"Witnessing a Strong Faith"

Report about LifeNets Ukraine Summer 2012 Mission by Colin Kubik

This summer I got the opportunity to do something amazing. I found out in May that there was an open spot for this trip. I prayed about it and God answered my prayers. I was going to the Ukraine.

My trip started on June, 30th. I flew out of Spokane at 1:00p.m. and landed in Budapest the next morning. I walked out of the airport and I saw my uncle and his face lit up. We hadn’t seen each other for about ten years. That day we just slept and got ready for the train ride which was about four hours to the border in Chop the next day.

We arrived in Chop the next day and went through the border easily. Our Ukrainian adventure had started. We left the baggage check and standing right outside was the two Vasils and Colya (who is one of the adopted boys). We then drove the hour to the school in Vinogradov. We arrived and I was shocked on how the kids were so ecstatic to see us. When they saw Oleh and Natasha, their faces lit up. Oleh connected instantly with the kids. If you didn’t know he was an American you would have thought he had lived in the Ukraine his whole life. The first day we just met the kids and got a
preview of who we were working with.

The next day started with an easy run. I ran from Vasil’s home to the Light of Love mission. I was greeted by Alina, Diana, and Anya. They were making breakfast and they thought it was amazing how I ran there. The school started with an English lesson. Oleh was teaching them the Lord’s Prayer in English. He would go through this for the next two weeks. After Oleh’s lesson, my sister Lauren, Natasha, Greg, and I would teach the kids a song. They loved the songs so much. When we finished working with the songs we would take a break. I brought a paper airplane kit with me. The boys loved doing that. There was paper all over and it made a mess but it also made a lot of smiles with all the boys.

As the days went on I got more and more attached to these kids. They had so much love in their hearts. We would go to the river and look out for us knowing we were a little out of our comfort zone with not one English speaker there. They made us feel comfortable. They fed us so much and made sure we never got hungry. I could see that Jesus was working through them. They definitely had Jesus in their hearts. It was inevitable that I was going to leave soon and it got harder to accept as the days went on. I had to forget that and focus on the children. Working with these kids was truly a blessing. They learned a lot but I think my faith strengthened because I saw that they were living rough lives but had a stronger faith than most people.
The excursions had to be my favorite part of each day. It was very hot each day so the kids always wanted to go to the river. It was amazing. There were two rope swings that were really fun. Climbing up these trees barefooted and jumping off them was quite the experience for me. We also had mud fights. They got real messy. We also went to the park on the last day I was there. The kids were going crazy. I have never seen so much chaos.

God really opened my eyes on this trip. He showed me that these kids have stronger faith than most. They have to. They live in rough families and all they have is the Light of Love mission and their faith in God. I was just filled with so much joy when
I was around these kids. They took nothing for granted. They prayed before and after every meal. I met some of the most amazing kids. They loved learning English but I think they enjoyed having us there more than anything. Many of them were hard workers.

I pray for these kids every chance I get to. While I was there two little girls made me bracelets. I still wear them to remind me of all of the kids that I worked with.

Colin Kubik

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