The view from our window after the first snow of the season in Bila Tserkva
It's finally starting to feel like winter as we had our first snow this month and we have begun to see Christmas decorations for sale. Christmas isn't celebrated until January 7th, but we're thinking about getting a head start anyway. We have already started planning for a small Christmas presentation by the children in our church. Joshua will have to recite his part in Ukrainian and Edna will even have a part that she will have to recite as well. We are also planning to have the children sing a few Ukrainian Christmas songs so it should be an interesting time for all of us.
Dominic, Joshua, Kristina, and Lusya at church.
Dominic celebrated his 15th birthday this month, although he refused to let us have a party for him and he has become increasingly camera shy. Now that he's 15, he prefers to be behind the camera rather than in front of it. He's actually taken some really great photos. I guess our little boy has grown up.
Nastya and Maria singing at church in "the lounge".
One of the interesting things about our church is that we don't have a permanent building or room to meet in. Our friend Fedir, who is a deacon in the church, works at the palace of culture (similar to what would be considered a community center in the United States) and the director allows us to use the rooms there for free. We store what we need for church in Fedir's office and we usually use nearby rooms for church and children's ministry. That is of course if the rooms are available. Our Thursday night English Club works the same way. They give us whatever rooms aren't being used as long as there is one. We can't complain since we don't have to pay rent, but occasionally we end up in what I like to call the lounge room. It's basically a small bar complete with flashing colored lights and a disco ball that's available to be rented out for parties. Not many people can boast that they get to preach God's Word in a lounge in Ukraine. (Not that anyone would ever want to admit that, much less boast about it.)
Joshua, Bohdan, and Judah at the Bible College.
This month we were able to make a trip by bus to the Calvary Chapel Bible College in Hungary and also spend a few days with Edna's grandmother in Croatia. Dominic and Joshua got to see all their old friends and so did we. You can read about our time at the Bible College by clicking HERE.
Baka (grandmother in Croatian) only lives two hours from the college and was thrilled to see us. She was in remarkably good health for being eighty-four years old and we were so grateful to be able to spend time with her. Ukrainian and Croatian are enough alike that we were able to communicate with Baka enough to get by. You can read about our time with her by clicking HERE.
When we got home from our trip to Hungary and Croatia, we were surprised and touched by how our neighbor Olya reacted. With tears in her eyes, she told us how much she had missed us and didn't like being alone. She was so happy to see us and said that we were like her children to her.
In the past, we had given Olya a Russian Bible because it was all we had to give her at the time. While Olya understands Russian, her first language was Ukrainian and so she naturally prefers it. We had always wanted to give her a Ukrainian Bible, but all the ones we had were of a print too small for her to read. This month I came across a Ukrainian Bible in large print and gave it to her. She was so happy to have a Bible that she could easily read, but there was only one problem. She told us that it was sometimes difficult for her to understand because no one had ever explained it to her. With wide eyes, Edna and I asked her if she would like us to come over and have Bible studies together. She agreed and we are looking forward to exploring God's Word together soon.
Fedir was the MC for an event at the palace of culture, so Joshua got a backstage pass for the performance.
University English Club
Both of our English Clubs are turning out to be great ways for us to reach out and get to know people. We are continually blessed by all the new friends that we have met and by how God is working in all of it. We are grateful for what we hope will be life long friendships through these clubs.
The University English Club is a joint ministry with our friends Ruslan and Anya. We are having fun getting to know them and Dominic and Joshua have fun watching their boy Nikita on Monday evenings while we are at the university. You can read more about our University English Club by clicking HERE.
I love this picture of Nikita all bundled up for his trip home from our place.
Edna and Maxime in our kitchen. We hope that he will spend the New Year's Holiday with us again this year.
We couldn't accomplish any of this without God's leading and your help. Thank you for all of your prayers and support. We are excited to be witnesses to the effect that Jesus Christ and the Gospel have on people's lives here in Ukraine. Each day is a blessing for us.
Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ. - Romans 10:17
"The Lord Jesus Christ suffered in the place and stead of sinners and is able to save all who trust Him. Why, this is the most blessed fact that men were ever told to believe. It is the most suitable, the most comforting, the most divine truth that was ever set before mortal minds." - Charles Spurgeon
Нехай Бог Благословить Україну
(Let God Bless Ukraine)
(Let God Bless Ukraine)
Prayer Requests
• That God would provide for Ruslan and Anya as they maintain relationships with their supporters in the United States.
• For a skilled worship leader at church.
• That the churches we met with in America would keep us (Ukraine) on their hearts and minds and in their prayers.
• That God would direct us in planning the English Clubs we are involved in.
• That God would continue to heal Edna's kidneys (she is still having unexplained pain).
• Pray that Maxime would continue to grow in Christ. That nothing would hinder him from coming to church on Sunday, or being able to stay with us here at home.
• That God would raise up others outside (or inside) of Ukraine to serve in Bila Tserkva.
• That God would help us to form relationships with local evangelical churches.
• For the planning of our Children's Christmas Presentation at church.
• For continued friendships that lead to Christ being made known as a personal Savior.
Support can be sent to:
Calvary SLO
P.O. Box 1463
San Luis Obispo, CA 93405
With an attached note: "For Greg and Edna Silva"
In Christ,
Greg, Edna, Dominic, and Joshua
Our blog: On Second Thought
Our photos: We Desire Him
