Hi all,
I wanted to give you an update on Jesse. He has been really
busy and hasn’t had much access to internet. Late in May, Jesse, Steven and
Sukhee were preparing for the Athlete’s in Action team coming out from the
States. AIA arrived in UB on June 2nd. The AIA team is lead by John
Peterson (of the famous wrestling move – The Peterson!
The first morning, after a time of sharing and prayer, the
team heard from Jon the camp director explaining that these next two weeks have
been part of Gods plan for an eternity and to be expectant to see Him at work.
They started the 2nd day with a 4 mile run
through the Ger district. This was the first time the AIA team got a taste of
the Shamanistic nature of the Mongolians seeing several worship poles and a
Buddhist shrine. After that, they went to the juvenal prison and played
basketball with the inmates. Chris C. of Oklahoma State shared his testimony.
Others shared about their faith and Ian shared the gospel towards the end of
the presentation while Suhkee interpreted.
On the 3rd day they team had mat workouts and
weight checks. A bunch of the guys worked out with the Mongolians there to
develop a bond and get to know them a bit.
There has been some political unrest in UB and talk of not
allowing large gatherings, but they gave their appoval for the John Peterson
International Tournament to take place June 4th and 5th. The Cadets wrestled on the 4th and
Juniors on the 5th. The AIA team, then takes the top three winners
in each bracket to the countryside for a wrestling camp. There were about 100
wrestlers at the camp that takes place in a location about six hours north of
UB by bus.
A typical day includes morning calisthenics, stretching and
conditioning. In the afternoons there is a 2 hour workout session. It’s during
this time the AIA team of wrestlers share their faith, testimonies and share
the gospel with the campers. The Mongolians look forward to this tournament
every year because of the high caliber of coaches and wrestlers AIA sends over.
Jesse said the food at the camp was more diverse than the
last wrestling camp he attended there. In addition to the course of soup with
meat and main course of meat, they added a salad with meat. Top that off with
the hot tea provided after practice and meals and you pretty much have the food
covered! No carbs to be seen anywhere. (Jesse is so excited to have a
Gatorade!) His job was to run the skits in the evening in a Young Life type
club event. I hope he took some video!
They got back to UB to prepare for the trip to the Ukraine
to put on a similar tournament in Keiv and a camp in the countryside.
You may know, Jesse’s visa had expired and we were wondering
if he was going to be able to leave the country without too much difficulty.
Their strategy of lying low, seemed the best. He had to pay a fine that was
less costly in time and cash than a trip out of the county and back and a new
visa. Jesse was never worried, but we were relieved he didn’t spend time in a
Mongolian prison!
I believe program is pretty similar in Kiev as it is in
UP. We haven’t heard from Jesse since his
first day or so in Kiev. At this point
he is “off the grid” and we may not have contact until he steps into the terminal
in Sacramento!
Thank you so much for your prayers and support this past
year. As is typical, God has done “immeasurable more than all we ask or
imagine, according to His power that is at work within us.” Eph 3:20
I can’t believe Jesse will be home on Sunday!
Chris
