I'm here. Everything is going great. I rolled my foot on some pavement, it's getting better. We're planning an English club as a service to the 40-50 students who weren't able to go to the English camp we're doing for another 50 students in mid-July. Please pray for Oksana, my translator from the first week, who I've been having some really good conversations with recently. Check out my other blog for more detailed updates! Love, Jenni

What a gorgeous movie. The violin solos throughout are breathtaking. I read a synopsis that called the violin an "inanimate object." How strange. If there's anything you feel after watching this movie, it's that this particular "inanimate object" is animated by the drama of the lives weaved in and around it. It assumes a personality, almost a soul. You feel that angels must be watching over it with as much care as if it were a human being.

I took a walk on the battlefield last night at sunset. This time I brought a hat and gloves, which made for much more enjoyment than the previous day's chilly ramble. That day, I had come home ready for a walk, but since no one else was home, I picked up Surprised by Joy, thinking that I should wait for some company before setting out. But then I turned the page to where Lewis says, as if out of the blue: "Walking and talking are two very great pleasures, but it is a mistake to combine them." Well then! So I decided to strike out on my own and say hello to the deer.

I did not expect the sunset. It was one of those sunsets where the clouds are a deep purple, hanging in the blue like upside-down ice cream scoops, and the sun melts them into pink-orange fire. It was beyond beautiful. You should come with me sometime. (I'm not quite the antisocial British recluse CS Lewis was -- beauty like that should be shared!)

• We pray for church members in other countries to catch a vision for sharing Christ with their neighbors. But when was the last time we jumped at the chance to verbally or tangibly share the reason for our hope with someone near us? For that matter, when was the last time we even made a real effort to seek out and forge a relationship with someone not in our Christian circle?
• We pray, too, for local church leaders to not be alone in their efforts to reach out to their communities. But how much do we take ownership of the local outreach of our own churches?
• We pray for God to raise up lay leaders among national Christians, who will grow in their faith to the point where their zeal breaks through the barriers of the awkwardness of sharing the gospel with people in their own culture. But when was the last time we were willing to look like a fool to one of our friends because we cared more about their soul than about what they thought of us?