Canadian Thanksgiving

This Monday we celebrated the Canadian Thanksgiving with our teammates, the Wicker family. Seated left to right in the picture above (after us) are Matthew (14), John, Heidi (11), Heather Ann (16) and Sharon. It was fun to celebrate this special day with them... and guess what!!? We had a REAL TURKEY! Yes, that is right. They found a turkey in Ulan Ude. This place is definitely changing.

It's always good to reflect on our loving God... there are so many things to be thankful for! After dinner, we each went around and shared something we're thankful for. We also shared a way that God shows Himself to us through His creation (based out of Romans 1:20-21). We shared how we're thankful for each other and for the body of Christ that reaches out to us wherever we are. I (Jami) shared how I sees God in people. I love looking around and seeing Buryats, Russians, little children... we are all made in the image of God, and yet we are all so unique. God is so creative! Leif shared about how God's parental love is shown in nature. For example, most mother animals would sacrifice their lives for their children.

Here are some other things we're thankful for:
-friends and family who love and pray for us
-hot water
-beautiful snow
-teachers we love
-our first box of books arriving safely
-Leif connecting with old friends and Jami fitting in with them, too
-playing games with Russians after church
-working heat, internet, electricity
-Kleenex and paper towels (yes, they've arrived here, too!)
-cheese
-sour cream
-Bible study with women on the team (for Jami)
-letters and emails
-God's love