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Take T.E.N.
Dear Friends,
Every January we rejoice in the lengthening of each and every day. We have the whole year ahead, full of plans and dreams. We are seeing new opportunities in the development of our Community Center and the hope that God's kingdom will grow in this vast and dark city.
URGENT PRAYER REQUEST
Many of you may remember our friend Yana who last term came to the Lord. She and her husband are now living in the south of Russia and have adopted two children. She was recently diagnosed with cancer and has had one kidney removed. The doctors are concerned that the cancer may have spread to another location. Would you please pray with us that the Lord will heal Yana and continue to give her strength and comfort? They are dear friends. We hope to see them and meet their children some time soon.
GOODBYE, AGAIN????
Lately we have been saying lots of good byes... sometimes we get downright sick of good byes. Really. Recently a family at IA moved back to the States unexpectedly. Another wonderful family on our Russia team made the tough but right decision to return stateside to care for their child. Our dear teammates the Masons are going on home assignment a little early as they are joyfully expecting their third! (If you remember we did the same thing a few years back :) Please pray for all these families that are in transition. Pray for our kids as they feel the loss of good friends.
NO ROOM
Lately we have been helping Zach by getting his baby teeth out. The new teeth were already coming in and the old ones just weren't willing to leave :) He has lost two so far but the problem is that his new teeth are WAY bigger than the teeth that just fell out (or got yanked out by mom). Hopefully his jaw will have a growth or expansion spurt. Speaking of teeth, Amanda will soon be getting braces so you can be praying for her - that the process will not be too painful.
MOVING on UP
We are in the process of moving locations for the church meetings and also for English club. We have found a beautiful facility to rent. Unfortunately, a commission told the owners that they cannot yet rent it out. Please pray that the details will get figured out and that we will develop and maintain a great working relationship with the owner/manager of the facility and that God will shower us with resources, people, and ministries. Or, if He has something better for us that the door will remain closed :)
ENGLISH CAMP
The biggest news of the last month was Winter English Camp. We had a great time with 32 people in attendance; about 20 of those are non-Christian friends and contacts. All the events and lessons went well and everyone attended the voluntary devotional times each morning. At these, the Gospel was clearly presented. There were a number of spiritual conversations and discussions that happened sporadically during our time together. Please pray for these seeds to continue to grow in the hearts of these young people. The group really was willing to go out of their comfort zones in some of the skits and discussions. Many stayed up till the wee hours of the morning talking and playing games. The manager of the camp has asked if we are interested in helping their church run an English camp in the future. Some of those who attended were: Pavel a doctor friend from Med- Em, Julia a student from the Mining Institute, Stas a student of higher management, Christina and Diana (two sisters who met our friend Christy at the market and developed a friendship), Pasha a student who likes boxing and thinks Machiavelli is cool, and Yasya a Christian gal whose prayers and dream of living in St Petersburg recently came true.
Can you say.... REFRIGERATOR?
Trish has continued teaching a weekly English class. In her class are several wonderful Japanese ladies. Last week they had fun trying to say the word refrigerator! She is also tutoring a lady who by profession is a counselor. Please pray for these contacts as we seek to bless them though our friendships and faith. We are seeing and meeting more people that cause us to think, "Man, they would be a great person to have serve and work in our community center."
UNBURYING
St. Petersburg was hit by a pretty bad snowstorm at the end of December. More snow fell than has fallen in 100 or so years. In fact it was so bad that they are still unburying streets and cars (a month later)! Part of the problem is that in Russia, January is pretty much a half month holiday. New Years starts it off and life does not really get back to normal until January 15th or so. On the positive side the snow has made this usually dark and dingy city very bright. We also had quite a number of sunny days. Wow! But with clear skies comes cold temperatures. For much of the month the temperature was below 0° degrees Fahrenheit quite often, and as low as -15° or so. From our point of view it is like a very normal snow fall in Fulton NY. And no, we don't miss the snow.
ANNE - THE MUSICAL
Lately, you can hear opera in our house. Rach and Manda are both in the school's spring play and have been watching the play and singing the songs to Anne of Green Gables. Lauren was recently invited to a birthday party. What is significant about it is that originally it was going to be an all boy party. The birthday boy decided he wanted Lauren and another girl classmate to be able to attend. All the kids are doing well in school and enjoying their teachers and friends. They do miss their American friends though.
THANK YOU
Thank you for your investment in us and our ministry here in Russia. The primary investment vehicle to support our work is the Great Commission Fund. Contributions can be made through a local Alliance church, on line at http://www.cmalliance.org/give/ or by sending a check to the C&MA, PO Box 35000, Colorado Springs, CO 80935-3500. You may designate your gift to support us by writing "for the support of Eggleton" on the memo line. This personalizes your gift and helps us be here and carry out our ministry.
Please "Take T.E.N." minutes and pray earnestly for our family and the people with whom we are serving. Pray for our church, for God to do miraculous work in the lives of the believers here.
Representing you in Russia,
Alan and Trish Eggleton, Rachel, Amanda, Lauren and Zachary
Besides our general support, other gifts can be specialized on the memo line as follows: "St. Petersburg Community Center," "Eggleton Work Specials," or "Eggleton Car Fund." Thanks
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