March Forth! Marssige Edasi!

Sorry for the blogging lapse! My sister Mary-Kay was here 22-30 December. We went to see the Narnia movie and went to a "Christmas Music in Jazz" concert. She took the kids ice-skating at Lõunakeskus and swimming at Aura. We had a really nice Christmas Eve dinner together, including some food she ordered from America, and Karl-Gustav joined us.

Col. Arja Laukkanen, Finland & Estonian Territory Chief Secretary, drove back to Tartu with us yesterday. She'll be with us for the weekend, the highlight of which will be the enrollment of our first Junior Soldiers on Sunday!

Quick Homeless Day Cener update: the building at Puiestee 114 is not going to work for us; it is still strongly in our hearts to do something in this area, and we are once again searching for what that will be. Please continue to pray!

Evelyn

Tim can't spell.

He can't spell in English, and he can't spell in Estonian.

It's just not something he's good at!

So if you can kindly point us in the direction of an Estonian-language spell-checker software program, we would be most grateful! Short of that, your personal reminders are still most appreciated! :-)

For those of you who don't speak Estonian -- it is such a phonetic language! You say it like it's spelled; you spell it like you say it.

You'd think that would be helpful in the spelling department. But that brings up the little problem of pronouncing words correctly. And it is definitely an area we both need a lot of help in!

Evelyn
(madly in love with Tim, no matter how poorly he spells!)

Today we had fun preparing for Christmas. Elizabeth and her friend Etthel are at our kitchen table with dough for piparkogid (literally translated "pepper cakes," but in English we call it gingerbread). They had fun shaping the cookies, baking them, and then frosting and decorating them. At the same time, Evelyn attempted to build a piparkogimaja (gingerbread house). 

After shaping the cookies with cookie cutters, Elizabeth (with flour on her shirt!) and Etthel carefully put them on a try to bake. 

Peter didn't want to be left out of the fun, and put candy on his own cookies (well, the candy he didn't eat!). 

Elizabeth also took advantage of the few hours of light and played in the backyard. She loves the way the snow sticks to the trees so that she can eat it right from the branches. 

JDG 6:12 When the angel of the LORD appeared to Gideon, he said, "The LORD is with you, mighty warrior."
JDG 6:13 "But sir," Gideon replied, "if the LORD is with us, why has all this happened to us? Where are all his wonders that our fathers told us about when they said, `Did not the LORD bring us up out of Egypt?' But now the LORD has abandoned us and put us into the hand of Midian."
JDG 6:14 The LORD turned to him and said, "Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian's hand. Am I not sending you?"
JDG 6:15 "But Lord, " Gideon asked, "how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family."
JDG 6:16 The LORD answered, "I will be with you, and you will strike down all the Midianites together."
…
JDG 7:1 Early in the morning, Jerub-Baal (that is, Gideon) and all his men camped at the spring of Harod. The camp of Midian was north of them in the valley near the hill of Moreh. 2 The LORD said to Gideon, "You have too many men for me to deliver Midian into their hands. In order that Israel may not boast against me that her own strength has saved her, 3 announce now to the people, `Anyone who trembles with fear may turn back and leave Mount Gilead.' " So twenty-two thousand men left, while ten thousand remained.

Please read this article.

I am not sure do I believe God with all my heart
Sometimes I like believe in God but sometimes like I don't believe in God
I think it is good to believe in God
I don't know can I believe in God
I don't know I just don't know I just can't believe all that
I believe that God exists
But sending His Son and all this
I don't know sometimes
Sometimes I believe
But sometimes I just think no it can't be
I think God is not physical

And how do I respond?

Evelyn

During the Christmas party for our corps youth programs (see Thrusday's post) Evelyn examines the kids' gifts to decide if she wants to trade during the Yankee Swap. 

After the party, Peter got into some of the drinks that were left on the table and made a sticky mess. Christopher helped Evelyn give Peter a bath--and they had as much fun as at the party! 

Today, Elizabeth sang again with the youth choir at Kolgata Baptist Church. She is in the back row (wearing glasses) next to her friend Etthel. 

Last night we had a Christmas party for the kids in our corps youth programs. We had a fun time together, with most of our kids from Kavastu, and Andrei even brought a new friend.

Before we even began, we gave the kids a chance to go through 20 boxes of clothes we had been given from Sweden. We will be giving them to the orphanages here in town, but thought it was only right to give our corps kids a chance to have some new clothes as well. It was fun to watch them hold the clothes up and smile when they found something they liked, or give an item to another in the room who they thought would fit the clothes.

Once the party started, we had a Yankee Swap (a fun tradition from Evelyn's family), Christopher led the devotional time (and did a great job!), and we played some games. We ended with some soda and piparkogid (gingerbread cookies). They each went home with two of the gifts we had received from Sweden, one for themselves and one to give to a friend.

As it ended, a light snow began falling as I was driving everyone home. The snow has continued off and on for the past 24 hours, coating everything in a beautiful white and leaving a couple of inches of sticky, perfect-for-snowman-making snow on the ground. It is a glorious scene. The picture here shows how it looks in our Raekoja Plats (Town Hall Square) as I was typing this. For a live view from the web cam posted there, click here. (You may be asked to install an Axis controller; it's okay.) Despite some of the questions and uncertainty surrounding things here lately, the snow is putting me in a Christmas mood. And spending time with the teens reminded me that God is working no matter what!
--Tim

the following is quoted from here:

Good grief, Charlie Brown! In our "if you just give 'em enough rope, they will eventually show their true colors" department, NBC Chicago reports that one of Chicago's largest churches will be closed on Christmas Day. Willow Creek Community Church spokeswoman Cally Parkinson said resources that would have gone toward a Christmas Day service in the auditorium would instead help provide a special spiritual DVD the congregation will be encouraged to watch at home on Christmas. "We really are putting the opportunity to have a service in the hands of everybody who walks in," Parkinson said, "rather than creating one in a centralized way ourselves."
...
Willow Creek's Parkinson said, "You don't have to experience God in church, you can experience God in your living room." Isn't that the "Homer Simpson Rationale" for sitting on his couch and stiffing Reverend Lovejoy? And isn't it a little egocentric to assume everyone out there has a living room? And a DVD player? AND a family?

Today I delivered over 150 wrapped gifts to two orphanages here in Tartu. The gifts came from The Salvation Army in Sweden, and they give hundreds and hundreds of these gifts to the Army in Estonia each Christmas. The director of one of the homes told me that they were looking at their budget trying to determine what they would be able to provide for their children, and that this was an unexpected surprise. At both homes, they were overwhelmingly grateful. Although I was just a middle man, it was good to connect people in this way.

Tomorrow we will have a Christmas party for the kids in our youth programs, and we will also use these Swedish gifts for the kids here.

Once again, I am reminded that the faithfulness of others around the world--through material means such as the gifts, and more importantly through prayer support--is what keeps us moving onward.
--Tim

The Call to the Excluded
by General John Gowans

Before The Salvation Army was born, its calling, its destiny, was already identified. Its founders, William and Catherine Booth, were already clear as to which part of the population they were principally sent. Passing a crowded East-end of London public house with a wide open door revealing its crowded tap-room crammed with poor and soon-to-be-penniless people, William whispered to his son Bramwell (then only a lad) ... 'These are our people. These are the people I want you to live for and win for Christ'
Who were these people he claimed so passionately as his own? They were The Impoverished. They were 'Les Miserables' of his time. William felt called to The Excluded. He named them 'The Submerged Tenth'. Their poverty was the agent of their exclusion, the source of much of their misery, the nourishment of a great deal of their godlessness.
THEY WERE EXCLUDED FROM THE WELL FED. How could they be anything else? They had no regular work and could depend upon no regular income. To make matters worse they had many mouths to feed.
THEY WERE EXCLUDED FROM THE EDUCATED. Their poverty kept them out of school and it denied them the serious training they needed to follow a proper trade.
THEY WERE EXCLUDED FROM THE HEALTHY. They were compelled to live in unhealthy places on an unhealthy and totally inadequate diet. They were never allowed to cross the threshold of the doctor's house.
THEY WERE EXCLUDED FROM THE FORTUNATE. No opportunity for escape from their outcast condition was ever offered to them. They were given no chance to better themselves.
THEY WERE EXCLUDED FROM SOCIETY. They were treated as people of no consequence, as if they did not exist. For the most part they were ignored by the respectable and the comfortably off.
THEY WERE EXCLUDED FROM THE INFLUENTIAL. They were not allowed to influence the world around them except perhaps by disorder and riot. They were often inarticulate people and often they were silenced altogether.
THEY WERE EXCLUDED FROM THE CHURCH. They had not the right clothes to wear. They had not the right vocabulary to participate in its worship. Many of them could not read the prayer book. Often, if they summoned up enough courage to enter a church they were not encouraged to return. The faithful did not know how to handle them and they were made to feel unwelcome. When the young William Booth ushered a small army of the people he was trying to help into his own church he was reprimanded by the elders. If he must bring them then he must keep them out of sight.
WHO CARED FOR THE EXCLUDED?There were others at work and they thanked God for every one of them, but the people called Salvationists 'wedded' themselves to the excluded. They dedicated their lives to the business of raising the 'submerged tenth' by God's help and offering them salvation both physical and spiritual. They were fanatics but they were holy fanatics. They were determined to fight the conditions which created 'exclusion' to which society in general preferred to close its eyes. They were determined to include the excluded or die in the attempt. The God of mercy and compassion could not refuse to help them and He did help them.
DO THE EXCLUDED STILL EXIST?
We have only to open our eyes to know that they exist in every part of the world and in great numbers. Poverty exists still in all its forms HAS THE SALVATION ARMY ABANDONED THE POOR AND DESERTED THE EXCLUDED?We have to admit that some Salvationists seem to have forgotten them. It is possible for one of the excluded to visit a Salvation Army meeting or fellowship and not feel welcome. In some corps no effort is made to reach let alone serve the 'submerged', which incidentally now is more than ten per cent of the population of many countries.
But The Salvation Army as a movement has not deserted its calling. It still invests a great deal of its resources, both human and financial in the war against exclusion in its varied forms .... and not without some success. Social Institutions, programmes and projects of many kinds across the world testify to this. In addition more and more corps are reaching out to the deprived and the excluded. The Army's concern for the impoverished of every kind is very acute in some places and its tears for 'the outcasts' still flow. But...
WE MUST DO MORE AND WE MUST DO BETTER!
It will help us to do more and to do better if we do it more intelligently. Certain major principles need to be accepted:PRAYER MUST BE MATCHED WITH ACTION. If it is true that 'Satan trembles when he sees the weakest saint upon his knees' ... it is also true that Satan trembles much more when, having said his prayers, that same 'saint' rolls up his sleeves and sets out (God helping him) to answer them.
TO HELP THE EXCLUDED WE NEED TO BE WITH THEM! Nothing can be done at arms length. We must get alongside the impoverished whatever form their poverty takes. The old time slum sisters not only worked in their districts but they lived in them. They did not live at a distance and drive in every day. Is nobody called to this kind of dedication any more?REMEMBER, THE BEST WORKERS FOR THE EXCLUDED ARE THOSE WHO WERE ONCE THEMSELVES EXCLUDED. We must mobilise every one of these precious people. They know what its like to feel left out. They know the vocabulary of the excluded. They recognise the symptoms of the disease and they know what is needed to bring healing.
PREVENTION IS AS IMPORTANT AS CURE. The best way to stop exclusion is to never let it start. The best way to do this will be with the excluded child. We ignore the children at our peril ..... and theirs!
CHARITY MAY BEGIN AT HOME .... AND IN A SMALL WAY.
If we are to achieve anything among the excluded we must personally include them .... in our thoughts, in our prayers, in our programmes, in our lives, in our hearts, in our Army and hardest of all, in our homes. The excluded are hyper-sensitive … they can tell a fake carer miles away. A fake inclusion is worse than useless. The victim of it is doubly wounded.
PRAY THIS PRAYER WITH ME:
Christ of compassion grant the people called Salvationists a fresh baptism of compassion. Make us genuine carers for the impoverished. Help Your Salvation Army everywhere to recapture a passion for the poor and the determination to integrate the excluded in Your Name.
P.S. And what I pray for Your Army, Lord, I pray for myself!

URBANarmy: Closed....

"to ... our sister, to ... our fellow soldier and to the church that meets in your home: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. I always thank my God as I remember you in my prayers, because I hear about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints. I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith, so that you will have a full understanding of every good thing we have in Christ." (Philemon 1:2-6)

While what we do here might seem strange to some (we rent a house that serves as our quarters, our meeting place, our office, our storage, and everything!), it is good to see that it certainly has historical precedent!

Evelyn

We are reading a chapter from The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe out loud every morning and evening in preparation for the Estonia premiere of the movie on 23 December.

Here is something you might be interested in:
http://mysite.verizon.net/vaughnharsh/Advent/advent2005/Advent05index.shtml

Evelyn

The following are some more pictures from the past month that I never got around to posting (as always, click on it for a larger image). For Elizabeth's birthday in November, she had a sleepover. We had a house full of girls: playing games, eating, giggling, eating, making crafts, eating, and making it a special and memorable time for Elizabeth.

My sister Susan sent a gift for Elizabeth's birthday, and included among the goodies were a stack Highlights magazines, something Elizabeth loves. Of course Peter, always the book lover, didn't want to be left out. 

On 1 December we had a Harry Potter party to mark the Estonian language release of the newest book. We had 25 kids packed into our meeting room, many coming to a corps activity for the first time and invited by our regular kids. 

The kids also watched some of the first Harry Potter video in our living room. In front is Kuido, one of our faithful attenders and a really good kid. 

Peter in our living room with Andrei. 

Our regional commanders hosted an officers' Christmas party in Tallinn in early December. It was a fun time for everyone, especially the children. Here you see Elizabeth opening a gift as Captain Daniel & Anya Henderson's children Sofia and Anyuta look on. 

Peter was also excited to open a new gift! 

We've run into a situation lately that is odd and unfamiliar to us. Some of the parents of the kids who come to the corps are saying that they don't want their children involved in anything to do with Christians. At first we thought it might be because they were unsure about the Army, thinking it may be a cult (and cults are working hard here!), but it seems to have nothing to do with that at all. It seems to be more of a general antagonism toward Christianity.

I remember one of the early times I saw it was this fall when we were doing Sunday school in our yard, and one of the girls, who was probably around 10, said, "I'm not interested in anything religious." A accepted that and told her that she was welcome anyway, but it seemed an odd comment for someone so young. Now with parents expressing the same sentiment, it seems that there is something bigger here, but we don't quite know what.

Please pray that we can discern how to best respond to these feelings in a respectful way which will reflect the love of Jesus.
--Tim

"Be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others. Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No one serving as a soldier gets involved in civilian affairs--he wants to please his Commanding Officer." (2 Timothy 2:1-4)

Tonight we prayed for the Narva Corps, led by Captains Dan & Anya Henderson of the USA West (and Eastern Europe!) Territory. We especially prayed for their five soldiers who were enrolled at the end of October.

(Last night we prayed for the Kearny Corps, Lloyd Apartments, Loksa and Manhattan. We missed a few nights while Tim and Chris were away!)

We also prayed for Andrei's hand, Kuido's brother, Sarah's exams, and Kristi's travels!

Evelyn

http://www.happymeal.com/narnia/

I'm speechless!

Charles Dickens
A Good-Humoured Christmas
from The Pickwick Papers

"We write these words now, many miles distant from the spot at which, year after year, we met on that day, a merry and joyous circle. Many of the hearts that throbbed so gaily then have ceased to beat; many of the looks that shone so brightly then have ceased to glow; the hands we grasped have grown cold; the eyes we sought have hid their lustre in the grave; and yet the old house, the room, the merry voices and smiling faces, the jest, the laugh, the most minute and trivial circumstances connected with those happy meetings, crowd upon our mind at each recurrence of the season, as if the last assemblage had been but yesterday! Happy, happy Christmas, that can win us back to the delusions of our childish days, that can recall to the old man the pleasures of his youth, that can transport the sailor and the traveller, thousands of miles away, back to his own fireside and his quiet home!"

Chris and I just returned from the final Mission Team trip. This time, we were in Helsinki, and since it was the final trip, the whole team was invited to attend--and all but three were able to!

We helped with a Christmas party hosted by the THQ Social Services Department for children who had attended one of the summer camps. The place was packed with young people, some of whom we met last summer when the team was at the camp doing a program for the children. We also led the Sunday worship at the Helsinki Multi-Cultural Corps, which is a Russian language ministry, and had a brief visit with the young people of the Helsinki Central Corps.

On Saturday evening we had gathering with pizza and soda to mark the end of Mission Team. When they were asked to share their testimonies, most of the kids didn't talk so much about the outreach they did through the team, although it was obvious that it was important to them. Instead they focused on how the team had drawn them closer to one another, and taught them to get along with and love people on the team from different corps and cultures. It really energized the kids to be a part of the Mission Team, and I think the Army has benefited from it.

Please remember the team members in your prayers. Now that it is over, pray that they will continue with their outreach in their own corps. Especially pray for the Finnish team members (the smallest part of the team); they face the greatest challenge because most come from corps where he or she is the only young person.
--Tim

The Mission Team performs "The Chair" drama during the THQ Social Service Department's Christmas party for children, held at the Helsinki Central Corps.

The mission team (in elf's caps!) do the line dance for the children.

The Mission Team.

Christopher (left) and Anton give a Christmas gift to a young boy at the end of the party.

We also had time to get together with the youth group of the Helsinki Central Corps (Cadet Tero Saajovanta, who leads the group, is playing the guitar). Our group of 15 almost overwhelmed the three in the corps group (two other regulars couldn't come)! The energetic spirit of the Estonian youth have inspired many Finish corps, which are struggling to develop youth progrms.

JER 1:4 The word of the LORD came to me, saying,
JER 1:5 "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,
before you were born I set you apart;
I appointed you as a prophet to the nations."
JER 1:6 "Ah, Sovereign LORD," I said, "I do not know how to speak; I am only a child."
JER 1:7 But the LORD said to me, "Do not say, 'I am only a child.' You must go to everyone I send you to and say whatever I command you. 8 Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you and will rescue you," declares the LORD.
JER 1:9 Then the LORD reached out his hand and touched my mouth and said to me, "Now, I have put my words in your mouth."

Well, as I suspected, there was absolutely nothing the hospital could do for Andrei; it was just a very bad bruise. I would have just put ice on it and given him some Tylenol, but he really wanted to go to the hospital. He said they used a needle to take out some of the blood (!!!!), and then they wrapped it in a bandage (probably just because of the needle!), and that was all!

But thanks for praying, anyway. The good Lord knows that Andrei certainly does need a lot of prayer!

And pray for us. Andrei has gotten into the habit of coming here every day *except* Sunday, hanging around for hours at a time, asking for favors, and we don't want to feel resentful toward him. He's why we're here, and we don't want to lose sight of that.

Tonight is just one of those times when we're all really, really tired. And it seemed like as soon as Tim and Chris got home, Karl-Gustav came over for a visit (sometimes he eats supper here and then goes to the noortekodu and eats a second supper -- but he only got cookies tonight!). And then as soon as Karl-Gustav left, Andrei came.

Mary-Kay comes in 10 days!

Evelyn

After being home only a few hours from the last official Mission Team trip of 2005 (A Year for Children and Youth!), Tim is gone again. This time he's still in Tartu though!

One of our corps teens, Andrei, came to the door and asked Tim for a ride to the hospital. His knuckle is all bruised and swollen; he says he fell on the stairs.

Please pray!

Evelyn

Old-Fashioned Christmas
at
http://www.accuradio.com/holidays/#

http://pressherald.mainetoday.com/news/state/051210storm.shtml

http://www.cpt.org/

According to William Booth, the Charter of the SA is Isaiah 58

ISA 58:6 "Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:
to loose the chains of injustice
and untie the cords of the yoke,
to set the oppressed free
and break every yoke?
ISA 58:7 Is it not to share your food with the hungry
and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter--
when you see the naked, to clothe him,
and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?
ISA 58:8 Then your light will break forth like the dawn,
and your healing will quickly appear;
then your righteousness will go before you,
and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard.
ISA 58:9 Then you will call, and the LORD will answer;
you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.
"If you do away with the yoke of oppression,
with the pointing finger and malicious talk,
ISA 58:10 and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry
and satisfy the needs of the oppressed,
then your light will rise in the darkness,
and your night will become like the noonday.
ISA 58:11 The LORD will guide you always;
he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land
and will strengthen your frame.
You will be like a well-watered garden,
like a spring whose waters never fail.
ISA 58:12 Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins
and will raise up the age-old foundations;
you will be called Repairer of Broken Walls,
Restorer of Streets with Dwellings.
________
SASB #647

When shall I come unto the healing waters?
Lifting my heart, I cry to thee my prayer.
Spirit of peace, my Comforter and healer,
In whom my springs are found, let my soul meet thee there.

From a hill I know,
Healing waters, flow:
O rise, Immanuel's tide,
And my soul overflow!

Wash from my hands the dust of earthly striving;
Take from my mind the stress of secret fear;
Cleanse thou the wounds from all but thee far hidden.
And when the waters flow let my healing appear.

Light, life and love are in that healing fountain,
All I require to cleanse me and restore;
Flow through my soul, redeem its desert places,
And make a garden there for the Lord I adore.

Albert Orsborn (1886-1967)

We've all been working on our Estonian language skills. Even Peter, our little book lover, has been doing his part :-) 

Elizabeth has been singing in the children's choir at Kolgata Baptist Church, and has really enjoyed the chance to sing in Estonian. Here you see the group singing during a recent Sunday. 

Elizabeth singing like an angel with the children's choir and adult chamber choir. 

Mardip�ev (St. Martin's Day) is a day in November when children dress like boys and go from house to house gathering candy and treats. Unlike Halloween, the kids have to work for their goodies by singing or dancing. Here you see (front, l to r) Etthel, Elizabeth & Maret, and in back Andrei (with the mask), a boy they met while gathering goodies, and Chris. 

Tonight we will pray for Freeport, where we lived when Elizabeth was born (10 years ago!).

It's also one of my sister Mary-Kay's favorite places to go shopping!

Evelyn

We just watched this very cool 10-minute trailer for The Chronicles of Narnia: the Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe with the kids from our lastekoosolek last night.

When I heard Aslan's voice, I thought it was Mufasa (a.k.a. Darth Vader!).

I am quite relieved to know it is really QGJ!

Evelyn

Success is counted sweetest
By those who ne'er succeed.
To comprehend a nectar
Requires sorest need.

Not one of all the purple Host
Who took the Flag today
Can tell the definition
So clear of Victory

As he defeated -- dying --
On whose forbidden ear
The distant strains of triumph
Burst agonized and clear!

(Emily Dickinson)

Do you ever feel like you never succeed? Do you ever feel defeated?

Me too.

Evelyn

During a recent light snow, the snow clung to all of the trees, making everything look brilliantly white. This is the front of our house framed by the beautiful whiteness. 

The lilac bush in front of our house looked stunning with is coating of white.