Good Things...

"Praise the LORD, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name. Praise the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits- who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, who satisfies your desires with good things (emphasis mine), so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's." (Psalm 103:1-3)

Boy, did this scripture ever strike a chord with me last Wednesday night. We were gathered in a circle during prayer meeting, and the phrase "he satisfies your desires with good things" popped into my head. I was immediately curious, looked it up in my concordance, and flipped over to Psalm 103. What I read/prayed in that beautiful Psalm directly touched my heart, and tears of joy began to flow down my face. In that moment, I was completely overwhelmed by the graciousness of Almighty God, amazed by the fact that He loves me so much. While I didn't understand most of what the others were praying (in Russian), I knew that we were all connecting with the name Отец (ohtyets, "Father"), the Father who understands all languages sumiltaneously! I was struck by the overflow of good things that He has been pouring into my lap while here in Russia. Thank you, Lord, for this incredible opportunity. Thank you for reminding me that life is indeed all about You. Thank you for satisfying our desires with good things.

School has continued to go well. We're already into our 4th week of the semester, with mid-terms coming out at the end of next week. Wow, time sure flies! The most recent development in the classroom is that we finally purchased our class pet. We now have a lizard in the classroom! Soon after we decide on his name, I'll be sure to post a picture and further description! He sure is cute, though, and I'm amazed at his ability to change color from brown to green and back again! This Friday and next Friday, we will be having a combined class chapel with the kindergartners, which should be really cute and fun. Please pray that all would go well and that the students' efforts would all bring glory to God. Pray also for me, as these couple weeks are extra-busy with preparation.

Another good thing God has been doing these past few weeks is building confidence in me. Without realizing it often, we can become trapped in a cage of doubt and habitual mundaneness in which we begin to worry about endless details and the countless cares of tomorrow. I know that place very well. It has begun to occur to me what confidence really is and where it stems from. If we examine the word "confidence," we see the root word "confide," which basically means to trust or believe in someone. Most of the time we think of confidence as belief in oneself. I submit, however, that true confidence comes only from confiding in the One who made us, trusing Him with our secrets and believing that He loves us in spite of our weakness. Basically, confidence comes from outside of oneself. But that's not all. When we decide to confide in God, to trust in Him, to fear Him - He does an amazing thing: He confides in us! "The LORD confides in those who fear him; he makes his covenant known to them" (Psalm 25:14). To the mind, this is a ridiculous statement, that God would actually confide in fallen humanity, that He would actually want to share His secrets with those who so often forget His words and display frequent unfaithfulness. Yet He does. What an amazing God! The fact that He would have confidence in me drives me to my knees in gratitude and motivates me to confide also in Him. "I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength" (Philippians 4:13). Thank you, Lord!

Sashka and Eara continue to grow, and their love and companionship is priceless! Here are the two sisters cuddled up in our plastic bag box (we save these bags to reuse because there aren't a ton of them in Moscow).

Thank God for thoughtful moms! Knowing that I face overcast days most of the time, my dear mother went to a teacher store and bought a sun for me that I could take back to Moscow! After getting dressed every morning, I open up the blinds to my bedroom and look at the "sunrise"! Thanks, Mom!

On a snowy Saturday, this cute pigeon couple decided to enjoy the peaceful flurries.


A couple weekends ago, we celebrated the birthday of Mr. Dickson (middle), a 25 year-old teacher of middle school and high school social studies. The "guys" night included food, video games, and a great big game of Risk. Lots of fun! I'm so thankful to have these other young guys to hang out with! (Also pictured are Shane Lehman, K-2 gym teacher and Tim Wiley, next year's chaplain).


Pentominoe fun in the sun! During our current geometry unit, we spent an entire class period last week studying the puzzling arrangements of pentominoes. The environment was perfect with the sun pouring through the windows. Actually, nearly every day last week was sunny. What a blessing!


Winter has finally arrived! We have had temperatures regularly around -10 Celsius (14 Fahrenheit) and colder. A few days ago it was about 3 degrees Fahrenheit, and that wasn't counting the wind chill. We've had about 4-5 inches of snow, which is awesome! It really brightens up the city, and the kids absolutely love playing out in it! This is a picture of the 4th and 5th grade boys having a snowball fight at recess.


Mr. Hays, sledding? You betcha.

Yesterday after church, Linda Russell (far right), a veteran Nazarene missionary on the CIS field, invited seven of us young people from the church over to her apartment for a time of food and fellowship. Delicious and wonderful!

Thank you for all your prayer and support. Love transcends both time and space, and I can definitely sense the love and care of so many who are an ocean away! Praise God for the work He's doing in the lives of his children here at Hinkson (and in the staff). Praise God that the teacher couple who were stranded a few weeks ago due to passport and visa issues are now safely back in Moscow and at the school. Please pray for wisdom for me as I continue to teach my fifth-graders, that I would effectively challenge them mentally, socially, and spiritually. Please pray for a student who is having a difficult time academically right now, that he/she would be intrinsically motivated and that I would be able to connect with him/her. Praise God that Bob Kring's health is improving and that he's in less pain!

So good to be back!

Hello all! Wow, it sure is great to be back in Moscow! I had an incredible time in Michigan for Christmas. The 2.5 weeks flew by as they were rich with time spent with family and friends. I come back refreshed, refocused, and rested. Praise God! Thank you, Flint Central Church of the Nazarene, for providing the means for me to fly home. I asked Him more than anything over break to give me a defining sense of His peace: in my life, in my classroom, in every moment. And He's answered the prayer! These first three days of school, in my estimation, have been three of the best for the entire year. I have instituted many changes within the classroom, all of which make the class run more efficiently and effectively, have fewer interruptions, and encourage the students to be more responsible and take more initiative. I'm also learning to be more strict within the classroom, and I've found that the kids actually like that more! One student today said, "Mr. Hays, you've really changed since last semester!" I replied, "Yeah, for the better!" We've already had numerous hilarious and memorable moments in class and plenty of engaged learning experiences, and my interactions with my students have never been better (another huge answer to prayer)! Needless to say, I'm loving my "job" (if you can call it a job, doing what you love).

Here's the precious family from Flushing! This was taken on Christmas Eve, and it's probably the best picture we've had together as a family. By the way, Elizabeth got engaged on Dec. 22! She will be marrying Daniel Lutz, also of Flushing, this year! We're so excited! (The current running total of weddings for me this summer, before I return again in August to teach 5th grade, is now 3!)

Notes like this that are left by students are priceless!

On Christmas Eve, I had the awesome privilege of attending the Christmas Eve service at Christ the Savior Cathedral, which is the central Russian Orthodox church in Russia. It was incredible! Here's a picture of the highest dome in the cathdral, which is over 100 feet high. In the standing room only environment (probably 1,500 to 2,000 people were there), combined with the angelic voices of a mixed a capella choir (no musical instruments are allowed) and the awesome sense of the fear of God that is instilled by such a service, I felt like I was in heaven!

Way cool! My students received an amazing reply from Mr. Bob Phillips, a prolific writer of Christian children's joke books, in response to the business letters they wrote him last fall. All students who wrote him received a book personally signed by him! One student received a reply directly from a consumer relations representative from the Tootsie Roll Company!

These are pictures of Grigor and Meetsyah, two friends from Moscow 1st Church. On Monday, Grigor gave me the most amazing, therapeutic, and thorough haircut I've ever received...for free! All I can say is, two hair washings combined with massaging of the neck and about 45 minutes worth of hair trimming can put one in a very relaxed state!

Praise God for His faithfulness! Please pray for me to teach to the utmost of my potential, reaching every student where they need to be met and loving them as Jesus would. Please continue to pray for Bob Kring and his family. Also, please pray for a couple from the school (two teachers and their baby daughter), who are stranded in New York until some tough visa/passport issues can be solved. Pray that the Gospel of Jesus Christ would be proclaimed boldly and effectively here in Russia and that many of its people would come to know Christ!