First Month Living in Estonia

Our first family picture in Tartu, Estonia.

It was -15°F at the time the picture was taken so Faith was burying her face in Crick’s neck to stay warm. :)

"SURPRISE!"  This was the word we heard when we arrived at our host family's home in Tartu, Estonia late in the evening on January 27.  We were warmly welcomed to Tartu by many of our friends from the Kolgata Church youth group.  They greeted us by singing a song and serving us kama, a traditional Estonian drink.  So much has happened since then, but it's hard to believe we've already been here for 4 weeks.

SURPRISE!!

 We were very blessed during our time with our host family.  Henri and Tuuli not only opened their home to us, but they also helped us to get settled into life in our new town.  In a couple of days, they had helped us with things that would have taken us months to do on our own, like opening a bank account, buying a vehicle, and finding an apartment to rent.

We have now been living in our apartment for a couple of weeks.  We're praising God for providing this new home to us!  It's located only a few blocks from church, a grocery store, and a playground.  We have begun Estonian language lessons 3-4 days a week in our home with our tutor, Aire.  While learning the language is our primary focus during our first year on field, we have also been involved in youth ministry at Kolgata Church. 

Kolgata's Youth Winter Camp 2012

· We attended Kolgata's Youth Winter Camp at the beginning of February.  Over 70 youth attended the camp!

· We've been attending and participating in youth group on Thursday nights.  We joined the leadership team in helping to plan for youth group and upcoming ministry events, such as the summer camp.

· Crick has been invited to join a team to establish a vision for youth ministry and outreach at Kolgata Church.

Faith's Update: Estonia through the Eyes of a 2-Year Old

Faith has now completely adjusted to the 9-hour time difference from Denver to Estonia.  Although she wasn't very happy about the freezing cold temperatures here at first, she has now gotten more used to it and enjoys going for rides in her sled around the neighborhood, to church, or to the store.  She also enjoys having her new bedroom and sleeping in her big girl bed!  She's been enjoying making lots of new friends, especially her girlfriends at youth group who give her candy every week.  :)  Faith has also gotten to try rice porridge and tatar (buckwheat porridge) and is having fun saying new Estonian words, like 'tere', 'hommik', and 'tsau' ('hello', 'good morning', and 'bye').

Prayer Requests

· We will be traveling to the town of Viljandi on March 2 to visit, support, and encourage a local youth group there.  Please pray for safe travel and God's wisdom and guidance in how we can connect with and serve this ministry.

· We have been invited to be a part of a new leadership team for Kolgata's Junior High Youth Group, beginning in March.  Pray for God's wisdom in the planning of outreach activities, and pray this small youth group will see growth in the coming months.

· This week, we will be submitting the final paperwork to receive our residency permit.  Please pray there will be no complications so we can receive our permit in a few weeks.

· Please be in prayer for our family as we learn the Estonian language.  Pray we will be patient, challenge ourselves each day, and be able to laugh and learn from our mistakes!

Thank you for your prayer for our family and our ministry.  As always, please keep us informed as to how we can pray for you as well!  We want to say a HUGE thank you to everyone for the overwhelming love and support we have received during our departure and first month on field!  We appreciate all of the cards, letters, emails, calls, and prayers!

To God be ALL the glory!

Love and blessings,

Crick and Mindy