An opportunity to be a blessings

Doing our part .. some times it is a little more challenging then you might think.   Right now we are a little behind the gun as far as support for Larisa and Tanya goes.  They have an incredible opportunity to be a part of a training for working with the disabled .   They will fly to Alaska for a 3 month intensive training , then the team of Dr's will return to Kyrgyzstan in the spring to assist with the implementation of what they have learned in the institutions and with the families that larisa supports.  They have the visa's and everything in place, Our problem is that we are still about $4500 away from making this a possibility, and the time is running out....

Larisa heading up a drop of fresh strawberries to the seniors home 

 so here is the dilemma..  Time dos not just stand still, and neither do the needs.  What is tempting is to just sit on one need until it is met rather then tackling all the needs as they arise   

Let me tell you about Konibeck ... We talk about the restoration of hope and dignity to a life... Konibek is an example of that .  For 7 years Konibeck lived on the streets , down and out, tangled up in a life of Drugs and Alcohol.  5 years ago, Jengish rescued him off of the streets and introduced him to a new way of life.  Since that time, Konibeck not only sobered up, but has had an active roll helping others at the rehab centre.  There is still one more very large hurtal in his life when it comes to full restoration .  His teeth are VERY bad. , and he is very self conscious of just how bad they are .    

Jengish has asked if we could help with this.. maybe take him to have all his teeth pulled.. Yes that would be a great help, and take away a lot of pain, but I don't feel that we can just stop there ... A couple years ago , a friend and sponsor took care of my teeth, not just pulling them but replacing them...  I understand what a blessing that is .  It is my goal to do the same for Konibeck, likely about $1000 would do it .   , I want to bring a real smile back to the face of a man who has dedicated his new life to putting a smile on the faces of others .  

fruit of the month club ...... Apricots

This was another exciting day for them men from the mens home .  Emma went with Larisa and Tanya, to bring the fruit of the month to them , and as a special bonus, they had a  couple friends along who brought crutches and canes .. 

 Every one got a big bowl 

new friends were made 

Tanya helped to organize this event.. 

What a great photo , love seeing all my friends , they all look so happy .. Good job Emma and Larisa , and a special thanks to the fruit sponsors and an Honorable mention to Christy and Ruth for your help and donation of the crutches . 

on the home front, we have Jonah here with us tonight.. fun day .. hot tub.. BBQ... Hot tub ... fishing ... hot tub ...snack... BED... out like a light ... 

Raised in Victory

We were  visiting with some friends last night, and the topic of    "Living as a victor or a victim " came up.   It was suggested that Victim or Victor is a state of mind.  If this statement is true , then we can choose to live a victorious life, and maybe we need to spend more time focusing on how to transform the unsatisfied mind.  Maybe the life of the victim and the victor run parallel, and it is up to us to chose which track to follow .   What I mean by that is that simply the existence of hard times does not make one a victim.. in fact if you have the mind set of a Victor, you CAN live a victorious life.

If I was looking for proof in point about this, I would have to look at the life of Larisa .. Her mother Is Victorious, she raised Larisa in that manor, and now Larisa's daughter lives in victory. 

Larisa's mom lived a very difficult life in a small Kyrgyz village , but through the adversity , and let me tell you  the story itself would make a best seller or a award winning movie, but to get to the point she not only had the mind set of a Victor, she lived a victorious life.  She  became one of the top Soviet Olympians  in her day... she had nothing , but she was and lived as a victor.   

Larisa learned this trait , and despite the catastrophic hurtles thrown at her during her life, like having to flee on foot from Chernobyl  with her dying daughter in her arms,  and making her way across the soviet Union trying to get help for Tanya as she made her way back to Kyrgyzstan... again the stuff movies are made of ...Yet never faltering , but pushing on in Victory. 

Together she and her mother and daughter  , who until recently , lived on a combined family income of about $20 a month chose not to be victims, but VICTORS.  as Victors, they feel that they have a responsibility to the less fortunate  around them...

Funny thing... my guess is that many of the people that they help may actually have a higher income.. and may not have had the adversities that Larisa  has  faced, yet are not living in Victory .   But here is the thing .. Victory is not relative to situation and finances.. it is relative to the Peace of God that lives in our hearts , the peace that confirms in us that God loves and cares for us , not just as part of some big collective mass , but as individuals, each one as a unique and different creation.. and to know that what ever we face , what ever situations thrown in front of us  , God can use them not as hurtles, but as stepping stones to greater things, stepping stones to that Victors platform. 

Larisa knows this and she lives her life in this fashion.  As I write this  Larisa is preparing for a trip to Alaska with her daughter Tanya.,  They will be spending 3 months there working with a medical team, receiving training for helping the disabled, then the team of Dr's will return in the spring to continue the training on the ground at the mens home and with the many families that Larisa supports.    If we look  at the reality of it, the flights alone will be $4700 ... that's $4700 that we don't have, but Larisa lives in Victory, she is packing and she is going ... just ask her .. she is determined , she knows that this is something that she must do , and she has the confidence that someone will catch the vision and help with this ... someone else, who like Larisa, chooses to live the life of a Victor.  

Now let me share with you a story that hits a little closer to home .  

 Shortly after we were married, life for us had seemed to begin to spiral out of control.   I had lost my father and grandmother 10 days apart, our family business was in difficulty, and the restaurant I worked at had just gone bankrupt. Emma was very sick and lived on an breathing and heart  monitor 24 / 7.  On my way home from work on the last day , my car died, and so there I was ...  

  Down to one old car and not able to find work, I would go to our local dump, and scavenge for what ever I could find, and bring my salvage to a local auction house .   I did not think things could get much worse , until one day the car completely died on me in the next village over.   I began walking home the10 or so miles, and as I walked, I started thinking about a message I had just heard about walking as a VICTOR.
Needless to say I was not real receptive to this .. I had done everything to live a pure and honorable life.  As I walked along examining my life and where we would go from here, the rain began.. not just a gentle rain, but one of those pounding rains that makes it impossible to see your hand in front of your face.. I was wrong .. things could get worse.

   I began to call out to God.. again the rain pounding so hard that I could hardly hear myself , let alone see, I stood there in the middle of nowhere  and I screamed at him.. "How can this be the life of a Victor, what do you want from me .. I sure feel like a victim here God... If I truly am a Victor like your word says .. show me..."  Threw the tears and the rain, soaked to the bone, my eyes fell to the ground, and out of the gavel road, one word appeared ... VICTOR... I thought for a second that I was seeing things .. my eyes were stinging and my vision was blurred...   I reached down to touch it, expecting it to disappear, but wanting it to be real , and it was .. there on the ground in front of me , was the answer.. VICTOR.  

 It turns out that the sign to me was actually the mettle embossing from an old Crown Victoria that had broken off someones car and landed on the side of the road.  That was the kick start that I needed .. to me that was the proof that God did see and hear my cry's while I was facing the adversities...   Those adversities did not end instantly, but in time as I learned and recognized Gods hand in my life, and how He really did care, I began to take those hurtles that piled in front of me. and I chose to climb upon them as my victors platform.  

  Today when I walk through the dump, bringing hope to the people I have become friends with there, when I visit sick and dying children in the hospitals and work to provide the medical care they need,  I do so as a victor... No longer do I or will I live as a victim of Circumstances... I choose to  live as a VICTOR  ..   still going to the dump gathering treasures ... but no longer earthly ones .  

My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.

 For when I am weak, then I am strong.

LAMb International: " I WILL DIE BECAUSE I CANNOT GO TO THE HOSPITAL"

LAMb International: " I WILL DIE BECAUSE I CANNOT GO TO THE HOSPITAL": WE WEIGHED THE OPTIONS... SHE TOLD THE STORY... So how would  you feel when you have only designated funds in your bank accou...

Peach parties being planed

I was just talking to Bekah , she met with Andre this morning to bring him some camp money.. he was just so excited and thankful  to everyone . 


We are also planing the next fruit drop... Peaches are almost at their peek now.. and there is nothing like a Kyrgyz peach ... if you don't believe me, you just have to watch this video from a few summers ago when Hannah had her first Kyrgys peach 


I can't wait to see all the kids with peach juice running down their chins 


Check out the video below  ... if you want to be a part of the fun, just use the button on the right side of the blog and put peach in the memo line 

Blessings , Blessings , and More Blessings

Before I start this next post, I want to share how blessed we feel to have such an incredible group of sponsors surrounding us .  This morning I shared a need about an orphanage who needed help to go to camp when their funding fell through .. with no one else left to turn to, they asked you to help, then went off to bed .. while they slept, people from all over Canada and the US rose to the challenge and the camp money , in it's entirety , was received..   They will awake this morning to news that  camp is a go.... what a blessing.  

A couple days ago, Sergey was able to do a food drop to the Orlofka orphanage, and while there , they decided to get in on the watermelon parties, so here are a few new photos of the fun.. For some reason, Kids eating watermelons never seems to get old... again thank you to the many sponsors who have had a part in these parties. 

Urgent request from KaraKol

I just got word from Jengish that the Orphanage in KaraKol has an Urgent need , and they are wondering if we can help. 

The kids have been looking forward to camp for almost year now.  It is the highlight of the year for them.  Up until yesterday, they had a sponsor for this, so the director Andre has not been worrying about the funds .  Now it is time for camp and the funding has fallen through , and the sponsor is not able to follow through on his commitment.    

Andre has 44 kids he does not want to disappoint .  He is asking if any of you , would be able to help out at this time .   the total cost will be $1500,   that's all the expenses  for 2 weeks .. now that may seem like a lot, but it actually comes out to $2.50 a night including food and transportation. 

I have a couple vbs groups in the US that will be raising some money that will be able to help with this , but we will need a lot more .. If you would like to be a part of something special like this, please use the donate button on the side .    There is an urgency to this, so if you can help, along with using the donate button, please email me ( sunmasterjohn@aol.com ) with the amount of the donation so that I can advance the funds right away so that they don't have to wait for the money to travel through the pay pal and the banks .  Thank you so much for considering these kids .

Andre and the director introducing some of the kids to us . 

playing a game with the kids ... I asked for a volunteer, and I  got 11

I could not get a read on the expression from this boy.  

Watermelons at Red River

The girls had another great day of watermelon parties yesterday .   The kids had a great time , and they were   thrilled with the treat on a hot day .   

Emma is always watchful for opportunities to reunite siblings that are living apart.   Jenya sure does love her big brother ....

The things we hold on to !

Years ago we fell in love with a darling little boy from one of the orphanages that we work in .   When you play with and hold these kids.. have a chance to look into their eyes, and call them by name, something special happens.    they are forever imprinted into your heart.   A couple years ago, we had the opportunity to meet a special couple who were waiting to adopt our young friend.  What a blessing it was for us to spend some time with this beautiful couple, and like there son, we learned their names and they too imprinted on our hearts. 

Over the last 4 years, their parents , along with so many incredible families we have come to love, have advocated and down right fought to bring these precious kids home.   So many times , it looked as though the face of evil was going to will out , and the kids would never reach their forever families.  I had one thing to hold on to .. faith 

Faith is the substance of things hoped for the evidence of things not seen, But I also know that God will help our unbelief, and that is why he gives us visions.. "people with out a vision will Parrish.  He must have known how difficult this time was going to be, because 2 years ago, I had this vision of our young friend riding his bike to an ice cream stand and getting ice cream for he and his Dad who was working in the field close buy.

When ever things looked like he would never come home, I would remind his mother about the ice cream, and we would hang on to that .... 

Last weekend,  Julie and I took a little trip to the US to visit our little friend.. and yes.. have ice cream . what a treat ... not necessarily the ice cream, though it was for some reason the best ice cream I have ever had.. but more because of the special friends who shared it.   

Our young friend , with his new brother

This is the first of many reunions that we are planing over the months ahead..    Please remember to pray for the kids that are still waiting ... and the ones that have nobody to wait for . 

Let The Watermelon Parties Begin!

Emma and I had a great afternoon at Beikut Orphanage! We brought 2 huge watermelons and split them between 10 kids :) It was the first watermelon of the year that the children had eaten and because of this they gobbled every last morsel of watermelon up. They loved it!

After Ruslan was finished eating his 3 huge pieces of watermelon he went straight to the bath and got a different shirt :)

All the children were so happy and thankful for this fun surprise! Thanks Everyone!!

signing out- Bekah

A chat with Bekah

Don't you just love Skype.. and interact...

We received a couple checks for the work in Kyrgyzstan, and before I even got them to the bank, Bekah is in Kyrgyzstan getting marching orders.  watermelon is in season right now,  and we figured that if the strawberries were such a hit, what about water melons.   Over the next week Bekah will be translating for a medical team bringing wheelchairs to the orphanages in the north as well as delivering some animals to a rehab centre in the east  ... She will stop at all the orphanages along the way and deliver watermelons.... I am looking forward to that report.

so where do you go to get 200 watermelons hummm 

Learned well .. you have .

Just a little update on the girls .

 Emma has been busy, mostly in the Tokmok Area.  She continues to teach English to a few special kids, she is also busy as an advocate for others.  She takes it very seriously.  Ever since Emma was little, she had a very strong sense of right and wrong, but what always bothered her was when she saw an injustice.. that continues today.   She may be quiet, but she she understands that at times , for the sake of the chld she is advocating for .. SHE WILL BE HEARD...

Bekah is working mostly in the city.  She has been helping with arrangements for several guests that we have had since we have been away,  She is also assisting teams from another NGO organization in Bishkek,  Along with that , she has been assisting with travel arrangements etc for some other friends arriving soon.  In her spare time she is also keeping up with several of the projects that we are connected with .

There is so much going on right now , but we are confident that everything will work out, because we are blessed with a couple incredible daughters..  Julie and I were just saying today what a great job they are doing .  We wish that we could be there ourselves , but believe me , Julie and I could do it no better then these two.   Actually many of you will have experienced their hand in action over the last month.    We are just so proud of both of them as they follow their callings ... 

I simply could not help myself

I don't know why, but then nobody actually knows why.   I could not help myself, and I got out the white paint, and made the place look a little more like home .   Fortunately I did not have a lot of time , and only managed to get one tree painted before Julie got home.   

What life could have been .

Imagine what life could have been like for our dear Dasha.  

When she first arrived into our Dayspring family,  Dr's and officials where suggesting that we just take her to a home for disabled and leave her there, they said " Nobody would fault you for it.. we can just give you the papers to send her , there is not much that you can do with her." ... They said that apart from her medical conditions, she would never learn.. she couldn't learn.. they just saw the broken child before them... LAMb saw more.. We saw a beautiful child of God.. One that was perfect.  besides we don't just throw children out... .. Emma absolutely determined in her heart that together they were going to prove the world around them wrong. 

Ed Dickson was there at the time and he too saw the potential , and committed to cover all her medical expenses..and the Dayspring family rallied around her .  

Just a couple weeks ago, Dasha returned from the Bishkek hospital where she received surgery for two holes in her heart.    Then with an amazing recovery period, Dasha is ready for school .. something she has only dreamed of .  Of course with her history, it was difficult to get her into school, but with a little perseverance, and the support of another generous sponsor, Dasha has been excepted into one of the best schools in Tokmok, along with all the other kids from Dayspring.   At one point , Emma even suggested that she would go with her to school every day if she had to , and  be her personal teachers aid if that's what it would take .

Since she had never been to school before, we thought it would be a good idea if she went to a preparatory school this summer.  Olga's center is offering those classes, so it was a perfect fit.  Dasha and a couple other kids from Dayspring started this week...  and what do you know.. now that oxygen is getting to her brain and she has energy, couple that with her strong desire to go to school.... Dasha is the top of her class... She is doing great ....   

   

Dasha's first day of school 

I have seen what life is like for the kids at the disabled homes ... how many there , like Dasha, just needed some one like Emma and the LAMb staff to stand up for them ...  


I have said it many times , but I will say it again.. Thank you to all the incredible sponsors that make it possible for us to be on the ground and making a difference in the lives of the hurting , the  helpless and the lost .  

Picnic with Bacute

Aiperie is not only back, but she is back to her old self.  She got a day off work, and she came home and threw a big picnic for the kids at Bakute orphanage.  This is so like Aiperie . Ever since she was turned down for her visa, and spent the summer working in the orphanages in Ukraine, she has had a drive to work with kids in the orphanage.