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Kyiv Calling May 2003
(Kyiv Calling ARCHIVES bottom of page) 
Surprise! May Victory Swim On The Heels of Awesome April? ~ We're getting ready to return to Canada for a month or so but we are also taking a little time “to smell the roses”. Kiev in May is gorgeous! Our little Kvarteera (flat) is surrounded by blossoming fruit trees and the other side of the river is looking even more wonderful this May 9th “Victory Day “ (Great Patriotic War). In fact it was so nice out today, Ron and I even ran off to the beach for a while (first time) and in spite of the cool water I couldn't resist a swim in the Dneipr. Free treat! Praise God from whom all blessings flow!!!!!!!
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PRAISE GOD! and warm hugs for this very special lady! ~ At long last I am more officially introducing you to our western administrative volunteer, Suzanne Currie. She is our Wellspring Administrative Volunteer though has been functioning for months now as our link between many of you and our World Team / International Faith Initiatives “Ukraine Family Institute” calling! This little lady is amazing. Honouring privacy I will not go into the details of the tough road this young lady has travelled. But believe me she is a trooper! Some of those life struggles may be over for her but other weights remain plus the difficult, sometimes life threatening physical struggles remain chronic barring new scientific discoveries and remedies. Yet through it all she perseveres and radiates (atypical of this photo [sorry]) her faith and joy in Jesus. God has blessed us and Wellspring Of Life Associates many times over through Suzanne. For the past half year or so she has boldly stepped into new territory including successfully fulfilling the critical role of enabling snail mail communication between Ron and me and our prayer and financial supporters. We are so grateful for all her efforts! To boot there have been more than a few times when I burst out laughing here in Kiev while she was emailing or “chatting” on line with me from Cambridge Ontario concerning frustrating document formats, my wonderfully erratic timetable, and different language and culture lingo. She would do this even when suffering severely through family tragedy or personal physical pain. Are you getting the idea of the kind of woman with which we are blessed? Suzanne continues to study with Ron whenever he returns to Canada and offers courses. Recently she has been granted approval by the Ontario Disability Employment Supports Program and has received funding to begin her own Biblical Counselling ministry which she calls “Heart To Heart Biblical Counselling”. It is no easy task! We congratulate you Suzanne and pray for you! I hope our readers consider this an invitation to thank God and pray for Suzanne as she works through her role with us, continuing education, chronic health struggles, and her active desire to share what she has learned as she continues on life's journey staying very close to The Shepherd.
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Ron & Linda Heading Home? ~ And stressed out romantics moving in while we're away! (Who? Would not want to spoil there fun.) But ...home? Kiev is home? Hey Canada, I love you BUT….. Kyiv just feels like home, even though we cannot yet speak Russian nor Ukrainian! (Adam can. We need more, um, er, time!) Don't panic or feel unloved. This is good! It's continuing confirmation that we're where we should be. We fly out May 23rd and return July 4th. I'm dreaming of a windsurfer, a little bit of sun and wind and better than polar temperature waters. However, we have much visiting and work to do there in 1 month. Ron may be teaching an advanced counselling class (See next page “training”) There are too many friends and relatives we miss and would love to see but simply cannot of course. Yet we do look forward to connecting with many of you, including World Team and certainly our 3 children who are ALL presently living in Canada. Surprise! Adam went home a month early (“incognito”) in an attempt to complete his grade 12 work in order to graduate. More on him in a moment. Then of course there is that urgent NEED to expand our donor base to relieve the pressure from major donors. Please pray for that. I know you will, Thank you.
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A little more on Adam: He has been accepted at Redeemer University College, is very eager to go there, and is presently living with his best guy friend, Joel. Joel's father happens to be a professor at the college. The emails from Adam since he arrived there a couple of weeks ago have been bursting with happiness, expressing work being accomplished, perfectly suitable music (bassoon) opportunities in and out of church there, and much more. Are you amazed or are you amazed at how God provides for His own!?!?! (Here though, Adam's Kyiv friends miss him a lot!!! Not just girls.)
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Canadian and Ukrainian Counselling Training ~ The Lying Pen of Shoferim is scheduled to be taught by Ron in Cambridge, Ontario, Saturdays - May 31, June 7, 14, 21, 2003. 9:30am - 3:30pm. It is Module 4 material, Ukraine Family Institute, Kyiv Ukraine and concerns the right use of scripture in biblical counselling. (See website or email, or call Geraldine at 519-620-0158 for prerequisites, place, cost) Meanwhile, here in Ukraine Ron and team are beginning to train 2 more Russian speaking Teaching Associates who are already UFI students and live here in Kyiv.
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Ukraine's Rebuilding Pains ~ Some of you got and liked the photo symbolic of the interesting little challenges we often face but never mention. Here's a typical one. Looks nice (remodelled bathroom) but as the locals often say in reference to everything from long waits to cold food, brand new useless products, weird water and such, “Eta normalna!” and/or “soviet style”. (Hey, their words not mine!) There are so many ways things have improved in Kiev and God's blessing is so evident, we generally just laugh and roll with the rest. Crazy too? or called? (Much poverty and pain here, but much hope, life, old and new beauty and excellence too.)
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Our home church ~ We love it. Ron continues to teach where he can, limited by time but trying to make the most of the opportunities. Some Church of The Holy Trinity blessing and growth has been phenomenal right from the beginning (read Diane McMurrin's book obtainable through musicmissionkiev.org), but of course many trials were and continue to be experienced along the way. Our latest is the need for 700 or so people to change our worship location a couple of times this year. A building fund has begun and searches for the right place have been underway for quite some time. Buildings aren't cheap in Kiev! In the meantime we have moved again (from the wonderful old theatre) and now worship at 2 p.m.  in a newly built church of another denomination, 10 minutes walk from our flat. It's nice and we are all grateful but it is still under construction and our church's needs already exceed what is available in this building. The special blessing to Ron and me is that it is proving to be very easy to invite (and inexcusable to not invite!) guests to our little kvarteera (apartment) after the service. I was feeling the “empty nest” syndrome rather acutely when Adam left but now am enjoying a bit of “before they call I will answer” ( Is 65:24…) blessing. God is SO good!!!
Our home church congregation (700ish) worshipping
in old theatre after last move and before most recent move. View from balcony which was also quite full that morning
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Speaking To Our Artist Hearts ~ Boasting never of us but only of God, remember the following as you read “Overwhelming Beauty”. Ron was a fine pianist (urged by his teacher to go pro) and got his masters in music composition before becoming a Christian, did his doctoral thesis on the use of music in counselling, and I ministered with various instruments, primarily concert harp, for over 25 years. Both of us, like my parents and our daughter, bubble with visual arts creativity attacks & appreciation as well. We came to Kiev to teach and train in counselling and have in that capacity received blessing beyond our expectations. But God didn't stop there. He gave us world class music in a church that openheartedly teaches, ministers to young, old, to orphans, feeds 400 widows, and reaches out evangelistically. Can you see God's perfect knowledge and love in calling us to Kyiv?
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Overwhelming Beauty ~ April 6th, 2003. (Please read “Speaking To Our Artist Hearts” first)
I found myself blinking back tears as I sat in the balcony of the old Kiev theatre that has been functioning as our church for a few hours each Sunday these past two months. Though music was what grabbed my soul this day, every aspect of the service was special and many around me felt similarly. Behind me in the balcony, a few steps up and even closer to the ceiling if not heaven, sat yet another row of worshippers. In front of me my view was looking down from the balcony to see a full house of Ukrainians worshipping our living God, and a large group of youngsters awaiting prayer and dismissal for Sunday school. What youth were not Kyiv Youth Orchestra and Choir members presently extraordinarily blessing countless Americans while they are on tour in the US, were seen in pockets here and there throughout the congregation. While Matt McMurrin was sharing God through conducting the KYOC in the west, the fruit of his faithful, courageous, gifted, hard working father Roger (who gradually acquired many talented, eager helpers and new brothers and sisters in Christ) filled this room. God used him to found Church of The Holy Trinity. His wife Diane braved the unknowns and trials for more than a decade and sat near me now in the balcony, also evidently emotionally moved by this service. Now it seemed not 600 but close to 700 filled the theatre and all around the music was indescribably beautiful. All of the hymns and special music are usually excellently presented by the orchestra and choir, or smaller ensembles, many from Roger's KSOC. But this Sunday, a Sunday I had almost missed for no good reason, … this Sunday felt like nothing short of the Spirit of God wafting nearly pure examples of His creative beauty throughout every nook and cranny of the entire theatre right up to and perhaps through the massive chandelier and ornately carved though paint peeled aged ceiling. Being very sensitive to dust, moulds, and many other allergens, I (and only me it seemed) could feel and smell enough in this particular English translation corner up by the ceiling to opt for shallow breathing and wonder just how old this building is. I wondered not in complaint but deeper appreciation of Kiev history and present blessing. But then the music seriously monopolized my soul. For a moment I struggled to define beauty and understand how this invisible force of music had such power. (The “Why?” is less a mystery for me.) Then as quickly as that desire to grasp and hold understanding came, I let it go, as crystal clear water slipping through fingers. I believed it better to simply close my eyes, soul floating heavenward and body figuratively melting to the floor in overwhelming gratitude and worship of our omnipotent, Holy God. Rather wonderful; this Kiev place, and God's amazing Grace.
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Speak to one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs.
Sing and make music in your heart to The Lord,
Always giving thanks to God The Father
For everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Ephesians 5:19, 20
Serving Christ … from Kyiv: Ron, Linda,
from Ottawa: Angela (22) & Dawna (21)
from still secret place in Canada : Noel Adam (17)
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Dr. Ron Harris: rharris@iGlide.net ~ Founder of Wellspring of Life Biblical Counselling Service: wellspringoflife.com Academic Dean Ukraine Family Institute:ufi_kiev@yahoo.com , rlharris@iptelecom.net.ua
World Team Canada :NEW last month: 7575 Danbro Crescent, Mississauga, ON L5N 6P9
(905) 821-6300; (800) 610-9788, www.world-team.org ~
International Faith Initiatives Inc. (USA) www.internationalfaith.org ~ Rev. Linville: mike@internationalfaith.org
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We send out email newsletters which differ in format from this web page and from the 8.5" X 11" snail mail format.
For information, problems / changes / deletions regarding these newsletters, please tell me, Linda: rlharris@i.kiev.ua
Apologies for misalignments / spacing. New software would be nice. This one too often (but not always) glitches.
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Photos ~ The 2 slide shows are still up. http://www.wellspringoflife.com Click SLIDE SHOWS from the top main menu. (No huge downloads. If you are reading this on the internet already, just scroll down and click photo link.) Quite a few of you have checked them out and sent wonderfully encouraging emails. Thanks again! Sorry I don't have a module 2 one made (nor particularly planned) as we have been preoccupied with other priorities in maximizing our time here and trip to Canada for June. Mutual prayer is a must. Keep(ing) it up!
Thank YOU and Praise GOD!
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(These ones work well.No bells and whistles but I chose to make them this way
to eliminate computer and time problems for you. No downoad concerns!)
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