Mike on March 10th, 2010

A dear friend passed away earlier this week.
Ken Rundell was born in England in 1919. He lived a full and blessed life: he helped liberate concentration camps in WWII; he was a missionary for over 60 years living in Africa, England, Switzerland, Finland and Russia; he was a true servant; he was a gifted writer; [...]

Continue reading about The hands of a man

Mike on March 9th, 2010

Unfortunately, this happens all too often in St. Petersburg when the government sends crews to clear the ice and snow off of rooftops.
The windshield of our van was broken this way (though the glass didn’t cave in), and the government workers made no effort to avoid the problem or pay for breaking the glass.
Ahh, life [...]

Continue reading about Bashed

Mike on February 26th, 2010

About 10 days ago, Olga and I began a road trip from St. Petersburg, Russia to visit Stoneworks ministry sites in eastern and central Europe.  Stoneworks continues to expand, and it’s an honor to be able to visit so many wonderful people that God has put together as ‘living stones’ (1 Peter 2:5).
Our first stop [...]

Continue reading about From Russia to Montenegro

Mike on February 13th, 2010

I just ran across this on the internet. It’s pretty amazing and gives a look into a part of the Soviet/Stalinist way of thinking: massive projects that capture the imagination.
In 1940s and 1950s, right after the World War 2, Russia had to recover from the consequences of the Nazi invasion. Much had to be done, [...]

Continue reading about Sea City

Mike on February 9th, 2010

Wait for it . . . .

Ice fishing!

Continue reading about What’s there?

Mike on February 9th, 2010

Olga and I have been very blessed by the great relationships God has given us here in Russia.  This was recently illustrated well.
We host a church home group at our apartment on Sunday evenings.  On Sunday afternoons, Olga teaches English to several people from our church.  In between is time for a meal and fellowship.  [...]

Continue reading about A Tale of Two Dinners

Mike on February 4th, 2010

Another note from Stoneworks missionary Liz Hulley –
This week, Russia celebrates 20 years of….McDonald’s!
I would like to leave the fast-food (health) debate for the moment and comment on the culture implications. This kind of anniversary is interesting when looked at in the light of what was going on the world at [...]

Continue reading about Another kind of anniversary

Mike on February 3rd, 2010

A friend just sent this to me –
This video shows the winner of ‘Ukraine’s Got Talent,’ Kseniya Simonova, 24, drawing a series of pictures on an illuminated sand table showing how ordinary people were affected by the German invasion during World War II.Her talent, which admittedly is a strange one, is mesmeric to watch.
The images, [...]

Continue reading about Kseniya Simonova — Amazing Art

Mike on January 26th, 2010

Our friend John Bull, missionary here in St. Pete, posted this –
When I was in the 6th grade I received 8 spankings (maximum allowed by the state of Arkansas) at school for selling fireworks at school.
This year, Melissa’s second grade teacher gave the kids a gift for the Christmas holidays.
It was . . [...]

Continue reading about I Knew I Was Russian . . . .

Olga on January 14th, 2010

Yesterday I had to run some errands down town, and decided to walk part of the way back home.  Just before the New Year we had a record snow fall since 1881, so much that the city almost came to a full stop for a few days.  Things are a little better now, but it [...]

Continue reading about A Winter Walk