On the road again

This week Julie and I will be on the road sharing about the work in Kyrgyzstan and the impact that your support has provided, reiterating that fact that you are a vital part of all that we do.  Sunday the 24th  we will be at New Life Church in Santa Rosa Beach FL for two services.   

We always love the opportunity to connect with people in person, so we will be in the area until Thursday.  If you would like to meet up with us for a coffee and visit, fb me or email to actofkindness127@gmail.com.  

If you are available, don't forget about Turning point Tuesday. This is always an incredibly powerful service, one you don't want to miss. 

Next up , Thursday we will be heading to Cincinnati Ohio .  Saturday morning Jan 31 I will be sharing at a men's breakfast , then you will find us at Makers church .     We will be in town a couple days so again if you would like to plan a get together, contact us on fb or email actofkindness127@gmail.com 

  Sunday Morning Service  February 1, 8:45–10:45am

8290 BATAVIA PIKE CINCINNATI, OH 45244

This Church is a huge support to the ministry, more then we could ever express, so it will be a great joy for us to visit and share. 

In March we will be driving to Virginia with a few stops along the way down and back .. another opportunity to connect with some incredible friends and suporters.. stay tuned for more details. 

actofkindness - Amazon gift registry

As we are preparing to head back to Kyrgyzstan this spring , I have created a wish list for some of the things we would like to bring with us. 

 Amazon needs Registry

This spring we have a more direct flight that is slightly more expensive , but it allows for 2 checked bags each .. something we have not had for a couple years .  This will give us an extra 200 lbs and an opportunity to get stocked up with some of the items we need .    Any items purchased from this wish list will be shipped to my home in Canada and we will be able to pack them over with us .  

As items are purchased, Amazon will indicate how many left that we would like .  

"Please do not forget my friends".

When our friend Genya died, His wife called us and said that he had left something for us . 

It was the list of families in the village who needed coal, and what their individual difficulties were .  on the out side of the envelope it said  

 "Please do not forget my friends". 

A couple of years later we are still honoring his wishes , and what is special is that his wife now comes with us on deliveries and has a list of her own.  She knows the issues of everyone in the village and keeps track of when and how much coal each family received  .. 

We had a few more helpers on deliveries today. A couple of young volunteers joined in as we loaded the truck. 

 

Winter can be long and hard at the best of times , but when you live in an abandoned building it is even harder. 

They are all so thankful for the support.  We have been doing our best to keep ahead of the need, but it has been difficult.  As the winter rages on we seem to have a list that continues to grow. 

We delivered to about 20 people today , and this brings out coal barn back to empty.  Any help with coal funds would be greatly appreciated at this time.

 

Unexpected set back

We have had two major setbacks at the farm in the last couple weeks .  I Had not mentioned them yet as we still have coal and tuitions not to mention booking our flights back that we were raising funds for . But I do need to bring this up with hopes of being able to rectify this by the beginning of April when we go.   New years eve there was a bad wind and a tree came down on the power lines beside the transformer .  It did not just take the lines down, it some how managed to effect the  the current and a serge came through the lines 

.. everything electric on our section of the grid was hit.  lots of smaller things were ok , but we lost some major appliances .. 

Bekah showing off our new fridge in 2010 

On the main farm we lost two refrigerators a freezer and a microwave , At the guest house we lost a refrigerator, and at the shop and Sergeys house we lost two refrigerators and a computer. but one of the biggest losses was the washing machine and dryer.   The total damages come to $2500 .   We will try to limp along until April when I come and can bring the cash to replace these before the summer season when the guest house is open and its too hot out to leave food out .  

                      

       That was not the only bit hit .                                                  There is a corn field behind where the farm bees are .. Last month the farmer sent a drone up to spray the corn so it would dry faster.  The drone came to close and the wind was in the wrong direction, and they managed to Kill ALL 32 hives of bees.  This is some what devastating for us . Not only is this an income source , but it is a great learning experience for the kids.  Some have even invested their own savings in families of bees.  Our Mountain bees are still doing fine, they are far from any fields .  This spring we will relocate the hives from the farm to the mountain, away from the irresponsible farmers .  The cost to replace the families will be $3500. 

$3500 is a familiar number ..   That turns out to be exactly what our flights back to Kyrgyzstan will cost us.  and that's the amount I knew we were going to need to raise.    So just like that , we need to raise $9500.   So I guess for the next little while I will know exactly what current  needs will be when asked .   Please consider helping us with this set back.  There is a link to donate on the top right side of the blog.    





 

Blessed to be a blessing

6 am Julie we're up to start the fires for the ploff.    

 

I can remember as a kid going winter camping .. at 20 below I would be wide awake at 6am eager to get up and move around and get warmed up.   

 

I thought about that as I fought with myself to get up out of a nice warm bed . 

Between the dark and the smoke and steam, I might as well have had a blindfold on... But I have made ploff a few times so I pulled it off.

We made a double batch in two Kazans just to be sure to have enough 

Yesterday I had made Borsolk so that was a hit with the ploff. 

Along with the Kyrgyzstan food we also served sandwiches and snacks 

We had several stops around the city , one of them being a small in a moment.   

At one of the stops a young man who looked like my Misha and sounded like him, and was so incredibly polite.   What was amazing was he was so happy and brought a smile to everyone's face.  

We were blessed to spend the day with Scott Couper and his team at Street Level Advocacy.  I can rest knowing that some one is making such an impact here on the streets in Peterborough, but that does not let us off the hook , we all need to do our part when we can. 

We are home and warmed up, and have had a nice hot bath .. something our new friends will not get tonight.   

Lord we ask that you would set their feet on the right path.  Led them, guide them and reveal yourself to them, and thank you for Scott and his incredible team who on the streets daily showing your love. 
And thank you for allowing us to be part of today's blessing. 
 

Being an answer to someone's prayers

Today was a humbling experience for the guys .  Today they were used by God as a direct and timely answer to one families  prayers.  Actually I am sure it was more then one family but we don't always get to see the impact.  A few families into their deliveries , they came to a family that had NO coal, NO electricity, and all the last of there food was on an open fire outside where they all gathered to keep warm .. All they could do was to pray for Gods immediate provision.  He did not disappoint.   Here is the humbling part .   The family insisted that the boys stay for lunch .  They took the last of all that they had and shared it with us.   Sometimes we think that we are just not in a position to give .. but there is a lesson to be learned from this family when it comes to giving. One of you  gave $80 so that we could bring them this coal, and this gave them an opportunity to give.  They have so little but they still give.   It would be so fun to be able to take them on a shopping spree and then to top it off, get their electricity turned back on, but maybe that's just me dreaming. 

On another note, I received some more reports from the Blind society Christmas .   When I say Blind society, that is not exactly accurate because the same people also care for the def community . Yesterday they had a party for 150 people from that community.   

They were so excited , they gave a roaring ovation to show their appreciation .. be sure to turn up your volume .  

Well in their hearts they were making a lot of noise 

 

Blind society Christmas

 These last couple days have been full of  such blessings for so many kids who are connected to the blind society.  Here are a few photos to give you an idea how the special day went.. As I scrolled through these photos I recognize kids we have supported over the years .  What brings extra meaning to this is that on the years that we have not been able to sponsor this event, it simply did not happen . But this year it happened .   Thank you every one who helped by sponsoring this event. 

A great day with the Blind Society.

Today was an incredible day as the children from the Blind society has an opportunity to celebrate Christmas. Today they were not forgotten. They wanted me to express their appreciation. 

 Over the next few days there will be more visits to the ones that were not able to make it out to the party. I will share those pictures as they come in .  Thank you again to all those who sponsored this great day . 

Blind Society Christmas in the works

The room is rented and the gift bags are packed and the kids at the Blind society are getting so excited about the party you guys have sponsored .. I will have some photos of the big day shortly. 

The boys have been busy again bagging coal ready to take out on deliveries .  we have had a hard time keeping up this year .  The wait list continues to grow despite the deliveries being made.  

They will be back out on deliveries tomorrow. 

Its not too late to bye a lump of coal for that hard to shop for person .   $80 will buy coal for a family . 



 

Find the Joy

As we move into the Christmas season , I was thinking how great it is that we can bring Joy into peoples lives .. At the beginning of covid when we were not able to travel we had such discouragement , but we hung on to the Joy that we had, and even made this sign that is still on our porch today.  But maybe I was wrong , we do not choose Joy, we can choose Happiness , but JOY is a gift given to us. 

Last week I had a couple things that reminded me that Joy is not a man made or controlled occurrence.  It is a GIFT from God.  Our pastor shared last Sunday how there is a distinct difference between Joy and Happiness .. Happiness is a man made, but JOY is a gift from God.  We can be happy and have Joy , but at the same time we can be sad and still have the Joy .  As I was deliberating on this , we had a visitor stop by the house and out of the blue he shared an experience he had many years ago. 

He stopped in at a business that he often delt with. He always liked going there because the manager was a believer and was always so uplifting to be around.  While there the owner of the company stopped in and started tearing a strip off the manager and was nasty and belittling.  He was so abusive that even the secretaries started to cower and even left the room.  When it was all over and the owner left , the manager got up whistling a happy tune and started to go on with his day .  He then invited my friend home with him for supper .  My friend was concerned that it would be uncomfortable being there after seeing him treated so terribly.. but he did go home with him.  When he got home and dinner was served, he said grace and thanked God for such a Joy filled day.. My friend was totally shocked at how he still could find JOY.  That's when he realized that Joy Is DeVine, Happiness is mortal.  The preceding's of your day , good or bad can affect your happiness , but for those who love the Lord , there is the gift of JOY, and that can not be taken away. 

As I think more about this I have come to realize that we bring happiness when we are out doing things like delivering Coal . but I pray that through this action people will begin to question and then FIND THE JOY.   

That is my prayer this season , that through our actions people would noy only experience a bit of happiness, but that they would find the JOY .  That Joy is freely available for all ...

 Have you found the JOY ?