" in my eyes, I finish in English while their parents wait for translation. I'm getting closer. Soon I'll be able to capture the full meaning.

I'm working on writing and typing in Russian and Ukrainian. I learned audibly, and my spelling is atrocious. Facebook status updates and large-font signs are turning Cyrillic. Good friends gently correct the misshapen words as they appear.

About once a week I have one of "those" conversations. One of those interactions that makes it all worth while. I talk with a kid about why he's sad. I laugh with an old lady about some funny anecdote. I share in worship with young believers.

Because, ultimately, I'm learning for those Sunday mornings when I'm sitting next to someone who smells like glue. I pray for the day when those difficult conversations become a little less murky. I pray for the day when I can make a difference.

2010-08-18T09:34:00.000-07:00

My amazing Kyiv friends Yana Kabakova and her brother Dima Kabakov - on a hill overlooking the city.

Yana Kabakova and I posing in front of one of the churches in Kyiv.

Nina tries to wake one of the guys from the center for street children from an afternoon nap.

The kids from the center waiting for a bus before our big excursion to a museum.

I saw the church today

2010-08-10T07:47:00.000-07:00

And it is beautiful

Andrei is closer to my age than I give him credit. Sometimes he acts like an adult, but more often he's a little child. He refuses to slow down his speech; so I simply don't understand what he's saying most of the time. He has a three inch long gash on the underside of his foot. It's visibly infected and at least a centimeter deep.

Nikolai seems to be around 14. I don't think he's new to the center; but I met him for the first time today. His left arm is bandaged tightly, its muscles atrophied from disuse. Maybe it's strained or pulled, or maybe the bone broke a while ago and hasn't recieved medical attention yet.

I'm instanly concerned by their injuries because I can do nothing. While I know what to do and how to do it - I do not have the authority. I cannot storm in and bellow, "I'm a doctor" and treat their aches.

Andrei and Nikolai care deeply for each other. It's clear that Nikolai is like a kid brother to Adnrei. Nikolai carefully applies the bandages to Andrei's foot and Andrei gently re-wraps Nikolai's arm.

Isn't that the church? Isn't that what it SHOULD be? Homeless kids who carry one another's burdens and gently attend to the wounds of others? Aren't we all just the blind leading the blind?

<< So, I wrote this during the day and it made me think a lot. I prayed that I would get a chance to be the church to someone else. As I folded my laundry that I had washed at the center, I realized that I had brought WAY too many clothes with me. I thought about giving some of them away, but I'm not very good at gift giving etiquette. The rules are different here, and they're hard to learn. On my way home one of the people from the center saw me walking and came up to me. Another homeless man had stolen his shirt and shoes while he was sleeping. Luckily, I had my bag of clean laundry and I quickly fished out a shirt to give away. It is good to be the church. >>

more photographic evidence

2010-08-04T23:10:00.000-07:00

UMC.org posted an article about the Global Young People's Convocation and Legislative Assembly. It just so happens that I'm in the photo they chose.

It looks like I'm a little confused by the legislation; which, I probably was.

Pictures

2010-08-03T08:13:00.000-07:00

Me at the Brandenburg Gate. See, I really was in Germany.

My tough competition at UNO and Trouble! Some of the kids from the center for street children.

A little explanation

2010-08-02T11:16:00.000-07:00

Well friends, I'm aware that someone new to my blog might be a little confused, so I will try to clear up a few things. I've just been moving a little too fast and haven't had time to recollect all of my thoughts.

My "usual home" at the moment is in L'viv, Ukraine working with an inter-confessional student ministry.

I'm away from "usual home" at the moment. The last week of July was spent in Berlin, Germany at the Global Young People's Convocation and Legislative Assembly. And, I'm spending the month of August in Kiev, Ukraine working at a center for street children.

The center is open 6 days a week from 10 AM until 5 PM. It's a safe place for homeless children, youth, and young adults; formerly homeless individuals; at risk families; and staff/volunteers to gather together in community.

Our main task is to model an alternative to the family life that people may know. We eat meals as a family and we pray together before we eat. We watch the TV one day out of the week. We play card games and board games and we listen as much as we talk. (This is easiest for me, because my Russian/Ukrainian skills are pretty rudimentary so I don't do a lot of talking! - I'm also forced to be an active listener, I have to constantly reword things to make sure I have understood.)

It's August, and it's a HOT August so there aren't many people at the center. Some of the at risk families go to the village, some of the street children are offered a home by a distant relative looking for a field-hand for the summer months, etc.

On Saturday we really only had two people come through during the day - we were able to give them our full attention and I had a good chance to really interact with one of the staff members. None of the staff speak any English (and if they do, they have strict instructions from Bill and Helen Lovelace - the GBGM missionaries who run the center but are out of the country for a short time - to NOT use it and to FORCE me to use my Russian.) It's hard not having anyone around who speaks English - but it really forces me to function entirely in Russian. Which is a good thing.

I'm having a little bit of a difficult time fitting in to my new setting. I'm having withdrawal from the constant community of the Youth to Jesus student ministry. I went from having dozens of English speaking Ukrainians who could meet up for a meal or coffee to Kiev - a huge city where I know almost no one. It's a big transition, and I have my work cut out for me.

The other difficult aspect is feeling useful. The first few days/weeks in a new ministry setting is all about building trust. I don't really feel like I'm DOING anything - and that's okay, because it means that I'm building trust. But, I'm a doer. I feel guilty if I'm not DOING something. So, I just need to push those feelings out of the way and work on building trust through playing UNO and listening to people.

2010-07-31T06:29:00.000-07:00

Because we only provide two meals a day to the students who come to our center, we try and pack a lot of calories into those two meals.

"There's barely any mayonnaise in that soup, here - add some more."

"Wait, let me put some chocolate flavored butter on that bread before you eat it."

This would be funny in an abstract way, but I don't need so many calories!

2010-07-30T08:49:00.000-07:00

Reading the scripture in all five languages of the Global Young People's Convocation (From left to right: English, French, Portuguese, Russian, and German)

2010-07-28T22:58:00.000-07:00

Berlin was absolutely amazing. It was wonderful to meet so many great people and to explore such a fascinating city.

After a few days of travel, I'm back in Ukraine. I'm spending the month of August at a different post.

During my "normal" life I work with Youth to Jesus student ministry. During the month of August I will be working with a center for street children in Kiev, Ukraine.

This will be a real change of pace for me and I'm a little bit nervous. While I think everything will go well, it's still a very new setting for me.

Day 4isch

2010-07-25T08:33:00.000-07:00

I don't really know what day it is.

I know that sounds awful, but really it's a great thing. Evenings blend into mornings quite quickly when days are full of new friends and long legislation.

Last night's plenary session was filled with controversial social topics in five languages and dozens of cultures. Even with one language and one cultural, these conversations are difficult. With so much in the mix, and Robert's Rule of Procedure (ish) overlording, it's difficult to find common ground.

But, at the end of the night, we had some time for people to reflect and pray. Many people have strong opinions and ideals. Feelings were hurt, but ours is a God who heals hearts.

We gather together - and legislation happens - but this is not the focus. Our focus is unity. Even amid the conflict we manage to find unity in our God.

This is what we may show the world - we may show the world how to disagree with grace. It's not easy. And sometimes we failed. But we learn in the process and over the next few decades as we grow into the adults and older adults of the church - I pray that we will have learned from our experiences and grown in the process.

Day 3

2010-07-23T14:46:00.001-07:00

Some people believe that "unity" occurs when all people agree. When we think and act the same we are unified. On our cultural excursion to Sachsenhausen concentration camp we experienced the vision of "unity" signifying one belief, one people, one race.

As young people at this Global Convocation we have the unique opportunity to express what true unity looks like to a world that has lost faith. True unity doesn't share a skin color, language, or country. Unity shares faith in a God who still speaks to people. Unity shares life together.

After a painful and difficult visit through a former death camp, we shared in the fellowship and unity of a meal with the United Methodist believers of Church in a Container. KiC is a recent church plant which took on the challenge of creating new communities of faith for new people seriously. Their bright yellow building shows the community around them what unity can be to the world.

Some people don't believe that we can achieve unity this week. They feel that the legislation and Robert's rule of procedure will bog us down. If people hope that we will vote with a two-thirds majority on hot-button topics legislation, they will probably be disappointed. But, those people are probably using the wrong definition of unity.

If people hope that the youth and young adults will join together and see eye to eye, that we will connect with one another and our loving God - DONE. Done and done. Every day we share together in worship of God and fellowship with one another. We are living proof that unity is a reality.

Amen.

Day 3

2010-07-22T06:36:00.000-07:00

At the moment I'm sitting on the floor of a legislative section. We're discussing controversial topics. I really tried to not end up in a controversial group - but I'm here and I'll make the best of it.

We had an amazing worship service this morning - the delegates from Russia led the service and it was excellent.

Well, I had better get back to the legislation. I'll try to post every day, but internet here is expensive.

2010-07-19T21:56:00.000-07:00

Notes on day 1: travel day

Today has been frustrating. I couldn't get on the right tram this morning. I swear there are dozens of airport trams until you need one. So I got on the wrong tram and had to walk a mile to get on the right bus, but at the wrong stop so I had to ride it for a long time.

I got through customs without any problems - which is increasingly becoming a small miracle. The flight was great - short and sweet. In Dortmund I had all kinds of problems getting to the train station and findig an ATM machine. I can't imagine why these two things were so hard; but I managed both AND I found a Burger King. Let's face it, few things make me as happy as the King and his perogative that I have it my way.

Overnight train to Berlin.

Global Young People's Convocation

2010-07-19T00:55:00.000-07:00

I'm leaving this afternoon to fly to Germany for the Global Young People's Convocation and Legislative Assembly. (GYPCLA) (I think my favorite part about Methodism might be our addiction to acronyms!)

GYPCLA will be in Berlin, Germany. United Methodist Youth and Young adults from all over the world will gather to discuss issues of importance and to spend time together in fellowship.

You can watch Live video from the event if you are interested.

I think that the Legislative Assembly has a lot of potential. It has the potential to be very divisive and embittering ... or it has the potential to be very unifying and uplifting. I believe that the youth and young adults elected to the Legislative Assembly (I'm one of the 11 voting delegates from the NEJ) will be more able to find common ground than adults.

There are some major pieces of legislation - some I believe passionately in and some that simply don't interest me - but ultimately we must focus on the things that will make the United Methodist church stronger and more faithful to our call to "Make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world."

Busy Season

2010-07-12T03:52:00.000-07:00

Things have been going just great in Ukraine.

The last few days of June and into July were spent with friends, old and new, at the Kerch United Methodist church a few paces from the Black Sea.

A team of Americans from Tennessee led a youth and young adult leadership conference for United Methodists across Ukraine. Five of the students from the student center joined in on the fun and they were a huge asset to the team. We all found ourselves translating and leading - in Ukrainian and Russian. It was exhausting but a huge amount of fun. I swam at night in the warm water - but never found a chance to lie on the beach and soak up any sun.

I trained for a day in Kiev with Bill and Helen Lovelace. In a few short weeks I will begin volunteering full time at the center for street children that they run in Kiev.

The Virginia-L'viv team flew into Kiev and put me up at a nice hotel. I stayed with one of our students who was from the village. It was so much fun watching him play with all of the levers, knobs, and switches in our fancy hotel room. He spent about 10 minutes trying to open the window - and when I told him that we probably had air-conditioning he said, "No, Michael." When I turned the air-conditioning on his eyes got as big as saucers.

The Virginia team led us in a trek into the Carpathian mountains for a week of English camp. 30 students and 18 American helpers shared a week of fun and learning. It was great to spend time with people and to rest. I napped not infrequently.

This week is Kid's Club. We had 15 kids this morning (as well as several moms, dads, grandmothers, and grandfathers!) show up for a Bible based Kid's Club. Erika will begin holding Sunday School on Sundays - so we're praying that at least some of these kids and their families will join us.

Next week will be spent in Berlin at the Global Young People's Convocation. When I return I will immediately travel to Kiev and set up residence there for a month of volunteering with homeless children and at risk families.

New Directions

2010-07-03T22:55:00.001-07:00

These next two months will be incredibly busy for me. As you may have already noticed, I'm around a computer much less often then usual.

Last week was spent in Kerch, Ukraine. Youth and young adult leaders from all over the conference gathered at the sea-side to learn better leadership skills and to work with the street children in the area. It was great to meet other young people who are in ministry in this country. More than 30 of us gathered for a conference led by a wonderful team from Tennessee.

Yesterday I trained with Bill and Helen Lovelace to begin volunteering at the center for street children in Kiev. I will fill spots whenever I am able, balancing between my ministry with college students in L'viv and working in a social justice ministry in Kiev.

This next week will be spent with a great team from Virginia in English camp with many of the English Club students and others from L'viv. This is a huge week for us, and we are excited to share it with such great people from the states. The following week will hold VBS for kids in L'viv.

In late July I'll be heading to Berlin for the Global Young People's Convocation. It will be one week of sharing in the global nature of the United Methodist Church as youth and young adults from around the world gather together to examine what it means for young people to be United Methodist in the world where we live.

When I return I will head straight to Kiev and spend a month working daily with street children and at risk families.

Whew! I get a little tired just looking at my schedule, but I know that it's just right and I'm very thankful for it. I look forward to blogging about each event as it happens. Keep me accountable if I stop writing!

and the week begins again....

2010-06-23T23:10:00.000-07:00

David and Shannon have returned from the US. They brought Shannon's parents, Bob & Betty, as well as a little bundle of joy, Jesse Brian Goran! We are all very excited to have them back.

I'm in my new place. It's a room in a nice apartment in a nice apartment building. The guy who owns the apartment is an engineer - there's a big drafting table in the living room. My friend Victor also lives there. It's a little less convenient, but it's affordable and I'm happy.

This week will be a big adjustment as I find my new spot in the system now that David and Shannon are back.

Tuesday

2010-06-23T00:20:00.001-07:00

Tuesday is a day of teaching.

During the school year I teach English courses on Tuesdays and Thursdays. During the summer my primary English outlet is weekly English Club.

"I Will Learn English" is a free weekly open event where anyone can show up for an hour and a half of English. It is an incredibly challenging endeavor to create a lesson for "anyone who shows up."

Some students speak English flawlessly and others only know a few words. Some are teenagers and some are in their late 30s.

I work hard to find topics of interest to engage people intellectually. My highest priority is to know everyone by name. There is a core group of 10-12 students who show up regularly. Last night there were 20.

English club begins with some kind of mixer to get people talking to one another. This helps the students find other people with similar English skills. Ideally, this would also build some level of community so that the students keep coming back.

Each time a student comes to English club, they get a hole-punch in their card. It's like a "10th cup free" card at a coffee shop. They can earn candy, ice cream, PB&Js, or private English classes.

The lesson varies from week to week. Some weeks we focus on a topic. I really believe that once students realize that their English level is high enough to discuss important social topics that they will realize that they can talk about anything. In a conversation about poverty, social injustice, or crime it's quite natural to discuss the Christian faith in a non-threatening way with the students.

Some weeks we watch TV shows or play board games. Occasionally we get visitors and the students can practice with an American other than me!

It's a huge challenge, but so far it's been fun to create these lessons. I hope to work more music into the lessons in the future.

Also on Tuesday I went apartment hunting and joined some friends for a World Cup game.

Monday

2010-06-22T04:57:00.001-07:00

Monday is a work day.

Usually on Mondays I work on my sermon for Thursday night or I create my Tuesday night English club lesson plans. During the school year I plan out Tuesday and Thursday English courses.

But today was a special Monday. I'm apartment hunting. David and Shannon return on Wednesday, and I need to be out of their apartment by then. Now, I have a back-up plan, but ideally I won't need to use it. Ideally I'll be in my own apartment by Tuesday night or Wednesday morning.

So my friend Yura has been helping me. He's not a student and he doesn't work - so he has free time. Free time is more precious than oil was before the gulf spill, and having a friend who has two (2) days of free time is a gold mine! We went to the agency and got some leads to track down. The real estate agent tried to marry me off to either of her daughters. Rent a two-room apartment and get a free bride! What a slogan!

We went to three apartments. One was on the 5th and 3rd floor of a downtown building. Yes. You read that right. No, it doesn't make much more sense when you see it. The bathroom was on a balcony of the 3rd floor and the apartment was on the 5th floor.

One was a dungeon room in a bad part of town.

And the best option was a large, soviet style one-room apartment with no kitchen sink. It's a little bit pricier than I had intended (with utilities it will be about $250 a month), but unless I find something much better tomorrow - it will be my new home.

Wish me luck!

Sunday

2010-06-20T10:04:00.000-07:00

Sunday is a day or worship.

L'viv United Methodist church began meeting for weekly worship in January of 2010. In May our average attendance was 13 - we're on track to average 16+ for June! Our church is a little bit like the Island of misfit toys. You'd really love it if you came.

Today the pastor's son turned off the computer in the middle of the sermon. Our pastor uses the slides as his notes and we all had to wait until the computer re-booted for the sermon to continue. Adamchik (the pastor's son) is adorable, so it was easy to laugh and enjoy the break.

During communion Pastor Lyubomir puts Adamchik in my lap. I think that the little fellow is just overwhelmed by how incredibly large I am and he always sits quietly and politely until I hand him off to someone else. Today I was still holding him during one of the songs. He held on to my neck like there was no tomorrow and sang a song completely different than the hymn we were singing. He would sing just as loudly as I could, but his own words and tune. As soon as I stopped singing he would stop and as soon as I would start he would start in on his own melody. I have no idea what he was singing, but it felt very fun and lively. I couldn't stop laughing and it really brightened my whole day.

In the morning I went to a cathedral for mass. Even though I don't understand what's going on most of the time - I feel very comfortable in Greek-Catholic services. I stand in the back and pray and hope that no one notices my shorts and flip-flops.

Tonight I'll go out with friends and enjoy the city.

Saturday

2010-06-19T09:34:00.000-07:00

Saturday is a day or rest.

I really love everything I do, but sometimes life can get a little hectic. Having a day of rest really helps make the rest of the week seem much better.

I'm apartment hunting, so I bought a newspaper and spent a few hours going over the classifieds section. I managed fairly well and have a few locations I'm going to scout out on Monday/Tuesday.

A friend and I might catch a movie tonight ... we'll see. The weather is nice, so maybe I'll just go for a long walk.

Friday is a catch-up day

2010-06-18T06:12:00.000-07:00

Theoretically, Friday is a day off. I've actually had a few Fridays where I've managed to do nothing, but usually it is the free-day to which things get put off.

Yeah, I'll do that on Friday.

Sure, let's meet on Friday.

So I was up at 8AM for a morning meeting with our pastor. He works full time as a computer programmer, so our meetings have to be early in the morning. (Generally speaking - because we work with college students - my mornings are completely free.)

We're working through Adam Hamilton's Selling Swimsuits in the Arctic. It's really a wonderful little book that people involved with growing a church or a ministry should read. It uses business terms and some people are put off by it's lack of spirituality - but frankly, if you think the only answer to help ministries succeed is to pray more then you really shouldn't be reading any books anyway. I tend to be more pragmatic and feel that God has given us the tools to be effective in what we do and we should use those tools.

Today we talked about getting little changes that could make a big difference.

At 9 AM we met with a man who could help us print posters. I don't like salespeople because they talk too quickly for me to understand anything and I always feel that a lot has been lost in translation. But, I liked this guy. He was about my age and seemed nice. I almost feel as though we got a good deal.

I went to the market and bought some food and then came home and baked a few things for when David and Shannon get back.

I'm apartment hunting at the moment (just lightly - I have a back up plan, but if I can find something cheap I would like to live by myself) so I went and visited a friends apartment to see what I could get within my budget.

I tried to take a nap, but quickly got a phone call from someone who needed something ... and I was up again. My second nap attempt also failed.

I went for a long walk through the city - just enjoying the architecture.

I ate terribly unhealthy McDonald's food - which I know I shouldn't do.

After dinner I had an incredibly painful conversation with a friend. It's very painful to be so far away during what might be his last few months.

Thursday

2010-06-17T06:44:00.000-07:00

Thursday always feels like the "big day."

Pilgrim's student worship service occurs at 6:30. In a flourish or organizational activity everything comes together and 20-some 20-somethings show up for a time of prayer, praise, preaching, and (more) prayer.

It's finals month (yes, the students take finals for a whole month) so attendance is always up in the air. The last two weeks we had better than average numbers - but past success is no gaurantee of present reality. We had as few as 13 a few weeks ago (and a high of 36 a few weeks after that.) We have a great time regardless of the numbers.

This morning I paid some bills, did some work around the house, and had a haircut.

The man who cuts my hair could have cut Stalin's hair as well. He's well past retirement age, but the line of old men who wait patiently for his clippers - even though the other chair and barber in the shop are free - is a sure sign that his haircuts are the best. He uses a strait edge razor around your ears and neck. He keeps bottles of vodka, pure alcohol, chloroform, and old men's cologne on his counter. It's really the best haircut I've ever had. It costs $2.50.

I watched some TV and ate some polenta pizza and a baked potato. I've been trying lots of recipes with corn-meal because we have a lot of it and it's cheap.

I re-worked a few parts of my sermon before practicing and timing it. I'm working towards memorizing my sermons. I have 4 or 5 parts where I can step out from behind the pulpit and preach without any notes. It still makes me nervous and we'll see how I do in front of people.

Continued ... sorry, I wrote half in the afternoon and half at night ...

We had about 14 people when Pilgrims started, and around 30 by the time the sermon started. The sermon went well and was followed by a great prayer time.

One of the students said that he liked my sermon ... and then he asked me where I downloaded it from. Haha. I guess he couldn't believe that I actually wrote the sermon I gave.

Wednesday

2010-06-16T04:12:00.000-07:00

Wednesdays are a day of preperation.

This morning I woke up in time to get some e-mails out before my Urkainian lesson. Lyu and I swap teaching skills for two hours on Wednesday mornings. At 10 AM I learn Ukrainian and at 11 AM she learns English.

I'm begginning to form sentences and straining for case endings - so the first hour is a relentlessly painful experience where my brain goes into hyper-drive and I try to retain as much as possible. We're to the point where most of the class is in Ukrainian and Lyu doesn't speak any English to me.

I look forward to the second when the tables turn and we only speak English! I basically help Lyu polish her English skills. I'm not teaching her English as much as sanding smooth some rough edges.

I spent a few hours going through files after my lesson. We're looking for some documents (everything is in Ukrainian and my head hurts most of the time) and so I'm tearing apart every file at the student center.

I also managed to finish sorting the file cabinet full of English resources. It's full of really good resources that I will never use, but which shouldn't be thrown away because someone else might use them in the future. It's a little frustrating to not be able to create your own system, but to just tinker with someone elses and hope that future people can understand it better after your changes.

I put the final touches on my sermon for tomorrow (really, I'll re-work a few things tomorrow, but it's finished enough that I could preach it right now and be satisfied)and sent out a few e-mails about Pilgrims.

I'm in the process of spring cleaning the apartment before David and Shannon return. I've been slowly working my way through the house - moving stuff out of a room, mopping and dusting, and then moving things back. I'll hit the "half-way mark" today!

After a relaxing meal and some TV, I went to Ukrainian language club. This was my first time, and I'm glad I went. It's a group of foreigners from all over the world, and Ukrainians who love their language and want to help people learn it better.

I made some new friends and had a chance to practice my Ukrainian.

Mongolia video

2010-06-13T02:31:00.000-07:00

Congregational Development in Mongolia from Sushil Bhujbal on Vimeo.

So this is the new GBGM video about Mongolia. I was lucky enough to be in Mongolia when they came to film, and free enough to be able to help the cameraman every day. He like photography better and would often let me take video while he took photos. So, some of this video footage is very dear to my heart. I love these people and miss this place very much.

GBGM video

2010-06-12T06:50:00.000-07:00

Leadership Development In Ukraine from Sushil Bhujbal on Vimeo.

This video is awesome. It's one of the four areas of focus videos. Tomorrow I'll post the video from Mongolia (the one I helped film.) Today, enjoy the video of the ministry I'm working with right now.

How you can join me

2010-06-10T01:25:00.000-07:00

To Contact me:

The following address is the P.O. Box in L’viv. This address is fine for sending cards and letters (please do not send packages to this address, they will be pillaged).

Michael Airgood
c/o David and Shannon Goran

a/c 7998
Lviv – 8
Lviv, Ukraine 79008

This address is my physical home address. This is where I would prefer you send anything bigger than a letter. It is still not a good idea to use the Ukrainian postal service, David and Shannon recommend that you use MEEST. We have used MEEST before and they are a reliable shipping company with very comparable rates. You can visit their website here.

Michael Airgood
c/o David and Shannon Goran
Voronoho 11/3
Lviv 79000
UKRAINE

My cell phone number in Ukraine is 8093 6789362.

If you would like a cheaper option, you are welcome to contact me on SKYPE, a free internet telephone service whose website you can visit here. Follow the directions to set up your own account. I talk with my parents at least weekly for free through Skype.

My "Skype" name is michael.airgood

You can send e-mails to mairgood@tfc.edu

I also blog theological thoughts and other reflections on life at Barneyisfat.

Here is a list of things I can't get here, but really enjoy receiving:
Brown Sugar
Ranch Seasoning (the students rave about ranch and we are the ranch tree)
Crunchy Peanut Butter
Cinnamon Toast Crunch

Let me know when you send something so we can keep an eye out for it. Thanks!

How you can support me:

Please pray for me and the ministry here in L'viv. Every day is different, and I can use all the prayer I can get.

If you would like to support the entire General Board of Global Ministries missionary community through a covenant relationship with me, my Advance number is #3021393

If you would like to directly support the student center and the ministry there, you can make an on-line donation through the Advance. You can do that here.

100% of all gifts given through the Advance directly support the mission and ministries of GBGM.

Thank you for your continued support of my time serving overseas as a missionary.

What I'm doing

2010-06-10T01:15:00.000-07:00

I am a General Board of Global Ministries standard support missionary.

I serve in day to day life as a United Methodist missionary, the dream job I've been working toward since I was twelve years old.

I was invited by David and Shannon Goran to come and be an intern for their ministry in L'viv Ukraine and served as a volunteer for a year. I'm currently in my first three year term.

It has been a huge blessing to be part of this ministry and working with these students. I teach English, preach occasionally, work on leadership development, and help people connect in ministries which speak to them.

Our weekly student worship averages around 40 people. Two new United Methodist congregations have been planted through the ministry in L'viv.

Where I'm at

2010-06-10T01:03:00.000-07:00

I live and work in L'viv, Ukraine.

Ukraine is between Russia and Poland and borders a half-dozen other nations and a beautiful sea. L'viv is on the far western side, only an hour from Poland. At various times L'viv has been an Austrian, Polish, Soviet, and Ukrainian city.

L'viv is a beautiful, ancient city in Western Ukraine. It functions as the cultural and religious capital of the country. In most cities in Ukraine, Russian is the dominant language. Ukrainian is used exclusively in L'viv and other western cities.

Molod do Isusa is an inter-confessional student organization just one block from the state university. You can view a video about the ministry created by GBGM.

Leadership Development In Ukraine from Sushil Bhujbal on Vimeo.

I'm in my first three year term as a GBGM standard support missionary.

I have eaten sour cream at least once, every day, for the last 3 months - it might be the national food.

2010-06-09T06:28:00.000-07:00

For four years of college we were taught that to be a good missionary we had to love the people who worked with. I'm not entirely certain this is true.

Don't get me wrong. I love the people I work with ... at least most of them. 99% of the people I interact with on a daily basis are outstanding. The students are fun and trendy. They work hard and play hard. Their lives are a reflection of God's love and in their company I feel the presence of God.

But every so often I end up face to face with a truly miserable person. He or she usually works for the government. Like a sweet-sacherine grin doing a headstand, their frowns manage to take up the vast majority of their faces.

Sometimes they manage to show up at our doors. They always want to complain about everything that's happening. Or they're here to shut off our gas.

Spending time with fun people is great - but I strongly believe that the real ministry begins when you don't really like someone. I have a hunch that ministry is the same everywhere - but overseas and in youth ministry you can't pronounce people's names. When you have to genuinely work at loving people you've discovered real ministry.

Whew!

2010-06-07T02:54:00.000-07:00

My parents made it home safely! Their first big trip is officially over and they are looking forward to their next one.

I essentially took the week off while they were here ... and after my week of vacation, I am exhausted. Haha. We had a really great time visiting the city and introducing them to my friends. I think they've learned to plan longer periods of time for visiting overseas places.

I hope you enjoyed the pictures we posted. I might find a few more of their trip to put up here.

At the student center we're having a Pancake Night which I'm pretty excited about.

Some friends and I got a car REALLY stuck in the mud last night while returning from a lake. It was a pretty rough situation and after I've processed it I might write about it.

Because I never post pictures of me ....

2010-05-31T23:13:00.000-07:00

This is another shot at the meat market. My parents are just fascinated by the whole concept.

Mom and I in the city center.

Bogdan is one of my best students.

At dad's favorite "restaurant" in L'viv. It's a full time job keeping him away from Micky D's.

Jim & Debbie Airgood's L'viv Adventure (presented in pictures)

2010-05-31T02:05:00.000-07:00

Mom and Dad experienced the open air market on their first full day in L'viv. This is the meat section. No, it is not refridgerated.

We went to a masons themed restaurant for dinner. It's quite an experience.

Mom and Dad love the outdoor cafes around L'viv. This one is in front of one of the oldest cathedrals.

About 8 of us went for a nice meal at a Turkish restaurant.

Tourist Season

2010-05-30T04:35:00.000-07:00

It's official. Jim & Debbie Airgood are international travelers!!!

On Thursday morning they left home and arrived in L'viv Friday night a little before midnight. Dad can't even remember all the means of travel they experienced in one trip (car, plane, van, walking, bus, metro, train, taxi for those keeping score.) But they made it safely and are enjoying L'viv.

In their Ukrainian lesson they learned several helpful words. They've met a number of my friends and look forward to worshipping at L'viv UMC today. They've walked more in these last 3 days than in the previous month! They're having fun. Mom has only cried thrice since exitting the plane.

They're doing well and experiencing a lot. I'll post some pictures soon.

Annual Conference 2010

2010-05-25T23:15:00.000-07:00

I'm back from the Ukraine Annual Conference 2010. It was a pleasant 3 days of meetings, worship, and social networking within the Ukrainian United Methodist church.

I'm on the left in the back row in this picture. Bishop Hans Vaxby is in the center surrounded by the newest elders and probationary members.

As opposed to the annual conferences I'm used to, the budget of Ukraine UMC is one page long and discussion lasted for 6 minutes.

All in all it was a great time and I look forward to spending more time with the new people I met there.

Just a little video for you to enjoy and share with friends.

2010-05-24T03:14:00.000-07:00

Majdanek

2010-05-16T13:31:00.000-07:00

I arrived at Majdanek (my-dan-ek) concentration camp, becuase of a time zone error, a little before it officially opened. The gates were open and I went in. In the morning, nuns from the seminary across the street come to pray and they were leaving. The young woman who was posted at the front office sized me up as I entered too early. She asked, in Polish, where I was from. Polish is close enough to Ukrainian - and I've become good enough at guessing - to know what she was asking. I answer in English. She apologized, and then laughed a little. She told me she would go ahead and open everything up for me - which was very nice of her.

The whole experience is emotionally devestating. I've read books and seen films about the holocaust, but to be present on the grounds where the atrocity actually occured is an intense experience. This is the the room where the guards would stand to watch while the gas was pumped into the gas chambers. Standing in this little room, I began to sympathize with Holocause deniers - because that simply seems to be the only explanation that could cover the evil and make it go away. This couldn't be real ... could it?

It's the faces that haunt most effectively. On one wall hang dozens of pictures of guards, orderlies, doctors, and commanders who oversaw the concentration camp. On the opposing wall hang photos of hundreds of pictures of victims: jews, homosexuals, polish, women, childen, doctors, lawyers, artists, bricklayers, escapees, liberated, murdered. If you were to take down the photographs and shuffle them together you could never sort them back out again. The jewish doctor killed at Majdanek looks just the same as the commanding SS officer who oversaw his murder. The toys and religious items manage to pack a double punch.

One building contains 250,000 shoes found on the grounds of Majdanek. They line the walls in fenced containers. Children's shoes and ladies-high-heels. Workers boots and summer sandals. I recounted briefly being upset that morning for walking with a pebble in my shoe I just couldn't shake - I felt a tremendous amount of shame for the comfortable life style in the presence of this monument to human courage and catastrophe.

Sometimes I didn't want to walk any further. In the back of the camp there is a crematorium and I didn't want to go inside. I didn't want to face the true evil of the human condition. Each crematorium furnace had a sliding plate the exact size of a body. These were truly built with only one purpose in mind. After circling the whole camp, the final sight is an old Soviet monument. Under a large rock dome rest the ashes of thousands of Majdanek victims.

This is a lesson from history which I hope future generations will never learn from firsthand experience.

All aboard the Pirate Ship!

2010-05-16T02:40:00.000-07:00

I had flirted with the idea of taking some cigarettes to Poland with me. Apparently you can multiply your money by a factor of 10. A pack of cigarettes that costs 30 cents in Ukraine goes for over $3 in EU Poland. I needed to cross the border for a day for visa-related reasons.

I flirted lightly – no kissing or conversation, just extended eye contact from across the room – knowing that legally I could profit enough for a nice meal out and with only smuggling a case I could make enough to cover my whole trip to Lublin and back. I decided against it of course, morals and such.

When I got on the bus I noticed the woman next to me had a few packs of cigarettes. I smiled politely to try and say, “Yes, I also had considered such a plan.” …

Apparently I had not.

Within a few miles of the bus station the woman next to me began opening her bags. She had dozens of cartons of cigarettes. Literally thousands of dollars worth of smuggled goods. And so did everyone else on the bus.

With the exception of a handful of other young people – everyone on the bus had dozens of cartons of cigarettes! Everyone began taping packs of cigarettes together and filling socks and pantyhose with cigs. Like Santas-little-elfs-gone-street they began stuffing every crevasse, crack, and cushion of the bus with tobacco products.

My seat-mate was clearly the captain of the ship. This was her operation and the other women were her minions.

As we got closer to the border, outfits started getting larger. Packs were taped to every surface area on the body. The woman next to me fit 25 packs of cigarettes on EACH LEG! Layers and layers of clothing covered thousands of packs of cigarettes. Even as we were crossing the border tape was flying to hide ever more product.

The Polish authorities said that our bus looked suspicious and that if we forfeited 100 packs they would let us through. The women thought this was a trap and everyone claimed there were no cigarettes on board.

So they ordered everyone off the bus to search us. Amazingly – they only found cigarettes on one woman; she had so many packs on her legs that she couldn’t bend her knees to get off the bus. But, they found a lot of cigarettes hidden on the bus.

This is a picture of the Polish police taking a bag full of dozens of cartons of cigarettes.

Surprisingly, the authorities missed some of the packs hidden on the bus. When it was said and done and the tape had been removed, the woman next to me had 12 cartons of cigarettes! My short, 200 mile, 6 hour bus ride ended up taking over 10 hours because of the time spent at the Polish border.

I have ridden the Pirate ship and all I can say is good riddance it's over!

Change the World from the other side

2010-05-09T01:18:00.001-07:00

In the Ukrainian city of L'viv, the United Methodist congregation celebrated it's four month anniversary by participating in Change the World Sunday.

Tanya passed out flowers to women while Andriy gave children and teenagers small toys. Pastor Lyubomir carried his toddler son on his shoulders and they greeted people together. People were often surprised at the nice gift from strangers. More than a few people asked if we were serious and one man even tried to pay us for the flower. We passed out nice scripture cards with information about the church.

In L'viv, Ukraine, the United Methodist church proved that we change the world one person at a time. One heart at a time. One smile at a time.

Tanya Savchynska holds a sign which reads Change the World in Ukrainian (Zminimo Svete)

A day in my life

2010-05-07T11:24:00.000-07:00

I like to start off my day with a healthy balanced breakfast. Or, failing that, I grub on some Cinnamon Crunch Toast my awesome family mails to me. I'm on my last box if anyone is looking for an excuse to go to the Post Office.

This is my street. The building at the end of this alley is the apartment I'm living in. Isn't this city beautiful?

This old man walks a long distance to get to a covered area where he begs for change. He's very endearing.

This is my first English class of the day. As part of class this Thursday we watched a few minutes of Monk, the USA original series about an OCD detective. Then the students pretended to be his assistant and wrote letters explaining why they liked their job or why they would have to quite.

A day (continued)

2010-05-06T01:16:00.000-07:00

Skype keeps me connected to the people back home. Here I'm showing mom the student center.

This is my second class of the day. We also did the Monk project, along with working on very difficult th sounds.

This Thursday I preached at Pilgrims worship service. I'm really learning to enjoy preaching.

Steps.

2010-05-03T12:30:00.000-07:00

In the grocery store the egg lady mocks me openly. My vegetable lady only speaks a price and nothing more. The flour, sugar, and spice ladies always seem to be so upset that I make their day longer. The meat woman always tries to haggle a price and I get so confused that I want to hide. My milk woman always tries to make an extra Grieven by selling me the expensive brand - which is funny because I always say no and get the cheaper brand anyway. The toilet paper ladies are displeased that I take so long and always buy the cheapest toilet paper. But the egg lady laughs loudly when I approach. She's large and in charge. Her gold toothed grin smiles broadly in my presence. I prefer open mockery to outright dismissal - ALWAYS. She laughs at the way I pronounce my numbers. She laughs as I try and do the math. She chuckles when I give her exact change shouting "молодьец." "Good for you." She says it in a foreign accent like when white people say "Herro" to Japanese people. She outright cackles when I give her the wrong amount of money - slipping money back into my hands. Her hand has an old, old tattoo. Maybe it's just a bruise, but where her rolled up cuff meets her skin there appears to be another old, old tattoo. I love her laughter. If she's one of the survivors, and my clumsy Ukrainian skills gives her one ounce of happiness she can laugh all day.

And on my way to work I pass the place where the ugliest crows in the world seem to always roost. The homeless there look no better. The tallest one reads every book that people throw out, or at least it appears that he reads every book. Perhaps he is brilliant, perhaps he is just crazy. The oldest woman seems to move so slowly. She may be in her 70s or even as young as 50. Life ages everyone differently, it seems.

In Kriva Lipa, a courtyard named after a big shade tree, teenagers and people who act like teenagers sit under the tree and smoke and drink at noon. Everyone always seems to be sitting too close to everyone else for my comfort. Girls and boys share tongues for hours upon hours. People have weird hair and orange pants and Andrij and I make vague plans to go and sit in the courtyard some day to meet these people. Some day.

In the center square the old people gather like moth to flame. Old men sit and play chess like it's 1985. Sometimes an older adult will begin to sing and soon others gather around. Their circle emits the most haunted songs the soul could sing. The woman to my right is clearly well trained in Opera, but the woman leading songs is clearly not. The men look like Gorbachev and other Soviet heroes. One man has glasses so big and thick that he could have traveled to the moon wearing only them for protection. As the circle grows I try to step out of the way. They sing in Russian about the beloved motherland, and most of our students don't have the same warmth and affection for Russia.

At McDonalds the young people with disposable income dispose of it. Their skinny jeans and designer tops let the world know that they have arrived. The rest of us eat dollar menu hamburgers and 25 cent ice-cream cones. My frumpy sweatshirt and jeans that are now two sizes too big let the world know that I don't care what they think of me.

I've begun wearing a pedometer. I'm averaging 15,000 steps a day - which puts me in the category of "very active" and I wanted to share some of those steps with you.

Very active seems to sum it up nicely.

2010-04-29T13:08:00.000-07:00

He always seems to ask a question about the English language that I simply can't answer. Maybe he's read an English language idiom in a soviet-era textbook that he wants to confirm, perhaps he wants to know how to pronounce a word he doesn't know how to spell, or maybe he just wants confirmation that he's using a phrase right when he clearly isn't.

I never really know how to respond when he asks these questions. If he wasn't so persistent, perhaps I could change the subject. But it never seems to work that way. He's always in class, and the more I get to know him the more I genuinely enjoy his personality. He looks older than he is, I think. I assume he's a few years older than me - but I really don't know for sure.

He always seems to have a new friend from a foreign land. He introduces me to people from all over the planet. In a mono-culture like Ukraine, it's a little strange for people to so easily connect with foreigners. Even in a melting pot like the US we generally stick to people of our own culture.

He says that he's not really interested in religion and that he won't be until he sees a miracle. I have to believe that this is a cop out. I think that God is pulling at his heart and he will say anything to run from that.

So, I'll keep on answering unanswerable English questions and praying that one day he will want to learn more about something more substantial - that one day he will believe in Jesus.

Gulaiyu

2010-04-26T13:28:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I like nothing more than to just go outside and take a walk. Slavic languages have a very distinct verb for this activity. The Urbandictionary alternative is "to hang out." Most young people live in small apartments with their extended families and it just isn't practical to have people over.

So they go for a walk.

Most of my friends live far from downtown and if I want to go for a walk at night I have to go alone. I'm always surprised at the large number of people in a city. I can walk for hours without bumping into anyone I know - and I know a considerable number of people for only having been here two months!

Spring is in the air and the city is beautiful. Flowers are blooming, young couples are enjoying each others company, and produce is getting cheaper.

I wish I could just sit down and talk with people. Nothing would make a walk better than to share it with other people.

2010-04-25T22:39:00.001-07:00

L'viv UMC was featured in an article about Change the World Sunday!

Read the article here

Change the World Sunday

2010-04-25T12:19:00.000-07:00

These are some photos from L'viv UMCs celebration of the United Methodist Change the World Sunday. I made the sign they are holding up ... I only made one spelling mistake - which I covered up with a patch and made it look like I meant to do it! Haha. We handed out toys and flowers along with a nice scripture card including the information for L'viv UMC. It was a lot of fun and people REALLY took notice of the cards we gave them.

Staying busy

2010-04-25T00:59:00.000-07:00

David made it safely back to the states - after a very stressful week in limbo. The baby hasn't arrived yet, but Shannon is full term and kiddo could come at any moment. I've got posterboard ready to make a bid "It's a boy/girl!" sign for the student center. As soon as kiddo is born and we find out which gender it is I will post it - as well as the super secret name they have for him/her.

I'm staying busy here. Next week is a testing week - which means I will be super busy and will spend all of my time at the student center. Last time we had fewer students than we had hoped - so pray that we get a good number of students registered for the courses.

Friday and Saturday are my days off - which just means I have time to finish everything I haven't had the time/motivation to work on during the work week! On Saturday night my friends took me to meet a magician and he performed card tricks for us. Last night Lily and I went to a Masons themed restaurant. It was really great and I look forward to taking my parents there!

In the near future: May 10th a group of students is traveling to Kiev to enjoy the Passion Tour - the students are super excited about it. I'm preaching a few times in the next few months. In mid-May I'm taking a trip to Poland for Visa reasons - but I plan on visiting Majden concentration camp and museum. I will be attending the Ukraine Annual conference in May. My parents are coming the first week of June! They've never traveled overseas and I look forward to sharing this beautiful city with them. Whew! I'm getting tired just looking over my schedule! It should be a lot of fun, though.

Last Thursday I preached at Pilgrims - the inter-confessional student worship service - and had a great response. During the sermon the drama team performed a skit and it was excellent. After the sermon, during the prayer time, a number of students came up for prayer and one girl even dedicated her heart to God. It was a huge blessing.

Today is Change the World Sunday - and L'viv UMC is taking part. We are passing out flowers, toys, and free hugs to change the world! I'm so excited.

I hope that everything is going well for you as well.

L'viving it up.

2010-04-24T12:49:00.000-07:00

I walked around L'viv and took pictures. These are two of my favorites.

Lilichka and I went to a theme restaurant and drank milkshakes. The restaurant is a city secret and you have to have a membership card to get in.

People

2010-04-17T09:32:00.000-07:00

David enjoys the food prepared for Cooking with Jesus

The students eating together.

The students praying for David before he leaves.

The church charge conference.

Adorable

2010-04-17T09:22:00.000-07:00

This is Pastor Lyubimir and his son Adam.

Absolutely adorable.

He's the first child to attend worship at L'viv UMC.

The 400 Fund

2010-04-16T08:56:00.000-07:00

I grew up in a church with more than 100 years of history. Close to 150 years ago, Methodists in a neighboring town saw the need for a Methodist presence in the tiny village of Kane, PA. They sent resources, people, and even a pastor to the emerging community to ensure that the residents could know and grow closer to God. I realize that it is because of those men and women who lived in the 1860s that I call myself a United Methodist, and that ultimately I am a Christian.

The church in which I currently worship will celebrate it's 6 month anniversary in summer 2010. I work with a United Methodist student ministry in L'viv, Ukraine and in January of this year the long-time goal of planting a multi-generational church finally became a reality. Our average worship, 3 months after the first service was held, is 12 people. There is plenty of room for growth - like the tortoise says, "slow and steady wins the race."

This church represents to me, exactly what The 400 Fund is all about. The 400 fund is an attempt to fund the planting of 400 new United Methodist Congregations in 4 years outside of the United States.

A few months ago, at a time in my life when I was living on a very small cost of living stipend, I made a goal of giving $1 to each of these 400 churches. I was inspired by Mary Watson, a Georgia business woman who gave $1,000 for each of the new churches. At the time, $400 was more than half of my monthly stipend, but I came to the realization that for the thousands of people around the world who would become Christians through the planting of United Methodist churches my small gift could be life changing. I was thrilled when I met my goal and sent in my check.

I'm challenging you to support The 400 Fund. Set a personal goal, encourage your children to set a goal(one dime for each church is $40 - about what your child might pay for a new video game) get your Sunday School class involved, make an announcment at church, have a yard sale, do a fundraiser, or do whatever God puts on your heart. In 4 years we can plant 400 new congregations - and with that momentum, who knows how many we can plant in the years after. United Methodist can drop a check in their weekly offering plate made out to their home church with "Advance#400400" on the memo line or anyone can give on-line at GBGM's secure site for The Advance.

I, I celebrate the day

2010-04-16T08:27:00.000-07:00

These are the students of молодь до Ісуса (Molod do Isusa - Youth to Jesus) on top of Castle Hill after the sunrise service. Greeting the morning with singing is always a blessing. These students and young adults are fantastic and I look forward to sharing the next several months with them.

David Goran left for the US last night. He is currently in limbo -somewhere- because of the dust from the volcanic eruption in Iceland. My responsibilities increase tenfold in the Gorans' abscence and I'm grateful for their trust.

My English classes are underway. This was my first attempt at starting an English course from scratch (no curriculum, no book, no administrative person, etc) and I'm not terribly disappointed. There are fewer students than I would like, but I realize that this means the English class will be effective (small class size really does improve your chance of learning a foreign language) and hopefully they will tell people about it. I'm going to start advertising for next months course within the next week or two.

Everything is going well, and I'm grateful for all of your prayers.

Peace, Michael.

Testing Week

2010-04-08T00:26:00.000-07:00

Hi friends,

Just making a prayer request. This week is testing week for prospective students in my English Course. Please pray that a lot of new students will find their way to the student center and "Youth to Jesus" through this class. Particularly, we are hoping to have some interest from 1st year students.

Thanks for continuing to lift me up!

Michael.

Church Fellowship event

2010-04-05T11:10:00.000-07:00

The church was invited out to a member's house in the countryside. So, first we waited for the bus for over an hour.

In this photo, a very bored Yura Leskiev and David Goran practice their acrobatics.

Oleg's mother prepared an amazing multi-course meal. The meal included the most amazing pickled vegetables ever.

Here we are eating together. It's good to be the church.

And after the meal we all enjoyed a nice food-induced coma.

Hope everyone else had a terrific Easter.

Easter festivities

2010-04-04T15:08:00.000-07:00

We ate Easter Dinner with Erika (missing from photo) and her family. Her grandmother is just a hoot and reminds me of my friends in the Curtis Trogdon Wesley Sunday School class!

This is the altar table at the 3.5 month old L'viv UMC. I've unexpectedly landed in the position of Altar Guild. Haha. I'll try my best until Shannon gets back.

After church we went to a huge park where people do very traditional Ukrainian things - like play games. This game is a hybrid of Red Rover Red Rover and American Football. Basically two teams line up and hold on to each other as they run toward each other and try to push the other team back. It's full-contact Shove-of-War.

This is one of the beautiful Greek-Catholic churches inside the park.

The Blessing of the Baskets

2010-04-04T15:06:00.000-07:00

In Ukraine, people take a basket of food to be blessed by the priest on the day before Easter. David and I were invited by one of our students, so we tried our best to pack a basket.

In this photo, Erika and her mother are repacking our basket the correct way. They enjoyed a good laugh at our attempt.

Everyone stands in a big circle and places their baskets on the ground. The priest comes around and blesses the baskets and sprinkles them with water.

It's exciting to see whole families participating in Christian traditions.

The cloth that is placed over the basket reads, "Christ is Risen."

My Easter Egg

2010-04-03T06:12:00.000-07:00

This is the second Ukrainian Egg I made ... they're so much fun.

Cooking with Jesus

2010-04-03T06:08:00.000-07:00

Preparing food for Cooking with Jesus

David shows them how it's done!

The menu was baked fish, orange rice, and carrot cake with buttercream frosting.

Doesn't this look great?