Permanent Impact August 2009
. . . a newsletter to keep you up-to-date with Sculley family adventures in Russia and beyond
We’re willing to go . . . are you willing to send us?
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Transitions
The Sculley family has been in the midst of transitions, it seems, these past few months. In early July, we said many heartfelt goodbyes in Nizhny Novgorod. Here are some pictures from our last few days in Nizhny. Karen again had the opportunity to preach at the Nizhny Vineyard, and together Paul and Karen prayed a blessing on the congregation. It was a bittersweet time, so many lovely memories but very sad to say bye for now to many loved ones there. Oleg and Sasha announced their engagement that day – we rejoice that another Christian family is being established!
Here’s the link we promised you in our last newsletter for the video of “A Day in the Life of the Nizhny Novgorod Vineyard” from June 7th, 2009. This is a super 15 minute video (thanks to Gyena Chavdar’s expertise) that gives you a peek at life there – starts with the church service, then the mystery youth adventure, which wound up at our apartment . . . youtube wouldn’t let us put it up in a single video, so it’s in two parts . . .
We enjoyed many guests each day in our final weeks in Nizhny. On our last evening, we hosted a special gathering at our apartment with some of our closest friends. We shared a meal together, the gaggle of kids had a super time, and we presented each family with a prophetic gift.
The day we left Nizhny Novgorod, we crammed our 19 suitcases, 12 carry-ons and 2 Pooh Bears into a 13-seater van (along with the 8 of us and our driver), for the 7 hour trip to Moscow. Misha & Larissa and the Chavdar family helped us so much with everything – we’re thankful for such great friends! Just a few days after we left Nizhny, Misha & Larissa (and their son Roma) traveled to Perm for a month to begin studying at the Russian Vineyard Leadership School, along with leaders from Vineyard churches in four other Russian cities and Kazakhstan. They have completed phase 1 – phase 2 lasts for approximately 40 weeks, during which time they will study via DVD teachings in their local churches. It’s exciting to see God growing up the next generation of leaders!
Thanks to being creatively routed through various airports, we were blessed to be able to spend a few days in London en route. It turned out to be a great way to debrief and get used to hearing English spoken widely again, while relaxing and seeing a few sights. We especially enjoyed the Tower of London, boating on the Thames, London Eye, Greenwich Meridian, Windsor Castle, double-decker buses and red phone booths!
We enjoyed a wonderful welcome by 20 or so friends the evening we returned to Atlanta (often affectionately known as “Hotlanta” in the summer!). It felt surreal to be back in an environment that was familiar and unfamiliar all at once. We’ve gone through the usual grief and reverse culture shock, finding “normal” things to be surprising at times – driving 60mph / 100kph on interstates with 6 or 8 lanes each way (after almost exclusively riding buses in Russia); facing “overchoice” in every store; smelling and seeing the lush summer growth; glad to be back among friends and family here, yet missing the community experience of living in our city apartment. It’s definitely challenging integrating our various worlds together especially because we are always far from loved ones, but also because they are so vastly different in some ways. But we are so thankful for email and facebook!
C celebrated her 12th birthday twice, with girl time on her actual birthday in Nizhny, and again a few weeks later in Atlanta with family and friends.
Just two days after returning to Atlanta, M celebrated his 14th birthday with family and friends and a special outing to an Atlanta Braves baseball game.
Since being back, we’ve focused on reconnecting relationships and giving ourselves time to get readjusted and reorganized. Moving back and forth definitely gives one the motivation to simplify stuff! Interestingly, our home church (the Atlanta Vineyard) is also facing a big transition this month, as we move out of our building of the past 7 years into a rented facility. It does seem that the Lord has brought us back here for such a time as this, to help with this challenging transition. We are connecting again with various groups – it’s always a joy to pray and grow in faith with our brothers and sisters in Christ.
Next week we face another family transition – our P is off on his next adventure, as he begins electrical engineering studies at Le Tourneau University in Texas (about 680 miles / 1100 km from Atlanta). Lobachevsky University in Nizhny stunned us by sending his translated transcript in record time, so it’s possible he may even receive some official credit for his studies there, although the experience was worth far more than academic transfers. We are so proud of P, and he leads by example with his adaptability and cheerfulness in all kinds of situations! At 17, he finds it puzzling to meet kids older than him who still have another year or two of high school . . .
Our home school, Sculley Academy, is beginning our 14th year this month. In addition to the 5 remaining Sculley students (J, M, C, E, K), we are welcoming a new student, A (one of C’s closest friends from birth). We look forward to an exciting year of delving into all kinds of topics like AP Calculus, Worldview, Thinking Skills, and many more.
C is enthusiastically preparing to teach her first outside class (she’s been teaching her little sisters for years!) . . .
Karen is continuing her Russian studies as much as possible (though it is much more challenging without lots of Russians to practice with). Here’s a link to an article she wrote (in Russian) that she spoke in May at the “Large Families & Disabled Children’s Association” in Nizhny as part of her studies – http://formystudents.nnov.ru/ The article is on her teacher Anna’s website, and is entitled “Karen Sculley – concerning family traditions”.
Thanks for all your prayers, encouragement, and support! We love you and appreciate you!
Our contact information:
U.S. phone number: 770-279-9379
facebook: Karen Sculley
Financial Partnership Opportunities:
We’d like to offer you a variety of opportunities each month . . . let us know if you’d like to partner with us in any of these ways. THANK YOU for your support . . . it is a joy to walk this road together with you!
• Sculley Family support
o God has amply supplied all of our needs to date – we praise Him for His faithfulness and provision!
Leadership Development
o We are currently gathering more resources in Russian and planning the development of others, specifically prayer bookmarks. Several groups of believers expressed an interest in these when we were in Russia, and we are working on coming up with some simple ones that we can print here.
o We continue to support a missionary family sent out from Russia to another part of the world. We are praying that God will raise up many more Russians to go and make disciples . . . especially but not limited to the nations of the former Soviet Union, where Russians often have much favor.
We trust God to provide everything we need to do all that He wants us to do in and through us. If you would like to invest what God has given you in Kingdom activity, through financial partnership, here’s how (all financial contributions are 100% tax deductible in the U.S.A., and are processed through the Atlanta Vineyard, our sending church to whom we are accountable):
• automated giving (automatic monthly deductions from your checking or savings account – click here for the form – be sure to write “Sculley – Russia” in the space under “recommended giving”). Once you print out and fill in the form, please mail it to the address indicated at the bottom of the form.
• online giving via PayPal (www.atlantavineyard.com — just mention “Sculley – Russia” on the online giving comment line)
Praise Reports:
• We praise God for His abundant grace that He’s poured out on us day-by-day, moment-by-moment, in the huge transitions we’ve experienced in the recent weeks. God is always faithful!
• We thank and praise God for the overwhelming sense of affirmation and blessing we’ve received in pretty much every arena of our lives – we feel so strongly God’s leading, provision, and blessing.
Please pray for us:
• Please pray for us as we adjust back to culture, relationships, and life in the U.S.A.
• Please pray for God’s blessing on the Atlanta Vineyard Church and the Nizhny Novgorod Vineyard Church. It is a joy and an honor to be deeply involved with both congregations!
We pray for you, too – please let us know your specific prayer requests. It’s such a joy to pray for one another! We have all of our email and facebook friends’ names written on our prayer wall in our home.
Our vision:
• mobilize prayer
• promote unity in the body of Christ
• encourage and equip leaders
We appreciate your prayers so much! Thank you!
“The share of the man who stayed with the supplies is to be the same as that of him who went down to the battle. All will share alike.” (1 Samuel 30:24)
With love,
Paul, Karen, P, J, M, C, E, & K Sculley
The earth is the LORD’s,
and everything in it,
the world,
and all who live in it
(Psalm 24:1)
