Common Ground

In some of the recent pictures you will see a gathering of the moms and a club meeting with guests from Germany; Adeena and Alenna. They stayed for one week.

Adeena’s family moved to Germany from Uzbekistan when she was a girl. Her father was a blind man and also a Christian. The Soviet Union wanted to imprison him, but to avoid an international incident over putting a blind man in prison merely for having faith; he was given three days to pack up his family and leave. It was not easy, but her family made their home in Germany.

Adeena is now the mother of two children herself, one of which is Alenna who accompanied her on this trip. In the picture of my final days of Chernovtsy, you can see a small part of what they did while they were here.

Having company over for tea, coffee, and sweets is a common practice in Ukraine. While our visitors from Germany were here, as when my family was here, we had the mothers over for tea, coffee, and sweets. And just as when my family was here the mothers shared their hearts through their prayer requests. Adeena shared her story and how God was at work in her life. There were many commonalities between this meeting and when my family was here. It does not matter where you are from- Uzbekistan, Germany, Ukraine, or The United States of America, a mother’s heart is the same. A mother’s prayer is for her family, for her children. There is a need for women all over the world to be able to share their needs. They need a place to come unmasked and unafraid; a place where they will be loved and encouraged. Just like the women meeting here, my mother and Adeena spoke of meeting in women’s Bible study groups in their own countries.

We were created to depend on each other. When Christ came and the church was created, part of its duty was to provide a safe place to be heard, to share, to be loved, to be encouraged, and to pray together with other believers. I have found that this is not just an idea but a reality. In my own life, this past year, I have been encouraged. I have been loved. I have been able to share and be heard. I have been prayed for and prayed with. It never ceases to amaze me, that as part of the church, I have family all over the world. Thank you for being a part of that family.