Greetings, dear brothers and sisters!
We are grateful to God that January turned 
out to be an especially full and meaningful month. In Belarus, the Nativity of Jesus Christ is celebrated twice: according to the Catholic and the Orthodox traditions. This is a special time when people reflect on God and His gift to the whole world. Our month began with a Christmas performance — we invited a puppet theater team. Children really enjoy it when new people come to visit them, because it gives them an opportunity to get to know one another, communicate, and talk about history.
The puppet theater team prepared a 
special program in which they introduced the children to Misha and Lyubov, who wanted to understand the true meaning of Christmas. Misha did not trust a story that is more than 2,000 years old. Through the story and the puppet performance, it was shown that even today people do not always trust the Word of God. However, as the story unfolded, the teenager Misha became convinced of the truth of Christmas and put his faith in God.
It was very interesting to observe the children’s reactions.
When they saw the puppets for the first time, some shouted with joy, others froze in amazement, and a third group of children tried to help the puppets by giving them prompts. It was so funny and touching to see their sincere emotions. The program flew by very quickly, and the teachers said, “We were completely captivated.” After that, we prepared gifts for the children. One by one, we invited them forward, handed out the gifts, and said, “God loves you. Merry Christmas!” There were also children who had arrived at the orphanage only recently, and they asked with surprise, “Is there a gift for me too? Who is this gift from? Why did people prepare a gift just for me?” Some children said, “I have never received Christmas gifts before. Thank you.”
When we entered the classrooms, we saw the children 
opening their bags and rejoicing. One boy came up to me and said, “This is the gift of my dreams!” Another shouted, “I got a watch! I’m so happy — I dreamed about this!” The girls who enjoy drawing were running around the room, showing their new sketchbooks. How wonderful it is to see children filled with joy — in moments like these, we see how they forget about the pain that sometimes lives inside them. The birth of Jesus brought them joy, faith, hope, and peace. We are deeply thankful to everyone who helped prepare the gift packages and prayed for us and for the children. During the week, we also came to spend time with the children and held group meetings. At one of these meetings, we talked about the topic: “Who needs forgiveness?” We chose this topic because many teenagers and younger children live with unforgiveness and bitterness. During the discussion, the children actively participated — they shouted out answers and also asked us to help them understand why we should forgive if the offender does not ask for forgiveness.
We realized that this question deeply troubles 
the children. After the meeting, several boys came up to us and said, “Please pray for me; I can’t forgive.” We prayed together, blessed them, and asked God to give them strength and grace to forgive. When we came during the last week of January, we talked about humor. The issue is that children often hurt one another with their jokes. We decided to discuss what humor is, how it can help in life, and how it can also destroy. The topic was structured in such a way that every child could understand the boundaries of humor. We also talked about how to examine our jokes: “Will this be funny for that person?” “Will it make them feel ashamed or hurt?” “Would I be happy if someone joked about me in the same way?”
In the end, the children admitted that 
they often joke too harshly and cause pain to others. I was glad to see teenagers come up afterward and say, “I thought that if I said, ‘I was just joking,’ it wouldn’t hurt anyone. But unfortunately, it doesn’t work that way. I won’t do that anymore.” Dear friends, thank you very much for your support. We are grateful that together with you we can influence the lives of children and bring light into their lives. Please pray for our team and for the children, that God would grant them understanding and protect them from evil.
January was a special time for the children and our team.
At the beginning of January, we had the wonderful
opportunity to organize a Christmas performance. We invited our friends who performed a play about a girl named Sasha. Sasha had given up on everything and was deeply hurt by her friends, feeling betrayed. In the play, she sees a large canvas with a big puzzle and decides to put it together. Actors dressed as various objects helped her: a lantern, a toy car, a mirror, and pencils. The goal was to help Sasha complete the puzzle, which revealed a picture with the message that Jesus wanted to be her friend. When Sasha finished the puzzle, she saw that God loved her, and she invited Jesus to become her friend. After the performance, we distributed gifts. The auditorium filled with joy and shouts of delight. Then we went to the children’s rooms, where they opened their presents. We asked everyone to open theirs one by one.
The children in the room froze in anticipation of their 
turn, they were also curious about what the others received. “Look, I have a watch! I dreamed of this for so long!” “I got a remote-control car!” “Look at my motorcycle!” In that moment, I felt as if we had given these children back a piece of their childhood. Thank you, friends, for helping us organize this celebration and for gathering the gifts for the kids. The festive bustle gave way to snowstorms, holidays to school routines.
For weeks, the children have been reminiscing 
about that day, sharing their impressions of the play and expressing gratitude for the gifts. Many shared that they received exactly what they had wished for. But for them, the warmth and genuine care meant more than anything. We are grateful to the Lord that so many volunteers joined our trips during this time. Because of this, more children attended our Wednesday meetings, allowing us to dedicate more time to personal conversations and prayers.
This month, we once again reminded thechildren
about Christmas, discussed the boundaries of humor, and talked about the importance of forgiveness. We realized how difficult it is for them to make the decision to forgive. Often, children in the orphanage seem to be in survival mode, and hurtful humor serves as a defense mechanism, causing them to hurt each other while trying to protect themselves. These are very relevant topics for the children, as in their daily lives they are often either initiators or victims of bullying. In personal conversations, the children asked questions like: How should I respond to hurtful words? What should I do if I can’t build friendships? How can I start changing for the better? We were also able to purchase a printer for the boarding school, which will improve the quality of processing the children’s personal files. This, in turn, will help in placing graduates into educational institutions after they leave the school. Glory to God for everyone who has opened their heart to this ministry! We see God at work in the children’s souls, and that is priceless!
God’s grace and peace to you!
I am happy to say that I continue 
to advance in this ministry and grow spiritually. I thank God for our wonderful team, where everyone is like a family to each other. There is incredible support, and it inspires us to continue our work. I also feel an amazing commitment from the children. Currently, there are three children in Smilovichi: Violetta and Vadim, brother and sister, and another girl named Violetta, the youngest.
With each new trip, I feel more and more 
trust from them and their sincere openness. This is evident in how they willingly share stories from their childhood—both joyful and difficult. You can see in their eyes that they are seeking support and encouragement. I am especially happy for the eldest, Violetta. At the beginning, she was very reserved, silent, and reluctant to communicate. But now she has blossomed like a beautiful flower. Her laugh, her touch, her sparkling eyes when we meet—all of this makes us tremble of the greatness of God. After all, we prayed so much for her, and now we see a direct answer to our prayers. It’s incredible and solemn!
This month, we’ve had a variety of games: from 
reaction and speed games that develop fine motor skills, to creative games where the children drew with their noses and we tried to guess what they were drawing. The children are incredibly talented and capable, and I hope God continues to guide them along His path. We’ve also noticed that they really miss interacting with their peers. They often fondly remember their old friends. Recently, they came running to us and joyfully told us that new children would soon be joining them.
They’re eagerly awaiting this, especially Vadim, who sometimes feels lonely among the girls. I want to conclude my story by thanking God for how good and merciful He is to us, continuing to lead us by the hand through all our difficulties. Bless you!
Greetings, dear brothers and sisters,
December is coming to an end. The year has passed so quickly, and we thank God for the wonderful time He has given us in our lives. This month was special because not only adults, but also children were joyfully anticipating the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ. At the beginning of the month, we completed a series of lessons about relationships—how to build healthy relationships, how to respond to pain and betrayal, and what to do with our hurts and offenses. These topics addressed very important issues, because every child carries their own pain and often does not know how to respond to it in a healthy way.
How do we know this? Every time we visit, the children come to us and openly share what is happening in their lives—their victories as well as their struggles. Normally, parents help children learn how to respond to life situations and even shape their reactions, but many of these children have no parents and no example to follow. As Christmas approached, we also talked about what the birth of Jesus brought into our lives. We shared that the birth of the Savior brought joy to the world. At that moment, Sasha, a teenager, asked a very honest question: “How can you rejoice when you are sent to live in an orphanage? How can you rejoice when you are alone?” This was a challenge for us—to help him feel that he is not alone. We explained to all the children that throughout life we will always face challenges, but what truly matters is how we respond to them.
You are not alone because you have God 
and friends who come to visit you and spend time with you. An orphanage is not the worst place—there is food, care, and warmth; you are not on the street in the cold. After the meeting, we offered to pray for Sasha and the other children so that they could feel our love and care. We also talked about how sin steals our joy, but Jesus restores our joy when we ask Him to forgive our sins. Our closeness to God helps us regain joy and a positive outlook on life. When we visited again, we spoke about how the birth of Jesus Christ brought light into the world. We explained that light reveals dark places where bad habits, hostility, unforgiveness, pain, and disrespect can hide. When light comes, it becomes easier to live in friendship and peace, because you are no longer seeking personal gain. God’s light frees us from the chains of bondage and gives us hope.
On the eve of Christmas, we talked about how the birth of Jesus Christ brought God’s love into the world—an extraordinary love. As the Bible says: “We love Him because He first loved us.” (1 John 4:19). Together with the children, we recalled the Christmas story. We held quizzes, and many of the children actively participated, sharing what they knew about Jesus’ birth—how the angel spoke to Mary, how there was no room for them at the inn or even in a regular home. Some children were hearing the Christmas story for the very first time. It was clear that they were deeply interested, and their reactions were very touching as they listened and wondered: “Oh, I would be so afraid if I saw an angel!”
As we concluded, I asked the children: “What do you think Jesus would like to receive as a gift from us?” They mentioned many things—our hearts, good deeds, the best gift, a dedicated life—and one child simply said, “Our time.” Indeed, spending time with God is the greatest gift we can give Him. Dear friends, we are truly grateful that you have been with us throughout this entire year. Thank you for your prayers, your messages, and your support. May the new year bring victories and wise decisions. May God bless you, and Merry Christmas!
LOVE 4 THE CHILDREN 