Hello everyone...I am alive! It's been one month since I've used the internet and I'm having a hard time typing, but I will do my best to update you all on what has been happening!
OVERVIEW of Khulo:
We just spent one month in this place called Khulo. It's a town, but also a region because there are many villages surrounding it. It was taken over by the Turkish about 300 years ago, and was freed sometime after that. Because of the Turkish influence, most of the people there are Muslim. But they are not very "hard" Muslims, most of them just have the name and keep some of the traditions, although there are some who are very strong. In the midst of all of that, there is a little orthodox church, and a priest who has started an orthodox school with quite a few students in attendance. So, there's sort of a religious transition happening. Many people aren't satisfied with Islam and are seeking the truth, seeking Jesus! And we had a part in that.
WHAT We Did in Khulo:
The first weeks that we were there we spent mostly building relationships. It really wasn't very difficult, because for a while we had people over almost every night! It was cool, exhausting and a great opportunity all at the same time! We also visited the mosque, the orthodox church and the orthodox school. And after we built relationships, we spent the rest of the time maintaining them! Our contact Mendia was (and still is!) a blessing from God! He has a large family and a lot of influence in Khulo, and so when we were with him, everything was okay! And God knew all of that too, because in the 3rd week of our time there, He prayed and gave His life to Jesus! There were also 2 other people who prayed (Mendia's mom and a girl named Shorena), and many more heard and saw what having a relationship with Jesus is really about. And it was way cool!
WHAT Is Next For Khulo:
I think this is just the start of what God is going to do in Khulo! But even the start is an amazing thing to see! When we first arrived, Mendia was very standoffish, and he seemed sort of worried about us. But after we were straightforward with him-- told him we weren't Jehovah's Witnesses and told him why we were really there-- and the more time he spent with us, our relationship with him grew! And in the last days he recounted all of that to us! He told us of his fear of us coming, and of his trouble relating to people anyways...but how we overcame all of that (or how GOD overcame all of that!). And we had a very sweet goodbye with him and his family. I really believe that Mendia and his family will participate largely in God's work in Khulo, and it's way exciting!
It's so hard to describe 30 days of living in a village and doing what we did, so know that this is only a brief account!
WHAT I Learned in Khulo:
SO, in addition to all of that I learned: how to wash all of my clothes by hand, how to very proficiently use a squatty potty and I also dropped a flashlight down one, how to run the "petchka" (wood-burning stove), how to make really good Turkish coffee, how to take a shower without a...shower and also experienced many things! I was very sick one night, but I won't into the details of that...just know that it was a totally new experience for me! Also, we went on a cable car...I think it is like the 2nd highest in Europe or something. Yeah, that was cool. Especially when it stopped right in the middle and we all were certain we were about to face death. But, praise the Lord, we didn't! The other day we hiked 6 kilometers (12 there and back) in the snow (like a lot of snow) to a village where we ate some amazing food! Oh, I got engaged to a 4 year old boy named Aleko (he's Mendia's nephew). And so many other things!
So needless to say, I've learned a lot and grown a lot and I'd love to show you some pictures, but I can't right now! Hopefully when I get back to Tbilisi!
AND NOW...I'm in Batumi in an internet cafe, the 2nd one for today actually. My friend Diana and I found the first one and I was doing fine, but then she said that some of the boys wanted to do drugs, so we left. And now I'm here!
Tomorrow morning at 8am, we're going to start traveling to Turkey. It will probably be around a 12-16 hour trip depending on how crossing the border goes, how many times we need to stop to use the bathroom and so on! But, we will be heading to Samsun where we will partner with a local church there.
While in Turkey, I will have the opportunity to use the internet...but I'm not sure how it will work out. Turkey is a closed country, meaning for example, that it is illegal for me to talk about any non-Muslim religion with anyone under the age of 18. And that also means that internet is not really secure there, and so I'm not sure how I will be able to communicate, I will have to see what happens and what the people at the church say!
But, if you don't hear from me for another month, please don't worry...just pray!
OVERVIEW of Khulo:
We just spent one month in this place called Khulo. It's a town, but also a region because there are many villages surrounding it. It was taken over by the Turkish about 300 years ago, and was freed sometime after that. Because of the Turkish influence, most of the people there are Muslim. But they are not very "hard" Muslims, most of them just have the name and keep some of the traditions, although there are some who are very strong. In the midst of all of that, there is a little orthodox church, and a priest who has started an orthodox school with quite a few students in attendance. So, there's sort of a religious transition happening. Many people aren't satisfied with Islam and are seeking the truth, seeking Jesus! And we had a part in that.
WHAT We Did in Khulo:
The first weeks that we were there we spent mostly building relationships. It really wasn't very difficult, because for a while we had people over almost every night! It was cool, exhausting and a great opportunity all at the same time! We also visited the mosque, the orthodox church and the orthodox school. And after we built relationships, we spent the rest of the time maintaining them! Our contact Mendia was (and still is!) a blessing from God! He has a large family and a lot of influence in Khulo, and so when we were with him, everything was okay! And God knew all of that too, because in the 3rd week of our time there, He prayed and gave His life to Jesus! There were also 2 other people who prayed (Mendia's mom and a girl named Shorena), and many more heard and saw what having a relationship with Jesus is really about. And it was way cool!
WHAT Is Next For Khulo:
I think this is just the start of what God is going to do in Khulo! But even the start is an amazing thing to see! When we first arrived, Mendia was very standoffish, and he seemed sort of worried about us. But after we were straightforward with him-- told him we weren't Jehovah's Witnesses and told him why we were really there-- and the more time he spent with us, our relationship with him grew! And in the last days he recounted all of that to us! He told us of his fear of us coming, and of his trouble relating to people anyways...but how we overcame all of that (or how GOD overcame all of that!). And we had a very sweet goodbye with him and his family. I really believe that Mendia and his family will participate largely in God's work in Khulo, and it's way exciting!
It's so hard to describe 30 days of living in a village and doing what we did, so know that this is only a brief account!
WHAT I Learned in Khulo:
SO, in addition to all of that I learned: how to wash all of my clothes by hand, how to very proficiently use a squatty potty and I also dropped a flashlight down one, how to run the "petchka" (wood-burning stove), how to make really good Turkish coffee, how to take a shower without a...shower and also experienced many things! I was very sick one night, but I won't into the details of that...just know that it was a totally new experience for me! Also, we went on a cable car...I think it is like the 2nd highest in Europe or something. Yeah, that was cool. Especially when it stopped right in the middle and we all were certain we were about to face death. But, praise the Lord, we didn't! The other day we hiked 6 kilometers (12 there and back) in the snow (like a lot of snow) to a village where we ate some amazing food! Oh, I got engaged to a 4 year old boy named Aleko (he's Mendia's nephew). And so many other things!
So needless to say, I've learned a lot and grown a lot and I'd love to show you some pictures, but I can't right now! Hopefully when I get back to Tbilisi!
AND NOW...I'm in Batumi in an internet cafe, the 2nd one for today actually. My friend Diana and I found the first one and I was doing fine, but then she said that some of the boys wanted to do drugs, so we left. And now I'm here!
Tomorrow morning at 8am, we're going to start traveling to Turkey. It will probably be around a 12-16 hour trip depending on how crossing the border goes, how many times we need to stop to use the bathroom and so on! But, we will be heading to Samsun where we will partner with a local church there.
While in Turkey, I will have the opportunity to use the internet...but I'm not sure how it will work out. Turkey is a closed country, meaning for example, that it is illegal for me to talk about any non-Muslim religion with anyone under the age of 18. And that also means that internet is not really secure there, and so I'm not sure how I will be able to communicate, I will have to see what happens and what the people at the church say!
But, if you don't hear from me for another month, please don't worry...just pray!
And please just pray for us as a team, for unity and for strength as we go into a place that is very spiritually difficult! And for our safety, and for the safety of the people we will be working with. And for God's hand to be over everything!
Thank you so much for sticking with me! I thank God for you!
Until next time, MUCH LOVE AND MANY BLESSINGS!
Thank you so much for sticking with me! I thank God for you!
Until next time, MUCH LOVE AND MANY BLESSINGS!
