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!