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12/15/2000 Continue to pray for our seniors: Uruhskhanum, Kametni, and Buhzoora. Kametni and Buhzoora have had other commitments the last 2 weeks and haven't made it to the senior's evangelical lunch. But Uruhskhanum has come every week and we have enjoyed her company. She is 77 years old, has had 12 children 7 of which are still living. She is a devout Muslim and has shown some hesitancy to join us, but Ira Ida has helped to convince her that we won't bite and she has gradually been warming up to us. Last week Laili's (our cook and Ira Ida's sister in law) husband Samat joined us at lunch. He is a surgeon and volunteered to help Uruhskhanum with any health problems she has free of charge.

12/15/2000 (continued) We hope to be able to help Uruhskhanum with some legal problems she has. It turns out that when a citizen moves from one part of Kazakhstan (or even from one part of the city) to another, they have to get permission to take their "social security" payments in the new location. We don't understand all of the details but Dildabek has volunteered to do free legal work for any of our seniors. So we pray that he will be able to help her so that she can continue to receive her $20/month social security allowance. We know that Uruhskhanum is less resistant to God's word now because last week at the end of the meal she asked me to read from "my Qur'an" (the Bible). This has been our usual practice, but it was great to have her sanction it. We have no illusions about her. Only God can melt her heart of stone and give her a heart of flesh. Please pray for her and for Laili and her husband Samat.

12/22/2000: For the last 2 weeks an unemployed Kazakh journalist named Kenjerali has joined us for dinner. He is an educated man. His wive is a teacher and he cares for their 6 and 3 year old children at home. He is about 35 years old and lives across the hall from Uruhskanum on the first floor. When he came back again this week he had read our "Answers to life's questions from Gods Holy Book" tract. Please pray that we can continue to bring God's word to this man. Uruhskanum and Kametni also came back this week. Our girls played with Uruhskanum's granddaughters who are the same ages. Uruhskanum's daughter and her husband live with her. Dildabek also came and started helping Uruhskanum with her legal problems. She was moved to tears by the offer of help. Please keep this in your prayers. It will likely take awhile to resolve.

01/05/2001:  At right is a photo of a new wall hanging that Laili made for us.  It is done in traditional Kazakh style.  The text is John 10:27-28:  "My sheep hear My voice and I know them and they follow Me; and I give them eternal life to them, and they shall never perish;"

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