Joshua and Kelsie Steele: Missionaries in Ukraine | Overseas Field Report

Posts Tagged ‘Family’

Happy Birthday, Abby!

Saturday, September 26th, 2009

It’s hard to believe, but as of Friday, September 25th, our little Abigail is four years old! We are unspeakably grateful for her little life and for the privilege of being her parents. Here are few pictures from her birthday party with our family.

Abby's first present was a new Bible. She always wants one to follow along during our family Bible time, and now she has one.

The next present was a biiiig one...

"Wow! A dollhouse!"

Mommy helps with the setup. Definitely a winning idea for Abby's birthday.

We would like to thank all of our family and friends who sent gifts and greetings to Abigail on her birthday. We appreciate so much your part in her life. Please pray that God will continue to guide us and give wisdom from above as we train Abigail up in the ways of the Lord.

Other Abby News
For the past year or more, Abby has shown a keen interest in music. She has demonstrated her talent by teaching herself to play familiar melodies on the piano. Songs she hears on her CD player during room time inevitably get plinked out on the piano later. Abby has also shown great interest in Kelsie’s violin. So, a couple of weeks ago, we bought her a small beginner’s violin. Abby was thrilled, and is already learning to play some songs with Mommy.

Abby practices her violin.

Tags: Abigail, Family
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Some Girls and Some Guys

Tuesday, May 26th, 2009

The Girls

It’s been a while since we’ve posted any pictures of Abby and Rebekah. Here’s a sampling of some family shots.

Abby tries on a new skirt that Baba (her grandma) made for her.

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Tags: Family, Ministry
Posted in Family Updates, Ministry Updates | 2 Comments »

When God Provides

Monday, March 23rd, 2009

In 1997, during my first trip to Ukraine, I read a book called Hudson Taylor’s Spiritual Secret. I was deeply impressed by this man’s willingness to trust God for his needs as a missionary. Hudson Taylor never asked people for money; he made his needs known to God alone. When I read that, I immediately knew that this was what God wanted for my ministry as well. Nearly twelve years later, I can say that God has indeed held up His end of the bargain. Not once have my family and I lacked for any need that we have ever had on the mission field. We make our requests known to our Heavenly Father, and He meets our needs in amazing ways. This post is a small attempt on my part to honor the Lord by documenting some of the ways that He has provided for us in recent weeks. I hope it will be an encouragement to you that our God is very, very faithful.

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Tags: Economics, Family, Testimony
Posted in Family Updates | 3 Comments »

Our trip to Krakow

Monday, March 9th, 2009

To everyone who prayed for our recent trip to Krakow – thank you! It went very well. I was able to get my visa, though not for as long a term as I had planned. There was a misunderstanding with the paperwork, and I ended up with a visa for only six months. However, in September I can apply again and, Lord willing, should be able to get my full five year visa at that time.

We got one of the locals to snap this shot of us standing in front of Krakow's Florian Gate.

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Tags: ABS, Family, Travel, Visa
Posted in Family Updates | 1 Comment »

Headed to Krakow

Sunday, March 1st, 2009

Once again, Kels and I are embarking on one of our mandatory, twice-a-year “vacations.” Even though we have Ukrainian multi-entry visas that are good for five years, the law still states that we have to leave the country every six months and come back in again. (sigh) Technically, there are ways around this (yes, we know about registration), but for us, a trip into Poland twice a year has historically been cheaper, simpler, and infinitely more pleasant than the alternative.

One of the many elegant courtyards inside Krakow's famous Wawel Castle.

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Tags: Family, Poland, Travel, Visa
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Love at First “Height”

Saturday, February 14th, 2009

Five years ago, around Valentine’s Day, my dad took me to a special restaurant for dinner. A looong discussion ensued regarding my future and what steps I should be taking. Together we decided that I should continue to wait at home for God’s direction. I would continue serving in my local church, pursuing studies, and helping my family. Only two days following this conversation, Joshua wrote to my Dad for the first time, beginning a correspondence which would shortly result in our courtship and marriage.

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Tags: Family, Fun
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This week in L’viv

Tuesday, January 27th, 2009

With the arrival of a new team member, preparations for this summer’s outreach, the ongoing development and upkeep of our correspondence Bible course (CBC), and two growing little girls, our family is keeping pretty busy these days! Here’s a quick news update to fill you in on the latest.

Bryan Shufelt
When Bryan got here on January 16, he hit the ground running. For the time being, he has been living at our ministry center and has busied himself by handling some of the paperwork related to our correspondence course. This includes things like putting together “starter packets” for new students in the course, and packaging up full versions of Good and Evil for mailing. I recently gave Bryan the crash course on how we track our CBC students using a web-based application called CBC Admin. While much of the course management requires a knowledge of Ukrainian (such as answering letters or grading lessons) there are several things that Bryan can assist us with right away. And what a blessing that will be!