Crossing Over from Kazakhstan to Kyrgzstan

[Written by Kenneth on 15 July 2009]

Our final day in Almaty we managed to meet up with Doug Boyle who founded the Teen Challenge drug rehab programme in Kazakhstan. They now have 17 rehab centers and plenty of "sheep sheds" where followers gather for worship! They don't have much but have been very influential and successful in what they do. Check this out: http://www.tckazakhstan.com.

Doug is a fearless Aussie who has suffered for the cause and has been in Kazakhstan now for 19 years with a one year commitment to the Lord every year because he wants to go back to Australia. :) He also talked about the suffering one must go through to see the Kingdom established, but the satisfaction and the grace is so sufficient. He says that in life you suffer anyway, but suffering for the Master at least you have fruit. It is starting to make more heart sense to us. Don't know whether we're there yet to embrace suffering, but we are so much more convinced that giving up all and living wholeheartedly for Him is the only way to real life.

We are so glad to be here in Bishkek (capital of Kyrgzstan) after only a 5 hour journey by bus. What we expected to be a 4 hour travail at the border crossing turned out to be only a 1/2 hour and we were the ones holding the bus up with our foreign passports! We were also well taken care of when we got to town by this really nice Kyrgz girl we met on the bus called Elmira who turned out to be an English teacher at Central Asia'sonly American university in Bishkek.

We have noticed certainly that the Kyrgz people (apart from the Caucasian Russian immigrants) look more like Mongols. We don't really stand out that much here, although there were these little kids on the bus who were very amused when they thought we were Korean.

Steph is comfortably asleep now 11:15pm Bishkek time, so I think I'll do the same before a day of exploration tomorow! So far the Central Asian people we have met, despite their embassies, have been so friendly!