Love will find a way

Love is patient, kind; it is not jealous; love does not brag,  does not act disgracefully; it does not seek its own benefit; it is not provoked, does not keep an account of a wrong suffered; it does not rejoice in unrighteousness but rejoices with the truth; it keeps every confidence, it believes all things, hopes all things, and endures all things. Love never fails. 

1 Corinthians 13:4-8

Without love, our work is impossible.

When the goal is important enough, the means to achieve it are found, no matter the difficulties and effort required. Love doesn’t just talk; it works. Without love, sharing the gospel to people burdened by many problems would not be possible.

The people on our teams demonstrate this kind of love. Their attitude is what Paul writes about in 1 Corinthians 13: love in action.

I don’t remember our team members ever complaining of things being hard.

On the contrary they are grateful, joyful, hopeful, motivated, and patient.

Pristine concert halls traded for filthy basements.

I could tell you a lot about our team members. One of them is Luba in Krasnoyarsk, Siberia. She moved there as a concert violinist in the late 1990s. When she witnessed the depravity of the city’s street children, she determined to do everything she could to help them.

Our paths crossed, and together, we founded a local organization and a shelter home for street children. Luba traded performing in ornate concert halls for feeding children in grimy basement rooms and pipe tunnels during Siberia’s winters. I’ll never forget the time we went to the tunnels together when the temperatures plummeted to -40°F.

Love found a way, and in 20 years thousands of children and families in Krasnoyarsk have received help that has changed their lives.

The work in Russia continues.

As banking sanctions have tightened, many of you have asked if our work in Russia will continue. Sending funds is more difficult due to the war, but we are still able to support our shelters and work with families in Russia.

For many years now, nearly half of our project costs have been acquired through local collections of supplies and finances. Residents in our areas of ministry have a heart to support the needy ones in their midst, and this is particularly important in these times.

Please keep our teams in your prayers, and happy summer to all of you!