LOVE 4 THE CHILDREN

Greetings, brothers and sisters! June flew by and we are glad that we could attend the Rudensky orphanage in June. We had three trips in June. But each trip was special, because those children finish their studies at school and the next stage in their life begins. Some of the graduates will immediately start working and usually as a farmer or a janitor. Those who have better grades and health will go to study. The most cherished dream for many is to go to school. Then there is a chance to get a better paying job. During the past month we have been talking about facing insults and being offended. Many children after graduation are faced with the fact that they are often being offended, and when they do not immediately succeed in what they do, bullying begins. We talked about how to forgive, how to cope with inner pain.

Resentment carries a destructive effect that brings destruction from within to the outside. And the key is forgiveness, and we can pour out all the pain to God. The next topic we’ve discussed is “gossip”. There are always a lot of rumors and speculation around orphans. We have highlighted this specifically so that the guys understand and are ready for the fact that different people will appear in their life and not everyone should be trusted at once. Gossip destroys the kids. We were visiting Nastya, who graduated a few years ago. Nastya worked on the farm, looked after the calves. But then one calf died and Nastya was made guilty. People, who gossiped about her, gathered, and then accused her of negligence. After all, she is an orphan, which means that she is to blame! After all, no one will stand up for the orphan, which means that you can do anything you want to! And such examples help to see how gossips are destructive in the lives of graduates. After all, in a boarding school among children it looks like a prank, but in real life it brings pain and suffering to the person. Also, another topic that we decided to raise is obscene words. Because of the wrong example, children allow obscenities into their lives. And then they wonder why there are so many problems in their life. After all, our words attract either success from God, or destruction. There were a lot of questions about how to restrain yourself from using swear words? “After all, a swear word is a reaction to pain or resentment,” the guys told us! Then we started saying that we sometimes can also experience pain, but our reaction is in our hands! We prayed that God would send freedom from bad words and give wisdom and strength when you are in difficult circumstances and a person provokes you. This school year was just incredible! There were all sorts of things, including the temporary closure of boarding schools due to the pandemic. The first visit to the children after the temporary quarantine was full of joy, laughter, hugs! And also the words that were especially memorable: “We don’t need gifts, we need you! We miss you very much”! All this suggests that we are like one family, which strives to raise, not lower a member of its family.

Friends, let’s pray that the graduates of the orphanage will get settled in their new places of work, so that their work team will be a blessing for the children. We also want graduates to find local churches and gain a foothold there. Thank you for your prayers and for being with us throughout the school year!

Every year May delights people with bright, sunny weather, reviving and blooming nature and the sonorous singing of birds returning from the south. Usually, at this time of the year, children break out into the street and it is already much more difficult to gather them in the premises for any events. But this year, it rains almost all May in our country. Therefore, all our beloved guys come to our meetings and together with them we try to create a joyful and friendly atmosphere, support each other and learn to notice all the good that is in the life of each person. The older guys started to prepare for their final exams. Most of them share their experiences and thoughts about what awaits them after graduation, when they will be faced with an adult, independent life.

In our meetings, we talked about resentment, betrayal, as well as destructive anger and what to do and how to deal with negative emotions. It is interesting that all children are usually divided into those who completely deny the existence of certain in them and those who have already learned to admit their problems and look for ways to solve them. At one of the meetings, Katya conducted the topic: “Anger”. This topic is especially familiar to children living in boarding schools. It is very difficult for them, at times, to manage their emotions, and besides, from the very childhood they are deprived of affection and care from the dearest people and simply are not taught how to behave in emotionally difficult situations. Katya did not just talk about what “anger” is and what consequences it leads to, she gave a lot of practical advice on how to cope with anger and guided the children to solve this problem together with God, who can change a person’s heart and give consolation and peace. At the end of the conversation, a girl named Vika shared that she often faces the problem of anger and causes a lot of pain for herself and other people. Vika came forward and asked to pray that God would release her and help her change. Of course, we all supported Vicka’s decision and prayed with her. It seems to me that this is a vivid example of how the word of God works in children’s hearts. At the request of the older children, we held sports relay races in the last week of the month. In the Rudensky boarding school, the guys are very fond of sports and they participate in many competitions, both in our country and abroad. For our part, we try to take into account the requests of children and periodically organize sports events for them. This is also a great time when we can see how the characters of the guys are revealed and their ability to accept victories and defeats. Thank God for this great time!