Time in Tambov

After a long, tiring, yet very rewarding week of camp, everyone finally got a proper night of sleep! Each of us spent the evening with a host family from the church in Tambov. In the morning, we all met back together at church feeling recharged and excited to worship the Lord with our Russian brothers and sisters.

As we walked through the open doors we were greeted by a worship choir and many smiling faces. The service was filled with joy and unity as we sang songs, listened to sermons, took communion, watched baptisms, and enjoyed fellowship with each other. What a blessing and privilege to worship our great God and Savior alongside His people that before had been half a world away. Even though many of us had never met before, we we shared a deep bond and unity that only those in Christ can truly know. This is something we will all remember for a long time to come.

After Church, we decided to take a walk around Tambov with the team and more people from church. It was a wonderful time of fellowship and conversation as we said some final goodbyes to a couple campers who tagged along. Later we ate some dinner and spent time discussing how camp went as well as how we’ve grown from the experience. We finished the evening with a night walk around Tambov, seeing many beautiful sights and having many gospel conversations. We are thankful.

This will be our last post for this year’s trip as we are on the bus to Moscow airport; the beginning of our approximately 30 hour journey home.

- Kevin

The choir welcoming everyone as we arrived for church

Enjoying lunch together at the church following the service

The incredible gardens around the church where the neighbors grow fruits, vegetables and flowers.

Deborah demonstrating how to pose for the famous flower ball gown by the river in Tambov

The team enjoying a Sunday afternoon walk through the Tambov park and honey festival.

Olivia and Kevin on the walk along the river

Caleb and Erin enjoying the late night walk by the fountains

Camp - Saying Good-bye

After five wonderful days of teaching and building relationships with campers, the team spent Saturday saying sad goodbyes. It was difficult to say goodbye to all the amazing people we met over the past week.

The first group that left early in the morning was an incredible group of Christian young people who inspired and encouraged the whole team over the course of the week. It was bitter sweet to see these friends leave. Although we had to say goodbye, we knew that these young adults were going back to their individual contexts and were equipped to share Christ in their sphere of influence. The future Russian church is in the hands of these young people and there is no doubt that they will seek to make it grow and thrive.

The team, camp staff, and students all left camp around 11. A majority of the team and campers took a large bus to Tambov. Once in Tambov, more goodbyes were said and the team spent some time in the Tambov market before going out for dinner at an interesting restaurant.

Reflecting back on the time we spent at camp, it is easy to think that there are many things that should have been said or done differently at the individual level. Personally, it is hard to not kick myself over what I see as lost opportunities to speak more boldly about my faith. However, as mentioned above, there is a growing church in Russia, mostly made up of young adults in fire for the Lord. Our role at English camp was evangelism through the tool of English, but it was so much more than that. It was providing a place where the Russian Christians could bring their friends who were unbelievers. It was providing encouragement to these believers so that they can continue to do the work that was begun with them. We can only do so much in five days but the Russian church is here all the time. Even if our job was just to plant seeds, we are allowing the Russian Christians an opportunity to continue to work with these seeds after we are gone. The campers who are unbelievers know who they can turn to when they have questions about what they learned at camp. Knowing that God is using us, even in the short amount of time we spent here, to play a small role in the growth of His church in Russia is amazing. It is humbling to remember that we are not here to save every Russian, but instead we are here to serve the local believers as they effectively reach their friends and family for Christ.

Camp was amazing and the entire team has much to process. Making new friends is wonderful but it always means the goodbyes are difficult. However we know that we will see many of our friends again, if not on this earth than on the one to come and that is an amazing truth to hold on to.

- Macey

The morning running/walking group

We sang “How Great is Our God” in Russian on the last night of camp.

Saying good-bye is hard!

Taxi rides around Tambov.

Camp - Day 4

Becca was a huge part of planning and coordinating craft time at camp this year. Below is her perspective on the first couple days plus some more pictures. We’re sorry that we’ve been unable to post for several days. The wifi at camp stopped working. We are now in Tambov having arrived here earlier this afternoon and will be here for the remainder of our time in Russia.

Day 1 - Journals

First day of crafts was fabulous. 9 students signed up and 32 showed up. All seemed to enjoy themselves and the majority listened and followed instructions to create their journals. The students were so gracious and made a point to thank me. One little boy, about 3 years old and with his mom, was just adorable, even he stopped to thank me. So sweet! God is so considerate! Thanks to Him and to the collaboration with Barb before leaving the USA and with all of my helpers here: Connie, Deborah, Abby and Vicki, it was a great success. Thanks everyone!

Day 2 - Backpacks
29 signed up; 42 showed up!! Oh my goodness gracious!
There are some very talented individuals here. Two ladies asked to have their picture taken with me.
Once again thanks to Him and my helpers for such a great day. Special thanks to Erin for helping with some translations.

Day 4 craft time was making cactus wind chimes.

Nathanael & Deborah’s class hard at work learning English.

Chai time was a special time each evening of camp. A different class was invited to come every evening after dinner and have cake and chai (hot tea) or coffee while Pete presented the gospel by asking the question, “Who is Jesus?”

Caleb tried to teach everyone at camp how to floss!

Danielle laughing with some of the girls as they do a preposition game during conversation time.

Camp - Day 3

Day three of camp was just as exciting and challenging as day one. It has been very encouraging to see the teachers and campers getting comfortable with one another which has made engaging them inside and outside of lessons a lot easier. You can talk with anyone at anytime about anything. Being part of and hearing all the conversations that have been had about the Bible has been amazing. Even though we don't know each other that well, it has been so refreshing to see the passion fellow believers here have for Christ.

There is a late night show which is a fun mix of singing and playing games. A group of Americans and Russians were called on stage to try and guess what the other team was saying. The Russians had an English word or sentence they had to try and say and the Americans had a different Russian word or phrase they had to try and say. Giving it our all, we Americans completely butchered what they were trying to say, but the Russians, using the English they have been taught, were able to say the words clear enough that we could guess what they said correctly. It was so cool to be able to see and hear how much they really know.

Near the end they have one American on stage talk a little bit about their life and testimony. Last night was my fellow teacher from Boise, Idaho-Monica Sander. Getting to know her and Cynthia has been a real joy for me. Together, through the power of God's Spirit in each of us, I think we make a great team.

We then had dessert and played some games. Dessert was Buckeyes (OHIO!!), chocolate covered pretzels and apricot preserves. We played code names with a fun group of Russians and bonded over the confusion of how each of us interprets what a word means.

The evening closed with Thomas and Kaitlin arriving during game time late last night and it was so interesting to see them be immediately bombarded with hugs and greetings from the Russian people who knew them previously from other camp years.

With love,

Matthew.

Sorry the wifi is not strong enough for pictures. We will upload more when we are able

Camp - Day 2

Hello! 

The second day of camp began a little cold and raining. However, the first lesson was dry enough to teach outside. Throughout the morning lessons I heard many loud bursts of laughter from around the campground, always a good sign of a good time.

When we realized the rain was coming, there was a chaotic rush as we developed plans for the placement of each class. The second English session went smoothly after we all were placed somewhere dry. Some people were placed inside, and others were placed outside under a clear tarp. 

For Lunch we had spaghetti noodles with meat and carrots, borscht, bread, and tea. After lunch was free time. Since it wasn’t raining too badly at that point, a few people played outside, and a very intense game of volleyball ensued. I overheard many different conversations where some of the students were asking Americans about Christianity and the Bible, which was incredibly uplifting to hear.

The third session was inside as well, my class personally took it upon themselves to turn the tables and teach us a little Russian. One of my younger students taught me the words for “eyelash”, “teacher”, “braid”, “hand”, and “paint”; the only plan she had was to teach me something, as long as it was Russian.

After the last class we had an American dinner that consisted of fried chicken with Chik-fil-a sauce, Spanish rice, and Broccoli salad. 

For the evening show, we went through the southern region of America. We played a few games and sang “Sweet Home Alabama”, and “Forever Reign”. The rest of the night was spent talking and laughing.  It was nice to see that our English students were comfortable enough to joke with us, and in a few cases, roast us. I love seeing all the different relationships that are forming, between Americans,  between Americans and Russians. Although the days are tiring, this is one adventure I am proud to be a part of.

With all the love humanly possible,

Olivia

Nathanael quickly became a part of the late night show band.

Camp - Day 1

Day one of English camp was packed to the brim and we have already seen God's gracious work in us, as well as the students. The camp literally hit the ground running yesterday with a 7am run/walk and exercise. That was followed by a yummy Russian breakfast of tea, Russian corn flakes (they're REALLY tasty), hard boiled eggs, and a type of Russian porridge.

Our designated room for all of our teaching supplies was like a busy beehive with each of us gathering what we needed for class. Once we'd downed an alarming amount of coffee(we brought our own stash), we were then off to the first hour of English class! Armed with our curriculum, teaching supplies and God's grace, the teaching teams dispersed throughout the campground to meet with our assigned students. We all spent the hour lesson getting to know each of them and teach them how to speak English. The Russians are very attentive and eager to learn, and overall seem to have a great sense of humor, which makes teaching them fun and a little easier for us!

It was time for a quick mid morning tea break and then back to the next class with a reading lesson. We used scripture for our reading content and were able talk through commonly misspelled or how to pronounce words and explaining word definitions with the students; we also shared the context of the passages we were reading and why it is important for everyone to know. The general consensus from the students was that they loved this class time. 

Then it was already lunch time! We ate a Russian lunch of soup, fried pork chops, mashed potatoes, salad and yet again, more tea(and of course the teachers had more coffee)Then a few hours of crafts and games. The craft was a hand made journal for the students that they can use to document their time here at camp. It was a successful time and the campers appeared to love the activity. The outside activities included kayaking, volleyball, foosball and climbing the rock climbing wall.

It was then time for our final lesson with the students. We used this time as structured conversation time and explained some parts of english they didn't know.

Then a wonderful dinner that complimented our "Roadtrip Across America" camp theme. It was New England day, so we had chowder and baked beans...and of course more tea. 

Then we had free time to get to know more students, which is one of the most fun parts of this experience! 

We finished out day one with the Late Night show, which included great songs, funny skits, games and an interview from one of our Idaho team members, Cynthia.

The evening was spent eating Boston Cream Pie(another ode to New England), tea, playing board games, and just hanging out with our teammates and campers. 

I am so grateful to see God's work today and my heart is as full as the day. I am writing this very late into the night, but I can't wait to get up and see what is in store for day two of camp!

Much love,

Deborah

Abrielle and Buster checking out the new climbing wall with some students

Deborah and Nathanael teaching their class

The food here is yummy… even if we don’t always know what we’re eating :)

Becca kicking off the first day of crafts and showing students how to make journals

Setting up for Camp

So far, this trip to Russia has been absolutely amazing. After boarding an overnight train ride, I slept in a room with Bruce, Matthew, and Buster. We watched an amazing chess game between Kevin and Matthew. Although neither Kevin or Matthew were strategic experts, the game was intense and will go down as the "Game of the Century";). After the game was over, we fell asleep and had a short night of rest. On Sunday morning we debarked from the train and took a bus ride. Once we arrived at the camp, we unpacked our bags and found our rooms. We had a team meeting which included singing songs and praying for the rest of the week. We waited outside for the campers to come. Once a few students had arrived, we played 9 Square, Carpet Ball, and Basketball. We then checked in the students and tested them on their English proficiency. I tested about 12 students who all had varying levels of English language skills. Later on, we ate dinner with other Russian students. The Late Night show was the finale for the day, as the music and festive nature added lots of energy to the campers. The day ended with students playing board games. Overall, this day was exciting and I am absolutely loving the trip! Meeting new people has inspired me to be a servant leader in Russia!

With gratitude,

Nathanael

The overnight train.

Cynthia and Becca enjoying the view from the train.

Gathered around for our first team meeting before the campers began to arrive.

“Breaking the ice” as campers arrived.

More Photos from Moscow

Enjoying a river tour through the city

A night time city view from the hotel.

Abby busting a move at the fountains.

Moscow

We apologize for the delay in posting an update! We were thankful that most of our team’s bags were delivered to our hotel in Moscow. However, Pete, Danielle, and Kevin had to return to the airport to get the rest of the bags that were stuck in customs. After a longer than expected and another rather unpleasant experience, we can finally say that we have all of them!

We all enjoyed our time touring Moscow and bonding as a team. We have now arrived at camp and are looking forward to campers arriving later this afternoon and evening.

We are also dealing with intermittent Internet connectivity so will post more photos later tonight if resolved.

Some of the team enjoying an ice cream snack - and avoiding the rain - in a mall in Moscow.

Kevin interacting with some doves at the fountains in Moscow.

The team exploring the park and monuments in Moscow.

We've arrived!

After almost 34 hours of traveling, we all arrived safely last night at our hotel in Moscow. Praise the Lord!

All of the Cornerstone flights were on time and we met up in Chicago to fly together to London. Our flight to London was delayed and we were fairly certain that we were going to miss our connection since we were still taxiing in from landing when the other flight was due to close boarding. To our surprise, there was a team of people from British Airways waiting to meet us as we arrived and they expedited us through the airport and held the flight for us. God never ceases to amaze us with His gracious answers to prayer! Once on board, we were able to meet the Idaho members of our team.

Unfortunately, due to a computer system outage at London’s Heathrow airport, no bags were loaded onto our plane. Thankfully we had all packed carry on bags for the couple of days in Moscow, but as soon as we arrived we had to spend five hours waiting in line with almost all the passengers from our flight to file lost bag reports with the local authorities. Obviously this was not what we had expected, but God is sovereign over all things and our bags, Lord willing, should be arriving later on today and delivered to our hotel. Since these contain not just our clothes but all our teaching supplies which are vital for camp, we would appreciate prayers for their safe arrival!

Since we arrived so late last night by the time we got out of the airport, we have still not met the entire team. Today we look forward to finally being together as a group and touring Moscow together.

Please enjoy the photos below from our travels:

The Xenia team arriving at Dayton Airport

Getting ready for a LONG day!

Caleb passing time on the flights

Passing time during our layovers.

The wonder of God’s creation never ceases to amaze!

The entire Cornerstone team on arrival in Moscow… and smiling after finally get through our five hour lost baggage line!

Making our way across Moscow to our hotel… we were all extremely tired by this point!