2025 Faith Leap - Chapter 3: Kindness in Tbilisi

2025 Faith Leap - Chapter 3: Kindness in Tbilisi

Shortly after CJ informed us that God was telling him to stay behind until Spring, while Richard and I were wrestling with the emotions of this, Richard awoke with the number 5 prominently in his mind. He got out of bed and proceeded to spend time in devotional, seeking to understand what this meant. His scripture study further promoted/solidified the number 5 for him, and helped him to understand that God was confirming that leaving CJ behind was God's will, and that the timeframe we were thinking of was correct: 5 people for 5 months. Since that time, 5 has continued to resurface (the last minute changes to our travel brought the number of airports up to 5, the number of bags lost was 5, etc). This led me to seek more understanding of the symbolism of this number. I have learned that 5 is the symbol of Grace and Redemption. How beautifully fitting and comforting to know that, as we embark on this difficult journey, God is promising us that His Grace is sufficient. As we seek to learn and fulfil our purpose for being here, it is okay that we will stumble a great deal along the way. Our Heroic Youth theme this year is "Redemption: His Grace is Sufficient" - coincidence? I believe all coincidences are confirmation that we are hearing what God wants us to hear.

"And he said unto me: My grace is sufficient for thee" - 2 Cor 12:9

"Nevertheless, the Lord God showeth us our weakness that we may know that it is by his grace, and his great condescensions unto the children of men, that we have power to do these things." - Jacob 4:7

Highlights:

• Stalin Underground Printing Press Museum was exactly as we anticipated. Despite the operator's best efforts, we were not converted to communism.
• We had wonderful visits with wonderful friends
• Yay for Christmas lights!
• Many Tender mercies throughout a tender day remembering an amazing man with his beloved family
• Dogs, ignoring traffic laws, and should-be condemned buildings are part of the Georgia experience

Prayer Requests:

• Levan Jashi - he is facing some really hard things with courage and humility. Please pray for him to find healing and peace
• Our children as they continue to adapt to all of the change 

Stalin Underground Printing Press Museum

One of our first adventures in Tbilisi was to walk to a museum near our AirBnB that is run by an evangelical Communist. After kindly declining his offer to toast to communism with his cognac, Soso showed us where Stalin, during his Bolshevik Revolution era, had the pieces of a printing press shipped in from different places in Germany and assembled it in an underground room, where he and his comrades would print communist pamphlets in Georgian, Russian, and Armenian. The underground room was accessed by being lowered down into a well, crawling through a tunnel, and up a ladder. The army eventually discovered it and burned everything. But, after Stalin came to Soviet power, he had it rebuilt and made into a museum - that has apparently become a sort of Mecca for Chinese to visit even now (at least, according to the internet). Soso speaks very little English, so most of what he shared was to Richard in Russian. But he would regularly turn to the kids and declare, "Communism Good!" "Kaput Capitalism!" "Stalin Good!" "Millionari Ameriki" He described Communism as being what finally pulled Georgia out of poverty under the Imperial class system (which was probably true for a time). He believes the prosperity of communism would have continued if the Capitalists hadn't intervened and that, in the meantime, there were hundreds of thousands of homeless people in the United States. It was educational to hear him speak of things he "knows" - even though they happened before his lifetime and in another country - that do not at all match the narrative passed down to us. Richard asked about religious freedom under Communism. Soso said that people in communist Georgia were never not allowed to worship. They just chose to stop worshipping because they learned for themselves that there is no God and that religion is just created to control people's minds - like a narcotic. His religion is communism. When Richard shared a little of his faith, he just laughed - as if Richard just proved that he was brainwashed. But they were able to find common ground in the desire for everyone to have the opportunity to be prosperous. Perhaps it was just because we were paying customers, but the discourse remained friendly. He regularly offered to take our photo ("Photo Fantastisch!) and sends everyone away with their choice of a communist book from the garbage heap in the basement. The irony of this old, run-down, no-longer funded communist museum was not lost on us. 

Inspired Friends Anticipated Our Needs

We were blessed to visit with some of our Georgian friends.

We met Levan last time we were here. We'd invited him to join us at the Avlabari Branch game night, but he wasn't able to make it. We did, however, have a good visit with him at our apartment. He expressed a desire to join us at a church activity another time, so we invited him to attend church with us, and he came! He has some big mountains to move in his life and is a sincere and hardworking seeker of truth. We hope that he can find the peace and healing from the Savior that we have experienced. And, along the way, we are certain that he will find a welcoming community of friends at Branch activities.

Misha lives in Ukraine and planned his regular healthcare visit to Georgia to be able to see us. He so kindly brought gifts that were perfectly catered to our needs - giving the kids all sorts of coloring tools (things we'd hoped to bring but did not have space for).

Raisa very kindly made us a gluten-free meal. Somehow, she also gifted us with just what we needed - including hair clippers! (Knowing the boys would need haircuts several times while we are here, I had our clippers on the packing list and decided, for space sake, we'd just have to pay for haircuts. Now we don't have to!) Raisa shared several spiritually significant dreams/visions, including several relating to our family coming at this time to Georgia. She definitely has a spiritual gift that God uses to minister to her and through her to others. She refers to us as her "rodnie" which means close family. We have grown to love Raisa as our own "rodnie"!

Christmas Lights!

The Western influence is more prominent now than it was when Richard was a missionary. It was exciting for us to drive through the city center and see it decorated for Christmas! (Because their Christmas is in January, their Christmas season/lighting begins December 12). We learned that there are some December 25th events planned, so it is feeling more like Christmas than we thought it would.

Church in the Temka Branch

The kids and I met Merabi - a gentle giant who joined the Church when Richard was a young missionary here. Richard has fond memories of him pushing everyone's chairs forward, and whispering loudly through every meeting. He was pleasantly surprised to learn that Merabi is still here and remembered him. (And still whispering loudly through the meeting) :) 

We also saw our dear Mzia at church (the "young mother" who has watched over the missionaries for 20 years now), and met many friendly Americans here working in the Embassy. 

Following a wonderful talk by a recently-returned missionary (also Levan - who made fast friends with our Levan), Richard was invited to share his testimony. What a beautiful experience to see how the Church has grown since he served here 20 years ago.

Varazdat's Memorial Service

We left church early in order to attend the 1 year anniversary memorial service of our friend, Varazdat. This is a tender story: When Richard was a young missionary, he met Varazdat's mother, Susanna, on the metro (subway). She overheard them testifying to another passenger and followed them off as they exited the train. She told them that her daughter, Armine, needed to hear their message and she gave them Armine's phone number (along with some Armenian baked sweets). But they lost her phone number! So they prayed and prayed and eventually ran into Armine: she saw their name tags and recognized the description her mother had given of them and began lecturing them for not calling as promised. Armine and Susanna both joined the Church. I met Armine when she visited Utah when CJ was just a baby - so we have been good friends with her for years (she now lives with her husband and children in Virginia. Susanna and her husband, Norik, moved to New York). When we visited Georgia 4 years ago, it was during Covid, so church meetings were only held online. We heard an amazing talk by a sister named Alina. We were so impressed by her that we hoped we could meet her. We then learned that she is married to Armine's brother, Varazdat, and they were both members of the Church and had a little girl. We had them over for a game night and, just like the rest of the family, they are some of the sweetest people you could ever meet. Seriously, this entire family just radiates a kind gentleness. To know them is to love them. Tragically, Varazdat passed away suddenly last year. Susanna and Norik flew in for the anniversary service and, when they and Alina learned we would be here, they kindly invited us to attend. We had originally planned to stay in Tbilisi for only 3 days. But, a few days before we were to leave the U.S, Richard felt like we needed to stay for 8 days, so he adjusted our reservations. It was hours later that we received Alina’s invitation. 

That morning, the wind gusts were up to 44 miles/hour and it felt like 16 degrees F. I sent out prayer requests for the weather to improve - hoping that this trial was going to be used by Heavenly Father as an opportunity to demonstrate His love for them by granting this miracle. In time for the service, the sun came out and the wind was significantly less, but it still blew and had a bitter bite. So, it was warm enough that it wasn't miserable to be outside for short periods of time, but it was cold enough that you didn't want to be out in it for long. For the Georgian anniversary memorial service, loved ones gather and there is a procession to the cemetery. They gather at the grave and wine or alcohol is poured on the grave - a quiet toast to the deceased. People can stand in silence indefinitely. I think it may have been a blessing to Alina that the cold kept it short and sweet. (I got the impression she grieves in private and did not like being the center of the attention). So, I actually think the weather was perfectly catered to the family's needs.

When we returned to our car, we found that our tire was pretty low. Miraculously, there was a tire shop at the entrance to the cemetery (maybe they know something?...😜) and they kindly bumped us to the front of the line, patched our tire quickly, and didn't want to charge us (Richard insisted on paying them), so we caught up for the dinner as quickly as possible. 

The restaurant was cool - but the service odd. The tables are in their own little rooms. But there wasn't an obvious place to check in/arrange for a table and, when Richard asked, they acted like they didn't want to help us and they didn't recognize a party for Alina. Another small miracle was that one of her guests happened to walk by at that moment and recognized us from the cemetery, so he led us to the right place (in the upper room at the back of the property). 

In Georgian culture, the family of the deceased hosts a dinner with all sorts of traditional food (way more than anyone could possibly eat), and men can stand to toast anytime throughout the meal - during which all of the men in the room stand to join the toast. The toasts were very thoughtful - wishing the best to the family and for Alina's daughter to remember her father. On the one hand, I love the sentiment of friends and family gathering to show their deceased loved one that they will never be forgotten. On the other hand, it seems like it could feel to some like emotional and financial burden, if they are just doing it because they are culturally obligated to do so, rather than a large gathering being what they want. So it is tricky. Regardless, I hope that this wonderful family felt loved.

Notable Georgian Quirks

It is estimated that there are over 350,000 stray dogs in the Republic of Georgia. To address this humanely, the government neuters/spays, checks for diseases, then tags the dogs. It is sad to see many permanently maimed dogs and the kids want to adopt every one they see. I try to convince them not to touch the dogs, but they give each one an affectionate name.

Georgians seem to view traffic laws as suggestions rather than rules. Part of that is likely because, especially in Tbilisi, the city existed long before cars did - so it is not set up to be able to accommodate all of the traffic. Drivers have to be creative. It is not uncommon to see cars parked on the sidewalks, or two and three deep - blocking other cars in. Where there aren't lines painted (and even sometimes when there are), they play "create your own lane".  It isn’t always clear who has the right of way - in which case drivers and pedestrians just go and, somehow, no one gets hurt. All of the major roadways are surveilled by cameras but, rather than motivate people to obey the laws, Georgians just see the fines they incur by them to be part of their driving expenses - like gas.

It seems that nothing in Georgia is condemned/torn down. They just abandon buildings, let them fall apart on their own, and build around/next to them. (I missed a good angle on the photo below so you can't see it well. But the far side of this building is completely falling apart while there are still people living in the closer end of it.) It is not uncommon to pass by homes where part of the building is broken away from the rest of it, but the family continues to live there and just no longer enters the portion that is now leaning away.