Prayer Letter
January 10, 2002
Merry Christmas from Kyiv!
Christmas is celebrated in Ukraine on January 7th, as per the Julian calendar. If you factor that in, our Christmas greetings are too long overdue!
We flew out of Chicago on November 26th. Tennyson thought that it was HIS special plane ride because it was his fourth birthday! We arrived in Kyiv the next day and were greeted warmly by our team members. We are so thankful for them--they had a flat already set up for us and the first week we spent getting the grand tour of Kyiv.
And we love our city! We have quickly claimed Kyiv as "ours." We love walking around the city centre, taking the metro, getting to know the people. Our flat is on the 18th floor and we have great views on three sides. Thank you for your prayers that we adjust quickly to the cold, after living so long in the Sunshine State. Our flat is very warm, and we've had so much fun in the cold and snow.
When new missionaries arrive, their first priority is in-country language learning. We've been blessed with a wonderful Russian instructor who has 40+ years of teaching the language to foreigners--including teaching in Cuba and Japan. Larissa is a believer and has been such an encouragement, especially to Alexandra.
One of the prayers we had as a family was that we would quickly make Ukrainian friends. Our first Sunday at Holy Trinity Church we met Andrei and Irena, and their young son Elisha. Andrei speaks great English, while Irena's is a little less fluent. But she and Alexandra can communicate great mixing English and Russian together! We have been able to spend time together as families (just today we went sledding with them) and they have been helping us understand Ukrainian culture and language.
God has opened up some opportunities for friendships outside of the believing community as well. I met two young men near our place one day while out running errands. Roma is a member of the Orthodox Church and Tymur is Byzantine Rite. They're anxious to improve their English, and so our arrangement is they speak in English, and I respond in Russian. They are both very patriotic Ukrainians, and spent an afternoon taking me to some really great places in the city and talking with me about Ukrainian history. We plan to get together again soon. Please pray that opportunities to minister Christ will naturally flow from these developing friendships.
And now for some housekeeping...
E-MAIL: If you are planning on changing e-mail addresses, want to receive this at a different e-mail, or wish to start receiving these electronic updates, please contact us at calvinpartisan@yahoo.com. If you are receiving this and don't wish to be, we apologize. Just contact us and we'll remove your e-mail address. Our e-mail addresses will continue to be:
John - calvinpartisan@yahoo.com
Alexandra - meandmyboys@hotmail.com
SNAIL MAIL: It helps us be good stewards of the gifts you give us when you let us know when your mailing address changes. If you wish begin to receive or no longer receive our quarterly prayer letters, please contact us.
CONTACTING US: Our new address is
Ukraine
Kyiv 03150
John Bush
Vul. Gorkovo 103-A, kb. 86
But please note there are several options in mailing letters/packages.
1. Please do NOT use FedEx or UPS. Our understanding is that it will result in sizeable customs fees on our end, as well as high charges on your end.
2. You can use the U.S. Post Office. The post offices on this end tend to open packages, but they usually don't remove anything. (Though we did hear a story of someone who received a Christmas tin full of candy wrappers!) It is quite costly to mail from the post office and takes about 2 weeks to arrive, we've heard.
3. For small packages, you can e-mail us to see if someone from the States is about to visit Kyiv, and then have them hand-carry it. This is the most reliable method, but the timing isn't predictable.
4. Also, there is an Ukrainian company that ships things from the US and takes care of making sure everything clears customs. It is reliable, though it takes quite awhile. According to my information, you address the package to us and over it tape an envelope with Ameripol's address and enclose $10 plus $.55 a pound. Please contact this company first, though, to verify shipping costs and procedures.
Ameripol
5835 East 13 Mile Road
Warren, MI 48092
810-978-9140
313-365-6780
5. For support gifts, please make checks payable to Mission to the World, and notate John Bush #10570. Mail them to:
Mission to the World
P.O. Box 116284
Atlanta, GA 30368-6284
We want to thank you from the bottom of our hearts for being part of our support team. Many of you have been praying for us for years, and here we are! In Ukraine! We praise God for his faithfulness to us, and His sovereignty.
We are looking forward to sharing with you what God is doing both in our lives, and here in Ukraine.
With love,
John and Alexandra Bush
Johnny, Tennyson, Reagan and Calvin
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