Countdown:
Days: 20
Dollars: 0
PRAISE GOD! With your help I have now raised all the funds that I need for this trip. There are a couple of expenses that I have realized I did not budget for like taxi's and buses, but I am confident that God will work it out.
I am almost ready because it seems like time has flown by from the time that Ryan and I decided that I would make this trip to now. But these last 30ish days are dragging. I have been anticipating this trip for so long that :
I am ready to be there, doing this work that we set out to do.
I am ready to get my suitcase out and pack.
I am ready to go to the store and buy my snacks.
I am ready to gather and organize my toiletries.
I am ready to coordinate with my roommate who will bring the hairdryer and who will bring the flat iron. I am ready to tightly roll up my clothes so I can also fit in the various item that our group needs to bring for our students and the church we support.
I am ready to go on my first mission trip.
I am ready to go on my first international trip.
I am ready to fly across an ocean.
I am ready.....almost.
I am almost ready for the way this trip will change me.
I am almost ready to teach college students about respect and fairness.
I am ready....almost.
I ask you to please continue to pray for our team as we prepare. Pray for our families as they prepare for us to be gone for 16 days. Pray that the exchange rate for Rubles will go up, so we can get more for our money. Pray for our team to be filled with the Holy Spirit.
Thank you!
JP
Thursday, September 27, 2012
Thursday, September 13, 2012
Last Hurdle - Done!
Countdown:
Days: 33
Dollars: $200
Thirty-three days left and our team is all set. Our coordinator got our Visas in the mail on Monday and that was the last major hurdle we absolutely had to over come before we left. PRAISE GOD! All 6 of us were able to get our Visas without any trouble! I should have mine in hand by Sunday!
I ask that you pray with me over the following people:
Paul- the minister at the church in Volgograd.
Irina - a member of the church in Volgograd and she also helps coordinate our apartments.
Ludmilla Karpova - the director of the Character for Kids program at the university.
All the current university students that we will come into contact with.
All the former students that we continue to build relationships with.
The women who we will rent our apartments from.
All the members of the church in Volgograd that we will visit.
Thank you for your continued prayers as I prepare for this trip.
~Romans 8:28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.~
Days: 33
Dollars: $200
Thirty-three days left and our team is all set. Our coordinator got our Visas in the mail on Monday and that was the last major hurdle we absolutely had to over come before we left. PRAISE GOD! All 6 of us were able to get our Visas without any trouble! I should have mine in hand by Sunday!
I ask that you pray with me over the following people:
Paul- the minister at the church in Volgograd.
Irina - a member of the church in Volgograd and she also helps coordinate our apartments.
Ludmilla Karpova - the director of the Character for Kids program at the university.
All the current university students that we will come into contact with.
All the former students that we continue to build relationships with.
The women who we will rent our apartments from.
All the members of the church in Volgograd that we will visit.
Thank you for your continued prayers as I prepare for this trip.
~Romans 8:28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.~
Thursday, September 6, 2012
6 Weeks To Go
Countdown:
Days: 41
Dollars $300
Wow, time really is flying. May people have been very generous and I am nearly at my target amount to raise for my trip to Russia. This last $300 that remains is basically the amount that I will need to cover the cost of my apartment for the time that we will be there. How great is that? $300 for 16 days, you can't beat that.
Well, that's about all I know for today. Please continue to pray for the team as we prepare. Please also pray that God is already preparing the ground ahead of us so that we can plant seeds while we are there. We can only do this through Him, and we are blessed to have this opportunity.
Until next time....
Paka!
Thursday, August 23, 2012
Let the Countdown Begin
Count down:
Days: 55
Dollars: $550
Those numbers worked out nicely. That was not intentional on my part, but it is pretty cool to me. We had an anonymous donor take care of the fees for all of our visas. What a blessing! Mr./Mrs. Anonymous donor, we sincerely thank you for your generosity!
Preparation updates:
I completed watching the video for Fairness and I get to do an interesting activity with the students. I get to start off seemingly arbitrarily handing out pieces of candy to students while leaving others out. Then we get to talk about how that made them feel and why it is important to treat people fairly. I am trying to decide how I should go about doing this. Should I have one of my co-teachers pass out the candy, one of the students? Thoughts, suggestions?
Does anyone have any recent pop-culture references that would be good examples of Respect or Fairness?
Over tax free weekend I purchased a new pair of athletic shoes and I made sure I got a pair that are mostly gray. Apparently white athletic shoes are a dead giveaway that you are American. Not that I have any hope of hiding that! I also got a rain coat (that fits) to be able to layer with a sweater, if necessary. I have travel adapters for the power outlets. I am debating on purchasing a backpack that has built in security features to keep out wandering hands. I am sure this is a little overboard, but we travel quite a bit and it would get good use.
If it is not already obvious, I have never traveled out of the United States. Any advice for newbie international travel?
Until next time...
Paka
Days: 55
Dollars: $550
Those numbers worked out nicely. That was not intentional on my part, but it is pretty cool to me. We had an anonymous donor take care of the fees for all of our visas. What a blessing! Mr./Mrs. Anonymous donor, we sincerely thank you for your generosity!
Preparation updates:
I completed watching the video for Fairness and I get to do an interesting activity with the students. I get to start off seemingly arbitrarily handing out pieces of candy to students while leaving others out. Then we get to talk about how that made them feel and why it is important to treat people fairly. I am trying to decide how I should go about doing this. Should I have one of my co-teachers pass out the candy, one of the students? Thoughts, suggestions?
Does anyone have any recent pop-culture references that would be good examples of Respect or Fairness?
Over tax free weekend I purchased a new pair of athletic shoes and I made sure I got a pair that are mostly gray. Apparently white athletic shoes are a dead giveaway that you are American. Not that I have any hope of hiding that! I also got a rain coat (that fits) to be able to layer with a sweater, if necessary. I have travel adapters for the power outlets. I am debating on purchasing a backpack that has built in security features to keep out wandering hands. I am sure this is a little overboard, but we travel quite a bit and it would get good use.
If it is not already obvious, I have never traveled out of the United States. Any advice for newbie international travel?
Until next time...
Paka
Thursday, August 16, 2012
Russia Update
On July 15th I send the following letter out via email:
"Dear Friends and Family,
Twice a year members of our church travel to Volgograd, Russia to teach the Character for Kids program at Volgograd Pedagogical University. The Universal Values taught are Honesty, Trustworthiness, Respect, Responsibility, Courage, Caring, Fairness and Hope. The students are typically studying to become teachers and the goal is to model to them how to teach the values to their students. There is also an advanced class that the students can take on Conflict Resolution.
A key part of this journey involves our church supporting a church in Volgograd. While we are there, we meet and study with the members, share meals, and fellowship together. We will also spend time outside of the University fellowshipping with the students.
I've felt God's nudging for years to be a part of this program. Ryan and I have prayed about this, God has been faithful with the timing of my job and our family, and in October of this year I will travel with 5 other members of our congregation to Volgograd!
I have two requests of you as I prepare for this journey. First, and most importantly, I ask for your prayers. Please pray for our team as we prepare for this journey, that God will keep us safe, that He will open our hearts and eyes to where He is leading us and where we need to spend our time. I believe there is power in being prayed for by name, so the group going is Rick Ellis, John Cooke, Mike Odle,David Gleason, Rachael Wise and Julie Pagenkopf.
The second request is more difficult for me, but I believe that God calls us to ask each other for help when needed. I ask that you prayerfully consider joining me financially on my journey. The cost of the trip is around $2,500 to $3,000. No gift is too small, and all gifts are sincerely appreciated. Any funds raised beyond that will either be used to assist other members of the team pay for their portion of the trip (if needed), or to provide additional assistance to the church in Volgograd. Please send contributions directly to our church with “Julie Pagenkopf –Russia” in the memo line. Please also label the envelope with that information to help distinguish it. The address is Riverside Church of Christ, 150 E. Beltline Rd Coppell, TX 75019.
Also, there is a post on March 17th about the decision to start this journey.
I thank you for your prayers, love and support as I make this journey. I know God has big things planned for me in this ministry.
Love and Blessings,
Julie Pagenkopf"
Financial Updates:
Thanks to some very generous gifts, I only have about $900 remaining to raise. God continues to be faithful even when I have doubts.
Preparation Updates:
Our team meets regularly to get together and spend time getting to know one another and prepare for our journey. I started really reading through the materials and trainer's guide two weeks ago to begin to prepare my portions of the classes. I get to teach Respect and Fairness and I get to assign the homework the first night.
The homework is really easy, (and not so much) we ask the students to write down what they believe. Ex. I believe in love at first sight, I believe in God, I believe in aliens, I believe peace is possible etc. The one thing I am struggling with in presenting this assignment is what examples to put up on the presentation. I could go with the ones that are already there, or I can put up some new ones. One of the current examples is the peace answer. I was given the opportunity to read some previous years papers and that answer was given an awful lot. So I am wondering did they put it down because they really believe it or because it was a good example. My goal is to spur them to introspective thought, but not end up with cookie cutter answers. Any thoughts on possible examples? Maybe I am just over thinking it.
I am still delving into Respect and Fairness. Luckily a couple of the guys hired someone to record all of the classes, and so far I have watched the one on Respect and have some notes. More to come on that another day.
I hope to provide more frequent updates as we get closer to our travel date.
A BIG THANK YOU to all of you who are Making this Possible for me by providing support in EVERY way.
"Dear Friends and Family,
Twice a year members of our church travel to Volgograd, Russia to teach the Character for Kids program at Volgograd Pedagogical University. The Universal Values taught are Honesty, Trustworthiness, Respect, Responsibility, Courage, Caring, Fairness and Hope. The students are typically studying to become teachers and the goal is to model to them how to teach the values to their students. There is also an advanced class that the students can take on Conflict Resolution.
A key part of this journey involves our church supporting a church in Volgograd. While we are there, we meet and study with the members, share meals, and fellowship together. We will also spend time outside of the University fellowshipping with the students.
I've felt God's nudging for years to be a part of this program. Ryan and I have prayed about this, God has been faithful with the timing of my job and our family, and in October of this year I will travel with 5 other members of our congregation to Volgograd!
I have two requests of you as I prepare for this journey. First, and most importantly, I ask for your prayers. Please pray for our team as we prepare for this journey, that God will keep us safe, that He will open our hearts and eyes to where He is leading us and where we need to spend our time. I believe there is power in being prayed for by name, so the group going is Rick Ellis, John Cooke, Mike Odle,David Gleason, Rachael Wise and Julie Pagenkopf.
The second request is more difficult for me, but I believe that God calls us to ask each other for help when needed. I ask that you prayerfully consider joining me financially on my journey. The cost of the trip is around $2,500 to $3,000. No gift is too small, and all gifts are sincerely appreciated. Any funds raised beyond that will either be used to assist other members of the team pay for their portion of the trip (if needed), or to provide additional assistance to the church in Volgograd. Please send contributions directly to our church with “Julie Pagenkopf –Russia” in the memo line. Please also label the envelope with that information to help distinguish it. The address is Riverside Church of Christ, 150 E. Beltline Rd Coppell, TX 75019.
Also, there is a post on March 17th about the decision to start this journey.
I thank you for your prayers, love and support as I make this journey. I know God has big things planned for me in this ministry.
Love and Blessings,
Julie Pagenkopf"
Financial Updates:
Thanks to some very generous gifts, I only have about $900 remaining to raise. God continues to be faithful even when I have doubts.
Preparation Updates:
Our team meets regularly to get together and spend time getting to know one another and prepare for our journey. I started really reading through the materials and trainer's guide two weeks ago to begin to prepare my portions of the classes. I get to teach Respect and Fairness and I get to assign the homework the first night.
The homework is really easy, (and not so much) we ask the students to write down what they believe. Ex. I believe in love at first sight, I believe in God, I believe in aliens, I believe peace is possible etc. The one thing I am struggling with in presenting this assignment is what examples to put up on the presentation. I could go with the ones that are already there, or I can put up some new ones. One of the current examples is the peace answer. I was given the opportunity to read some previous years papers and that answer was given an awful lot. So I am wondering did they put it down because they really believe it or because it was a good example. My goal is to spur them to introspective thought, but not end up with cookie cutter answers. Any thoughts on possible examples? Maybe I am just over thinking it.
I am still delving into Respect and Fairness. Luckily a couple of the guys hired someone to record all of the classes, and so far I have watched the one on Respect and have some notes. More to come on that another day.
I hope to provide more frequent updates as we get closer to our travel date.
A BIG THANK YOU to all of you who are Making this Possible for me by providing support in EVERY way.
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
In Memory - Year 2
Today marks the 2nd anniversary of the day a dear friend got to meet Jesus with his sweet daughter. You can read my post from the 1st anniversary here. Everything I said from last year still holds true. I still miss Phil and Raychel a LOT. Life will never again be the same, and that's ok. This year I choose to focus on the fact that they are with Jesus, and that's where I want to be. I am not sad for them; I am still sad for us. I look forward to the day that I FINALLY get to meet Jesus and he will say "Well done, come on in!" And part of me hopes Phil will be waiting there to greet me and say, "Well done, nah, she did ok, but let her in anyway." And we will hug (and I would say, and I would cry, but there are no tears in heaven, so I will get all the crying done now) and it will be as if no time has passed. He will show me around and sign me up for Praise Team.
Today is also the 2nd birthday of a SWEET BOY! Happy Birthday Big Boy! You are a beautiful light and a wonderful gift! You have Godly parents, family and friends and I look forward to continuing to watching you grow!
From Romans 8
28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
Thanks for stopping by. Please keep Debby, Zachary and the rest of the family in your prayers today.
Today is also the 2nd birthday of a SWEET BOY! Happy Birthday Big Boy! You are a beautiful light and a wonderful gift! You have Godly parents, family and friends and I look forward to continuing to watching you grow!
From Romans 8
28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
Thanks for stopping by. Please keep Debby, Zachary and the rest of the family in your prayers today.
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
Wonderful Wednesday
I decided that "Weigh-in-Wednesday" was too weighty of a title.
I lost another 1.6, for a total of 38.2, but if anyone asks I say "40 pounds."
Short post for today.
Final thought:
"Being FAT is hard, Being SKINNY is hard, choose your hard."
I lost another 1.6, for a total of 38.2, but if anyone asks I say "40 pounds."
Short post for today.
Final thought:
"Being FAT is hard, Being SKINNY is hard, choose your hard."
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)