Tag: Children

News of Sunbeam

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Everything is in great shape at Sunbeam. I’m visiting Estonia for few days and just had a nice meeting there. The video below is of the Green Room, where most of the work has been done recently.

sunbeam feb 22 013 300x171 SunbeamGod has built a good team of leaders. I’m very happy to partner with board members Artur Põld and Andres Toome and Program Director Ursula Randlaine.

On Monday we’ll meet with parents and children, and we’re waiting for ONE MORE inspection before we get the CO: the government requires a sound test for decibels in the room. Of course, the room is super quiet and the kids will make more noise than anything in the room, but it’s another expense and will eat up time while we find a company to do the sound test.

We are also receiving bids on the work to finish the offices and therapy rooms. We hope to make a decision about that on Monday. If all goes as hoped, the offices will be all done in a couple of months. But, things always seem to take longer than we’d prefer. . . . .

Ursula said today that it’s been good for the process to take a long time and have many challenges. It’s helped the team grow closer to one another, and our faith has been built as we’ve depended more and more on the Lord for His guidance, wisdom and peace. It’s all good.

At the end of this video Ursula talks about a special table that was donated by a Norwegian ministry. You can see more pictures here.

 

A Postcard from Estonia

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I (Mike) have just seen the fulfillment of a dream. For the past two years we’ve thought that it would be great to send children from Russia to a Christian camp in Estonia. Well, it’s come to pass: MIR, in partnership with Love Russia UK, have sent 43 foster children and 6 Estonian orphans to Camp Gideon, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland. A team of about 30 from the UK met the children and have been running a two-week camp. Interpreters from Russia are also serving there. The foster parents also went to camp, and it’s been a GREAT help to them to have a holiday in Estonia.

Russians have a saying — the first pancake is always a mess. So, while things have not been as smooth as we would have liked, the Brits have already committed to doing the camp again next year.

The Russian government changed laws making it more difficult for MIR to send children from orphanages out of the country, and this is one reason we had to stop the hosting program to the US. However, we are able to work with orphans in foster families. This looks to be a fruitful part of MIR’s work from here on.

MIR has several new things coming up and yet is going through a tight time financially. We’ve been in the situation before: hard times that are accompanied by new growth.

Please keep us in prayer as we discern what God has next for MIR and the ministry in Russia.