Hamm Prayer Points: December 2006

Tuesday, December 19, 2006

Hamm Prayer Points - 19|12|06

TWO WORLDS, ONE FAMILY

We made it! Almost twenty-four hours from start to finish (I should have taken a picture of Lena braiding Maya's hair at 3:10 in the morning!) we made it to Canada. Praise the Lord and thank you all for praying for the journey!!!

So far the adjustment has gone well, with Maya quickly adapting to life on the other side of the planet. Jet lag has been a bit of an issue for us both tho, with a few mornings starting just after 4! Health-wise we're doing fairly well, but I'm still not over my cold (or whatever) and Maya hit a bit of a low on Sunday with a bout of the 24-hour flu. Thankfully she's better now, especially since neither us Canadian citizens can get any free health care from the system!!!

There has been a lot of other adjustments for me, however. It's been two and a half years since I last set foot on Canadian soil, and seven years since I've been here for Christmas! Renewing my driver's license was a cinch, but getting used to sitting behind the wheel took a bit of getting used to. It's been a treat to be able to stand in line without being pushed or jostled and be greeted with a smile when you reach the counter. Talk about culture shock! ;-)

Being together with family again has been so wonderful. Extended family has also been a true blessing. From the moment we arrived people have been so good to us! One couple even told us that they were foregoing giving each other Christmas presents so that they could help us financially during this time. God is so good!!!

Please feel free to contact us while we're in Manitoba; most times you should be able to reach us at my parents' home (204 857-3802). We'd love to hear from you!

Wishing you a blessed Christmas filled with Christ's peace & joy,

- Kevin, Lena, Sonia, Maya & Deena

P.S. I will be sharing at the Community Fellowship Church in Newton this coming Sunday morning (December 24). We'd love to see you there!

COMING TO CANADA

Two of us may be here already, but it's just temporary. It looks like Lena was able to get the needed papers much earlier than we expected, so with the medical tests on their way to London for processing, we are hopeful that the Canadian Embassy in Moscow will have all the requested paperwork by early January. So when will we see to visas? Immigration Canada isn't giving us any hints, but we figure that since it took eight months of processing for them to ask for more paperwork, we should be near the end of the "ordeal". ;-) We think there's good hope that by February all should be done, meaning that by March or April we should be ready to make the move. Please keep praying!!!

BLESSINGS

Praise God for a safe and manageable journey! Maya travelled better than expected and we made our connections without too much difficulty.

Lena underwent minor surgery this past week and came home is good shape. We are very thankful that Nina was able to care for Deena during this time.

Thank God for the many gifts we have received since our arrival in Canada. We have a great many needs, and it is so encouraging to see God's people respond. One family is even sending money to help Lena make a special Christmas meal.

PETITIONS

Please pray for God's continued protection on Lena, Sonia, Deena & Nina in St. Petersburg. Pray also for their health, especially Deena's as she has been battling a cold for almost as long as me.

Maya & I will need your continued prayers as we experience new food and new situations. This truly is a different world for us! Pray also for our health and safety, especially since we cannot easily get assistance from local health institutions.

ESSENTIAL INFO

Kevin & Lena Hamm are missionaries with Mennonite Brethren Mission and Service International, serving with Christian Camping International/Russia in St. Petersburg, Russia.

A printable version in Adobe Acrobat format is always available for download.

Visit www.krhamm.com/pray for links to print versions, archives and more.

For more on our ministry in Russia, please visit http://www.krhamm.com/.

You can help! Please visit www.krhamm.com/support for ways you can help our family & ministry.

Hundreds of our recent photos can be viewed at Flickr.com. (And now Sonia's pictures too!)

Monday, December 11, 2006

Hamm Prayer Points - 11|12|06

GOD'S PLANS, NOT OURS!

What a week! Last Monday we were set on staying home for a quiet Christmas, with hopes that the visas would be ready by year-end and we would have the opportunity to have a late Christmas with our Canadian family. Such simple plans!

On Tuesday we received the news of the visa delay: more documents needed (one is proving difficult to obtain) and a complete re-do of all the medical tests (at great expense to us)! With a narrow window of opportunity available, we all decided that sending Maya & I to Canada for Christmas would be in our best interests.

On Wednesday we managed to get tickets online, and just this afternoon, with a few hours before we are to be at the airport, we received the tickets by courier! Whew! It's now evening for us, and we'll have to be up just after 3 a.m. in order to get to the airport on time. Maya is asleep, the bags are packed and I am ready to hit the hay once this is sent.

It certainly is a crazy life we lead, but we are confident that God knows what's best for our family. We are all very tired, somewhat confused, but ultimately resting in the arms of our Heavenly Father. Thank you for encouraging us to trust in Him!

Please feel free to contact us while we're in Manitoba; you should be able to reach us at my parents' home (204 857-3802) or by email. We'd love to hear from you!

Your prayers for our journey are of course coveted. Pray for Maya that she will travel well (she tends to suffer from motion sickness) and pray that our flight connections work out (we have only an hour in Montreal). Strength for me is needed, particularly as I'm still not feeling well, and as I have to move all the luggage by myself. Thank you for praying!

Blessings on you all,

- Kevin, Lena, Sonia, Maya & Deena

ESSENTIAL INFO

Kevin & Lena Hamm are missionaries with Mennonite Brethren Mission and Service International, serving with Christian Camping International/Russia in St. Petersburg, Russia.

A printable version in Adobe Acrobat format is always available for download.

Visit www.krhamm.com/pray for links to print versions, archives and more.

For more on our ministry in Russia, please visit www.krhamm.com.

You can help! Please visit www.krhamm.com/support for ways you can help our family & ministry.

Hundreds of our recent photos can be viewed at Flickr.com. (And now Sonia's pictures too!)

Monday, December 04, 2006

HANGING IN THERE

Sorry for the absence, but I've been waaaaay under the weather for the past ten days. I seem to be doing a bit better, but I'm still without a voice (I haven't spoken a word out loud for seven days). Every time I even whisper or use my throat, I end up coughing and coughing. Needless to say, this means a lot more work for Lena as my attempts at communicating with hand signals aren't too effective with Maya & Deena! ;-)

While I'm staying home from work, I am able to do a little extra packing. We finally made the decision not to unpack our Christmas decorations. We had such hopes of setting up our Russian decorations in Canada this year! Oh well... Since we still had our tree accessible (purchased from The Bay in 1999 with gift certificates from dear relatives) we decided to make our own Christmas tree decorations this year. Yesterday afternoon Lena & Maya got busy and created sixteen different ornaments for the tree.

Almost two weeks ago we received our first Christmas card, as usual from a very faithful supporter, Hilla Funk. I can't think of a Christmas in Russia in which her Christmas card hasn't been either the first or second one received! It is so wonderful to be able to share the blessings of this season with our true "extended family". Praise God for His Gift and for the privilege to be able to celebrate as one family!

- Kevin, Lena, Sonia, Maya & Deena