Edminsters Online

Here are some excerpts from an email we just received from Pilvi Preisfreund in regards to the Avispea Church:

I want to announce good news – since Friday the 3rd, we have water again and we can go back to living like normal people. We did not have water for 4 months and had forgotten what it means to open a tap, especially little Miikael who did not remember what to do with the sink and the tap. When I start the laundry machine, he jumps joyfully up and down and calls everyone to the kitchen to see what is making that noise in the corner.

Looking back, Eerek has come to some conclusions that have also made me think. He thinks that it was not a coincident that there was no water. Rather it projects the spiritual situation of the congregation. We have a drought. And we can’t go on like this any more. We are looking forward to and desire a new experience of God and we understand that without God nothing is possible.

3 years of being at school took a lot of energy out of me and by this spring I felt empty and tired. Since this summer I have been working on my spiritual life. I have experienced the presence of God in the new way.

Be blessed and take part of our joy – the drought has passed, there is new fresh water in the well. Praise God!

Pilvi

One of the most rewarding aspects of this last summer was our participation in the celebration of two new married couples, both of whom are very near and dear to Lea and I.

The first of these was Max and Triin Laurik, married on the 5th of August. Max and Triin were both in our Junior High youth group when Lea and I were leading the youth ministry at Viimsi. Both participated in our Youth Mission Exchange trip in 2003. Both have grown into fine young adults and committed disciples of Jesus Christ. We’re proud to call them our friends and to have shared a portion of our journey together.

Max & Triin’s wedding touched me deeply in a way that I don’t think I was expecting. My chest swelled with pride when I saw them walking down the isle, as if they were my own children. I was so proud of them both.

Here are some snapshots from the wedding and a few from our shared past.

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Over the Reading Week break, Lea and I were officially welcomed into the auspicious company of the “Settlers of Catan”. Here is a picture of that first, historic game … in which I got creamed.

I have two very encouraging bits of news to share:

1. At the end of September, I was approved by the Presbytery of the Inland Northwest to move to the candidacy phase of ordination in the PC(USA).
2. I just received word a few days ago that I passed all four of my ordination exams on the first try. This is a major blow for freedom and will allow me to focus in on completing my studies at Regent in anticipation of graduation in April.

Thanks for your support and prayers!

Here’s the latest news from Eerek and Pilvi Priesfreund. Earlier this summer their well went dry during our children’s camp. We discovered during the summer that a new well would have to be dug and a new pump installed. The process would involve a lengthy wait for the proper paperwork to go through and more waiting still to secure the services of a driller. The drilling and the new pump were estimated to cost 80,000 kroons or about $6,500.

Since Lea and I last saw the Preisfreunds in July, the family has been bringing water to the house in daily trips to a neighbor’s well and taking showers at their workplaces. Thankfully, they have received all the right permissions to go ahead with drilling and are close to being able to account for the cost. Here is the latest news we received today in an email from Pilvi:

Hello,

I’ve got good news to share: we now have a well dug in the yard! We don’t yet have water coming to the house, but this is a big step in the right direction. We are so happy!

Pilvi

Please join us in praying that the pump installation and hook-up will go quickly and smoothly and be in place well before the onset of winter cold.