First Things First

Six hours of sound sleep, a hot shower and a hearty breakfast helped kick-start the first day in Sumy. The first order of business was to meet our wonderful interpreters.  As we crowded in the conference room, each person introduced themselves and said a few sentences about their lives. It was about what you would expect until it was Tanya's turn.  Tanya is a beautiful and bright young woman, wife and mother.  She bravely declared that she had a degree in psychology and had never been around "religious" people before.  As the words dropped from her lips, I could sense her unease with the group and a look of "what have I gotten myself into" all over her face.  Remember this about Tanya as you read about our time in Sumy because God did something extraordinary throughout the week. 

Our wonderful team of interpreters

Several of the interpreters had incredible testimonies about how God worked in their lives and families, I'll work some of them into future stories.  Following introductions, our worship leader, Bob, got up and lead us in a few songs then we got down to the business of orientation.  Yours truly was asked to do the Gospel bead explanation and to put it mildly, I was quite nervous about it.  This was my first trip in two years and the thought of "preaching the Gospel" to my peers had my stomach in a knot!  However, when it was time, the Holy Spirit gave me the confidence and the words to present His Gospel message. I started with creation explaining the incredible value of human life and how every human being bears the image of God.  The mindset of abortion as birth control and treatment of those with disabilities in Eastern Europe is quite different than our views.  Then came the fall, separation from God, Christ's life, suffering, death and resurrection; the gift of forgiveness, the promise of the Holy Spirit , spiritual growth and of course the best part - our eternal destiny (heaven) and the restoration of justice. All I can say is God really came through for me!  Whew!


The morning flew by and after lunch we boarded the bus for the rehab center where our clinic would be held. 200 wheelchairs had been shipped from the States in a container, arriving in Ukraine only 2 weeks before we arrived.  Our wonderful "boys", Ruslan and Ura, transported them by truck from Kiev to Sumy and they were waiting in a shed to be processed for the distribution.  In a matter of minutes, the team started bringing them in to the large room which would be our warehouse for the week. The shrink wrap was cut off, seats measured and chairs were lined up by size and category. 


Talu sorting specialty chairs



Remember the seven missing suitcases?  Unfortunately some of the supplies we needed for labeling the chairs were in the lost luggage but God provided alternatives for us and with all hands on deck (including interpreters) the job was completed.  As the precious cargo was unwrapped, it became apparent we had a large number of pediatric chairs.  According to Jill, the Wheels for the World leader, this was quite unusual.  We wondered what God had up his sleeve!



Unwrapping the chairs




Sorted chairs waiting for new occupants

 All of the chairs would not fit in this room so some had to be taken up to the second floor and others were put in the shed. The wheel chairs are donated by American families from across the United States, refurbished by prisoners and shipped all over the world for distributions like this one.  This is a ministry of  Wheels For the World which is part of Joni Eareckson Tada's ministry.  http://www.joniandfriends.org/wheels-for-the-world/

Once the chairs were ready, we brought the suitcases ladened with gifts each trip participant brought to distribute with the chairs.  The support staff patiently sorted and organized all of the wonderful goodies our patients would receive as part of the process.  Everyone oohed and ahhed over the beautiful wheel chair bags and blankets from the fantastic volunteers in Kansas City! 


By the time we got everything prepared for the clinic to start on Monday, it was dark and we were ready for dinner and a good night's rest.  Anticipation was high as we prayed over the wheel chairs and asked God's blessing on the activities of the week.  What would tomorrow bring?