estoniaX

As we get towards the end of our time here in Estonia, it starts to become clear that there are lessons here to be learned in places where we would have never thought to expect them. Sometimes little things make a big difference. In a moment, you'll read about a day that sounds very much like a vacation. If you were here and watching from a distance, you'd probably think we were on vacation. But there are things, little things, that make up the reason this is very different from a vacation.

We've fallen into a morning routine now: 11:00 AM for team devotional, before which we eat breakfast and some of us go out for a run. Today we awoke to a dreary day: after threatening all day yesterday, the skies opened last night and a steady light rain began falling during the night and it has continued since. This dissuaded some others, but KJ and I went for a run anyway and, after getting acclimated over the first few hundred yards, we really enjoyed it. The thing that's been great about these runs is getting either one-on-one time with someone or at least small group time with a couple of other people; the best part about today's run was KJ and I connecting. Speaking of one-on-one time, KJ and Shannon H had the opportunity for that at breakfast before I came down to meet KJ to start the run so that too was a good thing. I'm sure there's more of the same going on in places and times where I'm unaware of it. After our run, KJ and I joined the others (except Renee) for breakfast. When 11:00 AM hit, we were all ready to go for our devotional and today I was the facilitator; as usual, this time was great for getting us refocused and reunified as a team.

At noon Katrin and Tarmo picked us up and we went...ice skating! You thought I was going to say pancakes, didn't you? Because of the rain, we were unable to do the pancakes event so we went to this really nice mall in an area of town we hadn't yet visited and did a little shopping, followed by ice skating, and a cool 4-D movie experience. I know I for one am glad that we only had a short time to shop as I might have found a lot of stuff I wanted but didn't need otherwise! :) The ice skating was cool: a full-size hockey rink right there in the middle of the mall! Newbies like me (I'd only been once before and that was over a decade ago) and David (who had been few if any more times than that) struggled along but made some progress in time. Our hosts as well as some of our own (most notably KJ and Mark) showed off some serious ice skills.

Unfortunately, we failed to read the fine print that indicated that those named Shannon should not participate in this activity and it came back to bite us: both Shannons suffered injuries. Shannon S fell and hit her face on the ice but fortunately it seems that some some swelling is the only residual impact--please pray however that she not have any other resulting issues. Shannon H took perhaps a larger hit: she twisted her "good knee" in a fall and it has been very painful ever since, despite icing, anti-inflamatories, and aspirin. She's trying hard to bear up but she can certainly use your prayers for healing and pain relief!

Our post-skating activity was a 4-D movie experience; the way it works is that you sit in a seat on a moving platform (it's a single moving platform for all seats; there are about 20 total seats) as you watch a movie in 3-D (with special glasses of course). It's really cool--you feel like you're really moving! Well, I guess you really are!

We left the mall at perhaps around 2:15 PM and headed back downtown for lunch at a crepes place. As always, the food was fantastic! One thing that initially seems unfortunate that I thought turned out to be nice was that we ended up at 2 tables: KJ, Tarmo, Kartin, Chris, Shannon H, and I at one table and David, Shannon S, Renee, and Mark at the other; it was just nice to have a slightly smaller group with which to converse. Our meals here are generally long which is rather nice; I believe this one ended at about 4:30 PM.

So at this point, it was the end of the workday and Katrin and Tarmo...well, they'd spent the better part of their day with us, not working. And so it seemed on the surface that our presence this day, rather than helping them, was taking up their time. But though it is certainly true that being with us did take up their time, they told us that they appreciated the break, the time spent having fun and enjoying the fellowship. Remember what I said about little things making a big difference? And bear in mind too that while we're here first and foremost for them, all this time spent getting to know them encourages and informs not only them but also us. So there's a lot more benefit to these times doing simple things like eating together than it would seem at first glance.

When lunch was over we headed back to the hotel for about an hour, which gave some of the team an opportunity for a nap. Then at 5:50 PM, we met in the lobby and then drove to the home of...well, I have no idea how it's spell their names and I'm not going to even try because I'll certainly butcher them...for 6:00 PM Prayer Meeting. We talked about their local neighborhood and immediate neighbors in their apartment building and we prayed over these. Our hope is that this time was an encouragement for them to persevere (perseverance being our theme for the day, going back to our morning team devotional) in their efforts to share God's love with their neighbors.

Did I mention it rained all day?

At this point it was at least 7:30 PM and we were, in standard American fashion, horrendously late to a birthday party; we headed to said party and spent the rest of the evening there. So no big deal, right? Well, after we headed back to the hotel at about 10:45 PM (by way of the nearby McDonald's since we hadn't had dinner...I know, I know--but our choices were very limited at that point!), we met up to debrief and Renee and Shannon S told us how one of the young women at the party expressed how glad she was to have us, particularly our women, there. She's feeling the pressure of a number of issues that are not uncommon to young people but she's doing it in a culture that gives her very few opportunities for Christian fellowship period and essentially none for fellowship with older Christian women and so our women were for her truly a godsend. Alex Nifong, a professional worship leader hailing out of BC/NPCC was there because he's come to visit this church; word is that he makes it several times a year after first visiting on a trip very much like ours a few years ago. Shannon S and Renee told us tonight that Alex encouraged them towards building lasting relationships with the young women here, just as he's done with the guys, particularly Timo. The whole experience of the party really was profound for many of us. Just hanging out at a birthday party? Yeah, it sure looked like it, but it's those little things that make all the difference....

When we leave here, there may be little tangible evidence that we were ever here: no new buildings, no new wells, no new gardens. There may be no one who accepts the saving grace of Jesus Christ while we are here. This may well differ from your image of what a mission trip is all about; I suspect it differs from the image many of us on the team had before we began this journey with our preparation meetings in starting in February. But not all quality of life improvements are physical. And not all seeds sown bear fruit on our desired timetable. We are not called to concern ourselves with these measures of progress: we are called simply to have faith and to follow God's leading and in so doing, God's plan will be advanced.

At lunch, I noticed the artwork behind our table and took a picture of it; although I have no reason to believe its message is intentionally specifically Christian in intent, it strikes me as rather pertinent to this particular blog post. :)