MA26 – August 25
Today was the day that we were supposed to visit a prison. The man we met at the baptismal service on Saturday told us we would have easy access, not just to a prison but to any number of prisons. We simply had to provide our passport information for identification and security clearance purposes, which we did a couple of days ago. We later learned, however, that this process does not apply to foreigners. Because we are foreigners, we would have had to apply two weeks ago. We trust God’s wisdom in closing this door for us this year and will add this activity to our list of things to prepare for if we return next year.
We had other visits planned with Samvel, so we left the hotel around 11:30. Our first visit was with Artur and his grandmother. We met them for the first time last year; Artur is the boy who showed us his Bible, which started the process of us distributing children’s Bibles. We had a nice visit with them again and told Artur how he had been instrumental in this Bible distribution initiative, which made him glad. We compared him to the little boy in the Bible who shared his lunch of five loaves and two fishes and encouraged him to continue to be willing to speak up for God. We noticed that he still had a few questions but he also seemed more confident this year in his answers to the pastor’s questions.
Our second visit was to the home of another family we had met last year: an older couple living with their son and daughter-in-law and their three young grandsons. We had given them a Bible as well as both devotional books, which were all displayed on their bookshelf. Not all of the family members were present this year but we still enjoyed a time of fellowship with them and prayed, as usual, before we left.
Our third visit was to the home of a family that Samvel had just recently met. Four generations are living together in this small house which, though fairly comfortable, shows signs of difficult living conditions. The older of the two children, a boy of about eight, has recently faced some medical challenges, and is just now regaining his ability to walk after two surgeries. They had already received a copy of the God’s Workshop devotional, so we gave them a copy of Does Your Life Have Meaning? This was one of those situations where it is hard to know what to do. We gave them some money, which will be of some help, and of course prayed with them and for them, but we left with a feeling of uncertainty about their overall condition. We are praying for God to be with them and are asking for his guidance as Samvel continues his ongoing visitation with them.
Since we were spending the day with Samvel, he invited us to his home in the evening, and we met his wife Stella and one of their sons for the first time. This son, the younger of two, had been in the army during the last war with Azerbaijan in 2023. Of the 500 men in his troop, only 30 survived. Toward the end, he was not able to communicate with his family for 21 days. This was a harrowing experience for all of them, but we rejoice with them that he was able to be reunited with his family. Today being the last day of official visitations, it was nice to end it this way.
Tomorrow is our final day in Armenia, so we will spend it preparing for our journey home. Thank you all again for your faithful prayers and words of encouragement!
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