I know I've been quiet for a while, here, but there've been some great things happening in Kiev, lately, and it would just be a shame not to share them with you. So, let's start with the most recent event, shall we?
"A Night with Our King" in Kiev
Back home, we have an annual event around Valentine's Day called "A Night with Our King" meant to encourage single sisters by making God's special love for them more tangible and personal. It's an intimate evening, and much more elaborate than I can explain now, but well worth the effort.
As Valentine's approached, God put it on my heart to host a small version of this tradition to share with my friends in Kiev. I had been sick on Valentine's Day, when I had originally planned to schedule it, so decided to see who was available last-minute for the following Saturday (the 19th). I sent a mass SMS, and four of my friends were able to attend: Olya, Natasha, Julia, and my roomie, Petra.
My other roomie, Sonya, had just cleaned the house with Petra's help, and I lit candles and prepared tea with Julia while the other girls arrived. I put on the CD I still had from last year's event, which had on it a collection of love-songs through which various women felt God singing to them.
We all sat in a circle with tea and candlelight, and learned about how God offers us engagement with him like grooms did in Jesus' time. We drew parallels between the Jewish custom of marriage in that day with the analogy of how Christ loves us (the church) as a bride. As was custom in Jesus' day, each sister was given a coin to represent the offer of engagement Christ offers as our groom. We also learned about how the bride and her maids would wait, and keep the oil lamp burning to light the way of the groom. We watched video clips to bring the scriptures to life, listened to a personalized love-letter from Jesus, and had great discussion about how we could faithfully and pateintly wait for the true love we longed for--Christ!
We all felt very special and loved by God. Some sisters commented that they had never experienced something like this, and asked if we could do it more often, to which another replied, "You can host the next one."
I hope this tradition continues long after I've gone. It is so good to see an idea God placed on one sister's heart acted on, and watch how God is now using her effort and others' to cause ripples around the world. Thanks, Jen, and everyone who helped make these evenings possible. May the ripples continue to spread, and may the lamp continue to burn!
"A Night with Our King" in Kiev
Back home, we have an annual event around Valentine's Day called "A Night with Our King" meant to encourage single sisters by making God's special love for them more tangible and personal. It's an intimate evening, and much more elaborate than I can explain now, but well worth the effort.
As Valentine's approached, God put it on my heart to host a small version of this tradition to share with my friends in Kiev. I had been sick on Valentine's Day, when I had originally planned to schedule it, so decided to see who was available last-minute for the following Saturday (the 19th). I sent a mass SMS, and four of my friends were able to attend: Olya, Natasha, Julia, and my roomie, Petra.
My other roomie, Sonya, had just cleaned the house with Petra's help, and I lit candles and prepared tea with Julia while the other girls arrived. I put on the CD I still had from last year's event, which had on it a collection of love-songs through which various women felt God singing to them.
We all sat in a circle with tea and candlelight, and learned about how God offers us engagement with him like grooms did in Jesus' time. We drew parallels between the Jewish custom of marriage in that day with the analogy of how Christ loves us (the church) as a bride. As was custom in Jesus' day, each sister was given a coin to represent the offer of engagement Christ offers as our groom. We also learned about how the bride and her maids would wait, and keep the oil lamp burning to light the way of the groom. We watched video clips to bring the scriptures to life, listened to a personalized love-letter from Jesus, and had great discussion about how we could faithfully and pateintly wait for the true love we longed for--Christ!
We all felt very special and loved by God. Some sisters commented that they had never experienced something like this, and asked if we could do it more often, to which another replied, "You can host the next one." I hope this tradition continues long after I've gone. It is so good to see an idea God placed on one sister's heart acted on, and watch how God is now using her effort and others' to cause ripples around the world. Thanks, Jen, and everyone who helped make these evenings possible. May the ripples continue to spread, and may the lamp continue to burn!
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