Brief Update

Hello again!

It's been awhile since we've posted an update here and with good reason- we have been busy traveling in the U.S.! We arrived in America on July 5th and since then have been on a whirlwind tour to visit family, friends, and churches. We leave to return to St. Petersburg a week from today.

Once we get back in Russia and have a chance to think back over our time here, we'll have a bigger post with some of the pictures that we've taken in the past month. We finally got the new camera that we ordered awhile back, so look forward to crisper, more beautiful images in blog posts to come:-)

It's been so good to be able to see so many people and talk face to face after a year of only communicating via email and Skype. Technology is a wonderful thing, but so far it has yet to surpass the actual experience of physically being present with someone and having a conversation.

An important part of our time in the U.S. has been our work to raise additional support. As we have mentioned before, our financial needs for the coming year are somewhat higher than last year's due to the fact that we are now eligible for Russian taxes and our sending agency will begin deducting an administrative fee. So while our actual expenses to live in Russia are essentially unchanged, we have found ourselves in the position of needing to increase our funding between 1/4 and a 1/3 of what it was last year.

To that end, we have been speaking at the churches that currently support us and also had the opportunity to meet with another church as well. We had the privilege of being able to speak with a children's group, a youth group, and a retired persons group at churches, so we've gotten to experience a full spectrum of people:-) Everywhere we have gone we have been received warmly and graciously and have greatly enjoyed our chance to talk about our ministry and to meet many new people. We feel very blessed by the kind words, prayers, and encouragement we have received!

With just one week to go before we leave, it doesn't seem like we have been in the U.S. for only three weeks. With all that's taken place it seems like we've been here so much longer! I always say that a perfect trip is when you've had a wonderful time and when you come to the end of it you are ready to be back home. This trip is shaping up to be just that. We have loved every opportunity we have had to spend with family and friends and sharing about our experiences, but we also know it's time to start shifting gears and preparing for another year in Russia. A new school year will be starting soon and we both have a full slate of classes that we need to prepare for!

If you are someone we met over the summer and are reading this for the first time, please keep checking back. We'll have more to come in the future!

-Matt